PULI N EWS - The New Normal For Pulik and Their Humans - Puli Club of America
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P ULI N EWS
The New Normal
For Pulik and Their Humans
V OLUME 68 N O 1 MARCH 2020
Puli News - March 2020, Page
Officers PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
President
James Moen In our neck of the woods, in Northern California, we are able to walk our dogs
2555 Holly Oak Drive
each day in the neighborhood, staying on the other side of the street from our
Danville CA 94506-2057
925-820-9072
neighbors. Our Puli and our Löwchen are getting more time with us, and I think
president@puliclub.org more affection during these troubling times. They seem happier, somehow. As far
Vice President
as I know, they don't care about the stock market or a shortage of toilet paper.
Stacy Gail Czekaj
1601 Hollywood St.
They still have their jobs to do. For example, the Puli is still in charge of house
Dearborn MI 48124 security, as well as scanning the skies for hawks and blackbirds and explaining
313-271-9106 quite loudly why this is not a good property to fly over.
vp@puliclub.org
Corresponding Secretary
Whether your Puli normally does home duty, or works with you in organized
Sandy Schickedanz activites or even dog shows, life is different for now. Some of those fun things are
P.O. Box 2806 not happening, but you still have each other.
Edmond OK 73083-2806
405-517-1728 Treasure your four-legged friend. We will all get through this.
corrsecretary@puliclub.org
Treasurer
Jim Moen, President
Nancy Guagenti
207 Old Spring Drive
Shelbyville KY 40065
502-437-5352 502-648-8473 Our intrepid and talented Editor of Puli News, Linore Cleveland, is currently under
treasurer@puliclub.org the weather and has asked to step aside from her roles as Editor and as
Recording Secretary Membership Chair. Helen Lawson has graciously agreed to take over the
Kathy Allen
Membership role, working closely with our Treasurer, Nancy Guagenti.
3900 Happy Lane
Sacramento CA 95827 For Puli News, we plan to have Guest Editors give it a try. Please bear with us as
916-369-7701 we learn about publishing. As this issue‘s Guest Editor, I want to thank all those
recordingsecretary@puliclub.org
members of the Board who helped supply interesting articles and notes for this
edition. They have given us some interesting and hopefully different reading.
Directors
Ann Bowley Jim Moen
3577 Coventryville Road
Pottstown PA 19465-8532 In this Issue
610-469-6430 Front Cover: “New Normal” Covid-19 image
wallbangerpuli@gmail.com
Officer & Committee Reports 3-7
iStock from Getty Images
Pam Erstling
7502 Place Vendome Membership Directory Question 8
Spring TX 77379-2803 Back Cover: “Rombi”
832-928-3775 2019 Top Obedience Pulik 9-11
pbarbro@sbcglobal.net PULI NEWS is published four times a year by the
A Little Love for Your Veterinary
Sherry Gibson 12-13 Puli Club of America, Inc. (PCA) and is the official
Healthcare Provider newsletter of the club. The views and opinions
5362 Hillsboro Viola Road
expressed herein do not necessarily reflect or
Manchester TN 37355-6361 Recipe for Cinnamon Applesause Treats 13 represent those of the PCA, its officers, Board
931-596-3224 931-212-4047 members or the PULI NEWS staff.
gibsons@blomand.net Breeding a Multiple Sired Litter 14
Helen Lawson Permission to reprint any portion of this
11851 Belair # 103
Agility Runs For Exhibition Only (FEO) 15 publication must be obtained from the Editor.
San Antonio TX 78213-4858 My Puli Origin Story 16 Any advertisement must be in accordance
210-341-6156
City Girl Tries Herding 17 with PCA Guidelines and PCA takes no
cobblers_daughter@yahoo.com responsibility or makes no warranties
Gail Schroth Pulik – Coursing with a Puli? Of course! 18 as to the accuracy of any claim, offer or assertion
218 Prestonwood Circle made in any article or advertisement contained in
Crossville TN 38558 PCA Agility Trial Fundraisers in Texas 20-21 Puli News.
931-287-7648 517-894-5345 Article from the Past: The Working Puli 22 The Editor reserves the right to edit any
gail.schroth@yahoo.com
submissions and make corrections,
Paula Van Laanen Meet Rich Garon - Member & Printer 23 omit material, or do minor reorganization
N4 W31041 Cherokee Trail as required.
General Puli Information 24-27
Waukesha, WI 53188
313-271-4029 The PCA and Editor reserve the right
pvanlaanem@yahoo.com Update to 2019 PCA National Results
AKC Delegate The following should have been included in the AKC Gazette and December Puli News articles:
Brian Brubaker Mezok Paprika-Edesnemes (Zeppo), handled by Becky Watson, placed first in his Rally Novice B
201 Lamplite Drive Class, with a score of 100, and was the fastest entry in Novice B on Sunday. He also earned his RN
Carlisle PA 17013
title in that event.
717-226-6317 718-713-8795
spindriftpulik@gmail.com 2020 June PULI NEWS DEADLINE — May 31 2020
Puli News - March 2020 Page 2
2020 National Specialty Update
So far, the PCA National Specialty in Wilmington, Ohio is still a go. We will advise the membership when we hear any
news. All we can do is hope, however no dog show is worth the health of any member.
What we have done so far:
• Obedience and rally will share the judge and expenses with the Canaan Club.
• PCA has contracted with the Superintendent.
• We have judges for the National and Regional.
• We asked for extra donations for prizes and the membership responded brilliantly. We cannot thank you
enough.
• We have contracted for prizes for the National and they are beautiful. (I so hope we will be able to use them.)
• The supported show on Sunday is taken care of.
We are holding off on the Regional prizes till the last minute. Most everything else is on hold. In other words, we are
playing a waiting game. Everyone, please stay safe.
PCA 2020 National Specialty Committee (Patty Anspach, Sabrina Prim)
Board of Directors Update
On March 3rd, Paula Van Laanem resigned from her position as Corresponding Secreetary due to health issues. She
wrote that "I really have enjoyed my time as Corresponding Secretary" and offered to be a resource to help her
successor. Paula has done an outstanding job in her role, and we thank her for that.
On April 1st, following the club's Constitution and Bylaws (C&BL), the Board selected Sandy Schickedanz to fill the
vacant Corresponding Secretary position. We are grateful she is willing to take on this important role.
On April 17th, after learning Paula is able and willing to do the vacant Director position, the Board selected Paula for
that role. The end result is that the Board has the same people as selected by the 2019 Nominating Committee, so the
regional representation remains the same. We are delighted Paula is able to contine in this role.
It should be noted that although the Board meets monthly via telephone conference, the club's C&BL provides for
other ways of meeting. Specifically, the Bylaws Article II Section 5(c) states: "The Board may conduct its business
(voting) through the President or Recording Secretary via video-conference, teleconference, on line communications
or fax...".
