Labruja Dogue de Bordeauxs

Our involvement in working breeds spans over 30 years. In that time my family have owned, bred, exhibited and judged G.S.Ds and Rottweilers, but for the past 9 years Dogue de Bordeauxs have been our passion.

I am the former breed note writer for Dog World and Auther of The Dogue de Bordeaux today which I wrote for Dog Worldwhich you can read below.

Our Affix Labruja was gained in 1979 through qualification. (they could not be bought in those days)

We only attend a few Championship Shows but win or loose we always have a great day out and enjoy meeting up with friends and fellow exhibitors. The show scene is not that important to us these days, The quality of our dogs speaks for itself.

Kennels are not for us. Our dogs are first and foremost our treasured companions and live in our home as part of the family.

Our dogs do not have any health problems, which can be confirmed by our long standing vet. There are however people who spread malicious gossip about our dogs which we can only put down to jealousy or a lack of  knowledge.

 All our dogs are Hip Scored, wormed, frontlined and vet checked on a  regular basis and walked individualy each day.

We do not breed as all our bitches are spayed but very occasionally there are quality pups available from breeders who have used our Stud.

We hope you enjoy your visit. Please sign the guestbook before you leave.

Help and advise freely given

There is no doubt that the film Turner and Hooch released in 1986 by Touchstone pictures had a great influence on the re-introduction of the breed into the UK. The breed was officially recognised by the K/C in 1997 and after acceptance of the interim Breed standard in 2001 the breed could be officially shown in Import Reg classes. Type and quality was very diverse at this time but things were to improve greatly in a very short time.

Registrations rose very quickly, which is not always a good thing in a newly introduced breed. However the breed was to gain the attention of a few devoted breeders who would bring the breed forward to new heights and whose ultimate concern was for the good of the breed. Unfortunately the breed also gained the attention of the unscrupulous back street breeder whose only interest was the high prices puppies were fetching. This undesirable element is still with us today very sadly; hence the large amount of litters registered to date.

Without a doubt one of the pioneers of our breed in this country has been Alan and Kerry Bates of the Brandoux/Laruscade affix whose kennel was founded in 1994. With the help of Charlie Wynn, their tireless lobbying of the Kennel club went a long way to the acceptance of the breed onto the imp register. This kennel went on to be the most successful  in this country producing 13 Champions world wide such as The World renowned Multi Ch Brandoux Toezzz (Ch Blockheads Hooch x Ch Laruscade Bibi). Bibi was also the first English Bred and owned Dogue to become a Dutch Ch. Toezzz along with Jr World Ch Temple Felson (Majestic Red x Laruscade Mandy) is behind the vast majority of top winners at present and Toezzz was Top Stud for 2005.

 Other top Kennels who’s stock was founded on these lines includes Bev and Les Graham of The Jerivindi Prefix who have bred no less than 4 Overseas Champions including Int Ch Jerivindi Jerome (Jr World Ch Temple Felson x Rhodonite Ms Dynamite for Jerivindi).

 Bev actively campaigned IR Ch Laruscade Miracle Boy for Anbarees (Young Arnold x Jenny Fair De L’etang De Mirloup) both in the UK and Ireland. He was the first UK dogue to become an Irish Ch.

 Along with Ir Ch Rhodonite Red Explosion for Jerivindi, (Multi Ch Brandoux Toezzz x Rhodonite Rana) they became two of the top winners here in the UK.

Jerivindi Distinctive Dream (Ir Ch Laruscade Miracle Boy x Jerivindi Angel of the North) was Eukanuba top DDB Brood Bitch 2005 producing 2 overseas Champions and being the dam of Eukanuba Top DDB puppy 2005, Jerivindi Red Rocco.

Another Kennel to produce overseas Champions is Emberez owned by Becky Swainston and Nik Birkinel with a total of 5 Champions to date, with Int Ch Emberez Apollo (Laruscade Miracle Boy for Anbarees x Rhodonite Rana) being their most prolific and the most titled Dogue in the UK. Emberez have campaigned their dogs at UK shows as well as overseas, gaining Vitalin Bitch of the year in 2004 with Belle of the North for Emberez (Tank VD Bargefenne x Bronze Mia).

I cannot end this chapter without mentioning Laruscade Moonbeam at Jehane. (Kenyee World Cup Fever x Tanakajd Szepe Merien at Kidmenot) Bred by Alan & Kerry Bates and owned by Jane Gill- who actively campaigned her in this country to Top Working Imp Reg, Top DDB, and Dog World/Pedigree Top Dog 2005. Top Working Bitch (All Breeds)/ Vitalin Bitch of the Year and Top DDB Bitch 2005. A remarkable achievement considering the restraints of a breed on the Import Register.

These restraints I feel have gone a long way to contribute to low entries at UK shows. With the introduction of the Pet passport scheme and the chance to win top honours under Breed Specialists on the continent, many have chosen to exhibit there instead. Another contributory factor I feel is the lack of knowledge by some but by no means all of those who have judged our breed in this country which has been evident by reading some critiques. Despite being a short coated breed some insist on over-handling dogs brought before them. The DDB is a stubborn and arrogant breed and loathes being handled in this way.

The emphasis now for breeders must be to produce soundness as well as type.

 It is evident that more and more breeders are hip and elbow scoring their stock and yet in comparison with registrations the figures of dogs tested are still relatively low. The UK has produced some of the Best Dogues in the World in a remarkably short time; let us now strive to also produce the healthiest.

UK bred Dogues have not only excelled in the ring but must also be recognised for their working abilities. Gary Turners, Turnershoochs have delighted people at charity events and shows up and down the country with their carting abilities and Gary is to be congratulated for training his Dogues to such high standards and for promoting the breed positively to the general public, gaining certification in the form of the coveted Fashqua cup for individual Draught work and the Fashqua Shield for Brace Work. The Fashqua Draught Cart Club offer training and assessments to test the dogs and handlers ability to complete various tasks.

As far as Gary is aware, he is the only one using Mastiff type dogs in Draught work.

The breed is also no stranger to the world of TV and film and Diana Yemms mother and daughter team, namely Amy (Chunky Hourglass) and daughter Evie (Dibest Evie) have graced our screens in adds such as Bakers, Hills Science and Virgin Mobile but Diana says her best was Rigleys airwaves which is mostly seen in Australia. An Animatronics head was made with Amy having to do many sittings. This however was hardly used as Amy was so good doing all that was asked of her. Amy was also used in the Prince’s Trust video and of course can still hold her own in the show ring at the age of 8. Diana tells me that she also does obedience and agility with them as well, both having gained their Good Citizens award. Truly dual purpose Dogues.