Located in in beautiful Bellingham, WA USA 30 mins south of British Columbia, Canada and 2 hours north of Seattle, WA, BlackFyre Belgian Tervuren is home to National and Regional Specialty Winning Tervuren as well as proud producers of multiple Specialty winning Tervuren and siring multiple Specialty and Nationally ranked Tervuren in other breeding programs.

Along with conformation, our dogs have excelled in obedience, tracking, agility, herding, therapy and service dog work as well as their most important jobs ever, a humans best friend.

Active in the breed since 1988, I did not breed my first litter until 2000.  Since then I have bred very selectively, only when I felt a breeding would add something to my breeding program.  I believe in QUALITY vs QUANTITY.

My breeding program is carefully planned out with a clear vision of the written standard as it applies to type, temperament and movement for a correct Belgian Tervuren and while I continue to refine aspects of my vision, I believe I am true to my interpretation of correct type and breed well balanced, moderate Tervuren who win in the breed ring under breeder/judges and all-rounders alike.

While conformation is a personal focus of mine, I also keep in mind that the Belgian should be a VERSATILE, WORKING breed and my dogs and I enjoy Tracking, Herding and Agility and I integrate these abilities into my breeding plans.

In the pages to follow you'll meet our past, present and future.

I hope you enjoy your visit as much as I enjoy my dogs!

Karyn C Cowdrey and the BlackFyre Terv Crew.

As a herding breed, Belgian Tervuren are sensitive, alert, intelligent and full of energy.  This should NOT translate to fearful, overly reactive to stimulation or hyper.

Tervuren need mental exercise as well as physical exercise and are extremely adaptable to living in any kind of environment and climate if they are given enough mental exercise as well as physical.

If you just want a dog that wants to lie in the yard all day and you don't have much time or desire to spend training and living with your dog as part of your household , a Belgian most likely isn't the right match for you as they often won't be happy being an outdoor only dog with little human interaction.

Being a smart, sometimes manipulative breed with a fairly high energy level, Belgians are not always recommended to a first time dog owner but there are always exceptions to every rule so if you're a first time dog owner looking to be very involved in dog sports and training and classes then a Belgian might be a perfect dog for you.

They are a herding breed so if you have a home with young children, you will want a dog with lower prey drive so that the dog isn't constantly attempting to herd the children! (and of course never leave young children and dogs alone with out adult supervision no matter what the breed!)

If matched correctly, they can be wonderful family companions as well as get along with multiple other animals in the household.

The BlackFyre Tervuren have horses, neighborhood kitties and chickens that they make friends with as well as many visiting people of all ages and puppies are raised in my home with a very careful socialization and early puppy stimulation program to help them be well adjusted when they are ready for new homes at 8 wks of age.

Belgian Tervuren are reasonably healthy but Epilepsy in particular can strike our breed and at this time there is no genetic test, so the best breeders can do is attempt to breed around it.

Cropping up less frequently are various Cancers, Cataracts, PRA, thyroid, cardio and some auto-immune diseases as well as hip and elbow dysplasia.

There is no such thing as a 100% HEALTH DEFECT FREE line but some definitely have less known issues then others, talk to a potential breeder about what they test for, what they guarantee against and and what the health history is behind their dogs. 

All BlackFyre Belgian Tervuren are sold on contracts that guarantee against some known genetic conditions as well as temperament.  The contracts also spell out what the owner is responsible for the lifetime of the dog, including training/socialization/housing/feeding/general basic care expectations, what the owner can and can't do if the dog can no longer be a part of their home for any reason and under what conditions a dog may or may not be bred.

I am happy to provide references from puppy buyers and breeders I have worked with over the years.  I will happily ask you for references as well and will send a puppy buyers questionnaire to anyone interested in a BlackFyre Belgian Tervuren upon request.

The following pages will take you on the journey of our past dogs, our current dogs and our future plans as well as some articles we find interesting and/or helpful.

I'm happy to answer any questions you may have about Belgian Tervuren in general and BlackFyre Tervuren Specifically, drop me a note at karyn@blackfyretervuren.com and I'll get back to you as quickly as possible.

 In the meantime, Cajun, Wyld, Dare, Smitten, Boing and I all welcome you to our site and hope you enjoy learning more about us!

 So, Sit back, take your shoes off, stay awhile and visit with our dogs and our upcoming breeding plans for early winter 2010!