Present-day stories of those wonderful Newfs - reprinted from Newf Tide Fall 1980
This is a true story that just had to be written about a really neat Newfoundland dog named "Bogey" (Ebunyzar's Bogey D'Wundrland).
I had the good fortune to purchase Bogey in the spring of 1979 at the age of a year and a half. I already owned his father "Harvey" (Ch. Denali's Pride, CD) and his litter sister, Sarah. Although I didn't feel I needed another dog, I bought Bogey the first time I saw him. It was purely an emotional decision. We began showing Bogey right away and were thrilled when he took a four point major and a Group Two his first weekend out. Another group win, another major and the remaining points, and Bogey was a Champion, just like that. at the age of two.
Our dogs are family dogs, and live right in the house with us as a pack. They come and go and supervise everything that goes on. We have a barn full of horses, and I ride a Morgan stallion almost every day to exercise the dogs. This stallion was purchased in September of 1979 and training him was a real challenge, as he had been standing in a breeding barn for nine years doing nothing else but breeding mares. After a year I can say he is a marvelous performance horse, but along the way, especially during the early months, we had our hairy moments. And one of the hairiest involved Bogey.
We had gone away for the Christmas vacation of 1979. A girl named Judy stayed at the farm while we were gone to take care of the horses and dogs. She had worked on a horse breeding farm before she worked for me, but she was afraid of stallions. For her benefit I set the Morgan up in a 50' by 50' enclosure in such a way that she didn't have to go inside to feed him. Stallions tend to take advantage of anyone afraid of them.
All went well while we were away until New Year's Day, just before we were due home. Judy decided to clean up the stallion's enclosure before we got home. It had been raining for days, and the whole place was a sea of mud. She went down to the barn with Bogey "supervising" the barn chores. The other dogs are afraid of the electric fencing and won't go to the barn.
Judy carried a big bucket of grain into the enclosure and shut the gate behind her. The stallion came skidding up, slammed into her and knocked her flat in the mud. The bucket of grain went flying. Instantly the stallion became agitated and he raced around the pen wildly. Then he charged her. Judy screamed. Later she said she knew it was the end. Suddenly there was a great roar and Bogey came charging from behind her, roaring like a bear. He hit the fence, five feet of wood with electric on top, and sent the stallion plunging in fear to the other side of the enclosure.
Judy scrambled up, all covered with mud, and slipped through the gate in a flash. She locked it from the outside and fell down on her knees. Bogey came up, all wags and kisses, and Judy threw her arms around him and buried her muddy face in his fur. If you ask Judy, she says that Bogey is the number one dog in her life, and she's convinced that he saved it.
There were no witnesses that day, but I have observed the stallion keeping a careful eye on Bogey, and there certainly was a big change in Bogey's demeanor. Gone was the silly, clowning adolescent. In his place was a mature dog with presence and bearing that had not been there before. The other dogs sensed this difference and gave him his due. Bogey has first choice of the bed, the couch, and the car. He insists upon not being kenneled (except to breed bitches) and takes his supervising very seriously.
Bogey is a special dog, and our thanks go to Hannah Hayman from Ebunyzar Kennels for bringing her wonderful bitch, Ch. Ebunyzar's Water Witch, CD, WD, to my Harvey for breeding. And a very special thanks to Jorge and Linda Johnson for doing such a beautiful job of raising this wonderful dog from a puppy.
Sue Auger
Denali Farm, Fishers, N.Y.