Tribute to Jackie Mertens

  • How Topbrass Came To Be

    In 1968 Jackie Mertens bred her show golden,” Ch. Goldenloe's Bronze Lustre, and felt she needed a suitable kennel name for the line of outstanding show dogs she intended to develop.” …."I decided to go with 'Topbrass.' 'Brass' for the color of the dogs. Back then so many kennel names included some variation of the word 'gold,' which I wanted to avoid. 'Top' because I wanted to breed...well, you know...the best, top of the line." With that last statement Jackie gave just a glimpse of her intensely competitive nature...which her gracious, down-to-earth personality usually masks.” And with that Topbrass was born.

  • NARC Topbrass Cotton

    Cotton was a replacement puppy given to Jeff and Bev Finley after their older brother to Cotton died. Jackie became a co owner in 1983. Cotton won his first Amateur at 26 months and was an FC-AFC at three years of age. He has the High Point Record for any Golden with 274.5 All Age points to his credit. He is also the only Golden Retriever to ever win the National Amateur Championship

  • Topbrass Labradors

    Jackie even had a few labradors! FC AFC Topbrass Jordache (Dash) was probably her favorite. She raised several litters hence the name Topbrass Retrievers since she had both Topbrass Goldens and Topbrass Labradors. Something that we have kept.

  • Puppies

    Believe it or not. It was very difficult to find a photo of Jackie with puppies. This shot just happened one day during a photo shoot of FC AFC Topbrass Hawks Blackhawk. Thank you Mark Atwater! (Upclose Photos)

  • Breeder pride

    Always happy for a photo op with her successful pups. Here Jackie is with a pair of littermates and their owners. Left to right is Paul Johnson with Topbrass Liberty Belle CD MH QA2 WCX VCX CCA OD (aka Libby) and Kaye Fuller with FC AFC Topbrass No Time To Paws MH CCA WC OS FDHF (aka Flash)

  • Hunt tests

    Jackie never lost her competitive spirit. After she moved to downstate Florida, training groups were harder to come by so she began running AKC and HRC hunt tests. Here she is pictured with her last dog, Cheetah. (Topbrass Chiquita)

  • Note taking

    Always a student. It didn’t matter if Jackie was at a hunt test, field trial or seminar; she always had a notebook and a pen. Making notes about dogs, highlighting pedigrees or how to help you improve your handling skills. Jackie truly studied the breed and sport, always trying to improve.

  • In Memory of Topbrass Founder

    Unfortunately, we lost Jackie October 26th, 2024 after a lengthy health battle. Jackie touched many, many lives through her retrievers over the years. Although we will miss her advice and expertise, we celebrate how she was a driving force of the Golden Retriever breed that we have today and the love and joy that these dogs bring us. Rest easy my mentor and my friend. Allison Sinclair

JACQUELYN (Jackie) MERTENS born: 1/19/42 died: 10/27/24

Retriever Hall of Fame - inducted 2006

National Amateur Retriever Championship winner – 1985

AKC Lifetime Achievement Award, performance – 2010

Double Header Winner

Topbrass Kennels – founded 1968

The above accolades are a tip of Jackie’s accomplishments.

She judged over 100 all age stakes including the 1996 National Amateur and the 2003 National. She was past President of the National Retriever Club. She chaired and she chief marshaled separate National Championships. She was a past board member of Snowbird Retriever Club, Golden Retriever Club of IL, American Amateur Retriever Club (past President) and Womens Field Trial Club (past president). She was an active member of Jacksonville Amateur Retriever Club, North Florida Amateur Retriever Club, Golden Retriever Club of America. Jackie said yes to any request to help at weekend trials, whether the trial was in “her circuit” or not.

In a sport dominated by Labrador Retrievers and male trainers, Jackie and her Goldens made waves. She became the preeminent breeder of working Golden Retrievers. More Golden Retriever field champions, master hunters and obedience champions have come out of Topbrass Kennels than any other breeding establishment. This is in addition to the scores of Topbrass bench champions.

