Ann Adams
To buy baby ‘Sally’ CH BADAKSHAN PINK PEARL. This day definitely changed my life.
My first visit as a young teenager to the ‘unusual’ home of Ann & Ron Adams Badakshan Afghan Hounds was as follows.
My Mother Sylvia and I had a family of animals including Dachshunds, Dalmatians & feline... I wished to obtain a show quality Afghan Hound.
I had favourite picture in The Dog World Annual of a fascinating Group of Khanabad Blues.
I phoned Margaret Niblock (who was very helpful to a young enthusiastic teenager) telling her of my hopes asking if she had a pastel female puppy that I could have. Personally not but she told me about Ch. Khanabad White Warrior’s litter out of Badakshan Tiger Lily. There was a white bitch and two pale apricot/cream. She mentioned Ch. Khanabad Peach Blossom and Honeydew owned by Gloria North as examples and sent us off to visit Ann & Ron Adams.
I phoned Ann telling all, she arranged that we should visit the Litter at Hayling Island but to be early as a couple from Germany were going to be there to pick. First come first served was what she said in a lovely voice... I was looking forward to meeting this woman and her Hounds.
Leaving all animals at home in Wimbledon with a ‘baby sitter’, Mum and I set off late the night before to be certain of an early arrival... we had fun on our adventure to get our Afghan Puppy. I remember we pulled up on the Hogs Back part way there in the dark, I was wearing my usual floor length black skirt and grey velvet fitted top with very long straight hair. And with my long black velvet cape, I must have scared oncoming drivers in the headlight... A Vampire Ha! Ha! Well, I was young and theatrical!
We rolled into Hayling around 11.30 pm found the Farm Gate to ‘BADAKSHAN’ almost on the waters edge then realized we had better find some where to sleep.
Not, a soul about... luckily, we passed three lads who must have just come out of the pub as they were being silly and one was up a lamp post! We asked them and they took us to a B&B. The poor people were a bit surprised at the hour but all was well and we had our ‘beds’.
I fell asleep ready my Afghan Hound reference book determined to ‘Choose’ a good one!
B&B breakfast, still scanning my Afghan breed standard... then off to ‘Badakshan’.
Ann came to the old five bar ‘Badakshan’ gate and welcomed us in... she reminded me of the actress Glenda Jackson but with dark hair, just as unusual and well spoken. I already liked her. She was slim, fairly tall and wearing jeans.
My elegant Mum, Sylvia, parked the car on the bumpy unmade drive, we surveyed the fascinating place very near the sea with many gorse type bushes and odd trees which hid the very unusual house... it was an adventure just being there!
Ron was inside with the couple based in Germany, (probably not enjoying it if you knew him).
Ann trailed us round the very natural chain linked runs with rough ground and many large bushes in them along with several groups of very vocal and unruly Afghan Hounds. Having passed the ‘not scared of that test’, we went over to the area where the puppies were, my first sight of them. They were not tiny puppies but around the 12 week age back then puppies did not necessarily go to new home as early as now.
They were a wonderful sight; true little Hounds, pure blacks, brindle,white and apricot/cream.
Tumbling around and racing about in a very natural environment on, luckily, a lovely Summers day. Ann obviously was asking several pertinent questions of Mum and myself but I was now in a private world with these little creatures.
Ann and I went in to get down to choosing (it seemed we were approved of).
I kept my attention on the three pale bitches... the white one was sold but that did not upset me for long as I spotted the two pale apricots. Ann told me one was called Pearly, the other Rosie, I preferred the name Rose but my mind and eye told me very quickly ‘Pearl’ was the one for me. She was slightly finer boned but it was the head that did it for me re the back skull. She had very long legs and a long tight ring tail. I was dragged away from the puppies to go inside and meet Ron and some of the adult hounds.
I remember the entrance to the house so well. It was very unusual and was built of wood fitting in with the natural landscape. On the way to the lounge, we passed a rock pigeon in a small cage in the corner. He had arrived injured and would not leave so was kept caged most of the time for safety from the Hounds and cats.
A cosy room with old wing chairs and tasteful B/W draped semi nude photographs of Ann on the wall taken by Ron. Being surrounded by arty and theatrical types at school, at The Rambert Ballet and living in Wimbledon with actors surrounding me, this didn’t surprise me.
We said, “hello” to the other puppy buyers and talked to Ron who was also quite a character with wild hair and glasses. We seemed to get on well.
There was a cup of some thing and then Ann brought in a large houndy grey brindle who was Uncle to the Puppies, ‘PINKY’, a darling. I asked how much he weighed, Ann disappeared and materialized with some bathroom scales. We weighed her and then her holding the huge ‘Pinky’ it was funny... and his brindle sister ‘TIGER LILY’ Mother of the litter. Very sound. These two were Badakshan littermates by CH. HORNINGSEA TIGERS EYE x CH. BADAKSHAN RANI (see photo of Rani), a beautiful B/M Gold bitch.
Ann and Ron were satisfied with the home we were offering their ‘Pearly’, and after tripey discussions amongst many other topics, she announced she was going to type up the pedigree while we amused ourselves with Ron. I could hear my precious Afghan Hound’s ancestors names being tapped out on the type writer in the small office next to the lounge.
This was the start to my life long fascination with pedigree’s and breeding.
Some time later... off we went settled in the car with my incredibly beautiful blonde apparition sitting on my lap, legs every where, fresh goat’s milk from Ann’s goats and instructions for a happy future.
We waved ‘Good Bye’ to this extraordinary couple and it seems that they were quite intrigued by us as well.
I phoned Ann later to tell her the now ‘Salena’ had arrived in Wimbledon safely. Ann said in a stern voice as long as you don’t shorten it to ‘Sally’. Well I did and later on Ann told me the private family reason why she hoped I would not. That is another story involving Ann’s Mother whom I also met eventually.
I have many personal memories of Ann & Ron’s visits to our Wimbledon Village house and of future visits to Hayling Island; running across the seaside, muddy and sandy flats to round up escaped Afghan Hounds, going with Ann to Ron’s studio, helping to print up The AHA Magazine ‘Think Afghan’. Mum & I visiting Ann’s fascinating shop ‘RA’. My first experience of a successful Afghan mating, kneeling in a gravel run with my arms around both tied animals and Ann ‘off to make some lunch!’. “You’re not going to leave me!” Then Ann saying, “You’ll be all right dear”... and of course I was.
This wildly eccentric couple had a lasting effect on my life... I will never forget them.