This Board has been using a team-collaboration application called Slack to facilitate discussions in between the
monthly conference calls, and although previous Boards have used online voting, the above actions were the first use
of online voting that the current Board has done.
Membership
The Board has approved the following Membership Applications, In the absence of any comments from the
membership within 30 days of the publishing of Puli News, these individuals will become Associate Members of PCA.
We welcome them all.
Ellen & Richard Lary Dan & Alena Guagenti Paul & Diane Beargie
160 Summit Point Court 1117 Summit 9331 Taylor May Rd
Colorado Springs, CO 80919 Shelbyville, KY 40065 Chagrin Falls, OH 44023
719-598-3573 502-647-2413 216-224-3254
ellen@lary.com asguagenti@hotmail.com paul@gsp-ind.com diane@gsp-ind.com
Laurel Cain Denk & Marc C. Denk Thomasina Reid Please send any membership questions or updates to:
68215 Peladora Rd 2366 East Spurwind Ln Helen Lawson
Cathedral City, CA 92234 Green Valley, AZ 85614 11851 Belair # 103
760-656-8624 520-288-9393 San Antonio TX 12345
mcddogman@aol.com ctreid83@gmail.com cobblers_daughter@yahoo.com
Puli News - March 2020, Page 3
Recording Secretary Puli Club of America Board Meeting Minutes – 11/19/19 Members Present: Jim Moen, Nancy Guagenti, Kathy Allen, Helen Lawson, Sherry Gibson, Brian Brubaker, Stacy Czekaj, Paula Van Laanen, Sandy Schickendanz, Gail Schroth. Members Absent: Pam Erstling, Ann Bowley Jim Moen called the meeting to order at 6:05pm. MOTION: I, Sherry Gibson move that the minutes from October 2019 be approved. 2nd: Nancy Guagenti Ayes: All Old Business Meet the Breeds Jim Moen mentioned that for the last several years that Barbara Pessina has coordinated Meet the Breeds at Westminster. Jim asked the Board if PCA should go ahead and have a booth at Westminster 2020. Westminster is a really big venue for spectators but if we are to participate, Barbe will need help. Jim asked that a note be placed in the next edition of Puli Post asking for volunteers to man the booth. Meet the Breeds will be held on January 25-26, 2020. Lifetime Achievement/Membership Awards Nancy Kelly did a considerable amount of work on discovering the origin of these two awards. It appears the awards are similar but with slight differences. Nancy Guagenti explained that the lifetime membership award is given to someone who has made a significant achievement to PCA. Jim Moen mentioned that he thinks these two awards should be combined. He will work with Nancy Kelly on this. New Business Return Envelopes Helen Lawson asked Nancy Guagenti if she is doing membership renewals primarily by email. Nancy said the renewals will be emailed unless a member requests a hard copy. Nancy will put a return envelope in the hard copies that she does send out. Treasurers Report Nancy Guagenti told the Board that she is still waiting for expense items from Maggie Witwer from the Specialty. The current account balance is $61,491.34. PCA also has specialty income of $900 (from calendar sales, etc.) Nancy also discussed where PCA is a club financially. In August 2015 PCA had an account balance of $74,155.74, which is significantly higher than today’s balance. Nancy asked if there is an actual budget for putting on the national. Brian Brubaker told the Board that there is no set budget for the national. There is a small amount of seed money to begin the process of putting on the national. Nancy Guagenti recommended that PCA should formulate a budget for the national. Jim Moen recommended discussing this issue in depth at the next board meeting. Membership Nancy Guagenti received a question from a new member about dues. The member wanted to know if he will have to pay dues next year since his membership was very recently approved. Suggestion from Patty Anspach Patty Anspach has sent a suggestion to the Board that PCA buy Dagmar Fertl a new scanner since she has used her own extensively to scan historical documents for the club. Jim Moen emailed Dagmar and asked the cost for a new scanner. Dagmar said the cost would be about $150. Dagmar has spent hundreds of hours scanning documents for PCA. MOTION: I, Sherry Gibson, move that PCA approve funds (not to exceed $200) to purchase a new scanner for Dagmar Fertl. Second: Gail Schroth Ayes: Helen Lawson, Kathy Allen, Sherry Gibson, Brian Brubaker, Stacy Czekaj, Paula Van Laanen, Sandy Schickendanz, Gail Schroth. Noes: Nancy Guagenti. Motion Carries Puli News - March 2020 Page 4
(Board Meeting Minutes—11/19/19, Continued)
Planning for 2020 National Specialty
Paula Van Laanen received an update from Patty Anspach on the 2020 national specialty. Patty is working on finding
a host hotel. She has also been working on the logo for the national
Judges for 2022 National/Regional Specialties
Paula Van Laanen has sent ballots out for the 2022 shows. Voting closes on November 22nd.
Meeting adjourned at 7:28pm.
Puli Club of America - Board Meeting Minutes - January 21, 2020
In the absence of Kathy Allen board minutes for January were taken by Sandra Schickedanz Board
Members present: Jim Moen, Nancy Guagenti, Paula Van Laanen, Ann Bowley, Stacy Czekaj, Helen Lawson, Pam
Barbro-Erstling, Sherry Gibson, Gail Schroth, Sandra Schickedanz
OLD BUSINESS: In Kathy Allen's absence the minutes from August and November were tabled. October minutes
reviewed and approved.
Meet The Breeds: New York Feb 2020 We are not participating as there were no volunteers. AKC has already been
notified that we will not be participating this year in New York. Hopefully we will get volunteers for Orlando at end
of year. Need to get message out months in advance (JUNE) in hopes of lining up volunteers for both of these venues.
NEW BUSINESS: PCA Membership Applications:
New Membership app for Ellen and Richard Lary reviewed and carried .... approve: Nancy Guagenti ; second: Paula
Van Laanen; ayes: All
Reinstatement Membership: Laurel and Marc Denk motion carried....approve Sherry Gibson; second: Sandra
Schickedanz; ayes: All
2022 Final Judges Ballot: Ballot count completed by Nancy Kelly, Valarie and Gary Cheimis.
Results:
1. Judge Sulie Greendale-Paveza
2. Judge Sherry Gibson
Once show site and dates secured these judges will then be contacted on their availability. Please Note: please follow
instructions for future judges voting, as four ballots were unable to be counted as multiple judges were selected with
x's . It was determined that the final judges count was not impacted by the four ballots that were not able to be
counted.
Standing Rule that specialties rotate ... 2022 is Western Region...waiting on a bid. Puli News and Puli Post will have a
form for those that want to submit a bid for hosting 2022. Was suggested two months after the Puli Post, 10 days later
Sherry Gibson will send out another post pertaining to specialty bids. We need to start putting a deadline for
submissions. April 15th was suggested. It is important that we get our specialty locations and judges secured at least
three years in advance.
