Articles Index/Meet JoAnne Condron
Posted 09/15/10
I have lived all of my life in Cortland, NY, a small city in the middle of the state, between Syracuse University and Cornell. I taught elementary school for 28 years, retiring in 1990. I have three children and 11 grandchildren, including a set of quadruplets.
When my husband and I were first married we wanted an Airedale pup to join our family. As a boy, my husband had known an Airedale service dog that came home with his owner-handler. I guess that he was quite a dog and made a big impression on Bill. At last we found a puppy advertised in the paper. We called and found that the price was $100. We had to think this over. Did we want to pay such an enormous price? The next day when we called, the puppies had all been sold.
After much searching, we finally found a breeder and purchased a “Show Dog” who grew up to be anything but! However, that got us interested in the world of dogs and shows. We went to the Montgomery County Terrier show and met some very dedicated Airedale breeders. Through them, we got our first real show dog. My husband loved the dogs, but his first interest was golf. Some wonderful handlers helped me learn how to groom and I groomed and showed my first competition dog to her championship.
And Then Came Norfolks …
As I grew older I started looking for a smaller breed of dog that would need less grooming. A good friend and top terrier handler, Bob LaRouech, suggested Norfolk. He was associated with “Terrier Type” magazine at the time and sent me many back issues featuring the Norfolk Terrier.
When I began my search for a show quality female, I found them to be very scarce. I spoke with Joan Read and she told me of Jim Covey. I
purchased my first Norfolk, Etta, from Jim on a co-ownership. Etta never became a champion, but she was the love of my life. I lost her a year ago last December at the age of 15.
My breeding program is a small one. Right now I own three bitches and no dogs. Two of my girls are spayed. All my dogs live in the house with me and I have them all checked for health issues before breeding. I look for a stud that I hope, with my bitch, will produce healthy, typey pups with a great temperament. Hopefully there will be a nice show quality pup among them.
I enjoy showing my dogs in conformation, obedience, and earthdog events. Right now I’m working on novice obedience and rally.
Other than the dogs, my interests include my family, golf, bridge, gardening, and travel. I love the outdoors and year-round take a three-mile walk with a group of friends every day. After that, we pause for a cup of coffee and proceed to solve the world’s problems!
ANTIC, June 2010
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