From: Todd

This really saddens me to say this but SAKORN #1 passed at nearly 14 years of age and his old living offspring from the October 31st litter in 1997 Madison Ave. has just passed away.. MADISON was a very awesome girl.. I cried when reading Todd's letter..

Hello Jack,

I am absolutely heart broken as I write you this email. Miss Madison passed away last night, in my arms. She was such a wonderful, smart, beautiful girl and I thank you so much for bringing her into my life. I miss her so much and am sure you can understand.

I just wanted to let you know that I had 13 wonderful years with her from New York, to Washington DC, to Palm Beach and finally Miami Beach. She helped me immensely while I recovered from my accident and weathered life's up and downs.

Madison was so unique, elegant, smart and filled with personality. I miss her so much and just wanted to thank you for one of the best things I have ever had in my life.

Sincerely,

Todd

Hello Mr. Dvorak!

I am planning on buying a puppy from Jack and he suggested I contact
you to gain insight on your experience. How did you choose your puppy?
How was your buying experience? Any helpful tips?
Thank you in advance for your time in considering a quick reply to help me out.
Have a great day,

Brandi Beck

Hi Brandi,

Let me start with; some advise on visiting Thailand. (Jack mentioned you were concerned). I live and work in Thailand (10 years living and 6 years working) so I have a fair understanding of Thailand, the people and the culture. 

I am an American and have chosen this country to live in (And marry a national) for two reason; first it is a beautiful country that has so many incredible sights and experiences available and second being the Thai people who are unlike any others that I have ever experienced in my travels around the world. (In my opinion the best) they are happy, friendly, relaxed and extremely tolerant people who do not judge others and place a high regard on being polite, respectful and never showing negative emotions. Having said this, you will have to get accustomed to "Thai time" and their relaxed way of living. It is a very safe country that generates 60% to 70% of the income from tourism so don’t worry about coming here to get your new TRD. Just treat the Thais how you want to be treated, be patient and respectful and you will have a great trip. 

 My new TRD – Tong Dang (Means bronze in Thai): See attached photos.  

Back-round on this bread. The King of Thailand has made this breed of dog the royal dog of Thailand and has “Knighted” I guess is the best western term for his dogs. This is a very special breed of dog.  

I chose this breed to be an addition to my family to provide security and protection based on everything that I have read on the history of this primitive breed he is a perfect fit and will care for my wife, daughter and property when I am away at work. (With the proper training, love and owner dominance established – dominance is necessary with animals that are not totally domesticated as with this breed)  

I have (In California) managed a ranch with many dogs and livestock. I feel it is important for the dog to pick you or at least have good interaction with his new potential owner. So this needs to be done in person.  

When I took my family to Chang Mai I was set on a Blue male, wanting a large dog to provide the above for my family. Together we all had interaction with most of Jack’s puppies and found that the “Red” male Tong Dang was calm and friendly with my family, on his own approaching all my family allowing us to interact with him. Note all of the Blues would not interact with my family or me unless forced to do so and as soon as they were allowed to they kept any from us.

What I was looking for most was the dog’s temperament; I found Tong Dang to be relaxed, calm, attentive and confident. He is a generally happy dog who paid attention to his environment without getting excited or wary of new people but was not timid either with the other puppies, showing his confidence.  

The next consideration was the dogs physical make up. Coat, legs, muscle structure, teeth and health. Most of Jacks puppies are in great shape but you will have to decide the quality you want. As it turned out Tong Dang is show quality, however this was not a major point for us.

We spend most of the first day at Jack’s interacting with the dogs, looking at the parents, asking questions of Jack on all of his dogs and his experiences until we decided on Tong Dang.

 On the second day we all went to the local pet sales area in Chang Mai to see what was available and compare with what Jack had to offer. We found that the pet TRD at the market are much cheaper (Only reds) but very young and not of the same quality (Still good looking dogs). I found Jack to have the best selection and variety of TRD dogs in Thailand. (Note I did check with many Thai breeders before going to see Jack). Be wary of buying from Thai markets, there is no guarantee, all sales are final, they will most of the time say anything to make the sale and in Thailand generally everything is a copy or knock off.  

After the pet market we went back to Jack’s and gave Tong Dang a bath (Note he did not like it at all) paid Jack and got the cage for flight transport (This was after checking with Thai Airways the day before – with Jacks’ help to ensure no flight / transport issues) I recommend checking all of this with the country you are going back to and the airline you will be using.  

There were no issues with flying Tong Dang back to Bangkok on Thai Airways, we just paid the weight charge and picked him up in Bangkok Airport (He was flown on our domestic flight as excess baggage and check in at the check in counter)  

Buying Experience: Jack was great and is genuine and honest in helping his buyers  

We are very happy with our dog and I would recommend buying from Jack for quality and selection (He is not the cheapest in Thailand, but you do get what you pay for). Jack has the best TRD that I was able to find in Thailand, this was also with the help on many Thais that I work with checking with Thai breeders for me.  

