Chesapeake Bay Retriever

Another article of interest from my files. This one relates the wonderful natural hunting instincts in the ancestors of today's dogs. THE STORY OF JOE BRADY Sired by the great Water King, Joe was whelped November 01,1908. In time, he came into the ownership of G.V.Rogers and it is through Rogers we learn of his hunting exploits. The following incidents are excerpted from March 1928 issue of Field & Stream in an article written by Mr. Rogers. Rogers writes of Joe’s logic-...Continue reading

Rummaging through my files. In 1929 this information was in the ACC By Laws and Standard booklet. Rev Schuster writing-manager of the Sioux Mission Kennels. Eastern Heavy Fur and Western Deadgrass Color Must be combined. " When the strain of deadgrass Chesapeake Bay dogs was produced an unavoidable drawback ran along with the advantage gained. In the early history of this wonderful breed a gunshy or manshy dog among the Chesapeakes was absolutely unheard of. ... There is no use for the fanciers interested in the better Chesapeake Bay dog to play ostrich and pretend not to see that sooner or later the Chesapeake dog will go on the brink like a famous Llewellin Setter did by too much inbreeding. We have today gunshy and manshy and furshy Chesapeake dogs. Fortunately the percentage of faulty dogs has not reached the mark where it is a real calamity. But if the fanciers do not pay attention to the selection of only the very best animals for breeding stock, the Chesapeake dog before long willhave lost is wonderful prestige. My experiments in the past have convinced me if we go back to the early fountain-heads of the heavy furred eastern type and pick the best available from out western deadgrass branch, we can have a Chesapeake Bay dog for which we can establish one and the same kind of standards either East or West for Bench Championship as well as for actual working trial Championship. By breeding the best individuals from the east and west I could get a hold of, I have so far had the satisfaction to produce a coat which has that real underfur and that not curly but wavy top hair enabling the breed to shed moisture and never feel cold in the worst blizzards. Color effect in the very first breeding experiment was satisfactory as it produced a medium mild sedge when the colors of the parents were a real light deadgrass and a dark brown respectively" PERSONAL NOTE: (The deadgrass color was always in the breed as far back as 1860's in the East. Earl Henry said he "developed" the deadgrass color in the late 1915 or so perhaps maybe that is the strain Schuster is referring to. For a time the deadgrass dogs were said to lack undercoat-having a short wiry coarse style. Now we know through genetics of coat and color that each is inherited through separate genes). Rev Schuster the breeder of DC Sodak's Gypsy Prince (left below) and Earl Henry with two of the dogs he said he used in developing his deadgrass strain (right).

Anonther writer on the Chesapeake from 1888 Geo.Baldwin (no relative). Forest & Stream While I have neither the time or inclination to write a treatise on the origin and breeding of the bay dog, yet as an old Maryland sportsman and dog fancier, it me pleasure to note some points that may serve "G E S" in making a choice of a retriever. Like the Newfoundland, the Chesapeake Bay dog is still to be found- with the same capacity and aptitude for his calling-in several strains,... sizes, coats amd colors, long-haired, short-haired, curly-coated; red. brown and yellow or sedge grass in color. Having gunned on one of the choicest shores of the Gunpowder Rivers for more than 20 yrs, and consequently outlived the early prejudice, I can say that by far the most satisfactory dog for the true sportsman is the medium sized, "otter-coated" deadgrass color, the shade of your shooting suit. This settles the question of color advantage. They do not carry dead water to shake over you like any long-haired animal, and consequently suffer less from cold themselves, having a fine fur next to the hide. They are powerful, fast swimmers with scent to equal to the best dog of any breed. The large dog tires quicker, is hard to keep out of sight, and of course is in the way about the blind. The endurance of these dogs as a breed and their intelligence for their business is almost beyond belief. But they are unsatisfactory for any other purpose; they know duck and nothing else. The cross attempted with a first class imported fifty guinea English retirever was an utter failure. The dogs so obtained were very fast and smart but lost the heavy coating and could not stand floating ice. While all styles and strains are in use at the many clubs on the rivers, these "otter haired" dogs have been much bred and used on the Gunpowder River, at Maxwell's Point Club, John Lynch manager; Graves Quarter, Joseph Newkirk Manager; Chases, Baltimore Cty MD. As to where the best strains can be had, let me advise that a dog or puppy may be of a goodstrain and yet not of the individual excellence. Buy no dog from a dealer unless you see him work. Like other game dogs they sell for from $20 to $100. Many duck shooters, like partridge hunters, though honest, are totally obtuse on the main points of their dog stock and do not see how their own differs from a vastly superior animal. I know of no one breeding duck dogs about Baltimore for sale. An advertisement in Forest and Stream or the Baltimore Sun would probably bring a reply. See more

Another report from the past. Forest and Stream 1897. O D Foulks one of the breed's foundation breeders. Stockton MD Away back in the early 1870's I first introduced through the medium of Rod and Gun, the Chesapeake Bay ducking dog. Afterward at the Centennial Exposition the first exhibit of them were made from my stock. While speaking of these dogs, the specimens I have now are very little like the old stock I remember. They are much smaller, and in many ways differ from... the first types. If I were breeding them now, I would secure a good red labrador Newfoundland and cross him with the smoothest-haired bitches of the old stock, for in my opinion they are nothing more than corss-bred red Newfoundlands. 1888 J G Smith Algona IA Twenty three years ago on the Gunpowder River I saw a Chesapeake Bay dog. Later I received through some friends who had shooting points on the Chesapeake and Currituck a very nice pair of Chesapeake Bay dogs. Their hair was straight but very thick. The bitch was wavy coated. If a duck or goose ever falls to the ground, the Chesapeake Bay dogs are sure to get it. They are very powerful in the water and do not seem to fear anything in that water. They swim very high and very fast and no dog that I have ever seen seems as much at home in the water as the Chesapeake. They a have a find nose and are very sure to get birds in the sloughs of the Northwest where the grass grows very high and the mud is almost impassable. The color of all my dogs is sedge brown. They show but little in the grass in hunting season. I like the Chesapeake Bay dog very much for a house dog. They stay at home and mind their own business and are not roaming over the country doing mischief for their owner to pay for. They are kind to children. My Chesapeake dogs i have never known to bark at a child. Yet my bitch stays in my house nights and I do not think it would be good for any one to break into the house. They will play outside when the mercury is 30 to 40 degrees below zero.

