Cabernet Poodles
Mary Olund
Interview with Breeder
BIS Magazine USA February 2021
Q: How did you get involved with the world of pedigreed dogs and dog shows, including the variety of poodles you have bred and shown, kennel name, and other breeds you are involved with.
A: My first introduction to a pedigreed dog was when my parents brought me home from the hospital after my birth. They had a wire fox terrier named Ginger. After Ginger, and right up to my father’s death, he always had retired champion dachshunds. He said goodbye to us with a smooth on one side and a long haired on the other.
I personally had Great Danes. When my last Great Dane died, Scott suggested a Poodle as he had been raised with a miniature. I thought that they were foo-foo dogs and was sure I could convince him to get a Pharaoh Hound. That’s when we brought a Standard Poodle into our lives.
We became involved in the world of showing after our purchase of a Peppertree bitch from Dorothy and Rudy Huck in southern California. Once we bred Brie we began to establish ourselves as Cabernet Standard Poodles.
The only other breed we’ve involved ourselves with was a wire fox terrier named GCH Afterall Painting the Sky, known as Sky. Our dear friend, Diane Ryan, gifted part ownership of her as a birthday gift to Scott and I. Little did we know at that young age what she would grow up to accomplish (BIS Montgomery, BIS Eukanuba, BIS Great Western, BIS National to name a few and 129 Best In Shows) with Gabriel Rangel as her handler and a career culminating with BIS 2014 Westminster.
Q: Where did you get your foundation Poodle from?
A: Our first standard litter was out of the Peppertree bitch (Brie) but we did not go forward with anything from the litter even though she did give us one champion bitch.
We have always considered our foundation bitch to be CH. Randenn Beyond Hope at Cabernet (Bianca). She was bred by Randy Garren, Dennis McCoy, and Kaz Hosaka. She was an absolutely stunning bitch with a wonderful temperament. She proves how strong a bitch line can be.
Q: How have your poodles changed since you first started showing/breeding?
A: We have made gradual improvements and continue to do so, a work in progress….tail sets, almond eye, longer necks, pronounced sternum, pigment in our whites, coat texture while maintaining what we’ve always emphasized, correct movement. We were able to improve on many of these when we imported a male (Tango) from Lotta Sandell’s Huffish line in Sweden.
Q: What is your proudest achievement in the world of Poodles?
A: We are very proud of all the “champions of the heart,” which are the companion dogs that we have with wonderful Cabernet families. They are the ones that are out in public being ambassadors for the breed as pets, performance and therapy dogs. We have built a community within our Cabernet families. Many have become our lifelong, friends and many have become friends with each other. Having 36 Cabernet families show up to attend Poodle Day in Carmel is a very proud achievement.
Another proud achievement is when we see Cabernet in a pedigree where that particular dog or bitch has gone on to attain wonderful success that we all dream of.
Both Scott and I are happy to have contributed in positive ways as board members for ten-year terms on the Poodle Club of America board. We’ve always believed in giving back to the breed.
Q: Who is your most successful dog?
A: We appreciate what you are asking but we’ve never looked at who’s the most successful dog as to us they are all successful in their own right. We have champion bitches that have been successful in the whelping box and champions dogs that have been successful in the breeding program– to us that’s a successful dog.
Q: What kind of selection do you prefer in your breeding program?
A: We prefer to line breed for three generations then outcross but with that said we have done outcrosses in three generations to dogs that are the same phenotype in the pedigree.
Q: What is your most favorite show to attend, anywhere in the world and why?
A: First and foremost would be the Poodle Club of America National, which like all Nationals showcases our breed young and old, and is probably followed by the World Show. It’s interesting to see breeds that aren’t AKC recognized, the classes that we don’t have here in the United States such as the “hound packs,” handled by two to four handlers, meeting people from other countries, seeing the Poodles being shown from other countries, and adding in vacation time in the host country.
Q: When many people think Poodle they think HAIR. What are the qualities of a Poodle you wish judges paid more attention to when judging the breed?
A: We wish judges would remember that this is a breed that is supposed to retrieve a bird, so they need the correct structure to do that. We wish that they would pay just as much attention to the down and back as the go around. We also wish that they would pay attention to the chin and underjaw as well as balanced movement with soundness. All of this and more must be in a package of a poodle that exudes breed type.
Q: Trim talk!
A: The continental trim has been the preferred trim after 12 months of age, but the modified continental is gaining momentum. We had many more than ever before being shown at our last National in all three varieties. Now, we just have to have judges get used to it in their ring. Another favorite has been the English Saddle, but one does not see it often now.
Q: What is your favorite Poodle trim to see and create?
A: In the show ring I love a beautifully trimmed and sprayed up continental. I am not a professional handler nor groomer so I cannot create anything except a mess if given scissors.
For the retired champions I love a beautiful sporting trim.
Q: As we know, Poodles come in a variety of colors, does each color have a different coat texture and do you believe some colors win more than others?
A: I feel that when you look at all three varieties and the different coat colors and their texture it all depends on the breeding of each one. There isn’t one specific color that is dominant in giving a soft or harsh dense texture. I’ve seen both in all the colors in all the varieties.
I was told many years ago and it’s mentioned every so often today, “If you want a big winner you need to go into the ring with a white as they catch the eye of judges more.” I have always felt that was not the case.
I pulled out all my Poodle In America hardbound books dated 1929-2007. I tabulated the wins between black and whites looking at the photos published of our Poodle Club of America National and Specialty Show Winners. It came out almost even between blacks and whites.
