Phyllis and Jamie Welch are a mother-daughter team. We have owned, shown, and bred Newfoundlands under the kennel name of Spillway since 1977. It all began when Jamie, after completing a school research project, announced that she wanted a Newfoundland as her 10th birthday present. With that, a lifelong love began. Thunder (Ch. Heffalump’s Double Thunder) was the first, shortly thereafter, along came Thelma Lou (Ch. Schooner’s Thelma Lou).
Thelma Lou, our first brood bitch, was bred to a young stud dog, Ch. Schooner Yosef of Newton-Ark ROM, who was owned by Dail Corl at that time. This, our first litter, produced a truly nice bitch, Ch. Spillway’s Mixed-M-Ocean (O.C.). Following the litter, we purchased Yosef from his owner. With that our fate was sealed, we were completely absorbed in all aspects of the Newfoundland breed.
In 1981, we attended our first National Specialty, and what a National it was! Yosef went "Winners Dog" and "BOW" to complete his championship, and O.C. won her puppy class.
Yosef, our foundation dog, proved to be a great asset to the Newfoundland breed, but more importantly, he was a fantastic best friend to us. He was our resident housedog and enjoyed lounging on his favorite old brown couch more than just about anything (other than spaghetti and ice cream). In a case of history truly repeating itself, our most current housedog, Oliver (Yosef’s great, great grandson) shares Yosef’s affinity for a brown sofa.
We now share our home with the following friends:
- Ch. Spillways Isaac Pouch Cove OFAG/EL (Isaac)
- Ch. Spillways Heads-Up Pouch Cove OFAE (Stevie)
- Ch. Spillways Just Push Play OFAG/EL (Oliver)
- Spillways Its All About Me (Prelim Clear) (Avery)
- Ch. Spillways Strike A Pose (Amelia)
- Ch. Spillways Sing With Me OFA (Ivy)
