- A Breeder (with a capital B) is one who thirsts for
knowledge and never really knows it all, one who
wrestles with decisions of conscience, convenience,
and commitment.
- A Breeder is one who sacrifices personal interests,
finances, time, friendships, fancy furniture, and
deep pile carpeting! She gives up the dreams of a
long luxurious cruise in favor of turning that all
important Show into this years vacation.
- A Breeder goes without sleep (but never without
coffee!) in hours spent planning a breeding or
watching anxiously over the birth process, and
afterwards, over every little sneeze, wiggle, or cry.
- A Breeder skips dinner parties because that litter
is due or the babies have to be fed at eight. She
disregards birth fluids and puts mouth to mouth to
save a gasping newborn, literally blowing life into a
tiny, helpless creature that may be the culmination
of a lifetime of dreams.
- A Breeders lap is a marvelous place where
generations of proud and noble champions once
snoozed.
- A Breeders hands are strong and firm and often
soiled, but ever so gentle and sensitive to the
thrusts of a puppies wet nose.
- A Breeders back and knees are usually arthritic
from stooping, bending, and sitting in the birthing
box, but are strong enough to enable the Breeder to
show the next choice pup to a championship.
- A Breeders shoulders are stooped and often heaped
with abuse from competitors, but they're wide
enough to support the weight of a thousand defeats
and frustrations.
- A Breeders arms are always able to wield a mop,
support an armful of puppies, or lend a helping hand
to a newcomer.
- A Breeders ears are wondrous things, sometimes red
(from being talked about) or strangely shaped (from
being pressed against a phone receiver), often deaf
to criticism, yet always fine tuned to the whimper
of a sick puppy.
- A Breeders eyes are blurred from pedigree
research and sometimes blind to her own dog's
faults, but they are ever so keen to the
competitions faults and are always searching for the
perfect specimen.
- A Breeders brain is foggy on faces, but it can recall
pedigrees faster than an IBM computer. It's so full
of knowledge that sometimes it blows a fuse: it
catalogues thousands of good boning, fine ears, and
perfect heads...and buries in the soul the failures
and the one's that didn't turn out.
- The breeders heart is often broken, but it beats
strongly with hope everlasting...and it's always in
the right place!
- Oh, yes, there are breeders, and then, there are
BREEDERS!!!
