How did you come up with your kennel name, Melrose Siberians?
When we purchased our first Siberian in 1995 the television show Melrose Place was my favorite show thus the name. We named our first litter after the cast.
How did you get involved in Conformation?
I had it in my mind when we bought our first Siberian, Ice, that I wanted to get involved in confirmation with the dream of some day competing at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show. Jody thought I was crazy but look where he is now. With the guidance, friendship and patience of Ice’s breeder, Belinda Yager, we were able to learn conformation ring etiquette.
Did you have a mentor?
Yes, Belinda Yager of Camton Kennels. Belinda taught us everything we needed to know to succeed from how to correctly hold a leash to grooming expertise.
Was there a particular breeder or line of dogs that influenced you?
Jim and Lynne Dagan – Seeonee - We were close friends with the Dagan's for many years when they were at the top and learned so much from them about structure, type and movement. We also admired Brenda Valletta’s lines. We found it fascinating that they looked as good out of coat as in coat.
When you started your breeding program, what qualities were you looking for in a foundation bitch?
In the beginning a breeding program was not really in our thoughts. Ice turned out to be such a great representative of the breed that we wanted to continue along her lines. Ice was a moderate and balanced bitch with a great temperament, qualities we wanted to keep in a breeding program.
Who was your foundation bitch and do you still have dogs that go back to the line in which you originally started with?
Ch Camton’s Ice Ice Baby (Ice) - everything we own and show goes back to Ice. We are on the fourth generation of Siberians directly descending from Ice.
How important is the title CH in a breeding program?
We have done a few breeding's with pointed Siberians that had not finished their championship at the time of the breeding. Most became champions later on or are currently competing in the ring. Although we do believe in confirmation championships the quality of a dog isn't necessarily measured by the confirmation show ring.
Is phenotype more important than pedigree?
Both are important factors in a breeding, although we tend to lean towards phenotype vs pedigree.
Have you had more success with line breeding or out crossing?
Due to we are rather small and don't produce a lot of litters most of our breeding's have been successful out crosses.
Which dogs or bitches have had the most impact on establishing the type and structure of Siberian you prefer?
We have been blessed to continue to produce the type of Siberian we prefer with each dog or bitch we have used. Starting with Ice and working down generation to generation you can see some of the same qualities plus improvements in each generation. BISS Ch Chrisdon’s Distant Thunder and BIS, BISS Ch Noatak’s Party of One were two stud dogs that really pushed us forward in the direction we wanted to be. Ch Melrose Street Car Named Desire was a wonderful producer and continued to give us puppies that carried on her best traits.
Currently, who has been your most successful stud dog? If someone were to breed to him, what could they expect to get?
We have two males that have been used as studs, BISS Ch Melrose Walk The Line and Ch Melrose Vin Diesel. We like what both have produced. If one were to breed to either of them we would expect leg, level top lines, light on the feet clean movement and solid sound body structure.
Who was or is your most successful brood bitch and why?
Ch Melrose Street Car Named Desire. Stella produced a line of Siberians that have been very successful in the show ring as well as obedience, rally and agility. They all resemble her in some way. Each time I see one I see Stella.
Which breeding's have you done that you are most proud of? And why?
The breeding that produced Stella (BISS Ch Chrisdon’s Distant Thunder/Ch Camton’s Ice Ice Baby). We bred Stella to BIS, BISS Ch Noatak’s Party of One, to date out of the first breeding three are champions two of them BISS winners and a fourth pointed still competing. Out of the repeat breeding two are champions with two still competing. Additionally out of the second litter two are owned by a junior handler who competes in obedience, rally and agility. Both also run on a sled.
When you want to breed a bitch, what is the criteria in selecting the stud dog?
What we look for in a stud dog is a sound, moderate, clean moving Siberian with a great temperament and a documented health background. I use the OFA site to research hips and eyes generations back. Great resource I wish more individuals used it to record hips and eyes. One should always keep in mind not to go backwards in any way.
If you had just one Siberian to incorporate into your breeding program, past or present, who would it be and why?
BISS Ch Melrose Walk The Line – I never tire of watching Carter in the ring. His movement is effortless, his body toned and refined. He’s clean coming and going and moves with incredible grace. His offspring have the same body type and movement.
Currently, in your breeding program, what are you trying to maintain and what are your trying to strengthen?
The things we try to maintain are body structure, angles, light on the feet, clean movement, correct coat and those almond eyes. We continue to try and strengthen fronts and rears.
Structurally speaking, which Siberian have you bred that most closely meets the standard?
How do you feel that your breeding program has evolved?