The Specialties already in planning stage with information posted on web site and In Puli News.
2021 Sept 2-6 Lexington, KY
2020 OCT 16-18 Wilmington, Ohio
Treasurer’s Report: Following submitted by our treasurer Nancy Guagenti: There have been serious issues in the
transition from the previous desktop version to online. The issues seems to be with the initial first month and multiple
users. The data is there and all accounts balance but the drawing of reports that include October 2019 may not be
accurate. Also the year end information does not include all 2019 Specialty income and expenditures. I am waiting on
the final information. I felt it would be helpful to see the trends in membership money to understand the income
dollars apart from any fundraisers. Comparative report on membership without deducting the cost involved for
renewals.
The yearly number is impacted by the reporting Oct. reporting problems. This will be updated for 2019 soon. A
concern is the deficit from 2018. Profit/Loss 2018 $ -7694.88
2019 without specialty bills and a lack of October information transferring to the report function I am going to omit
this number from this report. I anticipate doing a comparison in March of the Bank Balances as it is a time frame
which should be comparatively similar and not impacted by membership income or outstanding expenditures.
Puli News - March 2020, Page 5
(Board Meeting Minutes—1/21/20, Continued) Trophy Problem: The scope and severity of the problem lies in cost. Too many trophies (approximately 18 trophies) and some are large and heavy and this impacts the cost to mail and transport them. The issue is complex and is becoming too expensive and burdensome for a club like ours. Our club continues to see dwindled number of Pulik being shown in conformation. We need to come to an agreement which ones to keep and which ones we need to retire. Any and all other ideas welcome. Veteran Sweeps Trophy: in the absence of board member Brian Brubaker, this was tabled for next board meeting . Items brought to our attention: Patty Anspach, PCA Historian has a slew of Puli books that have been donated over the years. Matt Heppler with the help of Susi Szeremy had stepped up to sell the books on eBay. It is now just a matter of getting the books to one or the other. Seeking ideas from membership pertaining to fund raising ideas for general operating of our club. Member Don Gold had brought to our attention that his Puli was omitted from the top ten Herding Puli a few years back. Kathy Allen will work with Patty Anspach in looking in to the correction. Valerie Cheimis stepped down from manning our web site. Ross Allen stepped up to take over. Word is he is sharp and techie :) Meeting Adjourned @ 9:36 central time. Puli Club of America - Board Meeting Minutes - February 18, 2020 Members Present: Helen Lawson, Sandy Schickendanz, Kathy Allen, Sherry Gibson, Nancy Guagenti, Ann Bowley, Brian Brubaker, Jim Moen, Stacy Czekaj, Pam Erstling. Members Absent: Paula Van Laanen, Gail Schroth Jim Moen called the meeting to order at 6:07pm. The January minutes were accepted as submitted. New Business Membership Application Status Paul Beargie has reached out to the Board regarding the status of his application. Paula Van Laanen sent a message to Linore Cleveland regarding the status of Paul’s application but has yet to receive a response. Jim Moen will try to reach Linore tomorrow. Nancy Guagenti suggested giving prospective members access to Puli News while their applications are under review. MOTION: I, Nancy Guagenti more that PCA provide immediate access to Puli News for applicants awaiting approval from the Board. Second: Ann Bowley Ayes: All. Motion Passed Specialty Planning Update 2020 National – Nancy Guagenti spoke with Patty Anspach regarding the status for this year’s national. Patty informed Nancy that she is $1,220 for prizes, which is about half of what past years have received. Patty wants to let people sponsor prizes (for Best of Breed, High in Trial etc.). Patty has determined what the dollar amount would be for each prize. Patty wants to dedicate this years specialty to Barbara Edwards. The Board would need to approve this. Barbara Edwards was honored last year, but the show was not dedicated to her, as she was still living. MOTION: I, Sherry Gibson move that the 2020 National be dedicated to Barbara Edwards. Second: Pam Erstling. Ayes: Helen Lawson, Sandy Schickendanz, Kathy Allen, Sherry Gibson, Ann Bowley, Brian Brubaker, Stacy Czekaj, Pam Erstling. Noes: Nancy Guagenti. Motion Passed Foy Trent Contract for 2020 Nancy Guagenti informed the Board that the Recording Secretary is approved to sign all contracts. Kathy Allen needs to print out the contract, sign it and send it to Patty Anspach. Board Meeting at the 2020 National Patty Anspach is asking what time the Board wants to hold the board meeting at the 2020 National. Jim Moen’s only request is that events do not overlap with the board meeting. Brian Brubaker suggested that the Board formulate a mock schedule that could be used from year to year. Puli News - March 2020 Page 6
(Board Meeting Minutes—2/18/20, Continued)
2021 Specialty Update
Ann Kemp has signed the hotel contract for the 2021 national.
Treasurers Update
Nancy Guagenti asked if anyone on the Board had questions regarding the profit and loss sheet. Nancy asked if there
are any items that the Board would like compared. Nancy is going to be closing some accounts that the club no longer
uses. Twenty-three membership dues are currently outstanding. Nancy has contacted four of the members with out-
standing dues. Dues are due by March 1st. Nancy informed the Board that there is a volunteer willing to take over
maintaining the breeders listings.
Trophy Issue
Jim Moen is going to phone Ann Tober to request that the Winner’s Dog trophy be returned to the club. Ann’s award
was rescinded by AKC due to her dog not being registered with AKC within the required timeframe.
Veterans Sweepstakes Trophy Issue
Brian Brubaker asked the Board if PCA is going to have challenge and/or perpetual trophies. He is inquiring due to
the fact there is a retired trophy that a member wants to have reissued. Brian is requesting that the Board make a final
decision on how PCA is going to treat the 3 time win trophies and the cost of shipping them. Jim Moen suggested ha-
ving a separate call just to discuss trophy issues. He will post some potential times on Slack.
Lifetime Achievement Awards
Jim Moen wants to form a small subcommittee to come up with a proposal to deal with this issue. He is looking for 1-
2 Board members to work with Nancy Kelly on this.
AKC Registration Statistics
Jim Moen posted the AKC statistics for 2019. The puli is seen as one of AKC’s 60 low entry breeds. Jim encouraged
the board members to take a look at the statistics..
Meeting adjourned at 7:35pm.
Drawing Copyright Sara Hines & Puli Club of America
Puli News - March 2020, Page 7
PCA’s Membership Directory – A Question for You
Send your feedback to Sandy - correspondingsecretary@puliclub.org
Should PCA send members the Membership Directory as a file? Should we provide an online lookup to get other
members’ names and addresses? We want your input. Please send it to Sandy.
