Karen Wissinger is currently the DCA Breeder Referral Chair. Terry Wissinger is the 1996 DCA Show Chairman. Both are active in the Puget Sound Dalmatian Club and are members of the Mt. Hood Dalmatian Club.

Back in 1975, we just lost our pound puppy, so we decided to look for a pure bred dog. We checked out GSP, Weimaraners and Dals. We found a Dal first, Chico. Looking back, she was pet quality but showable. If fact, she did get one major and ten points before we had to spay her for medical reasons. That taste of showing whetted our appetite for "a special".

Patti and Rod Strand allowed us the pleasure of buying our first true show dog from them: A/C Ch Kipperdale's Top Hat of MGR. He was a very good dog for his day and placed number six and seven in the country the years we campaigned him. That hooked us on dog shows forever.

While sightseeing in the Canadian Rockies, we saw rock formations called hoo doos. They are pillars shaped in fantastical forms. The name appealed to us and we became Hoo Doo Dals with our first litter. The yin/yang symbol represents balance to us. Hoo Doo Dals strives for a natural dalmatian of fantastical form in balance with a way of life.

Our favorite dog was A/C Ch Merry Go Round XKE (Jag). We co-owned him with the Strands. He placed in the top three dogs in the country as a Special and won three Best in Shows as well as several BISS. But he was our favorite for other things besides winning.
• Jag excelled in the show ring, with moderate size, excellent movement and tremendous showmanship.
• Jag excelled as a sire with over fifty champion get to date. (Using frozen semen, he is still producing litters).
• Jag excelled as a family member with mild, playful temperament. His most outstanding feature was his desire to teach and play with puppies.
Jag was bred through the collaboration of Ron Young and Rod & Patti Strand.

I strongly believe in line breeding. We have been blessed with long lived and healthy puppies. Although, the huge size of our litters tend to overwhelm me. (I've had 16, 14, and 11 pups). The parents must be complimentary as individuals, but the pedigree and the dogs behind the parents are extremely important, as well. When I go to the National, I try to evaluate the pups being produced by various dogs and lines I am interested in using when I occasionally do an outcross. This is a great place to compare get side by side.

The current Hoo Doo pups, Savvy, Orion and Sophia are out of one of the best litters we've ever produced. They are a result of breeding our out-crossed bitch from the Benoits, A/C Ch. Dakota's Secret Charm of Hoo Doo, Charmer, back into our line with Simpson, A/C Ch. MainStreet Hoo Doo On The Spot. Each of the parents made a strong showing in the ring, both are Group winners and have Top Ranking and BIS winners behind them. The two complement each other well and we had a good deal of depth of quality in the eleven puppy litter. The litter has a strong topline with great side movement. It also has shown improvement in front development and stronger rears.
Simpson is a second generation of one of our best litters with Goldcoast Express of MGR (LuLu) bred to A/C Ch. Merry Go Round XKE (Jag). This 14 puppy litter produced four beautiful bitches that not only excelled in the ring, but also produced champions on their own when they were later bred.

Choosing our breedings carefully, we only produce a litter every year and a half or two. This lets us focus on the puppies as they grow and develop. We look for quality, not quantity. By looking for dogs that can help correct any problems in previous breedings, we tend to not make the same mistake twice and improve on each litter.

There is a lack of tribute and respect given to those in our breed with experience and knowledge. The "five year wonders" have become the spokesmen due to their success in the ring. These experts are vocal and try to influence current practices without the benefit of seeing long term effects of actions.

I wish there was a "safer" environment to learn and study about our breed. However, most people now believe if they are successful in the show ring, their dogs are truly great. There is little detached evaluation of progeny, decisions to move forward with certain qualities and to cease breeding other qualities. With more health testing we have better tools to make decisions now, but most litters are still being sired by the newest BIS dog in the ring without long term evaluation of the results. A one puppy wonder does not necessarily make a great breeding.

In the early 80's I remember sitting in Rod and Patti Strand's kitchen surrounded by breeders with 10-20 years experience. They were: Adrianne Davies, Pat Zoscak, Clay Holland, the Strands and Marie Kirk. These folks had discussions about such things as, shoulder lay back, we'd run out to the car and get a couple dogs as demos. Then, we'd talk about upper arm length, the way the foot hit the floor under the chest, and the width of the thigh compared to the bend in the stifle. Rod Strand was particularly good at describing and explaining traits of the dogs in front of us. These folks trained my eye and set my foundation in those qualities that are important to me now when I evaluate dogs.

We are all mostly in this together. We have more in common than what separates us. Even if I don't particularly care for a dog, he is still of my favorite breed. We need to stand with each other, honor traditions and the practices of "real dog people" and preserve the knowledge and wisdom of our founders.
Let's starting having meaningful discussions with each other about grooming, conditioning, breeding and training. There is more to breeding and owning pure bred dogs than showing and having more wins than someone else. Let's not forget how special that Dals is in our daily lives.