I was born on the 16th April 1993 in Sussex in the South of England into a well known and respected family by the name of Abbotsleigh.Apparently, in 1945 the Hales family starting breeding Labradors that over the years have been admired for their temperament, looks, and ability in the shooting field. In fact, Sarah Coomber-Smith, the Hale’s daughter, was the owner and breeder of my parents and who later provided me with my second husband, Abbotsleigh Indigo (Oscar).

I was purchased by my master, John Lewis on the 24th August 1993. Although he had been fairly successful competing in Gundog Working Tests with his first Labrador, Givons Digby, who was the son of Champion Show dog Donacre High Climber, John was advised that if he really wanted to compete with the top dogs he would have to buy a dog with field trial lineage.

My master’s wife Lesley really looked after me when I was a tiny puppy, ensuring that I was fed all the right foods, taught when and where to go to the bathroom, and when I got a little bit older, how to socialize with the neighbors and their dogs. I was taken for rides in the car and walks in the town and quickly became used to new sounds and smells. However, what I really looked forward to was when John came home at night and we would play this great game. He would sit on the floor and roll a small ball down the corridor and I would retrieve it until my little legs gave out. We would then go and watch TV and I would fall asleep on his chest.
By the time I was 14 weeks I knew how to sit, stay, and come but what I really enjoyed was fetching the ball and watching Digby when he was being trained. Unlike me, he was not allowed to fetch anything until he was given the command, not even when he didn’t see where John had hidden the dummy. But what really impressed me was that he knew he had to stop and sit when John blew the whistle and wait and watch which direction John’s hand signals were going to point to before he made the retrieve.

When I was about six months old I started my gundog training and seemed to know instinctively what was expected of me. John didn’t realize that when I curled up with Digby each night he would give me tips on how to mark exactly where a bird had fallen and not to retrieve it until I was sent.

As I was a quick learner I was entered in my first Working Test competition just after my first birthday and I came 2nd. John was pleased, but all I remember was the judge, Ms Joy Venturi, remarking how beautiful I looked and that I should be entered in confirmation competitions as well.

When I was about 18 months I was taken on my first shooting day which turned out to be really boring. I had to sit and watch, without making a sound or moving, whilst all the older dogs had all the fun retrieving everything that was shot. However, just when I thought we were going home I saw this pheasant fall out of the sky about 20 yards away. I looked up at John and gave him my most pleading expression and to my surprise he called my name. I raced across the field and picked up this lovely smelling warm bird and delivered it to hand just as I had been taught. Over that winter I was gradually given more retrieves and by the end of the season was even allowed occasionally to hunt for wounded birds in the woods by myself.

When the summer came I seemed to be entered in competitions nearly every other week and at first I enjoyed it, in fact I won six awards before I was 2. However, one day in the middle of a Working Test I decided I was no longer interested and just wanted to go home. I was bored and realized that what really motivated me was going shooting and making real retrieves.

John was very understanding and did not punish me, in fact he had bought another puppy, Oscar, from Sarah who became my ‘toy boy’. Oscar had a famous Scottish father with the grand name of Symington Clarerone of Leadburn, who had one practically won all there was to win in British Field Trials. He immediate took after his father by winning his first competition at 10 months and from then on I was no longer called upon to compete, as John and Oscar became a successful winning team.

I worshipped the ground that Oscar trod, so much so, that on the 2ndJuly 1996 we had our first litter, 8 girls and 2 boys. Although I enjoyed being a mother I had mixed feelings by the time all the puppies had been sold and just couldn’t wait for the shooting season to start.

In fact during my second season I became not only a capable picking up dog, but I became somewhat of a specialist! I noticed one day that when a bird was hit but did not fall out of the sky its flight would change as it glided into the distance. I knew that it was cruel to leave a wounded bird and so I learned to watch exactly where they landed. I would look up at John to let him know that I had the seen the area of the fall, and trembling in anticipation I would wait for the command to ‘fetch’.

On 13th April 1997 Oscar and I had our second litter. This time we were very clever as we had 5 girls and 5 boys and named them after trees. But as soon as my puppies had gone to their new homes it was time to get fit for the new shooting season.

By now I knew as soon as John unlocked his gun from the safe it was going to be a great day and during that winter we would hunt every Tuesday and Saturday. Pheasant, partridge, duck, the occasional woodcock, and many pigeons all needed my services to put them in the game cart.

Whoops, Oscar and I had yet another litter on the 31st March 1998. Once again we had ten pups; 7 boys and 3 girls that all left home by the time they were eight weeks.

By now we had moved deep into the Hampshire countryside onto an estate that ran a pheasant shoot. I lived in the old gamekeeper’s cottage with John and Lesley but all the other dogs were kenneled outside in between two woods that were the home to 500 pheasants.

Our lives became even happier as nearly every night and weekend throughout the summers John would take us hunting rabbits. The farmer would lose the first 25 feet of his wheat and barley crops around the perimeter of some of his best fields and was pleased that we were protecting his livelihood.

One night I overheard John and Lesley discussing a very handsome yellow dog that was a Field Champion and had won a Trial in front of Her Majesty the Queen, and as I listened it became apparent that they hoped that this dog would become my new partner.

Shortly thereafter we took a drive through the English countryside to meet Boris and after a brief and torrid affair I became pregnant-again! Oscar was very jealous and couldn’t understand my behavior but I explained that as a loyal dog I just had to do what my master wanted.

Once again on the night of the 2nd May 1999 I spent another very uncomfortable time delivering 10 more pups, this time there were 3 black girls and boys and 2 yellow girls and boys, I was very proud.

Within six weeks I heard everybody remark that they were one of the finest looking litters that they had ever seen. Although as a mum I shouldn’t have had favorites, there were 2 boys that I thought were very special; the large black pup was named Rolly and his yellow brother became Toby. To my delight Rolly went to the family that owned the Apsley estate and so he was practically a neighbor, and better still John and Lesley decided to keep Toby.

Enough is enough I told Lesley one day when Oscar came courting a few months later and within a week I was in and out of the hospital having had my ladies bits and pieces removed.

However, my life as a working gundog continued which kept me fit and happy that I could still help train the younger dogs. We used to play this game that entailed me running out into the middle of a field and stopping the instant that I heard John blow the whistle. The puppies would ignore it and go charging on until they suddenly realized that their Mum wasn’t with them. As soon as they saw me sitting alone they would charge back to me licking my face with relief that I hadn’t abandoned them. Within a week they too associated the whistle as a command to stop and sit.

The next game was even better as it resulted in us all getting our evening supper. Once again we would run out into the fields, stop on one blast of the whistle, and as soon as John blew several short toots we would all dash back into the kennels for our tasty reward.

On the 27th March 2003 I made my first flight on a plane, along with Oscar, Toby, and 2 more bitches, Purdey and Kyta. We flew from Heathrow to Washington Dulles in the USA where John and Lesley had decided to start a new life.

We now live in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia where we have even more fields, lakes, and woods to explore. In fact during our first winter in our new country we all worked retrieving pheasant, duck, quail, and geese.

Although I’m an elderly lady now and becoming rather stiff I look back and smile whenever I hear people remark ‘it’s a dog’s life’, as mine has been really special.