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Imagine living in a country far from the shores of the United States of America where Chesapeake Bay Retrievers are so little known that, as the story goes, “you could count them on one hand.” In 1975, a twenty-year-old veterinary nurse in England, inherited a very young Chesapeake bitch from her friend and mentor, Margaret Izzard. The bitch, Ryshot Yank’s Seastar of Arnac “Mink”, born in late 1974, was out of an Eastern Waters’ bitch that the Izzards had imported from the U.S. Margaret Izzard had dreamed of establishing the breed in the UK, but, sadly, she was taken by cancer before she could make her dream a reality. Christine “Chrissie” Mayhew and Mink would advance that dream in Margaret’s memory.
Chrissie describes Mink as “everything that anyone could have wanted in a foundation bitch: a good pedigree, good looking, classic Chesapeake temperament, and totally devoted. She was my protector, my constant companion, and my best friend. On the shooting field, she was an excellent game finder and gained many admirers to the breed when people saw her work.” Mink represented a new beginning for Chrissie and the two of them, together, carved out a future for Chesapeake Bay Retrievers in the UK. Forty-five years later, Arnac Chesapeakes is known around the world and the Chesapeake Bay Retriever is now known, respected, and sought after in the UK as a rugged gundog for both waterfowl and driven pheasant shoots.
As you can imagine, it isn’t easy to establish a breed in a country where there are so few animals to breed to. This is where Chrissie’s remarkable determination, effort, and commitment came into play. Chrissie and her husband traveled the U.S. and visited some prominent Chesapeake kennels. They formed a great friendship with Karen and Ron Anderson of Chestnut Hills. That relationship, based upon a deep, mutual respect and trust, has lasted more than 40 years. Over the years, Chrissie imported 15 dogs to expand UK bloodlines, 10 of those were Chestnut Hills dogs and two others were pups sired by one of the Anderson’s dogs.
Quality time with the pack.
Chrissie has been a member of the American Chesapeake Club since approximately 1981 and has long served as an ACC Regional Director in the UK, hosting numerous ACC Working Dog stakes and serving as a breed ambassador in the UK. She is a licensed “breed specialist” judge for the UK Kennel Club and has judged Chesapeakes several times at Crufts (the largest dog show in the world.)
In 1981, Chrissie also began to organize a small group of UK Chesapeake enthusiasts around the idea of forming their own Chesapeake club. At the time, she wrote the following to this small group: “Our breed is still very young here in the UK and so we are in a good position to do something about the conditions that affect Chesapeakes and as long as we are honest and sensible, open and willing to communicate, and then apply this knowledge to our breeding stock, the future of UK Chesapeakes is in our hands!!”
In 1982 approximately a dozen people met in a pub and formed the UK’s own Chesapeake Bay Retriever Club. Nearly 40 years later, the Chesapeake Bay Retriever Club in the UK (200 members strong) offers an annual club show, two annual working tests, numerous training days, judges’ education, handling seminars, a magazine, a website, and a weekly blog, written by Chrissie, called “Breed News Weekly.” Chrissie is the longstanding President of the club. Richard Playle, a founding member of the club and avid waterfowler who got his first Chesapeake gundog from Chrissie shared, “Chrissie was the major force pushing to form a UK Chessie Club. Her views were that we all needed to get together to be able to talk to each other about all our experiences, our successes, our failures, our problems, and the health of our dogs…and more than that, to learn.”
Members of the UK Chesapeake Club at a Club Working Test.
The Arnac team in the Land Rover.
Out on a shoot with a bonus spaniel.
Chrissie’s great passion has been working a team of Chesapeakes “picking up” at driven pheasant shoots on nearby estates often 4-5 days a week during the shooting season. Chrissie and a few friends who have dogs of her breeding have, at times, shown up at a shoot with as many as twelve Chesapeakes. In a country where Labradors and spaniels rule, this pack of Chesapeakes made quite an impression. Working her dogs at these shoots was both a treasured pastime and a necessary part of establishing the breed in the UK. Chrissie has never lost sight of the fact that Chesapeakes are a working gundog. Working her dogs enabled her to preserve the best traits of the breed in her Arnac dogs.
Arnac dogs also have the distinction of being the first Chesapeakes to earn Field Trial awards in the UK. Chrissie’s foundation bitch, Mink, produced the first three Chesapeakes to gain Field Trial recognition. Through Chrissie’s dedication, appreciation for Chesapeakes was beginning to spread in the UK and really put down roots.
