Gladystar Poodles - A Wisconsin Standard Poodle Breeder
A lot of people ask "where did your 'kennel' name Gladystar come from. It starts way back in the 1960's when a young boy was 'dying' to have a dog and his Aunt Gladys give him a white Standard Poodle, Cola. She was the best Poodle any family could ask for, very smart and friendly. The other part comes when that young boy was grown and looking to expand and 'upgrade' his hobby of dog training. Enter Magicstar Standard Poodles. I obtained a handsome and energetic black male from Pepsi Gilson that turned out to be CH MACH Magicstar Heritage CDX. He was the second Poodle ever to be a breed champion and Agility champion. So, there you have it: combine my first Poodle from Aunt Gladys and my first really competitive Poodle from Magicstar and one has Gladystar.
When I started back 'in dogs' as an adult, I got Kramer (Keweenaw John's Second Happy Dog UDX). I was living alone at the time and wanted a running companion. Kramer was a very smart dog although no one would mistake him for a show dog. It was about that time the first inkling of becoming a Poodle breeder was forming in my mind. I started reading and researching everything I could about breeding dogs, especially Poodles. Kramer was about six years old when I decided it was time for another Poodle. That's when I got in touch with Pepsi Gilson through the local Poodle Club. Soon enough, in 2001, along came Drexel. I was lucky enough to live only about a hour from Plymouth and was allowed to visit on a weekly basis to see the litter progress. It was a very good learning experience.
Sometime in the mid-2000's my wife, Patty, and I built a house with the Poodles and Puppies in mind. We found some rural property on a small wildlife lake, Daly Lake, that also has prairie and wetland woods. It is the headwaters of the River Edge Nature Center's creek that flows into the Milwaukee River. The house has a Poodle Parlor, Poodle Paddock, Poodle Playroom, and the whole yard is a Poodle Playground. The puppies get started right away at playing in the Poodle Prairie. We call our home the Poodle Preserve at Daly Lake.
