A visit with a lengendary dogman

somewhere on a hill in yankeeland there lives a man named ozzie..ozzie got started out in the dogs around 1966,and got his first dogs from walter komosinski who was at the time one of the greatest dogmen still alive..but it was not until ozzie got ch.homer that he began to breed his own bloodline through wich he gained the reputation of a very knowledgable breeder & conditioner..in his own words he woulkd say," i had some of the baddest dogs in the country and they produced the same."


the times: How would you describe yourself?.


ozzie: I have never been interested in comformation shows or anything like that..the dogs are something that grows on you..i started out with a few dogs and after awhile i started to get better dogs and keept going..eventually i ended up with some of the baddest dogs in the country as far as im concerned..


times: What qualities were you looking for in a dog and what type of dog was your favorite?.


ozzie: They need a overall style..all of my dogs were able to adapt to the head..they had to be smart enough that if they were forced into defence to ride the ear or the head..most of mine could do it..they must be game and have good ability..i dont like dogs that get frustrated when they cant get a good hold of what they are driving for..


times: How important is selective breeding?.do you believ that its possible to choose a dog soley on its pedigree?.


ozzie: Without selective breeding you are throwing everything right out the window and you are only guessing at what you are doing..in the old days only the best was good enough..so you'd better be selective about your breeding and as far as picking a dog on his pedigree,the papers on the dog must be fine but the dog itself must also be pretty good..if the dog is no good then the pedigree is nothing but a piece of paper and completley worthless..unless a dog is known to be a good producer,of course,which is very possible..for instance a dog that will quit in the box but has the ability to produce good dogs..there were dogs that won 6 or 7 but couldnt produce nothing..but as a rule a good producer was a good individual too..​

times: you have known a great number of dogmen and famous dogs of the past..what do you think about the dogs and the dogmen these days?.


ozzie: There are alot of good ones,alot of good ones..but there are even more bad ones..there are more bad than good dogmen..the dogmen from 20-30yrs ago could not compete with the dogmen of today..


times: Ch.homers go with ch.jeep was,according to many one of the exhibitions of gameness..what do you have to say about that?.


ozzie: I agree 100% and if the shoe were on the other foot and jeep would have to travel up north,coming in 2lbs light as homer did, and jcshaw had someone else condition jeep i doubt very,very much that he could have won..i loaned homer out to b.stepp..i did not work or handle him that night..when they arrived in ga from oh with homer he was dehydrated and weighed only 40lbs..every time i showed him he weighed 43 or 44lbs..so they took him down too low,and 2 days before the show when he weighed only 40lbs,he was already ruined..but that did not stop him from giving his best shot and on gameness alone he stayed in there..homer has terrific air capasity,so he could go a long time..he had a heart to keep him going on---no matter what..he wasnt going to quit,he was truly a dg animal..it was fairly cool that night.. When the jugde told the participants to start the show kenny s. Was still holding homer in his arms off the floor..they should have put him on the floor and given him a even chance,but kenny was told to release while the dog was still in his arms..he threw homer out of his arms towards the center of the box..when homer hit the floor jeep hit the shoulder and stayed there..by the time he came out (1o min later) homers shoulder and front leg were useless..he had to go the entire time on 3 legs..i doubt very much that jeep could have gone 3 hrs 45min on 3 legs..


times: How did you work your dogs?.can you reveal a little bit of that secret?.


ozzie: I will only say that i ;ve always been very careful not to overwork a dog..i was always looking for signs telling me that he had had enough and i would take them home..some dogs can run a mill for 2hrs and others for no more than 30min withoit overworking and hurting them right there..i practiced and made mistakes..i'm a health fanatic and studied all about health and nutrition,so i learned plenty..i learned frm my mistakes..there is no way anybody can learn to be a super conditioner in 6 or 12 months..


times: It has always been said that hand walking a dog is the single most effective and safest method to condition..do you agree?.


ozzie: Absolutley..when you are walking him you can observe him and you can see if there is anything wrong with him..when he starts walking behjind you,not pulling,then you know you are overworking him on the treadmill (if you use a mill)..when they start walking like that it is best to take them home as soon as possible and let them rest..i usually started out easy and and didnt work for long periods of time..gradually,you build up until its getting more and more..about 2 or 3 weeks before the show the dog should get a pounding,hard work..but most of all i keep looking for when a dog needs rest..​

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TIMES: HOW MANY WEEKS SHOULD BE ENOUGH TO COME INTO GOOD SHAPE?.


