Lakeville Cavaliers

WILD ABOUT HARRY!

In August 2017, Hurricane Harvey hit Houston hard and flooded the home and kennel of my mentor/co-breeder Dorothy Swanson. After bouncing around rented accommodations for a few months, she, her husband David, and their Cavaliers moved in with my dogs and me in central Houston while Meadowlake was completely renovated. My downstairs master suite became the girls' room, the office was the boys' room, and Dorothy and David stayed in the two upstairs bedroom suites. I slept on a daybed in the girls' room, which was like living in a college dorm all over again!

Dorothy bred two girls, Stella (CH Meadowlake Stella) and Gemma (Meadowlake Black Diamond), and as is our protocol, they slept in my bed for their last few weeks of pregnancy. Two days before she was supposed to have a C-section, Gemma decided to quietly go into labour right next to me! In less than 90 minutes, Gemma whelped three healthy boys: a black and tan who would become Harry and his ruby brothers, Fawkes (GCHB CH Meadowlake Phoenix Fawkes FDC) and Javi. My TV room became the puppy room, and for four and a half months, I slept on the sofa, woke up multiple times per night, and somehow kept the puppies alive, warm, and fed through one of the coldest winters ever in Houston.

Before he was Harry, we jokingly called him Wally the Walrus because he was a big, fat puppy who never missed a meal! He loved to wake me up at the crack of dawn with pitiful cries to be released from his puppy pen; he would play and cuddle for hours until he conked out from sheer exhaustion. Raising Harry and his brothers as well as Stella's three puppies was nonstop work, but in retrospect those four and a half months were one of the happiest times of my life.

Dorothy and I are big fans of the Harry Potter series, so when she decided to keep two of Gemma's boys as potential breeding/showing prospects, we chose to register Harry as "Meadowlake Philosopher's Stone." In the UK, the first book was called "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" while in the USA the book was "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone." Since Cavaliers are a British breed, his father was originally from England, and I am British through my mother, Philosopher's Stone was the perfect way to honour his British heritage.

At eight months of age, Harry lived up to his name in spectacular fashion. He and his kennelmates killed a juvenile copperhead snake in the backyard of Meadowlake. In the process, Harry was bitten right above his right eye, and just like his fictional namesake, he now has a small lightning bolt-shaped scar (thankfully hidden by his coat). Luckily Harry recovered quickly and did not suffer any long-term harm from the bite. Harry is truly The Boy Who Lived!

Ironically, despite his run in with Voldemort the snake, Harry is just a happy, playful, loving boy who wants nothing more than to bring joy to people and run around outside all day but not necessarily in that order. Our wonderful handler Hiram Stewart showed him to his AKC championship and grand championship during the Covid pandemic, but because he is clear on all inherited conditions, Dorothy and I have rarely shown him outside of Texas. We show him locally every once in a while because he absolutely loves the attention and meeting old and new friends. At the ripe old age of 7 in April 2025, I showed him at the Kennel Club of Victoria show where he won Best of Breed and Best of Breed Owner Handled under Judge Peggy Beisel-McIlwaine. He followed it up by winning the Owner Handled Toy Group under esteemed Judge Patricia Trotter.

In August 2025, our friend Robyn showed Harry at the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel Club of Greater Houston's back to back specialty shows. He won Best Veteran at both shows, Select Dog under Judge Dr. Daniel Dowling, and Best of Breed under breeder Judge Charlie Fippin. We were very touched that the Canine Chronicle promptly posted a photo of his specialty wins on its website and Facebook page.

Harry is dual registered with the AKC and the CKCSCUSA. He has sired many wonderful puppies, and his son Tripp earned his AKC championship in 2025. He has sired a few rainbow litters (a litter which has at least one puppy in each of the four recognized colours of Cavaliers) and is a preponent male. He is available at stud to approved breeders.