Terra Presa

12/25/2025

12/01/2025

Recently, the United Kennel Club brought back their Super Dog program.
In the past, Super Dog was an unofficial title given to dogs who had earned titles in conformation, obedience, rally obedience, agility and weight pull. The majority of those dogs were American Pit Bull Terriers and various other breeds made up the rest.
To my knowledge there had not been a Presa Canario to achieve the distinction, until today!

Ronin is officially UKC’s first Super Dog Presa!
A combination of titles in six different sports and many weekends travelled, he’s earned something I had hoped would be brought back to UKC.
Additionally he is the first Presa to earn the United Rally Obedience Championship(UROC)! Mostly perfect scores this weekend with only a few deductions for his sass and a High Combined award for highest score in Rally 2 and 3

My boy, my star. You always manage to shine bright and bring joy wherever you go. I couldn’t be more proud of you

Super Dog / Triple Champion
NN AC USJ UCD UROC AP3 VPE UWPS UWPCHX SD MBIOS MRBIS BIS RGCH Guardian Del Sol de Terra Presa CM2 DSA DJ AJ HDN BN RN BCAT CA CGCU IDWPN SPOT-ON Total Dog x16

10/20/2025

United Kennel Club Total Dog Invitational Qualifiers

My “Total Dogs”

Ronin, the dog I will aspire to see in every new generation and Rubicon, the daughter who will help me with that goal

Versatile, competitive, excellence

NN AC USJ UCD URO3 AP3 VPE UWPS UWPCHX MBIOS MRBIS BIS RGCH Guardian Del Sol de Terra Presa CM2 DSA DJ AJ HDN BN RN BCAT CA CGCU IDWPN SPOT-ON Total Dog x16

AP VPN UWP BIS GRCH La Canari Guardiana of Proper K9 SPOT-ON Total Dog

📸

08/28/2025

Sour Patch Kid aka The B**b is now fully health tested! Bones microwaved, eyes poked, heart prodded and dna decoded from Simlish to English

PennHIP .34/.35
OFA Hips Good
OFA Elbows Normal
Echocardiogram Normal
Eyes Normal
Clear of all testable diseases

AP VPN UWP BIS GRCH La Canari Guardiana of Proper K9 SPOT-ON

Now to wait for little booblets next year!l

08/15/2025

Health testing and the Presa Canario Part 1

Let’s start with what health testing is:

Having your dog examined by veterinarians who specialize in different fields of medicine, depending on the test. Passing or failing is subjective based on breed and the individual breeder’s guidelines for preferences. Certain grades are obvious pass/fail but there can be a grey area in between.
The Orthopedic Foundation for Animals has a grading system for different conditions. I will link those below in the comments

For the Presa Canario, they have four core tests that should be evaluated for each breeding parent

Hips
This is designed to evaluate the fit of the femoral head into the hip socket and the laxity(looseness/tightness) of the whole joint. OFA has radiological specialists who grade the fit of the femoral head, arthritic changes and other conditions and PennHIP has a quantitative measurement that calculates the laxity and any presence of arthritis

Elbows
Dogs naturally carry up to 60% of their body mass on their front end. Having a healthy, correctly formed elbow joint is a necessity. OFA radiologists examine a dog’s elbow to determine if they are normal, have any development of arthritis or other conditions that can affect the dog’s soundness as it ages. OFA requires dogs to be a minimum of 24 months for dogs to receive official grades

Eyes
Presa Canarios have a few genetic eye conditions that can lead to different levels of vision loss. Progressive Retinal Atrophy(PRA) and Canine Multifocal Retinopathy 1(CMR1) are the two major diseases the breed can develop. Each parent would have to pass on a copy of the gene for a puppy to be affected.
Some dogs are “carriers” of the disease, meaning they have the ability to pass on the same single copy of a certain condition but neither they or their offspring will be affected if the other parent does not have an additional copy.
CMR1 is a disease that if a dog isn’t affected with two copies and only has one, it can still have some symptoms but to a lesser degree. Both a genetic panel and OFA CAER exam should be performed

Heart
Being a large breed dog, correct cardiac function is non negotiable. In order for a dog to have an official certificate with OFA, the heart can be evaluated via auscultation with a regular practitioner vet and advanced testing, like an echocardiogram, by a board certified cardiologist

Lastly, a basic genetic panel should be performed to identify carrier statues of PRA, CMR1 and Degenerative Myelopathy at a minimum.

07/14/2025

Title #40 is complete!

30 hours worth of driving, 4 days roasting in the sun and one immensely tired Ronin later, we are home! The love I have for this dog is beyond measure. He is all try, maybe a little back talk but NEVER quits

Guardian of the Dunitorns, lover of butt scratches, protector of his home and human, brindle Swiss Army knife, the ultimate badass at all the things, the one and only

NN AC UWPS USJ AP3 VPA UCD URO3 UWPCHX MBIOS MRBIS BIS RGCH Guardian Del Sol de Terra Presa CM2 DSA DJ AJ HDN BN RN BCAT CA CGCU IDWPN SPOT-ON Total Dog x16

New:

Air Junior
Advanced Puller 3
Versatile Puller Advanced
United Weight Pull Outstanding
United Weight Pull Supreme
Ruby Grand Champion
Total Dog Invitational qualified

06/12/2025

This can apply to the Presa breed in many ways

AKC recognition could be disastrous to the breed in that it gives way for the already prevalent issue of unscrupulous breeding practices.