Jackie’s involvement with animals dates back to childhood. She grew up with dogs, cats, gerbils, rabbits and goldfish naming this array, Muffy, Tuffy, Duffy, Fluffy and Puffy. At 12, she started obedience trial work with a Cocker Spaniel, eventually moving to Golden Retrievers, the show ring and the establishment of Topbrass in 1968. “Even in grade school in Chicago, I always wanted a pair of any animals I obtained. I had lots of different tropical fish, gerbils, hamsters, rabbits, guinea pigs – always in pairs so I could breed them.” **

Jackie’s initial Goldens were bench champions. Putting working titles on her show champions, brought Jackie into the field trial world. In her own words she said, “As a youngster I always had a competitive type of personality playing games and sports, and that same personality spilled over into the dog scene.”

Training for Working Certificates sparked her interest in field training. She trained with Jim and Sally Venerable whose FC-AFC Kinike Coquete caught her eye. “She was a spectacular Golden bitch with lots of drive and desire. Many Goldens back then were competitive, but did not have the sparkle and intensity that ‘Coco’ had.” Jackie started breeding her bench champion bitches to field trial champions producing balanced dogs with field trial type drive.

Her most notable bench/field cross was CH Sunstream Gypsy of Topbrass bred to AFC Holway Barty. This breeding produced NAFC-FC Topbrass Cotton, FC-AFC Topbrass Mandy, National Obedience Champion OTCH Topbrass Ric O’Shay Barty.

Cotton accumulated 46 Derby points, AFC at 2, FC at 3, a double header & 273 all-age points, -all-time high point Golden. He is the only Golden to have won a National Amateur and he was two time Hi-point Amateur dog of the year. Cotton was inducted into the Retriever Hall of Fame in 1993.

Jackie strayed into Labradors with FC-AFC Topbrass Jordache being her most prominent competitor. Dash had 39 points going head to head with “Lottie” as she was making her run for the all-time high point derby dog (108 pts). Dash ended up with 193+ all-age points, a double header and several national finishes.

With all of her competitiveness, her accomplishments and accolades, Jackie was ever generous with others. She coached and mentored many puppy buyers. She was always available with solutions to training problems be they for WC/WCX or for pre-national training. She listened and critiqued. Her advice was from the heart but with a cool eye. Her advice to newbies was to train with the people that win, no reason to reinvent the wheel.

Joe Mertens and Jackie met when she was 14 or 15. She did obedience work with The Northwest Obedience Club and Joe was the Director of Training. They married 15 years later and were together for over 35 years until his death. He was her biggest fan and supporter. He shot the flyer, hauled the equipment around, chaired Traffic at nationals...whatever it took to help Jackie in this sport.

Many a weekend, people would hang out at Jackie’s dog truck, telling tales, exchanging training tips. She was ready for good stories and because of her tenacious memory, could recall moments that others might have wanted to forget. The tables were turned on her one weekend when a particularly inept handler came to line while Jackie was judging with Leslie Rae Karnes. The handler was complaining about the heat and threw off his jacket. Jackie was annoyed. What is this doofus doing here? Suddenly a boom box appeared, the man turned towards Jackie and proceeded to do the bump and grind...a male stripper. The story goes that she laughed and danced him off line.” written by Judy Rasmussen - close friend of Jackie’s

**the quotes in this article are from The Golden Retriever News. “Historically Speaking: an Interview with Jackie

Mertens owner and founder of Topbrass Golden Retrievers” by Edell Marie Schaefer.

“I was expecting the call but not so soon. But the call came anyway … Jackie was gone.

At the time I was walking down a dirt road with 5 goldens. For a moment a feeling of loneliness overtook me. I wasn’t sad for Jackie, she had been waiting to be reunited with Joe. I just lost my friend, my mentor, a person that believed in me so much that she entrusted an empire, a reputation that she built, grew and loved. But to be sad for myself would be pure selfishness.

That’s when I heard Jackie’s voice in my head and realized she’s still with me. “Why did you let her do that?” “Don’t be talking to the judges. Pay attention!” “Don’t wear a cap to the line! The bill gets in the way when you’re lining up the dog.” “Look at the pedigree first, then see what the dog has done.. If the pedigree is there it’s worth a look…”

Along with Jackie came a network of people, the best of the best. Some she chose, others chose her. So many have said that they “threw birds for her and Cotton” or that she “took a chance and sold them their first dog”. “Jackie is the reason that I got into this” Smile…. Yes, yes she did do that for so many. .”Let me know what I can do to help, I want to help you like Jackie did for me..” is something that I hear almost daily.

