Today's Breeder - Issue 107 - 15

Two years of year-round undergraduate school and three
years of veterinary school turned out a veterinarian with
a keen interest in reproduction and performing health
test certifications.
" I went to Charlie Quick, a board-certified veterinary
radiologist in Houston who was on the board of OFA
(Orthopedic Foundation for Animals), and asked him to
show me how he took X-rays of a dog's hips, " she says.
During veterinary school, Mary married Jack Tatum,
a teaching assistant working on a doctorate degree in physics.
Although they did not have the same interest in dogs, as
Jack had a fancy for his Rottweiler " Astra, " Mary showed
the Rottie in conformation. They were married 38 years
when Jack passed away in 2016.
After becoming a veterinarian, Mary bred Amiga, her first
Golden, in 1981 to a prominent stud dog, AM/CAN CH Southern's
Gold-Rush Traveler OS SDHF. A male from the litter, " Strider "
(CH Tatum's Gallant Strider), became Mary's heart dog,
going everywhere with her. When he finished his show
championship, she says, " He was still just my dog. "
Her progression to a powerhouse field trial Labrador
Retriever line came in 1991 when breeder John Broucek of
Kingston, Tennessee, sold her a black bitch, Troublesome
Bailey. Mary bred " Bailey " to NAFC-FC Gusto's Last Control
HOF, the 1992 National Amateur winner. The loose linebreeding
included paternal great-great-grandsire NAFCFC-AFC
Dude's Double or Nothin' HOF and maternal
great-great-grandsire Super Powder HOF.
Between working as a veterinarian at Brittmoore
Mary works " Danger " (Watermark's Danger SH) on water marks.
A VETERINARIAN & RETRIEVER BREEDER
As a girl growing up in Houston, Mary Naschke was one
of seven children from a family whose German paternal
grandparents settled in Galveston, Texas, in the early 1900s.
She loved to visit her uncle's 300-acre farm in Ledbetter,
Texas. " We went to the country a lot, " she says. " I especially
adored the dogs. "
Wanting a dog of her own, Mary saved her babysitting
money to buy an Irish Setter like the one in " Big Red " by
Jim Kjelgaard. " I paid $125 for 'Marigold' in 1968, " says Mary.
" She was lovely but had allergies and hip dysplasia. I began
researching Golden Retrievers. I wanted a service-oriented
dog, as I had enjoyed training Marigold for obedience. "
Mary's passion for animals and interest in biomedical
sciences landed her at Texas A&M University at College
Station in 1975 enrolled in the five-year veterinary program.
Animal Hospital in Houston, raising a son, Russell, and
training and showing dogs, Mary bred Golden Retrievers
and Labrador Retrievers. Importantly, she was developing
a knack for reading pedigrees and identifying good
breeding matches that would produce standout performance
dogs.
Mary's early Golden Retrievers were from show-bred
litters, many which she also trained in obedience. As she
trained with other enthusiasts, Mary began discovering
the thrill of fieldwork competition.
A male Golden born in 2007, CH Déjà Vu Ducat Watermark
Dante, sired several litters for Watermark and other
kennels. Mary co-owned " Dante, " who was bred by Alice
Lipe Juda, with her longtime friend and mentor Helen
Dorrance, who owns Gold Ducat Kennels. Dante sired a
litter in 2010 bred by Helen and Susan Scribner to Ducat
Brytlea Arielle that produced a Grand Champion and
Outstanding Dam for co-owners Mary and Helen.
" Ticket " (GCH Ducat Watermark Brtlea's The Cricket
On The Hearth OD) produced litters that turned out nine
progeny earning titles in conformation, hunting tests,
obedience, and rally. Mary put a Junior Hunter title on
Ticket's daughter, Watermark's Apollo Queen Of Tarts JH.
" I still have frozen semen from Dante, " she says.
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Today's Breeder - Issue 107

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