CR Akitas :: Carla & Ron Burke

BOONE BOX - The search for the perfect Akita to replace our 11 year old one that died began with choosing the best breeder we could find. CR Akitas proved to be the absolute right choice. We contracted for a puppy almost a year ahead and waited for Flurry and Eagle to produce a litter. Carla kept us informed throughout the whole process with photos and e-mails, and was always so patient with our excited inquiries. When we saw our male puppy's picture, we fell in love! We chose the name Boone and have since tacked the nickname "Boone Box" onto him.

We live in Tennessee and Carla was going to ship Boone via air to us;

however, the World Trade Center was destroyed the day before Boone was to fly out of the Washington airport. The airport was closed and remained that way for several weeks, and we were unable to get up to Maryland to get Boone. I still cannot get over the fact that Carla and Ron drove Boone to our home on Signal Mountain, and when that furry little ball jumped out of the back of their van, we knew we had made a fantastic choice! He wasn't the least bit shy or afraid and walked around like he was saying, "Hi, mom and dad.....I'm home!"

He and Phoebe have really bonded and, a lot of times at night they will lay in the den floor and Boone will be next to Phoebe with his big paws around her licking her face and ears so gently. We live on a small farm with lots of fenced acreage for our dogs to run.

Boone came into a home with three older "sisters," Phoebe and Lady who are English Setters and Annie who is a little mixed breed. The process of incorporating him into our home has been so easy. Boone absolutely adores his family and they love him. They all spend their days hunting chipmunks, squirrels, deer, frogs....whatever moved in their yard never escapes their eyes. We joke that Boone is the only English Setter Akita we know. He grew up being mentored by the girls in how to hunt, and your should see him "on point!" He has caught a raccoon, opossum, and various other critters and is always very proud of his catch. He and

around her and he will lick her face and ears so gently. That is precious to watch.

Boone has an enormous Orvis bean bag for his bed, but he'd much rather sleep in a chair in the den at night surrounded by all his toys. He is extremely smart with a great disposition. He considers it his duty to guard his kingdom and his family and he takes that very seriously. As you can see from the photo, he is also a big, magnificent Akita. We could not love him more or be more proud of him. It makes all the difference in choosing the right breeder....and we did!!

Barby & Tom Edd Wilson
Chestnut Hill Farm
Signal Mountain, TN 37377

CR's Pretty Penny - Penny is a dream come true. When we were looking for a puppy, we contacted Carla and told her what we had in mind: that we wanted a puppy with that Akita charisma and charm, and who would do well as a therapy dog. Carla was very patient as I performed a temperament test on a couple of puppies, of which Penny did the best on as far as we were concerned. She definitely has lived up to that test because she's outgoing, friendly, even tempered, very, very gentle and loves people. An added bonus is that she does not appear to be dog aggressive. Carla has been great throughout the whole process. She definitely made getting a puppy a pleasant experience. Carla remains interested in Penny and receives regular updates from us on her progress.

Penny has been very easy to train. She began at 14 weeks in puppy training class at Kinder-Pup, in Pasadena, Maryland, where she learned to obey basic commands. When she was approximately 5 months old, she took an obedience test in order to become a member of Fidos for Freedom. She was still a puppy so she only had to pass a temperament test. Since she was going to be finishing up her obedience class very shortly, her owner asked if she could perform the entire test for Fidos. After initially passing the temperament test, which the testers said Penny excelled at, Penny had to be able to heel, do a recall, stand/stay while being petted by a complete stranger, sit for a 3-minute sit/stay and then do a 15 minute down/stay. Penny passed all portions with flying colors, which when you factor in her young age, is a remarkable accomplishment. Along with her monthly nursing home visits, Penny participates in Fidos' group basic obedience training (along with 20 to 30 other dogs of all shapes and sizes), which is offered weekly. Fidos has been in operation for around 15 years, and Penny is the first Akita accepted into their program.
Most importantly, Penny has become a much loved member of our family. She definitely has quite a "dog's life." Although she loves to run, chase balls and take long walks, one of her favorite activities is laying by our feet, watching other dogs romp on Animal Planet. She also loves to nap while I surf the Internet. It's still funny to me that she jumps up and says in her dog body language, "let's go," as soon as she hears the voice on AOL say, "Goodbye," when I sign off. She is so much a part of our lives, we could not imagine our lives without her and have Carla to thank for that. We asked Carla for an Akita with charisma, and ended up with more than we could have hoped for. There is absolutely no doubt that Penny is quite a charmer, which goes a long way in making her a cherished member of our family and also a wonderful therapy dog.

Callie and George Farber

CR's Eric The Red - The word to best describe CR's Eric the Red is happy. He is a big, friendly guy who believes the "world is his oyster". I've been blessed with his company for 7 1/2 years and he is still acts like a puppy. His health has been excellent and even my vet is impressed by how good he still looks. Eric's favorite activities are swimming and "herding" the cats we live with. He graciously agreed to share his family with his baby sister dog who he really loves. I can't say enough good things about Carla and CR Akitas. She continues to be interested in Eric even after all these years and her knowledge has been invaluable.

Jill B.