The Celestial Litter was Cinders first litter, and she presented us with 8 stunning pups who have grown into some truly lovely adults. Many of the Celestial pups have a very striking Art Deco style and grace, and several of them have shown promise in both the show and racing fields.

BISS Talisman of Electra Sarafias, AKA Ella, Winner of the 2007 Finnish Silken Windhound Nationals , and featured hound in the large , all breed dog book, The Howell Book of Dogs , is one of the snuggliest, silliest pups in a fairly silly litter, is blessed to have a really wonderful family in far away Finland. In addition to the humans, other Silkens Rhianna and Sandra, and cats, she also shares her home with her Paternal Great Grandmother, Kristull The Surprise, AKA Siru. Ella is a source of constant amusement to her human family and I am lucky to get regular updates of her exploits from her human Dad, Eero Juhola of Sarafias Silken Windhounds:

"It has proven impossible to watch TV without Ella's company. As soon as the thing is turned on, Ella usually appears from somewhere and parks herself into the space between one's legs and the couch backrest. She often places her head on a thigh or knee - terribly cute - and the longer she stays on the couch with us the more belly rubs she accumulates, and the more impossible the positions she sleeps in become. She has developed a fascination with Harry Potter. Now that the new book is out Salla has had to first read the previous 48 books and watch (for the 23rd time) all twelve movies in the series. All of this has provided Ella with fantastic opportunities to study Harry Potter's adventures from up close, being wedged between Salla and the couch back rest for hours on end."

"She's now twice chased herself...when we go for our morning walks the sun shines obliquely from our right rear. And because we walk on the left side of the road the shadow of Ella's head is cast onto the far bank of the ditch that runs alongside the left side of the road."

"Ella is hunting for white stuff (butterflies, flowers, sea gulls, bits of paper) and generally keeping her eyes open for prey... then suddenly she sees shadowy movement on the far bank of the ditch... she halts, muscles tensing and her ears go up... the shadow stirs, as if surprised by the sudden appearance of the fabulous white huntress... and Ella pounces! The first time this happened I laughed myself silly! Ella always looks so bewildered after her pounce... "Where did it go? Where did it go?""

"Ella has the best smell tracking skills of the pack. The other day Riinu found the remains of a dead deer left by hunters in the middle of the field to attract foxes. The hunters have a tower nearby where they presumably occasionally sit drinking (hopefully only) coffee waiting for the fox to appear. There's a saying in Finland that hunting without alcohol is a bit like fishing without alcohol, it just isn't done. Some sport. Well anyway Riinu rolled in the deer and wound up stinking high heaven (she was very happy about the smell, but I can tell you I wasn't at all impressed). We (Riinu, Sandra and me) made our way home where Ella sniffed intently at Riinu. Then I went with Ella and Siru. After some running in the fields we made it to the road where, to my surprise, Ella picked up Riinu's smell and started backtracking towards the deer carcass. I had to jog to catch her and put her on leash in order to prevent a double shower&shampoo ordeal. Smart little girl. Ella sends you her love and says she has just about exterminated all white butterflies she can find on our yard."

Ella has also won high praise from FCI and Specialty judges and participated in a large lure coursing event overseen by FCI judges.
At her 2006 Finnish Specialty show, a well attended Finnish Silken Windhound Specialty, the judge had this to say about her:

"Appr. one-year-old bitch who has a very beautiful head and expression. Long beautiful neck.
Beautiful topline. Well angulated in the front. Beautifully angulated in the rear.
Beautiful coat. Bite ok. Moves well in front and rear. Beautiful flexible side movement."

At her 2007 Finnish Specialty show, Ella took Best in Specialty Show!!!!!

ISWS Rarities NAKC Int Ch Talisman Maia Mudita Kumbaya, src ptd, AKA Dita , the very first time she stepped into the ring, wound up taking a Best Puppy in Breed, Winners Bitch, Best Puppy in Hound Group, and went all the way to Best Puppy in Show under AKC Hound judge Pat Gilbert. She got her second Rarites major going Winners Bitch in a very large showing of Silkens in the spring of '06, and got her third five point major going Best of Breed for her Rarities International Championship!

In the spring of 08, at the Silken Windhound Nationals, Dita strutted her way to win Winners Bitch, and Best of Winners!

Dita, Winners Bitch, Best of Winners at the Silken Nationals 2008 with Judge Roberto Elinan, Owner Handler Kent Jones, me, and Steve Jones

Following up on her big Best of Winners win at the Nationals, Dita went on to take Best of Breed at our 2008 Western Regional Specialty under AKC Borzoi, Whippet, and Greyhound judge Helen Brettell of Lost Creek Whippets and Borzoi! Her daughter Sandy wound up taking Winners Bitch at the show !

