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Chesapeake Bay Retriever


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The Chesapeake Bay Retriever

ANKC Standard

(from http://www.ankc.org.au/home/breeds_details.asp?bid=75 )

Group: Group 3 (Gundogs)

General Appearance: Well proportioned, active worker with a strong muscular appearance. A distinctive oily, double coat, which is very important. Capable of working in adverse weather conditions, including ice and snow.

Characteristics: A courageous and keen worker with a great love of water. Independent, affectionate, but not extrovert with strangers, he makes a guardian of home and family.

Temperament: Bright and happy disposition, alert and intelligent and showing a willingness to work.

Head And Skull: Broad and round with medium stop. Muzzle of similar length to skull, pointed but not sharp. Lips thin, not pendulous. Nostrils well developed. Nose and lips of colour to harmonise with coat. There should be a noticeable difference between the sexes.

Eyes: Medium size, very clear, of yellow or amber colour and set wide apart.

Ears: Relatively small, well set up on head, of medium leather, and carried close.

Mouth: Jaws strong with a perfect, regular and complete scissor bite. i.e. Upper teeth closely overlapping the lower teeth and set square to the jaws. Level bite tolerated.

Neck: Of medium length with a strong muscular appearance tapering from head to shoulders.

Forequarters: Well muscled and well boned. Shoulders powerful, well laid back, long in blade with upper arm of equal length, placing legs well under body with no restriction of movement. Forelegs straight when viewed from the front. Leg length equal to depth of body. Pasterns slightly sloping.

Body: Body of medium length with well-sprung ribs, short coupled and strong. Chest well developed, deep and broad. Topline may have slight hollowness, with the hindquarters level with the withers, or slightly higher. Back strong and neither swayed nor roached. Flanks showing some tuck up.

Hindquarters: Strong, well muscled and powerful, complementing the forequarters. Well turned stifles, with rear pasterns of moderate length. Hocks turning neither in nor out.

Feet: Of good size and webbed. Toes well knuckled and close.

Tail: Strong, medium heavy at base. Straight or slightly curved, extending to hock. Moderate feathering permissible. May be carried gaily but not curled over back.

Gait/Movement: Strong and powerful, with no restriction of movement, which should be smooth, free and effortless. As speed increases the feet tend to converge.

Coat: A distinctive feature. Coat should be thick and reasonably short, not over 4cms (11/2ins) long, with harsh, oily, outer coat and dense, fine, woolly undercoat covering the whole body; having a tendency to wave on the neck, shoulders, back and loins. A straighter, thick coat is acceptable provided its water resistant is retained. Coat on face, ears and legs short and straight. Moderate feathering on tail permissible. Oil in harsh coat and woolly undercoat of extreme value. Coat should resist water.

Colour: Dead grass (straw to bracken), sedge (red gold), any shade of brown, or ash. White spots on chest, belly, toes or the back of the feet permissible. The smaller the spot the better. Masking and brindling in coat pattern is acceptable but not desirable. Self coloured dogs preferred. Colour of coat must be given consideration when judging but is of lesser importance compared to the quality and texture of the double coat.

Sizes: Height: Dogs 58-66 cms (23-26 ins)

Bitches 53-61cms (21-24 ins)

Oversized or undersized dogs highly undesirable.

Faults: Any departure from the foregoing points should be considered a fault and the seriousness with which the fault should be regarded should be in the exact proportion to its degree and its effect on its ability to perform its traditional work.

Notes: Male animals should have two apparently normal testicles fully descended into the scrotum.

QUESTIONS

1. What is my relationship with the breed? (ie breeder, first time owner etc)

2. Where and why was the breed first developed?

3. How common is it in Australia?

4. What is the average lifespan?

5. What is the general temperament/personality?

6. How much daily exercise is needed for the average adult?

7. Is it a breed that a first time dog owner could easily cope with?

8. Can solo dogs of this breed easily occupy themselves for long periods?

9. How much grooming is required?

10. Is it too boisterous for very small children or for infirm people (unless the dog is well trained)?

11. Are there any common hereditary problems a puppy buyer should be aware of?

12. When buying a puppy, what are the things you should ask of the breeder? (eg what health tests have been done (if applicable) and what is an acceptable result to those tests so the buyer has an idea of what the result should be)

If you wish to contribute to the knowledge about this breed, please answer the above questions. (Copy and paste them into a new post).

  • Please only answer if you breed or own a pedigree example of this breed.
  • You do not have to answer all questions
  • Please keep posts limited to answering questions or for asking further questions if you require more (or expanded) information.

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  • 2 weeks later...

A couple of other users (bilbo baggins maybe) are far more qualified to answer this then me because they have met Lincoln's parents many times. I have met one other adult Chesapeake and now I have Lincoln.Lincoln has a wooly fluffy undercoat and his adult coat is starting to grow out now. The adult coat is oily, by that I mean it has a very slight greasy feel but not so 'greasy' that the oil will rub off on furniture/blankets/hands, it's kind of like my hair feels when haven't washed it for 4 or 5 days.

