International Tamaskan Forum

firleymj

Kona's official nickname in our house is Ate Chechela (Ah-TAY Chey-chey-la) <Lakota, "Little Father" (OK, "Father that is little") from the wonderful litter he sired for us.

We also call him "Friend" as that is what his name means in English.

firleymj

The Kona Diaries Month 36 Dear Diary What a month! There’s so much to tell, I’m not sure I can fit it all in. We finally dug out from all the snow. Mark barked that it seemed to take forever, but I was kind of sad to see it go. It was so much fun to play in, even when just about all that was left w...

firleymj

The Kona Diaries Month 35 Dear Diary Sometimes, try as I might, I just can’t get Mark to finish editing my diary. But here it is at last. Wow! Just last month, I was wondering where all the snow was. Well, we got to find out. Did we get snow! It was so nice and cold and fresh – and there was so muc...

firleymj

First, welcome and well-met May your search for a Tamaskan be rewarded, and if you are worthy (sometimes I wonder if I am enough) may your Tam bring you the joy and adventure my Kona has brought me. Watch for postings from the 2nd Annual Tamaskan Sled Dog Gathering on this board soon! Amazing! Mark

firleymj

The Kona Diaries Month 34 Dear Diary It’s been another one of those months when I have to nose poke Mark to get our diary finished. Thanks for waiting. There was so much going on – a lot of stuff about that Christmas day. I tell you I LIKE Christmases. I wish we could have them more often. For one ...

firleymj

SWM (Studly Wolf-grey Male) ISO SWF (Suitable Whelping Female). Tamaskan preferred, but will consider outcrosses. Me: 68cm tall at the shoulder, (27 inches) - 36kg (82 pounds). Almost 3YO. Almond shaped brown eyes, well-defined stop, short fuzzy ears. Powerful pastern and hocks. Thick double coat, ...

firleymj

Welcome and well met I'm pleased to meet ANYONE with genuine interest in the Tamaskan breed. May your quest, however long, be rewarded and if you are lucky enough to have a Tam in your life, may your dog bless your life the way my Kona has blessed mine! I know there's a serious Tamaskan fan between ...

firleymj

She's growing so nicely! Thank you for sharing.

firleymj

Welcome and well met. May your search for a Tamaskan be rewarded, and if the universe grants your petition, may your Tam bring you the joy and wonder my Kona has brought to my life! At the expense of self-promotion, you might want to read what it's like "Growing Up Tamaskan" - an ongoing d...

firleymj

The Kona Diaries Month 33 Dear Diary It’s been a busy month – Mark is a little late getting this out, but there’s only so much nose butting I can do to keep him on track. Mark’s been smelling a little off lately – it’s that work thing again. He’s tried to tell me some about it, but I’m not sure I g...

firleymj

Thanks for a good tip!

firleymj

OK, even an old engineer with little sense of color finds them impressive and quite beautiful! Consider that not just an endorsement, but a compliment!

firleymj

Welcome back! Although I'm sorry to hear of the passing of your companion, know that we empathize here, and offer you both welcome and support.

firleymj

Welcome and well-met! May your quest for a Tamaskan be rewarded, and may your Tam bring you the joy and wonder my Kona has brought to my life! (With a warning that a science of single instances is no science at all, I invite you to read one dog's view of "growing up Tamaskan") on this foru...

firleymj

Welcome and well met! May your quest for a Tamaskan be rewarded, and if you are worthy, may you find your Tamaskan as much a source of joy and wonder as my Kona is for me! There are few greater blessings, and I know! With the warning that a science of single instances is no science at all, I invite ...

firleymj

Welcome and well met. May your search for a Tamaskan be rewarded, and if it so destined, may your dog be the source of joy and healing for you as my Kona has been for me! With the warning that a science of single instances is no science at all, I invite you to read one dog's view of "Growing Up...

firleymj

Kate THANK YOU First, because I'm flattered to be in the company of people with real (as opposed to aspirational) talent. Second, for introducing me to this remarkable artist. Reminds me of some old tunes from my (cough) youth. http://www.cdbaby.com/Artist/DonegalWeavers Sisu may be a term heard mor...

firleymj

Happy Birthday, Wylie!

You are Tiospaye, part of our extended family.

May you live long and well and bless the human race with your being!

We salute you!

firleymj

WELCOME and well met!

May your quest for a Tamaskan be rewarded, and if you are a worthy owner, may your dog bring you the joy and wonder my Kona has brought to me.

firleymj

Bienvenue! May you always find welcome and support here, and may your Tamaskan bring you as much joy as my Kona has brought to my life! Puissiez-vous trouver toujours les bienvenus et soutenir ici, et peut-être votre Tamaskan vous apporter autant de joie que mon Kona a apporté à ma vie!

firleymj

Kona’s Diary – Month 32 Dear Diary I finally got to play with a geese. It wasn’t as much fun as I thought it was going to be. (Mark called it a “big disappointment.”) We were out walking on our smell walk around the middle of the day, when we rounded a corner in the path and sitting there was a gee...

firleymj

Thanks for sharing your photos and the story of your remarkable and beautiful boy!

firleymj

Please understand a few things: 1. There really are good breeders, but sometimes all does not go according to human plans. I alas, only have a stud, and it's hard to find a geographically desirable mate, so I know the pain in a different way. Do NOT give up hope, please. And give the folks who look ...

firleymj

How well I remember the sleep-deprived nights and the wonder of all that new life!
And how much more I've grown with my boy since.
May he continue to bless your life for a long and wonderful time!

