 ABOUT US
42 "GOLDEN" YEARS 52 CHAMPIONS CLICK HERE TO READ "BUFFALO KENNELS FROM THE BEGINNING" Mike and Sandra Patterson and the Buffalo Golden Retrievers are fortunate to live in the little town of Exeter in the Southern Highlands - one of the most beautiful regions in the state of New South Wales.
Mike and Sandra are members of the Golden Retriever Club of NSW Inc and Dogs NSW. Sandra first joined these bodies in 1968. Both are also members of the UK Golden Retriever Club and the Whippet Club of NSW. Michael worked for 23 years in the meat industry before retiring, and now looks after the Goldens at Buffalo, ensuring the smooth running of the kennel and management of the surrounding property. Our dogs are very fortunate to have 24/7 human companionship and care. Michael is well known for his expertise in handling in the show ring and has judged gundogs at open show level in the UK. Sandra's life in dogs commenced in 1964, when as a 12 year old she joined Sydney All Breeds Dog Training Club with her cross border collie (and brought home stray) "Frisky". A couple of years later she had gained her RASKC InstructorÕs License and by 1970, judging licenses for Novice and Open Obedience. "Frisky" was trained to UD level but could not compete in obedience trials against pure bred dogs and so there developed a great yearning for a pedigree dog. Sandra's parents finally relented in 1968 and her first Golden Retriever came into her life. He was to be Ch Santamaria Caesar UD, bred by George and Rose Feast. George and Rose bred many champions before their return to the UK. The Santamaria prefix was then transferred to the Lee family. Caesar won many trials in the open and utility rings including Sydney Royal and they were often part of demonstration teams at agricultural shows and schools. Over the years she has trained many dogs to their obedience titles. After a break of 20 years, she returned to the obedience ring to successfully title Ch Lawnwoods Rustic Rian UD (Imp UK) and Ch Stenbury Sea Fantasy CDX (Imp Sweden). In 1981 Sandra met Michael who at the time was involved with English Setters. A few more years of English Setter involvement followed, including breeding our only litter. We were fortunate to have a champion from this litter. The Goldens soon took over and the rest is history, so they say. With forty Golden years behind us, Buffalo Kennels is proud of its achievements. From a limited number of litters we have bred 52 Australian Champions. There have been 6 New Zealand Champions and we are very proud to have bred the first ever Australian and New Zealand Golden Retriever - Ch & NZ Ch Buffalo Woodchester CD. In the years to follow, three more Buffalo-bred dogs attained their Australasian titles. We are also proud to have bred the breed's first Grand Champion bitch - Grand Champion Buffalo Luvmelots to be followed by Grand Champion Buffalo Bel Ayre Prince and Grand Champion Buffalo Spellmaster. All have won Best in Show awards. In the early 80s we pioneered the introduction of hip scoring. When Malcolm Willis visited Australia, we organised the "Malcolm Willis Presents" and "Malcolm Willis Returns" Seminars. We also organised the first eye clinics. The concept of eye clinics continues to this day and it is now expected to test all breeding stock. Many other breeds also hold regular eye clinics. Nowadays, hip scoring and eye testing is an accepted practice in Australia and in some breeds it is mandatory for breeding stock to be x-rayed and hip scored before the registration of a litter is accepted by Dogs NSW. The Golden Retriever breed falls into this category. We will continue to push for awareness of the inherited problems which face our breed.
Golden Retrievers bred and/or owned by us have successfully fulfilled roles in the show and obedience rings. Over the years their bloodlines have been behind field trial champions and top show and obedience "legends" of their time. Today they are highly regarded amongst Golden enthusiasts and still compete successfully in all the various aspects of our "sport". We are very grateful to the many lovely goldens who have made our success possible and to all the owners who have campaigned our dogs to their respective titles. However, it isn't all about competition and Goldens bred by us have also assisted the Guide Dogs for the Blind in their many programmes. We recently proudly watched Ethan graduate as a fully fledged guide dog. We are just as proud of those goldens living with families at their treasured pets. It is very humbling and gratifying to receive letters, notes, phone calls and emails thanking us for their pets and the wonderful times they enjoy together. It brings home to us the reason we do what we do and makes it all worthwhile. We can look back on a very rewarding and successful forty years and would like to thank you all Buffalo owners for the love they give our dogs and for providing them with the best homes possible. We look forward to continuing the high standard set by us into the future. We have now added Coco and Peppa - our Whippets - to our household and we look forward to learning more about this wonderful breed in the years to come. |
