Bruno vom Beilstein was born on January 12, 1997, and came home with me as a little bundle of fur seven weeks later.
The sire, SG Tino vom Beilstein SCHH3, FH, IP3, Kkl 2, was known for “throwing himself”, and was highly regarded in local circles. I contacted the breeder who was a local veterinarian and set up an appointment to take a look at the litter.
The litter was large and had five or six males to choose from. I played with the puppies and was pleased with their coloring and structure. I told the breeder I was looking for a “working” male to train and compete within Schutzhund. I was the first person to look at the litter and the breeder agreed to give me the pick of the litter (for an additional fee).
About a week later I returned to conduct puppy testing on all of the males in the litter. From the results of the testing, I narrowed down my decision to two pups. One had a blue collar and one had a red collar. The red-collared puppy was the largest in the litter and tested slightly better than the blue collared puppy.
Another week passed and it was time to bring home my new puppy. I had verbally committed to the red-collared puppy, whom I nicknamed “big boy” but I was honestly concerned that he could easily be 100 pounds plus when he reached maturity. This would not be ideal for sport work.
The final trek to the breeder’s residence was made. I played with big boy red but asked if I could again see the blue boy. He was brought out and was full of piss and vinegar. The previous week he had been a bit sluggish but on adoption day, the kid was on fire. I made a gut decision and blue boy came home as the new baby named Bruno.
*Originally posted September 13, 2009*
