# The Tigathoes Line of Torch Flinn



## NewfieMom

*Brit's Pedigree*

I am still fairly new here and I am not sure of all the correct protocol, but I believe that this is the correct place to post information about my dog's pedigree so that I can make connections with others who may have dogs related to her. Here is a link to her five generation pedigree:

Britannia of Joie de Paris...Five generation pedigree: Britannia of Joie de Paris


NewfieMom


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## NewfieMom

*Links toe Other Threads on this Forum*

I thought it might be useful to post links to some past threads here on this forum that dealt with the Tigathoes dogs. I know I looked for them myself, but thought that I could make it easier for someone else who wanted to do some research by making the threads available here, in one place.

General Thread on Tigathoes Dogs and the K9 Database...http://www.goldenretrieverforum.com/golden-retrievers-main-discussion/111523-unbelievable.html

Thread on Golden Retriever Hunt and Field...http://www.goldenretrieverforum.com/golden-retriever-hunt-field/120599-torch-flinn.html

One page of another thread on pedigrees...http://www.goldenretrieverforum.com...nder-if-we-have-any-1-2-siblings-here-12.html


NewfieMom


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## Cowtown

Yes Torch had some wonderful field lines that are in many pedigrees today. I believe she palled around with Jackie Mertens of Topbrass. 

Check out this link: Evelyn (Torch) Flinn


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## Sally's Mom

Bainin of Caernac figures in many current pedigrees, field, pet, conformation...


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## Ljilly28

I grew up with these dogs, and even my first dog all my own had Quar as his grandfather. My dog lived to be nearly 16, and was the golden people dream about when they choose a pup. Those dual purpose dogs were special back then.


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## NewfieMom

*Bainin of Caernac*



Sally's Mom said:


> Bainin of Caernac figures in many current pedigrees, field, pet, conformation...


It took me a while to realize that he was in my dog's pedigree! I am obviously very new to this! So you are saying that Torch picked him to be the sire to one of her dams. Thank you very much for the information!

NewfieMom


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## NewfieMom

Ljilly28 said:


> I grew up with these dogs, and even my first dog all my own had Quar as his grandfather. My dog lived to be nearly 16, and was the golden people dream about when they choose a pup. Those dual purpose dogs were special back then.


Ljilly, I couldn't help but notice your link to the Tigathoes dogs. I also noticed the magnificent photo that shows up with each of your postings. It could be the cover of a coffee table book on Golden Retrievers. I would love to hear more about your Tigathoes dogs, or, indeed, any of your dogs! I have been imbibing dog stories in the past few weeks and enjoying this site very much!

NewfieMom


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## nolefan

Love the photo of your Brit, what a lovely face. Those old photos are a treasure, aren't they. I don't have nearly enough photos of my first dogs. 

I absolutely LOVE history and enjoy anything I can find about the great old Goldens and Kennels and their history. I wish there were more books out there. If you haven't read about Rachael Paige Elliot, her autobiography 'From Hoofbeats to Dogsteps: A Life of Listening to and Learning from Animals' is extremely interesting.


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## Ljilly28

NewfieMom said:


> Ljilly, I couldn't help but notice your link to the Tigathoes dogs. I also noticed the magnificent photo that shows up with each of your postings. It could be the cover of a coffee table book on Golden Retrievers. I would love to hear more about your Tigathoes dogs, or, indeed, any of your dogs! I have been imbibing dog stories in the past few weeks and enjoying this site very much!
> 
> NewfieMom


I can get really teary over the memory of my Quar grandson Joplin. this dog companioned me from my late teens all the way into my 30's. I actually negotiated my first job teaching English in prep school not for the salary but so I could bring Joplin to class daily and then to coach Boys Varsity Skiing and Girls Varisty Tennis, lol. That dog came to the ski mountain every winter day. He was practically human. I never went anywhere without him. He saw me through getting engaged to my college boyfriend and years later deciding to break it off, he went to boys camp with me every summer to teach horseback riding- everyone said he lived so long bc he didnt want to leave me. By the end, he was almost snow white he had turned so grey, but he was healthy until his last 4 days on earth. One morning, I woke to smell blood and he had thrown up blood. TippyKayak carried him down the steep staircase in our house, and he went to the New Haven ER. My longtime vet met us there, and he cried some tears too, but it was hemangiosarcoma and no hope. At nearly 16, it was tears of laughter at all the memories as well as tears of sadness at goodbye. I credit Joplin with my addiction to goldens.


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## cgriffin

I just read this thread and I was looking at the five generation pedigree of my second golden and he had some Tigathoe dogs in it:

Five generation pedigree: Rachel's Tribute to Sam


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## NewfieMom

*Fabulous Pedigree!*



cgriffin said:


> I just read this thread and I was looking at the five generation pedigree of my second golden and he had some Tigathoe dogs in it:
> 
> Five generation pedigree: Rachel's Tribute to Sam


Among many other amazing dogs, some of whom won best in show titles, your boy had Chick ("Tigathoe's Chickasaw") and Chick's incredibly famous offspring "Tigathoe's Funky Farquar" among his ancestors! *Other* offspring of the Chick in your dog's pedigree include Tigathoe's Kiowa II and Tigathoe's Magic Marker (also with the call name "Chick"), both of whom are famous dogs in their own right!

