Jun 15, 2018



Come visit us at our NEW website



Dec 1, 2015

November 2015

Jack, Hazel, Hilda and Wicked representing the various "shades of brown" that Chesapeake Bay retrievers come in. 

Oct 21, 2014

Success at ACC National


In September, we loaded up the van with the three big dogs and the three 14 week old pups and headed off to Lancaster, PA for the American Chesapeake Club Show Specialty.
Although it threw off the consistent routine that the pups had been used to, which, in turn, turned my travel routine up-side-down, we still all managed to have a pretty good time and brought home some ribbons as well!
 
Hilda performed very well for her debut in the obedience ring and took 1st place in the Novice B class, out of the field of 14 dogs, with a score of 195 1/2 (a perfect score is 200).

Jack also did well for his first time in the ring, and was hot on Hilda's heels with a score of 195, which earned him 2nd place! I was extremely proud of both of them, especially considering that we had only started training for "formal" obedience about three weeks prior to the show!

And then the real fun began! Our "Team" obedience competition! 

Each year that we compete, I try to outdo the last with our "costumes". A couple of years ago we had a "Wizard of Oz" theme, this year I went with "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs"! We provided many laughs with both our costumes (especially the only man being made into "Snow White") and our dogs "obedience" antics. 
We ended up with 3rd place (did I mention our dogs "obedience antics"?), but the photographer did think that we had the "Best Costume"! Hazel (third in from the left) was "Happy" and I was "Doc".




Jun 17, 2014

The Puppies have arrived!

 
On Monday June 16, 2014 we welcomed 4 males and 4 females into this world!

After 12 hours of labor that started right around midnight, it's finally over! The results - 4 boys and 4 girls. Mommy Hazel and her Hazelettes are all fine and now we're ALL ready for some sleep!

For more info. on this litter, visit the 2014 Litter - Hazel x Custer page.

Jan 12, 2014

Blucollars Full Metal Jacket
After placing third in the Carolina Piedmont Retriever Clubs all-breed derby and then, five days later, winning the American Chesapeake Clubs National Field Trial derby, Jack ended up with 7 derby points, which landed him the distinction of high-point derby Chesapeake Bay Retriever for 2013!

 

Oct 13, 2013

October 2013 - Hazel with Jack and Hilda, who are now almost two years old!

In a few days we will be heading to South Carolina for the 2013 ACC field trial specialty. Jack will be the only one entered this time and he will be running in the Derby stakes. We're excited about the trip and seeing folks that we haven't seen in a while (especially my friend, Anja from Germany!!), as well as seeing a bunch of working Chesapeakes all in one place!



Jan 3, 2012

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!


Hope everyone had a safe and happy holiday season!
Ours was busy with the arrival of the babies, but all are doing very well and Hazel is being a wonderful Momma!


Here are some pictures of each pup at one week old and again at three weeks old.

Note: All pups are sold




Yellow collar female at 1 week old
and at 3 weeks old




Maroon collar female at 1 week old
and at 3 weeks old



Green collar male at 1 week old

and at 3 weeks old




Red collar female at 1 week old

and at 3 weeks old




Orange collar male "Jack" at 1 week old and at 3 weeks old
Tan collar female at 1 week old


and at 3 weeks old




Blue collared male at 1 week old and at 3 weeks old





Purple collar female at 1 week old and at 3 weeks old





White collar female at 1 week old
and at 3 weeks old

Dec 26, 2011

Christmas Eve

Wishing everyone a wonderful Christmas!


Dec 18, 2011

Puppies!

Born on Monday December 12, 2011
6 Girls and 3 Boys

Hazel and her babies are doing great!


Click Here to Watch Puppies Video


Visit the "Puppies" page to see the puppies pedigree and for info. on the parents health clearances.

Dec 9, 2011

X-Rays!

Hazel had x-rays yesterday to get an idea of how many pups to expect in a few days and to make sure everything looked normal. The vet counted 9 little "Hazelets"! Can you find them? Click on the picture to enlarge it.


Nov 26, 2011

The glow of pregnancy....

It was a beautiful day out yesterday, so I took advantage of the sunshine to take some pictures of Hazel. She is now 44 days pregnant and has begun to trade in her "athletic" figure for a more "matronly" one!




She's still got "get up and go" when I told her she could "get the ball" though!




Only 20 more days to go!!!!!!!!!!!