Chrissie has long shown her dogs in conformation and encourages all other Chesapeake owners to do so as well. For many years, Chesapeakes could compete in dog shows in the UK, but they were not eligible to receive Challenge Certificates that would enable them to earn a show championship. But, fanciers of the breed entered their dogs in order to represent and promote the breed. In 1985, Chrissie entered Chestnut Hills Arnac Wye Oak in the United Retriever Club Show. Chesapeakes were the only breed at the show that was ineligible to earn Challenge Certificates, yet Chrissie and Wye made history by being awarded Best in Show. It would be another twenty-three years before the UK Kennel Club would award Challenge Certificates to Chesapeakes. In 2016, Show Champion Arnac Bay Exe, a working gundog of Chrissie’s breeding, again made history when he was awarded a Gundog Group 2 at Crufts. On that single day, he defeated 30 Chesapeakes and 4831 Gundogs from around the world! He was shown to the win by a waterfowler who’d been encouraged, by Chrissie, to show his own dog. No other Chesapeake in the world has achieved such an award at any of the world’s prestigious shows (including Westminster or the AKC National Championship).
Chrissie and a Crufts BOB winner in the late 80’s.
UK SH CH Arnac Bay Exe makes Chesapeake history
by placing 2nd in the Gundog Group at Crufts.
In the U.S., US CH Arnac Bay Maddox WD, bred by Chrissie and owned by Karen and Ron Anderson, won the breed at the Westminster Kennel Club and was pulled in the group. She is the only foreign bred Chesapeake to earn that distinction, proving that a UK-bred Chesapeake could compete among the best American competition.
Chrissie has a great talent for educating people about the Chesapeake Bay Retriever. Just this month (April, 2021) the UK Kennel Club published an online course on the breed that was written entirely by Chrissie. It was professionally produced by the Kennel Club and is, to date, one of the most valuable learning resources for our breed. The course includes several videos on history, conformation, movement, etc.
James Newton, a young mentee of Chrissie’s (and an ACC member in the UK) shared some perspective on Chrissie’s influence in the U.K:
“It is not often, in any walk of life, you meet someone who is as humble as they are successful, particularly in the dog world. Someone whose contribution to a breed is, without doubt, ‘the’ reason a breed has flourished into the present day for us to all enjoy. Yet, still lives and breathes an undying passion for their breed like the day they set eyes on one for the first time. One such person is Christine ‘Chrissie’ Mayhew.
Over her time in the breed, Chrissie’s contributions to the development of the breed in the UK has been integral. From acquiring her foundation bitch, ‘Mink’ (Ryshot Yank’s Seastar at Arnac), to importing ‘Drake’ (Am Ch. Chestnut Hills Arnac Drake) and producing the first ‘Arnac’ litter, all current UK Chesapeake kennels either began with direct Arnac foundations or are from lines that can be traced back to Mink as well as the many other imports Chrissie has brought into the country from America, Sweden and New Zealand. All with the intentions of improving genetic diversity, preserving correct breed type & temperament and refining general conformation. It’s incredible to think that one single person, and her conscientious breeding choices, has had such an incredible impact on the breed.
Chrissie’s achievements and influence on the UK Chesapeake fraternity also extends to judging and the mentoring of new enthusiasts and prospective judges. Speaking from a personal perspective, Chrissie has been (and continues to be) my greatest mentor in the breed and probably one of my greatest mentors in the dog world. Her depth of knowledge, experience and, above all else, her objectivity and honesty has had more of an impact on me as a Chesapeake enthusiast, and as a prospective judge and breeder, than she will ever know.
As a person, Chrissie has always been approachable, encouraging, humble but straight talking. You are guaranteed to get the answer you ‘need’ to hear rather than what you ‘want’ to hear with the best interests of the breed always at the heart of what she says and does. If I ever have a question or a concern, she is always the first person I will ask.
I cannot thank Chrissie enough for the encouragement, knowledge and opportunities she has provided me with over the years. Without the Arnac kennel, I genuinely do believe Chesapeakes in the UK would not have developed into what we see and love today. Her influence is unrivalled, and I think all of the above makes her the most fitting candidate for this very special award.”
The American Chesapeake Club has never honored one of our overseas members with a Lifetime Achievement Award. We humbly request that the LTAA committee consider recognizing Christine Mayhew for both her accomplishments, her advocacy, and her service to the Chesapeake Bay Retriever.
Submitted by Karen & Ron Anderson and Gina Downin