Field Trial Labrador Retrievers at Ravensbank: Bibi, Holly, Nessie and JoJo
Ravensbank is a kennel with focus on the working Labrador Retriever. Our dogs are bred on Irish and British Field Trialing lines.
Many people think that a field trial Labrador is bred to be particularly small, skinny and with snipey noses. While that can be true for some, most modern breeders of the FT Labrador Retriever aims to develop their lines to be both good looking yet sound and stylish workers.
The FT Labrador is the result of more than 150 years of breeding in Britain and Ireland. Through generations these dogs have been developed to serve the gun after the shot, and breeding has been based on sires and dams who have carefully been selected for their working qualities and above all their "will-to-please".
Our dogs are trained retrievers, used for picking-up and as sporting dogs in tests (cold game) and trials (warm game). I often use the dogs for picking up on organised shoots during the shooting season in Denmark (from September to January).
In my work as a breeder, i prioritise that both sire and dam are healthy, strongly built and above all have excellent temper. I will want to be assured that they are well balanced dogs and they are known for their trainability.
I do study pedigrees, but in my eyes a lot of "red ink" (e.g. champion merits) in the pedigree of parents does not necessarily guarantee that their puppies will be good workers.
In 2004 I imported Tidemark Ivy (Ivy) from Angela and Andy Markham, Kennel Tidemark in England. Ivy is the foundation of my breeding line.
Please read more about the individual dogs below. Click on the name to see the pedigree of the individual dog, or click on the picture to see a small slideshow of selected pictures of that dog.
Many people think that a field trial Labrador is bred to be particularly small, skinny and with snipey noses. While that can be true for some, most modern breeders of the FT Labrador Retriever aims to develop their lines to be both good looking yet sound and stylish workers.
The FT Labrador is the result of more than 150 years of breeding in Britain and Ireland. Through generations these dogs have been developed to serve the gun after the shot, and breeding has been based on sires and dams who have carefully been selected for their working qualities and above all their "will-to-please".
Our dogs are trained retrievers, used for picking-up and as sporting dogs in tests (cold game) and trials (warm game). I often use the dogs for picking up on organised shoots during the shooting season in Denmark (from September to January).
In my work as a breeder, i prioritise that both sire and dam are healthy, strongly built and above all have excellent temper. I will want to be assured that they are well balanced dogs and they are known for their trainability.
I do study pedigrees, but in my eyes a lot of "red ink" (e.g. champion merits) in the pedigree of parents does not necessarily guarantee that their puppies will be good workers.
In 2004 I imported Tidemark Ivy (Ivy) from Angela and Andy Markham, Kennel Tidemark in England. Ivy is the foundation of my breeding line.
Please read more about the individual dogs below. Click on the name to see the pedigree of the individual dog, or click on the picture to see a small slideshow of selected pictures of that dog.
Ravensbank Biscuit
Bibi was born in March 2014, which makes her 10 years and 7 months old today. Her mother is Ravensbank Wagtail (Waggie) and she is sired by Levenghyl Como (Drago).
Bibi has a fine feminine exterior, she moves beautifully with nice tail action. She has a lovely temper, loads of will-to-please and is a true pleaser. She had her debut on official cold game tests in 2015 and has been awarded two 1st prizes in her two tests. One of the tests was the Young Dogs' Championship where she not only had a 1st prize, but also completed the competition as one of few dogs.
In 2015, Bibi was introduced to warm game, and today she is an excellent member of our picking-up team of working gundogs alongside Ravensbank Bob (Bob) and her daughter Ravensbank Holly (Holly).
Bibi is a natural breeding bitch. Her health status is impeccable: Hip and elbow scores of (A) and (0), respectively, and she is genetically tested clear of PRAprcd, CNM, EIC, SD2, and HNPK. Bibi carries a clear eye certificate from March 2020. She mates easily and without any fuss, and she is a very good mother to her pups, even-tempered and calm.
Bibi's mum, Waggie, has passed on all the best of her temper to Bibi. Bibi is everyone's darling, and she is always attentive and cooperative. At the same time she is an efficient retriever with an excellent nose, and all in all, a brilliant gamefinder.
