About Us
Cacharel Briards is the prefix used by Carl & Anne Mitchell. Since 1984 when our first Briard arrived in our home we have been enamoured by this wonderful breed. Known as the clowns of the dog world, they can be stubborn, they can be extremely smart, forever loyal and be warned, they become very very addictive. The first litter bred under our prefix was in 1990. Since then we have bred one, or sometimes two litters a year. Our main priorities when breeding are temperament, health and conformation. We take great pride in producing excellent family companions, we also take great pride in the outstanding accomplishments of our Briards, and those we have bred for others in the show ring. Our Briards compete in many arena's, such as obedience, agility and herding. Anne is a fully licensed ANKC Herding Judge (all levels and all courses), and has judged in Victoria, NSW, SA and Qld & Tasmania. We have many herding titled Briards - the first in the country to achieve such awards. Anne has a special interest in the traditional method of Briard herding, called tending or boundary work, and has introduced this style to many interested herders. We place great emphasis on breeding Briards who can still do the work for which they were originally bred - this instinct is a what makes a Briard a Briard and distinct from the many other breeds.
We are the only current Australian Briard breeders to have travelled to many of the European, English, Scandinavian and Nth American Briard Specialties. We felt that it was important to see as many Briards as possible across the world, and learn as much as possible from the prominent & successful breeders. These trips resulted in the importation of many Briards over a period of time, to further the Australian gene pool.The imported dogs were from proven producing lines, selected for their excellent breed type, temperament and trainability. We have been extremely successful in blending these lines with some of our old Australian bloodlines. Along the way, some of the old Australian bloodlines were discarded, for lack of type, health issues and temperament problems.
We believe that breeding Briards is a privilege and not a right. With that privilege comes great responsibilities and that includes ensuring that breeding stock not only looks like a Briard but acts and has the temperament of a Briard. Changing or modifying either is an insult to the Briard and their heritage. Our breeding dogs will ALWAYS have some title before or after their names. In fact we value the titles after their names very highly as they are working titles and shows that our dogs still have the remarkable trainability and temperament which distinguishes the Briard from other breeds.
We work very hard ensuring that we are preserving the Briard as the history and the standard intended. Some of our dogs are shown in conformation shows and many are worked and titled in herding (including Herding CHampion and Dual Champion ) and other dog sports, including obedience and agilty. We realise that many of our pups go to homes where they will be CHAMPION lounge lizards but that does not mean that we should strive for anything less in any puppy that we breed. Our dogs do not consist of a matched pair, we search for the best possible match for our girls, even if that means going great distances or using frozen semen from great dogs overseas or from the past.
As breeders and owners our primary responsibility to the Briard is is to be a caretaker of the breed, and to educate and ensure that people who are interested in the Briard buy one for the right reasons. We understand that the Briard is not the right breed for everyone.
Our breeding stock is ALL x-rayed for hip dysplasia prior to breeding, we also test for other inheritable diseases. We were the forerunners in DNA testing for the Briard specific eye disease Congenital Stationary Night Blindness (CSNB) in Australia. All of our dogs are DNA profiled and each pup we sell comes with its own unique DNA profile.
The list of accomplishments of Cacharel Briards is very long, a few highlights are;
The only Australian Briard breeder to breed Champions of 4 countries
Owner, breeder, handler & trainer of the ONLY Dual Ch (H) Briard in Australia - Dual Ch (H) Cachare Utzano HSAs HSCs HICs HXCs
Breeder of the first Supreme Champion Briard in Australia - Supreme Ch Cacharel Jeronimo - owned by Jeni & Mark Sach
Owners and Breeders of the only two black Briards in Australia to win Best in Show at an all breeds Championship Show
Breeders of the first Australian Briard to earn Selection at a National Rass (USA 2000)
Owners of only the second Australian Briard to earn Selection at a National Rass (USA 2004)