We expect a litter of young genius pups out of Brandywine Charlotte by Jasper (Good Shepherd's Mellow Moonshiner) at the end of March, ready for their new families in late May.
Charlie is a third-generation search and rescue dog, our seventh operational SAR partner, and second-generation Brandywine breeding. She is the pup we retained from Rosie's second litter.
She's quite the hoopy frood, Chuck is. Typical Brandywine love of humans, including their sticky squealing offspring. Patient of all manner of nonsense from other animals. Unflappable. A fine little trailing and airscenting partner. Always game to help with the livestock -- she works sheep, goats, pigs and poultry. Free-range farm born and raised.
Charlie was slow to mature as a young pup, but is very much a mental and social adult. She has high drive to work livestock, and very high hunt drive for SAR. Like her mother and grandmother, when the work is done, she flips her own switch into calm, collected "hanging out" mode, allowing her to be safely unsupervised with free-range poultry, yet effective as a varmint-hunter. She is not busy. She is somewhat handler soft, like her sire. Like her dam, she has a teamwork orientation to any work we ask of her.
Charlie's hips are OFA Excellent and she tests normal/normal for the MDR1 mutation, degenerative myelopathy, CEA and PRA.
She has a lovely ground-eating trot; I think she's the best-moving English shepherd I've seen, and has the best task endurance of any of our ES SAR partners. She has typical ES agility and proprioception.
Her seal coat is a correct "teflon" texture. She has a watch eye.
For her first litter, we bred her to Jasper (Good Shepherd's Mellow Moonshiner)
Jasper's owner describes him:
Jasper is a beautiful tri-colored ES with a full white collar, bronze/tan markings and a maintenance free Teflon coat. Active, energetic, curious and affectionate, Jasper displays a very even temperament. At home, Jasper is in charge of monitoring the perimeter of his 3 acres and maintaining a bird and vermin free environment. While he has a bark that means business, and readily alerts to arrivals at the house, he graciously accepts all visitors, human and canine alike.
Jasper has been continuously involved in agility since he was 18 months old and exhibits an enthusiasm for learning new skills and fearlessness in his approach to obstacles. He learns quickly and enjoys a challenge. Jasper earned his CGC at 1 year and although not a certified therapy dog, enjoys visits with relatives in nursing homes and other senior facilities.
Jasper is an excellent companion dog, adjusts easily to change, and is happy doing just about anything,even just riding around in the car with his people for a day of running errands.
We chose Jasper for Charlie's first litter based on his temperament, a pedigree that meshes well with hers and keeps COI low, a physique that will tend to moderate her slightly "long & low" physique, and the excellent pups that Jasper produced last year with Brandywine Pippa, Charlie's half-sister and niece. Jasper will not be used at stud extensively, if ever again, and we believe that this pairing will produce pups that are an asset to the gene pool going forward.
Jasper is OFA Good, PRA normal/normal, and MDR1 normal/normal.
We will begin accepting applications when pregnancy is confirmed. Prospective owners should initiate inquiries as soon as possible to secure consideration. As always, pups will be placed according to individual needs with qualified owners, and under the terms of our contract that provides lifelong protection for puppy, breed, and owner.
A generic draft copy of our contract is here. Please review it before completing an application. We are happy to discuss the contract with interested parties, so don't hesitate to ask questions. However, its essential elements for the protection of our puppies and the integrity of the English shepherd breed are not optional.
Contact me at hhoulahan@yahoo.com or via private message at the Brandywine Farm Facebook Page
Information about our breeding ethics and puppy-raising practices, in detail, can be found here:
As an owner of one of the pups from Charlie's half sister Pippa X Jasper breeding, I have to say we are completely delighted with our girl. She is smart and athletic and so very biddable (and gorgeous too). Thanks Heather for your care for the well being and health of English Shepherds, which, when thoughtfully bred, are a truly remarkable breed.
ReplyDeleteYou were supposed to do this LAST year before I got another pup! At 13 1/2 I'm watching Tali (Pip x Shooter) slowly start to fade and I am so going to miss her. Not only is she beautiful, smart and athletic, she is probably the most sensible dog I've ever had. It became a family joke as the nieces and nephews got older that all potential dates had to pass the "Tali Test" first. There were very few people she ever disliked, but was proven right about every one of them. She raised my next 3 ES and has taken on my stepson as hers to watch over. And while I know you can't ever replicate them, guessing these Charlie pups will pass on much of the same qualities you bred for in your first litter.
ReplyDeleteLori
As the owner of Charlie's sister, River, I cannot believe how much I love the dogs of this lineage. They are special dogs, even among a breed of special dogs.
ReplyDelete