Author: janetbob

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

All Straight

Knob 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.

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”.

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.

Straight Forward, our 7 year old setter female, has been officially recognized as the top english setter all-age cover dog for 2015-2016.  She achieved the same recognition in 2012-2013.  “Cracker” is best known for her insatiable drive to find birds.  She puts the throttle down at the breakaway and there’s no let up until time is called no matter the temperature, terrain or competition.  “Cracker” is exciting to watch, snappy and flashy, and her unusually high intelligence and experience makes it possible for her to find birds consistently.

Runner-Up Champion wins in the New York Grouse Championship and the Pennsylvania Grouse Championship last fall were key parts of her record this year.  Both stakes had a large number of entries.  Additionally, many will recall her near-miss challenge at the Grand National Grouse Championship last November where she was on track to win but the birds that she had pointed lifted ahead of the handler and out of earshot of the judges.  Her kennelmate, our Ch. Full Blast, won the Grand but the title would have been “Cracker’s” had the birds been heard.  In any case, she had an awesome fall and we’re again proud of her accomplishments.

On top of her wins, “Cracker” found time to have her first litter of pups.  She had two males and two females, sired by Grand National Grouse Champion Full Blast.   The pups are quite young but we’re very excited as we see many of the qualities of their excellent parents in the offspring.  Some say that the dam is the key to a great litter and if that’s true, these could be some great pups.

We especially want to thank now Hall-of-Famer Dave Hughes for handling “Cracker” to her wins over the years.  Dave’s skill and “Cracker’s” abilities have been a legacy combination.

Bob and Diane Wheelock’s setter female, Angel’s Envy, who recently won the Grand National Grouse Puppy Classic underscored her youthful credentials for making a top notch grouse dog by further winning the Bob Doran Puppy Classic and the Ruth Steward Puppy Classic.  Both stakes were held in Michigan in late April, 2016.

Angel’s Envy is sired by Ch. Full Blast.  Additionally, Fruchey Kennel’s (Tom and Wayne Fruchey) placed their daughter of Full Blast third in the Ruth Steward Puppy Class Classic.

Stakes for grouse dog puppies are judged on the pup’s demonstrated potential to become a great, championship-level cover dog.  It’s exciting to see Full Blast’s offspring score in these classic stakes and it verifies the confidence that breeders have in “Jeb” being able to help create the best grouse dogs possible.

Parachenee Flight added to her win list this spring by being named the Winner of the White Mountain Derby Classic near Milan, New Hampshire on April 30, 2016.  Reports from the trial had “Red” putting down a strong hunting effort and then being identified on point ahead.  With her straight, high-tailed stance she was a rock as her bracemate came onto the scene, flushed the birds and then chased.  “Red” stood solid throughout.

“Red” was handled by Mark Hughes for her owner, Maine resident Danny Nein.

Billed as one of the premiere spring derby stakes, the White Mountain Classic has a long history of quality performances and “Red’s” effort was worthy of this history as she defeated a strong field.

Diane Wheelock’s female setter, Angel Envy, won the 68th running of the Grand National Grouse Puppy Classic at Meredith, Michigan
April 16, 2016.  Angel was handled by her breeder, professional trainer Dave D’Hulster.

Sired by Ch. Full Blast ex Springfield Showgirl, Angel bested a field of 34 setters and pointers with a 30 minute hunt that showed off her running class as well as her strong hunting desire and drive.  She finished strong even though there was some tough going due to a late spring snowfall that refused to fully melt away.  The Grand National Grouse Puppy Classic is judged on the potential that a pup shows in demonstrating the characteristics necessary to go on and win events at the top, such as the Grand National Grouse Championship.  Envy proved she has those qualities.

Also, scoring 3rd in the Puppy Classic was a littermate owned and handled by Dave D’Hulster.  Springfield’s Half Stache also impressed with his classy carriage, drive and determination.

It must be noted that this mating done by Dave D’Hulster breeding Full Blast to Springfield’s Showgirl produced last year’s 1st, 3rd and 4th place winners in the Grand National Puppy Classic.  This repeat success has never been done before and demonstrates incredible consistency and high quality.  This niche has thus produced 5 of the 8 placements (1st place in both instances) in the Grand National Grouse Puppy Classic in the last two years.  This is not just a testament to quality of the the sire and dam but to Dave’s understanding of the available sires, their qualities and his insight needed for the planning of the mating.

Danny Nein’s setter female, Parachenee Flight, won the one-hour 2016 National Derby Classic, sponsored by the Pennsylvania Grouse Trial Club and run over the famed courses at Marienville, PA.   “Red”, handled by Dave Hughes, beat more than a score of top competitors from across the cover dog geographic spectrum in what is regarded as the most prestigious spring derby stake.  “Red’s” strong, consistent,  classy hunt in several inches of snow showed her drive and determination.  Throughout Red was forward and her application found her searching out cover both near and far.  In these difficult conditions, “Red”  was one of the few dogs really going strong as the hour wound down.  In a callback, she was impressive with her style, intensity and manners on point.

Sired by Ch. Full Blast, “Red” was bred by Maine resident Jim Gill to his Grouse Futurity winner, Fernwood Cove Bella.  Joe Dahl planned the mating and raised the pups.  “Bella” is sired by our 5X Ch. Pennstar and the sire, Full Blast (also a son of Pennstar) makes this a line bred mating that further verifies the quality of the Pennstar scion.

On a snowy early April day, Ghost Train Cody won the 2016 spring Michigan Amateur All-Age stake with Tom Fruchey of the famed Ghost Train Kennels at the helm.  Already a RU Ch., Cody continues to threaten whenever he’s put down.  Sired by Ch. Lilleyhill’s Secret Stash, Cody is just one of three offspring from the first litter out of our Grand

National Grouse Ch. Full Tilt who regularly competed in grouse championship stakes.  “Callie”, who only produced 14 pups in her three litters, has had a significant effect on the future of the breed as 11 of her 14 offspring are field trial winners.  Few setter females have ever had her success in competition and then contributed with a legacy of winning progeny who continue to make their mark.