Intl Ch Torfi Eden fraHalendi, CGC, CGCA, TD was born to a litter of five in Pieterburen, Netherlands on June 22, 2020.  With the pandemic in full swing, we attempted to give a rescue dog a forever home but that wasn’t meant to be.  After 30+ applications, we gave up.  Then a litter in the Netherlands caught our eye.  Miss Bera, a red beauty with that old, Dutch look that has been missing in the US for many years, had a litter.  Astrid Wevers, the kennel mom and photographer, posted adorable photo after adorable photo of the litter and we ended up smitten with Torfi.

Torfi, EU passport in paws, flew to the US at 10 weeks old with his brother Siggi (now Markus of WA) and settled into his forever home with his Connecticut Runestone Icelandics kennel.  His wonderful temperament (totally people oriented, empathetic, gentle) and trainability was evident from the first day we called him ours.  Although he is a beautiful representation of the breed and worked the conformation ring to achieve an International CH. title, he’d much prefer to share his time with humans so we worked toward a Therapy Dog certificate while achieving CGC and CGCA titles. He became an active member of the Fernandina Beach Seniors Center dog program and hopes to join the newly formed USO Therapy Dog program at the Navy bases in Kingsland, GA, Mayport, FL and Jacksonville, FL soon.

One of the main reasons for bringing a puppy to the US was to improve genetic diversity.  Torfi’s COI is 8% and with excellent hips, normal eyes and a sweet temperament, he is an ideal mate for any Icelandic. In addition to having the Dutch background, Torfi’s sire, Loki (Fox Meadow Hjalmberi Lokasson), is from the rare Palmahas family, enhancing his genetic diversity. His first mating with Freyja, a Lukehaven dog, successfully produced a litter of five – 4 males and one female, Elsa.  We’re told she is very much like her sire – sweet, gentle and a lover and will soon whelp her first litter.

Torfi currently lives in Florida with his son, Sveinn, and Kela, the Icelandic matriarch. ~Dolores 🐾