2014 Inductee – Big Rock Von “Reggie”

Reggie
Owner/Handler: Bernie Birkenholz
1407 Champion Points
Legendary Status Champion
70x Champion
5 Super Major Championships
3 Major Championships
4/13/01 – 1/15/14

Every family has that dog that starts it all for them.  For the Birkenholz family it was Big Rock Von “Reggie”.  Reggie was the Foundation Sire of Big Rock Von Kennels and a legacy was built from there.  When they first tried naming this puppy, a puppy that was all legs at that, they considered naming him Jughead because he was such a little putz.  They were VERY wrong.  Reggie turned out to be so much more than a putz.

More than just his stellar hunting abilities, he was a fantastic house dog with unbelievable manners.  He never stole a piece of meat off of the counter.  He never jumped on the furniture, and he never dug in the garbage.  He was a good boy…one-in-a-million to the Birkenholz family.

At 8-months of age, Reggie broke his hip and had to have a plate and pins put in.  One would never know it as you watched him running in a field.  However, you could see him favor that hip at times, and he would walk on his 3 good legs.  All those miles took a toll on him, but he sure loved going to tournaments.  Pure drive and desire led him to many achievements.  Those accomplishments were a result of his outstanding ability to scent from long-distances.  He was consistent in the field and if he needed to relocate a bird he’d pinpoint it with ease.  He also bailed Bernie out numerous times with long, blind retrieves.

According to Lila, her favorite tournament win with Reggie was the 2003 U.S. Open when he won both the Top Gun and Doubles Championships at just under 2 years of age.  Those wins gave him enough points to beat out the top contender for the very prestigious Hounsell Cup award that year.  Reggie was also the 2006 & 2007 NBDCA Dog of the Year.  In addition, at the 2010 National Championships Doubles Division, Reggie along with 4 of his sons (Foreman, Deion, Trigger, and Jackson) earned the Top 5 placements in the finals, an accomplishment never achieved by any other pedigree.  Reggie retired in 2011, earning 1407 Champion Points in Top Gun, Doubles, and Puppy Divisions only.  At that time, Reggie held the Lifetime High Point Pointing Dog achievement, a position which he held for 8 years.

Reggie passed in January 2014, but his legacy will live on forever as evidenced by his lineage and some great tournament dogs he has sired such as Birkenholz’s Hall of Fame dog Foreman , his future Hall of Famer, Deion, Mark Hanson’s Jackson (another 2014 inductee), and Jamie Palmer’s Trigger.  Reggie always worked hard for Bernie in the field and never asked for anything in return.  Reggie was one-in-a-million to the Birkenholz family but I believe that in the world of pointing dogs, no one can deny that either.  Today, Reggie entered the BDC Hall of Fame with 1407 Champion Points, a 70 time Champion, 5 Super Major wins, 4 Major Wins, and a legend in the game.  He will go down in history as one of the very best.