Vielfrass kennel story
When I was a child I had a spitz but when we moved to Helsinki I couldn't keep it. It took for eleven years until I convinced my father to allow me to have a new dog. So in 1975 I bought my first boxer. I was certain that I wanted a boxer because it looked so symphatic and sporty. At that time Anne was my girlfriend and she was horrified for my selection of breed - though very soon she was really into them and three years later she got one of her own.
In 1980 our first litter was born. Anne made up our kennel name Vielfrass (which means 'glutton', to eat a lot) to be an omen. Our first boxer was a really lausy eater and we didn't like that but no Vielfrass litter has had any problems with it so the name worked.
All in all we had about thirty litters. In 1988 we got our first Norwich terrier from our friends who also bred boxers. Norwiches are problematic when it comes to breeding so we have had only a few litters. Nevertheless from our first Norwich terrier litter was born Ch. Vielfrass Turun Murre who was a very famous at shows and a top studdog here in Finland. Unfortunately he died at the age of five for cancer. He was owned and shown by Kari and Marja Salminen from Turku, Finland.
I am a judge for Smooth and Wire foxes and for about fifteen breeds in FCI group two. I have been the president of Finnish Boxer Club and Foxterrier club. At the moment I am a member in Foxterrier Clubs breeding branch. Anne has also been a member of Boxer Clubs council. She is active in Foxterriers Club too and trimming our dogs has kept her quite busy.
I have judged in various countries like England, Sweden, Norway, Estonia and Russia. I also do trips abroad just to visit breeders, talk with them and see their dogs. I have co-operated a lot with foreign breeders. Naturally I like to meet people who have the same interests as I do and see beautiful dogs. I also think that co-operating with other breeders is extremely important. One of the reasons is that when you use dogs with different backgrounds the dogs won't become too closely bred.
The start was great - in two first shows my first Smooth foxterrier, Woodborne Jerry Cotton, won World Junior Champion -title and European Jr. Champion -title. After that I had to face the problems of the breed - the dogs other ear erected. We don't fix ears in Finland so the dog never became even Finnish Champion.
Arto Peltomäki, Kennel Sapelars, a friend of ours had bred Smooth foxterriers for years. I had been looking around for a smaller breed for some time so I decided to have a Smooth fox. I liked the breed because it is healthy and the characters are excellent. The short compact body and beautiful long head inspired me.
At the moment we have four males, eight bitches and two Norwich bitches at home. I also have five Smooths in co-owning. For few years now we haven't had any boxers but I am still very interested about the breed and I might start again with them. For the present the prohibition to cut tails is bothering me with that breed.
I am a judge for Smooth and Wire foxes and for about fifteen breeds in FCI group two. I have been the president of Finnish Boxer Club and Foxterrier club. At the moment I am a member in Foxterrier Clubs breeding branch. Anne has also been a member of Boxer Clubs council. She is active in Foxterriers Club too and trimming our dogs has kept her quite busy.
I have judged in various countries like England, Sweden, Norway, Estonia and Russia. I also do trips abroad just to visit breeders, talk with them and see their dogs. I have co-operated a lot with foreign breeders. Naturally I like to meet people who have the same interests as I do and see beautiful dogs. I also think that co-operating with other breeders is extremely important. One of the reasons is that when you use dogs with different backgrounds the dogs won't become too closely bred.
Mine and Anne's goals as breeders is to produce healthy dogs with good characters. That is the most important thing so we won't use dogs with bad health or questionable characteristics. Naturally we are at the same time aiming to perfection - to have beutiful dogs. We also try to hold on of the dogs original job as a hunter. Though I am not myself very active in hunting, I like that my dogs still posses the intuition for hunting so that they could be used for that too.
My best accomplishments with boxers are Ch. Vielfrass Duke Ellington and Ch. Vielfrass Elixa de Spa which have both won many shows here in Finland, for example The Boxer of the Year titles. I have never shown them abroad.
With Smooth Foxterriers my breeding started with Ch. Leicka v.d. Bismarquelle and Ch. Woodborne Kite. Both of them are beautiful dogs and they have created the basis to my breeding of Smooths. My greatest achievements in shows are two European Winner titles. The dogs were Ch. Sapelar's Lancelot and his daughter Ch. Vielfrass Anastasia. Vielfrass Q-malinja won the French special show - Elevage- where you have to win both the show and the working side. So she is a Working Champion as well as a Showing Champion.
I am especially proud of my breeding group being the Best in Show in the European Winner Show. That was particularly great because the judge was a breeder of Fox Terriers, Elzbieta Chwalihog, who bred top dogs in Poland even when the borders of the country were still closed. All in all I honour very much judges who are also breeders because they are the specialists of the breed with all the experience.
Olavi Tuovinen
