copyright © 2005-2008
Apsley Labs

Black Female
DOB:11-23-1999
- Pedigree
- Kennel Club Number:AA00474002
- American Kennel Club Number:SR14786301
- British Hip Scheme 9/8
- British Eye Scheme

When I was eight weeks old I went to live in a county town not that far from the south west of London. The family that I went to live with had a very comfortable large house with a well manicured garden.

It became apparent that I had been chosen to be a pet to the children and a shooting companion to my master, in fact he named me after the famous English shotgun manufacturer-Purdey.

Whereas, they treated me very well they did not seem to understand that I was born to work and I became very frustrated. As I was not learning much I became bored and started to misbehave and always seemed to be in trouble.

I fact before my first birthday I had chewed most of the children’s toys, some of the furniture, and made my own modifications to the landscaping of the garden. Needless to say I was not the most popular member of the family and used to hear my mistress complaining about me to the master when he got home from the City.

I must have been a big disappointment to him, as he had such high hopes of taking me shooting and showing his friends what a well trained gundog could do. However, I remember the day that he realized that there was no way he could ever take me shooting with him as I had eaten 4 of the neighbors chickens that day and was really in disgrace. It was decided that I would have to be sent away to school to have some discipline and learn my craft.

The following Sunday I was bundled into the car and driven out into the country to be assessed by John Lewis, a gundog trainer. My master threw a dummy for me to retrieve which was my cue to show my paces. This I did with great panache by showing my electrifying speed as I took off across the fields completely ignoring my master’s recall whistle.

Within an hour I was locked in an outside run watching my master’s car disappear out of sight. Realizing that I had been left behind to be schooled by John I decided to show him exactly who the boss was.

My first complaint was that I had to live outdoors and be insulted by the other dogs that lived in the run next door. To register my feelings I barked and howled most of the first night but all to no avail as nobody came to see me-not even to tell me to be quiet. In fact early the next morning John walked straight past my kennel and completely ignored me as he took the other dogs for a walk.

By now I was confused as in the past I had always been the centre of attention and used to getting my own way. I was in for a shock when John appeared later; without saying a word he put a slip leash around my neck and opened the door to the run.

Normally this had been the signal to take my owners for a walk by pulling them along as fast as I could but on that day I suddenly found myself swinging in mid air struggling to breathe. I immediately stopped pulling and everything returned to normal as I heard a quiet authoritive voice telling me to ‘heel’.

Being obstinate and dominating I decided that I would show this guy that I was no push over and wasn’t going to be pushed around and as soon as he relaxed I lunged as hard as I could in a desperate effort to pull the leash out of his grasp. Boy, what a mistake that was, as once again I found myself being throttled and told to ‘sit’.

The next day after letting all the other dogs out of their runs he came to collect me. Having put the leash around my neck he blew the whistle and eight dogs of all ages came and sat outside my run. Now I may be hard headed but I’m not stupid as from that moment I understood that John was the leader of the pack and if I was going to enjoy my life I would no longer try and assume that role.

As soon as I made that decision my life changed and I nor longer had time to be bored. Early each morning we would be let out and be taken for our morning drills consisting of work and pleasure. One minute we would be running free and then whenever the whistle sounded we froze and sat and waited for the next command. Sometimes we would be recalled individually or as a pack, and at other times we would be released to continue whatever we were doing. However, we were not allowed to chase rabbits and definitely forbidden to go anywhere near the gamekeepers pheasants and partridge.

Less than six months after I went to be trained by John, my previous owner Jonathan, arrived early one morning and the three of us drove off in his Landrover. I overheard them talking about catching a ferry to the Isle of Wight where I was entered in a competition. I had no idea what that entailed but was sure that it would be fun anyway.

The first event of the day was the ‘walk up’ which entailed walking in a line with 3 other dogs, a shot was fired and a bird thrown. We had to wait for the judge to call a number, which meant that if you moved before your name was called you were instantly disqualified. When my turn game I remembered exactly where the bird was and sprinted out and back as fast as I could. John was pleased.

The second test was designed to see if the dog and handler could work together as a team to find a lost bird, or ‘blind’ as it is called in our business. I was sent along a track, stopped by a whistle blast, and sent to the left by a hand signal, into the woods. I hadn’t gone 20 yards into the trees before I smelt the bird, found it, and raced back to John.

The last test was a mixture of the two; a mark and a blind and this is where I got confused and apparently went from first to fourth position in the competition. However, my performance that day determined my destiny as in the car driving home that night Jonathon said that my potential would be wasted if I was to return to his home and family and that he wanted John to become my new owner. John agreed immediately- I was relieved and very pleased.

On Tuesdays John would shoot on a large nearby estate and he would rotate the 2 dogs that accompanied him each week. I always looked forward to my turn as there were always exciting retrieves to be made, sometimes in woods, across fields, or the Test River. However, the first time that I was taken I was sent across the river to retrieve a pheasant and did not notice some barbed wire as I jumped over the fence on the far bank. I found what I was looking for in no time and swam back, scrambled up the bank, and presented the pheasant precisely as I had been taught.

At this point John took the bird and shrank back in horror as he found himself looking inside my chest at my breast bone.

That winter I seemed to spend a lot of time in the hospital as a few weeks after the wire accident I stupidly tried free falling without a parachute from the back of a pick up truck which resulted in another break from the work I loved so much.

On Saturdays John would take us all with him to ‘pick up’ on another nearby shoot which we all loved. We would be sat about a hundred yards or more behind the guns and watch as the birds were driven by the beaters out of the woods and hedgerows and into the sky.

Our job was to mark where they fell and wait until the gamekeeper’s horn sounded which signaled the end of the ‘drive’, whereupon John would either give us the command to search as a pack or give each dog the direction of the bird he wanted retrieved. There were days when we worked until we dropped having covered many miles and retrieved a complete array of game birds; pheasants, woodcock, pigeon, duck, and partridge.

During my second summer at Apsley I became pregnant to Rolly, the brother of Toby, who in turn was expecting a litter from his friendship with Kyta, a pretty bitch that lived in the cottage as our mistress’s companion. In fact I gave birth to ten pups two weeks after/before? Kyta also gave birth to ten pups. I really enjoyed being a mother so much so that occasionally I would go and check that Kyta’s pups were safe and sound.

By the time the shooting season started I was fully fit and raring to go, having watched as all my pups were taken away by their new owners. Although it was sad to see them go I knew that my owners would never place a pup if they felt unsure of the people when they came to view them.

Then came the day when we were taken to the airport, loaded onto a plane, and eight hours later arrived in America. It was all very strange but as usual I found everything exciting.

A year has now past since we arrived in Virginia and we love our new life. We still retrieve pheasants and I have even retrieved geese which are almost as big as me! Over the past 3 months however, I have been entered into 5 Senior Hunt Tests and have been awarded 4 ribbons, needing just one more to enter the ranks of the Master Hunters.