Some historical trivia. In 2007 historian Joanne Silver purchased an untiitled film on Ebay said to have Chesapeake Bay Retrievers in it. What a find. She had it converted to a DVD (used to be able to purchased from the ACC for $18. Not sure if any copies are left for purchase. The converted film was played at the 2007 NSS in Colorado for the ACC members. The film was made by Mrs. Milton Erlanger and Thomas Frelinghuysen produced by Pedigreed Pictures. It debuted in NYC May 2...6, 1936. The score was by famous Marc Blitzstein who in 1936 needed money as it was the depression. He was paid $350 for his musical score. The "star" of the film was FC Skipper Bob as Captain. His rival in the film was DC Sodak's Gypsy Prince. Not identified in the film one of the dogs was later sent by Anthony Bliss to the Earl of Sefton in the UK. The "handlers" of Skipper Bob and Gypsy Prince were Harry Conklin and Anthony Bliss Jr. The supporting cast of dogs came from Bliss' Chesacroft Kennels. The dogs today still look very much like the dogs shown in the 1936 film. If I can share the copy of the DVD I made, I will post it. See more

Country Life in America November 1915 "Retrievers and Their Kin" items in parenthesis is info from me. Our American counterpart of the Labrador is the Chesapeake Bay dog, a breed that is practically unknown in England and that has never enjoyed a wide popularity here, in spite of many excellent qualities. There are several traditions that purport to account for the origin of this breed. The most plausible of these is that a British ship bound from Newfoundland to Englan...Continue reading

THE OTHER STORY OF SAILOR AND CANTON Dyane Baldwin author We all know of the story of Sailor and Canton but do we all know there are two sides to the story ? The more commonly known one is the 1807 sinking of the ship Canton with Gov. Lloyd and Dr. James Stewart getting one of the two pups. The other story is of a vessel from Newfoundland running aground near an estate called Walnut Grove on the shores of the Chesapeake in the last century (19th). The crew was res...Continue reading

THE BEGINNINGS. Dyane Baldwin author The first book printed in the US on sporting dogs is The Dog & The Sportsman J S Skinner 1845. In this book appears the first account of the Sailor and Canton story. He begins "There is yet another dog, which, in these sketches, brief and imperfect as they are, should not be overlooked, as his whole life is one of devotion to the will and pleasure of his master. We allude to the NEWFOUNDLAND; or, to speak with stricter reference to t...Continue reading

The early Chesapeake had much more white than we see today. Yet the white markings still on occasion crop up today. Skinner then relates the attributes of "Leo" at Maxwell's Point on the Gunpowder River-"he can swim as far, dive as deep, stay down as long, and come up as dry" as any dog in all of Newfoundland. Leo stands 20 to 22 inches; black with a small white spot on his breast. and a little white on each foot; his eyes again yellow. He is rounder in body than a setter a...nd larger in the neck; with his ears smaller and more set up and the tips of them turning down. His is not exactly long, yet it is not short; it has a woolly under-jacket to protect his skin from the water. He has been known to bring out as many as three ducks at a time; and has the sagacity, when some are crippled, and in danger of being lost, to give them a first a finishing grip. When a duck dives to escape him, it is curious to see how he will stand erect, head and shoulders out of the water, watching in all directions for its reappearance. Skinner wrote of breaking the dogs little needed to be said. His education "comes by nature". He will be found , with judicious encouragement and exercise of authority, more docile like a child. It is a noteworthy accomplishment of the Chesapeake admirers that the qualities of his ancestors have been preserved. Today to those that breed this wonderful American treasure, please learn to make selection on what truly makes a Chesapeake. Too many breeds have diverged from their base by those breeding for convenience, money, cosmetic features (may those yellow and amber eyes long remain) and the lack of knowledge of the breed. Dyane Baldwin May 13, 2019. Please ask for permission to copy.

Introduction article to Master List complied by Eve A Keeler Article author Eve A Keeler. Brief History of the CBR standard and development. Page 1

Introduction article to Master List complied by Eve A Keeler article author Eve A Keeler. Page 2

Magazine Covers & Some art With Chesapeakes

Part 2 As a companion, the Chesapeake is a highly intelligent and independent thinking dog. He is very aware of his surroundings and his loyal loving nature with his "family" find him a good watch dog. Correct protective temperament is intimidation with barking and an imposing stance with a demeanor that says business. He is very affectionate with his owners and considers himself an equal member of his family. At home he is a quiet sensible dog that loves to follow y...Continue reading

Below is an article I wrote in 2016 for a publication on the breed. Thought I would share here (I had forgotten all about it !). Photos are just miscellaneous dog. Two part post. AN AMERICAN BREED-THE CHESAPEAKE BAY RETRIEVER. Dyane Baldwin author. The beginnings of the breed are said to stem from two Newfoundland dogs (Sailor and Canton) rescued from a brig sinking in Chesapeake Bay. Sailor, the dog, was described as a dingy red color with some white on the face and br...Continue reading