< Sunny White Cloud

In the 60's, I bought my first unregistered white shepherd female pup. Little did I know that this would be the start of an adventure that would last me a lifetime. I live on 12 acres of land with my husband John. I have two sons, Wayne and Allan. We also raise Arabian Horses, which is where the farm name of Hoof Print originated. We also have some Fallow deer along with a few other critters around here.

In 1968, my first litter of White Shepherd pups was born. That was the beginning of a breeding program lasting over 40 years. When I first started breeding, there were very few breeders in my area, so I had to keep whatever bloodlines I needed to carry on. Several of my dogs still trace back to my first registered male "Sunny White Cloud" that I bought in January, 1967.

In 1972, I joined the newly formed White Shepherd Club of Canada. This was right after their first show -- the only WSCC show I ever missed. Shortly after I joined the club, I was talked into taking an executive position; they told me the 2nd vice president really didn't have to do anything. "Sure!" Shortly afterward, the 1st VP resigned and moved out West. This made me 1st VP, but with still not much to do except that his wife, Elaine Twanow, our newsletter editor and secretary was leaving also. Elaine came up with the idea that if each member wrote something and brought it to the next meeting, we could all put it together and we'd have a newsletter. Well I was young and foolish back then, and it was at this same time that I found out a dog I had purchased had Hip Dysplasia, which led me to start to x-ray all my dogs. So I wrote about my dogs having bad hips and how it affected me. Well I was the only person to write anything for the newsletter, so I was given the job of putting the rest of that newsletter together. I had never written an article in my life before this, but from 1975 until 1993 I was the editor. Lynda moved in with us in 1992 and started to help out. I finally convinced her that she would be a great editor and I bowed out. I have held an executive position of some kind or another in this club since I first took on the job of 2nd VP until now.

In 1982, the WSCC Annual Fall show was moved to Hoofprint Farm, where it has been held every year since. It has gone from a one-day show, once a year, to two-day shows twice a year. As an executive member of the WSCC, I was very involved in our fight for over 20 years to keep the White Shepherd from being disqualified from the CKC show ring in Canada. On January 1, 1998, we lost this battle.

I was a member of the White German Shepherd Dog Club International for over 20 years, and was one of the founding members of the American White Shepherd Association (AWSA). I have also been a member of the Canadian Kennel Club (CKC) since 1970.

Showing and training dogs was never one of my strong points. I always had to talk someone else into showing them for me. Lynda Proulx has been doing a great job of showing my dogs since she moved in with us back in 1992.

The only time I took obedience classes I was told it was a good thing I was a breeder, cause I'd never make a trainer!!! Breeding has been the challenge that I love and enjoy. Not every litter has turned out as good as I would have liked, but some have been better. The friends that I have made all over the world, just because of my White Shepherds, has been the best part of my life.
 

Breeding White Shepherds can be such an enjoyment, so long as you don't take winning or losing seriously, and just enjoy the love that these wonderful animals give us.