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is a Past Issue for Reference - Please Visit Our
Current Elkhound Litter Page
Tora and Bram once again, some beautiful Norwegian Elkhound pups coming
Bram is excited to see Tora once again, June 14th, 2013
Bram and Tora pair up to create some of the very best Elkhounds you can find, and once again they will be having a terrific litter. I took Tora down to see Bram on Thursday and Friday, 13th and 14th of June, 2013. This is a great pair these two, both bring old world traits to the combination and it is truly a match up to beat all.
Bram is an old world Norway lineage, black faced and dark. He is a fast moving boy, he is almost impossible to get a photo of, and rarely stops for a second. He has lost a few pounds this spring with his energy and running, and he was most likely down about 5lbs from when he was up last summer, but is sleek and shiny, a very good looking dog. He was all business this round, he knows Tora is not one to play around, even though he is light and would love to have a fun time.
So, August 19th, 20th time frames give or take we should have some new little rascals around.
This is the 4th litter for Tora and Bram
The hunting instincts of the Norwegian Elkhound, the guarding instincts, the great personality, the recall, everything you could want in an Elkhound this combination brings out. These are easy dogs to be around, they make terrific companions as they have the personable nature, and both of these two come between you and danger long before you can think about it, and all the pups have this trait.
Pups from this pair have grown into some of the very best Norwegian Elkhounds you could find, every pup they produce is truly stunning. We have previous pups from all litters on the site, and this upcoming litter is going to be terrific, I can hardly wait.
This is a Past Issue for Reference - Please Visit Our Current Elkhound Litter Page
Elkhound Female Tora
Tora is muscled in and is a solid 58lbs. She doesn't go up or down by more than a pound throughout the year. She is a consistent eater, not hard to keep, has the easy keeper qualities from Mia. She has the best feet I have ever seen, no issues of any kind. All her winter scars have healed, she had some battles this winter, I'll expand on that in a later newsletter, but she is happy and content, and in great shape. She is a powerhouse of reliability, she is predictable and prolific. She brings a thickness and bulk to this pair that yields some truly amazing pups.
Jaegar - Elkhound Male
As all of you know, when Jaegar came along it was evident right from a pup that he was going to be a magnificent male elkhound. There was no mistaking his confidence, his stance, the posture he had as young fella, even only 6 weeks old we were all able to see it. Now, take a look at this will you. My goodness!
Now as all of you know I have a litter planned with Jaegar and Kamp, however, just do to the sheer quality of Jaegar, the make up, the depth, the balance, his thickness, everything all combined, I am changing the mating with GÆDA this time around. I am going to use Jaegar with GÆDA this round, and not Takoda. I truly feel that it is going to be an even better pairing than Takoda and GÆDA.
Jaegar - A Kamia Kennels Elkhound Male
We talk a lot about Tora and how solid she is, how muscled in, the condition, the workouts, the strength. Well, magnify that by many times and you can begin to imagine the power this boy has. Jaegar is so fast, he is extremely agile with that speed. Covers ground like you would not believe.
Jaegar is 1/2 inch shorter than his father Takoda, and right now outweighs him. From this point forward now he will always out weigh Takoda. Jaegar will gain another 5 to 7 lbs primarily in the chest and hips as he comes into his prime. He will remain at that weight for many years.
GÆDA - Elkhound Female
We are so excited about this upcoming litter from GÆDA. She is cycling right now, Jaegar and her paired up today, the 18th of June, 2013 and she will be having her second litter. She is just a few days behind Tora, same as last year. GÆDA is a beautiful female. She has really turned into a stunning Elkhound female. She strong and fast, very light on her feet, a dark face, black ears and feet. She is just a slight bit taller and longer than Tora and only a couple pounds lighter. GÆDA is a pleasant dog. Absolutely trouble free. Never makes a sound unless there is threat. Rarely, and I mean rarely barks for fun even. This is a smart female, well mannered, a great dog to be around.
Jaegar and GÆDA - What a terrific pair
This is going to be some seriously good match up. The combination of Takoda and GÆDA was great, this will be even better. Jaegar has turned into such a stunning young male, GÆDA has proven she raises outstanding pups, wow, this is going to be a fun time.
These pups will be really agile, balanced stable dogs. Jaegar is so steady, so confident, mentally he is as stable a dog as we have ever raised, and with these two both having the great personalities they do, the pups will be some awesome family dogs. Both these two have tons of courage, they are territorial, and GÆDA is right beside Jaegar should anything approach or come through the back territory they rule. She has absolutely no problem tying into anything Jaegar feels needs be dealt with, she is a tough battle tested female and backs him up 100%.
Jaegar and Takoda - What a difference a year makes
Take a good look, it is a photo that won't be back anytime soon. A year ago, the two big fellas, they would hike and play and spend hours and hours together. Pals, best friends, each watching out for the other, all the while though, Takoda was schooling Jaegar. He was training him, making him better, stronger, faster. Teaching all the time. Well, as with all things in nature, the younger, stronger faster eventually take over, then rule.
