Interview with Lori Chapman, Breeder of Patriot Farm Boston Terriers
- Please tell us a little bit about yourself. Where do you live? How many years in dogs? How many years as a breeder? What is your kennel name?
- What are the hallmarks of your breeds and why are they important for maintaining breed type?
- In your opinion, are there enough puppy homes to support breeding a litter this year?
- How have you implemented new technologies in science and communications as a breeder?
- In your community, have you noticed a change in the public’s perception of purebred dogs?
- Have you noticed any trends in the sport? Anything to be concerned about?
- What are some of the positive changes you’ve seen in the sport in recent years?
Lori Chapman
1. Hi, thank you for asking. My name is Lori Chapman and I have been crazy about dogs since the day I was born. I just moved back to Ocala, Florida, this January. I’ve been involved with dogs my entire life. The first breed I started breeding and showing was the Miniature Pincher back in the mid-1990s when I lived on Long Island. I was heavily involved with the Empire Miniature Pincher Club, being a club member, and I was Chairman of our Specialty show preceding Westminster and also was a Sweepstakes Judge there as well. My current canine love is the Boston Terrier! I’ve been breeding and showing this fabulous breed since 2018. My kennel name is Patriot Farm Boston Terriers.
2. Physically, the biggest hallmark of this breed is the facial expression. It is very important to maintain a nice dry head with large, round eyes. Particular attention should be placed on the amount of white in the eyes. Too much sclera showing tends to take away from the soft expression.
3. I am very fortunate to receive a lot of calls from clients looking for Boston Terriers and I am able to help them find a reputable breeder if I don’t have a litter at that time for them.
4. I put information on my webpage, on my social media, and in my advertising in order to communicate my own experiences and successes so that others may get something out of it also.
5. In my community, the people who do call me have visited my website and are greatly impressed with the information and the amount of work I put into choosing just the right dogs for my purebred breeding program.
6. The trend in Boston Terriers is “don’t look, don’t tell.” Ninety percent of the breeders I speak to on the subject of no-tail hemivertebrae dismiss the fact that it even exists. Nobody wants to do the x-rays on the spines of their Boston Terriers because they don’t want to know how bad they really are. A breeder who is truly proud of how “short-backed” and “square” their Boston Terrier is should be able to proudly provide an OFA normal spine certificate to go with that brag.
7. Positive changes I see in the sport are a lot of people with their dogs getting into Agility events.