The History of Eta Pauptit and the VDOM Afghan Hounds
Eta Pauptit was for sure a survivor, but lost her battle with death on January 16, 2008 at the age of 94. Her contributions to the Afghan Hound breed were enormous. She created her line of Oranje Manege Afghans guided by her image of the ideal Ghazni (mountain type) and her knowledge of anatomy and movement. Her Afghans were making history long before World War II. They survived incredible hardships during the war, and were instrumental in imposing and preserving the high quality of the breed in Europe during the following 25 years of peace.
Eta was fiercely independent, with a sharp inquisitive mind and fantastic memory that served her well when she wrote a book of her memories in Dutch, German and English a few years ago. Profits from the sales have been donated to animal rescue in Europe and in America. Her love for animals was apparent at an early age, and she became an accomplished horse woman by the age of 16.
She wrote that when she attended a dog show she "saw a pair of Afghans with a most beautiful gait and fell in love instantly"...they were among the first imports to Holland from England in 1928 and were both sired by SIRDAR OF GHAZNI . Sirdar was imported from Afghanistan to England by Mrs. Mary Amps.
Eta was fiercely independent, with a sharp inquisitive mind and fantastic memory that served her well when she wrote a book of her memories in Dutch, German and English a few years ago. Profits from the sales have been donated to animal rescue in Europe and in America. Her love for animals was apparent at an early age, and she became an accomplished horse woman by the age of 16.
She wrote that when she attended a dog show she "saw a pair of Afghans with a most beautiful gait and fell in love instantly"...they were among the first imports to Holland from England in 1928 and were both sired by SIRDAR OF GHAZNI . Sirdar was imported from Afghanistan to England by Mrs. Mary Amps.
Eta waited for over a year for a puppy and in 1930 BARUKHZY'S KHAN was born. His litter was the second Afghan Hound litter born in Holland and was the first “mountain-type” or Ghazni litter. His grand-sire on both sides was Sirdar. Khan finished his Dutch championship in l933 and was the fifth Afghan Hound champion in Holland. He was to become the founding sire of the vdOM Afghan Hounds.
In 1934 Eta designed and founded her riding academy, the “Oranje Manege”. It flourished and accommodated about fifty horses, occasionally boarding horses for the royal family in summertime. In later years it was filled with Eta’s horses all year round. She was an active member of the Dutch Riding Team. Horses she owned and trained were successful at horse shows and cross-country expositions. Her favorite way to relax was to ride on the beach and take her dogs along with her.
In 1934 Eta designed and founded her riding academy, the “Oranje Manege”. It flourished and accommodated about fifty horses, occasionally boarding horses for the royal family in summertime. In later years it was filled with Eta’s horses all year round. She was an active member of the Dutch Riding Team. Horses she owned and trained were successful at horse shows and cross-country expositions. Her favorite way to relax was to ride on the beach and take her dogs along with her.
When Khan was six years old Eta researched all available pedigrees and breeders and imported ARUNA OF ENRIALLIC to breed to him. Aruna arrived on a boat from Ireland and was selected from her litter for her refined elegant head and dark eyes. She was mostly Ghazni, with a touch of Bell-Murray in her pedigree. She was the first black and tan and the twelfth Afghan Hound import into Holland.
Eta’s kennel name “van de Oranje Manage” was taken from her riding academy. Her first litter of pups from Khan and Aruna was born in l938. Two of this litter finished their championships…a male ACHMED SJACH vdOM and a female, Nasir vdOM. Aruna finished her Dutch championship in l939. Her breeding to Khan was repeated in l942.
In 1940 Holland was bombed and invaded...Eta's riding school was seized and became a German frontier post. Her family was allowed to stay in a temporary shelter in the stable yard and she even dared to breed two litters in l942. Her horses were confiscated and her family was soon ordered out. For survival's sake she and a close friend traveled with everything they could save (two horses, goats and seven Afghans) to a small village in the north of Holland. They lived day to day and were grateful to be near a local slaughterhouse where they could obtain leftovers for themselves and the dogs. At night Eta spun Afghan hair by candlelight and traded yarn for food.
She was bombed out seven times and lost almost all of her old documents and photos, but never lost her determination to expand her breeding program. Aided by many friends she was able to place her young dogs in several different homes with hopes of avoiding war violence and infections that would destroy her building pedigrees.
