The rumors are true… Straw Hat Standard Schnauzers has a new litter!
Introducing the “Perfect Storm” Litter
7 Boys, 5 Girls
Born 6/14/24
TO
KARMA & JAX
Why This Breeding?
Patricia White of Halcyon Standard Schnauzers was my original and remaining to this day mentor and example of what a breeder of Standard Schnauzers should aspire to. For the first time, we are co-breeding a litter, to maintain the Legacy of Halcyon Standard Schnauzers for quality of temperament, correct type and iconic pedigree.
Why these two dogs?
Since Karma was 8 weeks old, I knew she was extraordinary, so trusting and happy, and so physically correct. By the time she was 2.5 years old, her show ring successes checked off one “Breeder’s Bucket List” accomplishment after another, from Westminster Select (2022), to National Specialty Best of Winners (2021) and Best of Opposite Sex (2022), to Gold Grand Champion to Best in Show. After being away from home long enough, Karma retired home and started the next phase of her contribution to the breed — in the whelping box.
GCHG CH Straw Hat Love Is My Religion (“Karma”)
AKC Reg # WS68947808 DOB: 07/16/2020 CHIC #: 178748
DCM: Negative (Normal)
HIPS: Excellent (SC-5109E29F-P-VPI)
EYES: Normal (SC-EYE770/29F-VPI)
And Jax?
Jax is Karma’s Uncle, a line-breeding intended to solidify genetics for the beautiful Halcyon heads, hard coats, well-moving, square and biddable working dogs. Like his brother Frodo, Jax has an outstanding, calm confidence, affectionate but determined. Jax has excelled in many performance venues, significantly, fastest Standard Schnauzer in Fast Cat 2019-2021 with a lifetime achievement at #3. Jax finished his Championship easily and early, with multiple Best Puppy in Sweepstakes and PVSSC BOW in 2017.
CH Halcyon’s Jack Frost RA CA FCAT4 CGCU TKN RATS (“Jax”)
AKC Reg #WS55855809 DOB: 12/23/2016 CHIC #: 140531
DCM: Negative (Normal)
HIPS: Good (SC-4779G29M-VPI)
ELBOWS: Normal (SC-EL351M28-VPI)
EYES: Normal (SC-EYE481/86M-VPI)
What types of prospects do we anticipate?
- Conformation prospects chosen to be a fun, comparatively “easy” Owner-Handled experience, with long-term potential, as well as potential high-level Specials-quality dogs.
- Performance prospects with a variety of aptitudes and eager to work, whether at Fast Cat, Barn Hunt, Rally or agility.
- Go anywhere, do anything pets
What are the puppies doing now?
The puppies’ eyes and ears are open, and they are now exploring their surroundings, so now we’re increasing enrichment with exposure to new objects, textures, surfaces and foods, rooms and environments. Soon they will have their first protected and curated outdoor experiences.
Now that the puppies are beginning to consciously interact with each other and their environments, we are already seeing some personalities emerging — a few are very active, exuberant and driven, and a few milder and more methodical and thoughtful in their exploration and most somewhere in the middle.
The puppies will all be professionally temperament tested at around 7 weeks for personality and aptitudes by a behaviorist familiar with the breed. At around 8 weeks of age the puppies will be given independent structural assessment. They’ll also be participating in an ongoing University cognitive behavior study around that time.
I wasn’t able to do as much scent exposure in their first two weeks as I wanted to. Prioritizing health monitoring, record-keeping and consistent weight gain for twelve neonates was a full-time commitment. However, the health monitoring and twice-daily weigh-ins involved a lot of individual handling, as did supplementing Karma’s milk with fresh goat’s-milk formula and helping her keep the puppies all clean, so they are off to an excellent start there.
Surfaces and textures the puppies have encountered as of 21 days old include:
- Fleece (long & short)
- Flannel
- Terry Cloth (dry & wet)
- Large Plushies
- Soft and Hard Rubber
- Plastic
- Metal Spoons and Bowls
- Porcelain
Containment experiences: whelping box, ex-pen, wire crate, vari-kennel.
What’s next for the puppies?
- Discovering their personalities
- Litter/potty box training
- Limited outdoor experiences
- Introduction to solid foods (puppy pudding and raw, local beef)
- Encouraging physical skills development
- Increased interaction with family members, close friends, occasional visitors, etc.
- Increased awareness of other household dogs
Next Steps? How do I move forward with a Straw Hat Puppy?
To discuss your Standard Schnauzer goals and how one of these puppies could be your right candidate, please email me at StrawHatStandards@gmail.com to set up a call.
Final Thoughts:
Standard Schnauzers have owned me since 1992, when I started in Obedience, and then moved into Conformation and Herding. I owe my early success with my very first Standard Schnauzers (Blue ribbons in advanced Obedience (CDX), a conformation Working Group First Place and the very first Standard Schnauzer with an AKC Herding Title) to my experienced and dedicated mentor, Patricia White, of Halcyon Standard Schnauzers. Because she never compromised on temperament and never stopped educating herself on the breed, both in the US and abroad, the dogs she produced could excel in all kinds of environments, including competition, even with a novice like me.
Fast forward 32 years of successful competition, much of it owner-handled, finishing dozens of home-bred Standard Schnauzers, including at multiple National and Regional Specialties from the bred-by-exhibitor class, and Pat’s example has never left me. I want the Owner-Handler experience to be fun and successful and it’s my goal as a breeder to help novices as well as experienced owners and exhibitors succeed at whatever they want to do with their Standards, just as I was fortunate to do. The right dog, from the right lines, bred with intention and raised with experience and wisdom can take you on the journey of a lifetime. I’m so grateful to Pat to be able to present this litter, from these lines of generations of superior conformation and proven performance capability.
Thank you so much for reading!
Give your dog a hug for me,
Leslie Shriner
