Welcome to Midwatch Kennels

Welcome to the Midwatch Kennels Web site, where our wonderful, furry friends can be seen and admired, and where you might find the Schip that will make your family complete. Midwatch Kennels is a small "hobby kennel" specializing in purebred Schipperke dogs, located at the northern end of the Virginia Blue Ridge mountains. A hobby kennel usually means the owners deal in only one breed, on a fairly small scale.

We have owned Schipperkes since 1956 and have been breeders since 1967, producing--on average--two or three litters per year.  We are operating at a slower pace nnow, but we are still active, in fact, we are on the AKC Breeder of Merit List, but will be producing only a few of our wonderful Schips in future months.

History

Many of the Midwatch Schipperkes have been kept as showing and breeding animals, but others have been sold to other breeders, exhibitors, and just plain folks who want a bright, energetic, and sociable companion. Somewhat put off by those who have characterized Schipperkes as "hyper," "noisy," "excitable," or even "aggressive," we have spent the better part of 40 years developing Schips with calm, loving, and curious dispositions-dogs suitable for show ring or lap.

In 2001, a pair of Midwatch  black Schipperkes, both AKC Champions, produced a rare, cream-colored puppy. Named Midwatch Sundance Kid, this puppy marked a dramatic change in the Midwatch Kennels. We decided to embrace this dramatic event rather than hide it, so we gathered the DNA histories of all relevant dogs and, with the VetGen genetic laboratory in Ann Arbor Michigan, helped to develop a pioneering DNA test for color in Schips.

Despite criticism from traditionalists, we ultimately decided to side with those who love and admire the cream Schips and have chosen to use the test to help develop a line of colored Schips to supplement our traditional black Schip lines. 

We have continued to  produce quality black Schipperkes, and in addition to our black breeding animals, we have acquired several cream specimens from the U.K. to use for the development of a line of cream Schips who exhibit  characteristics that are more American than European: a somewhat sturdier build, more coat and more pronounced coat patterns.

Some of our Schips--both black and cream specimens--have travelled to the U.K. where they have been successful in both the show ring and the breeding kennel.

We operate on a small scale, but usually have a few quality Schips, both blacks and creams,  for sale to approved homes.  Look elsewhere on this site for more information on these great dogs and how to obtain one.