MODERN BASENJI WORLDWIDE 2013
Breeder Interview - Brenda Cassell (Signet Basenjis)
How long have you been involved in the breed?
My family purchased our first basenji , a red/white bitch named Simba Bantu Vixen, in the summer of 1972. I remember as a child, coming home from our summer vacation in Montana, to find Simba in our kennel run to replace an old beagle of my step fathers that had passed. Shortly thereafter my step father, John Stonbraker who was a Denver Parks Police officer, met a couple walking a handsome red male in one of the parks where he was assigned. Jack and Jean Theno were involved in conformation and had a handler that showed for them. They befriended our family and encouraged us to breed to their male Kai’s Gallant Warrior and introduced us to Earl and Diane Laue of the Tamarango kennel.
Not satisfied with the quality of puppies produced thus far, we became aware of a red male Pharaoh Saite Necho that was for sale in the Denver Post and went to visit him. Warned not to buy a dog from this particular back yard breeder, my parents were enamored of Pharaoh even after my mother was bit in an unprovoked fashion by one of the basenjis in this breeder’s household, and he was purchased and came home with us. He was a wonderful dog and would sleep with me and my sister at night and cuddle with us when we watched television. We bred Simba to Pharaoh and got a decent puppy, Pharaoh’s Little Big Man, that we sold on co-ownership and I began to show in the conformation ring and juniors.
Our third addition in the mid 70’s was a tri color female Beco’s Molly Meomi who was given to us by owners who no longer wanted her.
We subscribed to The Basenji magazine in about 1976 and began to really study the breed. It quickly became apparent that the Khajah line was a dominating force in the US at the time and we dreamed of owning a leggy, elegant show dog from Shirley Chambers’ famous kennel. We made contact and were sent pedigree’s and photos and selected a puppy out of Ch. Khajah’s Gay Excelsior, who sadly broke his leg in an accident in the backyard. Shirley replaced Sam with another young male, Khajah’s Written on the Wind (Windy) with whom we began to experience some success in the show ring.
We then contacted June Young in California and purchased another young female who was pointed but not yet finished, named Changa’s Honeykissed. My step father chauffeured me around Colorado and Wyoming while I showed and finished both to their bench championships including piloting Windy to a Best of Breed win in Nebraska over the famous Ch. Shadowbye’s Mitty who was at the peak of his incredible career. These two beautiful dogs were meant to be the foundation of our own breeding program until my parents divorced in 1979 and I graduated high school, married and moved to Casper, Wyoming in 1980 taking the tri bitch, Molly as a companion. Both Windy and Honey were returned to their perspective breeders.
My husband Davis and I moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma with my young daughter Shea where I attended a show in the fall and saw a stunning red male that reminded me of my beloved Windy. It was then that I met Erin Roberts and complimented her on the lovely Khamsin Special Blend. As fate would have it this dog became mine when we later moved to Oklahoma City and went to the Roberts’ home to look at a basenji for sale and discovered ‘Bacca’ was the same dog that caught my eye at the show a year earlier. Through Erin I met another great friend, Michelle Carter, who had bought a tri bitch Khamsin Dazzling Kobe Kabu about the same time I had purchased ‘Bacca. We had many good times together travelling the Oklahoma countryside showing our dogs and dreaming of breeding a top competitor.
Please share some stories that highlight the accomplishments (breeding, conformation, etc.) you’re most proud of and why.
Again there are so many it is hard to shave it down. Certainly winning the National Specialty with Sweet William at the age of 7 was a highlight for me as was his Top Hound Producer award. Attending my first Canadian National and cleaning up with WD, RWD, WB, RWB, BOW, BOB and Best Puppy was certainly a moment of great pride. We also won a BIS Hound Puppy that trip over a huge quality entry. My first BIS has been a long time coming. Winning with BIS/BISS Ch. Signet Meisterhaus Gossip Girl was a bittersweet goal coupled with the fact that I was already long disillusioned with the show scene and on my way out of heavy competition. I have been fortunate to have another amazing top Hound producer, Ch. Signet Hillbilly Rock Star. I do not keep track of my wins and accomplishments. They are only committed to my memory. I have no idea how many champions I have produced under the Signet prefix, nor co-bred.
Please tell us how you decided on your kennel prefix?
I was browsing an Avon catalog with Erin Roberts, Michelle Carter and Linda Brown who owned Ch. Falisha’s Night Odysey, when I saw the Signet fragrance. I like the idea that a signet was a mark of distinction on royal documents. It embodied where I wanted my breeding program to go and how I hoped it would be perceived.
What advice would you offer to a new breeder just starting in the breed?
Study the standard. Study dogs of all breeds ringside. Watch videos of old dog shows, especially National Specialties.
Find a mentor, or two. Learn about conformation and movement. Form follows function.
Next buy the best bitch you can find.
Never breed to your own male until you develop a line several generations deep.
Choose the BEST dog for your bitch, regardless of what others think of your choice or your relationship with the stud dog owner.
Use health testing as the tool it was meant to be….it is not the deciding factor for everything.
Buy a second bitch that is better than the first. It is always good to have a backup plan.
Be honest in your dealings with your peers and your puppy buyers.
