A Legend Lost Bob Bartos

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by Amy Fernandez

On March 25th the dog world lost famed handler Bob Bartos. Although he formally retired in the 1970s his sharp observations, invaluable advice, and priceless recollections profoundly influenced the sport until his death at age 100.

Best-known as a handler of top Scotties, Bob bred, imported, and presented countless top winners and producers for legendary kennels. The culmination of his career came in 1967 when he joined the elite ranks of Westminster BIS winners. Ch. Bardene Bingo was one of Bob’s all-time favorite dogs, and it goes without saying that he was an equally significant producer, siring 48 champions. Bob wouldn’t have it any other way.

Bob was nine when he got his first dog, a German Shepherd that became his best friend and partner in crime. He called Two Little Savages his bible. Published in 1911, Thompson Seton’s classic adventure story inspired generations of children to explore nature, learn survival skills and become self-reliant. Bob was determined to recreate the Indian costume described in the book, but lacked one crucial component until he discovered “a big percheron mare dead at the bottom of the ravine. I went down and cut the tail off and I had my complete outfit. I wondered what the guy thought when he found his mare at the bottom of the ravine with its tail cut off.” Years later Bob shared his war bonnet story with a friend only to learn that his uncle had owned that farm and it was his mare. “I got trapped 80 years later. That’s how small the world is.”

Bob had innumerable wonderful stories, but that’s my favorite. Perhaps it was his Scotch-Irish heritage or his Midwestern childhood, but it perfectly captured his wry sense of humor, determined spirit, and ingenuity – traits that took him to the top of the dog game.

By age ten he was driving and learned to shoot. His parents’ shooting dogs sparked his lifelong interest in Retrievers, but Terriers became his passion. He learned from icons like George Hartman, Walter Reeves, George Thomas, and the legendary Percy Roberts – who Bob noted was taught by Jack Holgate, one of the first generation experts who made the sport.

Bob’s dog knowledge was phenomenal, and even in his late nineties his memory was incredible. He understood the importance of mentoring but also realized that few people possess the natural ability and dedication to succeed in dogs. He was quite selective about sharing his hard won wisdom. First and foremost among the recipients was his protégé Gabriel Rangel. Bob followed Gabriel’s career closely, rejoicing in his success.

Bob started as a hobby exhibitor and always credited benched shows for his education in the sport saying, “I never went to a show where I didn’t learn something and many times it was from a kid or an amateur. You arrived at 6 a.m. and stayed to midnight for three days. Then you found out that the guy who beat you was benched next to you. Finally got to talking and became friends. Of course we wanted to win, we were competitive as hell but we still wanted the best dogs to win. We tried to learn from each other.”

There was plenty to learn because type was all over the map when Bob started in Scotties back in 1930. Describing the situation in his typical offhand way he explained, “You picked a type, and hope you picked the right one.” He based his line on Scotland’s famed Heather kennel, starting with the best dog he could wrangle from Chapman’s show string, Ch. Heather Certainty. In 1939 he imported Heather Asset, whose double granddaughter, Ch. Carnation Golden Girl, became the breed’s first BIS wheaten. Bob’s four decade breeding program traced unbroken to Heather Necessity through Fashion Hint and Realisation. His contribution to Scottie development in America was profound and his skills weren’t overlooked. By the ‘40s he was managing celebrated kennels like Dick Crawford’s Sealyhams, retrievers for Harold Ward (Woodend) and Ned Dodge (Giltway), and Ted Bennet’s Deephaven Scotties. Among others, he bred the top stud and 1948 Lloyd winner, Ch. Deephaven Red Seal during his tenure managing Deephaven.

In 1947 Bob embarked on a new phase of his career relocating his family to Carnation, WA to manage the legendary Carnation Farms. A pioneer in the commercial dog food industry, he once remarked, “It cost us $5 million to put the first can of dog food on the shelf. Owner E.H. Stuart founded Carnation’s research kennel for feeding trials in 1931 with a motley assortment of Cockers, Setters, Goldens, Danes, and mixed breeds.

“One of the wonderful things for me was having bosses who let me do the job. When I first went to Carnation after the war it had to be reestablished. I needed to bring in different stock. Mr. Stuart decided there would be nothing on the farm but purebreds and his passion was Scotties.” He gave Bob a free rein and he turned Carnation Farms into a top ranked kennel with over 300 dogs including a hundred Scotties in show trim.

But that wasn’t enough. Soon after his arrival, Bob and his new boss attended the second West coast field trial at Lake Ballinger. Scouting for retriever stock, as usual, Bob got the best. Confusion of Deer Creek and her entire litter became foundation stock for Carnation. Within a year, he also arranged for the Northwest Retriever Club to hold field trials at Carnation Farms that lasted until his retirement in the late ‘70s.

Shed of Arden, King Buck, and King Midas of Woodend were just a few of the great retrievers Bob knew during those years. He also imported Scotties that figure prominently in the best lines today starting with Ch. Reimill Radiator, a son of Westpark Masterpiece. In 1955 he imported Ch. Westpark Rio Grande, the sire of 15 English champions and 21 AKC champions, and his grandson, Ch. Westpark Derriford Baffie, the sire of seven English champions and 20 AKC champions. Calling him “untouchable”, Baffie had won 35 challenge certificates in four years. Over here, Bob handled him to 22 BIS and four specialties.

In August 1964, he imported Eng. Ch. Bardene Bingo and quickly put two Best In Show wins on him from the classes. There is no sweeter way to finish a dog than three consecutive Bests, especially if Westminster completes the package. Although it didn’t happen in 1965, Bob never begrudged a win to a good dog. In this case, it was Ch. Carmichael’s Fanfare, a Deephaven Red Seal granddaughter, owned by breeders he respected. Two years later, Bingo got his due, and that win was equally sweet, coming from none other than Percy Roberts.

In those days, Bingo’s best pal was Bob’s yellow Lab. “He was my personal shooting dog, one of the greatest dogs I ever had. Everyone asked why I didn’t show him.” Telling the story, Bob would chuckle, “Hell I know he is a champion. I don’t need somebody to tell me that. It was a great break in life to have two great animals at the same time. I was very fortunate.”

The dog world was more fortunate to have Bob Bartos. His contribution to the sport is immeasurable.

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Posted by Alex on May 14 2014. Filed under Current Articles, Featured. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.