Edward Bailey was born in 1931, growing up in Hamburg, Pennsylvania, just North of Pennsylvania Dutch County. His grandmother raised smooth coated Fox Terriers, and at age two, Ed was given one. It was the first of many dogs in his life. An uncle introduced him to hunting at an early age. At age 14 he got his first hunting licence, and another uncle took him for his first real hunt for rabbits. This uncle offered him a pair of English Setters and thus began his lifelong association with hunting dogs. After graduating from High School, he decided that he wanted to be a veterinarian. A draft notice from the U.S. Army changed all that. It was 1952 and the Korean conflict was in full swing. While in the military, he worked with research teams in the desert of Arizona. Here he met people from many different universities and decided he would like to pursue studies in wild animal research after his military duties ended. He attended the University of Montana for his undergraduate degree and continued on to earn his Master’s in Wildlife. Ed’s graduate studies involved mule deer and marked the beginning of his focus on animal behavior. With scholarships, Ed was able to complete his Doctorate in Zoology at Penn State in 1963 with a specialty in Animal Behavior. He was offered a position at Guelph University to start a program in Animal Behavior within the Zoology Department. As a professor he taught many undergraduates and master’s students as well as PhD students. He was chairman of the Animal Care services for many years. In 1973 together with a friend, Sigbot Winterhelt, they published “The Training and Care of the Versatile Hunting dog”. Ed was a founding member of the North American Versatile Hunting Dog Association of which the first chapter was in Ontario. Now there are new chapters in every U.S. state and most Canadian provinces. Through Ed’s vision for teaching and training there has been substantial improvements to the versatile dog breeds in NA as companions only or as hunting companions. For many years Ed wrote articles on Behavior Problems in the prestigious magazine “Gun Dog”. He answered endless amount of e-mail questions with behaviour dog problems. He literally answered questions hours before the ambulance came to take him to the hospital. That is how dedicated he was to helping dogs and their owners. He will be missed by so many people. There will be no funeral services of any kind. His ashes will be buried in Nebraska where some of his dogs are laid to rest. He will be united with them to hunt for eternity. Instead of flowers, please donate to the Farley Foundation which helps low-income owners to get veterinary help for their pets. The obituary can also be seen on the website of the MacKinnon Family Funeral Home Ltd, Acton, Ontario where a book of condolences can also be accessed so everyone can write their memories of Ed.
MacKinnon Family Funeral Home
519-853-0350
or 1-877-421-9860 (toll free)