Our Family

My name is Karina Whittington, I began my official journey with the Pyrenean Mastiff in 2016. I began researching the breed in 2015 when I was looking for a Service Dog prospect to take over for my at the time Great Dane Service Dog who wasn't going to have a long working career. I just happened to stumbled onto the Pyrenean mastiff. I needed a giant breed for heavy mobility work. I wanted a longer lifespan for a giant, balanced temperament, had to be biddable/trainable. Plus I needed a guardian for home because at the time it was just me and my daughter living alone out in the country. I wanted a dog who could be friendly in public but willing to protect its family! I took the leap and purchased Adonis from Pyrenean Mastiffs of Hidden Meadow Alpaca in 2016.

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I work full time from home as a Software Engineer and have a Bachelors in Computer Information Systems and a Master's in Information Systems Management. Prior to that I was active duty air force working as a C-130 crew chief (aka aircraft mechanic). I injured my back and ended up with some minor nerve damage in my legs so I was medically retired or I would still be in! Adonis is my mobility and medical response service dog but is now entering into retirement in 2023 and Elara is taking over full time while I train up my next dog, also a Pyrenean Mastiff. My dogs do several mobility tasks to help along with several tasks to respond to a heart condition I have. I have 11 dogs - 10 Pyrenean Mastiffs which include Adonis, Leevi, Nova (spayed), Elara (spayed), Pandora, Sancha, Halley, Vega, and Nyx and lastly miss Ribbon who is my daughter's Pembroke Welsh Corgi. My wife Amanda Jean Pratt is a dog behaviorist, lets face it I only married her for free dog training, has a love of Golden Retrievers and breeds them for Service Dog work. We have 18 permanent canine residents that coexist inside our home! We also occasionally have board and trains so our numbers flex slightly by 2 or 3. We have a combination of intact and fixed dogs. We have 2 acres for the dogs to play on along with always being involved in classes, sports therapy dog and service dog training so everyone gets one on one time!

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Adonis is the reason I got involved in the Pyrenean mastiff because I fell so in love with the breed through him. I originally had no plans to breed! When Adonis was about a year I started researching like crazy to see if breeding was something I would want to do. I started showing Adonis and ended up purchasing Nova from Pyrenean Mastiffs de Monte Sano. She was supposed to be my foundation female but ended up with a rare condition that pulled her as a breeding candidate. I continued my pedigree research and expanded to looking overseas. 4 months after I got Nova I was on a list for a female puppy (Luna). Elara ended up being born and I couldn't keep my eyes off of her but had no way to purchase both girls! I ended up partnering with Pyrenean mastiffs of Hidden Meadow (Roberta Stewart & Scott Stewart) on Elara. Once Luna and Elara arrived I had 3 girls all under a year haha!

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When Adonis was around 18 months I began showing in UKC (United Kennel Club) then transitioned to AKC dog shows, I have even shown once in Spain at the Breed Specialty in 2019. Showing led to dabbling in various dog sports with my dogs to have fun and showcase the different fun activities the Pyrenean Mastiff can enjoy. I have had a blast trying out different things like Barn hunt, dock diving, rally, scent work, agility and more.