Each year in the spring, the club produces a printed Membership Directory listing all members’ names and contact
information. The 2020 Directory is being mailed to domestic PCA members in April.
We often get requests for electronic copies of the Directory. Because it has names and addresses of our members,
and usually email addresses as well, we have been reluctant to provide the Directory as a file that could be shared
with others outside the club.
But because these requests for an electronic Directory persist, it makes sense to get feedback from all of you. The
easiest solution would be to put a printable (pdf) file in the Members Only section of the PCA website. If we asked
that no one share that file with others outside the club, we could hope this information would remain inside the club.
Or PCA could create a web page where a member could search for another member’s name and be given what we
have for address and email. For members comfortable using such a web page, that would allow quick lookups by
members only.
Please send us your feedback. Do you want to keep the printed Directory as is, or would you like an additional
capability online, and if so, which would you prefer?
and
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If you shop at Amazon.com, please check out their related site Smile.Amazon.com. Amazon has set up the
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• Below the spotlight charities, in the “pick your own chartable organization” box, enter puli club, then click
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That’s all there is to it. Some of you may want to set up a bookmark or shortcut so you can always do your
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Thank you for helping the Puli Rescue Trust!
Puli News - March 2020 Page 8
TOP OBEDIENCE PULIK
Total
Dog Owner Placements HT/HC Scores Points
CH OTCH MACH
Bartok's Harvest
1
Song UDX4 OM7 PT
MJB MXB XF T2B B N. Kelly 50 1 66 117
New OM7 New OTCH
2 CH Invictus Immerzu M. Peters/T. Pe-
Isti UDX RA CGC D ters 23 77 100
Lajosmegyl Kahluha
3 And Cream CDX BN
GN B John Landis 11 2 19 32
New CDX
LEGEND:
Placement Points—Points for earning a 1-4 placement in a trial in the claasses in which participating
HT/HC—Points for earing a High In Trial or High Combined in an Obediience trial
Scores — Points for the qualifying score earned in a class, weighted
Note from Nancy Kelly, PCA‘s Obedience Statistician:
It is sad to see so few Pulik training and competing in obedience. They are incredibly smart dogs and
make training obedience challenging but fun. If you look at the percentage of Pulik in obedience that
have achieved the OTCH level (15 dogs), UDX level (16 dogs) and OGM (1 dog) that is a much higher
percentage than many of your top “obedience” breeds. The Pulik love a challenge and become like
sponges learning new things.
Puli News - March 2020, Page 9
CH OTCH MACH Bartok’s Harvest Song UDX4 OM7 PT MXB MJB XF T2B
#1 Obedience
"Shaker"
Owned/Bred by Nancy C Kelly
DOB: 10 May 2011
2019 was an amazing year for us. It saw us finish our OTCH (Obedience trial championship) and our MACH
(master agility championship) as well. While Shaker still loves obedience, she prefers training it to performing in
it. So, we have moved to more agility. Her young nephew, Béla, came into our household in the summer and he
is learning obedience now although it will be a couple years before he is ready to enter the ring, but he already
shows great promise. It is fun to continue to train Shaker in obedience but not showing anymore has taken a lot of
pressure off both of us.
Congratulations to all the other teams in the Top Obedience Pulik.
Puli News - March 2020 Page 10CH Invictus Immerzu Isti UDX PCDX RA CGC
#2 Obedience
"Isti"
Owned by Melinda & Top Peters, Handled by Melinda
Bred by Tazmin Hart & Terry Horan & Stephanie Horan
DOB: Nov 7, 2013
CH Invictus Immerzu Isti UDX RA was delighted to be among
the top Pulik in obedience this year. He and I were on a roll at
the end of 2019, but there were no local shows early this year,
and when looking forward to a spate of them about now,
Coronavirus hit.
A blow on so many levels (and we are among the fortunate.) I
realize how much we miss our obedience friends as well as the
challenge of competition, and who knows how our sport shall
fare from here, and when? All of this is to say we miss the
trials, our friends and the incentive to train which they
spur. Also, it seems unfortunate that more Pulik are not com-
peting, when (as AKC Museum of the Dog listing of breeds
and their respective characteristics says) our breed is
"extremely willful, but highly trainable".
Lajosmegyi Kahluha And Cream CDX BN GN
#3 Obedience
"Kaylee"
Owned by John Landis
Bred by Anna M Quigley & Patricia C Turner & Leslie Finegan
DOB: May 2, 2017
Kaylee got both her Graduate Novice and Companion
Dog Excellent titles at the end of 2019 along with
two HIT’s. She is a two and a half years old and fun
dog to train. She has been the easiest dog to train of
all the dogs I have trained. Of course, most of the
dogs I have trained were Komondors.
Seriously, she is an almost natural healer and learns
quickly. She is totally different than my other Puli,
Fizz, who was also a great obedience dog. I can’t
thank Anna and Pat enough for picking her out for
me. We are just about ready for Utility now and who
knows where we will go from there.
Puli News - March 2020, Page 11Show A Little Love for Your Veterinary Healthcare Provider
The recent outbreak of COVD-19 worldwide has had a lot of us thinking about our health and community wellness.
With Alece managing a large Veterinary Emergency Hospital, discussions of health and well-being are often topics of
conversations in our house. And, with both of us working in the “service sector” we’re never short on amazement of
human nature and how wonderful and equally terrible people can be when dealing with service providers.
As we think about the COVID-19 outbreak and the drastic but important measures that local, state, and federal
government administrations are taking to encourage social distancing and ‘flatten the curve’, Alece has said over and
over again, veterinarians are experts in managing “herd health”. And, herd health is exactly what our public officials
are trying to invoke right now. She has been motivating her team with this reminder. Every day of every year,
veterinary hospitals are constantly cleaning, isolating patients, assessing symptoms, and engaging treatment to educate
clients, treat patients, and contain the spread of infectious disease from one animal to another; and, in some cases, from
patient to staff member, or the pet owner. Although the current pandemic has certainly forced them to implement new
routines and protocols, managing through a contagious outbreak is nothing new for veterinarians, technicians, and front
-end personnel.
What’s more concerning, whether we’re in the midst of a pandemic or not, are
people’s constant questioning of their veterinarian’s expertise. One of the
downsides of social media is that so many people are comfortable tearing people
down or speaking out abrasively on subjects through the comfort and relative
anonymity of their phones. This bad habit doesn’t end when it comes to peoples’
vets. With all of us being ‘dog people’ and being seriously vested in our dogs’
health, we would certainly hope that readers have a veterinarian with whom
they’re comfortable. If you lack confidence in your veterinarian, then you should
find another one. However, what’s dangerous are the number of people on-line
who offer copious amounts of medical and non-medical advice without any
credentials whatsoever.
As Pulik owners we face certain challenges. As with any breed, it can be fairly
argued that we know our breed and our particular dog(s) better than anyone else.
