NZ Ch Harriet Taylor of Kapowai

Call Name: Harriet

Sex: Female

Date of Birth: 23rd of August 2015

Place of Birth: New Zealand

Colour: Black and Tan, White Markings

Sire: Valentino of Tarere

Dam: Hershey's Kisses of Kapowai 

Breeder: Helen Trembath

Kennel: Kapowai

Titles: New Zealand Champion

Health:

Embark DNA: View

Eyes: Normal

Heart: Normal

Hips: Fair

Legg-Calve-Perthes: Clear

Patellas: 0/0

Comments:
There are some dogs who become part of your life, and then there are the ones who change it completely. Harriet is that dog for me.

NZ Ch Harriet Taylor of Kapowai was my first show Chihuahua, my first Chihuahua Champion, and ultimately the little dog who became the foundation of AmigoReal.

When Harriet and I first stepped into the show ring, neither of us really knew what we were doing. We learnt together. She taught me an enormous amount, not only about showing, but about Chihuahuas, breeding, and the kind of dogs I wanted AmigoReal to be known for. She gained her New Zealand Championship title in 2017, but what Harriet has given me could never be measured by titles.

AmigoReal began in 2016, and Harriet was there at the very beginning.

She is my heart dog.

Anyone who knows Harriet knows she has never lacked personality. She is incredibly intelligent, wonderfully opinionated, and has always had a very definite idea about how things should be done. Even now, she can suddenly break into zoomies like a puppy, and seeing that little spark in her still makes me smile every single time.

But it is probably the little everyday things that describe Harriet and our relationship best.

Harriet smiles when I arrive home. Every morning she climbs onto my bed, wiggles herself in beside me and gets comfortable. If I am not paying her enough attention, I will soon get a paw reminding me that she is there.

She is also very good at letting me know exactly what she wants. Harriet loves to bark, but often one bark is enough. If she wants to go outside, she will give me a single bark to tell me. Other times it simply means she wants my attention, usually right now.

After almost eleven years together, we understand each other incredibly well. So much of it is in the little routines, looks, noises and gestures that probably mean nothing to anyone else, but make perfect sense to us.

She has been there through changes, milestones, successes, mistakes, new generations of Chihuahuas, and the growth of AmigoReal from an idea into what it is today.

On 23 August 2026, Harriet turns 11.

To celebrate her birthday, her face will be appearing on a digital billboard here in Christchurch, which for a little dog who has spent most of her life believing the world revolves around her seems rather appropriate. 

There have been many AmigoReal Chihuahuas since Harriet, and hopefully there will be many more to come, but there will never be another dog who can take her place.

She was there at the beginning.

She is my girl, my heart dog, and the heart of AmigoReal.