NewfieMom


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## Debbie White

NewfieMom said:


> I came to this forum because I saw a reference here to the Tigathoes line of Golden Retrievers bred by Evelyn (Torch) Flinn in Greenwich, Connecticut. By a strange series of events I found out how famous she and her dogs really were while I was reading and writing on a forum totally unrelated to dogs.
> 
> Someone on that forum had mentioned the word, "Tigathoes" and it was unusual enough to grab my attention. I remembered it from the pedigree of my late Golden Retriever, Britannia (Brit), whom we owned from about 1980 to 1993.
> 
> When I came to this site I saw more than one reference to the Tigathoes dogs. They are an important part of the history of the breed. Some of the Tigathoes dogs are considered to be among the "greatest" Goldens of all time. Some breeders claim, now, that their roots are in the Tigathoes lines. The Tigathoes dogs were a darker red than many Goldens are today. They were bred to be able to work. Some of these things may be self-evident, but I have a few tidbits about Torch Flinn that I gleaned from my friend on the other group that I do not think she would mind my sharing here.
> 
> One thing which she shared with me was that the name, "Tigathoes" started with "T-I-G-A" because when Torch Flinn's husband, George, first saw the property they were to buy in Greenwich, he said, "This is God's acres".
> 
> As I said, my first dog after I was married was a Golden from the Tigathoes line. I welcome pictures, reminiscences, stories, and comments from everyone here!
> 
> Someday I hope to find my photos. In the meantime, I have very few photos of Brit, who was a gorgeous girl. This is one of them, and it was taken when she was quite old.
> 
> NewfieMom


We had a Torch Flinn dog. Son of Tor.


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## Ljilly28

Debbie White said:


> We had a Torch Flinn dog. Son of Tor.


What a fantastic post. I grew up with those goldens; they were my playmates, confidantes, and best friends. My grandpa hunted with them and competed in obedience. I love that you shared how the name came into being.


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## annef

NewfieMom said:


> *Brit's Pedigree*
> 
> I am still fairly new here and I am not sure of all the correct protocol, but I believe that this is the correct place to post information about my dog's pedigree so that I can make connections with others who may have dogs related to her. Here is a link to her five generation pedigree:
> 
> Britannia of Joie de Paris...Five generation pedigree: Britannia of Joie de Paris
> 
> 
> NewfieMom


Apports is Swedish breeding with some UK breeding behind. Also some UK field trial breeding and Yeo dogs. They were truly dual purpose at that time. Annef


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## Jessjack

I hope everyone knows that you can research your dog's pedigree back quite far on k9data. If you do so, you will most likely find some of Brit's ancestors in your pedigree. The number of Goldens in the US was not very large when my husband got his first Golden in the 1950's, a dog named David of Bathgate, whose sire was Ch. Tipperary Dwight David. Very fun stuff.


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## annef

It is so interesting to follow pedigrees back. I love tracking back pedigrees. Annef


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## nolefan

annef said:


> It is so interesting to follow pedigrees back. I love tracking back pedigrees. Annef


Do you have any special way or method to keep straight what you're doing? (I LOVE doing this as well, and sometimes I find I get sidetracked and it's easy for me to go off path) Is there anything specific that you keep an eye out for ? Do you track bitch lines? I enjoy the history of researching kennel names and how people are related etc. and sometimes it becomes a rabbit hole for my time - but I always wonder if serious students of this have specific things they look for.


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## annef

I tend to see if there are any descendants of dogs I have really liked or owned and we are lucky as we have a database here which has all the UK dogs in plus some European and some Scandinavian dogs in. I have a young girl here who goes back to US lines so would like to see what I can find out once I get time to really research those lines Annef


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## Jessjack

nolefan said:


> Do you have any special way or method to keep straight what you're doing? (I LOVE doing this as well, and sometimes I find I get sidetracked and it's easy for me to go off path) Is there anything specific that you keep an eye out for ? Do you track bitch lines? I enjoy the history of researching kennel names and how people are related etc. and sometimes it becomes a rabbit hole for my time - but I always wonder if serious students of this have specific things they look for.


That is a big question. The best way to learn is to go to dog shows and watch the dogs, both in conformation and the other performance activities, such as obedience and agility. At first all the dogs in the conformation rings will look awfully similar, but with time you will begin to see how different they are from each other. It is pretty hard to go to dog shows these days, so I suggest you watch dog shows on the OFA website. You Tube also has dog shows you can watch. Volunteering to steward at AKC shows is another great way to learn about various breeds, and you get a ringside seat at the action. Clubs hosting dog shows are always happy to have volunteers. Hopefully, Covid will get under control and we will be able to go to more shows in person.
The bitch and the dog contribute their genes equally so I don't think of bitch or dog lines. Frequently used sires are able to have more influence on the breed in the long term because a bitch usually will have only a few litters but a popular sire may produce many more pups. I do not breed very often, but if I plan to breed a litter, my concerns are temperament, health, and then conformation. I like to look at dogs, in person or pictures, then I check out pedigrees and OFA ratings. There are good books on Goldens, and check out the Golden Retriever Club of America for great articles and statistics. I may never breed dogs again, but I do enjoy seeing what is out there. I am sure each breeder has his/her own goals and preferences. 
My advice is to just jump in and start learning. Make it fun and don't take things too seriously. Every dog is special and beautiful in its own way and a precious gift from above - just like people.


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