Näiltä sivuilta löydät yleistä tietoa kainkoira (ent. kai) rodusta ja omista koiristani. Sivuilta voit myös lukea kasvattieni kuulumisia.
Aluksi voisin kertoa hieman itsestäni ja siitä mistä kaikki lähti. Olen Mertasen Mirka ja asun nykyisin koirieni kanssa Saksassa. Kotoisin olen Kiuruvedeltä Pohjois-Savosta. Eläimet ovat kuuluneet elämääni vauvasta asti; kiitos äitini. Kissoja meillä on ollut koko elämäni ajan ja koirat tulivat mukaan perheeseen, kun olin noin kymmenen vuotias. Vuonna 1998 perheeseemme muutti englanninspringerspanieli Doni ja vuonna 2000 sain sitten ihka oman koiran, kun sain syntymäpäivälahjaksi Donin pennun Mistyn (Donahuen Bonnie). Misty ei ollut mikään helppo tapaus murkkuiässä, mutta yksi maailman helpoiten koulutettavista koirista kyllä ja murkkuiän mentyä ohitse oikea jokaisen likan unelmakoira. Mistyn kanssa käytiin muutaman kerran näyttelyssä, mutta siihempä se harrastus sitten jäikin.
Vuonna 2003 perheeseemme muutti schipperke narttu Hani ja sen kanssa totaalisesti hurahdin koiranäyttelyihin. Schipperkeissä on se huono puoli, että tahtoovat hurmata luonteeltaan ja niitä haluaa toisen ja sitten kolmannen jne. :D. Noh, kotoa sipukoita löytyy tällä hetkellä neljä. Hanin lisäksi on Pepe, Kiti ja Hilu. Kitistä omistan osan, mutta se asuu pysyvästi äidilläni. Mistyn jouduttiin lopettamaan vuonna 2006 ja sen jälkeen haave ihka omasta koirasta kyti pikkuhiljaa. Halusin yleisesti terveen rodun ja suunnilleen springerin kokoisen. Eri rotuja mietin ja tutkiskelin. Sitten kohdalleni osui kai :).
Kiinnoistuin tästä japanilaisesta alkuperäisrodusta saatuani joululahjaksi koirakirjan, jossa oli kain rotumääritelmä ja kuva rodusta. Siitäpä alkoikin sitten intensiivinen tiedon etsiminen rodusta internetin ihmeellisestä maailmasta. Silloin tietoa löytyi todella vähän ja päätinkin haudata idean joksikin aikaa, kuitenkin aina silloin tällöin etsien innokkaana lisätietoja tästä suht harvinaisesta rodusta. Totta kai listalla oli myös muitakin rotuja ja osaan kävin näyttelyissäkin tutustumassa, mutta mikään niistä ei "iskenyt" kuten kai.
Alkuvuodesta 2007 kirjoitin sitten Ifen kasvattajalle Marianille kysellen hieman kaista ja hänen koiristaan. Kirjotin myös muutamalla muulle kasvattajalle, mutta lopulta päätin varata pennun Marianilta. Koko vuosi 2008 jännättiin josko pentuja syntyisi ja joulun aikaan sain sitten iloviestin rapakon takaa. Oli syntynyt kaksi narttu pentua ja toinen oli varattuna minulle, jos vain siis edelleen halusin sen. No totta kai halusin! Varmasti paras joululahja tähän mennessä, vaikka tulikin muutaman päivän myöhässä. Nyt piti vain odottaa sitten neljä kuukautta ennen kuin saisin hauvan kokonaan itselleni. Ja ne olivatkin pitkät neljä kuukautta! Mutta odottamisen arvoiset. Kuukaudet menivät suunnitellessa koiran haku matkaa. Tietenkin piti hoitaa pennulle myös tarvittavat asiakirjat, rokotukset ja varata lento. Pääsiäisenä 2009 kävin noutamassa tämän kauniin tyttösen koto-Suomeen.
Helmikuussa 2011 laumaamme saapui sitten mies vahvistusta toiselta puolelta maailmaa. Nuuk lensi pitkän matkan luoksemme Yakushima saarelta Japanista. Nuukin saapuessa Suomeen pakkasta oli lähemmäs -35 celsiusta, mutta poikahan ei ollut lumesta eikä kylmyydestä moksiskaan vaan hurmasi lentokentällä jo kaikki vastaantulijat. Nuuk on osottautunut erittäin mukavaksi ja avoimeksi kaiksi. Elämästäni Ifen ja Nuukin kanssa voit lukea lisää "Elämää kain kanssa"-sivulta. Kennelnimen Gekkoo No sain kesäkuussa 2011. Gekkoo No on japania ja tarkoittaa kuun valon.
Olen suorittanut kasvattajan peruskurssin vuonna 2010 ja jatkokurssin vuonna 2012. Lisäksi olen ollut perustamassa Suomen Nihonken ry:tä ja toiminut yhdistyksen sihteerinä ja jäsensihteerinä.
PS. Kuvia ei anneta virtuaalikenneleiden käyttöön!
Päivityksiä:
26.02 Pentuesuunnitelmat /Litter plans
These pages provide you with general Kai breed information as well as details on my own dogs. News on Kais bred by me is also included.