While I show and compete in akc events, I do not do it with the intention of achieving full recognition, I do it because I love showcasing the versatility of my dogs and my beloved breed. Any breeder worth their salt should be competing in events with the goal of creating ethical breeding practices, consistency and accountability.

AKC Recognition should not be the goal, but a natural outcome along the way for the growth & preservation of a rare breed.

The Drentsche Patrijshond is an FSS breed; meaning, our pedigrees are recorded by AKC and the breed is allowed to compete in many AKC events/sports, but the breed is not yet "fully" recognized in the AKC system and thus can't participate in certain venues like all-breed shows, field trials, etc.

It's not uncommon for folks involved in FSS breeds to make AKC recognition their holy grail, and that seems strange to me. Besides some additional showing opportunities and increased visibility of the breed in the US, full AKC recognition doesn't really offer much. And when you have a small-population rare breed that has only a handful of dogs showing and only a handful of breeders producing puppies, what's the point of those two benefits, anyway?

There is a very understandable desire among folks who are passionate about their breed to see them recognized on the same plane as more common breeds. There can be a weird attitude from other purebred enthusiasts that breeds that aren't recognized are somehow "less than" those that are, or that more breeds achieving full recognition is somehow detrimental to those who have long been. And that can be understandably frustrating to those of us who have breeds that, while rare, often have long and storied histories, and wonderful qualities that make them worth stewarding into the future.

But by rushing to full recognition before a breed is ready, are we not in some way proving these naysayers right? If a breed achieves full recognition but then is rarely if ever seen at all-breed shows or other events, and when they are, the consistency & quality of dogs isn't there, is the mantle of "full recognition" really meaningful at all?

It's no secret that I'm an advocate for the Drentsche Patrijshond eventually achieving full recognition with AKC. But for me, I want to see a thriving, sustainable community built on passion for the breed, not one laser-focused on the AKC goalpost. When that milestone is passed, I want it to be just that, a milestone, not the end-goal.

I want Drent owners showing their dogs in conformation & sports & tests & events because they love doing it with these talented dogs, not because we need a certain amount of competitors for AKC to recognize the breed. I want breeders who are growing the breed population thoughtfully, sustainably, and collaboratively with the goal of preservation, not to meet a certain number of registrations for AKC's benefit. I want a community of owners - exhibitors, breeders, and those with "just pets" - that is thriving and enjoyable and supportive of all levels of involvement in the breed, not just a clique of those who are involved in "AKC stuff" running the show.

I don't want Drents to be the next Golden Retriever or Lab or Frenchie. I want them to be Drents, preserved for their uniqueness and history, thriving and sustainable into the future. If we achieve AKC recognition along the way? Awesome. But that'll just be a bonus.

I encourage other folks involved in FSS breeds to consider - what's the rush towards recognition? What does full AKC recognition offer your breed, truly? When your breed achieves full recognition, will they have the numbers and the quality to take advantage of the benefits of participating at all-breed shows? Do you have enough responsible breeders to meet a potentially increased demand for puppies? Most importantly, do you have a broad enough base to sustain your breed not just through recognition, but generations into the future?

06/03/2025

New United Weight Pull Champion Excellent!

Ol’ Reliable at it again with title #38 in the books!

NN AC UWPV USJ AP2 VPN UCD URO3 UWPCHX MBIOS MRBIS BIS EGCH Guardian Del Sol de Terra Presa CM2 DSA HDN DJ BN RN BCAT CA CGCU IDWPN SPOT-ON

05/01/2025

When Ronin finds out it’s not Friday yet 👿

04/27/2025

What a weekend, what a dog

AKC hasn’t been a focus and the CM has been something we’ve worked toward on and off the last few years. Enter when we could, do other things in the meantime

Travelled to Tulsa, which is a short trip compared to other clusters we’ve gone to with the hopes of Ronin finishing.
Well he did not miss the memo and took Best in Open Show first thing Friday morning. Accompanied by his kiddo, rubicon, they have made friends and educated the masses on correctly structured and tempered presas. We’ve gotten many questions, compliments and opportunities for conversation regarding the breed. It is my hope that one day the world can see the true versatility, power and trainability that is a Presa Canario.

A fun weekend for the books and now off to another adventure!

USJ UCD URO3 NN AP VPN UWPV UWPCH MBIOS MRBIS BIS EGCH
Guardian Del Sol de Terra Presa
CM BN RN DSA DJ HDN CA BCAT IDWPN CGCU SPOT