Rocket’s Health Clearances & Information:

AKC:SS28619707   UKC:JC4056513 

DOB: 2/5/2021
OFA Eyes – Normal W/BO: LR-EYE35042/59M-VPI 

OFA Hips (Excellent): LR-283743E58M-C-VPI

OFA Elbows (Normal): LR-EL130274M58-C-VPI

Rocket has been tested clear of: EIC, CNM and Stargardt 

We personally tested Rocket with the Embark health kit. Waiting for results.

Rocket’s Pedigree: https://www.huntinglabpedigree.com/pedigree.php?ID=158896

Rocket’s OFA page: https://ofa.org/advanced-search/?appnum=2678766

I asked Peter Dozier a bunch of questions about Rocket to learn what kind of dog he truly is. The following was Peter’s direct response. 

Gina, Rocket is a house dog: a wonderful house dog. He has the off switch labs are famous for. He is calm around the house, loves to drape his 80 pound frame on my wife’s lap while we watch tv and sleeps in our bed. I’m the kitchen, he is an alert does-chef. He is extremely communicative and looks you right in the eye when you call his attention.

What was Rocket like to train? Well, a couple things about his early stages still hold true. He’s got a tremendous work ethic. He LOVES to train. He is very eager to do things correctly and recognizes in a somewhat sensitive manner when he messes up, but has never given up. As a pup, he recieved what I would call a Montessori type of education where I utilized a number of techniques to introduce him to a range of skills and concepts. I trained with a group of All-Age competitors from my club and the pup saw big stuff early on. At 9 months, he went south to Florida for the winter with Canadian Pro Chuck Dygos. When he returned at 14 months, he started winning Juniors, and I went to complete the water blind in back to back Open stakes! At that point, Chuck told me he was the best blind running young dog he’d ever trained. So that’s another statement about what he’s/was like to train. He has a very solid foundation for all the work we do in the field trial game. His basics have been done correctly, so he handles pressure very well.

 Part of your question really is ‘is he biddable and easy to train or is he a wild field trial child that only responds to pressure? Can this type of dog be good for an amateur? What kind of customer wants a Rocket pup? My answer to that is these Merlyn dogs represent to pinnacle of working labrador evolution. Drive, heart, intelligence, trainability. But they also come with POWER. I’m not sure if you read my writeup on his NAFTCH win in Retirever News, but I akin running this dog to driving a Baja Trophy truck. 1000hp and 4wd! You’d better be looking ahead with a plan when you launch him!

As a working dog, he is eager to please and has an excellent work ethic. He shows as much intensity and drive on routine yard work as in big field setups.

I’ve hunted with him since he was 7 months old. He’s hunted geese, ducks, pheasants, and grouse. He’s steady (ok, maybe not always on breaking birds in the seventh series of a National!) but he’s no canoe dog! Put a shotgun in his sight and Rocket is on high alert. On duty. I love hunting this style of dog because they are tremendous upland working dogs as well.

Blind running: His early prowess running blinds was due to a very strong tendency this dog has to drive hard in the direction he is pointed. Always has. He runs long straight lines. I did go through a challenging phase in his third season where sits got loopy, but realized that I was focusing on lining blinds at the expense of mechanics. Made a few adjustments in my handling technique on blinds and he responded.

Marking: He was high point Junior (Derby) dog in Canada in 2022. 15 trials, 15 ribbons, 37 Junior points. He marks at the level of the very best on the continent. Pre national training for 2 US Nationals with Kenny Trott, Dave Rorem and Jerry Patopea made that VERY evident. He is a spot market, drives at the bird, not the gun and is a smart, persistent hunter. I think that’s how I’ll close. In a game where marking is of primary importance, this stylish powerhouse is as good as they come.