But first, let me introduce myself and how everything got started. My name is Mirka Mertanen and I currently live in Bielefeld, a city in Nordrhein Westwalen in Germany. Thanks to my mother, animals have been part of my life since the day I was born. We have always had cats and dogs came into the picture when I was about ten. I first started taking an interest in dog activities and events when we had two English Springer Spaniels, Doni and Misty. Misty (Donahuen Bonnie) was my very first dog. I learned a lot from her and we experienced a great deal together – I even took her to a couple of dog shows. Sadly, Misty developed cancer and we had to let her go when she was just six years of age.
In 2003, a female Schipperke called Hani joined our family, and she infected me with the dog show bug. The Schipperke has one problem – their charming nature tends to win you over and you find yourself wanting another one, then another, and so on. To illustrate the point – my parents currently have four Schips. :D As well as Hani, there are Pepe, Kiti, and Hilu. Kiti is partly owned by me, but she lives with my mother. After we lost Misty, my dream of having my own dog kept simmering. I wanted a dog that was of a healthy breed and around the size of a Springer Spaniel. I looked into all kinds of breeds, and then I discovered the Kai :)
I became fascinated with this native Japanese breed in 2005 when I got a book on dog breeds for Christmas. The book included the Kai breed standard and a picture of a Kai, and my interest was sparked. I looked for more information on the Internet, but there was little to be found in those days so I decided to leave the idea alone for a while. Nevertheless, I found myself occasionally looking for more information on this relatively rare breed.
Year later, I wrote to Ife’s breeder Marian, wanting to know more about the Kai and her dogs. I also contacted other breeders, but in the end decided to reserve a puppy from Marian. I spent the whole of 2008 in a state of anticipation wondering whether any puppies would be born. Finally around Christmas I heard the happy news: two female puppies had been born, one of which was reserved for me, should I still want one. Of course I did! Although the news arrived a few days after Christmas, it was the best Christmas present ever. I then had to wait for four painstakingly long months for my puppy. But it was all worth the wait. I kept myself busy by making travel arrangements for bringing my new puppy home. I also arranged the necessary documents and vaccinations for the puppy and booked the flights. And then, during Easter in 2009, I fetched my beautiful baby girl home to Finland.
In February 2011, our pack grew with a male dog from the other side of the world. Nuuk flew all the way from Japan’s Yakushima Island to us in Finland. The temperature was nearly -35 °C (-31 °F) the day Nuuk arrived but he was unfazed by the cold weather and snow, charming everyone he met at the airport. Nuuk has turned out to be a wonderful Kai with an open disposition. You can read all about my life with Ife and Nuuk from the “Living with the Kai” page. My breeder name Gekkoo No was registered in June 2011. Gekkoo No is Japanese and means “Moonlight’s” in English.
Note! The use of any images by virtual kennels is strictly forbidden.
But first, let me introduce myself and how everything got started. My name is Mirka Mertanen and I currently live in Bielefeld, a city in Nordrhein Westwalen in Germany. Thanks to my mother, animals have been part of my life since the day I was born. We have always had cats and dogs came into the picture when I was about ten. I first started taking an interest in dog activities and events when we had two English Springer Spaniels, Doni and Misty. Misty (Donahuen Bonnie) was my very first dog. I learned a lot from her and we experienced a great deal together – I even took her to a couple of dog shows. Sadly, Misty developed cancer and we had to let her go when she was just six years of age.
In 2003, a female Schipperke called Hani joined our family, and she infected me with the dog show bug. The Schipperke has one problem – their charming nature tends to win you over and you find yourself wanting another one, then another, and so on. To illustrate the point – my parents currently have four Schips. :D As well as Hani, there are Pepe, Kiti, and Hilu. Kiti is partly owned by me, but she lives with my mother. After we lost Misty, my dream of having my own dog kept simmering. I wanted a dog that was of a healthy breed and around the size of a Springer Spaniel. I looked into all kinds of breeds, and then I discovered the Kai :)
I became fascinated with this native Japanese breed in 2005 when I got a book on dog breeds for Christmas. The book included the Kai breed standard and a picture of a Kai, and my interest was sparked. I looked for more information on the Internet, but there was little to be found in those days so I decided to leave the idea alone for a while. Nevertheless, I found myself occasionally looking for more information on this relatively rare breed.
Year later, I wrote to Ife’s breeder Marian, wanting to know more about the Kai and her dogs. I also contacted other breeders, but in the end decided to reserve a puppy from Marian. I spent the whole of 2008 in a state of anticipation wondering whether any puppies would be born. Finally around Christmas I heard the happy news: two female puppies had been born, one of which was reserved for me, should I still want one. Of course I did! Although the news arrived a few days after Christmas, it was the best Christmas present ever. I then had to wait for four painstakingly long months for my puppy. But it was all worth the wait. I kept myself busy by making travel arrangements for bringing my new puppy home. I also arranged the necessary documents and vaccinations for the puppy and booked the flights. And then, during Easter in 2009, I fetched my beautiful baby girl home to Finland.
In February 2011, our pack grew with a male dog from the other side of the world. Nuuk flew all the way from Japan’s Yakushima Island to us in Finland. The temperature was nearly -35 °C (-31 °F) the day Nuuk arrived but he was unfazed by the cold weather and snow, charming everyone he met at the airport. Nuuk has turned out to be a wonderful Kai with an open disposition. You can read all about my life with Ife and Nuuk from the “Living with the Kai” page. My breeder name Gekkoo No was registered in June 2011. Gekkoo No is Japanese and means “Moonlight’s” in English.
Note! The use of any images by virtual kennels is strictly forbidden.