About Penrose
When I bought my first Chesapeake almost nobody knew anything about them, most people had never heard of the breed. There were only one or two breeders who had bred the odd litter. Nothing had been achieved and the challenge to see what this breed could do was exciting. I started at the bottom and quickly worked my way up - every year we pushed the bar a little higher. Almost all of my Field Trial and working Test awards were in Any Variety stakes, winning more FT awards with more Chessies than anyone else. I believed then and still do that the strength of this breed is as a working dog, which is why I aim to breed intelligent, happy, healthy dogs that want to work as wildfowling dogs. I also put every effort into making sure they are extremely nice looking - if I can do this I feel I have achieved my aim.
In the early 1980's I was eager to compete and to take the breed further than it had ever gone. I won an A/V Novice WT and then an A/V Open WT against Labradors, the first time a Chesapeake had achieved either. In 1984 we won the first Novice FT award, then the first Open FT award.
We were invited to compete at international WT level at game and country fairs in teams of mixed breeds, winning 2 team 1st's and an individual 2nd at the CLA Game Fair.
In 2008 the KC gave the breed CC status. Ch Penrose Valentine WDX won the first CC at Crufts on the 9th of March.
At The Club show in July both Valentine and his dam Sh Ch Penrose Old Money made breed history by winning the Dog and Bitch CC to become the very first UK Show Champions.
Valentine soon after gained his working qualification and again made history by becoming the first UK Full Champion.
I train all my dogs myself without using any aggressive equipment, force fetching or electric collars - the use of which is illegal in Wales.
Throughout this website I show many photos of Penrose dogs working. I most enjoy river work, on the Wye or the Usk. Much of the work for my dogs is retrieving game that others shoot, working on shoots from 40 birds to over 500 per day.
I also enjoy beating (flushing game) and flighting for geese and duck.
There is nothing better in the world than to be out working my dogs.
