The Sacred Waters of "De Havenstad"

I lived in Antwerp for a long time, which is an important and one of the largest port cities in Europe. When I moved from Antwerp to my current residence, I chose the name Havenstad as a tribute to Antwerp.

As an amateur breeder in Belgium, you can only have two litters per year. That's why I registered the Stad of Haven kennel in my daughter Carine's name.

Luck. And, of course, my sacred water (laughs). There is a small pond in our garden. When I had horses, I used to jump them over it as practice. That's why this little pond is still in the garden. The dogs drink from it. I jokingly say that it contains holy water, and that's why my dogs are so successful. A German judge actually believed it and wanted a bottle of it. But of course, this is just a nice anecdote. The real secret to my success is "Fingerspitzengefuhl" (a German expression meaning "I feel it in my fingertips"). I value bloodlines, but the dog itself even more. The pedigree is just a piece of paper. Some say that a good dog breeder must also have experience with horses. If you can analyze these animals well, you will do well with dogs too. Just like with horses, tempo is important with dogs: how they walk. The effort put into finding good dogs is also important. For example, I traveled to the United Kingdom and America. It is evident that Russia breeds many top-class dogs, which is possible because they invest a lot in the breed. They travel everywhere to find interesting dogs for their breeding programs.

Only the Brussels Griffon. This breed is a big challenge for me because it is so complicated. For example, birthing complications often occur. In the 15 years since I've been working with this breed, I've won at least 16 world titles. The last one was in Poznan (2006). Earlier, I also successfully bred Dachshunds. My male named Cactus was chosen as the world champion out of 160 dogs. Dachshunds were mainly my wife Denise's favorites. Personally, I don't like short-legged dogs. Those dogs are for underground work.

Cropped dogs are much more impressive. I fear that many breeds will disappear because more and more countries are banning cropping. This is already visible with Giant Schnauzers. Many people are giving up breeding them because cropping is not allowed. I also stopped because I don't like floppy ears and long tails. The type is no longer authentic, and the long tail is not practical. It's almost like a weapon. You have to secure everything that is at tail height.

Germany has established a new standard stating that the tail should be long and saber-shaped. I don't think it's a big problem if the tail curves over the dog's back, as it then looks like they don't have a tail. For Miniatures, I don't think this is an issue, but for Giants, it is.

I don't know which is better; both have their advantages and disadvantages. Generally, a judge should have successfully bred the breed for some time. If they have achieved results, it shows they have solid knowledge. This is not true for 75% of judges. If their knowledge is lacking, we often see how unpredictable they can be.

However, independence is a perpetual issue. I was asked if I wanted to become a judge, but I declined because I couldn't be objective. In reality, the person matters most; the judge's honesty and responsibility are crucial. Some judges don't want to judge their own dogs, while others have no problem with it and don't hesitate to award their own dogs.

Undoubtedly, it is necessary to pay attention to current trends. We no longer use wooden wheels for bicycles. The first Schnauzers were completely different from today's Schnauzers. If we don't follow trends, we stagnate, as the Germans are currently doing. It is noticeable that the best dogs of German breeds no longer come from Germany. I bred the world's best Salt & Pepper Giant, such as Adonis. But if I had lived in Germany, he would never have been born. Because his mother was an English female who, according to the German standard, was too small and not beautiful enough. I bred this English female with a Dutch male, who was also not a champion. From this pairing, Adonis was born. He had everything his mother lacked. When breeding, you must always look to improve your dog's shortcomings. Breeding the best dogs together does not necessarily produce offspring that meet the standard. You must always pay attention to a dog's flaws and strengths. A good dog is always more dominant than a bad one. So, if you breed two good, dominant dogs, the genes will fight. You need a weaker dog to achieve the right balance.

I started with a European dog that was not considered beautiful at all. To everyone's surprise, when bred with an American dog, it produced dogs that met the European standard. In Germany, they say, "Thanks to you, we still have Schnauzers; you took risks, and it paid off." In the UK, they say, "You are a gambler." I say: If you don't try anything, you can never win!