Northwoods Hartley (Northwoods Grits x Houston’s Belle’s Choice,, 2014), owned by Nick Larson.
“Owning my first bird dog forever changed the pursuit of upland birds for me. Hartley has inspired me to become a better hunter, a better shooter and a better dog trainer.”
~ Nick Larson, Project Upland
I recently read a wonderful magazine piece written by a client of ours, Nick Larson. He brought a unique perspective to owning a bird dog.
Jerry and I first met Nick Larson in the fall of 2013. He and his wife, Lacey MacLean, were living in the Twin Cities but had plans to move to Duluth, Minn. Even though Nick had never owned a bird dog, we thought he would be a perfect fit for one of our dogs. He was a passionate hunter and enthusiastic to learn. The couple was sharp, friendly, warm and clearly loved dogs.
Nick and Lacey gave us a deposit and about 10 months later, they picked up their eight-week-old puppy, a tri-color male setter out of Northwoods Grits x Houston’s Belle’s Choice. They named him Hartley after the Duluth city park near their new home.
Nick’s article, along with several stunning photos of Hartley, appears in the Fall 2019 issue of Project Upland, a new magazine which is part of a wider offering including podcast, film, newsletter and more. (projectupland.com).
Here are excerpts.
“When you have a bird dog and you love watching him or her work, the possibilities of exploring new covers, encountering new birds and making new friends are all exciting. Without the dog in my life, I’d likely still be walking the same old two-tracks chasing the same old birds in the same old covers. Instead, my eyes have opened and my breadth of experience broadened, thanks to my four-legged friend.”
“…the drive to go deeper and deeper while taking the passion further than I ever thought possible has resulted in countless connections while opening some very unique doors along the way.”
“My evolution as an upland bird hunter has been a direct result of Hartley’s development into an experienced bird dog. From the guns and gear to my own knowledge and skillset, everything looks different today than it did before Hartley, and I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”
“Hartley has changed my hunting, my family and my life forever.”
Bob Wehle, founder and breeder of Elhew Kennels, with his most famous pointer, CH Elhew Snakefoot.
It’s been almost a year since the bird dog world was shocked by an announcement in the America Field.
It is with great sadness — but with the unshakeable conviction that we are doing the right and necessary thing — that we announce our decision to close Elhew Kennels and retire the Elhew “brand.” The Elhew prefix will no longer be available…
~ Gatra Wehle and Martha Hayes
Gatra Wehle is the widow of Bob Wehle and Martha Hayes is the widow of Brian Hayes.
When Bob Wehle died in 2002, he passed ownership of Elhew Kennels and the Elhew prefix to Brian Hayes. Hayes became ill and brought in others in a cooperative arrangement. When he died in 2015, some things became clear to the two women. The letter continued:
… it has become increasingly difficult to do justice to the Elhew legacy.
Why is that?
Because when Wehle died, his line of Elhew pointers died, too.
Bob Wehle devoted his life to breeding his line of pointers. He knew how to train his own dogs and competed with them in top-flight field trial competition. He judged prestigious field trials and perhaps most crucial, he hunted his dogs on wild birds. Pointers bred by Wehle were coveted by serious bird hunters and yet could win trials, also. The look of his dogs was distinctive: when you saw an Elhew pointer, you just knew what it was.
But without Wehle, no one could possibly know which dogs he would breed to which dogs. Breeding dogs is not a science. You can’t plug the information about two dogs into an algorithm and have it produce an analysis of the best mating. It’s far more complicated. The breeding adage, “Breed the best to the best and hope for the best” is simplistic and vague. Someone has to determine which is the best. And then, which best to breed to which best?
The person making that determination is the breeder.
Based on experience, knowledge, gut and intellect, the breeder decides which combination will most likely produce what is sought. The key here is that the breeder’s exact thought processes can’t be passed on—to anyone or anything.
Genetics can change rapidly and without a vision, the direction is usually toward mediocrity, or worse. In one generation, you can have dogs that are quite different from their parents. In two or more generations down, the dissimilarities can be significant.
Sure, a breeder could pair two Elhew pointers and could produce similar dogs.
But no matter what, without Wehle making key decisions, the outcome is not dogs bred by Wehle and not Elhew pointers.
