Another Trip
Well sometimes things just don't go as smoothly as they should. The little kuro-tora female I picked up 2 weeks ago ended up with a hernia. It wasn't very noticeable when I picked her up, and even the vet wasn't sure. The last few days it became more obvious, so I had to make another trip to Yamanashi to take her back to her breeder. I brought back her sister, another kuro-tora. Guess I need to snap some pics of her later.
I decided to visit the KKA (Kai Ken Aigokai) office while in Yamanashi. I've never been, and though the office is extremely busy getting everything ready for the coming tenrankai, they were kind enough to let us drop in.
I got to thumb through some old photos from the first tenrankai, but didn't want to stay too long as they are very busy. The office is located in a small building, on the second floor above a milk supplier. I doubt much has been changed since they first opened the office. There is no fax, and definitely no computer. The only electronic items in the whole place are probably the telephone and a light. It's a very small place, and not much to look at, but they do have some old (and new) books in the cupboard that have to do with Kai Ken, and then there are the pictures. Will have to drop by again sometime to take another look.
This is a picture taken of the first Kai to go to the States. Ten Kai were sent to a zoo in Utah in 1950 as goodwill ambassadors.
Dropped by a gift shop on the way out as well. I read in the paper that the prefecture had a lot of small Kai Ken figurines made, and wanted to see them for myself.
I did find something interesting though. Yamanashi is famous for its grapes and wine. On display they had this wine opener made from a boar tusk. Apparently they are traditionally used to open wine bottles at celebrations, and size matters.
Yamanashi is also famous for its artisans who work with precious stones mined there. There were a lot of amazing pieces, and I figured I'd take a quick shot of this little one and have everyone guess what it's priced at. No cheating and looking at the tag! This piece is around 20 cm tall (8 inches or so?)
Of course no trip to Yamanashi is complete without dropping by kennels to look at Kai. This female is the dam of a chu-tora male I took pictures of before. Here's the link to the boy http://www.flickr.com/photos/30674599@N04/4585964718/in/set-72157623687659647/
She's 11 years old now.
Here's a few of a friend's 4 year old male. He was raised as a big game hunter, but has come back to my friend's kennel to be shown for a while.
I decided to visit the KKA (Kai Ken Aigokai) office while in Yamanashi. I've never been, and though the office is extremely busy getting everything ready for the coming tenrankai, they were kind enough to let us drop in.
I got to thumb through some old photos from the first tenrankai, but didn't want to stay too long as they are very busy. The office is located in a small building, on the second floor above a milk supplier. I doubt much has been changed since they first opened the office. There is no fax, and definitely no computer. The only electronic items in the whole place are probably the telephone and a light. It's a very small place, and not much to look at, but they do have some old (and new) books in the cupboard that have to do with Kai Ken, and then there are the pictures. Will have to drop by again sometime to take another look.
This is a picture taken of the first Kai to go to the States. Ten Kai were sent to a zoo in Utah in 1950 as goodwill ambassadors.
Dropped by a gift shop on the way out as well. I read in the paper that the prefecture had a lot of small Kai Ken figurines made, and wanted to see them for myself.
I did find something interesting though. Yamanashi is famous for its grapes and wine. On display they had this wine opener made from a boar tusk. Apparently they are traditionally used to open wine bottles at celebrations, and size matters.
Yamanashi is also famous for its artisans who work with precious stones mined there. There were a lot of amazing pieces, and I figured I'd take a quick shot of this little one and have everyone guess what it's priced at. No cheating and looking at the tag! This piece is around 20 cm tall (8 inches or so?)
Of course no trip to Yamanashi is complete without dropping by kennels to look at Kai. This female is the dam of a chu-tora male I took pictures of before. Here's the link to the boy http://www.flickr.com/photos/30674599@N04/4585964718/in/set-72157623687659647/
She's 11 years old now.
Here's a few of a friend's 4 year old male. He was raised as a big game hunter, but has come back to my friend's kennel to be shown for a while.
Comments
I shudder to think about how expensive that art piece may be. I'm guessing in the neighborhood of $10,000 USD.
Both of those Kai are really great looking. That female is stunning though. I've never seen a head quite like hers.
Thanks for the spam!
I have no clue on the art piece price. I don't even know the stone it's made from.
It's interesting to see in one post the contrast in head styles. In terms of just the head, would one fare better in shows over the other, or are the different styles equally accepted?
@ayk - It is said that the Kai Ken is one of the few dog breeds that show sexual dimorphism; females tend to be smaller and with a more feminine (narrow) head shape, while males are larger with a more masculine (blocky) head shape.
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As to the statue, I think it's a type of glass, not a stone. Doesn't look like opal or quartz. My guess is $2,000 USD.
The KKA decided to stop showing in Nippo because they felt that the breed should be preserved as it was. So what you have is no single type, and a lot of variation in size (40cm-50cm). The size standard applies equally to males and females. A lot of what goes on in the ring is based on which judge is there. The judges are all Yamanashi locals, and all come from a single factional group.
Breeders tend to find and breed the type they prefer.
Regardless, all Kai are originally KKA Kai, JKC and Nippo Kai are just being bred more toward their respective standards. You can register KKA with Nippo, but not with JKC. So all JKC Kai are originally Nippo Kai. It's just one big mumble jumble which ends up equaling numerous types and standards in the breed, all under the same 'Kai' banner. I stick with KKA because they have by far the largest gene pool, and from what I understand, the least health issues.
As for the statue I have no idea, but I can guess ofcourse. Around 5000 euro?
Sounds like a nice trip. What in the world is that little statue made of???
The 11 year old female is amazing. She definitely still looks quite spritely!
The top pic of the male, reminds me of MayMay- in color and fluff level.
The bottom pic of the male lunging on leash is oh so familiar a pose to me... sigh.
@tjbart17 I've got a lot of Kai lunge pictures... Haru knows she's not supposed to, so she does this lunge and then look back at me with her ears down thing. It's kind of funny, but weird. She's a very soft dog, and any sort of correction she tends to overreact to.
The best color of dogs!