OZZIE: EVERYBODY IS DIFFERENT,AND EVERY DOG IS DIFFERENT..I USED TO START CUTTING DOWN ON THEIR FOOD UNTIL HE IS CLOSE TO SHOW WEIGHT..I DID NO MORE THAN 6 WEEKS AND THATS IT.


TIMES: WHAT IS YOUR DEFINITION OF GAMENESS?.


OZZIE: WHEN A DOG IS COMPLETLEY OVERMATCHED BUT REFUSES TO GIVE UP..NO MATTER HOW IMPOSSIBLE THE SITUATION IS,HE SHOULD STILL BE DESPERATLEY TRYING TO WIN..HE IS DETERMINED TO WIN,JUST AS IVE SEEN WITH HOMER & VIRGIL..


IT WAS IMPOSSIBLE FOR THESE DOGS TO GIVE UP..THEY WERE DETERMINED UNTIL THE VERY END,AND THAT IS WHAT GAMENESS IS ALL ABOUT..ALOT OF DOGS SHOW GAME WHEN THEY ARE AHEAD,BUT AS SOON AS THEY ARE FRUSTRATED AND CAN NOT HANDLE THE OTHER DOG OR GET A GOOD HOLD,THEN THEIR GAMENESS WILL BE PUT TO A TEAST..


TIMES: YOUR NAME HAS BEEN MENTIONED CONCERNING RUMORS ABOUT PEOPLE WHO HAVE USED RUBDOWNS ON THEIR DOGS..ANY COMMENT?.


OZZIE: FIRST OF ALL ALL THE PEOPLE WHO SPREAD THIS RUMOR ARE NOT DOGMEN..I CONSIDER THEM AS CRYBABIES WHO,AFTER SHOWING INTO ME MADE OUT THESE EXCUSES..IF YOU MAKE THESE EXCUSES YOU DONT BELONG IN THIS SPORT..I CAN GO TO THE CHURCH AND PUT MY HAND ON A THOUSAND BIBLES THAT I HAVE NEVER EVER HAVE DONE ANYTHING LIKE THAT..I SWEAR THAT IF I EVER PUT ANYTHING ON A DOG TO WIN A SHOW THAT WHEN I GO TO BED TONIGHT THAT I WILL NOT WAKE UP..IVE HAD SOME OF THE BADDEST DOGS IN THE WORLD..EVERYBODY IS JEALOUS AND THE GROUP THAT SPREAD ALL THESE LIES ARE BEATEN BY MY DOGS TIME AND TIME AGAIN..WHEN THEY WERE DONE THEY MADE ME ALL KINDS OF CHAMPIONS..​

TIMES: DID YOU USE ANY SPEACIAL VITAMINS DURING THE CONDITIONING OF YOUR DOGS?.


OZZIE: I USED MANY GOOD VITAMINS THAT WERE SUITABLE,BUT THE FOOD ITSELF MEANS EVERYTHING..EVERYBODY FEEDS DIFFERENT..I USED MEAT,VEGETABLES,DRY DOGFOOD,WHICH IS HIGH IN PROTIEN,PLUS ABOUT 99 ADDITIVES,ALL SPEACIAL INGREDIENTS..WHEN I WAS SUCCESSFUL WITH MY DOGS I ONLY FED ONCE A DAY..​

TIMES: HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT ALL THE NEGATIVE NEWS ON THE PITBULL?.