I can no longer run the two big boys together. Big breeding males, dominant males no less, when it comes to who rules, this can come down to a serious showdown. Jaegar felt this summer, this cycle was his time. He has become an amazing young male, no longer will he allow Takoda to go unchallenged.
Now, for those that are unsure of how this works, in a breeding situation, where intact males are kept together and there is a big age difference, the older starts out of course in the upper position. Unfortunately, at some point, the younger male will "Come of Age", and, if he is stronger, faster, and intent on taking charge, he will. If two brothers close to the same age are together these instances don't occur, they have long since sorted out who is boss, but in an older younger male situation, at some point it will occur.
As you can well imagine, Takoda he is not exactly going to just hand over the reins so to speak, and I think you have the idea by reading my newsletters that trained and skilled, muscled in, conditioned, super fast, miserable, fearless as the day is long Elkhound males having a head to head is not for the faint of heart. You best have leather chaps, high cowboy boots and welding gloves on to step in there. I saw a movie one time and a line stuck with me, it was a guy trying to convince another guy to give up and surrender before the Mexican police came, as they would be putting this guy in a Mexican Prison. The line was "don't nobody want to go to a Mexican Prison". Well, my new line is "Don't Nobody Want To Step In Between These Two". These boys are clearly in a different league. They make the battle Takoda has with the mutts we encounter seem like it's in slow motion and those mutts seem like little baby dogs compared to two big boys like this having shall we say a little settling of the new turf rules. So, as you can guess, they have some new separate pens now. And just to be clear, they both know who the big dog is though, no foolin there they are both good boys, however I pity the foolish dogs who rush Jaegar now when we meet some off leash idiots some day.
Nope, young Jaegar is no longer just the younger male, just like Tora moved on by Mia and rules there, so now does Jaegar. Ashten, she calls Jaegar and Tora 2.0 Elkhounds, me, I call them Terminators.
Aksel, Son of Tora and Bram
Remember that great family out by Pemberton who wanted a great family dog, they wanted a great Elkhound to play and have fun with, yet one that will go on walks and hikes and stick around, yet be protective and still social. Well, that is exactly what they ended up with. Take a look at that boy Aksel, Whoa Dude, that is some seriously nice Elkhound that big fella. I am very proud to raise good dogs, and it makes all the hard work seem like absolutely nothing when I get an update like the one Michael sent, a huge thank you to Michael and Susie, young Floyd and his sisters for giving Aksel such a great home.
Hi Merv,
Hope you and the dogs had a great winter. Ours was as busy as usual....we love winter but the activities take control of your life that is for sure. One thing we always have time for is the big boy Aksel. What a winner he is. Everyday he gets two walks. Never bolts or takes off...just keeps cruising around you checking stuff out. When Nibbler is with us, he always comes back to make sure the "old man" is coming too.
At home he is happy to hang out with us inside or perch himself somewhere in our yard with a bone. A bone doesn't distract him....he keeps look out. He is a mild barker and we have learned to recognize what he is talking about. A quick little one means he would like to come back in the house or he needs help with something. A couple sharp ones is usually just him saying hello to someone. Multiple louder ones means something is either coming to the yard or house. He is almost like the "anti" guard dog....so pleasant and gentle but when he means business he sure means business. He responds really well to "with me" and now that he has gotten older, he doesn't jump up on anyone or children. Nor has he drawn any blood on any of us when playing since he got all of his big guy teeth. Wow, he has a great set of choppers. He is really conscious of how he plays with the kids and doesn't use those choppers at all.
When walking him around, if we are in town with other dogs he likes to play, run, and wrestle with others. He plays gentle with smaller dogs but won't let bigger ones get the better of him. Even when playing and running around, he doesn't let another dog get within 5 yards of us - especially the kids. With other dogs when out on the town, you know he knows a dog when he barks at it...it is like he is saying "lets play for a bit buddy". When he stands with us quiet, that means he hasn't met the dog before and he will just wait to see what the other dog does. The kids love him, especially Floyd. He is very very agile in the bush which is quite unique and a pleasure to see. Being such a handsome guy, he sure gets a lot of comments. As far as Nibbler the pug goes, Aksel lets him be the boss inside and seems to respect him as the "old fella". They have only fought once, over a bone in the backyard (nibbler doesn't get bones ever, but likes to try and steal one if he sees it laying around)....it was interesting to watch so I let them go at it. Aksel most definitely could have ripped him apart, but seemed to choose not to and indulge Nibbler a bit. He just batted him around and never put any teeth on him. I think Nibbler likes to think he won, even though he didn't get the bone.
