"The Rumors of My Death Have Been Greatly Exaggerated ..."

Since the mid-1990s, John and I have been highly amused by the resultant "rumor mill" ~ such "stories" in circulation (for whatever reason and with most originating with those who certainly knew differently!) that John was "bought out," "no longer breeding," ad infinitum, ad nauseum.
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Yes, some even going so far as to suggest that John was dead! (Don't worry though, we know who you are ~ and have received even more reports of these rumors as recently as last week!
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As Mark Twain once famously remarked, "The rumors of my death have been greatly exaggerated."
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With a family heritage of five generations of breeding exceptional English Setter gundogs to maintain ~ and even though such matters as family affairs and other business interests frequently intruded ~ John still worked diligently in protecting, perfecting and improving upon the George Ryman-based lines the Fetters Family had become known for.
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As John has stated before on our pages here, there are no "short cuts" to breeding quality shooting dogs in a consistent manner ~ and once achieved, the lines must be protected and improved upon with the introduction of the occasional "right type" of blood.
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One of the results of John's endeavors are shown in the photo above in the bottom photo, Fetters-bred "Grouse Greta," at 16-months old in 2009 ~ along with a comparison photo of Ryman's Racket Boy, a setter bred by George H. Ryman himself.
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Though female and male, they are near mirror images in conformation ~ and the other standards George H. Ryman set and which the Fetters Family has maintained ~ are present as well.
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To learn more, see John's most recent piece, "Breeding the Lines, a Successful Long-term Strategy" on our "Fetters Setters ~ History and Heritage" page, easily accessed by clicking here.
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New Additions to the Fetters Setters ~ History and Heritage Page

We have finally been able to make available here a small portion of the Fetters English Setters History and Heritage, which can easily be accessed by clicking here.

In the on-going unpacking, sorting and re-organizing of the massive Fetters Family English Setters histories mentioned here earlier, we found several photos of early English Setters bred and owned by the Fetters Family which we are sharing with you now.

Included in this initial collection is a photo of John's Great-Grandmother, Mary B. Fetters, posing with a female Orange Belton. We will be sharing more of the Fetters Family English Setter histories with you on the Fetters Setters ~ History and Heritage page in the near future.

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