Hi Des
I take Pearl beating, next outing for us is 21st January but this is the third year out.... And she definitely isn't gun shy, if there's a loud bang she looks up waiting for birds to fall out of the sky
Before taking her for the first time I took Pearl to a number of locations that I knew there would be gun shots such as the Game Fair, gundog training with dummy launchers and the clay pigeon range at Doveridge. Once I knew she was ok with guns I introduced her to the shoot...
Given Bonnie is wary of gun shots anyway I think if it was me I would decline this season (ends 31 Jan this year) and take her to a couple of gun dog classes over the summer and then make the decision for her prior to next season
of course there's no reason why you can't go and experience the shoot now - the banter can be a lot of fun
Edited to add: beating is as much about the human as the dog, I love the whole day out but with hindsight I would have gone on my own the first couple of times before taking Pearl - to learn the etiquette and language
flags and dogging-in have a whole new meaning now
it's also worth practising stop at distance, limited distance working and recall prior to beating.....
Enjoy!