Our love of the Standard Poodle eventually moved us to become involved in breeding and showing, both on a very small scale. We wanted to leave our mark on the quality of the breed, striving to create a line which would be healthy, have remarkable temperaments and be sound structurally. Until this year we specialized in black poodles, but in May 2004. we had our first whites, kept one, Ivy, a delightful sprite of a girl. Not only is she a champion, but she won her class at Poodle Club of America, the largest specialty show for poodles.
While we show very occasionally, and have several champions, our poodles are our family -- all seven, from great grandma to puppy, live in the house, sleep on the bed (not all at once), and interact with us and each other constantly. They have very distinct personalities -- and simultaneously, all are keenly intuitive, intelligent, sensitive, funny and adaptable. A friend of ours described our poodles as 'monks reincarnated.'
Our dogs have been our co-pilots in our work as psychotherapists. Each of them has spent a significant amount of time in our office, helping sad children and adults with a lick, a soft breath, a hug, or a paw upon a hand. Just their presence seems to help our patients and us as well.
Full testing, including but not limited to hips, eyes, skin, thyroid, blood disorders, has been done on all of our poodles. They are all in wonderful health -- bright-eyed, great energy, shiny coats. We have been most fortunate to not have any of the diseases that Standards can be prone to.
We very occasionally have puppies and they are sold to carefully approved homes with a spay/neuter contract. Since Standard Poodles are so interactive, we never allow them to go to homes where their human friends work full time. We couldn't bear to think of them pining away for some human contact. Poodles will typically choose spending time with their human companions over any other activity -- whether it be sleeping in an office while we work, hanging out in the living room or laying by the bathtub. They simply derive comfort in our presence.
Each of our current poodles was born into our hands and was raised with great care and kindness. We apply the same psychological principles to rearing our puppies that enlightened people use for their infants; a focus on healthy attachment and bonding at a very early age which pays off mightily. Our puppies are trusting, secure, resilient and stable.
We belong to the Poodle Club of Southern California. You can get a great education about poodes from this organization and develop terrific camraderie with fellow poodle lovers.
In order to spend more time with the dogs, we recently opened a small boarding facility, THE LAUGHING DOG INN, a place where dogs can spend some time and receive the personal care they need to remain happy.
Feel free to contact us about our poodles and THE INN. We welcome visitors and enjoy sharing the knowledge of poodles that we've developed over the past 20 years or so. We are located in what we call 'paradise' in Ventura County, California.
Jessica & John Grahm
1 (805) 529-5421 • 1(805) 798-2457
lunarose47@gmail.com