During and following World War II, Afghan Hounds suffered along with their masters in Holland from lack of food, illness, and many other problems. Breeding opportunities were very limited, but in spite of this Eta decided she must have a new Afghan to strengthen her line. Although it was almost impossible to bring dogs over the frontiers to Holland, Eta had a friend in Belgium who was able to obtain two bitch puppies from a litter out of Nahdia of Pushtikuh (a bitch that Eta had seen and admired in Luxembourg) and who was a daughter of the beautiful MARIKA OF BABERBAGH.
Her friend managed to get both puppies from France to Belgium. Late one night he smuggled one of them in a row-boat into the province of Limburg. His maid then delivered her to Eta...thus RASHNA DU CHATEAU DES ROCHES arrived in Holland.
Eta bred Rashna to Ch. Achmed Sjack vdOM and to Barukhzy’s Dhrstadyumna, and those two litters produced CH NEREUS VDOM and CH. XENOS VDOM.
Xenos was not only one of Eta’s great dogs in Holland, but when he was exported as an adult to Sweden he became one of the great foundation sires in Scandinavia. Before he went to Sweden he traveled to many foreign shows with Eta, and they could only travel by train. Trains were very crowded after the war, and on one trip from France Eta had difficulty finding space for her two Afghans. She tells the following story: “…the bitch slept in my lap the whole night, and for Xenos I found a spot high up in the luggage rack. He slept on a blanket with his back to the wall, his four legs sticking out and one of his ears hanging over. I never saw so many people lining up in the corridor to look at the white dog sleeping the whole night in the luggage rack”...”it was a credit to his eastern character”.
|
Xenos was only five generations from Sirdar. He was an ivory-colored domino at birth, with a darker golden saddle, and he had beautiful dark eyes. A prominent Finnish judge described him in a critique as follows: “a very aristocratic dog, noble strong head and dark eyes, magnificent neck, good shoulders, correct back and croup, very nobly built, elegant and sound, excellent gait, good coat, and what more can one ask for?” Xenos children were exported from Holland and Sweden to South America, Australia, England and the United States.
After the war ended Eta wrote that she “was left with nothing but a pack of young sturdy healthy loving animals”…and the determination to survive and continue to develop a line that would exemplify her image of the standard. She was given blankets and a few clothes, and then went to the underground organization in which she had been active all thru the war shepherding allied pilots from place to place on their way back home. She located a small house and large barn and lived there until 1954. She was “grateful to be free and still alive” and rode her horse again at the first Royal Festival in l945.
Eta considered five Afghans as her foundation stock…she started with Khan and Aruna and then added Rashna. She found her next important male at the first dog show in Brussels after the war, and relates: “...he was entered there as a Saluki, but under his short, badly kept and dirty coat I considered him a really beautiful Afghan and that was proved by his offspring…from that show I took him home…I wanted to see what was in the creature that walked so proud and sure of himself”. She learned that he had been deserted by an army officer who could not return home with him. She called him CHOTA. . At his first show he was Best of Breed. Chota was judged at the Brussels show by the well-known dog authority Toepoel (who wrote the dog encyclopedia that is still being reprinted). Toepoel judged Chota as an Afghan Hound, thought he was very well built and showed great promise as a stud dog. Chota’s litter from Koula vdOM produced champions that were very valuable in Eta’s breeding program: PAMPARO vdOM, PEPITA VDOM, TARANTELLA VDOM and Pythia vdOM . Pythia was the dam of Ophaal. Eta stated that Chota later grew a heavy beautiful coat and won Best of Breed at many International shows.
Eta considered REX to be her fifth foundation sire. He was brought to Italy from Afghanistan by the Italian ambassador, and his owner also had a Xenos puppy. In l964 Eta travelled with her best Bitch VICTORIA VDOM to Rex in Italy. She had stated that Rex was really “kingly” and “deserved her finest bitch.” Eta’s trip to Italy resulted in a litter of five puppies…and of them (PEGGY) was the foundation bitch for the El Kharaman kennels in Holland.