If you need any further advice please let me know.  

Regards,  

Todd

Hello Todd!  

Thank you so much for the detailed reply! I appreciate your advice and perspective, and certainly wasn't expecting such a great, thoughtful response. 

I have been to Thailand once- five years ago and I agree with the people and beauty- it was the best trip of my life (I used to live in Australia).  The only thing I was/am apprehensive about I suppose was really just travelling alone.  A group of us went in college and it was a blast- we did the 3 day hill-tribe trek, which was an amazing cultural experience. I'm thinking about doing it again- it's just never as fun (at least for me) alone, as I'm more of a people person. But thank you again for the reassurance.  I'm definitely excited for the trip.  

I'm so glad to hear you found such a great dog, and thank you for sending the wonderful pictures!  Jack has shown me many dogs on skype and they are ALL great- I'm having a hard time choosing which to put my money down on.  However, I agree that the dog definitely has a say and that can only be determined once I get there and interact with them. I know that no matter what, I'm going to come back with a dog I will love.  

Also, I really appreciated you letting me know about your extensive research into all the area breeders and the reassurance that Jack's dogs were the best you've found. It has been a bit of a logistical nightmare with special paperwork submitted and pre-approval requests to be able to even bring it into Japan- they are very stringent with their animal import laws here, but I've been doing my research and should have all my t's crossed so hopefully there won't be any issues when I come through with the puppy. I'll let you know how it goes!

 Thanks again for your time, and cheers to a wonderful new year ahead with a great addition to the family!!!

Brandi Beck


Then Todd writes to me on Saurday..

Hi Jack, She sounds like she is sold on your dogs, good luck.

Hope your move is going well.

Regards,

Todd

First Name : Carlos
Last Name : Rojas
Age : 25
City : San Francisco
Zip Code: : 94118
State : CA
Color of Puppy :  Blue Black
Sex of Puppy : Female
Quality Preference : Pet Quality
Experience : My name is Carlos Rojas and I'm looking to purchase a dog for a companion. My experience with dogs is small but growing. My brother has a boxer/pit mix which I love spending time with. I'm 25 years of age and living in SF with my 31 year old girlfriend who has dogs her whole life. We live in a 2 bedroom apartment which we rent. Ive lived in this unit for 3 years and she has live here for 7 years. There is 3 other units in the building which makes for a great quiet building. No kids and don't plan on having any, just a dog! There is no backyard but the park is only a block away. We are planning on getting the dog certified as a companion animal so we will be able to take her everywhere with us. My girlfriend is a manager at a dog friendly salon so during the work week she will have the dog at the salon with her.
Questions/Comments : The best time to Contact Us are Sundays and Mondays all day. these are my 2 days off.

Jack,

Following is the message I'd sent to Carlos Rojas. He replied back with appreciation.

Carlos,

My experience with our TRD is limited to a house with a backyard
of about 25 x 50 feet. For the best advice, try to contact a TRD owner who lives in an apartment like yourselves.

I have posted several times on Jack's website, so you can fish through there or do a Google search for other TRD comments from me.

While breeds have general behavioral attributes, all dogs are unique, having said that, I have read many other TRD owners describe their dogs and ours seems to be typical of the breed.

TRDs are jungle dogs. They are very unlike any common breed you meet in America. The survival instincts are not bred out like domesticated dogs. That's why Jack cautions all prospective owners--this breed is not for everyone.

I liken the TRD to a big jungle cat. It moves with stealth, it is very reserved around strangers. It is typically a one person dog. Ours is most at ease around our daughters. I think he's the coolest creature imaginable, but I understand he is predisposed to act cautiously in my presence. He's on his best behavior when I am around.

There are many pluses about the breed. Very healthy, very strong, generally quiet, very low maintenance--and smart! Not the kind of smart that will perform tricks for you, rather, a silent observer that will out smart you!!

Amazing athletic ability. This is the major concern of living in a small space. Ours likes to run, dig deep holes, and sound the alarm when creatures and people are near. We had to raise the fence to 6 feet because of his jumping ability. He may have thought the neighbors' little furry Lhasa Apso dog was dinner.

We never let our TRD run free outside the yard. The prey drive is very strong, he would track down any critter and place himself in danger with traffic, etc. Always walk him on leash. A thick wire cable that he cannot chew through.

He is about 65 lbs--mostly muscle. We are not opening our home to visitors but you can get a sense of his size by watching these short YouTube videos of him.





Regards, Ks