He has recently stopped eating some of the veggies we have usually thrown in with his meat. Other than that he eats really well. Not a big fan of fish anymore, he pretty much prefers beef and pork and loves any bone he gets. I hope to get some deer this fall so we will see how he likes that. I weighed him today when we walked by the vet...he is 49lbs 9oz. He has a great muscle structure and his coat is wonderful. Susie found a pretty good brush and since it has gotten hot here Aksel really enjoys a brushing a couple times a week since he has started losing some of that undercoat.
These pictures are from March/April. The one of him wet....he went down a deadfall log at the lake here and then fell in like a donkey. Didn't really appreciate it much and seemed pretty surprised. He was floundering a bit so I had to shimmy down and yank him out without falling in myself.....it was cold! Since then, he has went in the lake but is yet to get past his shoulders where he would have to try and swim.
We are looking forward to taking him sledding with us this year. There is a lot of skidoo access around here and he loves the snow so we are going to give it a go.
I'm sure in the next year and a half you will get a call from Susie asking for a second Elkhound. Nibbler will probably be on his last legs and I know both she and I would love an Elkhound bud for Aksel!
Thanks a lot for getting Aksel to us Merv...he is the perfect Pemberton dog.
Michael
Ryker, one of the big boys from Tora, on air scent storm watch duty
This big fella is a favourite of everyone who writes in, lots of folks know his name when they email. Amber and Chris have stayed in touch and provided all of us with a steady snapshot and update since Ryker went to his new home. Ryker is from the first litter of Tora and Bram, he is a magnificent big dark faced male. Amber and Chris sent this really great photo and another great shot along with this update.
"Hey Merv! Just thought I'd send along a couple photos of Ryker that I have hanging around on my phone. This guy sure loves being outside and is very attentive of all his surroundings. I'm not sure what types of smells he was picking up in the wind while this storm was rolling in but he had his nose up in the air for a good five minutes before I could get him to continue! The winter one is funny too, he was watching a bunny rabbit that was in a yard a few houses down. I love his stance in that picture. Hope you and your family and your four legged friends are doing well!"
Amber and Chris
We sure want to thank Amber and Chris for the great home they give Ryker, he is well looked after. These big males from Tora and Bram, they as you well know if you follow the newsletter are excellent companion dogs. They like to be around you, they like to spend time and work with you. The personal nature the instinctive trait to stay alert and watch for the handler is handed down from the old genetic lineages. All the traits are working traits, and all these are left intact. We work hard not to breed out any of the old traits, leaving the Elkhound as we found it.
When we see photos and write-ups like those from Amber and Chris, and those from just above, Michael and Susie with Aksel, you know you why the Elkhound is such an ancient breed. These big fellas, they my friends are some serious Elkhounds.
Kobe - Elkhound Male, Son of Tora and Bram
There are some events that occur when raising pups that have a way of simply working out for the best. Kobe was part of one of those events. A lot of things transpired to eventually have Henry and Elena come and take Kobe home and all I can say is, he is the right dog for them, and them for him.
Could you imagine having a nicer Elkhound, not me, these big Kamia males, go figure. There are no better males in Canada, or for that matter North America, and quite honestly I would put any of the boys on this page up against any Elkhound anywhere. Look at the power these boys have, big thick heavy rascals, good gracious, this Kobe he is a stunning male.
I received some truly great photos of Kobe from Henry a while back and haven't had a chance to get them up, but a huge thank you to Henry and Elena for keeping us posted on the big fella and for the great home he has. We all sure appreciate it.
Mia - Elkhound Female, everyone stems from her
There is no doubt in anyone's mind where all the Kamia dogs get the attitude and confidence, plus the stuuubbborrrn nature, yep, Mia. Talk about cocky, just like a bantam rooster. I still don't think there are more than just a couple of the boys yet who have a wider chest than she does, I know that big ole Loki-Bear does, but few of the others would. I know all the boys on this page would be crying in their milk if they had to man up beside Mia for sheer dominance and power, even though she is one seriously compact package.
One thing that is a fact the big thick power flows down hill from Mia, and make no mistake, those feet she has, superb. Mia has fun these days, she gets to let Tora, GAEDA and Kamp handle the pups, she can just oversee things. She might be the shortest Elkhound in all of Kamia based Elkhounds, but it's perfectly clear who towers over all.
It's neat to see Mia so prevalent in Jaegar. Her last big boy, now moving forward to have his own litter and put forth some awesome Elkhounds. All the traits of Mia are front and centre with Jaegar, some mighty fine Elkhounds are on this site, probably a better collection of Elkhounds would rarely be found, all but five are descendents of Mia.
Kobe, Ryker, Aksel - all are Grandsons of Mia - Tora and Jaegar of course are pups from Mia.
It's been a great spring, summer is underway, and the litters are coming, it's a big fun time coming up now. I am so excited about this next set of litters, there truly is few things in life better than hanging out with a bunch of new pups, that my friends, that's the life.
till later,
Merv