The key to fostering a healthy and beneficial relationship with our vets is finding
the balance between educating others about our wonderful breed and having the
wisdom to work with a talented veterinary staff whose medical knowledge can
serve our dog(s) well. We need that expertise; most of us are not trained
technicians or veterinarians.
It’s crucial for any Puli owner to recognize the value of the veterinary health care team as a whole. Although they have
a different skill set and role from the veterinarian, assuming that a technician or client service representative is not a
valuable resource is a grave mistake. Avoiding critical questions and conversation with the technician and saving these
items for the doctor walks in the room is not always the best course of action. With any Puli in cords, whether it’s a
full show coat or a beautiful pet trim, an obvious source of anxiety can be shaving cords to place a catheter for a
procedure requiring anesthesia. Technicians are trained to shave to remove the hair to place a catheter since this should
be a sterile procedure. And quite honestly can be extremely painful since it involves using wet proof medical tape to
secure an IV catheter. A polite conversation with the technician caring for your Puli can be a game changer when it
comes to this. As Pulik owners we can and should help educate others about our breed and the coat. The technician
will be the team member prepping your dog for his or her procedure, administering medication, and for the overall
health and wellbeing of your beloved pet through the procedure. And, it will be that same technician who stays with
your dog while she recovers from surgery, often sitting on the floor by their crate monitoring her health instead of
eating lunch or in many cases taking a much needed trip to the restroom. It is a little-known fact that veterinary health
care professionals have bladders of steel and often times go for ten or twelve hours without being able to stop to use the
rest room!
We’ve always found technicians up for the challenge to set catheters, draw blood, etc. without shaving anything, but we
build a relationship built on mutual respect and appreciation for their skill set that helps our dogs come through their
appointment in good hands and looking great. Other tricks of the trade can assist with routine procedures and
preserving the integrity of the coat. For example, if you’re taking your puli in for a dental, simply suggesting that the
technician use an e-collar on the dog placed backwards (acting as a protective “cape” with the head, neck, and chest
cords neatly protected under the collar) can do wonders for making the technician’s job easier and keep your dog’s coat
in neat order.
(Continued)
Puli News - March 2020 Page 12(continued from previous page)
It’s inevitable that we will at times question our veterinarian’s diagnosis or course of action. It’s ok to talk it out; most
vets won’t mind having a reasonable conversation about why they’ve reached a conclusion. At times it’s necessary to
seek out a second opinion and a confident, inquisitive, and caring veterinarian will be glad that another opinion was
sought. What’s most important is that the relationship with your veterinary team is focused on mutual respect for the
knowledge each party brings to the table and the long-term health of your pet.
Veterinarians, unfortunately, do have to charge for their services! None of us likes to spend more money, especially
unexpectedly. However, we can think of few other more important things in our lives than our dogs. The average
veterinarian is a small business owner. On top of all of the typical expenses that come with running a business (rent,
payroll, utilities, inventory) our veterinarians must make room for continuing education training, liability insurance,
and, recently, recruiting capable talent in an extremely tight labor market. On top of these worries, most veterinarians
carry over $100,000 in student loan debt. They’ve gone to university for as long as an MD, but only make a quarter of
the salary. Clearly, no one would be doing this work if they truly didn’t love what they do.
So, value your veterinary healthcare team! They work tirelessly to meet their clients ‘where they are’ and do the very
best they can for their patients. Share your love and knowledge of our amazing breed and respect the knowledge,
compassion, and dedication the entire team brings to their service relationship with you and your dog(s). As we all
take steps to stay well amid these uncertain times, it’s nice to take a step back and truly appreciate the wealth of
knowledge and skill our veterinary healthcare providers bring to our pets’ lives each and every day – worldwide
pandemic or not!
Alece Coulman & Brian Brubaker
Copyright Sara Hines & Puli Club of America
Cinnamon Applesauce Treats
4 Cups unbleached flour
1/2 cup Applesauce
1/4 Cup honey
1/4 Cup water
2 Eggs
1/4 Cup Wheat germ
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
In a large bowl mix all ingredients. Knead dough on floured surface. Roll out dough, I do half at a time due to a small
space, to 1/2" thickness, and cut out shapes with cookie cutter or biscuit cutter, Put cookies on baking sheet, 1" apart.
Bake at 400 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes. When done the cookies should be firm to the tough, Turn off oven and leave
cookies in for 1 to 2 hours to harden. I usually take them out instead of leaving to harden and put on cooling rack to
harden, These cookies freeze well.
Puli News - March 2020, Page 13Breeding a Multiple Sired Litter
Sherry Gibson
A number of years ago, AKC decided to allow multiple sired litters to be recognized and registered. This decision
offered breeders the flexibility to manage their breeding program in new ways. Some breeders had been hesitant to use
semen that had been in storage for many years in case it was no longer viable. Missed breedings take time and can
delay the producing of puppies by months or even years. Now, it is possible to use stored semen and do a back-up
breeding to another male. The back-up breeding can be either a natural breeding or artificial insemination. By doing
so, there is a better chance of conception and the arrival of live puppies from a valued female. After the whelping, the
puppies can be sorted out by DNA testing and registered accordingly.
I took advantage of this process recently and it was an interesting experiment. My bitch had produced a nice size litter
of six puppies several years ago. Since that time, she had been bred by surgical implant a total of three times on three
successive heat cycles. Each time, she conceived, then re-absorbed the puppies at about 3-4 weeks after breeding. I
was going to spay her but decided to try one more time. However, this time I had live access to the older male whose
collected semen had been used with her the three times before. The semen quality was not in question because she did
conceive all three times, but she later re-absorbed the whelps. This time, I did two natural breedings to that same male.
Then I skipped a day and did two natural breedings on consecutive days to a young male who was also available. The
result was eight puppies carried to full term, all born strong and healthy, weighing from 7.5 to 9.5 ounces.
I have no medical background so
my observations are only to be
taken as opinion, not fact. My
hypothesis is that some bitches,
who are impregnated surgically,
react to the whelps as “foreign
bodies” and the body absorbs
them. My vet did say that a
natural breeding brings on a “flood
of hormones” that can’t be
duplicated in an artificial
insemination or surgical implant.
Who knows if the difference was
due to the natural breeding or just
Mother Nature? All I know is that
this time, we got puppies!
The most interesting part of this
experiment was the DNA analysis
of the litter. Each sire and the dam
and all eight puppies must be
tested and profiled by AKC. In this
case, both males had a DNA
profile already on file. The DNA profile is obtained by submitting a cheek swab for each individual and each puppy
must be permanently identified by either a tattoo or microchip. Each test costs $40 and it takes about 6-8 weeks for the
results to be obtained. Once that is accomplished, it is up to the breeder to compare the profile of each puppy to that of
the dam and the two males. AKC will do this for you for another fee, but I opted to do it myself. It is a simple matter
of comparing the profile for each puppy to the possible parents and ruling out one of the sires, which I found
fascinating.
