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  • WHEN DID WE STOP ASKING QUESTIONS?

    The other evening I was sitting on the porch watching the sun settle itself behind the Tennessee hills while scrolling through puppy advertisements, and before long I found myself wondering whether I was looking at dog breeders or a clearance rack. Everywhere I looked there were puppies available immediately, litters advertised year-round, unusual colors being…

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  • COLOSTRUM SAVED MY CHIANTI

    Every litter is different, and every mother is different. I have used colostrum with many of my dogs over the years, but I do not think I have ever gone through as much colostrum with a nursing mother as I have with Chianti. Looking back, I am incredibly grateful that I had it on hand.…

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  • IF YOU SEE THE FIRE, SAY SOMETHING

    A few evenings ago I was carrying a bucket of chicken feed toward the coop while three guinea fowl conducted what appeared to be an emergency press conference regarding a leaf, which would have been amusing enough had they not displayed the level of urgency usually reserved for tornado warnings, loose predators, or the collapse…

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  • The Road Less Traveled

    There were moments when I wondered whether I was walking in the wrong direction simply because so few people seemed to be walking with me. Choosing natural rearing. Preserving reproductive hormones. Feeding raw diets. Questioning routine practices. Focusing on preservation breeding in a world increasingly captivated by trends and marketing. None of those choices came…

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  • CALCIUM IS NOT CALCIUM

    Most breeders know how much calcium they are giving. Far fewer know whether all calcium sources deserve to be treated as nutritionally equivalent. That question changed the way I think about reproduction, growth, recovery, raw feeding, and supplementation as a whole. Key Takeaways: CALCIUM IS NOT CALCIUM A few years ago I was sitting beside…

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  • DOGS WITHOUT HORMONES AND OTHER MODERN EXPECTATIONS

    A few days ago, Dr. Kristy Wilson asked me a question that opened the door to a much larger conversation. The question was not whether hormones matter, but what responsible hormone preservation looks like in everyday life. How do families manage intact dogs, prevent unplanned litters, and navigate the realities that come with preserving reproductive…

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  • An Athlete Wrapped in Elegance

    Yesterday I was standing in the puppy room watching five black Miniature Poodle puppies who are still far too young to do much of anything except sleep, nurse, and occasionally pile themselves into positions that seem physically impossible. Yet the moment Chianti settled down nearby, those tiny bodies suddenly transformed into determined little missiles. Eyes…

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  • LOOKING UPSTREAM

    𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐋𝐄𝐒𝐒𝐎𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐒𝐔𝐑𝐏𝐑𝐈𝐒𝐄𝐃 𝐌𝐄 Someone recently asked what lesson the dog show world had taught us that applies to life outside the ring, and curiosity got the better of me, so I began reading through the responses expecting to find reflections about breeding, preservation, mentorship, structure, stewardship, patience, discipline, and the countless lessons that…

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  • Reel

    Before there are ribbons, titles, and accomplishments, there are moments like these: sunshine on their backs, grass beneath their feet, and the freedom to simply be dogs. ❤️🐾❤️ danubepoodles

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  • THE FORGOTTEN ART OF STEWARDSHIP ❤️🐾❤️

    The longer I spend around animals, the less convinced I become that the shelter crisis is going to be solved by any single program, law, campaign, slogan, fundraiser, or social media movement, which is not to say those things have no value because rescue matters, shelters matter, foster homes matter, spay and neuter programs matter,…

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