Remembering Bud

I have owned lots of dogs in my lifetime...my first was named 'Carlo", a mixed breed male my dad gave me at age 4. We lived in Hollister, Ok and my grandparents lived on a farm outside Tipton, about 27 miles away. Just prior to summer vacation one year, we took Carlo to stay with my grandparents and I cried as we drove away from their farm. Amazingly, the next morning we woke up and Carlo was on the back porch! We never understood how he found his way and so quickly, but I came to believe that these so called 'dumb creatures' are not so dumb after all!

DJ Bud De Lamont taught me much about dog 'intelligence'. He was picked because of his sheer beauty, clear white with deep orange coloration from a litter by Hall of Famer Rimarda's Trademark and Val De Lamont (daughter of another HOF and Natl Ch., Bean's Blaze) . He was a large pup and, well....'lethargic' is the only word. He was definitely a slow starter, and spent most of the runs on our 'puppy grounds' just standing near the "boss bus' staring at me. I had just about given up on him but one morning turned him loose in our 'thicker country' with an adult hunting dog. Amazingly, he ran, and within the first 50 yards he slammed on point, chased when the birds flushed, then commenced to find and hold two more covies that morning, and he ran with range and class. Bud had just made the team!

He gave me 13 wonderful years and sired, at age 11, one of the finest litters we ever had, which included Austin Annie De Lamont and Hello Dolly De Lamont. Within the last year however, Bud developed a weak heart. His 'desire' when he saw the dog trailer hitched to the Suburban was still there and we determined that as long as he wanted to go....he could go. I ran him very short periods and was able to capture his final point in February '07 on camera (see pix above).

On a rainy morning in April, 2007, I took Bud on his final trip in the Suburban to my friend and caring Vet, Michael Godin . They say the 'good ones never outlive us'...Bud was a good one.