If even one puppy is sired by a different male, then the breeder must register two litters. As it turned out, all eight of
my puppies were sired by the same male so there was only one litter registered.
Since both males were proven sires, I think the explanation for the results lies in the timing. If I had bred her to both
males on alternating days, we probably would have gotten a mixed litter. Instead, I used one male twice, skipped a day,
then used the second male twice.
This was an interesting exercise and I learned a lot but I’m not sure I would do it again. For one thing it is quite
expensive. It also delays the registration of the puppies for an extended length of time. They were all in their new
homes by the time the results were known.
Puli News - March 2020 Page 14Agility Runs For Exhibition Only (FEO)
AKC Agility has added a new option for
agility competitors on a one-year trial
basis. It is called For Exhibition Only.
This type of run is available only on
FAST and Time to Beat courses at the
discretion of the host club. FEO allows
the team to decide before the run starts to
run the course without the run being
counted towards a qualifying score. The
run is not judged, although the judge
watches to make sure that the run is done
safely and that the handler does no harsh
corrections.
You may ask why would someone pay the full price of a run to have it not count. Here are some reasons:
- To work on a problem area
- To work in a real trial environment
- To work in an atmosphere of no pressure
- To work at a different jump height
- To motivate the dog to speed up
- To build confidence
There are many other reasons.
A toy may be taken into the ring. The toy cannot leave the handler’s hand, but may be used as a tug. The toy cannot
make any noise. Of course, no food can be taken into the ring. The handler may reset a bar and touch an obstacle
during the run.
On a FEO run, the team gets the length of the course time to do whatever they want. To make the most of a FEO run,
during the walk-through a plan should be developed to work on whatever area the team needs to improve. The team
does not need to do the course or any part of it, the time is yours to do with what you please. For example, if A frame
contacts are an issue, the team may plan to do a jump, A frame, jump sequence and repeat it until they run out of time.
The team can practice just the start line stay or run the entire course.
The FEO option fills a need that used to be addressed with fun matches. Today it is very hard to find agility fun
matches. For young dogs that are new to trialing, this may be a no pressure way to move from a class room situation to
a trial environment.
Since the FEO runs are included in the number of runs that a judge can officiate during a day, some clubs that easily fill
their trials may not want to allow this option. The handler needs to indicate on the entry form and tell the ring steward
before the run that it will be FEO.
I have used FEO runs to work on motivation, lots of praise and positive encouragement. I find that if I say beforehand
that the run is FEO, I won’t be tempted to ‘try’ to save a Q at the expense of my partner’s confidence.
I very much like the FEO Option and hope that it will become a rule after the one-year trial period ends.
Cathy Pronzini
Puli News - March 2020, Page 15My Puli Origin Story
by Kathy Allen
When discussing Pulis with a new person, I usually get asked the question of how I came to be
involved with the breed. In my case, I became aware of Hungary’s national treasure in a rather
roundabout way. The year was 1986 and Ross and I were involved with showing Persian cats.
I subscribed to a cat fancy magazine and one month it contained a letter to the editor from a 13
year old Hungarian boy named Gergely who liked cats and wanted a pen pal in the United Sta-
tes. I kept thinking about that letter and thinking how disappointed I would be if nobody wrote
back to me, so I sent him a short message. We started writing back and forth and in one of his
letters Gergely asked me if I had ever seen “the alive and lively wonder, the pride of Hungary,
the Puli.” I had not heard of such a breed and in the pre-Google area, I couldn’t even do a quick
search on them. As it so happens, that weekend there was a dog show at our local fairgrounds
and the schedule showed about 10 pulis were going to be there. Intrigued, we headed over to see what all the fuss was
about and OMG THEY LOOKED LIKED MOPS WITH LEGS! The lobbying began immediately to get Ross to
consent to adding one to our household. Luckily at that time, there were Puli breeders located in the Bay Area and
about 10 months after seeing a Puli in the flesh we got 9 week old Haver from Art Sorkin and Diane Smith.
During this time Gergely and his family had extended an invitation for Ross and I to visit them in their hometown of
Kecskemet. Our visit was scheduled for August 1988. When I told Gergely about our acquisition, he immediately
said that Haver needed a Hungarian wife. Gergely and his dad began talking to Hungarian breeders and eventually
ended up selecting not one but two female puppies that came home with us from our visit. One of those females we
called TyuTyu (registered name CH Kobanyai-Uti Aranyos) and she became the foundation of our kennel.
The trip home from Hungary was full of problems. On the way to the airport the puppies had to sit on our laps in the
backseat of a very crowded Lada. TyuTyu got carsick on Ross during the journey which necessitated a quick change
of clothes at the airport. We flew from Budapest to Frankfurt and then changed planes for our leg of the journey that
got us to New York. Upon arriving at JFK, we were told we needed to check the pups through customs ourselves and
to wait by an elevator for the Pulis to come up. We waited, and waited, and waited. Finally, a guy came running up
and told us since we were in danger of missing our connection to San Francisco, the pups had been checked through
customs for us. We were told to hurry to our plane and so after going through customs ourselves, we sprinted through
the terminal, only to see our plane pulling away from the gate. We were rerouted on another flight and finally arrived
in San Francisco at 2AM. When we finally found an airline employee, we were told if we had not been there to collect
the pups that they would have been sent to the kennel for the night and we were told to call the airline in the morning
for instructions for collecting the pups. Ross phoned the airline bright and early only to be told there had been no pup-
pies on the plane. After listening to a rather harsh response from Ross (yes, yelling and swearing were involved) the
airline rep promised to find where our puppies were. In just a few minutes she called back and said they were still in
Frankfurt. The wrong sticker had been put on the crate and the airline had been waiting for someone looking for their
pets. They arrived on a direct flight from Frankfurt later that afternoon, quite stinky but otherwise no worse for the
experience.
We tried out showing later that year when both Haver and TyuTyu were old enough. At our very first show TyuTyu
took BOS over a special, and that’s all that it took for us to be hooked on showing our Pulis. We were very fortunate
enough to have excellent mentors that lived locally, so we had all the support we needed whenever we had questions
about showing, grooming, or eventually breeding. We managed to bumble our way through showing both Haver and
TyuTyu to their championships.
As I mentioned earlier, TyuTyu ended up being the foundation of our kennel. Her bloodline can be found in some of
our most recent litters, including our Christmas 2017 litter of 6,which includes a puppy we kept for ourselves named
Ruby (Vadrozsa Moulin Rouge RN FDC CGCA TKN) and a puppy we placed with a first time Puli owner (CH Vadro-
zsa Stonybeck Meet Joe Black CGCU TKI), whose call name is Jose and is owned by our dear friend Jan Hepper.