OZZIE: THEY HAD THE HUMANE SOCIETY DO A SURVEY IN THIS AREA AND AFTER 12 MONTHS OF INVESTIGATING THE MAN WHO DIRECTED THIS FOR THE hs MADE A SPEECH AND STATED THAT ONLY TWO PERCENT OF ALL PITBULLS ARE VICIOUS..OF COURSE THIS MEANS THAT NINTEY EIGHT PERCENT ARE NOT VICIOUS..NOW THERE IS MUCH INBREEDING GONG ON IN THE WRONG HANDS AND IT MAKES CRAZY DOGS..IF YOU HAVE A VICIOUS DOG YOU SHOULD NOT USE HIM AT STUD..


TIMES: ARE YOU SAYING THAT LINE,AND LINE BREEDING ARE NOT GOOD?.


OZZIE: ONLY WITH THE PERSON WHO HAS THE BRAIN TO DO IT RIGHT..I INBREED AND LINEBREED BUT I DONT DO IT EVERYTIME..I DO IT OCCASIONALLY..WHEN THEY GET TOO TIGHT I OUTCROSS..


TIMES: IVE LEARNED THAT YOU ARE WRITING A BOOK..CAN YOU TELL ME WHEN IT WILL BE PUBLISHED,AND WHAT SORT OF BOOK IT WILL BE?.


OZZIE: THE BOOK WILL PROBABLY BE PUBLISHED IN THE FALL OF 1988..IT IS ABOUT ALL THE GOOD DOGS,THE BEST DOGS,AND THE PEOPLE WHO OWNED THEM,WHAT THE DOGS WON OVER,WHO THEY BEAT,ETC..THERE WILL ALSO BE PLENTY OF PICTURES IN THE BOOK..


TIMES: OF THE COMBINATIONS YOU HAVE MADE WHAT WERE THE MOST SUCCESFUL?.


OZZIE: HOMER BRED TO GERALDINE..SHE WAS FROM RALPH GREENWOOD AND WAS SIRED BY HIS CAMINO DOG OUT OF LUPPY,WHO WAS A INBRED TUDOR'S SPIKE BITCH..SHE WAS MY ONE BROOD BITCH,AND SHE IS NOW IN THE KENNEL OF BYRON W..GERALDINE HAD PRODUCED SEVERAL CHAMPION DOGS..THE OTHER BITCH I USED WAS BUBBLES..SHE WAS OUT OF GRCH.ART & CH.TAMMY,WHO WAS ONE OF THE BEST STIFLE DOGS IVE EVER SEEN..SHE WON 3 AND LOST 1..SHE WAS NOT VEEN 12MO WHEN SHE ALMOST KILLED A DOG..SHE WAS A 37LB BITCH,VERY SPOOKY AND SHY..THEREFORE I COULD NEVER CONDITION HER,BUT SHE WAS ONE OF THE MOST DEVESTATING BITERS I EVER SAW..ONE DAY I PUT 3 DIFFERENT DOGS ON HER AND SHE DESTROYED ALL 3 IN A ROW,ONE AFTER THE OTHER..MY BLOODLINE IS MADE UP OF HOMER TO BUBBLES,AND HOMER TO GERALDINE..I GOT GRCH.VIRGIL,ZERO AND A BITCH I CALLED BETSY FROM BUBBLES..I BRED GRCH.SNAKE JR..


