BONDOR,,,,Even now, some years after the heyday of the kennel, the mere mention of the it, still provokes a wide range
of reaction amongst members of the dog fraternity. In many senses, BONDOR represents the last of the big kennels,
from an age that produced many of our breeds top exhibits, standing amongst the historical giants such as
Carloway, Horningsea, Moonswift, Khanabad, & Bletchingley etc.

Allan Brooks, and successive partners throughout the years, made a substabtial impact on the dog scene in general
and the Afghan Scene in particular. The history of the kennel is both wide and varied, and this account is by no means
either intended to be complete or exhaustive, but hopefully will give a reasonable account of what has always been a "remarkable" kennel.

Allan had always had dogs ever since childhood, ranging from a Pyrenean Mountain Dog, to a Chow, Corgi, Manchester Terrier & Labrador.
All of them were kept as pets. The Pyrenean in particular sticks out in Allan's mind, as it went to live with the Butcher down the road during the war.
The war years were dificult times for pet owners, with food being in scarce supply, but the Butcher was a family friend and gave the Pyrenean
a lovely home. Allan still managed to see her each day. Tragically , during a particularly heavy bombing, Allan's father suffered a heart attack and died.

Allan's family hailed from North London. Eventually he ended up working in Lillywhites of Piccadilly where he sold, amongst other items,
Ladies Stockings. These were of course the stockings made by the famous "Kayser-Bondor" company.As partners, Allan and Eric began
to breed and exhibit Pembrokeshire Welsh Corgi's, for which they would require an affix. The decision was made to register "BONDOR" with the KC,
taking the literal meaning from the French "Good As Gold".

 

At the time, BONDOR was based in a North London flat, and space was becoming an issue. Both Allan and Eric had wanted to move
into another breed, with the Afghan being their preference. The decision was therefore taken to move out of London,
and this saw the purchase of a Pet Store in Southsea, Hampshire which came with a sizeable garden. With the space at their disposal,
BONDOR eventually acquired it's first Afghan Hound, and in seeking a suitable foundation bitch, they approached Sheila Devitt of the Carloway Kennel.

"Yazeena of Carloway", did not enjoy the showring. In fact that was putting it mildly ! Yazeena flat out refused to show or even move
when she was out of her natural environment. At home though, she was content and relaxed. She was destined to make her mark outside
of the ring rather than in it. The search began for a suitable stud dog, and after much consideration, Sheila Devitt again came to the fore.
At the time, she had brought in the import " Wazir of Desertaire", and both Allan and Eric were captivated when they saw him at his first UK
show. The temperament and showmanship were exactly what Yazeena required. Despite what many people will tell you about Allan and
his attitude toward imports, he was one of the first to use one !


Yazeena & Boo-Boo

The mating was a success and produced 7 puppies, 5 bitches and 2 dogs.
Yazeena is pictured below with Lezah, Helga, Mascara & Lagin. What a happy family !!!

From the litter, BONDOR kept a gold bitch who would eventually go on to become their first champion in BONDOR SERENADE,
whilst another gold bitch was exported to Canada, eventually becoming Can CH BONDOR CONCERTO.
Sheila Devitt took a gold dog and named him WAZI SHAH OF CAROWAY, and he can be seen in many pedigrees after being used prolifically.

Serenade quickly matured into a beautiful specimen, and her show career blossomed accordingly. At her first outing she won
the puppy classs under Daphne Gie, who was herself on her first judging appointment that day. Serenade's first CC came at the tender
age of 17 months at Manchester under Les Wilson, then Editor of "Dog World". She took two classes, and ended up with BOB
over many top winners of the time. The joy of a first CC for BONDOR was somewhat tempered by the abysmal journey back from
Manchester into London, with Allan and Eric having moved back into the capital and opening a grooming parlour.

The M1 motorway had just opened, and the weather was foul with snow,sleet and ice. Bill Kelly was driving and Allan had to keep
him awake all the way home with a constant supply of travel sweets and inane chatter. Serenade went on to take her title woth a 2nd CC
at Leicester under Harry Glover and her crown at Birmingham under Claire Race, again with BOB, aged 23 months.

In 1964 she was "Afghan Hound of the Year", and graced the cover of "Champion Dogs of the World" written by Sir Richard Glyn,
the Chairman of the Kennel Club. The book, published in 8 languages, was launched with a cocktail party at a fashionable hangout in
Bond St. Perhaps it should have been renamed "Bondor St" for the evening !! Serenade was guest star and loved the attention.

