Where to begin!? Bobby Smith and I had a close, but also a rocky relationship. He was an interesting man in many ways. The last time he threatened to kill me (yes there were more than one), he told me “write about me when I am dead”, because I had posted some rather benign stories about my experiences with the bloodline on an internet forum. Well, Bobby died a few weeks ago. I don't wish to speak ill of the dead, so we will make this less about Bobby, and more about the dogs. However, you cannot separate the man from some of the stories about the dogs, and certainly he played a big role in helping me to establish the stock that I still have over 22 years later. Bobby told some of his own dog stories through his buddy T.L. Williams' publications over the years. Later on, he would completely wig out about mere pedigrees of his dogs that were posted on the internet. Bobby was a temperamental fellow. He had been in a pretty bad car accident in the late 80’s and was a chronic pain patient, and that hindered his ability to work, and in my estimation sometimes to act rationally. He had been on trial for a murder in Chicago in the early 1980's that he eventually was acquitted of. There was most definitely a dark side to the man. There also a very sensitive side. Those who knew him well watched him care for his “Grammy” for several years in his own home until she passed away, giving her very compassionate care and saving her from the fate of a nursing home. Bobby was a country music singer and songwriter in the 1970's and 1980's with a couple of albums to his credit. If Bobby would have looked like George Strait he sure could have made it big, because he could sing every bit as good as George could. Unfortunately, there was not a lot of room in Nashville for great singers who weighed in over 350 lbs. I thought he was a real good songwriter too. One of the things we shared a deep passion for besides the bulldogs, was country music. We were both on the level with the music, and between that and the bulldogs, it bonded us in a unique way.
I began fooling with stock that had Bobby's breeding behind in it 1989 after having dogs since 1986. In 1990, we began a friendship via telephone through a mutual friend, and Bobby invited me down to see the place later that year. As a young dogman trying to bust into the game, Bobby knew just how to dazzle a youngster, including picking and signing original songs, great food, and he even sent me home with a family bred bitch that I named Cucamonga’s Spotea and who would become my foundation female. I began regular trips from Southern California to Tucson all through the year 1991 for various dog business, including my first couple of shows. When he came to California for dog business, he would invite me to be there. I won my first one down at Mr. Leo Bice’s place on a show that Bobby had arranged and refereed. He then hooked me into Buffalo, who was an up and coming fellow a few years older than me. Buffalo had several wins with sons of Gr. Ch. Badger and Ch. Fox. If you listened to the taped conversation with Patrick that Jack posted, you know he could pull a con. He told me I could beat this guy with my dog, that Buffalo was getting too cocky with all of his recent wins, and he was so sure that I was going to win that he was going to bet on my dog. For a 22 year old working as a landscaper, the $5000 purse was big money for me. Smith supposedly took a large portion of the bet. As my dog went to laying down about the 2:15 mark after pummeling the other entry nonstop, I went to call him into a turn, and Smith who was acting as referee stopped me from it. It was a fishy deal, but with me figuring that he had a sizeable amount of the purse, I thought he was on my side. He was the certainly the veteran dogman, and so I foolishly left my dog down and stopped calling him into a turn. Eventually my entry went to sleep in holds, and when he woke up he got up on his feet and did turn in the process. Finally, a handle! He was not hurt, but he was utterly exhausted and rather disoriented. When I handled him, I didn’t shake him up much, and he truly didn’t know he was released. When I shouted at him finally about the 4-5 count, he wobbled over and was counted out, taking a hold at the 11 count at 2:38. Bobby declared the other entry the winner, as it was a no scratch to win contest. “We” were out the money. He paid me a genuine compliment that night pitside that meant a lot then, and still does now. He simply called me by name with a lot of expression and admiration in his voice and said “you are a DOGman, YOU are a dogman”.
