THE EARLY DAYS

While we’ve been pet lovers all our lives, we actively started our breeding program in New York State in the 1980’s with a few strong bloodlines within the GERMAN SHEPHERD breed. Our lines quickly grew in popularity, not only with the general public, but also with Law Enforcement Agencies. We produced Shepherds that were strong, intelligent, obedient, extremely loyal, curious, courageous, resilient, and because this Bavarian bloodline was not typically ‘stranger friendly’, they made excellent K9 Guard & Police dogs.

TEXAS CALLING

Even though we are both originally from Florida, we lived in Upstate New York for over 2 decades, but in the mid 90’s, we answered the call to relocate to North Texas. Unfortunately, this dramatic move meant closing down our German Shepherd breeding program for a time, and as it turned out, we’ve not taken up the breed again. 
After an adjustment period of settling into our wonderful new State (and after much deliberation and research), in 1997 we encountered the small but wonderful Shih Tzu breed. This little snuggle baby stole our hearts - and we knew right away - we found our new love.

WHY HOLY SHIH TZU™

After answering the call to move to Texas, in our early 40’s we enrolled and graduated from multiple years of Bible School. It was then we began accompanying other Alumni, going into the mission field in Thailand, South Africa, Albania, Mexico, and other impoverished 3rd world nations. Some assignments are extremely dangerous; some have more of a humanitarian aid focus. 
We are involved with rescuing children out of the Human Trafficking/Sex Slave market, drilling water wells, building orphanages, working with an AIDS hospital filled to the brim with children, feeding the starving and oppressed, and providing clothing & educational supplies to impoverished villages in extremely remote areas. 
A portion of the proceeds from our puppy sales go to fund these works. While you may not personally be able to go to these remote and dangerous places, you are welcome to talk to us about how YOU can get involved and make a difference. You can make a difference.
Holy Shih Tzu™ is a registered TRADEMARK, and may not be copied or duplicated in any form or fashion.

THE TDLR

Based on a minimum number of animals, Dog and Cat Breeders in the great State of Texas are required to be licensed by the TDLR (Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation). On-site inspections are required for certain dog and/or cat breeder establishments who do not hold a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Class A or B license. TDLR inspectors use a formulated checklist to ensure the facility is in compliance with state laws to obtain and maintain a valid license, which we currently hold.
In 2016, one of the owners of our facility was nominated, and has accepted a 4 year appointment to sit on the TDLR Licensed Breeders Advisory Committee in the State Capitol - Austin, Texas to advise and help enforce violations of existing laws and regulations
Common Breeder Violations

  • Standards of Care - Veterinary Care
  • Responsibilities of Licensee - Mandatory Contract Provisions
  • Standards of Care - Sheltered Housing Facilities
  • Standards of Care - Exercise of Dogs
  • Standards of Care - Onsite Personnel
  • Standard of Care - Annual examination
  • Standards of Care - Routine and preventative care

OUR FACILITY

We determined very early in our Shih Tzu breeding program not to allow our facility to resemble a puppy mill, so after a bit of growing pains & trial and error, we designed and built two individualized,  specialty facilities using our home & property here in North Texas.

THE NURSERY

After permanently removing our BMW’s from what was a 2 car attached garage, we renovated the 400sf space into a controlled birthing & whelping facility. We removed the garage door, installed an insulated wall in its place, tiled the floor, installed hot & cold running water, a grooming station, canned lighting, upper and lower cabinets with a 12ft long countertop, free-standing 4ft rolling cages for each new mommy, an insulated door with sliding blinds for visibility, and then went one step further by installing supplemental HVAC for the mommies & babies comfort. Since it used to be an attached garage, it is right next to our kitchen and laundry room, so we control the environment on a daily basis, and we can provide the proper care for our new puppies with relative ease. The result is a happy, healthy, well loved, well socialized puppy that adapts quickly to a new environment - such as a new home (like yours)!

THE HOLY SHIH TZU CHAPEL™

We love our fur babies so much, so after visiting MANY kennels, back yard breeders, small in-house hobby breeders, barn breeders, mega breeders with barbed wire, the SPCA, local and state Humane Society Shelters, we certainly saw the worst of the worst, and it seemed as though the ‘nice facility’ we were looking for just didn’t exist. That’s not saying we didn’t experience a few nice establishments, because we did, however, we weren’t looking to build a cinder block commercial shelter-type kennel.
That’s when we decided we needed to design & build a functional, efficient, pleasant, and manageable facility that had the feel of our home. We settled on a beautiful 16x32 building that looks like a chapel on the outside, and a mother-in-law suite on the inside. 
It has stained concrete flooring with adequate drainage, a full kitchen with the same black-diamond-quartz countertop you can see in the public spaces at Dallas Cowboys Stadium (AT&T), stand-alone HVAC, hot & cold water, spacious insulated windows, a stand-up attic, soothing music playing 24/7, a Victorian front door, and a beautiful wrought-iron chandelier. We built individual 6’x6’ water-resistant cubicles with exterior doggie doors so each male can go out into his 6’x50’ outside run to visit his very own assigned females (all coordinated by our breeding program). Every outside run has decking for a porch, and shade above so they can enjoy their outdoor space. We also designed a separate quarantine area for dogs that are scheduled to be shipped internationally. A happy adult Shih Tzu with a good bloodline that is loved - breeds & creates great puppies, because they love living here!

OUR ATTITUDE

It has been said that ‘attitude is everything’. We believe that is true. We have mentored many new breeders, even though we knew they may (or may not) become a competitor. We love breeders who work hard to do things the right way, instead of conniving, not caring if they burn their bridges or not. The professional breeder world is a small one, and it is also said ‘what goes around, comes around’.

We have also hosted annual breeder summit meetings here at our home and facility, inviting and hosting large and small breeders over a given weekend on the pool deck to discuss best practice mentality, breeding issues, paperwork and contractual issues, and just fellowship with like-minded people who work hard to better the breed, and the reputation of the conscientious breeder.
We also believe that rescues are of critical importance, and we work diligently to place every rescue that comes into our lives in a caring environment, because they frequently do.

  • Don’t be fooled by a cool website and neat pictures. Today, anyone can accomplish that with a few keystrokes and a meager checkbook.
  • Do your homework
  • Ask for references
  • Interview the breeder; any good breeder will appreciate it, because a good breeder will also interview you
  • We look forward to hearing from you