About us and History
We are a small hobby kennel in Wiltshire and we work and show black and chocolate Labradors. Our dogs all live in the house and are very much part of the family. We care very much about the breed and we aim to produce Labradors that conform to the breed standard, are capable of working and are healthy with superb temperaments. Temperament is paramount as our dogs are expected to mix with other dogs in the show ring and shooting field and our puppies mostly go to pet homes as family pets. Looks are important too as you have to like what you look at every day and our dogs have typical Labrador heads with soft expressions. Our dogs are biddable and the most important thing for us, is not how many awards or prize cards they win (although winning is lovely) but how easy they are to live with.
We bought our first Labrador, a yellow called Lucy in 2001 and she was the reason we fell in love with the breed. The Latin meaning of the name Lucy is Lightbringer and that is how we decided on the name for our kennel affix. Although Lucy was a lovely dog, she was bought as a pet and was not the quality bitch we needed to start our kennel. I had always wanted a chocolate Labrador so after going to shows and doing lots of research, we bought in a chocolate bitch (Hazel) from Gail Dodd of Carriegame Labradors. I had seen her sire INT CH Ole at the Labrador Retriever club centenary show and fell in love with him. Hazel proved to be a super foundation bitch and is behind everything we have today. I will always be grateful to Gail for letting us have Hazel. We kept a black bitch from Hazels first litter (Megan) and then kept a chocolate dog (Bailey) from Hazel's second litter and after proving himself in the show ring, the shooting field and being fully health tested, we decided to stand him at stud. Bailey proved to be a useful sire and he has passed on his superb temperament and good hip / elbow results to many of his offspring. He has progeny in the UK, France, Denmark and Sweden. Several of his offspring are Crufts qualified and one is a Danish champion, while many others are reliable working dogs. We are very proud that six of Bailey's offspring from different litters have gone to Canine Partners to be trained as assistance dogs, while another is a qualified diabetic alert dog and several others are Pets as Therapy dogs. Lucy and Megan both qualified as Pets as Therapy dogs and one of Emma's Daughters was bought by Dogs for Good and is in training to be an assistance dog. Our bitches are instrumental to our kennel and all have been great mothers and have produced nicely for us.. Hazel, Megan, Ebony and Emma have all produced quality offspring that are consistent in type with lovely heads. In 2017, we bred our first completely home bred litter from Bailey and Ebony and kept a black bitch (Emma) who has given us our latest additions - a chocolate dog called Ollie and a black bitch called Maisie. Sadly Lucy, Hazel, Bailey and Megan are no longer with us but without them, we wouldn't be where we are today and I owe them a great deal. I should also thank my husband Andrew who supports all my decisions and helps out when he can.
We are a small hobby kennel in Wiltshire and we work and show black and chocolate Labradors. Our dogs all live in the house and are very much part of the family. We care very much about the breed and we aim to produce Labradors that conform to the breed standard, are capable of working and are healthy with superb temperaments. Temperament is paramount as our dogs are expected to mix with other dogs in the show ring and shooting field and our puppies mostly go to pet homes as family pets. Looks are important too as you have to like what you look at every day and our dogs have typical Labrador heads with soft expressions. Our dogs are biddable and the most important thing for us, is not how many awards or prize cards they win (although winning is lovely) but how easy they are to live with.
We bought our first Labrador, a yellow called Lucy in 2001 and she was the reason we fell in love with the breed. The Latin meaning of the name Lucy is Lightbringer and that is how we decided on the name for our kennel affix. Although Lucy was a lovely dog, she was bought as a pet and was not the quality bitch we needed to start our kennel. I had always wanted a chocolate Labrador so after going to shows and doing lots of research, we bought in a chocolate bitch (Hazel) from Gail Dodd of Carriegame Labradors. I had seen her sire INT CH Ole at the Labrador Retriever club centenary show and fell in love with him. Hazel proved to be a super foundation bitch and is behind everything we have today. I will always be grateful to Gail for letting us have Hazel. We kept a black bitch from Hazels first litter (Megan) and then kept a chocolate dog (Bailey) from Hazel's second litter and after proving himself in the show ring, the shooting field and being fully health tested, we decided to stand him at stud. Bailey proved to be a useful sire and he has passed on his superb temperament and good hip / elbow results to many of his offspring. He has progeny in the UK, France, Denmark and Sweden. Several of his offspring are Crufts qualified and one is a Danish champion, while many others are reliable working dogs. We are very proud that six of Bailey's offspring from different litters have gone to Canine Partners to be trained as assistance dogs, while another is a qualified diabetic alert dog and several others are Pets as Therapy dogs. Lucy and Megan both qualified as Pets as Therapy dogs and one of Emma's Daughters was bought by Dogs for Good and is in training to be an assistance dog. Our bitches are instrumental to our kennel and all have been great mothers and have produced nicely for us.. Hazel, Megan, Ebony and Emma have all produced quality offspring that are consistent in type with lovely heads. In 2017, we bred our first completely home bred litter from Bailey and Ebony and kept a black bitch (Emma) who has given us our latest additions - a chocolate dog called Ollie and a black bitch called Maisie. Sadly Lucy, Hazel, Bailey and Megan are no longer with us but without them, we wouldn't be where we are today and I owe them a great deal. I should also thank my husband Andrew who supports all my decisions and helps out when he can.
