Our Cockers

We got into the show or bench English Cocker Spaniel when our daughter was in 4H conformation and obedience classes. My job was to get them to shows and I was in charge of the loving end of the dogs. We raised one batch of puppies with our American Kennel Club (AKC) show dog, Annie. We kept two of the puppies for pets, one for my older daughter and one for my son. After the girls got married, both son-in-laws liked to pheasant hunt. I wanted to get my own hunting dog and liked the temperament of the English Cockers so I decided on the field breeding. The dogs from field English Cocker breeding have a more rounded head, a lot less hair (we trim the feet and ears), more energy, better health, and are very intelligent.

Comparing the temperament of field and show English Cockers they are about the same, very loving, obedient, and wanting to please. The temperament of our cockers is very relaxed in the home. They do need and demand attention. Duke, Brandy, and Sage love to sit in my lap at the same time. They will nudge my hand to get some petting. They will bark if someone comes to the door. They mellow right out after meeting strangers, waiting to be petted.

When I am taking them hunting though it is a different story. They know the difference between just going for a ride and going hunting. They can't wait to get to the field and hunt! The English Cockers have earned their nick name "pocket rockets". They are very energetic, close working dogs. It is fun to watch them work. I get many compliments from my clients on the dogs when guiding. I am a licensed guide in Wisconsin. October to December I go to South or North Dakota & Iowa hunting wild birds. To help promote the sport of hunting to the younger generation, I also volunteer as a guide for the Youth Hunt Events through Pheasants Forever.

DUKE

Duke is a field English Cocker Spaniel who was born on October 30, 2000. He is 4th generation from Scotch/UK bloodlines. His great-great grandfather is a son out of the Queen's Kennel. Duke's father, grandmother, and great-grandmother were used in Wisconsin by licensed guides for pheasant hunts. He is registered with Field Dog Stud Book (FDSB).

Duke was easy to train. We had six 1-hour lessons over six weeks with a trainer and he was ready to go hunting. I did additional control training but that was it. I believe Duke trained me more than I trained him. He is a natural hunter. I would take out my friends and they just raved about how well Duke did. In the first two years of hunting there was one bird shot that we did not find. He is a close working flushing dog ranging out 20 - 25 yards and working back to me.

Duke is a dark liver and white, ticked color weighing 32-34 pounds. He stands 17 inches tall at the shoulder, and is 30.5 inches long nose to tail bone. Duke has that chiseled athletic gait and is very fast when he turns it on. It is fun to watch him move in the field. Duke is a calm lover. He will lay beside me quietly waiting for an occasional petting. He loves his neck, ears and tail scratched, everywhere else is ok too. When going for rides he likes to sit and lean against me.

BRANDY

After the second year of hunting, my wife and I decided to go into the guide business. We felt having another dog for guiding would be beneficial. We wanted to raise some puppies and thought this would be an enjoyable activity going into retirement.

We bought Brandy who was born on October 2, 2002, from Richard Schanda. Richard was a licensed guide and used his dogs for Woodcock hunting. They also hunted pheasants for fun. He had health issues when their first litter of puppies came, so Michael Gilpin (an Englishman) facilitated the sale of Brandy. Michael also was the one who arraigned for Brandy's parents to come from the UK to New Hampshire. Michael is the top trainer in New England and one of the top three trainers in the USA. Brandy is the 1st generation born in this country. She is registered with American Kennel Club (AKC) and Field Dog Stud Book (FDSB).

Brandy is liver and white, ticked weighing 29-32 pounds. She stands 16 inches tall, and is 30.5 inches long nose to tail bone. Brandy has an even better nose than Duke. She hunts out about 15-20 yards in front of me. I did all the training with Brandy. She is very quick and agile. Brandy is very affectionate, when she looks at you with those eyes you just have to pet her. When you pet her, she will roll over for a tummy rub.

SAGE

We kept Sage from Duke and Brandy, born 4/22/2008. We needed another female. I am retiring in 2010 and can devote more time to guiding, raising, and training dogs. Sage and I did training video segments to be aired on the Fishing Guide Show out of Madison, WI. She caught on quickly to training. Sage seems to have a blended temperament and hunting style as Duke & Brandy. She ranges out a little further than Brandy and closer than Duke when hunting. Sage is white and orange, ticked. She has the same chiseled athletic look and style as Duke. We have gone to South and North Dakota in 2009 hunting the wild ones. This honed her hunting skills and I am using her now for guiding pheasant hunts.

Sage is registered with Field Dog Stud Book (FDSB). She weighs 28 pounds, 17 inches tall and is 30 inches long nose to tail bone.

PUPPIES

We stay in contact with the people who have bought puppies from us. Several of the new owners have become good friends. It is hard when the puppies go to new homes, but it is also wonderful making new friends who have a great love of dogs. Several puppies have been brought back for hunt training. Many owners call or email with training questions or to just visit. I enjoy talking about the dogs and hearing how they are progressing. This is what makes raising puppies fun. All of our puppies live in homes and are working dogs. This is what they were bred to be. All of the owners have report back the keen bird instinct in the puppies.

All of our puppies are litter registered with Field Dog Stud Book (FDSB). Most of the puppies have been liver and white, ticked from Duke and Brandy. We have had 4 orange/yellow and white, ticked puppies. The full grown puppies are weighing between 22-33 pounds for a female and 30-35 pounds for a male.

All the puppies we have sold have gone to homes where the puppy serves dual purposes. Wives tend to like the temperament and size for an in the house dog. Children like to have a good natured buddy to play with. Husbands like to hunt with a high quality hunting dog that is a good companion.

Puppies we have sold have gone to homes all over the country. While many of the puppies have stayed in Wisconsin, we have puppies in Pennsylvania, Nevada, North Dakota, Minnesota, Illinois, Washington, Texas and California.

Some owners are using the puppies bought from us for license guided hunts in their area. Three puppies in Texas are used for guided hunts of Pheasant, Quail, Dove, and Chucker. A guide in Texas registered his dog, Duchess, with American Kennel Club (AKC) for field trials. One of our puppies in California went to a couple that wanted a house dog that could do agility work. Fenway is completing her training, amazing her trainers and she has started agility at the competitive level.