Heartbreak Kennel: My Inspiration for Writing the Book

Why would I want to write a book about a middle-aged woman who abandoned nearly one hundred Labrador Retrievers in a rural Colorado field?

The short answers: Max and disbelief.

In 1995, my husband Dave and I adopted a goofy yellow Lab named Max from a gentleman who’d bought him as a puppy from a breeder. Max became our best hiking dog until our current boy Ranger. He loved people and all animals and possessed many other endearing qualities, including a few surprising quirks. In July 2003, he passed over the Rainbow Bridge at age twelve and a half. We’ve missed him ever since.

I learned about the abandoned Labradors a year later, almost to the day of his passing. Good grief, I thought. Not another story about abandoned/neglected animals. Who would do such a thing?

But this particular story and follow-ups captured my undivided attention when I learned the alleged perpetrator of the abandonment was none other than Max’s breeder, Dodie Cariaso.

Whoa. Really? Then I recalled, much to my chagrin, that I’d been told his breeder’s name before we adopted Max but had never called her to learn anything about her or her Labradors. I just assumed that she was a reputable breeder because when I reviewed Max’s pedigree, I noticed that she’d bred one of her dogs to a Simerdown Labrador owned by a well-known and respected breeder in the Denver area.

When the abandonment story aired, I pictured Dodie as an uneducated woman who lived in the backwoods in a rundown home and hailed from a poor family. That was my admittedly biased stereotype of anyone who treated helpless animals like trash. I can’t tolerate people who abuse or neglect animals.

Frankly, I just couldn’t understand how an animal neglecter could have bred our beloved Max. Dodie didn’t fit into my animal abuser stereotype because she had produced such an endearing, physically sound dog with a goofy personality. Max, I reasoned, was just too good a Labrador, for Dodie to be a monster.

I tried to put aside my nagging questions about Dodie. We sent a check to the Larimer County Humane Society to help pay for the care of some of the abandoned Labradors, and I continued to a work as a civil litigation attorney.

After I retired a couple of years later, Dave and I and our two Labradors, Brew and Taz, moved to the central Colorado mountains. The following year, we watched a follow-up story about Dodie that was even more bizarre and shocking than the abandonment. Dave knew that I still had not reconciled my two images of Dodie: the good breeder vs animal neglecter.

“Why don’t you investigate Dodie and learn how she could have possibly cared enough to breed a quality dog such as Max? he asked. “Her story might make an interesting book.”

I thought long and hard about his idea which intrigued me. Media stories about animal abusers rarely if ever gave a detailed account of what caused a person to act horrifically. But now I could try to discover what led up to Dodie acting the way she did and abandoning so many helpless souls in that field. My employment as a newspaper reporter and then a trial attorney had honed my interview and research skills that would help me.

After weeks of consideration, I decided that I wanted answers to my questions about Dodie. That’s when I began my quest to find out what led her to abandon so many Labradors and whether she was held accountable for deserting the dogs that hot summer day. After all, I reasoned, Dave was still working and my project would only take a couple of years to research and write and perhaps another year to get published. How naive was I?!!

I discovered on my years-long odyssey that Dodie’s journey to the rural field in July 2004 and beyond was full of twists and turns, some of which were bizarre and sometimes just plain shocking. Dodie’s travels through life were nothing that I’d anticipated or could have made up.  Just when I thought I “understood” her, I’d interview another person who disclosed a “tidbit” about her that others hadn’t revealed or hadn’t known. Without a doubt, she had her supporters and detractors, none of whom knew everything about her— including her gracious family.

In many respects, I came to view her life as a jigsaw puzzle and will leave it to you, should you choose to read Heartbreak Kennel, to decide if I completed my task.

You’ll also have an inside look, through the eyes of prosecutors and her attorneys, at how and if the authorities made Dodie accountable for her decision to abandon her Labradors.

How does Max fit into the book? He not only inspired me to research and write about Dodie but also offered a cheerful diversion from Dodie’s often intense story. I loved writing about him and did so as I waited to receive records and interview nearly one hundred individuals. His stories flowed easily onto the page and now as chapters provide levity that can only make you laugh and smile. He reminds us all of the joys and responsibilities of canine ownership.

Max also opened doors for me— some of which are disclosed in the book so I won’t be a spoiler. But here’s an example that isn’t in the book and opened up a plethora of information about Dodie, to include her diaries and inner thoughts.

I can’t explain exactly why but I was a bit nervous about calling Dodie’s twin to request an interview. When I reached him and identified myself and the purpose of my call, I held my breath and waited for his response.

“Why are you writing a book about my sister?” James asked, sounding shocked and incredulous.

That’s when our goofy adoptee came in. I gushed on and on about Max and his most endearing traits. Thankfully, James and his wife agreed to an interview in their Denver metropolitan area home. I met several times with them and their two dogs including Tess, a shy, chocolate Labrador, from one of Dodie’s litters that had been born just months before the abandonment.

As I’d suspected, James and his wife held the keys to unlocking yet another perspective of Dodie. They loaned me her diaries, photos, and other records, all of which were treasure troves and led to interviews of more people.

My takeaway: Dodie didn’t fit my stereotype of an animal abandoner or neglecter.  Instead, this college-educated woman came from an upper-middle-class Midwestern family. Perhaps that’s why I found her such a fascinating character.

I purposefully didn’t label or judge her in my book. Dodie was, well, Dodie.

Although most canine breeders are ethical and responsible, just like representatives of other hobbies and professions, some are not. The irresponsible breeder lot is partially responsible for some of the 3.3 million canines that land each year in shelters across our nation.

Expect to shed a tear, experience shock, laugh, smile, and hug your furry friend as you journey through the lives of Max and Dodie. If this book helps just one person or one canine—mixed breed or purebred— the time and effort of all those involved in making Heartbreak Kennel possible will have been worthwhile. When the book ends, you’ll remember why our canines are so special to us.

Purchase a copy of the book: https://www.caryunkelbach.com/product/heartbreak-kennel-the-true-story-of-max-and-his-breeder/