HE WAS A KILLING DOG HE WOULD BREAK LEGS AND CUT A DOG TO PIECES IN MINUTES..HIS MOTHER WAS A GAME BITCH..SHE WAS FROM GREENWOOD SIRED BY DAVIS..HER NAME WAS THELMA LOU OUT OF NORMAN GIRL,WHO WENT BACK TO GREENWOOD'S DOTTIE PATCH (HEINZLE BREEDING)..I BRED HER TO THE MAYFIELD DOG SNAKE..SNAKE JR WAS OUT OF THIS BREEDING..A FEW OF THE PUPS I SENT OUT TO OTHER PEOPLE BUT OF COURSE NOT EVERYONE CAN DO GOOD WITH THEM..YOU CAN GIVE SOME PEOPLE THE BEST DOGS IN THE WORLD BUT THAT DOESNT MEAN THAT THEY CAN DO GOOD WITH THEM..BRYAN,WHO IS MY CLOSEST FRIEND GOT SNAKE JR..I SCHOOLED,AND HELPED HIM OUT WITH THE DOG..HE WON I BELIEVE SIX TIMES WITH THE LONGEST BEING 43MIN..I SAW HIM BREAK A DOGS SHOULDER WITH ONE BITE..​

TIMES: SOME CLAIM THAT CONDITIONING IS 50 PERCENT OF THE DOG..MODERN SCIENCE AND RESEARCH HAS TAUGHT US ALOT ABOUT STERIODS,HOROMONES,ETC..IN OTHER WORDS DO YOU BELIEVE STERIODS CAN IMPROVE THE PREFORMANCE OF A DOG?.


OZZIE: IT CAN IN THE RIGHT HANDS,BUT SOME OF THE TOP CONDITIONERS OF TODAY DO NOT USE ANY ARTIFICIAL INHANCERS..FOR INSTANCE GRCH.BUCK WON OVER GRCH.SANDMAN,AND IM SURE HE WAS NOT ON STEROIDS..IM ALSO SURE THAT THEY DID USE STERIODS ON SANDMAN..


TIMES: DID YOU USE STERIODS ON YOUR DOGS?.


OZZIE: YES I DID..BUT IT SHOULD ONLY BE DONE BY THE REAL TOP DOGMEN WHO REALLY KNOW WHAT THEY ARE DOING..IT CAN HURT YOUR DOG JUST AS MUCH AS IT CAN HELP HIM..IT ALL DEPENDS ON THE INDIVIDUAL..


TIMES: IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE YOU WOULD LIKE TO SAY?.


OZZIE: IVE BEEN AROUND DOGS FOR 22YRS BUT WHEN I LOST MY WIFE I HAD SO MANY PROBLEMS THAT I COULD NOT HANDLE EVERYTHING,AND I HAD NO TIME FOR THE DOGS..I LOST MY BUSSINESS AND HAD TO START ALL OVER AGAIN..IN A CERTAIN WAY MY DOGS KEPT ME OCCUPIED..I FEEL THAT HAVE DONE PLENTY FOR THE DOGS,AND THE HOMER LINE (WHICH IS BASED ON ZEKE & SPIKE LINE CROSSED TO BOUDREAUX' CARVER) WOULD NOT EXIST IF IT WERE NOT FOR ME..MY BOOK WILL GIVE CREDIT TO ALL THE GOOD DOGMEN,WHETHER HE IS A FRIEND TO ME OR NOT..THE MORE CONTRABUTIONS SOMEONE GIVES TO THE DOGS THE MORE CREDIT I GIVE EM..


THIS WAS TAKEN FROM A PUBLICATION THAT IS NO LONGER IN CIRCULATION​

 

damn good read

 

Thanks Caos.

 

real good...thanks

 

Gracias Caos.

 

great read i love it

 

The old guys, you gotta love em. Great read

 

most interesting

 

Thanks Caos, a good read

 

thanks folks I will continue post some old articles.

 

Great interview thanks!

 

Did Ozzie ever get his book published and if so what was it called ?

 

good read thanks.

 

good read thanks for posting.

 

So do
id ozzie ever bring that book out that he talked about in the interview ??

 

very interesting read

 

I always found it hard to believe that in a match the magnitude of Jeep/Homer, that either side would have an inexperienced handler in the box. Maybe it was let go since it was at the beginning, but if Homer was really pushed toward the center, the handler should have been fouled out right there.

 

good read.

 

i just luv readn bout the ol' time dogmen n their dogs