Working and Showing
We show at Open and Championship shows when we can and although we show lightly, we have had some good placings at open and champ shows - including several first places and Best of breed awards. We have qualified six home bred dogs for Crufts in the breed ring and our dogs also qualify to compete at Crufts in the BASC Gamekeepers ring. We are proud that Hazel, Bailey, Megan, Ebony and Emma have all produced offspring that have qualified for Crufts. Although we enjoy showing, our main passion is working our dogs. We have picked up for over fourteen years, both on large commercial shoots and small syndicate shoots. I am very proud that every dog we have bred has gone picking up and occasionally beating. Megan, Ebony. Rosie and Emma all have their KC WGC on game after being assessed picking up on a shoot day and Maisie and Ollie are doing well with their training.
We show at Open and Championship shows when we can and although we show lightly, we have had some good placings at open and champ shows - including several first places and Best of breed awards. We have qualified six home bred dogs for Crufts in the breed ring and our dogs also qualify to compete at Crufts in the BASC Gamekeepers ring. We are proud that Hazel, Bailey, Megan, Ebony and Emma have all produced offspring that have qualified for Crufts. Although we enjoy showing, our main passion is working our dogs. We have picked up for over fourteen years, both on large commercial shoots and small syndicate shoots. I am very proud that every dog we have bred has gone picking up and occasionally beating. Megan, Ebony. Rosie and Emma all have their KC WGC on game after being assessed picking up on a shoot day and Maisie and Ollie are doing well with their training.
Megan (WGC game) Bailey, Ebony (WGC game) Emma (WGC game) Rosie (WGC game) Maisie and Ollie in training.
Breeding and Health testing
We only breed a litter when we want to keep a puppy which is usually every couple of years. Our bitches generally have two litters, three as a maximum. We take health testing very seriously and all our dogs are hip and elbow scored and eye tested yearly. We test for PRA, EIC, HNPK, CNM, SD2, DM, CYSTINURIA, MCD, CT and STARGARDT disease. We also DNA test our dogs to ensure they don't carry the dilute or long coat gene. This ensures that our dogs and any puppies we breed will never be affected by these conditions which are further explained on the health page. We choose stud dogs that compliment our bitches and that hopefully contribute to improving the next generation, while keeping our type and temperament. We are now on our fifth generation and are proud that we have lowered or matched the hip score of four of the previous generations, with two scores of 0.0 and six being the average hip score produced in our kennel. Our puppies go to pet homes, although some are shown and worked and we offer a lifetime of support to our puppy buyers. We will always have a puppy or older dog back if anything changes. We have waiting lists for our puppies and several owners have come back to us for a second or third dog. We like to keep in touch with our puppy buyers and many of them have become lifelong friends.
We only breed a litter when we want to keep a puppy which is usually every couple of years. Our bitches generally have two litters, three as a maximum. We take health testing very seriously and all our dogs are hip and elbow scored and eye tested yearly. We test for PRA, EIC, HNPK, CNM, SD2, DM, CYSTINURIA, MCD, CT and STARGARDT disease. We also DNA test our dogs to ensure they don't carry the dilute or long coat gene. This ensures that our dogs and any puppies we breed will never be affected by these conditions which are further explained on the health page. We choose stud dogs that compliment our bitches and that hopefully contribute to improving the next generation, while keeping our type and temperament. We are now on our fifth generation and are proud that we have lowered or matched the hip score of four of the previous generations, with two scores of 0.0 and six being the average hip score produced in our kennel. Our puppies go to pet homes, although some are shown and worked and we offer a lifetime of support to our puppy buyers. We will always have a puppy or older dog back if anything changes. We have waiting lists for our puppies and several owners have come back to us for a second or third dog. We like to keep in touch with our puppy buyers and many of them have become lifelong friends.
About me
I am a member of: The Labrador Retriever Club, The Midland Counties Labrador Retriever Club, The Cotswold & Wyevern Labrador Retriever Club and The National Organisation of Beaters & Pickers up.
I am a member of: The Labrador Retriever Club, The Midland Counties Labrador Retriever Club, The Cotswold & Wyevern Labrador Retriever Club and The National Organisation of Beaters & Pickers up.
I am on the C list (KC Level 1) with the Labrador Breed Council as a breed specialist judge and I have been on the committee for the Cotswold & Wyevern Labrador Retriever Club for eight years and counting. I also enjoy stewarding at Open and Champ shows and help out when I can. I completed my Kennel Club Hands on Assessment Certificate in 2006 (assessed by Mrs Carol Coode) and have attended many Breed specific judging and conformation seminars over the last seventeen years. I have previously been a temperament assessor and regional co-ordinator for the charity Pets as Therapy. I am also qualified to assess the Kennel Club Working Gundog Certificate both on dummies and game. I am a fully qualified dog trainer (ADTB) with over eighteen years experience running pet dog training classes and I have previously been an assessor for the KC GCDS. For the last nine years I have trained Labradors and other retriever breeds to work in the field. I have also completed a first aid course for dogs, specialising in treating working dogs in the field. In July 2020, I completed a canine reproduction course at the CFC in Jarrow and I am fully trained, certified and insured to perform Ai and semen evaluation. I handle stud dogs for several show kennels and collect and ship chilled semen when required. Andrew and I are both qualified Microchip implanters. My other passion is National hunt racing and I follow Paul Nicholls each season. Several of my litters have been named after famous jump race horses. My favourite horse and jockey partnership is Frodon and Bryony Frost.
Tracey Parker
Tracey Parker