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Who We Are |
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Chuck and Mary Anne Roland |
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Many hunters are under the mistaken impression that "show breeding" in a Lab's pedigree is a guarantee of mediocrity as a field dog. As Dual Purpose breeders, we really enjoy hearing dedicated field people remark that they "Didn't know that pretty dogs could run like that". |
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Our kennel is Coulee Creek Labradors and "we" are Chuck and Mary Anne Roland. We have owned and bred Labs for over thirty years. We are retired now and can devote all of our time to our beloved Labradors. We do not breed to have Labradors to sell. Every breeding we do is to improve our breeding stock and the Breed. Despite Mary Anne's best efforts, we can't keep all of our puppies. LOL That is where you come in! If you are looking for a healthy, high-quality Lab, with carefully planned genetics, from probably the best hip program in Labradors, we are happy you found us. We breed with something in mind for us to keep and use in our quest for every Labrador breeders dream, the "Perfect Labrador!" If you qualify for one of our dogs you will receive the results of our efforts. We are very proud of our line and are happy to provide the names of clients in your area if you wish references. We like to think of ourselves as one of the "Keepers of the Breed" in that we are Breeders of the Dual Purpose Labrador Retriever. Our Labs have to look good enough to show while exhibiting the desire, intelligence and trainability to make excellent companions as well as hunting dogs. When we first started breeding, we tried to purchase the best possible stock the top breeders were willing to part with. We were fortunate to avoid the eye problems but seven of the first nine were dysplastic. It was such a traumatic thing to have this wonderful dog that you had such great plans for suddenly become disabled. Not only did the training go down the drain, the future breeding plans of our kennel were in chaos. We decided then and there that we would go to the basics and build a genetically strong line, free of eye disease and with minimal hip problems. We started over with some stock from Jollymuff, Elyod, Follytower, and Sandylands dogs. We have yet to experience any eye disease in our line and currently have a dysplasia rate that is less than one percent. (The OFA national average is about 15%+- and many knowledgeable breeders estimate it to actually be closer to 25%.) At this point in time, most of our breeding stock are rated OFA Excellent. Over the past three years, 20 of the 26 Coulee Creek Labs submitted for final OFA have come back as OFA Excellent. The other six were OFA Good. This average of 76% is twice as good as any Lab Breeder we know of. It took a lot of work and dedication and we are quite proud of this accomplishment. Coulee Creek Labrador Retrievers are successfully competing in Field Trials, Hunt Tests, Conformation Events, Obedience, Therapy and Tracking. They are becoming familiar to many by their "Coulee Creek Look." Where they really excel and where we are most proud of their accomplishments, is as outstanding companions. Their gentle disposition, desire to please and intelligence make them popular with individuals of all ages. If you are looking for a Labrador to breed, for whatever reason, we may not be the breeder for you. All of our puppies go out on Limited Registration.. This allows you to do everything that a Lab with Full Registration can except; Breed registered puppies and show in conformation. Now and then we do release Full Registration but only to established breeders we trust or approved show homes. Primarily, we breed for ourselves and only place those puppies we are unable to keep. |