Blue Velocity Ridgebacks
Stable, healthy, well bred companions that are true to the breed...
Hawaii, USA
My name is Kira Hoang. My history with dogs goes back to birth; I have always had a dog in the home for as long as I can remember. My family always had German Shepherds around, and as a child, I would train and be the main caretaker of our family dogs. At 14, I started volunteering at our local, often overcrowded animal shelter. I would help foster and train the rescue dogs, provide them basic care, help them set up adoption events at local stores, and do anything I could to enhance their chances at adoption.
In 2015, my husband told me about the Phu Quoc Ridgeback, a dog from his home country that was secluded to a particular island. He told me that they would die if they were taken away from the island. I thought I knew all about every breed that was out there; I had gone through every dog book I could find and had a bit of an ego about my breed knowledge. I was immediately humbled when I saw a video showing a dog I had never heard of before, with a rich history in a country I knew little about. The moment I laid eyes on those dogs I felt a spark light up in me. Their intelligence was like nothing I had seen in other dogs. I had never fallen for a breed the way I did with them and my husband, too, fell in love with them. We made plans then to import and start a kennel in the U.S.
Unfortunately, in late 2018, my husband passed unexpectedly. That put any life plans I had on hold, including the kennel. Our son was 9 years old when he passed, and by January, I knew we needed something to help bring joy back into our lives. I looked around and found a Phu Quoc Ridgeback puppy needing a home. Her parents were direct imports from Vietnam, with VKA papers, and she had the right look and personality. So I loaded up my son and we made a 12 hour drive to get her.
Kiwi was everything I had seen in those videos. She picked up commands quickly. She was independent but loyal to us. She was so in tune with us and ready for anything we were ready to do. She handled everything with grace. I knew that I would never want any other breed. There was a spark of passion in me again, and that meant more than anyone will ever know.
My passion for the breed grew and I wanted to do whatever I could to help get them established in America. By 2020, I was writing breed recognition proposals for UKC and AKC, and learning about the bloodlines and breeders in Vietnam. That passion drove me to get involved and help establish and push the breed club, the Phu Quoc Ridgeback Association, to what it is today. I became friends with many breeders in Vietnam who love the breed just as much as I do.
When I decided that it was finally time to start my kennel, I knew I wanted to produce the best dogs I possibly could. My goal is to make Phu Quoc Ridgebacks of sound temperament, good structure, healthy, and true to type. I want to make Phu Quoc Ridgebacks that would rock it in dog sports.
I believe that breeding should be done thoughtfully, with proper consideration, as each puppy that I breed will have a large and important impact on their families. Thus, I have spent a lot of time learning both bloodlines and individual dogs to make sure that I understand how dogs should be paired. I look at their temperament, personalities, structure, genetics, and overall health to make sure that each pair that I breed is complementary.
I ensure all of my dogs are health tested prior to breeding, and I work to contribute to the research of health in the breed. My program introduced the Phu Quoc Ridgebacks into the OFA database, and I hope to set a higher standard in health testing within the breed.
My puppies are raised with ENS and ESI, with a mix of Avidog, Puppy Culture methods. Puppies are raised at home by me and my son, where they are exposed to a variety of new things, sounds and people. We socialize each puppy extensively and make sure to work on important puppy basics such as crate training, house training and even an "off switch" so puppies learn to relax on busy days. Each puppy is temperament evaluated to see which family they would best fit, and I do my best to set families and puppies up for success.
Each puppy is an extension of my heart that goes out into the world. They mean everything to me, and the families that welcome them into their home become my family, too. Please feel free to ask me about my dogs and my program, or learn more about it below.
Hieu
My right hand man is Hieu. Named for his dad, but often called "Huey." He is his father's clone, but taller. I wouldn’t be where I am today without him. He is always helping me out with the dogs and enjoys learning about them. I’ve never forced my dog hobby onto him, everything he does and has learned is from his own interest. He helps me with foster animals, boarding dogs, training dogs, and puppy raising. He’s sweet and thoughtful. He loves all of the dogs we care for. He’s a beacon of light and joy in this world and I am VERY lucky and proud to call him my son.
Phu Quoc Ridgeback Association
& Community
A huge part of my passion is being active in the breed community, both in the U.S. and in Vietnam.
In 2020, my work writing breed recognition proposals for UKC and AKC had earned some attention from the then VPQRCA (Vietnamese Phu Quoc Ridgeback Club of America), and I was honored to be invited to the club and even be brought onto their board of directors. I brought in new ideas on how to progress the club and health of the breed, including pushing for health testing in the US. Though not all board members were in agreement with these changes and left, I helped rebuild the club as The Phu Quoc Ridgeback Association. With new board members and new goals, the PQRA introduced a new code of ethics with standard health testing prior to breeding, updated the breed standard to reflect the integrity of the breed as well as include dogs needed for genetic diversity, hosted club events, provided historical resources to the community, established a breed registry, and more. Under the PQRA, I played an important role in getting the breed accepted into kennel clubs such as ICKC, IABCA, and ARBA, and continue to push for breed recognition.
In 2023, I traveled to Vietnam to help acquire DNA samples of the 4 main native Vietnamese breed, including the Phu Quoc Ridgeback, Hmong Bobtail, Bac Ha Dog, and Lai Dog. I got to speak with, connect with and learn from breeders across Vietnam and bring home 4 dogs of my own. I continue to work with breeders in Vietnam to help promote the breeds we love.
I love the little breed community that we have built and I try to do as much as I can to support and build up this breed and this community. I have helped many members of the community with training and socializing, and have assisted in helping rescue Phu Quoc Ridgebacks from shelters and find new homes. I love encouraging others to learn more about good ownership, to do more with their dogs and to get involved in canine sports. One community member even began to get into Conformation after I helped show her how! She became the first person to show a Phu Quoc Ridgeback on U.S. soil, in an ICKC show in Oklahoma in May 2022. It was a huge accomplishment for the breed. Words do not express how proud I am of them, and of how far this breed has come.
Our sweet fosters
Aloha Spirit
When I moved to Hawai’i in 2019, I knew I wanted to give back to the island I was making my home. Aloha spirit is to give back. I thought the best way to do that was in areas I know. I decided to foster dogs needing medical attention from our local shelter. While the dogs heal in our home, Huey and I teach them love, basic obedience, and home manners. This has been incredibly helpful when the dogs are returned for adoption. Dogs we foster are typically adopted within 24-48 hours. Some don’t even make it back to the adoption area before someone hears us and adopts them. We are very proud that the foster dogs find forever homes in the community. Until then, the fosters become part of our little Ohana.
My son loves to foster the dogs. I couldn’t do half of the things I do now without his help. Not only does he help care for the dogs, but he gives them special love and attention that helps them bond with children. It’s always bittersweet when we have to give them back for adoption. We treat each of our fosters like our own dog.
Our dogs also play huge roles in our foster care. The girls help teach the foster dogs what it means to just be a dog. They run, play, sleep, cuddle and teach the foster dogs body language, relaxation, and home manners. I’ve been able to bring all breeds, shapes, sizes, sexes, ages, intact, spayed/neutered, any kind of dogs into our home and the girls have welcomed every single one.
