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—
Matthew J. Heindl,
To
begin — Pomeranians have always been in my life. As a young boy
growing up in a small mountain village in Germany, Poms were everywhere
— not as beautiful as today’s Poms and rather ill-tempered, little
ankle-biters guarding their master’s property — but they were
everywhere. My first experience with our beautiful breed was as a young
boy while staying in my Uncle’s home. This Uncle was the owner of one
of our sulphur spas that people with severe arthritis frequented. One of
these patients was a very famous lady in the Pom world, from A
few years later I left the Life
with my Poms started at the age of 21, I was as green in the breed as
grass. My first dog show was the Oakville Show in 1968. At this show I
watched four Poms go into the ring. What an excitement!
I stood and watched in wonder at these beautiful dogs. While
standing at ringside and then walking around trying to find their
owner’s set-up, I came across the set-up of Edna and Doug Bradley and
their Poms. Edna immediately tried to feed me all their sandwiches since
she thought that my 125 pound body needed fattening up — and boy did
she do a good job. We were together for 25 years, they became my second
parents, we shared Poms together and yes Edna fattened me up another 75
pounds as the years went on. I
joined the Toy Dog Club that Edna and Doug belonged to. In those days it
was a bit easier to belong to this kind of Club than an All Breed Club.
There was less strife among members as each had their own breed to worry
about. Summers and weekends were spent at Edna and Doug’s, all the Pom
breeders (the few we were) brought all their Poms. What a site —
sometimes there were as many as 90 Poms running around while we all sat
under the huge Weeping Willow trees talking Poms, sharing breeding
programs — just enjoying each other — what a far cry from our
now-a-days breeder get-togethers. Thus went by 20 years or so. All the
older breeders are gone and suddenly, it seems, I am one of the older
ones. I would also like to mention that Edna’s sister was the famous
Canadian breeding judge, both conformation and obedience, the late
Evelyn Kenny from I
have seen some of the so-called breeders of our breed come and go over
the years. Many thought that success in this breed comes overnight. Boy,
were they wrong! But the ones that stuck with it, making their breeding
program a lifelong commitment found success in their years of labour and
love for our beautiful Poms.
In
my opinion, the biggest turnaround for Poms in With
this new and frequent recognition also came the need for a National Club
for our wonderful breed. A few of us banded together across the nation,
with no funds but with a lot of hard work and determination, we got
things going — and obviously it has worked to the present day. On
a personal note, to have a national and a provincial club is the
greatest thing. It certainly helps us all in the breeding and showing of
our Poms. The only drawback is the so-often petty jealousies and
arguments that arise. If only we bred among ourselves more, with the
good dogs we all have, there would be a lot more Best in Show Poms born to many more breeders of this wonderful
breed. On
the whole, here in Many
people over the years have asked me what I breed for. The answer is
always the same — I breed for myself. I have to live with my dogs, I
have to like and love what I’m producing in my breeding program. For
myself, it’s a beautiful head, heavy bone structure and a huge coat. I
know for the show ring, our Poms are now trimmed and at times sculptured
to enhance their beauty. But you still have to have a good huge coat
with the right texture to start out with. It becomes a breeder’s
nightmare in the long run if a short or loose type of coat is used in a
breeding program. The
most important dogs in my breeding are my Brood Bitches. These girls
must be sound, correct coat, weigh between 5˝ to 6 pounds, be somewhat
longer in the body and most of all free-whelpers for at least four
generations. If you don’t have these kinds of girls in your kennel,
then you will keep your Veterinarian in mink
with C-sections and weak puppies not worthy of passing on their genes in
your program. This
also brings us to the greatest dilemma facing all breeders of
Pomeranians, and that, of course, is the Black Skin Disease. It’s in
every line and it has been with us from the first Poms that came from
For
some of my greatest moments over the years with Poms — one of the
greatest was getting a Best in Show at Credit Valley, Canada’s largest
dog show at the time . . . and with a female to boot. Another great that
comes to mind is winning three Best in Shows in succession, on a
three-day weekend. And,
of course, winning a few national and provincial/regional Specialty Shows
also made for some pretty great moments. To some, this might not be the
greatest, but while on my way to and
happily retired.
In
the last few years, I’ve enjoyed going to the American Pomeranian Club
Specialty in I
can’t end my Kennel Visit without bragging about my SUPER Best in
Show, namely, my son Blair. His keen interest in the Poms has shown
time and time again. He has helped breed and whelp quite a few litters in
the last few years. Of course, he’s only 20 years old — so girls,
trucks and computers are at the top of his list of priorities. But with
his interest in the breed, when the time comes, I know that he will carry
the BAVANEW Poms far into the new millennium. In closing, my thanks to
all of you, especially my great Webmaster in — Matt www.bavanew.com |
Bavanew
Pomeranians
