The Little Red Peanut That Became A Two-Time BCA National Winner

“I remember my fingers trembling as I went over this unusual specimen. Heavens above, what a dog! . . . I could not believe my eyes when ‘Goober' at one of the dog's early shows, walked into my Group ring, Perfection!,” exclaimed Vincent G. Perry in recollecting the first time he had the opportunity to judge Ch. Marinebull's All The Way, or “Goober”.

Karl and Joyce Dingman, owners and handlers of the 62-pound firecracker red and flashy white Bulldog named after a peanut, have collectively bred, shown or judged generation after generation of outstanding Bulldog specimens. Despite the objectivity that comes with being licensed AKC judges, the Dingmans willingly go on record: “Goober was one in a million,” says Karl. “I never saw one like him before, and have never seen one since.

Goober is shown with owner/handler Karl Dingman and breeder Bryna Cox on the occasion of Goober's 10th birthday party in Febuary of 1983. Goober's health and vitality is apparent even at his rather advanced age.

Aside from his physical attributes, Goober had a perfect show dog attitude, strutting, prancing, asking for the win as best he knew how. He absolutely loved the ring, and as soon as he got his show lead on, he would ‘come to life'. He frequently attracted ringside crowds two and three deep to see him perform.”

Interestingly, the Dingmans did not breed the dog that was to achieve Bulldogdom immortality for both himself and his owner/handlers by setting the then-record for winning 48 All Breed Best In Show, and by becoming the top all-time BCA Hall of Fame sire of champions with, to date, 86 American plus 6 Canadian and/or Mexican Champions.

In 1973, still fairly new to Bulldog breeding and showing, Joyce and Karl Dingman were looking for a puppy with good show potential, and had initiated discussions with breeders Brynda and Frank Cox of the renowned Marinebull Kennels of Chippewa Falls, WI. The timing was perfect for the Coxes; they had an excess of males, and a recent litter whelped February 16, 1973, by Ch. Golden Carmel Coach out of Ch. Marinebull's Here She Comes had produced just a single puppy; a male. Since it was a repeat breeding, Frank and Brynda were reluctantly willing to part with the playful puppy they called “Goober” (because he looked like a little red and white peanut) despite the fact that both of the puppy's parents would go on to become Beckett Award winners.

One of Goober's career highlights was going Best In Show at the 1976 Chicago International Kennel Club show under judge Mrs. James Edward Clark. He is shown being handled by Karl, but it was Joyce who put the first three Bests In Show on the rambunctious Goober, who would become too sprightly, or charismatic, for Joyce to effectively handle.

“We first saw Goober at about six weeks of age and he was a fat, wrinkly puppy,” remembered Joyce. “and he just never stopped moving. He was just like a wind-up toy. He was about four-and –a-half months of age, and going through a gawky stage, before we could bring him home. The Coxes knew we were looking for a show dog, and they weren't certain that Goober would measure up. The breeding that produced Goober had, from earlier litters, produced nice Champions, but Goober was a little slow to come around.” After working with their new “red peanut” for just about a month, Karl casually took him to a match to get some practical experience. To Karl's surprise, they went Best In Match over 200 dogs. At six months of age Goober made his AKC show debut and went Best of Winners for his first major, and he finished in the fall of 1973 under the close scrutiny of legendary judge Langdon Skarda – at nice months and nine days, he was at that time the youngest Bulldog to finish his Championship.

Set aside for several months to mature, Goober blossomed into a magnificent, 62-pound bundle of energy who went on to win a then record 48 Bests In Show; 36 Specialty Bests In Show; 110 Non-Sporting Group Firsts; and 220 Bests of Breed. He was the top winning Non-Sporting dog in 1976, which won him the Ken-L-Ration Show Dog of the Year Award; he won Best In Show at the International Kennel Club in Chicage over an entry of 3,200; and he came out of retirement to take Group 1 at Westminster in 1976.

At five months, the peanut went Best In Match in the first show he entered, a 200-entry event judged by the late Charles Kellog.

The Dingmans had not planned to show at Westminster, content to let their fun-loving Champion rest on his considerable laurels, and to occasionally be bred to a select offering of bitches. Besides, they reasoned , the weather was bad and they didn't particularly like to fly Goober even though he had proved air-worthy on the few occasions when it had been necessary to go by air. The clincher came, though, when June Sickle called at the last minute with an impassioned plea; “You must show Goober at Westminster,” she urged. “Who knows when Garden fans, or the dog world at large, will ever get to see the likes of him again?” Convinced, but quickly running out of time, Karl and Goober – ever the showman/dog- took a red-eye flight to New York, and arrived at daybreak. They got to Madison Square Garden just minutes before the benching time deadline – and then went to the top Group award.

Goober's greatest accomplishment in the ring, however, had to be winning the Bulldog Club of America National Specialty in back-to-back years in 1975-76, first under Mrs. Nora Morton of Worcester, England, with and entry of 111, and the next year under Charlie Gain, Celina, OM, with an entry of 233.

As a stud dog, the red and white showdog again proved to be without peer. To date, he has sired 86 American Champions in addition to six Canadian or Mexican Champions. The list is perhaps not yet complete, as Goober has frozen semen litters from 1994 and 1995 that may yet add to the total that places him solidly as the number one production Bulldog of all time. Goober's resume as a stud includes three Beckett Awards; Top Bulldog Sire of Champions in 1977, 1978, and 1979; Top Producing Non-Sporting Group Sire in 1978; and he is a revered member of the BCA Hall of Fame. His get include two BCA National Specialty winners; at least six All-Breed Best In Show winners; two sons in the BCA Hall of Fame; and a Beckett Award- winning daughter. Also, he sired the first frozen semen Champion, Ch. Dingman's Frostbite.

As a show dog, Ch. Marinebull's All The Way proved as durable as he was entertaining. Traveling by motor home or mini-van, Karl, Joyce and the peanut would usually leave on a Friday night, since the Dingmans had regular jobs while campaigning their star, and drive straight to the show site. He was flown only a handful of times, but no matter the mode, travel circumstances never seemed to effect Goober. He handled heat well, and actually showed in a snowstorm in Pocatello, Idaho – where he went Best In Show. He was a good eater, always maintaining his weight, subsisting on a regular diet of dry Purina Dog Chow, with occasional banana and fruit treats.

Throughtout his long, productive life Goober enjoyed good health, never needing medication or special treatment. In fact, Goober's regular veterinarian saw him so infrequently that he had to be reintroduced at each office visit despite the considerable media coverage, and accompanying fame, Goober received in his home town. The Dingmans recall him as being a low maintenance dog who required nothing more than standard grooming, which may or may not be a consequence of the fact that Goober was a complete outcross for at the first five generations of his pedigree. While Goober was not bred according to any line or inbreeding theories, he is an outstanding example of “breeding the best to the best and hoping for the best,” as such outstanding specimens and producers as Ch. Golden Carmel Coach, Ch Cherokee Morgan, Ch Vardona Frosty Snowman and Eng./Am. Ch Kippax Fearnought, among other well-known producers, all appear in the first five generations of his peigree.

Goober, like all the DIngman's Bulldogs, was a housedog his entire life, and slept beside Karl and Joyce's bed, frequently with his favorite toy mouse. “He was a good, good buddy,” said Karl. Whelped on February 16, 1973, Ch. Marinebull's All The Way died on May 17, 1885, age twelve, at his family home in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Goober at six weeks, showing hints of the confirmation and ring abilities that would soon develop.

[home] [the boys] [the girls] [studs] [puppies] [about us] [links]