Dharmapala Gompa Dog's - (D'Aoust)

The time has come.....

I was haunted by the fact the dogs hadn't received respect or recognition by most breeders and fanciers since their recent predecessors entered the western hemisphere. Realizing the dogs would never receive this if appropriate action wasn't taken, I picked up the torch.

This announcement was scheduled to be made in September 2003 because there is still much work to be done, following my carefully developed plan. The dogs
arrived at my house clipped short, which is one of the main reasons I have remained quiet. I wanted to present the dogs to you, Lhasa Apso fanciers, in full coat groomed to our standards. They were in excellent physical, mental and health condition. This group of dogs, contrary to rumours I've heard, has excellent temperaments.

Mr. D'Aoust, Madame de Zarobe and the people at the Ligmincha Institute are directly responsible for this wonderful opportunity. Ten D'Aoust dogs were placed with me in August 2001. A litter, consisting of a female and two males, was born here June 2, 2002. Not only were these dogs given to me, but Cece Clover and her Mac drove the dogs to Colorado!

“Dharmapala” was Mr. D'Aoust's kennel name. “Kunza”, Tibetan for fire, god of fire and poet, is the kennel name I've chosen for this breeding program.
“Lotus” is the kennel name of Mrs. Clover, the woman in charge of the dogs in Virginia. The ten remaining dogs (out of the 20 last spring) in Virginia have been placed in homes with members of the Ligmincha Institute. I have records on all of these dogs and remain in contact with Mr. D'Aoust.

Most Sincerely,
Debby Rothman
Dharmapala Kunza Lhasa Apsos
Fleetfire Lhasa Apsos (70 AKC registered Champions)
Renal Dysplasia Scholar
Nyalu
Nyalu
Tashi Deleg
Katu
Katu
Katu
Tandim
Ponya

Drepung
Seth amid his friends
(Fleetfire)
Seth amid his friends
(Fleetfire)
Garma





Welcome to my World
by
Debby Rothman
This photo is taken off the deck of my house.
The extended roof in the back of the photo is the cover for the outside runs.

This looks to the outback dog yard; the entrance to it is by the vertical prayer flags.

If you look closely, you can see two groups of dogs.
The boys are in the dog yard; the girls are in the outback dog yard.

Here’s the group in their exterior runs. The wall in the upper right of the photo is the same wall in the above photos, with the two boys sitting on top of it in the foreground. The dogs love to jump off and on this wall, including the slanted portion leading up to the highest level of the wall. You can see how the outside runs are protected from the elements, with the overhanging roof, one side dug into the mountain and fenced with solid fence. The slanted portion also protects against the elements. There’s very little draft, even on windy days.

The left hand photo is taken down the hill in the dog yard, looking towards the covered runs from a different angle. The puppies play in this portable pen when I’m not supervising them with the adults. Again, the dogs love to jump off and on this wall. The photo on the right shows the gate leading to the second dog yard.

Here’s a view of the interior puppy pen.

Here’s a photo of the 2 x 6 raised floor pens for the show dogs and the inside runs

My Lhasas enrich my life. And I only hope that I enrich their lives. My Lhasas bring beauty and solitude into my life. Everyday I'm reminded of that far away place they came from. I think of the culture their ancestors live in and the centuries these little shaggy dogs have been in existence. I love looking into their eyes and seeing their souls and their heritage. My Lhasas make me feel connected with time and history and the earth. In return for the joy they bring into my life, I simply want to honor each of them, caring for them to the best of my ability, letting the uniqueness of each personality bloom.
Debby Rothman


Some other pictures in summer time.

March 2003...

October 2004...

During the Lhasa Apso National, that took place in St Louis – USA, on October 19th 2004, under ALAC's sponsoring a presentation of genuine Tibetan Lhasa Apso was held.
This meeting brought to light some dogs descending from the lines of  Drepung monasteries that Mr Gerald d’Aoust imported into Canada 25 years ago.

At this time those dogs did not arouse much repercussion among the breed fanciers. But times were different ; people were not  so aware of the frailness of nature or of  species’ disappearance.

Today, a quarter of a century later,  we can discern  - in a tangible way – that  a great  deal  of things of our environment have disappeared for ever  and we  differently gaze on the world.

A lot of dog fanciers who were looking at these litte Gompa dogs  have felt an emotion they had not experienced before.


Now they understand that the  dogs that were staying in front of them  are the last descendants from Tibetan Apso  lines. Needless to say this moment was a very emotional one.
Mme Debby Rothman

Thanks to Debby Rothman’s devotion – she has wholly invested herself in the keeping of these genuine lines - , thanks to her friends who have supported her in her efforts – which goes far away beyond an ordinary breeding programme.

Thanks to all these persons, we have now the privilege of holding this unique little genetic potential. It is to be hoped that errors of the past would not occur again.