Jackie made me tough. Many people commented on how tough that I must be. She could be relentless. Crying or making excuses wasn’t an option, at least not for me, I knew that she was right and I needed to listen and listen well. She noticed details, took notes and she studied those notes. From everything to position of my feet while on the line to how the microchip stickers were to be placed, I heard about it. It was her way, and who could argue? She had the experience and the track record. Yes. Since 1968, that’s as long as I’ve been alive.

Most importantly Jackie taught me the value of integrity . She wasn’t one to retaliate on social media or hold grudges. Business was business. “Contracts aren’t worth the price of the paper that they are written on.” “Things happen, do what’s right.”

With tears in my eyes, I looked up and watched the dogs, running, hunting and then come back to me. No, I told myself, I’m not alone. Jackie’s voice came into my head again… “I dealt with this for 50 years, now it’s your turn. You got this, I can’t wait to hear your response… now let me tell you about the dance that they had last night. I got everyone dancing and I had 2 glasses of wine!” With that, I took my phone out of my pocket and this time I made the call, “Jackie’s gone.” written by Allison Sinclair - Topbrass Co-owner

“Jackie Mertens - Friend and Mentor.

Jackie sold me a puppy...and then another...and then another. I was deep into this sport

before I realized what a gift I’d been given by her. She became a wonderful friend and a great

role model. Jackie’s calm equanimity belied the party girl underneath. She was never one to

turn down an offer to dance. She helped close the bar at Casey’s back when the world was

young.

“Come train with me in Florida” was her lure. She taught me how to train retrievers. She led

me through the ins and outs of the field trial world. She was my touchstone. I miss her.

Judy Rasmuson.”

“IN 1979, I WAS A GOLDEN RETRIEVER-OBSESSED teenager

who had already been exposed to confromation, Junior Showmanship, Obedience, Tracking and most recently, the Hunting Dog Stake at the Flat River Retriever Club fun trials. Three years earlier, my parents had purchased a female Golden Retriever for me to train and show. I read about Jackie Mertens of Topbrass Goldens, who owned Ch. Topbrass Ad-Lib’s Bangor ***—one of only six Goldens in the breed’s history to earn both a Conformation Championship and Qualified All-Age status in field trials. Iwanted to do that!

That spring, I met Joe and Jackie Mertens at a field trial and boldly asked if I could come train with them for the summer. I offered to wash kennels, feed dogs, throw birds—anything—just for the opportunity to live and train with them. I remember Jackie being surprised, maybe even a little hesitant, but I was convinced I could achieve with my dog Tara what she had done with Bang—if only she would give me the chance. Somehow, Joe, Jackie, and my parents all agreed, and that summer, I was off to Topbrass Retrievers in Elgin, Illinois.

At some point, we all transition from adolescence to adulthood. For me, that summer was the turning point, and Jackie was the person who gave me that opportunity. The time I spent with her went far beyond learning how to train my dog. She transformed me by gently entrusting me with decisions I hadn’t yet been allowed to make. Her guidance, wisdom, and friendship helped shape the rest of my life.

Jackie taught me the meaning of dedication, the value of consistent practice, and how to pursue and achieve a goal.

Years later, I often teased Jackie that I was the “first”, paving the way for many teenagers she and Joe would mentor. They had a remarkable ability to welcome adolescents into their home, providing structure and support during a notoriously challenging phase of life.

For the next 15 years, I pursued competitive obedience, a sport that was affordable for a college student and young professional. During that time, I also raised puppies for Jackie. One puppy caught my eye, so I asked Jackie for a puppy from the dam’s next litter. In September 1995, Jackie called to say she had a puppy for me. Her only request was that if he didn’t meet her expectations, I would allow her to resell him and find me another. That wasn’t necessary. With the help of Jackie and Judy Rasmuson, that puppy grew up to become FC AFC OTCH Topbrass Ascending Elijah, and I officially returned to the field trial sport.

In 2003, without warning, Jackie called me again. This time, she sent me a puppy who would become AFC OTCH Topbrass Caleb.

Today, as the field trial community mourns the loss of Jackie Mertens—a tireless advocate for the sport, a devoted club member, and a fierce supporter of competitive Golden Retrievers—I grieve the loss of my “other mother.” I cannot imagine my life without her influence.

~ Respectfully submitted by Connie Cleveland-Nolan”