Where did it all begin? That's hard to say exactly. But it appears that Beardies
have been known in Canada for over a century.
While researching material
for the 1988 CKC Centennial, I came across an interesting item in the December, 1919,
issue of Kennel & Bench magazine, the forerunner of Dogs in Canada. In
an article, Dogs of the Empire, the author Freeman Lloyd wrote:
"It would appear that the bearded sheepdogs or shepherd dogs of Scotland were
earlier known in Canada than the finer-bred black and tan collies from north of the Tweed.
As before written, Scotsmen are great colonists and are wont to travel to the ends of the
earth. After settling down, they send to the old land for well-bred horses, cattle, dogs,
other animals and birds of the domesticated kinds. About 30 to 40 years ago, there were no
other cattle dogs than bearded collies used about at slaughter houses in the east end of
Montreal. These dogs were in common use by the French-Canadian drovers. The dogs were blue
and blue-grey in colour. They were described to me by Robert Ross of Montreal who knew
them well. 'They were just the blue of the Skye Terrier, with a white or pepper-and salt
grizzle shade running all through it.' In Britain, such dogs were called Highland
Collies."
That would place Beardies in this country since the 1880's. What happened to those
early dogs in unknown. When they were no longer required as drovers, it's likely their
numbers dwindled. Certainly there were people who immigrated from England and Scotland who
brought their shaggy companions along. But there was no record of their existence, no
driving force to unite the breed and put it in the spotlight of public awareness. At least
not until Carol Gold.
Carol had left Toronto to live in England for a while and write reports of the
burgeoning pop music scene for Canadian publications. It was an exciting time with the
Beatles breaking hearts on both sides of the Atlantic the time of the "British
Invasion" when fans were hungry for news of the Rolling Stones, the Dave Clark Five,
Herman's Hermits and all the rest. But Carol's interests weren't restricted to things
musical. A Rough Collie owner, Carol visited a dog show. A Beardie stretched across a
bench and kissed her. That did it! She was hooked.
When she returned to Canada in 1968, she was accompanied by a blue Beardie female
pup named Gael, more formally known as Wishanger Marsh Pimpernel. Carol knew of another
Beardie who had preceded Gael to our shores. Slippers (Bracky of Bothkennar) had been
imported in 1963 by sheltie fancier Muriel Ratner of Cote St. Luc, Quebec, on the advice
of a friend who had visited England and told Muriel the "absolutely had to get
one." Muriel described Slipper as a "more of a career than a pet".
Gael herself sold a young Toronto couple on the idea of Beardie ownership. They met
Gael while Carol was shopping and decided they just had to have a Beardie buddy of their
own. Before long, Osmart Brown Barnaby made the trip across the Atlantic to join the
MacLennan household.
Next, Carol promoted an article in Dogs in Canada on the breed and as a
result, the Wilson family in Regina, Saskatchewan, imported Osmart Black Cherry.
It was back in 1966, while looking at a home for sale in Florida, that I met a young
architect and fell in love - with his dog. He had brought a lovely brown Beardie bitch
back from a trip to England. Later, on another trip, he bought the adult brother of the
famed Ch. Osmart Bonnie Blue Braid. The two were to be mated at a later date and I
requested a brown bitch from the upcoming litter but in the meantime, I left the Sunny
South to move to the Great White North in 1968. A few months later, my pup, Hermione,
arrived but she was a black since there were no brown females in the litter. Knowing how
rare the breed was, I assumed I had the only Beardie in Canada. But fate showed me I was
wrong.
I took my young son to the Canadian National Exhibition in the fall of 1969 and sat
down to watch the North York Drill Team perform and to rest my weary feet. As the dogs and
their owners were being introduced, the announcer commented "Carol Gold and her
Bearded collie, Gael. A very rare breed, she's one of only four in Canada."
"Five!" I corrected. Carol whipped around and focused on me. "Don't
leave!" she commanded.
I stayed. And in less than an hour, I was caught up in Carol's enthusiastic plan to
get Beardies recognized in Canada, had agreed to train Hermione with the North York
Obedience Club and made plans to order a brown male from an upcoming litter by England's
top dog and bitch, Ch. Osmart Bonnie Blue Braid x Ch. Edelweiss of Tambora.
Strange as it seems now, the CKC only required seven dogs to recognize a breed in
those days. But we found out that Hermione couldn't count as one of them. Though born of
two Beardies registered with The Kennel Club (England), the fact that she was born in the
U.S., a country where the breed was not recognized, meant that we couldn't provide the
export pedigree the CKC required. But that didn't stop her from promoting the breed. Carol
and I took Gael and Hermione to demonstrations and shows, hoping we could interest others
in importing. In many cases, people told us, "They're adorable and when the breed is
recognized, I'm going to get one." But that didn't help us reach our goal of seven to
achieve recognition. One person who did decide to import a Beardie was Rough Collie
breeder Barbara Blake of Waterdown, Ont., who brought Tarskavaig Black Maria from Scotland
in March, 1970.
