Ole Terje Hovland is one of, or perhaps the most successful Borzoi breeder in Norway, and throughout Scandinavia. The kennel name Kazar has gained respect in dog circles around the globe.
When I was 12 years old my family (mother, sister and me) moved to Mysen in Østfold to be close to the grandparent. We lived in the countryside and there I got to express my great interest in nature and animals. In my spare time, I worked on a farm and otherwise spent much of my time out in the woods and fields!
My first education was in trade, decoration and advertising. Then I trained as a florist. After 20 years in that industry I chose to go back to school and took social work classes and then further education in mental health and drug abuse. Since then I have worked in social services and in municipal psychiatric and drug abuse services.
The family didn’t have dogs but I was allowed to have small animals and parakeets, but dogs didn’t come into my life until the age of 14 or 15. I had seen borzois at a show in Bergen before we moved and the desire for a borzoi or another sighthound was intense. After some time I was allowed to buy a puppy if I saved for and paid half the price. My father, who should pay the rest did not want his son to buy “a ladies” dog so the choice was a Standard Schnauzer. He was a lovely dog but rather demanding for a boy of my age, to have the full responsibility for the dog.
Borzoi has always been the breed for me. I have however not been completely faithful. In the late 80s a Malthese arrived in the house. We have had a couple of whippets over the year, the first of which came to us as a rescue dog. In the last seven years, we have also had Italians.
It was the meeting with two borzois at a membership meeting in NMK that gave me the final push into borzoi. I was then 22 years old, had an apartment and a partner who also wanted a do. The owner of the two borzois gave me the name and phone number of the breeder in Finland (Kaznan) and after half a year Farina came to us.
When choosing a name for the kennel I wanted it to be Zakhar which should mean Suger or Farin in Russian. FCI reported it taken so I reshuffled the letters and ended up with Kazar. Khazars was the name of a people ruling large parts of Southern Russia.
Kazar Emilia & Kazar Dimitroff
It’s not easy to decide which of the dogs who influent the breed most, but I would mention Kazar Dimitroff and Kazar Emilie. Through some of their common offspring, they are found in the pedigrees almost all over the globe and are behind a multitude of big winners.
I’ve been breeding borzoi for more than 4 decades and it’s hard to tell which of them I think was the better one without looking at them from their time if you think of the exterior. Type and qualities have changed somewhat over time. It’s not easy to select from the 26 litters we have had during the years but I will try. Breeding-wise, I would highlight Ch Kazar Camilia. She was born in 83 out of a half-sibling pairing (Ch Kaznan Dufjek – Ch Kaznan Farina. Camelia became the mother of 13 Kazar champions, a couple became big stars. Of show dogs in the ’80s, it’s hard to get around Camelia’s daughter; Ch. K. Eskaya Moscow. She returned to us from Kennel Moscow at about 1.5 years old where she had moved as a mating puppy. Kaja had already collected quite a few certs by then. But her career as an adult was unique for her time with many group wins and 8 BIS wins. She was also Dog of the Year all breeds No. 6 in Norway in -90 In 2000 I received from Monika Willmans, Kennel Zimistraija, Ch Borscana Lucky Strike. She was pre-mated with Ch Seabury Jay Egoiste, a male dog I had previously tried to get a litter from on my own bitch without success. Thanks to Monika, we got our amazing O-litter. Once again, a sold puppy moved back in with us as an adult, Ch Kazar Olympia. She, too, became a major show star with a majority of Best in Show wins. She also became the mother of BIS winners Kazar Rurik and Kazar Slava who were both in our possession. In 2009 we got our U-litter where 5 became champions. We keep Usalka and the Urals. Both earned their international titles, but it was Ural who became the big star in the rings with a plethora of Best in Show victories. He also proved to be a very good breeding dog through the three litters he has after him in the Nordic countries. He is the father of big winners and important breeding dogs in both Sweden and Finland.
Over the years the kennel produced more than 60 Champions. It is very gratifying to see that many of the borzois we have exported to other countries have done so well in the rings of their homelands and that they have left important traces in the breeding. That is at least as important as our own dog’s success.
In the breeding program, we always thought that type was very essential. For a long time, we were interested in linebreeding but gradually it became important to think about a broader gene pool. We could see that it was possible to keep the type also in outbreeding by choosing type-like partners/lines.