Hope that helps. One of Lincolns' sisters as gone to a show home in NSW so you may be seeing a Chesapeake around there soon. :)

Edited by valleyCBR
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  • 2 months later...

1. What is my relationship with the breed? (ie breeder, first time owner etc)

I am a first time owner of a Chesapeake but a long time enthusiast.

2. Where and why was the breed first developed?

The breed was first developed in the Chesapeake Bay region on the eastern coast of the USA. It was thought to be started by two Newfoundland pups, Sailor and Canton who arrived at the bay in a shipwreck in Maryland in 1807. This unrelated bitch and dog pair went to different homes on opposite sides of the bay and gained great reputations as water dogs. They were out crossed to spaniels, poodles, St. Johns Water Dogs and various other breeds until in 1877 the Chesapeake Ducking Dog began official development as a single breed (initially with 4 varieties). In 1878 it gained AKC recognition (the first retriever to be recognized by the AKC) and has been developed as a single, dual purpose breed since that date.

Chesapeake Bay Retrievers were developed as a ‘working class’ retriever, this means as well as being able to fetch downed waterfowl all day in icy cold water they bond closely to their master and are protective of them and their possessions. They were originally the sort of dog that would live with the family, go out to work for the day by retrieving waterfowl, watch the masters catch when they had to leave the boat/blind, then come home and relax with the children of the family.

3. How common is it in Australia?

It is a very rare breed.

There are less than 15 people breeding CBR’s and at an estimation maybe 100 dogs in the country, of which about 25 are show dogs. There are many CBR’s here and in NZ that are retrieving dogs primarily.

4. What is the average lifespan?

From the American Chesapeake Club 2004 health survey of 3,564 dogs found the average lifespan is just over 9 years.

Other sources usually say 8-12 years.

5. What is the general temperament/personality?

From the AKC Standard:

The Chesapeake Bay Retriever should show a bright and happy disposition with an intelligent expression. Courage, willingness to work, alertness, nose, intelligence, love of water, general quality and, most of all, disposition should be given primary consideration in the selection and breeding of the Chesapeake Bay Retriever. (Note the emphasis on working ability, possibly the reason a Chesapeake is still a true dual purpose retriever)

IMPORTANTLY:

A CBR is a retriever, like a Labrador or a Golden, this is where the similarities end.

As mentioned earlier CBR’s are meant to be able to work all day and are meant to be protective. A CBR has a totally different temperament to a Lab or Golden, they are not going to be every dog and every persons best friend, they are very loyal to their owner and will quite happily ignore everyone else (really it’s true). They are truly unique, Lincoln is happiest when he is either with me, my other dog or food! Not much else excites him.

6. How much daily exercise is needed for the average adult?

A good walk and some mental exercise everyday should be sufficient, but like most things dogs are individuals and this will vary depending on personality/age/fitness.

7. Is it a breed that a first time dog owner could easily cope with?

No, probably not. A Chesapeake is the kind of dog that, given the chance, will walk all over you. It is important that rules are established in the household and some sort of training happens. A good puppy socialization class is really important too.

8. Can solo dogs of this breed easily occupy themselves for long periods?

I have only ever had multiple so not sure.

9. How much grooming is required?

A quick brush once a week to spread the oil through the coat. Bathing once every three months.

10. Is it too boisterous for very small children or for infirm people (unless the dog is well trained)?

It really depends if the family or infirm people are dog savvy and the individual dog. I don’t like to think of young children being alone around any breed nor infirm people trying to walk an untrained dog of any breed.

11. Are there any common hereditary problems a puppy buyer should be aware of?

Chesapeake’s can be tested for:

Hip Dysplasia- this is an X-Ray which gives a hip score of the dog. Both sire and dam should be hip scored before breeding HOWEVER even if both parents have perfect hip scores the pup could still be HD affected, this just decreases the risk.

Elbow Dysplasia- as above.

Progressive Renal Atrophy (PRA)- is an eye disease inherited through simple inheritance. A dog is either clear, a carrier or effected. A clear to clear mating will produce all clear pups, a carrier to clear or clear to affected will produce litters with carriers, but carriers do not have the disease. A carrier to carrier or carrier to effected mating will produce pups with PRA which will gradually leave dogs blind.

Degenerative Myelopathy and Exercise Induced Collapse are both diseases that can occur in Chessies but are quite rare. Other issues in the breed are epilepsy and cancer but it is unknown how much of this is genetic.

12. When buying a puppy, what are the things you should ask of the breeder? (eg what health tests have been done (if applicable) and what is an acceptable result to those tests so the buyer has an idea of what the result should be)

The health tests to ask about in Chesapeake's are:

HD – score should be excellent, good or fair, a dog with a lower score should not be bred from.

ED- elbows should be normal.

PRA- dog should be clear, one dog being a carrier is permissible as long as you don’t mind our pup being a carrier also.

You should also ask the breeder about the dogs temperaments and activities the dogs are involved in. If you are looking for a performance/hunting/show dog be sure to carefully study the pedigree.

Also a good breeder will be able to tell you what they hope to achieve from

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