| "FEATS"
The moment "Missy", a Home Bred Chesapeake Bay Retriever took her first
breath of life, I knew she would stay with me for the rest of her life. I
haven't felt that type of bond before with a breeding that I did. Somehow,
I knew she was special. As she grew she knew when I was out of sorts from
an automobile accident that I had sustained an injury requiring major
surgery  and a long recuperation process. She had a
special sense of knowing to be gentle with me. She still wanted to go
outside and have fun with me but never bumped me or hurt me while I was
recuperating. She was the only dog I did anything with while I was
recuperating as the Surgeon told me not to go near the dogs. During her
training she was very quick to learn and extremely easy to grasp any tasks
that she was given.
Missy went on to have two litters of
pups. She really didn't care for motherhood so I had her spayed to prevent
further heat cycles, etc. Missy has become one really nice hunting dog,
companion dog, demonstration dog, and most of all "Best
Friend".
Numerous people have learned from her out at our training
camp where we live on 41 acres in a small town in Hillsborough County,
Florida. We have been performing at our local Sports Exposition for seven
years consecutively demonstrating retrieves on the pond behind the
Exposition Hall at the State Fairgrounds in the Frank Sargeant Tampa
Tribune Outdoors Expo. People come back to see "Missy" year after year as
she is such a "Ham" for an audience and loves to show off her beautiful
"Water Entry". She has also performed at several local elementary schools
in the area doing retrieves for the children.
 About four years ago, a client offered me $2,000.00 for her and I
politely said, "I'm sorry she isn't for sale". Last year, the director of
Purina Farms called to tell us he was referred by a client of ours and
heard that we had a couple of dogs that might be good competition for a
couple of water events that he was putting together in St. Petersburg, Fl.
He was specifically interested in "Missy" for the "Diving Dog" event and
also needed us to get
some good dogs together for a "Swim Race".
Being in the dog training business, it was easy to come up with some past
clients who had some really nice dogs that were fast in the water. He said
he was looking specifically for dogs with good water entries for the
"Diving Dog" event. I asked if he was looking for a measurement of ‘Up"
and "Out" in the water. He said, No, just how far out the dog could jump
in the water from a dock." I was hoping he had said "Up" too, as she has
this unbelievable high lift up off the dock when she springs into action.
So, we started looking for a group of dogs that tried-out at our pond and
the dock we built specifically for the "Diving Event". Practice day at the
event was May 7, 1999 in a 15 feet wide X 30 feet long swimming pool that
was constructed at the end of a forty-four foot stage for the dogs to run
on at any length that was in between that the competitors wanted to send
their dogs from. Missy was on local television that day and performed one
of her jumps about 20 feet long for the cameras. She was not new to the TV
cameras as she had appeared on local television numerous times before
including a commercial for the morning show locally that started in May
1998 and continued for a year and a half. She has appeared on a local show
demonstrating what a trained gun dog is like with a beautiful water
entry.
The first Reginal was held in St. Petersburg, Fl. At Spa
Beach Park next to the Pier on May 8, 1999. We were pleasantly surprised
that "Missy" won the Gold Medal with a water entry of 20 feet 2 inches. She went on to win the Bronze medal in the
National Finals held at Purina Farms on June 12, 1999 with a water entry
of 20 feet 11 inches.. She then was chosen out of about 50 possible dogs
to be shown on CBS in the morning in late June, 99 while giving a run down
of the Dog Challenge. She was in the "Blooper Scene" as the Dog doing it
Right!
We have also competed this year again and won the Gold Medal
on January 08, 2000 in a longer pool which is now 37 ½ feet long. No one
knew the dogs would be competing and jumping this far so the production
company along with Purina decided to lengthen the pool! Missy leaped to a
World Record win for this competition with 21 feet 9 inches. Each time she
competes she has done better by performing a longer jump. We are hoping to
win the Gold in the National Finals at Purina Farms on Oct. 14, 2000.
Missy will be 8 years old on Oct. 3, 2000. Missy will always be special to
me as she is truly a "Once In a Lifetime Dog." She is pictured here in a
sequence of shots jumping off our home-made dock on our home-made
pond.
Shirl DeVore - Breeder/Owner/Trainer/Handler
P.O.Box
997
Lithia, Fl. 33547
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