The very next year at our Western Regional Show, Dita won a Best Opposite Sex ribbon under AKC Best in Show Judge Ms. Betty Stites!

And in 2010, at the Silken Windhound Nationals, Dita went Best in Show under judge Eugene Blake!

In 2010 Dita took the Best in Show award at the Nationals under judge Eugene Blake!

She's light on her feet, walks into a stack, has been very much the polished show dog right from the beginning . She has style, type and class to spare, and is a lovely, silly, snuggly girl too! She shares her home with Loki from my Lost Civilizations litter, and Mika from Elessar's Garden Roses litter as well as her daughter Sandy, from Kumbaya's first litter. Dita also started her racing career with a bang by going into the high point races and winning points towards her straight racing Championship her very first time in the ring. She started her lure coursing career at the Nationals in 2010, and ran her way to a top placement, and in her very next LC meet, won breed!

IABCA Ju.A Int Ch Talisman of Cygni at Skyhaven, AKA Lucy, is a sleek and refined, much more adventurous clone of her mother Cinder. Lucy got her Ju.A IABCA Ch at her very first show weekend in 05. She shares her home with a few cats and her Silken WIndhound best pal Travis. She's a really bright , daring, and optimistic soul who's most at home flying through the air!

From Lucy's human: I thought you might like to hear about the latest quirks from one of your progeny. :-) After over half a year of not eating carrots, Lucy is now snatching them out of my hand before I can get it to my mouth! Don't know what triggered this return to previous behavior, but I'm glad it happened.

Also, has she had any exposure to Cajun cooking at Chez Joyce et Arthur? It's happened often enough that at this point it classifies as standard behavior: when presented with a turkey neck or back, she'll carry it around for awhile, then go in the back yard and dredge it through as much dirt as she can find. Think blackened fish. :-) She'll carry it around a while longer, than finally consume it. I've heard of human babies eating dirt, but never puppies.

And remember, in October/November, when so much was happening to her, and she started getting under the covers and huddling hard against my leg? Well, now it's de rigeur every night -- she'll play on top, and even snuggle on top of the covers for awhile, but when she's ready to sleep she *must* go under the covers and snuggle up against my leg/side. Even last month in the midst of hotHotHOT weather down here, when my cat Duncan finally gave up on sleeping on top of me, Lucy
was still demanding to go under the covers.

She *oozes* personality, y'know?

Lucy is one of the first Silkens to arrive in New Zealand and gave birth to the first litter of Silken Windhounds in New Zealand !

She's now back in California, and enjoying life with a new career as a therapy dog!

Multiple Reserve Best in Show, Multiple Best of Breed, ISWS , Rarities, IABCA UCICB Int ChTalisman of Tarazed SRC CIC , AKA Tara, is the princess in residence at Scirroco Hounds. In addition to getting her IABCA puppy Championship, she also did quite well at her first specialty show in a very large and competitive class. At her first Rarities show weekend, she went Reserve Winners Bitch over a large entry of stunning girls .In April of 08, Tara completed her ISWS and Rarities Championships!

She's proven to be quite the demon on the lure too, and, after a season of spectacular practices, started out her racing career in the spring of 06 with a bang by speeding her way immediatly into the high point race and proceeding to race to the top of the pack and win her first points towards her ISWS Straight Racing Championship! She's since blazed her way to being the first Talisman baby with an SRC and the second Dual ISWS Show and Race Ch born with us ! She is one of the first five Silken Windhounds in History to get the Dual Ch title !

Talisman of Cassiopea, AKA Cassie, did us proud by taking the #1 ribbon in her Companion class at the 05 Western Regional Specialty show. She shares her home with a great family and her own personal best cat pal in San Francisco . She is very much the house princess, as you can plainly see in her pictures!

Talisman of Andromeda, AKA Andi, is an elegant gal who resides with Judy Lowther and a pack of Whippets at Pfyre Whippets . She is co owned by Mike and Kathy Leach !

Talisman of Orion, AKA Seamus, is a happy-go-lucky goofball athelete. He has his Mom Cinder's sense of humor and his Dad Gideon's need for speed, which can lead to some pretty hair raising situations for his human family! He's never met a dog he didn't love, and will happily play with any canine from the biggest to the smallest.

Talisman of Bellatrix, AKA Bella, was bred to found Sandra Moore's Silken kennel at Avalon Borzoi . She's a lovely girl with a stunning side gait, a lovely, outgoing, and in your lap personality.

In winter of 06, she made her race debute, and like her other sibling and half sibling Talisman babies to hit the track, she's gotten points already towards her SRC!