Peggy was bred to one of Eta’s top sires, BHAKKAR’S DUDEL and produced TOPPER and AFGHANI , both well-known in Europe for their racing abilities. Afghani was European Racing champion in l970. Topper won his racing title and sired a litter for El Kharaman Kennels before he was exported to Australia. KARLA VDOM (a Xingu daughter out of JUNO VDOM) later produced two Multi-Best in Show winners for El Kharaman, GLENDA and GOUCHO.
Eta Pauptit was the only breeder in Holland whose Afghan Hounds won the much desired UICL Championship “FOR BEAUTY AND RACING ABILITY”. Up until 1970 approximately 80 percent of these championships were awarded to sighthounds in all of the UiCL member countries….four of them were won by Eta’s Afghan Hounds and one by a Whippet. It is very difficult to win this championship, as the dog must win in top competition at conformation shows as well as at the races.
Eta tried several other breeding combinations, but after one or two generations abandoned those lines and they are not found in later pedigrees. The five Afghans that she actually based her breeding program on were chosen by her for their genetic balance and enabled Eta to produce her image of the Afghan Hound as called for in the standard. The influence of those five dogs can still be seen in modern vdOM pedigrees.
During Eta’s 33 years as an Afghan Hound breeder Eta bred a total of 65 litters. She loved to combine exhibiting and racing, and when asked why this was so important to her she stated: “for me that is the true afghan, and most in accordance with his purpose. He should be able to survive without the help of humans and to be able to look after himself by hunting. He must be built anatomically correct, otherwise he can not hunt well. I bred very clearly for this purpose and always raced my Afghans even when I was showing them.”
In the following years her Afghans were winners in the show rings and their offspring were instrumental in founding some of the top Afghan kennels in Europe and other parts of the world. She bred, finished and then shared some of her finest champions that became foundation stock for breeders in Europe, Scandinavia, Australia, South Africa and America.
BADIN VDOM was one of her biggest show winners. Eta kept him until he was five years old and had won his Dutch, German, Luxembourg and International championships…a unique list of honors never before won by any Afghan! Badin was later joined in Australia by NED. & INT. CH. KOEM VDOM and RACING CH. TOPPER and those three dogs and combinations of their progeny produced for Barbara Skilton of El Tazzi kennels many Australian champions.
Badin was the sire of NED & INT. CH. XINGU VDOM . Xingu produced Dutch champion children and grandchildren and bred two litters in Germany out of GERM.& INT CH. ASOKA VON KATWIGA Asoka then produced five great champions for Erika Rodde’s von Katwiga kennels. Asoka was sired by CH. WLADIMIR VDOM (who was one of Eta’s greatest sires). Asoka’s dam was CH. YASMIN VDOM (the foundation bitch for von Katwiga Kennels that finished 150 European champions, among them DUTA, AKARI, HABOOB, OPHIR, KYROS and YABOON, all great champions from the famous von Katwiga Kennels.
Xingu was exported to England and later traveled with his new owners to America where he was bred to INT CH. ICARIE VDOM….four of their litter in Arizona finished Canadian, Field and American championships.
Eta’s best-known export to America was OPHAAL who was sent to Kay Finch of Crown Crest after he completed his Dutch, Belgian and German championships in Europe. He finished in the U.S. and produced 28 American champions in 3 litters from Crown Crest bitches.
Eta finished breeding Afghan litters in l971…she had also bred 28 Shih Tzu litters and 13 Saluki litters. In l972 she began a new life of travel that included a long anticipated trip to Afghanistan, visits to friends in New York, Colorado, Oregon and Arizona, tours of the Amazon and the Galapagos, and a trip around the world with stops to see how her transplanted Afghans and Shih Tzu were faring in their new homes. She spent many happy winter months with her dear friend and his family in Africa.
Although she was no longer participating in breeding and exhibiting, Eta’s concern with the preservation of the unique qualities of her beloved Afghan Hounds continued for the rest of her life. She was actively involved in world-wide correspondence and always available to breeders and fanciers. She was an accomplished artist and combined her “eye” for balance and beauty with the extensive knowledge of pedigrees and their potential in order to make strict selection of her breeding pairs. Her considered inclusion of other related lines or Afghan imports contributed to a viable gene pool of Afghan hounds that still breed amazingly true in physical structure, balance and superb temperament.
Lila Wadsworth
September, 2015
Lila Wadsworth
September, 2015