Finishers

[Officially Retired]

Ice is honestly a brutal finisher. Perhaps not at the same level that you speak of in Silverback but I can guarntee you he doesn't play around. If there is one thing I know about Ice is he's either ruin you kill you or die trying. I think it would be fair to say that you'd be rather proud of Ice if you could only see him perform.

I have zero doubts that Ice Storm is a superb dog, as he is honestly one of my favorite-bred dogs out there, I just was questioning whether he was a true finisher or not, I was NOT questioning his quality! For example, Ch Mr. Serious was a from my line was a game and brutal dog. He had a very hard mouth and could break your bones, was durable and powerful as a rhino, but he was not looking for "kill spots" ... just to break you down and render you into a pile. Was he a great dog? YES! Was he a stone-cold finisher? No. Same thing win Icon and your dogs sire U-Nhan-Rha. Were they terrific dogs? YES! Were they stone-cold finishers? No.

I am sure I would be proud as hell of Ice Storm, I just didn't think he was a finisher like that, as again I have only had 3 such dogs in my entire breeding career. Yet finish isn't everything, and I have had DOZENS of dogs I am absolutely proud of.

He has also produced one hell of a bitch in Nazi's littermate sister Ms.Red who I belive was the best dog in that litter. Obviously Nazi was a super game animal but his abilities weren't the best. As you mentioned to me before he does not seem to display the traits of a true Poncho/Coki dog but in the end he had what it took to win.

It's like his great-uncle Pretty Boy ... maybe not an ace, but game enough to win over the best on heart ... and you have to take your hat off to that.

Further, I am well aware of the variance in ability between dogs, as (again) in the same fashion Pretty Boy's sister was one of the most talented head dogs you could imagine ... where as he was just average.

Ms.Red on the other hand does posses a great deal of finish (again not first or second hold that you mentioned) ability along with speed, smarts and style. Although I will not go into great detail over the web, she just recently and violently destroyed this double El Negro bitch here in :15 [B]ALLIGATOR CLUB'S ELLIE leaving everyone there very impressed and with a new found respect for my "crappy Poncho dogs"

LOL, that sounds pretty quick and decisive to me

And I do take great delight in when people get a rude awakening as to the quality of these dogs, which is where the handle SmileWiper came from

Congrats on her!

Again I will not say that Ice and his offsping are one hold killers but I promise you they are looking to and definitely will close the deal in very quick fashion. In the end and most importantly, I am very satisfied with what I've got in Icestorm. He's is in my eyes a Flagship animal.

I don't blame you, and I agree he is a flagship animal, just like he's bred to be.

U-Nhan-Rha was a total package animal, rating strong in all categories. Uey was not an ace, but he was a rock-solid dog (a "Marvin Hagler"), with no weaknesses, and one of the highest-percentage producers I've ever had. And Cherry, while she might not have been much as an individual, her sister Little Red Sonja was one of the other one-hold finishers I was talking about, and her other sister Cherry Coke was a fantastic, A-level bitch ... and they're out of the baddest dog I ever had in Stormbringer, bred to his half-sister who (though average) was one of the gamest and most intense bitches I ever had, so your dog really is bred about as strong as I can breed dogs.

So please don't think I was trying to diminish, I was trying to distinguish between a TRUE finisher and a dog that "would finish" ...

It's like the difference in boxing between a true KO Artist ... and a boxer "who can get a KO" ... the KO Artist is powerful enough to completely KNOCK OUT a perfectly healthy, unhurt boxer at any time with ONE shot ... >BAM< ... he's down and out COLD ... while a guy "who can get a KO" may eventually knock his opponent out, and he may keep a brutal pace, but the KO will only come after an accumulation of punches.

Truly heavy-handed one-punch KO Artists are pretty rare in comparison to guys "who can get KOs" ... but that doesn't mean there aren't plenty of fantastic, all-around GREAT fighters, who may not be KO Artists, but who are dangerous, superb fighters in their own way (like Ali!).

Jack


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