Keeper of Nottingham "Kasey"
DOB 5-15-1999
Breeder: John Isaacs Guadaira Kennel Amanda, OH
Kasey with a limit of Woodcock.... November 2006
Kasey has been an interesting dog. He has a tremendous drive to retrieve and has been difficult to get consistently steady no matter what the object is to be retrieved. I have learned a lot working with him though. Kasey has an incredible water entry. So in March 2002, I took him to Stuttgart, Ark for the inaugural Super Retriever Series to try the dock jumping event. The "Dock Dogs" organization was there and ran the dock jumping event. Kasey ended up taking 6th place out of close to 30 dogs jumping. By making the finals to be run on Sunday, Kasey and I ended up on ESPN in June 2002 when the show was aired on TV. That was quite a thrill to participate in an event such as this.
In 2004, Kasey and I had the opportunity to participate in the National Upland Classic Series National Championships. The National Upland Classic Series is an organization running what is now called "tournament hunts". You can find out more about NUCS on their website,
www.uplandclassic.com We did not have any spectacularly fast runs but we were consistent at getting our 3 birds which kept us in the top of the Flushing Single Division. After the Preliminary runs, we were in a solid 2nd Place. The Finals Run was not pretty but it was good enough to hang on to 2nd Place.
Kasey has a couple of Started Passes in the Hunting Retriever Club Hunt Tests but I never ran him in the two more he needs for his title. I had hopes of getting him steady enough to run the Seasoned Level but that has not happened.....yet. Likewise, I have never run him in the AKC Spaniel Hunt Tests at the Junior Level. I have attempted a Senior Level Test but he broke at the water where he is required to be steady until sent for the retrieve.
Kasey has been a fun dog to hunt with over the years. I have shot rabbits, quail, doves, woodcock and pheasants over him as well as used him on some Game Farm Hunts. He is a hard hunting dog and really drives through the cover. I have seen his ears ripped several times due to his reckless hunting style in the briar and thorn thickets of the Ozarks. He will work with you and hunt for you but you have to be ready to move with him and understand what he is telling you. One of my fondest memories is a short woodcock hunt on the last day of the 2005 hunting season. We didn't have much time and daylight would be fading fast due to the overcast sky. I knew the woodcocks were still "here" and I needed to chase them around one last time. We finished the hunt in 30 min with our 3 bird limit. Kasey was rocking and rolling through the cover and I just moved and positioned myself for the shots. We had 9 flushes from 6 birds and I shot 6 times and bagged 3. I have been fortunate to have had a lot of nice woodcock hunts through the years but this one will always be a special one.
Kasey with a Western Kansas rooster...January 2008
The look of drive and desire.