Locksheath Gordon Setters [Part 3]

Apart from falling in love with all the puppies, how do you decide which one is suitable for breeding?

[Laughs] For me it’s their construction, how they are physically built.

That must be really difficult at the puppy stage?

It can be tricky, because they change so much as they grow. I’ve learned over the years what traits to look for. Their bone structure and general shape. The way the shoulders lay, the angulation of the rear end. There are features that will stand out even as a puppy, but I still consider myself as a novice, even after nearly thirty years of being around the Gordons!

Do you carry out your own socialisation and obedience training?

Obedience training is a bit of a mix. We’ve attended obedience classes over the years, there’s a local one, Crofton Dog Training Club in Alverstoke, which is very good. Lesley, the lady who runs the club, has always welcomed us and is good fun. We don’t use clubs as much as we used to when we were starting out. Now Cari works her magic when the dogs are puppies, almost as soon as they have their eyes open really. Dog whistle training, especially when we start weaning them, and getting them used to other dogs and people out in the big wide world.

What’s the most challenging part of what you do?

[Cari] Giving the puppies away!
[Keith] Actually yeah, that is a challenge when you have a litter. You [Cari] find it more difficult than I do …
[Cari] Because I spend so much time with them. I work from home so they are a constant part of my day. So I fall in love with quite a few of them, and then I never get to keep them because it’s not the one that Keith wants [laughs].

How long do they stay with you?

[Cari] They stay with us for eight weeks, that’s when we let them go. If we’re looking to keep a bitch, maybe three or four of them will stay for ten or eleven weeks, until we can decide which one to keep. Of course that’s even worse because I’ve built more of a bond with them and I’m even more attached.
[Keith] The way to look at it is, although it’s upsetting for us to let them go, the amount of joy and pleasure they will be giving to their new owners can’t be measured. That makes it worthwhile in my mind. Easy for me to say of course [laughs]

So that’s it then, empty nest syndrome over and over!

[Cari] Actually, the one thing we do is have a puppy party. When the pups are a year old, we hire a big field and all the owners come back with their puppies and we get to see how they’ve progressed and they get to know each other. That’s really nice.

What’s your favourite part then?

For me, I really do enjoy the dog showing. It’s not about going out to win every time either. Obviously wins are fantastic when you have them, but it’s more the time spent with the dog preparing for the show. Grooming, bathing, making them look their absolute best and them presenting the dog to the judge. I really love that part of it.

How successful have you been at shows?

When you’ve bred dogs and they become champions, you get given a breeder diploma, and that’s something that we’ve just achieved. We’ve got two dogs out of one litter that have become champions and we’re working on another dog as well.

You must be really proud of that achievement?

As I’ve said, it’s not about winning all the time at shows, but it’s good to know that all your efforts have been recognised by the dog world community. A diploma confirms that you’re doing it right.

How long is it from being a puppy before you can show them?

When I first started showing, it could be at six months, but now the Kennel Club have introduced a baby puppy class which is for puppies between four and six months old.

Wow, really?

It’s obviously not like showing older dogs because, at that age, puppies will do pretty much whatever they want [laughs]. But people spend an awful lot of time getting the pups ready. I certainly do, as soon as they’re up and about. Usually within a month I start practicing getting them to ‘Stack’ [stand up], to know the ‘stand’ word and just get used to being handled, checking their teeth, that sort of thing.

Isn’t there another kind of competition for dogs?

Oh, you mean the field trials. This is separate from the dog showing world, where the dogs are literally out in the field performing specific field tasks. The dogs work as a pair, with what’s called a ‘Bracemate’, to locate the game [fowl], using field trial techniques that they’ve been trained for. It’s fantastic to watch them in action doing what they were bred to do. I just love it.

It sounds as though you prefer field trials to showing?

The show scene I really enjoy, but the field trials are really special. We’re training Paris at the moment for just that. It’s a completely different world, it’s not something that I’m heavily involved in, but I will be. That’s the next move forward.

I was going to ask if you would consider any other breed of dog, but it sounds as though, between you, that’s already been explored [laughs].

Probably not now [laughs]. We will have another English Setter though, but with our planned house move, we decided it’s not the best time to get one. There’s likely to be some building work required after we move. That, with having our existing six Gordon’s around and a new puppy, is not a good combination.

Do you consider Locksheath Gordon Setters to be a business?

[Keith] No, it’s a hobby and a love for the breed.
[Cari] It’s our passion for making the best of the breed by progressing through breeding and getting the genetics right.

I’ll finish up with what I call the Magic Wand Question. If money, time and resources were unlimited, would you like to do this full-time?

Oh that’s an easy one to answer. If I had the financial resources now, I would be out in the fields and at the shows all the time [laughs]. I’d do more European shows, they’re a lot more relaxed, more of a social event. So yes, definitely, full time.

Thanks very much for your time Keith, and Cari, what’s the best way for anyone interested in what you do to make contact?