If life in the sport of dogs is like traveling on a path to somewhere great, then all the friends we make along the way are pretty great, too.

That’s especially true when those connections start going back as long as twenty years. Or, as in my case, forty or fifty! The neat thing about being “in dogs” this long is being able to look back and see the outcome of choices that we (and our friends) have made along the way. I’d like to dedicate this column to a breeder who made up her mind a long time ago to follow a plan to better her breed.

While most of us were showing our hearts out, this breeder saw the writing on the wall and realized that “health” was going to be more and more important to pet owners. Years ago, when her breed was crticized by vets (and the public) for having eye problems, she faced the music and decided to create a bloodline of dogs breeding true for normal eyes. This was no easy decision to make. However, if the breed was going to survive on the market place, someone had to deal with this problem.

Dogs with good conformation and normal eyes were not easy to come by. Perhaps even more rare was the willingness to sacrifice show ring success for health, and to stand up against vets all too willing to condemn a breed based on eye examinatons of small puppies only a few weeks old. (There remains to this day the controversy of normal eyes being achieved by maturity, a phenomenon called “go normal” among breeders. In such cases, the debate is whether puppies are simply being examined for eye problems too early in life, before their eyes have a chance to complete their development). After all, don’t a kitten’s milky-colored eyes clear up as it grows? Why do we think a puppy’s eyes are fully mature at six or eight weeks of age? The problem, of course, is compounded by customers wanting their puppies as young as possible.

Finding dogs certified for normal eyes wasn’t easy. But, a few dogs were out there – and some were even champions. I remember visiting this kennel when they were gathering the breeding stock for the genetic experiment that very possibly means more to their breed than anyone has recognized. Over the years, I followed their experiment with interest and smiled when they occasionally made time to send a dog out with a handler and prove that they hadn’t lost “show quality.” Like other breeders, I lost a few sales to them because of better eye checks, because they advertised wisely and because they had more dogs than me. The fact was, they were gradually making the breed better than it had ever been – by creating a line of dogs breeding true for normal eyes. I deeply appreciated what they had done.

It was with great excitement that I recently made arrangements to visit the kennel again. After a long drive, I arrived at their facility in Millville, New Jersey and I arrived with an open mind. We were not dog show competitors, like some of the characters in my novels. We were lovers of the breed and we knew of each other’s work.

What did I find? To my delight, I saw beautiful, happy dogs. All of them were well-groomed. All of them were enjoying fresh air and sunshine in big, open runs. They were healthy dogs and I hoped my visit would be well received. I shouldn’t have worried. Before too long, we were talking pedigrees and breed history and I was being introduced to every dog. This wasn’t a small kennel. Considering the scope of the genetic experiment they had undertaken, how could it be? This was a privately-owned, privately-funded research experiment in the form of a successful dog kennel. I loved it.

My heart sank as we warmed ourselves with hot tea in their spacious office and they told me thay have been criticized by other breeders for being a puppy mill. Puppy mill? Please. I’m old enough to know when that term was first dreamed up – and this was no puppy mill. What I was seeing was a living, breathing, dedicated research project. And I knew, one day, a whole breed of dogs – if not the entire dog fancy, itself – would be grateful.

I was astounded by the seriousness of these breeders. No longer content with having proven their objective regarding normal eyes, they have moved on to other health concerns – working now to create dogs resistent to fatality by certain medications that are commonly administerd by vets or purchased over the counter. This is incredible to me. It’s wonderful.

Breeders working like this are independent scientists directing their kennels into realms far different from the show ring. When founded and managed by dog lovers with a thorough knowledge of a breed standard, this is a phenomenal gift to dogs and the sports we love. I am glad to know such dog breeders and I will be happy to give the name of the kennel – created by pioneers with priorities – to anyone who contacts me at [email protected].