Of importance to the borzoi, we’re concerned with comprehensiveness and type. The borzoi must have the right balance of elegance and power. It must have soft lines but the breed-specific details are equally important as they are what makes a borzoi a borzoi.
One severe fault we will not tolerate in the kennel is bad temperament. On one occasion we returned a dog we had borrowed for mating. We sent it back by plane when we discovered that the temperament was not what we wanted. Still today, many years later is it a mystery how the owner dared send away such a dog. No dog is flawless and you have to accept that but a male I choose should of course not have the same weaknesses as the dam. If you double on weaknesses you probably won’t get any further in your breeding work.
Some of the best borzoi 35-45 years ago I would say were fully on par with the best today. But in general, the breed has improved in my view. When I started, there was a lot of focus on coats. Fortunately, construction and health are now more important. Better and more stable movements have also emerged. But over the years, I’ve also seen more exaggerations. Today we see some very flat overlines. Many borzois are also too rectangular, short on the legs or too long in the back. Lateral movements are also a chapter in their downright. I sometimes see dogs with excessive reach and drive. Borzois are galloping dogs and should not have the stride length of a German shepherd.
The first three borzois were imported from the Kaznan kennel in Finland. Kaznan Farina became the foundation for the Kazar breeding and I am forever grateful to Vappu and Pertti Vuorenmaa for letting us get such a good starting point!
In my opinion is it best to choose puppies at 7 to 8 weeks of age. By then the puppy has come “up on its feet” and the proportions are such as they often are on the individual as an adult. In addition, you get a good indication of the movements. After 8 weeks most puppies begin to grow somewhat unevenly and assessment is difficult.
When starting the kennel, before there was dry food for puppies we used homemade recipes but it was hard to balance the diet and felt there were problems with growth, some had growing pains. As soon as the puppy dry food arrived on the market we switched to it after just a few days of porridge. For years now we’ve been feeding age-appropriate dry food and starting with soaked puppy food at three weeks of age.
I never wanted to train as a judge but have judged on open shows on a few occasions. Judging would have taken too much time and I wanted to prioritize breeding and show our own dogs!
To compare my own dogs to dogs in other countries is not easy as I do not travel much outside of Scandinavia. My references come from pictures and one should be careful to judge based on that. Many judges I have spoken to claim that we in the Nordic countries have borzoi of very high quality. We also see that our Nordic borzois are exported almost all over the globe. However, I also think that many American breeders are incredibly skilled and bring out great borzois.
The presentation of the dog should never be underestimated, a dog show is a beauty contest and to have the best result, it’s all about fitness. The dog should be in good muscle condition and fit hold and the coat should be on top. I’m not a fan of too much hairdressing/cutting, but old hair that lingers after the previous shedding has to go. Often, a hump of fur over the shoulders can destroy the topline. I remove this with thin scissors. A slight dressing of the abdomen line may also be required. I have always bathed and blow-dried the dog as late as possible before the exhibition. Dogs with little or somewhat thin fur I bathed on the morning of the exhibition day to get optimal volume. If it has received BOB, I also like to give a new bath between the breed judging and the finals if there is the opportunity, I want to show the dogs from their most beautiful side.
We’ve never done Lure coursing but some of our puppy buyers over the years have been doing LC and track with great success. As a breeder, it’s fun to see the offspring can be so good at the “job” even though we’ve never emphasized that trait in breeding.
I currently have two borzois on part ownership, but unfortunately none at home. We hope to change that by taking a litter by Ch Kazar Zakia in 2024. Now there are only three Italian sighthounds here at home.
I am passionate about gardening and me and my partner can usually be found in the garden from early spring to autumn.
My son from my first marriage has inherited an interest in dogs. He and his family have a Whippet they love.
Borzoi has never been and will never be very popular. It’s a breed for the particularly interested, one might say and we should be very happy for that. The breed is generally healthy and most breeders are very determent that it should continue to be. There are many incredibly skilled breeders both in Europe and on other continents who do a good job of keeping the breed at a good level both exterior and health-wise. So all in all, we have faith in a great future for our amazing breed.
I was active on the board of the NMK’s ( Norwegian Sighthound Club) local branch in Trøndelag for many years. I have also served on the board of the Borzoi Committee.