TyuTyu is their great-great grandmother. We could not be happier that TyuTyu’s bloodline is still going strong in
America.
Drawing copyright Sara Hines & Puli Club of America
Puli News - March 2020 Page 16City Girl Tries Herding
by Nancy Guagenti
I was born a city girl—Chicago to be exact. I never visited a farm, so my entire stock experience revolved around an
occasional petting zoo or pony ride. Truly, the only thing I knew was a farm rule my mother passed on: When you go
through a gate, you close it. I knew nothing about livestock, though I supposed they went through open gates.
It wasn’t until we moved to Kentucky 20 years ago that I got to know some sheep, Vern and Speck. Libbye Miller, a
new friend, had some sheep and Belgium Tervurens who were herding her small flock. She invited me out to her farm,
and I fell in love with herding. I brought three of my guys out to see what they could do. Eventually, two of the three
got HT and PT titles. The third one, Sadie, LOVED to chase the stock but didn’t really like me putting rules to her
game. Rules are an important part of herding, especially when they are mine.
After a ten-year break in herding, I have begun again. This time I have a dog with an incredible desire to herd, a desire
to please (play by my rules), and a natural ability—important traits in a herding dog. In the past, I had taken my dogs
to an instinct test. Our Puli came in the round pen, saw the sheep move, and the chase began. It was fun to watch; the
Puli was having a great time. But to be honest, this was not herding, but rather exhibiting a trait we need to begin to
herd and teach the rules.
So if my dog needs a desire to herd, a willingness to accept my rules, and a natural balance to the stock, what do I
need? Understanding of livestock is very helpful. It is in this area that this city girl is woefully behind her dog. I use
language to communicate, but all other animals use body language with each other. Bryzzo, my current herding dog,
understands the body language of the sheep and that they want to flee. He wants to keep them in place, and my
instructor wants me to move. Does that sound like possible chaos, with everyone at odds with each other? It was, but
things are getting better.
Bryzzo has learned to fetch the sheep to me. And he is now keeping them with me (remember, sheep want to flee)
when I move. We have graduated from the round pen to a 50 x 100 pen to an area 200 x 150. I am still far behind my
dog in understanding this new endeavor. He is patient with me, though he sometimes wants to play by his rules (he is a
Puli, after all) if he doesn’t think I know what we should be doing.
I have learned a bit of sheep language. Sheep go in the direction they are facing. They want to flee to a place of safety.
There is a leader sheep I need to identify. (Bryzzo knows who it is immediately.) The sheep will tell me where my dog
is if I look at their heads. Most importantly, if the sheep are with me, all is good.
For those of you who have thought about trying herding, I enthusiastically say yes. It is the hardest dog sport I have
ever tried and absolutely the most fun. Watching your dog do what he was bred to do is exciting. You may feel
overwhelmed with ever-changing situations and with all you don’t know, but trust your Puli and learn together and
have fun!
Puli News - March 2020, Page 17Pulik – Coursing with a Puli? Of course!
Reprinted from AKC Gazette March 2020
Does your Puli seem to feel the need…the need for speed? Coursing tests are based on the sport of lure coursing, and
might just be that fun activity for you and your Puli(k) to check out. The AKC officially approved the Coursing Ability
Test (CAT) in 2013 and Fast CAT in 2016. Dogs must be at least one year old to compete, and no special training or
equipment is required. During both CAT and Fast CAT, dogs run by themselves.
CAT is a noncompetitive, pass/fail event that harnesses a dog’s natural instinct to chase. A Puli chases after an artificial
lure (usually a white plastic bag) on a 600-yard long course (that is run in one direction with turns no more than 90
degrees), and the course needs to be finished in less than 2 minutes. Dogs are required to complete their course with
enthusiasm and without interruption. Dogs that pass the CAT three times will earn a Coursing Ability (CA) title. Ten
passes, and your dog earns a Coursing Ability Advanced (CAA) title, while 25 passes result in a Coursing Ability
Excellent (CAX) title.
-The only Puli that has competed in CAT is Bubbleton Levitating Bubble CAA DCAT; “Slate” is owned by Sheri
Grossman and bred by Jesper Ravn and Klaus Andersen.
Fast CAT is a timed 100-yard dash, where your dog chases a lure (again, usually a white plastic bag) in a straight line
on a flat surface. There is a 10-foot release area before the starting line. There is a 30-yard run-out at the end to allow
your dog to de-accelerate before retrieval. In a typical course the dog is released by a handler in the starting area and
retrieved after crossing the finish line by a different handler. Your dog’s recorded time is converted to miles per hour
(mph) to determine its speed. Points earned are based on the equation of mph multiplied by the dog’s ‘handicap’ (which
for a Puli measuring between 12 and 18 inches at the shoulders, would be 1.5). Your dog can earn titles after these point
levels: BCAT = 150 points; DCAT = 500 points; FCAT = 1,000 points; and FCAT# = every additional 500 points.
There are only two Pulik that have been competing in Fast CAT:
- Bubbleton Levitating Bubble CAA DCAT; “Slate”
- Mezok Oltes-Pafranyt DCAT; “Zsofia” is owned by Elizabeth Davis and bred by Diane Fields.
The fastest dog in Fast CAT in 2019 was a greyhound that ran an average of 37 mph; this is definitely a breed built for
speed. The fastest time for a Puli was “Slate” at an average of 21.23 mph, while “Zsofia” was 20.14 mph.
So, you think you might be interested in participating in this high-energy sport? There are some things you can do in
advance of entering a trial:
- Make sure that your dog is physically healthy and in good shape to run a course. This might include a trip to your
veterinarian.
- A good recall is important for you to be able to collect your dog in the CAT and helpful in Fast CAT.
-Take your dog to a practice to introduce your dog to the lure or make your own lure for practice. Attaching a white
plastic bag to a flirt pole (i.e., springing pole) is especially helpful.
For further details including regulations, check the AKC website for more information: https://www.akc.org/sports/
coursing. If you are looking for local events to watch or participate in, check the AKC Events Search page (https://
webapps.akc.org/event-search/#/search) and click on Performance to find Coursing Ability Tests and Fast CAT.
Thank you to Sheri Grossman for her assistance with this column.
-Dagmar Fertl
Puli News - March 2020 Page 18#1 All Breed National Owner Handled
(NOHS) 2019
GCHB Cordmaker Boys Will Be Boys PT NAP NJP
‘Archie’
Multiple National Owner Handled BIS 2019
Multiple Variety Group wins 2019
Owned by: Presented by Owner: Bred by:
James M Moen James M Moen Sue Huebner
Catharine Pronzini Penny Kelly
Sue Huebner Thank you to Cordmaker
Penny Kelly We are grateful for those judges who recognized Archie’s quality
Puli News - March 2020, Page 19Jumps! Tunnels! Flying Cords!
