08/31/2026
My wife and I are 67 years old and have been married nearly 47 years. Some of you know we built a small house a couple of years ago and now live inside a nice enclosure. We have plenty of rabbits and are doing dogs full-time these days. I’ve got to be honest: we came close to divorce on more than one occasion. Fortunately for us, my wife was willing to hang in there and let me pursue my passion.
There are folks who think we are rich. We do not have a pile of money in the bank. We both worked hard, had good careers, and are comfortable today. But we are far from rich. Hopefully, we live long enough to enjoy the retirement we planned and worked so hard to achieve.
How did we get here?
I grew up in the city of Statesville. My dad was an old country boy, and we rabbit hunted every weekend from the time I was about 10 years old. We started primarily with grade dogs. We met some people at the newly formed Tarheel Beagle Club when I was in my mid-20s. We were introduced to AKC-registered Beagles and the new gundog field trial movement.
I was young, I could run, and I was in shape. I quickly began judging UBGF CHB, “Certified Hunting Beagle,” trials. That differentiated our gundogs from the traditional brace dogs that dominated the registry.
The UBGF competitions were all we had for a number of years, until the late 1980s, when AKC got involved and recognized our gundog movement. At that time, a friend of mine, Joe Payne, and I drove to Richmond, Virginia, and attended our first AKC judging seminar. Back then, it was a two-day event. This seminar was led by a prominent traditional brace Beagler, Wayne Price.
Joe and I had no idea about the rich tradition of Beagle field trialing. We were rabbit hunters and just knew we loved hunting and following the hounds.
Before long, clubs began to pop up, and the AKC’s new licensed trials, all run under the new Small Pack Option format, were started. Each club could only have one licensed field trial. I was fortunate to have bred some really competitive dogs. This led me to judging and competing up and down the East Coast and in the Deep South and Midwest.
What people today don’t understand is that most of these early competitions, and all of our training, were done in the wild. I lived in town. My dogs were in the county with my friend Joe. I would drive out there in the evenings and train on foot for hours on end.
We had no enclosures. We had no training collars or systems. We had no deer in the early days, but that was soon to change.
I ran mostly at night, on foot, by flashlight. I was in the best shape of my life. There were people faster than me, but I had stamina. I could go all day without a break. Regardless of the terrain or weather, I would keep going. That paid dividends when I began judging.
I was able to be a part of the growth and take leadership roles in our Tarheel Beagle Club, located in Cleveland, NC. There have been many club members through the years who contributed to our growth and success.
Tarheel is a charter club of the United Beagle Gundog Federation, UBGF. We have grown from running in the wild and holding meetings in an old, run-down log cabin, sitting around a wood stove, to owning 80 acres of enclosed property. We have some great facilities, plenty of kennels, a strong membership, plenty of rabbits, and a great reputation.
We have hosted the AKC/SPO National, the UBGF National, and the PBGV National in the past few years. The future is bright.
The sport took me around the country. I made friends with some of the most intelligent, experienced, and awesome people in the world. I was able to soak up hound knowledge from some of the best people to ever hold a lead.
I was honored to serve on the Board of Directors of the UBGF for six years. I’ve held every office at our club through the years. I am President and co-founder of the North Carolina Sporting Dog Association. And, in 2015, I had the unexpected honor of being nominated for and elected to the Hounds and Hunting Hall of Fame.
The truth is, many younger people in the sport today come to a trial to enter their dogs. They have a meal, maybe put one on the bench, and walk past those older guys like me without paying them much attention.
The truth is, those older guys on the porch have similar stories to mine. They are the ones who secured the land, put up the fence, and built the clubhouse. They are probably still working the office and managing the kitchen. They are making sure the club has rabbits. They are fixing the fence, mowing, and cleaning the bathrooms. They are doing the paperwork, lining up the judges, etc., etc., etc.
The next time you have a break at a competition, think about sitting down on the porch and just listening to the conversations. You will be surprised at how much you might learn.
Keith Loudermilt
