work like a dog

By Nancy Dewar Barking About

Just like humans dogs need a purpose; some sort of job. For many, their purpose is simply to give love; which dogs are exceptionally good at! However, three local English Labradors are blessed with not just one job, but three. They are hunting dogs, runway models and, of course, love bugs too. Meet Scout, Atticus and Tootzie who live with their dad Steve O’Neil in Hampton. These handsome pups are brothers and sisters. Though from different litters, they all have the same dam and sire and were bred by Brenda Mazzaglia who owns Integrity Farm Labrador Retrievers located in Derry, New Hampshire.

Steve has always been a huge dog lover. He got his first Lab when he was 14 and told me a cute story from his childhood. “I was a paper boy, and my mother would get phone calls from people on my route telling her that their paper had not arrived. She would get into the car and drive to all the houses that had dogs…knowing she would find me at one of them. I just couldn’t tear myself away from the dogs!” He became an avid hunter following his retirement from Verizon 10 years ago after a life-long career with the company. He then began training his dogs to hunt working with a group of other local guys who were experienced, though said, “We’re all really amateurs.”

For an amateur, Steve and his pack of three have certainly accomplished a lot! In the hunting world, there are three levels of AKC certification; Junior, Senior and Master. Scout, Atticus and Tootzie are all certified Masters, no easy feat. The first AKC retriever hunting tests were held in 1985. Dogs don’t compete against other handlers and dogs, but rather are assessed based on their own merit in their hunting style and perseverance. They also are judged on learned abilities such as steadiness, control, response and delivery. Steve said that it takes a good year to get the basics down to achieve Master status. The dogs are “handled” in the field, hundreds of yards away

from their owner, responding to hand and whistle commands to flush out the game. “Hunting…that’s what these dogs are bred for. I, too, love the sport but also eat everything I shoot; primarily ducks and pheasants.”

The dogs’ modeling career began serendipitously a few years ago when Steve saw an ad on Facebook from a photographer looking for a “blockyheaded Lab.” The ad was from Ron and Amy Schmidt of Newburyport, founders of Loose Leashes. Ron is an exceptional photographer, and their company creates unique, highly stylized photos of dogs. The duo licenses images and sells prints worldwide to companies such as L.L. Bean, Orvis and Hallmark.

Steve laughed and said, “I sent a picture of Scout to Amy and heard back from her within five minutes…asking when we could come in!”

22 seacoastbarkmagazine.com Steve & Tootzie

are so highly trained, they are outstanding in doing the intricate shoots. “Scout and Atticus are Ron’s go-to dogs when he has a difficult shoot.” They shoot at various locations around the Seacoast as well as at Ron and Amy’s home, and a normal shoot lasts about an hour. I asked Steve if there were any funny stories that stood out. “We did a shoot called ‘Fizz’ with Atticus licking a

Scout & Atticus

Scout & Tootzie

Tootzie's 10 Puppies

straw. We went through about a half jar of peanut butter to keep him focused on the straw.” That’s a pretty good pay-out from a dog’s perspective!

Scout (5), Tootzie (4) and Atticus (2) are also pros at their third job; the best companions ever to their Dad. “They are my buddies,” Steve said. “If Scout were a human, he’d be a union steward in a steel mill. Tootzie would take in every baby she could find. And Atticus, he’d be Mr. Mayor. He’s so frigging goofy. He’s a ham in the house and a great hunter when he put on his helmets and shoulder pads.” They play some fun games with commands at home, as well. “We play fetch where I put my wallet and keys on the floor and tell the dogs we’re going for a ride. I then say, ‘but I need some money, can you find my wallet?’ One will go pick up the wallet, and then we do the same with the keys. Maybe they get a bit sick of it. I don’t know!”

by noon on the 29th. The new owners came for a puppy day, to look & hold, when pups were 6 weeks old. They held a homecoming day in December when the 8-week-old pups went home with their new families. Tootzie (a.k.a. Wiggly Butt!) will probably be bred again this spring. “She was a wonderful dam,” Steve said with pride. Brenda and Steve are highly responsible breeders and are committed to breeding exceptionally healthy dogs; always performing DNA checks for any genetic defects. Both are adamant about protecting the breed.

Steve exuded his love for his dogs throughout our conversation. As we wrapped up our chat, Steve said, “They are well rounded dogs. I’ve really given them a purpose and they really enjoy it. But they do screw up sometimes. They’re dogs!” If you’d like to learn more about potential puppies from this lineage, please contact Steve at: DapperTwo@yahoo.com.

Photos by Ron Schmidt Photography www.LooseLeashes.com

Scout in “Hooch”