The photograph for the book cover was taken by Sally Anne Thompson, and became famous throughout the world for its
glamourous subject matter and the equally glamourous surroundings of Sir Winston Churchill's home Blenheim Palace.
The photo also put Sally Anne on the map as a well known canine photographer.

At the time the photograph was taken, Serenade was 6 weeks in whelp to Int Ch MOONRAKER OF MOONSWIFT. Ultimately this
would prove to be her only litter, but in terms of what she produced, the kennel could not have wished for anything greater.
On the 10th May 1966, Serenade produced 11 puppies. Three were sold to people who at the time were looking to purchase their
first show dogs. All three were to become champions, namely

Ch BONDOR DERA GHAZI KHAN,
Ch BONDOR KUMARI KHANUM
& Ch BONDOR AZIM KHAN.

As the 60's came to an end, the 70's began with continued success from the litter. Ghazi was Afghan of the Year 1970,
and joint top dog in 1971. Azim meanwhile had CC & BOB at Crufts in 1970 under Bill Siggers,
with Ghazi taken the RCC. Kumari meanwhile had taken the Bitch CC at Crufts in 1969.

Also in the litter were the brothers BONDOR KHOHENDIL KHAN & ZULFIKA KHAN who went to the singer Adam Faith
and his wife Jackie. Later, the Faith's went into partnership with Roy Wilson and Wally Walker of the KHONISTAN Kennel.
Roy and Wally did a good deal of winning with Khohendil Khan, who was greatly admired for his type and substance.
He went on to produce many winners for them including Ch KHONISTAN CALYPSO and Ch CHAYAKHAN KHAMSIN OF KHONISTAN.

Adam Faith with the pups

Following the litter, Serenade was only ever shown once more, finishing as she had started under Daphne Gie at Bath Championship Show in 1969.
The entry had been kept secret and no-one was more suprised than Daphne to see her in the ring. To quote from Daphne Gie's own words,
"I hadn't judged her since the day , many years ago, when i gave her Best Puppy, and she was still as perfect as ever, so i gave her the CC & BOB quite happily."
Azim Khan also took the RCC on the occasion of his mother's last show, indicating how the Bondor's would continue to succeed on many fronts.

Although Serenade took much of the limelight at the time, she did have an equally beautiful kennel mate in Ch BONDOR LEZAH.

Allan with Serenade & Lezah, circa 1968

Lezah started in the ring in 1962, and was by Ch PASHA OF CARLOWAY mated to BLETCHINGLEY ZULEIKA.
She was a stunning shaded red, of very vivid colouring. This was interpreted by some judges as "tortoise shell red"
or "diluted brindle", but according to Allan, it was definately shaded red.

Lezah gained many RCC's en route to her crown, including Crufts in 1965. This was in part to being shown at the same time as Serenade.
As Serenade had done, Lezah would also be Afghan of the Year, taking the award in 1966. She then took BOB at Crufts in 1967
under Bill Riley of Bletchingley fame. Peggy Riley had also given Lezah a CC at Richmond in 1966. In many respects, although she was
a Champion in her own right, it could be argued that Lezah's primary legacy was as a producer. Her first litter was sired by
Ch HORNINGSEA KHANABAD SUVERAJ and produced MONTRAVIA BONDOR BOLERO for Peter and Pauline Gibbs.


Bolero was handled by a young Marita Gibbs, then a child handler, and went on to many BIS and BOB wins.
He proved to be an asset at stud too, and although he did not win his crown, he left his mark on the breed.

Lezah winning her 2nd CC under Wally Pede (USA), with Claire Race

Lezah was later mated to a second dog from the same kennel as her first sire, Ch & AM Ch HORNINGSEA MUSTAGH ATA,
who notably went BOB at Crufts in 1965 under Sheila Devitt whilst at the young age of 14 months. From this mating, Bondor retained
a bitch who would herself in time become a noted brood bitch, BONDOR CINNAMON.

Towards the end of the 1960's, Serenade's litter began to make an impression in the ring. Both Ch AZIM and Ch Dera Chazi
won their first CC's and several RCC's consistently through to the end of the decade, whilst Ch Kumari Khanum took the Bitch CC at both
Richmond in 1968 under Harry Glover, & then Crufts in 1969 under Marna Dods. Allan and Eric had established themselves, both as exhibitors
and breeders. The 1970's beckoned, as did further success.