The Hardest Part

From the first time we bring a Holland home it becomes a part of our lives.  A part of our mornings, our routine.  We love them deeply.  Naturally some have more personality than others so we get more attached to some.  And it hasn't really made a difference from bringing home a senior holland, than pulling out a newborn from the nest box for the first time.  Our love is the same for them.  Which has of course led us to a sad part of raising Hollands for show quality and to meet the Standard.  This means saying goodbye.  We have been fortunate that our goodbyes have been to amazing people who will also love them.  However today, I chose to say goodbye to my sweetest doe.  She was our first to give us a litter.  She was so timid when we first brought her home.  She quit eating and wouldn't interact so I brought her inside and spent countless hours with her.  It wasn't long before she warmed up and her sweet personality began to shine through.  She would hop all around in her cage all playful and adorable.  She loved toilet paper rolls and when I would go out in the morning she would hurry and pick it up and begin hoping in circles.  She was my little goofball every morning.  But the reality was she had definitely outproduced herself with Zilla.  She had longer shoulders which, with a small buck was okay, but not with Buddah.  So as a last minute decision we decided to let her go today.  It is a sadness for me but also helps me to gain even more appreciation for the top breeders who work so hard to keep the Holland Standard.  It isn't always about breeding tons of cute babies.  It's about making tough choices and always working to improve.