Bibi has a fine feminine exterior, she moves beautifully with nice tail action. She has a lovely temper, loads of will-to-please and is a true pleaser. She had her debut on official cold game tests in 2015 and has been awarded two 1st prizes in her two tests. One of the tests was the Young Dogs' Championship where she not only had a 1st prize, but also completed the competition as one of few dogs.
In 2015, Bibi was introduced to warm game, and today she is an excellent member of our picking-up team of working gundogs alongside Ravensbank Bob (Bob) and her daughter Ravensbank Holly (Holly).
Bibi is a natural breeding bitch. Her health status is impeccable: Hip and elbow scores of (A) and (0), respectively, and she is genetically tested clear of PRAprcd, CNM, EIC, SD2, and HNPK. Bibi carries a clear eye certificate from March 2020. She mates easily and without any fuss, and she is a very good mother to her pups, even-tempered and calm.
Bibi's mum, Waggie, has passed on all the best of her temper to Bibi. Bibi is everyone's darling, and she is always attentive and cooperative. At the same time she is an efficient retriever with an excellent nose, and all in all, a brilliant gamefinder.
Ravensbank Holly
Holly is 8 years and 3 months old. She is one of our own, with Ravensbank Biscuit (Bibi) as mother and DKFTCH DKTM DKBRCH DKJCH Studebaker Bonneville (Mike) as her dad.
She is a very charming and calm worker, and she has inherited all the fine qualities we want to see in a breeding bitch. She is a "pleaser" who loves to cooperate. Her health status is excellent: She has hip score A and elbow score 0 (FCI-registered scores). She is genetically clear by parentage from PRA, CNM, SD2 and EIC. She is a carrier of Stargardt.
In 2018 she has had her Working Test debut, and she consistently delivered fine results. She also had her debut on our picking-up team in 2018, and she has proven to be a calm and reliable worker and an excellent game finder.
She is a very charming and calm worker, and she has inherited all the fine qualities we want to see in a breeding bitch. She is a "pleaser" who loves to cooperate. Her health status is excellent: She has hip score A and elbow score 0 (FCI-registered scores). She is genetically clear by parentage from PRA, CNM, SD2 and EIC. She is a carrier of Stargardt.
In 2018 she has had her Working Test debut, and she consistently delivered fine results. She also had her debut on our picking-up team in 2018, and she has proven to be a calm and reliable worker and an excellent game finder.
Squareclose Wendy
Squareclose Wendy (Nessie) is bred by Mr. I. W. Christie, and was imported by us from Scotland in June 2018. She is now 6 years and 6 months old and has developed into a very smart looking worker with great natural talent. Above all she is an extremely charming character.
Nessie is easy to train and well mannered. She has passed the Danish Retriever Club Aptitude Test, she has been awarded WT4 in Novice Working Test, and she has been awarded a 1st prize in official cold game test. Nessie has hip score A, elbow score 0, Clear eye certificate from 04-2019, and she is tested clear on CNM, EIC, PRAprcd, Stargardt, HNPK and SD2.
Nessie has manifested herself as an incredibly reliable retriever and member of our picking up team. She is a hard worker and a true solider. At the same time she is a fine companion and great family dog.
Nessie is easy to train and well mannered. She has passed the Danish Retriever Club Aptitude Test, she has been awarded WT4 in Novice Working Test, and she has been awarded a 1st prize in official cold game test. Nessie has hip score A, elbow score 0, Clear eye certificate from 04-2019, and she is tested clear on CNM, EIC, PRAprcd, Stargardt, HNPK and SD2.
Nessie has manifested herself as an incredibly reliable retriever and member of our picking up team. She is a hard worker and a true solider. At the same time she is a fine companion and great family dog.
Ravensbank Jo
Ravensbank Jo (JoJo) is from the second litter of Squareclose Wendy (Nessie) sired by Ravensbank Bob (Bob). She is 2 years and 6 months old. Jojo passed the Danish Retriever Club (DRK) aptitude test at the age of 10 months. She received Excellent on her first official Debutant Test in DRK. Jojo is highly trainable and has a huge heart for retrieving. She had her picking-up debut in 2023 on some smaller driven shoots, and has done really well.
Ravensbank Carrie
Ravensbank Carrie (Carrie) is just 5 months old, and hence she is the youngest member of our pack. She is a super harmonic puppy, who has gone into our group of dogs with huge calmness and self confidence. We are looking very much forward to be starting the training with Carrie.