A few weeks later, he called up and asked me if I would come down and live with Buffalo at the Smith & Walton Kennel and be a caretaker and conditioner of about 55 dogs. My life’s ambition since I was 16 years old reading Stratton books was to be a dogman, and here was my chance to feed and breed multiple Champions, ROM dogs, and assess all of their progeny, and show some of them. It was an opportunity that I jumped at, so I moved down in January 1992. Buffalo and I, who had only been casual acquaintances with each other to that point, became the best of friends relatively quickly. While living there, we pieced together the fact that Bobby had bet on both of our dogs in our show the previous fall, and he stood to profit handsomely if I lost. His encouragement for me to “leave the dog down” was his last attempt to have the dog fade and him not have to come up with money that he didn’t have. It was a green handler’s mistake that I will always regret. I think in some way his inviting me down to live there was his way to repent for cheating me. Then again, maybe it was just his way of having 2 dumb kids live there, feed, scoop, pay for the dog food and also pay rent. He was sure a smooth operator! When Buffalo and I were looking to attend Fat Bill’s Pig Pickin in 1992, and were set up to go halves on some Boomerang stock from Ronnie Duhon to blend with the Reuben/Bad Billy blood, he ended up throwing Buffalo out of the place. It was starting to seem as if he wanted to hold us down in the dogs.
That background sets the stage somewhat, for some in house insights into the controversy surrounding CH Hammer. If you will look at the top of the article Jack posted, the first image is the Sporting Dog Journal, and you will notice the year it was published was 1992. I had just moved down there a few weeks before this issue hit our mailbox. When it did, Bobby was in an absolute tirade, because it had only been a few years since the whole debacle with Ch. Blaze, and now here was another obvious Reuben son. I was there when he called up the Mason and accused him of lying about it. It was my understanding at the time that Bobby and the Mason had some previous discussions about it, and he swore he personally was there when the breeding was made to Bull Boy Bob. Bobby was pacified, until Jack Kelly decided to put his photo on the cover! Nobody in the S&W camp knew what Ch. Hammer looked like up until that point. Gentleman’s Choice was hanging around our crowd, and he and Mexican Pete were going to make the breeding that produced the pair that would later become the parents of Avila’s Ouch! dog. GC was told that he wasn’t breeding to a Bolio dog, that he was breeding to a Reuben dog. He didn’t care, and the breeding was made. When I returned back to California in 1993, I was very tempted to breed my Spotea bitch to Ch Hammer. In hindsight, I sure wish that I would have done so, controversial pedigree notwithstanding.
I would also like to add at this point, that when Pat made breedings with Reuben, he was still living in New Mexico. It was my understanding that Rowdy Kennels definitely had some of the known Reuben dogs, and if memory serves me correctly Pat may have even stuck the dog on their yard for a period of time. Anyhow, I know that Rowdy Kennels had several winners sired by Reuben, and I believe one was a 4X winner which would have given Reuben another ROM point. The Reuben dogs had a type to them. Personally, I always focused my attention more the Bad Billy direction to preserve it. Nonetheless, my dogs had, and still have Reuben blood in them. Kloos and I owned the last living daughter of Reuben, and bred her to her half brother Ch.Fox.
Incidentally, I also agree with Jack that CH Bobby is a Reuben son. Bobby had discussed this suspicion with Joe Abraham back when Queen of Hearts was on the trail. There is so much more to add, but let me cut it as short as I can by saying that Jack and I came to the conclusion at least 10 years ago that our dogs are probably genetically similar. Regarding style, he has selected differently, but many of the Smith & Walton dogs were known as finishers. Consequently, many Poncho and Silverback bred dogs are finishers. Jack and I both boast of smart, versatile, all purpose, game dogs that are useful. They don’t hit everything that moves. Smith & Walton’s Blake (2XW) was one of the best finishing dogs I ever saw. I conditioned him for his first which was a forfeit. He was a dog that would play with puppies. I have a litter of 4, 4 month olds now. Their dam runs loose with the sire on chain, and the pups can be cut loose to play with them. There are too many similarities in the Hammer and Smith & Walton dogs physically and temperamentally, and a logical explanation based on the material facts to not have at least reasonable doubts on Ch. Hammer’s pedigree. At the same time, there are virtually no similarities to the Bull Boy Bob dogs. In closing, I will tease you with 2 photos. I have more coming, but does this look like a Poncho pup? This are straight off of my linebred stock.The traits jump around, but I still get this type on occasion. I know where it comes from, and now so do you.
