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  • Stewards, not spectators

    For years I believed that if I simply worked harder, someone would eventually notice. That good dogs would naturally be valued, that careful breeding would speak for itself, and that if enough evidence existed, people would choose wisdom over convenience. Experience has taught me otherwise. I have watched, little by little, as we surrendered ownership…

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  • THE PRICE OF NOVELTY 

    Yesterday I was standing at my grooming table brushing one of my black Miniature Poodles when my phone buzzed with yet another photograph of what was being advertised as a “rare Merle Poodle,” and I found myself staring at that single word far longer than I expected because something about it simply did not sit…

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  • WHAT GETS PASSED BETWEEN PEOPLE

    A few weeks ago I found myself standing ringside waiting for the next class while listening to a conversation that has probably taken place at every specialty, dog show, and breed club gathering for longer than most of us have been alive. Concern was being expressed about the lack of mentors entering the sport. Frustration…

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  • THE MOST IMPORTANT DOG IN THE RING MAY BE THE ONE WHO ISN’T THERE

    There is something profoundly revealing about a breed as refined as the Poodle, because no matter how breathtaking the grooming, how elegant the outline, or how carefully presented the finished picture may appear, the truth eventually emerges the moment the dog is asked to move, to think, to respond, and to demonstrate whether everything admired…

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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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  • 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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  • 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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  • 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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  • 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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