Game Winner starts his career

Game Winner

Game Winner, our male pup, sired by Full Blast ex Springtime Showgirl got his competitive bird dog career off in fine fashion by placing 3rd in the Jan Zabericki Puppy Classic, held in western PA in early April, 2016.   Thor Kain handled “Finn” to his first win.  Born in May, “Finn” is a relatively young pup and was up against a strong field of horseback-bred pointers and setters.  Exceptionally snappy and hard driving pup, “Finn” is the kind of dog our kennel has been focused on producing and campaigning.  In Texas this winter, “Finn” really got his teeth cut on wild quail after a fall of being introduced to woodcock and grouse.  On the last workout in TX, he pointed four covies in thirty minutes, each with straight up style.  “Finn” was bred by Dave D’Hulster at his Springfield Kennel.  This is the third mating of Full Blast to Springtime Showgirl and this mating has proven to be a real niche with pups from the previous litters winning the Grand National Grouse Puppy Classic in 2015 and 2016.

Straight Forward receives 2015 Seminatore Award, Top All-Age Cover Dog

Seminatore Award 2015-2016
Seminatore Award 2015-2016

(l-r) Dave Hughes, George Johnson, Dick Brenneman, Bob Watts

At the awards ceremony held in Milan, NH, during the running of the Grand National Grouse Championship, our 7-year old female, Straight Forward, received recognition as the top English setter all-age cover dog for 2015- 2016.  This is the second time that “Cracker” has won the Seminatore Award which is named after Massachusetts native Mike Seminatore who trained and handled many famous cover dogs over a period of decades throughout New England.  “Cracker” previously won the Seminatore Award for her successes during the 2012-2013 cover dog season.

This is the fourth time our kennel has won the Seminatore Award.  Grand National Grouse Champion Body Guard won it for the 1997-1998 season and our multiple champion Full Blast won it for the 2013-2014 cover dog season.  All our Award winners have been handled by Dave Hughes.

While earning this award caused us to reflect on “Cracker’s” performances last year, we are currently thrilled with her performances during this new season with her being named the current New England Grouse Champion and earning RU Championships in the New York and Pennsylvania Grouse Championships as well as RU Champion in the MI Woodcock Championship.  These wins have “Cracker” leading the present Seminatore Award competition by a wide margin.

What a blessing to have owned and enjoyed a great dog like “Cracker”.

 

Straight Forward, RU Ch. at PA Grouse Championship

In her fourth start of the 2016 fall cover dog season, Straight Forward won her fourth straight championship placement by being named RU Ch. at the Pennsylvania Grouse Championship, October 26,2016.  “Cracker” ran a hard driving, forward hour in which she recorded two finds of grouse.  Dave Hughes was at the helm.  “Cracker’s” proven herself to be a relentless hunter and a skilled grouse finder. Congratulations to John McKellops and his pointer female, Grouse Trails Pride, named Champion.

These championship grounds are known to demand that a dog reach out to objectives.  It takes serious dog power to get over the relatively open territory on which this championship is run.  Birds are not plentiful as in some other cover dog venues.  A dog has to have great desire, speed and determination to be successful her in the Allegheny National Forest.  “Cracker’s” win this season adds to her record here at the PA Grouse Championship as she was named Champion in 2012 and she was RU Ch. just last year in 2015.

We are amazed with “Cracker’s” remarkable fall campaign.  We cannot recall any dog winning in four consecutive grouse trials, ever.  This win lifts Straight Forward to her tenth open cover dog championship placement.

Straight Forward, RU Ch at MI Woodcock Championship

 

RU Ch. Straight Forward
RU Ch. Straight Forward

70 pointers and setters vied over a five-day period at the Gladwin Preserve for the MI Woodcock Championship.  Our female, Straight Forward, was named Runner-up Champion.  DunRoven Drifter (Jack Harang,o/Rich Hollister/h,) was named Champion-congrats to that team.  This win is “Cracker’s” third Championship placement out of the three championships she has entered this fall and it is the 9th championship placement overall in her career.

At Gladwin, “Cracker” ran her usual powerful, forward, well-handled, snappy race while racking up two grouse finds and a woodcock find.  Dave Hughes was at the controls.  Birds were available throughout the venue in good numbers and there were many competitors with multiple finds.  “Cracker’s” total concentration on hunting and her “all business” attitude have become her hallmark.  Once scoring a find, she goes immediately back at it full bore.  Her intensity and style on point are above reproach.

Surely, Straight Forward’s record qualifies her to stand among the all-time cover dog greats.

Straight Forward wins New England Open Grouse Championship

New England Open Grouse Championship
New England Open Grouse Championship

Continuing on her hot start to the fall trial season, Straight Forward, our 7-year old female,  was announced as the winner at the New England Open Grouse Championship, September 23, 2016.  The Kilkenny Management Area of the White Mountain National Forest, NH,  saw 53 pointers and setters vie for the title.  Drawn in the first brace of the event on Monday, “Cracker” went out and put on a display of hard, forward,  intelligent hunting which yielded two sharply executed stylish grouse finds.  At the end of the hour everyone in the gallery knew they had seen a very special bird dog performance.  Indeed the entire field, which featured many grouse notables with multiple finds, did not eclipse “Cracker’s” effort.  Recall “Cracker” was RU Ch. at the NY Grouse Ch. two weeks earlier.  She’s an exceptional bird dog and trainer/handler Dave Hughes has brought out the best in her.

Grand National Grouse Ch. Body Guard semen available only until January 1, 2017

Ch. Bodyguard
Ch. Bodyguard

After January 1, 2017 the semen of Grand National Grouse Champion Body Guard (11-27-143), producer of Champions, will no longer be available for purchase by the public.  If you’d like to breed to Body Guard, you can do that through us throughout the fall 2016 breeding season or you can purchase and store Body Guard semen for your use or resale at some future date.

