Fianna Canine - where dogs originally from Zimbabwe and Canada (by way of Germany) suddenly become Irish
We chose the name "Fianna Canine" as a representation of both our personal lives and what we expect from our dogs. Irish mythology interweaves with history in the stories of the fianna, so that truth can be hard to discern from fiction. However, there is plenty of information that is confirmed on both sides. The fianna were roving bands of warriors, mercenaries in essence, that lived in Ireland more than fifteen hundred years ago. Their leader was the mythical giant, Fionn mac Cumhaill (Finn McCool), the man who created most of Ireland's terrain...including the Giant's Causeway, to ensure he didn't have to get his feet wet when walking to Scotland!
The fianna's motto was, "Purity of our hearts; strength of our limbs; consistency of our tongues."
(Now to be honest, there are a hundred slightly different translations of the above motto. My favorite was Google Translate's, "Clean our hearts, our arm strength, and by our words and actions," simply for its unwieldiness.)
The fianna were not just soldiers; they had to know how to fight in combat, but they also had to recite poetry. Each individual member of the fianna was expected to survive in the woods alone, but also to defend Ireland as a cohesive unit when called upon. Stories assert that to become part of the fianna, the candidate had to stand in a hole stomach-deep with only a large stick and a shield to defend himself from nine men shooting arrows. Afterwards, he was expected to braid his hair then run through the forest with the nine men chasing only feet behind him. While running, he could not snap a twig on the ground, and he had to be able to jump over a chest-high branch, run under a knee-high branch and pull a thorn from his foot, all without being overtaken by the nine men pursuing him, without messing up his pretty braids and without stumbling or missing a step.
Our expectations for our dogs aren't quite that stringent. But as military veterans with Irish heritage ourselves, we value the honesty, loyalty and devotion to self-improvement through education and training that the fianna held in such high regard. We expose our dogs to as many activities as possible, learning what each individual enjoys and helping them excel.
We believe dog breeding should enhance and advance the breed. Though we are still in our baby stages, we have specific expectations for matching two dogs. We will breed for health, conformation, temperament and intellect. Working ability is important to us too, regardless of what type of "work" our dogs do - herding, coursing and tracking that entail drive and endurance, or obedience, therapy and agility that require focused teamwork.
As dedicated hobby breeders, we will not put two dogs together simply to collect stud fees or sell puppies - we will breed because we have extensively researched lineage and judge that by adding our particular lines to another dog's, an even better example of the breed standard will be produced. When it comes to breeding, we value integrity and candor in all our dealings.
The fianna's motto was, "Purity of our hearts; strength of our limbs; consistency of our tongues."
(Now to be honest, there are a hundred slightly different translations of the above motto. My favorite was Google Translate's, "Clean our hearts, our arm strength, and by our words and actions," simply for its unwieldiness.)
The fianna were not just soldiers; they had to know how to fight in combat, but they also had to recite poetry. Each individual member of the fianna was expected to survive in the woods alone, but also to defend Ireland as a cohesive unit when called upon. Stories assert that to become part of the fianna, the candidate had to stand in a hole stomach-deep with only a large stick and a shield to defend himself from nine men shooting arrows. Afterwards, he was expected to braid his hair then run through the forest with the nine men chasing only feet behind him. While running, he could not snap a twig on the ground, and he had to be able to jump over a chest-high branch, run under a knee-high branch and pull a thorn from his foot, all without being overtaken by the nine men pursuing him, without messing up his pretty braids and without stumbling or missing a step.
Our expectations for our dogs aren't quite that stringent. But as military veterans with Irish heritage ourselves, we value the honesty, loyalty and devotion to self-improvement through education and training that the fianna held in such high regard. We expose our dogs to as many activities as possible, learning what each individual enjoys and helping them excel.
We believe dog breeding should enhance and advance the breed. Though we are still in our baby stages, we have specific expectations for matching two dogs. We will breed for health, conformation, temperament and intellect. Working ability is important to us too, regardless of what type of "work" our dogs do - herding, coursing and tracking that entail drive and endurance, or obedience, therapy and agility that require focused teamwork.
As dedicated hobby breeders, we will not put two dogs together simply to collect stud fees or sell puppies - we will breed because we have extensively researched lineage and judge that by adding our particular lines to another dog's, an even better example of the breed standard will be produced. When it comes to breeding, we value integrity and candor in all our dealings.