If I tabulated correctly there were just 16 more in black that were winners. If not correct, it’s close enough to know that each color has strength in the ring to win. Unfortunately, our other colors have not had the high number of wins.
Q: How do you feel about the parti-colored Poodle?
A: It is burned in my mind to breed to the breed standard. Our standard says, “The coat is an even and solid color.” For those who choose to breed partis, I leave it to them.
Q: Does each variety of Poodle come with their own traits/health problems and what do you like to test for before you incorporate a Poodle into your breeding program?
A: As one of two breeder referral contacts for Poodle Club of America west of the Mississippi I get asked by newcomers into the breed about the difference between the three varieties both in traits and health.
One can make generalizations regarding the difference in traits between the varieties. In speaking to my toy and miniature friends because we’ve not bred either, the toy is easy and convenient to carry around, they can develop much more of a need attachment to their people. Miniatures are wonderful small space dogs and then you have the standard.
I truly feel that the Poodle is the most versatile breed. What other, breed can do everything they can do. Imagine that?
Each variety has their inherent health issues that are unique to the variety or to the breed. Some issues with toys are shared with miniatures and some miniature issues are shared with standards.
The tests we do before we breed are as follows; OFA hips, CERF, thyroid, sebaceous adenitis, neonatal encephalopathy, PRA (rcd4), PRCD, degenerative myelopathy, Von Willebrand, and elective congenital/advanced cardiac tests.
Many of the varieties are DNA cleared by parentage for neonatal encephalopathy and Von Willebrand but it’s been advised by researchers to retest for it every four years for dogs being actively bred.
Below as written on the Poodle Club of America’s Foundation site:
“Poodle Club of America’s health foundation has funded well over $700,000.00 in research grants to improve the health of Poodles. Working in partnership with the AKC Canine Health Foundation, PCAF has donated funding for many studies such as epilepsy, cancer, male infertility, canine influenza and bloat.”
Much of the funding donated by PCAF goes directly to universities and other institutions for studies of specific Poodle health problems, sebaceous adenitis, Addison’s disease, Legg-Calve-Perthes, patellar luxation, epilepsy, chronic liver hepatitis, atrial septal defect, polymicrogyria, eye disorders optic nerve hypoplasia, micro papillae and juvenile cataracts.
Q: Where in the World do you believe Poodles are the strongest currently?
A: I don’t feel that there is any one place that is currently the strongest in Poodles. There are many breeders internationally working together in all three varieties to improve the breed. We personally have imported from Australia and Sweden and have exported to Canada and Finland all for diversifying pedigrees keeping in mind phenotype and genotype that we wanted to keep.
Q: Pleases name one Poodle you wished you owned/bred.
A: Narrowing this down to just one is very challenging as there have been many in all three varieties that could be named. It’s like asking a mother to name her favorite child. I want to acknowledge one in each variety that always put a smile on my face watching them in the ring and yes, I did wish that we had been their breeders.
Toys-Ch. Trevor of Ahs Capital Gain-Cappy bred by Gary Wittmeier
Miniatures-Ch. BarKings Scintilla-Scin bred by Kathy Poe
Standards-Ch. El’s Image of Belle-Sophie bred by Edna May
Q: Poodle Club of America is synonymous with prestige, the crème de la crème of Poodles compete there. What makes the show so special and what is your favorite PCA memory?
A: The day that our National starts shows evidence of cooperative teamwork by all the volunteers who give countless hours of their time to put this wonderful show together. Everything is done with the goal of perfection and eye for a beautiful presentation. Effort is put into making it welcoming for the exhibitors and for those who attend without an entry. It is truly a beautiful visual experience from the decorations to all three varieties being exhibited.
People come from all over the United States and the world knowing that it’s the one opportunity to see as many poodles as one can see under one roof. It has become a yearlong plan for many to attend anticipating a reunion with friends seen once a year, learning tips from fellow breeders, seeing dogs that one cannot see geographically, and enjoy watching the youngsters in the ring, the seasoned show dogs, and the veterans that still love being in the ring. They come to show their dogs in all of the performance events enjoying the bonding and hard work that has taken place to get their poodle to the point of competing.
Our most favorite PCA memory:
Our very first PCA at Ludwig’s Corner. Being our first PCA it was special. We were in awe with seeing and meeting all the people that we had only seen in photos or read about in Poodle Variety. To us, it was like being among celebrities.
If in closing may I use print space to share what Anne Rogers Clark wrote, “What is the Poodle Club of America?”
To me it is the gathering of the clan-
The spectacle of the breed
The glamour of the new crop
The nerves of the tyro
The presentation of the talented
The pathos of the old timers
The heartache of those who are gone
The annoyances of the shallow
The wonder of the mind that encompasses all
The curiosity to see how last year’s crop has prospered and produced
It is the opportunity to sit and watch and wonder
To lend a hand at the crates or in the ring
To try your best to show the youngster that you are hooked on to its best
To compare with friends and to compete with them
To do the same with the not-so-friendly
To learn
To teach
To reach up and out
To mend fences-and perhaps, burn bridges
To remember 50 years of involvement
The advances
The pitfalls
It is to live it all
To grab the brass ring
And, once grasped, realize there is much more to the sport of dogs and our lift than simple grasping
It is a belief, a commitment, to doing something you love and believe in.
It is Christmas in June!
