Pawprints
It is 32 years now since the first Bearded Collie entered our lives .As with so many others we had no intention of showing or indeed breeding but when we did make that decision it was with a long term view to try to establish a line of dogs which could be called Kilfinans.
Having read many books on breeding dogs from an early age it was natural to start looking for a foundation bitch from someone who we felt had a sound knowledge of , not just Bearded Collies, but dogs and livestock in general. Being absolute novices we needed a great deal of guidance so when we met Pat Jones ( Wellknowe ) we immediately knew this woman had what we were looking for. When we asked her for a puppy she asked us to write to her outlining why we wanted a Bearded Collie so we did and explained that we would like to breed and wanted a sound foundation. That letter was the start of our line and from Wellknowe Skara Belle of Kilfinan we have bred on and have recently produced our 7th generation of direct descendants.
Maybe line breeding is unfashionable these days but we feel we have built up a reasonably sound knowledge of most of the dogs in our latest litters history and have either bred them or have met them so we feel we have done our homework and there may be some nasty surprises but we have tried our best to produce dogs with sound temperaments and conformation. Health is always a lottery but we have tried to steer away from known hereditary problems and we rear our dogs as naturally as possible. They are fed a raw diet, with plenty of bones , vegetables, fresh rainwater, fresh air and exercise so we feel our puppies are given the best start in life. They are reared in the home and we hope their new families keep in touch throughout their lives. We are always at the end of a phone for advice and will always take a puppy back if it is not suitable or circumstances change.
We will not compromise and breed for fashion. The showring is a fickle place and fashions change . We will continue to endeavour to breed Bearded Collies that we feel are fit for function. We hope you appreciate our dogs and enjoy viewing the website.
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