Wichita Today

Affectionately known as the “Chessie”, the Chesapeake Bay Retriever is an American breed with a fascinating history.

In 1807 a British vessel was shipwrecked off the Maryland coast, and among those rescued were two Newfoundland puppies. The ship’s captain gave the puppies as a gift to his rescuers and they were later bred to various dogs in the area, including Otterhounds, Flat-Coated Retrievers, and Curly-Coated Retrievers, to eventually produce the Chesapeake Bay Retriever we know today.

A strongly built dog, the Chessie stands 24 inches at the withers, and weighs up to 80 pounds. They are outstanding swimmers, able to traverse the roughest of waterways. They have a dense double coat, oily outside, and downy underneath, which gives them excellent protection against the elements. Coat colors range from brown to red-brown.

The breed lacks the happy-go-lucky, outgoing personality of other retrievers, like Labradors or Goldens. Generally, they are loyal and protective of their immediate family, but reserved and alert around strangers.

These are confident, independent dogs who are not as keen to please their owners as, say, a Labrador would be. They are therefore not a good choice for someone who has limited experience with dogs. A Chesapeake will do better with a handler that is assertive, but even-handed.

They can do well as a family pet for an active family, but are better suited to older children, and will also have to be socialised with other pets.

Like most purebred dogs, the Chesapeake Bay Retriever is not immune to inherited health problems. They suffer from hip dysplasia, cataracts, progressive retinal atrophy, and the haemophilia known as, Von Willebrand’s Disease.

Like many large breeds, they may suffer bloat or gastric torsion. Feeding the dog small, regular meals rather than one large meal per day can help prevent this. Chessies live on average for 10 to 12 years.

Grooming is very easy. The coat has a unique oily texture and requires only a weekly brush to keep it in good condition. Despite the distinctive doggy odor the dog gives off it should not be bathed too often, as this strips protective oils from the coat.

This is not the easiest dog to train. They are smart, but also strong-willed, which means they won’t follow an instruction just because you say so. Strong leadership is very important if you want to succeed with training, but you’ll also need to keep things positive and reward based to get results.

If your thinking of adopting a Chesapeake Bay Retriever you’ll have to be prepared for lots of activity. These are high energy dogs, requiring a great deal of exercise. A long daily walk is an absolute must, while your Chessie will appreciate any opportunity for a good swim.

Good names for a Chesapeake Bay Retriever can be hard to find. The best advice is to search one of the online dog names, sites, and my personal favorite is Puppy Names HQ. This site has thousands of excellent dog names, including a mega-database of female dog names to pick from.