NEWS
by Frank O'Leary
Trocken Bach Friends,
A tribute to
Atlanta KS vom Hege-Hof
April 27, 2005 – October 19, 2017
by Frank O’Leary
In the rodeo world they say that every contestant is entitled to one good horse, if you are extremely fortunate you may even have a great horse.
Well I guess the DK world is similar. We have been very fortunate – we have had eleven KS dogs and each has been very special in their own way. However, as Mr. Bommers said the night before we brought Atlanta home from Germany for the last time; she made a total of seven trans- Atlantic flights, “Frank you will have many good dogs but you will never have another Atlanta."
A tribute to
Herr Klaus Bommers
July 15, 1939 – January 22, 2017
by Frank O’Leary
We met Mr. Bommers in June of 2005 at his castle in Düboslar, Germany. We were there to pick up a Hege-Haus pup (Atlanta) and had the pleasure of spending two days with Mr. Bommers, his wife Renate, daughter Rita, and son Klaus. This was the first of thirteen trips we have made to Düboslar relating to our dogs in training with Mr. Bommers but most of all to visit the Bommers and for me to spend time with Mr. Bommers in the field, forest, and at the water with the dogs.
Mr. Bommers showed me so much and shared so many training secrets. It was very a special experience and will always be grateful.
We made our way to the Kleemann via Amsterdam, The Netherlands and then to the Normandy Region of France. If you have not had the opportunity to visit the Normandy Region you need to do so for a history lesson and a reality check. The sites and information provided by our tour guide was truly moving. Other than the visit to Normandy I am convinced I never need to visit France again. It is the only country we have visited in Europe where the people were rued and unfriendly. Enough said onto Germany and the business of the 2012 Dr. Kleemann Prüfung.
International Kurzhaar Prüfung
The community of Surwold came to life October 13th through 15th with hundreds of DK enthusiast in the area for the International Kurzhaar Prüfung (IKP). Arriving in the area
by car from Amsterdam we traveled through rain for the entire drive until we were thirty miles from our Inn. At that point the rain subsided and the sun tried to shine through.
The weather continued to improve as the week went on and the stage was set for a memorable IKP.
When we made plans to attend the 2010 Kleemann in
Zistersdorf, Austria we thought it would be nice to attend
the event without the pressure of having a dog
participating. That all changed in July when we were in
Germany and learned that a dog I had first seen when he
was twelve weeks old was for sale. Darwin vom Hege-Hof had been one of the most tested dogs in Germany
and certainly one of the most successful in Zuchtschau
events since he was eight months old. Now we would
once again be going to the Kleemann as an owner.
The next day we went with another club member to watch as his dog successfully completed its water work and received the KS title. That evening the Kleemann Banquet was held and everyone was relaxed and the connections of the successful dogs were happy. Others thought about what could have been.
For the O’Leary’s the 2008 Kleemann will be something we will always remember. Atlanta and Mr. Bommers delivered as usual and the recognition from the elderly hunters at the water was very special and would be included in her judge’s report. Bellevue and Thomas Hofstetter were spectacular in the field. Claudia, the wild card, had worked perfectly for her leader Mr. Klutz and had been reward accordingly. At the end of the day we had three dogs, with three different leaders, and each received their KS title at the 2008 Kleemann. We could not have been prouder for our dogs and their leaders.
When we left for Ampflwang, Austria to attend the International Kurzhaarprü fung (IKP) we had been told by both of our leaders (handlers) that Atlanta vom Hege-Haus and Bellevue vom Hege-Haus were in great form. Mr. Bommers’ daughter Rita suggested that it was very possible we were to witness something very special and was she ever correct.