Nova Scotia Duck Tollers

ihatework

ihatework

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Okay, I'm itching for a new puppy and although in all liklihood it won't be for another 6-12 months before I get one I'm on the research at the moment.

I've narrowed it down to a toller (I already have a working bred lab).

Primarily my dogs are pets, but I also like them to have a part time job too. My lab picks up very well and goes out shooting every now and again, he also used to do agility until he got injured. I'd really like to do more agility so want an active yet friendly and trainable dog.

Having not had anything to do with tollers (hadn't even heard of them if I'm honest) I met one the other day and it was love at first sight!!

So anyone know anything about what to look for when choosing a puppy - what health checks/scores should I insist on?
What breeding lines have specific good/bad traits?
Any other pearls of wisdom?

TBH I could even consider rehoming a younger dog (dependant on what issues it had) - is there anywhere to go for rescues?
 
Sorry can't help in a constructive way, but a friend in Belgium had one - the only one I have ever met. Absolutely gorgeous dog; fantastic temperament; intelligent; and a perfect size. He lived at the coast right on the beach and his 'job' was chasing the seagulls and welcoming people into the owner's shop.

I will also be looking for another dog in the next few months so would be interested in knowing how you get on.

My overriding memory is of Belgians trying to pronounce Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever!
 
We most likely had a part-bred one years ago, and I would love another, so although I'm no help with what to look for I will be following this post with interest.

Ours was the only one like it out of a litter of unknown parentage, but a 'woman who knows' said to us when we were out walking once that he was Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever, and we said of course he is, and walked home chuckling to ourselves, mainly because we had never heard of such a dog.

But when we looked up the breed, ours did indeed match - the lovely chestnut colour, white cross on the chest, webbed feet, fan tail with white tip, and such a loving and intelligent dog to boot. Feel the need to post a photo later :)

So we guessed that his sire was perhaps one, although it was years ago and he must have been the first duck toller off the boat from Nova Scotia by the sound of it. Crufts is coming up soon - might be worth a trip as they usually have some there.

ETA: he had a walk-on part in EastEnders once, and barked during a vital part of the scene, so he was famous for a few minutes :)
 
There was a lady I met (I did a portrait of 3 of her Tollers swimming) who lives in Mudeford, Dorset and was breeding them. She did work for the breed society at CLA game fair etc so I'd imagine she would be fairly easy to track down. You could try ringing the Gunsmiths Lambert and Wiltshire in Ringwood 01425 473223 as someone there may have her details as I can't remember her name sorry. They are lovely dogs; don't see many of them but hers were beautiful and from what I saw very much like Springers in temperament. If you are on facebook here is a link to the pic; I loved the photo so much I asked her permission to use it to paint from as it was great the way they were lined up paddling along! https://www.facebook.com/media/set/...06863827.86485.365632290197422&type=3&theater
 
I'd love to see a photo :)

Gutted that I'm away skiing over the weekend Crufts is on, otherwise would have been there like a shot!
 
we had one which my mum wanted to use for obedience. She was very food agressive and was sold to the Queens estate keeper for his breeding lines. Im not sure if this is something that runs through the breed or whether she was a one off
 
Billabongchick - that's an absolutely beautiful painting - love the movement that it captures of the way the dogs swim.

It reminds me of how ours would break the ice on the local lake to swim just for the sake of it - he would go in regardless of the temperature, and would try to retrieve anything, including a buoy that was concreted to the bottom. Thought he was going to drown himself, he was so determined to retrieve it. Had to strip off and go drag him in. Rang OH for sympathy, and he laughed and said dog would have given up eventually, then two weeks' later on the same walk, dog went into the lake determined to retrieve said buoy, and OH watched for ages, dog started to tire and go under, so he stripped off and dragged him back to shore. We avoided that walk from then on!

Ours was a little food aggressive when we got him but we put that down to him being a rescue dog - he was about 8 months when we got him and he wasn't in a great way. He grew out of it though, and wouldn't have said it was a problem once we had worked on it with him.
 
I know some and a friend of mine has one. they are all very high energy....

There are a lot of them on the agility circuit.
 
galaxy said:
I know some and a friend of mine has one. they are all very high energy....

There are a lot of them on the agility circuit.
Click to expand...

High energy in the house too? Really only suitable for completely outdoors lifestyle or do they settle into a home routine if they get sufficient exercise/stimulation?

My current dog gets good off-lead exercise twice a day, and then settles easy as anything when indoors and would like something that would be compatible with that set up really.
 
I have a friend with several (can't remember what lines hers are from), but one had massive issues and died young...........If I remember correctly it was steroid responsive meningitis (I believe they are predisposed to this).

Hip dysplasia, PRA and Collie eye also prevalent.

They have a very small gene pool so unsurprising carriers are bred from something like 40% carry PRA.

They are high energy and I think they are quite collie like, but friend has 3 in the house, so can't be too terrible to live with.

There is a breed rescue - http://www.toller-club.co.uk/
 
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ihatework said:
High energy in the house too? Really only suitable for completely outdoors lifestyle or do they settle into a home routine if they get sufficient exercise/stimulation?

My current dog gets good off-lead exercise twice a day, and then settles easy as anything when indoors and would like something that would be compatible with that set up really.
Click to expand...

No, I think they settle in the house (trying to recall if I've been in a house with my friends... not sure). But outside they do not stop and run like things possessed! My friends is a normal pet, living in the house and taken for walks. Saying that, I think they are very trainable. My friends was good at obedience and they do seem very good at agilty.
 
