Along come Chips and Parade

Written By Jackie Mertens

Finally, I saved my money my Paper route, and bought a Cocker Spaniel for $15 from the local newspaper.  We named him Chips, but he died fairly young from a kidney disease.

Prior to his death, I read up on the breed and was very excited to see a picture of a beautiful Cocker in the paper winning the Westminister Dog show – His name was “CH Carmers Rise and Shine". I still have a copy of that photo and writeup.

 I searched for a local breeder of Show Cockers in Illinois and found Clarkdale Cockers in Deerfield, IL.  My brother drove me there and I bought a Parti Colored Bitch and named her “Parade

 The Cocker Spaniel comes in three varieties, based on color: Blank; Parti (two or more solid colors, one of which must be white); and A.B.C.O.B. (Any Solid Color Other than Black). 

“Parade” came from a famous litter with all her littermates eventually finishing their Conformation Championships.

Jackie Mertens

Jackie Mertens is one of the most successful amateur retriever trainers and breeders in North America. She has trained and titled numerous FC/AFC retrievers. She is a six-time finalist at the National Open/National Amateur Retriever Championships. She won the National Amateur championship with her NAFC FC Topbrass Cotton, who is also the all-time high point Golden Retriever in field trial history.

Breeding, training, and campaigning retrievers are a way of life for Mertens. Her Topbrass kennel, established in 1968, consistently produces high-quality performance golden retrievers.

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