Read more about our 1998 Seminatore Award winner, top setter cover dog, on Body Guard’s webpage on our site under “Our Cover Dogs”.

Body Guard semen is stored near Philadelphia, PA, with Dr. Melissa
Goodman, a national leader in canine reproduction for decades.  You can have your dog bred by her or have Body Guard’s semen shipped to your vet for the process.  You can also purchase Body Guard semen and keep it stored in her facility or you can have it moved to a storage facility of your choosing for later use.

Semen cost:  $750 or a stud fee pup from your litter.

Straight Forward named Runner-Up, New York Grouse Championship

Straight Forward
Straight Forward

After 53 of the country’s best cover dogs were done competing, Straight Forward, our 7-year old setter female was again standing in the Championship Circle at the NY Grouse Championship.  “Cracker” was handled by Hall-of-Famer Dave Hughes.  The fine pointer, Grouse Hill Belle, owned by John Capocci and handled by John Stolgitis was named the Champion.  The placements in 2016 mimic exactly the placements in this Championship in 2015.

This is the third time that “Cracker” (the 2013 and 2016 Seminatore Award winner) has been named Runner-Up in this Championship.

There were plenty of birds found by the competitors with some having three and four finds.  “Cracker” had two finds in her hour which she combined with a beautiful first half hour of smooth, forward, swinging-to-the-front patterning.  She’s always a serious, single-minded competitor who knows how to find birds and handle them.  Conditions were tough.  It was a hot day and there was little water on the course as “Cracker” went about her business.  A brief lull in her application in the middle of her hour was a slight detraction.  From there she picked up and had a find at 45 where it took Dave several minutes to locate her in the dense cover of the stream bottom and then several more minutes to get the grouse in the air.  Meanwhile her bracemate had gone forward and after her find “Cracker” went ahead and joined the bracemate in hunting.  Her bracemate had point called at 55 in a thick creek bottom cover.  When “Cracker” went into this area, she pointed.  The cover was so dense that you could not see a handler, much less a dog, at 15 feet.  While at first it seemed “Cracker” was probably backing her bracemate, in fact “Cracker” could not see the other dog on point and when the grouse got up in front of “Cracker”, it was clear the two dogs shared a divided find as time was called.  An exciting conclusion to the brace.

 

Full Breeze and littermates sweep Freeland Puppy stake

Full BreezeFull Breeze

All StraightAll Straight

Knob Mountain MayhemKnob Mountain Mayhem

 

While their Mom, Straight Forward, was standing in the Championship circle at the New York Grouse Championship on September 10, 2016. Full Breeze, All Straight and Knob Mountain Mayhem, her 2016 offspring, were busy sweeping all the placements at their first field trial.  The Freeland Kennel Club in northeastern PA has hosted bird dog field trials for more than 50 years.  I recall going there in the 1960s.  Today the grounds are absolutely beautiful and more well-groomed for trials than at any time in their history.  The owners of these Full Blast ex Straight Forward pups entered them to get them experience with bracemates, horses and new grounds.  Mike Spotts guided his male, Knob Mountain Mayhem, to third in the stake.  “Jax” is a classy male who like all males will only get better as he matures. His style on point is outstanding.  Thor Kain’s female was second.  “Rocky” has extreme running class and she looked straight-tailed and intense pointing a quail she found along the way.  Full Breeze, our female, handled by Bob Watts put on a spectacular show of strong, generally forward hunting.  “Bree” literally blew through her twenty minutes on the ground and was not distracted in her quest by the horses, gallery or bracemate as her concentration was on bird finding wherever that might need to take her.  She was snappy and smooth-gaited finishing ahead still pushing hard to the end.  As the person in our partnership who starts pups, this was one of the most thrilling puppy performances I’ve been a part of over the past four decades.

No Limit wins season opener Derby Classic

No Limit
No Limit

Our young female, No Limit, won the Rich Warters Amateur Derby Classic at the Mohegan Wild Bird Dog Club, August 21.  “Zoey” was handled by Thor Kain of Carbondale, PA.  14 entrants ran over the “Murphy Farm” the newest and best wild bird trial site in PA.  “Zoey” busted the heavy cover of the fields and then dug into the woods and creek bottoms driving throughout her effort in relatively warm conditions.  “Zoey” is a snappy, light-on-her feet young lady who has been handling woodcock and some grouse in steady fashion in training.  She is sired by Long Gone Studley ex Mike Spotts’ National Amateur Champion Spitfire.  We look forward to the fall trials and having fun running “Zoey”.

3 Grand National Champs Vacationing

3 GN champions
Three Grand National Grouse Champions

We are grateful, blessed and humbled to have three living Grand National Champions in our kennel.  I can’t think of any other kennel in history to have three grouse champions with these national titles alive at the same time.

As with other competitive dogs, these champs have worked hard over the past years and they need a break–a vacation from hunting.

From left to right:  Grand National Grouse Champion Full Blast with my brother, Jim Watts. Jim has owned and hunted sons of Wire and Body Guard.   In the center, Grand National Grouse and Woodcock Champion Straight Forward with Jim Smythe.  Jim owned the dam of Straight Forward, Quixstar, after we retired her.  Quixstar was a terrific bird dog.  On the right is Grand National Grouse Champion Full Tilt with Bob Watts.  “Callie” is retired.  Yesterday a person who comes by my place often was looking at Callie and I said “she’s 13”.  He said, “Gee, I thought she was one of your pups.”  “Callie” is in the house every evening but she’s itching to get out and go with the other dogs in the dog pasture every morning.