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I am the Breeder, Owner and Exhibitor of the ‘Melverly’ English Springer Spaniels.
I am also a UK & International Championship Judge of the Breed.
My love of dogs in general started at a very early age; there were always dogs about the place. My father liked hunting dogs, usually a Greyhound x Labrador - which in the north of England were known as ‘Lurchers’.
I first became interested in English Springers when I was nineteen years old when recovering from a bad motorcycle accident. During my 13 weeks in hospital I was visited by a good friend. He mentioned that he had started to show German Shepherds told me about his showing and breeding ambitions. Once he started to bring me the weekly dog press I became interested in the dog that seemed to dominate the show news. The year was 1973, and the dog was of course the great Show Champion Hawkhill Connaught who at the time was Dog of the Year. ‘Con’ was regularly on the front cover. It was through seeing him that I decided that the ‘English Springer Spaniel’ was the breed that impressed me most and was the breed for me.
Even to this day, I still count Con as my ‘yardstick’ – that’s the type of Springer I try to breed. I still consider him to be a wonderful specimen.
The following year – 1974- I bought two ESS bitch puppies, ‘Monclare Solitaire’ and ‘Cleavehill Bridal Gown’ which were line bred back to Ch Alexander of Stubham. It was from Solitaire that I bred my foundation bitch ‘Melverly Jolene’. This was the first litter to carry my affix of the last 30 years, "Melverly".
My current stock is directly descended from these two original bitches. Since then there have been many big winners and homebred Champions. Most notable would be Sh Ch Melverly Lois Lane who won 12 CCs and along with numerous BIS’s was BIS at the ESSC Ch club show in 1994. Another titleholder was Sh Ch Chetruda Lancashire Rose at Melverly who was Res CC at Crufts under Jean Taylor (Cleavehill). Her daughter Sh Ch Melverly Lochsong also gained her title and was bitch CC at the ESSC Ch show 1996 as well as the CC at Crufts. She is the dam of my current winner ‘Melverly First Gold’ and the well known ‘Melverly Violetta’ - now in Finland with the Adamants and Wildomars Springers. I also have a young Swedish import Nobhill Walk on Top of Melverly – (a son of Scan Ch Melverly Mystery Girl who I exported to Sweden). He is a member of my current Show team and has 2 Res CCs. Although the majority of my Springers have been livers, I have also bred black and whites – the most notable being Melverly Penny Black of Chetruda. She was the mother of the B/W Sh Ch Chetruda Pearly King.
There have also been successful Melverly exports to Italy, Greece, Norway, Finland and Sweden. One of the most notable of these is International Champion ‘Melverly Uptown Girl’ (a top winner all over Scandinavia and of course dam of the legendary Ch Whisborne Devil in Disguise). Through her offspring she has had a massive influence on the breed in Scandinavia.
In addition there is the Swedish CC record holder, Scan Ch Melverly Mystery Maker (himself a very successful sire) and his dam, Scan Ch Melverly Mystery Girl, a winner of 2CC’s and 6 res CC’s in the UK before gaining her title with Monica Dreijer in Sweden.
I first started judging English Springers in 1981 and was subsequently approved to judge the breed at CC level in 1994 in the UK. This was for the Merseyside Gundog club where my dog CC winner was Sh Ch Chuan Chablis of Lyndora and BOB was Ch Mompesson Remember Me. I have also judged all Gundogs breeds many times in the UK at Open Show Level. I have undertaken some overseas appointments and have judged English Springer Spaniels in Finland and Sweden. In 2005 I was a panellist at the third IESSC breed symposium and judged the breed at the Monroe KC in America, I am one of the few UK breed specialists to have officiated in the USA.
In April 2006 I judged the ESSC of NSW Club Show in Australia.
I am currently the Vice-Chairman of The Lancashire and Cheshire ESS Club, and I am proud of the fact that I am a founder member. During the 1980’s I did a lot of work to get the club up and running.
After 31 years, I remain as enthusiastic as ever about the Breed.
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