There had been other Beardies in Canada, but how to find them? We heard rumours of a
kennel in B.C. and of other shaggy dogs here and there which people were sure were
Beardies and we did our best to track them down. But it was like chasing the wind.
While doing some work for a public relations firm, I was asked to take a photo for Dogs in Canada of the CKC's new computer system. Carol was coerced into bringing Gael
along for the shoot and we posed her with a paw on the mechanical monster and an
expression that enquired "So when will I be registered?"
While I was waiting for my brown male (Bronze Javelin of Tambora) to become old
enough to ship, my husband visited England on business and returned with (surprise!) a
six-month old Beardie female (Tarskavaig Black Velvet) and a five month old male (Cynpeg's
Hillbilly). And all at once, we had our seven dogs!
And more. Carol bred Gael to Osmart Brown Barnaby and in July, 1970, the Beardie
population took a leap with a litter of nine, all of whom had "First" in their
names since they were the initial Beardie litter to be CKC registered. In the meantime,
Brit (Bronze Javelin) finally arrived. Audrey Benbow and Audrey Gray brought in Broadholme
Cindy Sue. The breed was growing.
The founding meeting of the Bearded Collie Club of Canada was held at the
Sportsmen's Show, March 1970, and Gael was the presiding Beardie. She wasn't entered, of
course, but was allowed there as a member of the North York Drill Team. Later, final
details were hammered out at Barb Blake's kitchen table. The first order of business was
to petition the CKC for breed recognition.
The good news came through in August of 1970. Beardies were officially recognized!
We rushed to fill out show entries. Gael was the first to be shown and appeared in both
conformation and obedience at the Scarborough K.C. show, September 27. Shortly after that
we amassed all eligible Beardies in the area (five) to appear in competition at the old
Greenwood show. Suddenly a woman appeared at ringside with tears in her eyes.
"Beardies!" she exclaimed, "I never thought I'd ever see one again."
She had brought her Beardie over from England when she moved to Canada. Her beloved pet
had passed away just a few months earlier at the age of 17.
With CKC recognition and Beardies appearing in shows, the breed began to gain
momentum. By the end of 1980, the BCCC boasted a membership of 10. There were a lot of
"firsts" in those early years: First Canadian Beardie Champion to earn a CD -
Ch. Wishanger Marsh Pimpernel, was also the first to earn a group placing. First male to
become a champion, Ch. Cynpeg's Hillbilly. First Canadian-bred Champion - Ch. Raggmopp
First Impression, who went on to become the first to hold both a Can & Am. CD. In a
way, every new achievement was a "first" for the breed, not only in Canada but
in North America as well.
There have been a lot of changes since Beardies entered the show scene. Most
notably, the Working Group, where we competed against 32 other breeds, was split into
Working and Herding, making group placements somewhat easier to achieve. Championships
became a little more difficult a the end of the 70s when the CKC decided that it was
necessary to defeat one or more dogs to earn points. Prior to that time, a lone dog could
win a point just for showing up (through the rules stipulated a dog had to defeat at least
ONE other dog to become a champion.) Best Puppy awards were originally open only to
Canadian-bred dogs which meant our imports couldn't compete in those early days. Later,
the CKC realized that Canadian-bred dogs could hold their own against imports and dropped
that restriction along with the Canadian-Bred competition which was awarded at breed,
group, and show level.
And seven years after CKC recognition of our breed, the American Kennel Club
bestowed its blessings on Beardies, making it possible for us to head south of the border
in search of new titles. American exhibitors might have been tempted to barricade that
border after the first BCCA specialty in Ohio when Canadian-owned Beardies took home the
lion's share of winnings, including BB.
What of the original seven Beardies? Slippers (Bracky of Bothkennar) was shown only
once, never bred and lived to a ripe old age as Muriel's beloved pet. Gael (Ch. Wishanger
March Pimpernel CD) had the greatest impact on the breed. Her offspring provided the
foundation stock for several kennels and many of today's dogs can trace their pedigrees
back to early Raggmopp Beardies. Gael was mom to many champions, group-placing dogs and a
specialty winner. She continued to be an ambassador for the breed until she passed away at
the age of 16.
Osmart Brown Barnaby left his mark as sire of the first registered Beardie litter in
Canada. He was not shown. Little is known of Black Cherry. Tarskavaig Black Maria was
Barbara Blake's foundation bitch and produced many champions for Colbara kennels. Due to
an aversion to the show ring, she never earned a championship herself. Her litter sister,
Ch. Tarskavaig Black Velvet, collected her title and then lived out the rest of her 15
years as the treasured pet of Katy Lamon Smith. She was never bred.
Scot (Ch. Cynpeg's Hillbilly, Am CD) was the first male champion in the breed and
sired several litters which produced not only champions but Canada's first CDX Beardie
(Colbara Black Molly). Several years later, Scot went to live with Kay Holmes in the
States where he became one of the early Beardies to earn a CD there while the breed was
still in Miscellaneous. He also sired some litters there as well, making his mark on both
sides of the border.
Copyright © 1997 [Alice Bixler]
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