Paulee's Danes & Dales

About Us

My name is Paula Borkgren, I am married to Stan, and we have a 21-year-old daughter, Lee. We live in a small farming community in Illinois. We love all animals. We have the Danes, a French Bulldog, and an Airedale Terrier. We also have Dexter cattle (mini cows), peafowl, chickens, and Manx cats.

I was eight years old when I saw my first Dane. He was on the small side, now that I know Danes, at the time he was huge to me. He was a true junkyard dog. He lived down the road at the car parts place. He lived outside and was never fed enough. He was a fawn, scarred and thin, but he loved kids. He would wander down the highway and visit us. I told everyone I would have a Dane of my own. 12 years later my dream came true, or should I say the nightmare began. 1973. We saw an ad in the paper for an eleven-month-old fawn male. We did not know he had been abused. After many people being bitten by him, and several of my cats being killed, Shane had to be destroyed. We made the mistake of dealing with these same people again. Two more vicious dogs passed through my hands before I realized that it was bad breeding that was the problem.

I learned a hard lesson in buying those dogs. Temperament is key. It took a lot of research and hard work to get where I am today. I have had a great time, and it isn't over yet.

We don't have litters all the time, we breed occasionally and when we do, we strive to breed a happy, healthy dog that can live in a family environment. I started showing in conformation May 1997. It was nerve racking, but I wanted to do something more with the dogs. We don't go to the shows as much as some other people we know, it is more like a hobby to us. It keeps us out there, talking to people that have the same passion for dogs as we do. We are proud of our breeder/owner/handler status. When we do win, it is all the sweeter.

We are still working to improve our line. We have had very few health problems over the years, and count ourselves lucky. This is not a big kennel; it is a family operation. Lee and I breed, train, and show our own dogs. My husband builds kennels, fences and whatever may be needed, and sits and listens to my endless ramblings about dogs. He also does chores when we have to leave early to make it to a dog show. He is a good man.

While I am bragging, I will brag about our daughter. Dog show people know her as Allyson Lee. When she first started out, besides showing our 210# male Dane, she showed her French Bulldog, Hop, all by herself from the time she got her. The dog only needed her majors when Lee had to stop showing her due to the dog's health problems.

Lee was in the top 10 junior handlers for French Bulldogs and Danes for 4 years. She took the Danes into breed classes and showed against top pros, and did quite well even as a child. She has grown to be a wonderful handler with a gentle touch and dog savvy. She works for one of the top handlers in the US and is learning to groom and show many new breeds.

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