Nov 14, 2011

Really Busy Summer/Fall 2011

Hello to everyone! Hope you all had a great summer!
Hazel and I were very busy this summer with training for hunt tests and obedience competitions, as well as traveling to trials and ACC specialties far and wide! All of our hard work payed off though and we were able to accomplish our goals that I had set for this year.

In July we entered our first Senior hunter test and passed!



We then traveled to Hibbing, MN for the ACC field trial specialty the first week of August and ran in the qualifying, but three days travel in the van and no training created a "wild dog" that didn't mark the birds very well! But she sure had fun!


After the specialty we ran a hunt test in Duluth,MN and suffered the same fate as above. But we did have fun traveling and seeing folks that we hadn't seen in a couple of years as well as, making new friends. Can't wait for next years field specialty in Idaho, what a sight-seeing trip that will be!
By the second weekend of August we were back on track and got our second senior pass, followed up with two more passes the last weekend of the month!


Senior Hunter title in the bag, now onto Utility Obedience title!
We had gotten one UD pass in June, but then put the obedience on the back burner to concentrate on our field training. The ACC Show specialty was held in Carlisle, PA so I planned on entering utility there. Even though it was outdoors, and very warm for the end of September, Hazel performed well and got her second UD leg!

We also earned an RAE leg and second place in Team Obedience where our team was the talk of the show!
Can't imagine why?


Then it was onto the working dog stakes on Sunday, and Hazel was happy again, doing what she loves most!
She performed beautifully and earned her WDQ title.



After all the excitement of the Specialty, we headed to VA for a little R&R on the Skyline Drive, where we had a great time in the mountains, saw lots of deer, black bears and even two rattlesnakes!!!!!





But the main reason for the VA visit was to meet Wes Christopher of Tugboat Kennels and his dog Rogue, who I was interested in using as a stud dog for Hazel. The meeting went well, I was pleased with what I saw and apparently so was Hazel! Two days after we arrived home, she came into heat (she wasn't really due until November)! So multiple progesterone tests and two weeks later we headed back to VA for the breeding to take place!
Check out the "Puppies" page for more info on that!

Finally back home and hopefully bred, our next stop was Burlington, VT for an obedience trial the first weekend of November. Again, Hazel didn't let me down and got two qualifying scores for her third leg and a "bumper" leg to spare!



So what's next on our plate for CH Blucollars Hocus Pocus RE UD SH WDQ TDI?
An ultrasound today confirmed that she is pregnant, so it's motherhood for the winter and then back to field training in the spring, with a whole new set of goals to strive for!





Jun 22, 2011

Hello!

Wow, I am sorry it has been so long since I have updated this blog site!
Last year brought some changes in our lives, with my husband losing his job (of 30+ years!), but then getting a new one which he really enjoys. The months in between jobs though proved to be very stressful on us and our pocketbook and therefore we did no traveling/dog shows/hunt tests etc.
But 2011 is off to a much better start, and I have attended some obedience trials (Hazel has earned one leg towards her Utility Dog title!), and plan to enter some hunt tests this summer in hopes of obtaining her Senior Hunter title!
We're also planning on attending the ACC Field Trial Specialty in Hibbings, MN and the ACC Show Specialty in Carlisle, PA. I am primarily attending these events to scope out the current "Studs" that may meet Hazel's and my "high standards", as I'm hoping to breed Hazel this winter!
While checking out the blog site to update it, I was pleased to see that there have been some new "Blogger" features added since I originally created the site. So I have re-vamped the look and added (and will be adding more) new "pages"! Check back to see the competition/travel and training updates and photos as Hazel works towards earning her obedience and hunt test titles and also for hopeful "maternity" news this winter!!!!!

Apr 19, 2010

Happy Birthday Hazel!!!


This month (April 16th, 2010) Hazel celebrated her third birthday!!!

It's hard to believe that three years have passed already,
and yet not a single day goes by that she doesn't manage to make me smile!




Mar 16, 2010

St. Patrick's day fun



Welcome to the official
St. Patrick's day
taste test!


I'm the "official" taste tester!!


Ohhhhh.....this is gonna be FUN!


First the Smithwick's
(I see Dad tasting this one all the time!)



Eeewww....
it kinda tastes like cardboard!



Lets try the Killian's


WAIT....!!
A SQUIRREL!!!



I'm pretty sure I'd rather be chasing that squirrel!


Alright, back to tasting


Phewww....
they BOTH taste like cardboard!



Enough with the beer....
bring on the Irish whiskey, lads!

Happy St. Patrick's Day Everyone!