We have evolved through each breeding whether it be a better eye shape, movement, correct rear, more athletic or nicer coat. Although we are satisfied with the direction we are headed there is always room for improvement.
How many litters do you have a year?
One if that.
What do you think is the most common error when breeding?
Always look past that one breeding. It’s extremely hard to try and fix everything so you have to plan ahead to what you see as the “perfect” Siberian and analyze how to get there generation to generation.
When selecting a puppy, what qualities are you looking for and when do you do your final evaluation of the litter?
Qualities we look for when keeping a puppy are body structure and movement. Although we have our pet peeves and prefer dark pigment, smaller ears and pretty heads in the end structure and movement win over cosmetic flaws. Evaluation of litters at our house is done on a week by week basis. We have been known to watch puppies from a window for hours.
What are the most difficult things to see at 8 weeks?
At 8 weeks it’s difficult to see movement unless you are one of those individuals that have all your puppies leash trained. You can catch movement every now and then but not as much as we would like.
If you were asked for advice about breeding, what advice would you give?
Find a type or style you like and stick with it – thrive each breeding to improve on your faults without loosing the correct portions you have established.
I'd like to change gears a little bit. Let’s talk about conformation.
You are a small kennel that has a lot of success in the ring, what are some of your proudest moments in the ring?
The proudest moments have been the Bred-by wins. The most exciting was Carter’s (BISS Ch Melrose Walk The Line) win at the 2007 National in Northern California. What an honor to win WD/BW/Best BBE with a young dog at a National which finished his championship. Reese’s (BISS Ch Melrose Legally Blond) Best BBE win at our first Eukanuba National Championship in 2007 was also a great moment for us. Specialty wins are always an honor. We have been proud of every win we have received over the years beginning with Ice’s first points.
Have you ever campaigned a Siberian?
We have never campaigned a Siberian although we have made it our goal this year to in an essence campaign Carter by taking him to as many shows as we are able to go to without sacrificing our jobs. We plan to compete in several Specialties, the National, the Eukanuba National Championship and for the first time ever the Westminster Dog Show in 2011. Hopefully everything falls into place and after fifteen years the dream of competing at Westminster will become a reality.
In your opinion, today, are the best Siberians being campaigned or due to the expense of the sport are there a lot of Siberians that are unable to be campaigned that are just as worthy or more worthy than those in the ring today?
The Siberians being campaigned today are always in great condition; handlers are incredible at taking care of physical appearance and know how to move the dogs perfectly. Anyone that puts that much effort into presenting a dog to the best of its ability is worthy.
Do you feel that politics play a role in campaigning a Siberian?
Anyone that has competed at the breed or group level knows there are politics involved. It’s part of the sport. The best you can do is have confidence in the dog you are showing and hope the judge sees the quality you are presenting and judges accordingly. If not it’s a reflection on him/her not you or your dog.
What is your biggest concern about the Breed today?
Our biggest concern about the breed today is over breeding.
Since your involvement in the breed, what changes have you seen in the breed?
Quality – there are so many nice Siberians out there but it seems sometimes breeders get carried away and want entire litters to be show quality. There are very few disqualifications in the Siberian standard so it makes it easy for breeders to sell puppies as show quality. In most litters, and there are always exceptions, a couple puppies will stand out and although the rest could be “finishable” if one tried hard enough are we as breeders really doing our best to represent the standard in the ring.
The United States is the foremost leader in the world for producing the best Siberians. It is common place now to sell to breeders out of the country. What advise would you give to people out of the country, when purchasing a Siberian from a US breeder?
The same advice I would give anyone purchasing a Siberian, research health issues, know the standard, ask for videos, know the temperaments of the lines and pay a reasonable price.
And lastly, going forward in your breeding program, what are your long term goals?
To continue to produce the type of Siberian we love.
What can we expect to see from you in the year 2010?
This is our year to “campaign” BISS Ch Melrose Walk The Line. We also have two new additions to Melrose – a Siberian puppy Isabel - Melrose Isabella Swan and a smooth coated Chow Chow puppy Ella – Paramount Smooth Cashmere. We plan to have some fun with the class dogs and try to achieve success with our Special.
Thank you for all your time and your participation. It's been a pleasure.
Kennel Name: Melrose Siberians
Names of Owners: Jody and Leslie Carpenter
Years in the Breed: 15
Number of Siberians in residence:
2 bitches, 3 males
Website Address: www.melrosesiberians.com
Email Address: melrosesibs@aol.com
BISS CH Melrose Walk The Line
BISS CH Melrose Legally Blond
Click on Photos to Enlarge
Click on Photos to Enlarge
