Now that you have had the opportunity to meet our dogs, we thought you might like to be introduced to the human portion of Forest Trail’s Finnish Lapphunds. My name is Andrea Johnson. The Lappies and I live in Eastern Michigan with my husband, Skip and our two legged children.  My history in Finnish Lapphunds goes back prior to the concentrated effort to import them into the country in 1987. My parents had a stray wander into their yard in the early 80’s. We figured she was a mix of some sort. But, what a great dog! Unfortunately “Foxy” died unexpectedly when she was still in her prime.

Wanting to find another like her, we spent years trying to figure what purebred dogs she was a mixture of. Our search ended when we passed a rare breed exhibit at a local dog show. We were on our way to exhibit our Alaskan Malamutes we had entered in the show, when we saw a clone of the stray we had lost years before. The owner of the Finnish Lapphund on exhibit was quite doubtful our stray was a Lapphund, but once he saw our pictures all doubt was removed.

My parents acquired their first breeding female in early 1991. Her first litter produced six pups. As I was cleaning out the whelping box after delivery, I watched as this newborn pup inched his way across the box and fell asleep on my foot. From that very instant I knew that there was one pup just not for sale! That pup grew into my foundation Stud Dog “Otter.”

There has never been a time in my life that I did not own at least one dog. My parents both had kennels of their own. My mother raised and exhibited Standard Schnauzers and my Father did the same with Alaskan Malamutes. Needless to say my childhood was filled with grooming, dog shows, litters, and vet visits. As a teenager while other kids were scooping ice cream and flipping burgers, I was grooming dogs for spending money. During my college years I took on the task of managing a 100 plus dog-run boarding kennel and grooming salon. Collectively my entire existence has for the most part revolved around dogs. Because of this I have been able to know the ins and outs of practically every breed of canine, both AKC recognized and rare breeds alike, yet I can honestly say that I have never had so much fun or received so much in return from any dog in the past as I do from my Lappies.

Some dog’s are beautiful to look at, but don’t have a lot upstairs. Lappies are the best of both worlds. Their intelligence never ceases to amaze me. Their incredible zeal for life and intoxicating enthusiasm is addictive. Very much members of the family, Finnish Lapphunds do their best to contribute to daily family activities. Our couch cushions are never cold, the Lappies see that they are properly warmed at all times. Middle of the night bathroom trips have become more of an obstacle course of lazy Lappy hurdles. We are pretty sure it is their effort to keep our agility sharp. Even the pups do what they can to ensure our meals are prepared with the maximum amount on love possible. Love and ankle bites come to mean the same thing when your kitchen is more a puppy play pen than a kitchen. While some view these as sacrifices, we see them as adjustments to ensure happy, healthy, and well rounded four legged family members. There are currently slightly more than 300 Lappies in the United States. We are very proud to have had a hand in building that number.