I have a toller, now 6 years old, and he is one of the most intelligent dogs I have ever met. Ours settled well as a house dog and is very trainable. He doesn't need excessive amounts of exercise but does need a lot of mental stimulation. I will say that, while they are brilliant family dogs, duck tollers as a breed can be aloof with strangers so they do need to be socialised very carefully. They can also be prone to food allergies and adverse reactions to vaccinations.
 
Take a look here too. http://www.thetollerclub.org.uk/forum/
I have 2 Tollers. One is a Danehaven bred in Norfolk, and the other is a Decoymans bred in Suffolk. Yes, they can develop SRMA. It's not actually known what causes this yet, but research is ongoing. It usually occurs when owners have had their puppy inoculated immediately after bringing it home, instead of letting it settle in for a few weeks. Other triggers seem to be putting the dog into kennels or any other shock to the system. Many different breeds can develop PRA. These days there are health tests which can tell you whether your dog is likely to develop it. Hips and eyes should be tested on dam and sire. A good breeder will usually have a waiting list, there not the sort of breed you can suddenly decide you want, and expect there to be plenty to choose from. I'm not sure what the current price for a pup is, but I would imagine a minimum of £800.00.
The above Club has a puppy coordinator, and she should know when breeders are intending to have litters. This year, the Tollers will be awarded CC's for the first time ever, it wasn't that long ago they came off the Import Register. So if you go to Crufts on Gun dog day, you should see some quality dogs, meet plenty of breeders, and see which blood lines you think would serve you best.
I have competed with my oldest Tollers at agility, my younger one is more interested in scent work. There was a lady who worked at Slim bridge, and used her Tollers there! They are brilliant dogs, need plenty of stimulation, definitely not a lap dog, but once into the routine of your life, will adapt accordingly. As I'm writing this, my 2 are upside down (roaching) and chilled, but as soon as I put this tablet down, they will be giving me the eye, hoping it's walkies time.
I should also add that several Tollers have made excellent Hearing Dogs.
If you'd like to meet mine or want any further info, please do PM me.
 
Thank you DuckToller, it was a while ago now but probably my favourite painting I've done.

I'd also be interested to hear how this goes OP if you go for it- I have a Border Collie but have always fancied these and Hungarian Vizlas and I bet I'd never get as calm and laid back a collie as my boy again! They sound like they need an awful lot of stimulation to keep them occupied though!
 
IHW we think Harvey dog is a toller/ toller x. We'd never heard of one until we were accosted by a lady shouting "toller?" At us at Blair one year. He has all of the characteristics.
He has the most wonderful nature of any dog I've ever met.
Wants to please constantly & very easy to train. I always said I'd never buy a puppy, I'd want to rehome, but I'd make an exception for a toller. Keep us up to date if you get one, I'd love to know.
 
I love tollers and if I wasn't already so heavily engrossed in the world of setters I would def have one. Although the toller 'scream' may mean I have to wait until I don't have neighbours living too close by.

There were 1 or 2 toller puppy farmers out there (although I think they have been prosecuted and shut down) 1 was in Taunton so just beware.

I would ALWAYS contact the breed club first as there is a very long list of possible inherited health conditions and so you will need to make sure you get one from lines with excellent temprement and without a history of dogs dying young.

I would ask for recommendations and maybe go along to crufts on gundog day (sat 9th march) they'll be a breed stand there with loads of info and if you find out what ring they are being judged in there will be 50+ there for you to meet and play with. Owners are always happy to help and will want to promote your breed, just watch out for people who are about to run into the ring :)

I have met many at various dog shows and I think they're the best bits of retrievers and collies combined, high energy, intelligent, affectionate, good temprements and very trainable. As with all dogs you have to train them or they train themselves :)

Labs and tollers have very similar exercise requirements so I'm sure you'll be fine. Training it to be quiet will be an important thing to do from a young age as they can be very vocal.



How exciting - now you need to practice how quickly you can say nova scotia duck tolling retriever to the hundreds of people who will compliment you on your gorgeous goldie X.
 
The scream is pretty impressive! Luckily, mine only tends to do it in very exciting or high stress situations. We've only heard it three or four times in his life. I am interested to hear that there might be puppy farms breeding tollers out there. Ours came to us from a rescue centre but his previous owners had actually bought him from a pet shop. I've always wondered if he was puppy farmed.
 
I think it must have been in the UK but I don't know where- I'm guessing somewhere in the North East as this is where we were living at the time. It would have been about 5 years ago now. We only got the information second-hand through the rescue centre that our dog came from. Neither they nor his previous owners knew he was a toller (they thought collie x retriever) but he certainly is one. Where he originally came from before the pet shop remains a bit of a mystery.
 
So sad Fabian. I hate animals being sold through pet shops. Did you recognise him as a Toller or did someone tell you? Many people mistake them for Goldies or mongrels. Good to know yours has ended up in a good home. There was a breeder in Taunton who had her dogs removed by the RSPCA last year, after being found guilty of neglect/cruelty. Those dogs were all rehomed through the Blue Cross...
 
I just happened to walk down a row of kennels at a rescue centre and see him sitting there. I know the breed quite well and I recognised him instantly as a toller. He had been returned from a few foster homes already and I think he was on his last chance. Although quite wary of strangers (which I'm sure is down to lack of early socialisation), he's been nothing but a pleasure to own. I will always wonder how he came to end up there in the first place.
 
If any toller fans hear of any rescues or litters then please do let me know,

although having never heard a toller scream I'm wondering if my (very close) next door neighbours will forgive me, I'm spoilt with my lab, he is a model citizen and rarely utters a sound!
 
Both clubs have 'Fun Days'. I would definitely recommend you attend them, if water is involved, you will surely hear the Toller scream. It has to be heard to be believed!!!!
 
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