Charles Le Boutillier

Geoff’s father, Charles Le Boutillier, fought long and hard to have poodles recognized by the AKC as members of the Sporting Group. After all, they'd been hunters, retrievers, and working dogs for centuries. Charles thought they should be allowed to compete in Field Trials, and much of Geoff's youth was spent traipsing over fields on Maryland's Eastern Shore helping his dad, long after the Chesapeakes and Labs had gone, running the poodles, competing against the recognized sporting breeds' times.  There’s a fascinating little book about Charles and the early days of that fight published by the Greenspring Poodle Club. To purchase the book, click here: Greenspring Poodle Club. The struggle to have poodles recognized for their true qualities continues to this day. For anyone who doubts poodles' ability as water dogs or retrievers...

Here's a passage from a booklet published by the Greenspring Poodle Club about Geoff's dad and his dogs...

And here's some of Geoff's dad's notes from the 1950's on training poodles as retrievers....