firleymj

First, thank you for your courage in rescuing this dog. May the generosity of your spirit be rewarded in a long and loving relationship. Second, as to what he is - despite all the hoopla - DNA testing - especially with mixed breeds or breeds with small populations - isn't horribly reliable. There wa...

firleymj

Welcome and well met! When the time comes, may your find a Tamaskan that brings you as much joy as my Kona has brought me. Let me give my "usual" speech about selecting a breeder. I'd go with a Tamaskan Dog Register affiliated breeder (or one that belongs to an approved club in the Netherl...

firleymj

Welcome and well met! May your times with your Tamaskan be as joy filled and wonderful as mine has been with my Kona.
I could wish no greater blessing for you.

firleymj

Let me put this in more positive terms. TDR registered breeders subject themselves to performing a number of mandatory tests for their dogs: much more than many other breeds require. These include but are not limited to hip (and now elbow) scoring, ophthalmological (eye) exams, DNA parentage tests, ...

firleymj

Welcome and well met!

I hope that your search for a Tamaskan is rewarded, and if it is, may your Tam bring you the joy and love my Kona has brought me.

Mark

firleymj

Thanks for the kind words. Rereading your first note and some of what followed leads me to make a few other observations, based on our history. 1. For some reason, somewhere between 16 and 24 months, many dogs will go through a period where they re-test a lot of their social behaviors. It's often mo...

firleymj

This is a very quick reprise of a technique I've found useful: Canine Engage Disengage Game.jpg The point is that almost any dog can become sensitized to other animals, some more than others. Kona's problem playmates are few and far between, and while he's not an aggressor, he is big enough to be a ...

firleymj

Somehow, the tune for "Louie, Louie" keeps dancing in my brain:

May your Louie be as much a blessing to you as my Kona has been to me.

firleymj

The Kona Diaries Month 31 Dear Diary It’s getting colder at last! Yay! I seem to have so much more energy when it’s colder. I even want to sleep outside, but even if Mark lets me out in our little yard, he makes me come in for the night. Sometimes I whine a little just to remind him, but to tell th...

firleymj

Welcome and well met.
May you be worthy of your Tamaskan, as I hope to be worthy of mine.
May yours bring you the joy and blessing mine has brought me!

Mark

firleymj

Well, if we can get past the red tape maybe there's hope! FYI, I think I could love her too, just not in the same way that Kona would :P She's adorable Besides, I could do with listening to the PM debates from McLean's rather than the circus south of your border! Full disclosure: I know Montreal bet...

firleymj

A total cutie - my boy may be developing a crush

firleymj

I thought I had a breeding male for a time.... but let me try to answer some of the questions anyway. He's a national champion twice over, (The first Tamaskan EVER to get a full double championship) but we don't dare breed him, that's how strict this breed's standards have become. (sigh) WARNING: Th...

firleymj

The Kona Diaries Month 30 Dear Diary The days are changing again, getting shorter which is not so fun, and colder which is a lot better. It’s been very dry and a lot of the plants are turning gray and smelling all used up. Even some of the trees are dropping their leaves. It feels somehow early for...

firleymj

Exactly. My Kona (< Lakota, "Friend or 'Life companion'") is really Hawthorne James Watson at Anthracite. But he will always be my Kona. Sunka waste! (Shun-kah wash-tay) "Dog that is good" :) And one more contender for the boys: Teme (Tem-ay) < Northern Algonquin, "Wolf"...

firleymj

OK, this reflects a deep-seated prejudice I have for names that are easy for the dog to learn, so where possible, I tend to prefer short (two syllable) names over long or complex ones. It's just harder to get their attention with the moral equivalent of "Michael James Worthington-Smythe" (...

firleymj

At the expense of being pedantic, antique typesetting used a character that looked like an "f" (except without the horizontal bar) to stand for an "s" sound in a word. A doubled 's' (progress, congress) was rendered 'fs' Therefore a slightly easier to read version below: "I ...

firleymj

Merci! Magnifique!

firleymj

The Kona Diaries Month 29 Dear Diary Another month gone by. Doesn’t seem like it. The big yellow things are still down by the big water, and Mark says they’re going to be there a lot longer still. I’m not sure I like that – that big fence of theirs blocks our way when we want to walk by the lake. A...

firleymj

Welcome, well met.

May your girl give you the joy and wonder that my Kona has brought to my life.

May your times with her be long and healthy

May you always know the blessings of this remarkable breed

Mark

firleymj

Alaska! (with apologies to Toto and “Africa”) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FTQbiNvZqaY I hear wolf dogs howling in the night But he hears only whispers of some quiet conversation We’re coming in, ice covered sight The sled runners reflect the stars that guide me toward salvation I stopped a mushe...

firleymj

I remember those days and wish you all the joy and happiness my Kona has brought me.

firleymj

Bonjour et bienvenue sur le forum. Puisse votre expérience avec cette race être aussi merveilleux que la mienne a été avec mon Kona. ( S'il vous plaît pardonnez mon pauvre français.)

firleymj

Thank you. And thanks for the article.

Sometimes I do worry that in the quest for a perfectly healthy dog we may breed not enough dogs. But what you posted serves as a useful reminder to the community.

firleymj

Joe

Welcome to the Tamaskan community. May your experience here be as blessed as mine has been with this breed and the people who support them.

Mark

firleymj

My experience (and only mine (a science of single instances being no science at all)) Kona's better in rural areas - I am enough of a "nervous parent" not to risk him in more urban settings. Having said that, one can use the Tamaskan's high pack drive (read: separation anxiety) to advantag...

International Tamaskan Forum

This is an International Forum for enthusiasts, owners, breeders, and all who are interested in Tamaskan Dogs.

Search found 342 matches