PCA hosted an AKC agility trial during 29-31 December in the Houston area, as part of a larger 6-day trial (the Conroe Agility
Training Club hosted the other 3 days). As earlier in the year (February), the show site was Dog Gone Fun Agility’s facility, which is
climate-controlled and has soccer turf. The first 2 days of the PCA-hosted trial were judged by Daniel McDonald and the last day by
Chris Baldwin. Competition classes included Jumpers with Weaves, Standard, FAST, Time to Beat, as well as Premier Standard and
Premier Jumpers. Over the course of the PCA-hosted days, an Affenpinscher finished his Master Agility Champion and a long-
coated Dachshund, her Preferred Agility Champion title; gorgeous championship rosettes with the Hungarian flag colors were
awarded.
Trial committee photo:
(left to right). Terri Burrows, Randy
McDaniel, Pam Erstling, Joe Lapine,
and Dagmar Fertl. Also pictured are the
3 Pulik that were entered - “Szabo,”
“Cash,” and “Quip.”
Three Pulik from Houston and New Orleans participated: “Szabo” run by Joe Lapine; and “Quip” and “Cash” run by Dagmar
Fertl. Qualifying scores were earned by “Szabo” and “Quip.”
A shout out of thanks to my fellow trial committee members who were present 9 AM to 2 PM each of the 3 days: Joe Lapine,
Pam Erstling, Terri Burrows, and Randy McDaniel. Both Randy and Joe even did agility with Aussies! Randy ran “Kasey” while
Joe’s teammate was “Shea;” both Aussies had some super runs.
A special thanks to Cathy Pronzini (PCA Agility Chair) for her assistance, so that this trial could take place. The Club received
many compliments on how smoothly the trial ran and how relaxed and happy the atmosphere was. PCA received a $2,000
check from the event, and this money has been earmarked for use at performance support activities at National specialties.
-Dagmar Fertl
Puli News - March 2020 Page 20More Jumps In Texas!
Another Successful Agility Trial Fundraiser
PCA hosted an AKC agility trial during 14-16 February 2020 in the Houston area. The show site again was Dog Gone Fun Agility’s
facility, which is climate-controlled and has soccer turf. Our judge was Susan Leitner, and she is very popular in the agility
community so we had lots of entries at this trial. Competition classes included Jumpers with Weaves, Standard, FAST, Time to
Beat, as well as Premier Standard and Premier Jumpers. Over the course of the event, one Australian Shepherd finished her Master
Agility Champion (her 14th!!!), and a gorgeous championship rosette with the Hungarian flag colors was awarded by the Puli Club.
Trial committee photo:
(left to right). Randy McDaniel,
Terri Burrows, Gin McDaniel,
Judge Susan Leitner, Dagmar
Fertl, and Joe Lapine.
Three Pulik from Houston and New Orleans participated: “Szabo” run by Joe Lapine; and “Quip” and “Cash” run by Dagmar Fertl.
Qualifying scores were earned by “Szabo” and “Quip.”
A shout out of thanks to my fellow Puli Club members who were present from 9 AM to 5 PM each of the 3 days: Joe Lapine, Terri
Burrows, Randy McDaniel, Susan McDaniel, and Randy McDaniel. Both Randy and Joe even did agility with Aussies! Randy ran
“Kasey” while Joe’s teammate was “Shea;” both Aussies had some super runs.
A special thanks to Cathy Pronzini (PCA Agility Chair) for her assistance, so that this trial could take place. The Club received many
compliments on how smoothly the trial ran; exhibitors were especially happy that Joe brought two king cakes with him from New
Orleans for them to enjoy. PCA received a $2,000 check from the event, and this money has been earmarked for use at performance
support activities at National specialties.
-Dagmar Fertl
New Orleans King Cakes for Exhibitors!
Puli News - March 2020, Page 21The Working Puli
by Goldie Brigante
Why is the Puli the most popular breed in Hungary? Perhaps because its temperament, with soaring moods resembles
so much the Hungarian people. It is a trait along with the coat formation so unique in dogdom, which is the subject of
much controversy among Puli fanciers.
Our memory goes back to the south edge of the Puszta, where children jealously admired and desired the Puli’s
devotion, dogs that would respond only to their Shepherd, these people who molded the Puli for over 1000 years would
not share them with the rest of the population, because they treasured this sensitive dog, and knew that it would suffer
in unfavorable environment. Modern day Puli owners may benefit from the knowledge that if the dog’s instincts are
not allowed free expression, some may become difficult to live with or even neurotic.
Often Pulis do puzzling things, they seem to have their mind made up, and know exactly what they want, this is what
we call “exasperating Puli”!
When the Puli was used by shepherds only, they were bred for traits that were useful for work. Being basically a “non-
aggressive” dog the Puli will seldom turn into a killer even of the smallest livestock. Their lively temperament coupled
with agility protects them from injury, they work with lots of noise, as they bark loudly, dart in and out, they can bluff
the biggest bull.
The herding instinct originates from the pack instinct in the wolf, and is stronger than the sex instinct, so it is easy to
understand that some herding dogs become killers, the line is indeed thin.
All sheepdogs do not work the same, some are drivers, and they do not instinctively fetch, some work fast, moving all
the time in circle, others work slow using more “eye”, some nip quietly, others bark, some breeds follow instructions,
others will not tolerate any interference.
A true dog-man (woman) will study a dog, and adopt a training technique best suited to his dog’s temperament.
If a dog comes close to being perfect, he (or she) will be: steady, trust-worthy with all livestock, show willingness to
work, loyalty to master, obedience, eagerness to learn, resistance to weather, and use all his instincts collectively. All
this may sound easy, but it truly is a tall order to have all the most desirable qualities in one dog.
Thanks to Sherry Gibson for finding this article.
Apparently it was first published in a club newsletter
approximately 50 years ago. Sherry will be featuring
more about Goldie in upcoming Puli Posts.
Copyright Sara Hines & Puli Club of America
Has your dog finished an AKC title?
Don’t forget you can brag about
your dog’s accomplishments Titles now include the certificate programs
even if they aren’t with AKC titling programs recognized by the PCA Versatile Puli program
Puli News accepts advertisements
Puli News will print information about the Title earned for free
Where you can “brag” about such accomplishments — for $10 Puli News will also print a picture of the win . So
♦ Quarter page send in your information to
♦ Half page pulinewseditor@gmail.com
♦ Full Page
(and include a scanned picture or use USPS to send the picture
to your editor; mailed photos will be returned)
See page 26 of this issue for more information If you’ve had a special win, Puli News will also print that
information for free.
Puli News - March 2020 Page 22You can also read
