My love for animals has always been a part of me, it’s in my DNA. I used to bring home every animal I found, being it a dog, cat, bird, rodent …….. and my poor mother didn’t know what to do with me !!!! It was she though who taught me how to love, respect and care for them. Genghis Khan who was my first (Lhasa apso) I think in 1987 and then came Thimble (Maltese) Even if they were champions, for me they were always my life companions, my family.

I was lucky because I always met people who taught me how to love and appreciate the “Dog World” so that is how it all began. I remember that when I still didn’t have a dog ALL mine, I would go and get my neighbours dogs and take them for a walk. I was always curious about going to see some Dog Show. I would admire the owners (maybe they were their handlers but I didn’t know that they even existed at the time) whilst they got their magnificent dogs ready. And so I decided to have a go. I remember one of manyshows with Lola an English Bulldog.

We arrived really early at the show and found other handlers already there with whom I spoke and they explained what I had to do. I can’t say that Lola enjoyed it but she did everything I asked her to do. I remember we won second prize! They gave me a certificate with “RIS CAC” written on it; I didn’t know what it meant but I was very happy because there were a lot of contestants. The years passed until I met a big clumsy black and red puppy who never even acknowledged I was there, she was too busy minding her own business sniffing around.

There and then I decided to take her home. She was “Witch”, mch. Capirosca dei Riri, a splendid Gordon Setter who was the beginning of everything. Then cam along my lovely soft, cuddly, antistress, funny Basset Hounds. Obviously I couldn’t only have Basset Hounds and Gordon Setters at home, I also had Noha my Golden Retriever, Dafne my Pug, Olympia my Dalmation and Carrie my Greyhound. I first started breeding Basset Hounds and Gordon Setters with excellent results. Seeing people appreciate my dogs thanks to my hard work in choosing only the best specimens, by studying their morphology, health and personality. It was always a unique experience everytime a new litter came into this world.