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Coming to America
My Yakutian Laika Journey
This page is just being started. It will be used to share with you some of the fun and trials my friends and I had bringing the Yakutian Laika dog breed to the USA. Which actually started with the importing of our Siberian Huskies.
This page will be an ongoing project as I slowly sort through over 100,000 photos on my phone and share the fun and someday historic path of bringing a foundation for the Yakutian Laika here to the USA. I am thankful to those involved and excited to give credit to those who helped so much
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| My journey into the Yakutian Laika breed was like no other. My dogs were imported with the direct help and guidance of my good friends who are also mushers and show handlers of other sledding breeds in Russia. They visited kennels and helped select dogs and brought the original dogs here personally. I plan to get more information and stories about that posted here in 2025. I am going through years of photos and Facebook memories to build this page.
My dogs are also produced the primary breeding stock for most other American "foundation" kennels. Feel free to ask me about bloodlines etc. As I have had these bloodlines here longer than anyone and though I imported the lines directly from Russia myself and all were imported for particular reasons. Importing the variety of lines had given me a lot of knowledge on the breed and what to expect from different bloodlines. I set out with a goal to bring this breed here and to build the breed in America.
My originally imported Yakutian Laika dogs are aging. Some are retired, some will have their last litters this year and next. I am 2-3 generations in and the results are amazing. If you are interested in getting a Yakutian Laika for a pet or to help start your own kennel from our root stock then the time is now as there won't be a lot of litters ahead for the older dogs and of course we are keeping back some for ourselves so their direct offspring can be in our kennel as long as possible.
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| Winter 2017 -- It all started with a Siberian Husky puppy from Russia
This is the boy that truly started this journey. Obviously he is a Siberian Husky
Nat/Int Ch Natti Husky Goodinny "Flash"
Flash was the beginning of this journey. He we brought to Texas by Katya and Oksana. I only met them briefly that day but when Flash's breeder offered for Bosco to come to America I again requested that Katya bring Bosco as I felt really good with her. Flash came with us willingly but he had also clearly done some bonding with them so I really wanted her to bring Bosco.
And that's how the next part came to be.
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| Spring 2018
In the Spring of 2018 a dog show trip was planned for Bosco to be brought to American and for the Russian hander who was transporting him. This trip would be the start of an amazing friendship and many more adventures.
I was so excited about this trip. Bosco was originally brought over to be co-owned and stay a year or so. I was thankful I was able to purchase him and keep him forever. Bosco was already a champion or grand champion in several countries before he ever came to the USA.
Bosco and Diana arrived safely. Johnny was originally imported at the same time by another friend that joined us but he later joined us here due to changes and medical issues in 2020.
During this trip Bosco would earn his first AKC points. We also did some CGC and trick testing on the Akita. Possibly the first Russian owned Akita (American Akita) to earn some of these titles.
An amazing friendship was formed and the next dog show/importing adventure was quickly planned.
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| June 2019
The June trip in 2019 didn't go as planned. Astra, Single, and Happy came frkm Russia with Katya. But, we were delayed getting an import broker and then had vehicle issues. We ended up camping in Brooklyn, New York.
we may have missed our dog show on that trip, but we had an amazing adventure anyway. Who gets to camp with a big bunch if dogs under the subway in Brooklyn? The garage that helped us was owned by an amazing famiky that was somgood to us. We spent our waiting time visiting our surrounding and walking the dogs in the city. It was definitely an adventure of a lifetime.
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| July 2019
July of 2019 was a grand adventure. Katya and Okdana landed in Nee York at JFK with Nitro and Yurena for me. They also transported dofgs for friends in Pennsylvania and Grom for Stacy in Houston.
we would then travel as quickly as possible to Houston for thr World Series of Dog Shows. Katya ran us out of gas in Louisiana so I made her take a picture. Lol. We arrived a day late and while I was still parking the camper Katya and Oksana would literally run in with Candy (Can't Be Better Triumphant Beauty) and Oksana's Siberian Dixie (Gjel Zadora) Candy would take best of breed over several champions her very first time in the AKC ring.
While in Houston that year we didn't show the Yakutian Laikas but we got to introduce them to some of the AKC staff in charge of FSS breeds. The concept for what would become the YLCA was born there at the Houston show.
