Welcome to our Home!
Our Start
Kari has been in dogs for as long as she can remember. Her family started with Field Labs, and then her oldest sister ventured into the show ring. Kari and her middle sister followed and chose to compete in Dog Shows as well. Kari veered from Labs, and when given the opportunity to pick her first show dog, she chose a Black and Tan Cocker.
Jack became actively involved in dogs in the early 90s. He and his mom rescued a Golden Retriever puppy from a puppy mill bust, and immediately fell in love with the breed. His primary interest is in obedience.
So how do you get to Cairns from Cockers and Goldens???
Kari found Terriers in 1993 when she traveled to the Twin Cities for a Terrier Grooming and Handling seminar by Denis Springer when she was 17. A couple of F-M Kennel Club friends talked her into going, since she handled their Westies and Smooths on occasion.
Long story short, Kari moved to Washington State to apprentice under Denis and learn what life as a Professional Handler was like and also to learn a little more about trimming Terriers.
Kari found that she fell in love with the Terrier temperament and panache! However, when choosing her breed, she chose Kerry Blue Terriers. She was lucky enough to be given pick puppy from the #1 Kerry from 1994, BIS Am/Can Ch. Casey's Chasten the Blues (Sunshine) Kari was very fortunate to be Sunshine's partner in the ring for a short time and won her first Group with her. She co-owned a male from the litter with Chuck and Lois Croley of Casey Kerries, Casey's Burst of Sunshine(Beamer). Kari finished Beamer to both his American and Canadian Championships.
So how do you get to Cairns from Kerries???
Kari had some success in Kerries, owning and finishing three Kerries. She bred one litter, two of the puppies are now champions and co-bred a second litter, two of those puppies are pointed. Unfortunately, she did not have time for the amount of grooming and coat conditioning a Kerry requires. Therefore she made the decision to switch breeds for Kerries to Cairns in January of 2000. Kari couldn't part with all three, and still keeps Beamer as a pet.
So now we get to the Cairn History
While working for Denis, she met Glenn Sergius and Frank Mesich of McCairn. Glenn and Frank were clients of Denis's and eventually of hers when she went out on her own as a Professional Handler specializing in Terriers. Kari had the great honor of being the partner to BIS Am/Can Ch. Meadowwyn's One Trick Pony (Heidi) owned by Glenn and Frank.
Glenn and Frank were unbelievably generous when she called them and asked..."So do you still have Sam, the red dog I saw a year ago at the Portland shows..." Glenn replied, yes...why, did you finally come around? Can Ch. McCairn's Sir Sam Steele (Sam) was on a flight within 2 weeks of that conversation....
Kari truly feels like the luckiest person in Cairn Terriers when she says, Sam lives with me, I was lucky enough to be his partner in the ring and now his partner on the couch...(his new official title is couch potato)
What about Jack???
He supports Kari in everyway, coming when he can, and helping in the set up, outside the ring and being the professional driver. We also hope to get him into the Agility Ring with Puzzle!
Now Ryan!
Ryan has joined in the family hobby. He made his debut in November 2008 winning Best of Breed with Seeker his first time in the ring. He has recently started in Junior Showmanship where he continues to learn the craft of handling a Cairn. Look for him in the breed and junior ring with his dog, Seeker (CH/MACH2 Paragon's Harmony of Steele, RN, OF, CGC).
Current Events
Kari's primary interest still lies in the Conformation ring. She continues to enjoy success with her Cairns in the ring, including top 10 breed/all-breed rankings, specialty wins and goblets with several of her dogs.
Kari has also taken on another facet of the dog world, Agility. She and Seeker are the first Cairn team to have earned a conformation AND agility championship. Sam earned his Novice Agility Jumpers title at 10 years old! We hope to debut Woody in the Spring of 2011.
We breed on a VERY limited basis. Please visit our Puppy Philosophy page to learn a little more on when and why we breed.
We are proud to share our lives with:
"SAM" BISS Am/Can Ch. McCairn's Sir Sam Steele RN, NAJ, CGC, ROME
"SEEKER" Ch./MACH2 Paragon's Harmony of Steele RN, OF, CGC
"PUZZLE" Ch. Clanmarr's Piece of McCairn RN
"WOODY" MBISS Ch. Cherbo Harwood Steele at Harmony
"Tulo" Harmony's McCairn Hit It Long
Waiting for us at the Rainbow Bridge:
"BEAMER" Am/Can Ch. Casey's Burst of Sunshine - Kerry 8/27/1996 - 8/6/2008
"Calvin" Fresh Puppies: New Beginning II CD- Golden 2/28/1996-3/12/2006
"Lee-Roy" Revelation's Lee-Roy Jirah CD CGC - Chinese Shar-Pei 11/21/1987-11/22/1999
Contact Information
Kari and Jack Loken
Centennial, Colorado
303-345-7895
Member:
Cairn Terrier Club of America (Kari - Vice President, Jack - Member)
Cairn Terrier Club of Denver (Kari - Corresponding Secretary, Jack - Member)
Rocky Mountain All Terrier Club (Jack - Board Member, Kari - Member)