The Yakutian Laikas were then dropped off at home and we made our way to California. A great adventure through the Grand Canyon to California. We attended another show weekend in California then headed to the Santa Momica pier to end a true coast to coast dog trip with my amazing Russian friends
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| July 2019
August 2019 Katya and Oksana had chosen the amazing El Flaum Yurena for me on theie visit with Anna to select dogs It had been decided she would be bred to Big Flower Rolls Royce This litter was born in August of 2019 Not only the first litter of Yakutian Laikas born in Texas They were also the first litter born in the USA from health tested Yakutian Laikas in the USA
From this litter we would retain
NorthStar’s Live Laugh Love (Zoe)
NorthStar’s Native Son (Zorro)
NorthStar’s Battle Cry (Zelda)
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| December 2019
December 7, 2019. Katya picked up Deadpool for the beginning of his eventual journey to America! Deadpool was born in Russia and was living in Czech Republic
He would stay with Katya's famiy while we prepared her next trip to America
JCH, CH Rundogs Jizneradostny Deadpool 🥰🥰🥰
- HD A, ED 0, OCD Free,Eyes clear incl.Gonio, XL-PRA Free, DM N/N, MH N/N, BAER +/+
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| March 2020
In March of 2020 The first ever Certificate of Merit for a Yakutian Laika in the American Kennel Club, AKC was earned by Russian Champion El Flaum Single Naslednik. Single got a few of his points against Blue, but the majority of his points were earned by winning muliple First in FSS Group and Best In Open Show wins from quite large entries. I was trying to finish his CM as we were about to start moving to the ranch and I planned to take a break from conformation shows for awhile. I was very lucky we had a lot of competition and did very well because by the time his certificate arrived we were heading into Covid-19 changes in the USA and AKC dog shows would be almost completely stopped for awhile.
It was not until the Yakutian Laika breed achieved Miscellaneous status that this major first for the breed would show on the AKC website.
First Certificate of Merit Earned – American Kennel Club
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| March 2020
March 2020. Within a few days of Covid-19 shutting down International travel my friend Marina came with a group of dogs from Russia. Included were Shaman and a few others as well as a couple of Yakutian Laikas for owners in the west that would travel to Kansas with me. Unfortunately I got extremely sick on that road trip. Marina also caught Covid on the trip. She was the first intubated patient in Austin, TX to survive. Later her antibodies would save the life of her mother and many other people. This was the last Yakutian Laika trip that would be made until restrictions cleared from Covid.
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| April 2020
Marina thankfully started to recover from Covid. She fell in love with Missy, an Ella and Single daughter. To say I was thankful I could offer her that puppy is an understatement. Missy would lead to several more Yakutian Laikas in her home.
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| Spring and Summer 2020
As we dealt with covid, dog shows came to a halt. I reserved Talented Winners Benjamin with no idea when he could come to the USA. Virtual dog shows would take over the internet and we would be right in the middle of that fun. Benjamin and Single were even featured in Our Dogs magazine for their achievements in the virtual shows.
I would also start a process of moving to the new ranch property With no jdea that it would take a full year to finally get fully moved from the Rockwall County kennel property we owned.
More on all of that when I have time.
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| The Our Dogs shows were some of the largest online shows in the world and dogs were featured in the real Our Dogs magazine. For breeds not recognized in the UK Single and Benjamin represented the Yakutian Laika breed very well winning in both Adult and Puppy group with Single winning the group.
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| September 2020
One of the craziest times I had importing the Yakutian Laika breed was these dogs. Altyn Tumar Gard For Rundogs and Talented Winners Benjamin would be part of a group of six dogs of mine to get stuck in the neutral zone between Poland and Belarus due to issues with a courier. We finally got them released and into Warsaw to continue the journey to Texas.
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| February 2021
February of 2021 was a really crazy and fun time all at once. We were almost done moving to the ranch when a horrible winter storm hit and the Texas power grid failed terribly. The dogs of course didn't care but I was stuck at the old property waiting it out so we could do the final dog move to East Texas. The power was off and on for days, a few hours at a time and the temperatures stayed below freezing outside. Water lines everywhere were broken. Thankfully I had stored enough water, and was smart enough to get large 20 bags of ice that I could take inside and thaw for water for the dogs that were still with me. Power was never lost at the new place then thankfully.
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| Also at this time the wonderful Yakutian Laika Club of the UK would host a Valentine's Day online dog show. We definitely did not get in as many entries as we planned but we did very well at this show and it was amazing to get the opinion of our dogs from Stanislov Gorodilov, whom authored the FCI breed standard.
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| December 2021
December 2021 The Yakutian Laika Club of UK held another online show, again with entries around the world. The NorthStar dogs won so much in that show. Best In Show was my amazing boy Blue " El Flaum Jules Vern" Our dogs won so much in so many classes and categories. These shows were quite wonderful and followed closely by enthusiasts around the world.
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