Meet Icelandic Sheepdog Breeder Kayla Stilger of Apricity Icelandics
- Melanie Haid
- Aug 19
- 7 min read
Originally published here at AKC.org on August 19, 2025 by Melanie Haid
Kayla Stilger of southern Indiana, might be new to breeding, but to her, it’s always been an option. Stilger, a veterinarian, founded Apricity Icelandic Sheepdogs in 2022, and says she’s already learned so much. “It felt like a natural progression for me to get into breeding,” she says.
The lifelong dog lover fell in love with the rare Icelandic Sheepdog breed after having Golden Retrievers and growing up with Miniature Pinschers. She says owning the breed is like having a part of history. “It’s the only native breed to Iceland, and they evolved with Icelandic farmers and what they needed,” she says. “They were historically a Spitz breed, and one of the dog breeds the Vikings had.”
For Stilger, it’s not just about creating meaningful relationships with great dogs, but also about carving out her own niche in the breeding world.
Inspired to Breed
Growing up, Stilger was no stranger to the prospect of breeding. Her mom bred Miniature Pinschers, another breed on the rarer side. Stilger got her first dog of her own when she was 10 years old. It was an Australian Shepherd, and this dog accompanied her into 4H and obedience.
Today, Stilger works as a veterinarian and was inspired to go down that career path due to her lifelong love of dogs and animals.
In her early 20s, she had a Golden Retriever who was her perfect dog for 10 years. After the dog passed, she got another Golden, but unfortunately, even the best dogs sometimes aren’t the perfect fit. He began to show signs of aggression towards her other dogs.
“I wasn’t sure we would be able to manage this, but we kept trying,” she says. But when he was 10 months old, he attacked her dog again. She spoke to her breeder about what to do, and relayed his obedience skills and everything she knew to the breeder. Sadly, they mutually decided it was in his best interest to find him a home that didn’t have other dogs. “It was literally the hardest thing that I’ve ever done because I loved him so much,” Stilger recalls. “There were so many wonderful things about that dog.”
However, the experience taught her a great deal, inspiring her to become a breeder and informing her thoughts on what kind of breeder she wanted to be. “It’s important as a breeder to stand by what you produce, and to always help, to take those dogs back if needed, and maintain that relationship,” she says. “I feel I learned so much about how to support other people in that scenario because of that.”
Getting Involved With a Rare Breed
When she was looking to get another dog, she knew she wanted a breed other than a Golden, but one with similar temperament. “I wanted to look into another breed that’s happy and social and loves everyone,” she says. Through her research, she came across the Icelandic Sheepdog and found that there were only about 2,000 dogs of the breed in the United States. “I wanted to be part of that community and that legacy,” she says. “I wanted to help, essentially maintaining the breed and helping it move forward.”
Stilger started sending emails, and connected with a well-developed breeder. She’d later end up getting her foundation bitch from this breeder’s litter. “We had a lot of conversations, and she was very open to mentoring me and helping me along in the journey, to show in conformation and be a breeder.” Her experience as a vet was definitely a plus, but Stilger says the breeder really took a chance on her.
From the start, she was very open with the breeder about how she wanted to breed down the line. “I was interested in breeding, but I wanted her in my corner,” Stilger says. “I wanted to maintain that relationship with her if she was interested in mentoring me.” The breeder believed the bitch would be breeding quality, but wanted to make sure she was well-rounded before she was bred. “She wanted me to show her and title her in other stuff, and, before we decide to breed her, that we’d look at everything together.”
Before long, Stilger was planning her first litter. “I’m a planner, so it was years of planning going into this first litter, and it was like watching my dreams come true.” That first litter, she says, was perfect in its own way.
“We have a white head in our breed, and it’s not a testable gene, you can’t always predict it’s going to happen. I actually produced a deaf puppy, and he is so special and so loved. But it was something I wasn’t expecting to happen,” Stilger says. “I think that you learn a lot, and realize, again, how you can support other people. He went to a great home, and does dock diving, Fast CAT, and takes agility classes.”
Mentorship Across Breeds
Since starting her breeding program, Stilger has had three total litters planned. She got her foundation bitch in 2022. Her first litter is coming up on 2 years old, and she planned two more for 2025. Though she loves every minute of it, she isn’t planning on breeding often.
Stilger adds that she also likes to try to have interested owners before breeding a litter. “I don’t see myself breeding a lot of litters because it’s so important to me that I have a relationship with my puppy owners,” she says. “I don’t want to overstretch my ability to do that.”
Though Stilger still considers herself a newcomer, she has already found her place within the Icelandic Sheepdog community. “I’m super new — there are people who have been in this breed for decades, and they have been working so hard on it,” she says. “I feel like I’ve branched into the breed community pretty well.”
She’s on a couple of committees for the Icelandic Sheepdog Association of America, the breed’s AKC parent club, including the Health and Genetics committee. “As a veterinarian, I’m helping keep an eye out for any health issues that come up in the breed,” she says. “I’m trying to educate our membership about those potential health issues.”
Aside from helping the breed club in any way she can, she’s found that the most important part of breeding is having a good mentor. “My foundational breeder was already one of my main mentors, but I actually have several mentors,” Stilger says. Her mentors aren’t limited to Icelandic Sheepdog breeders either. She has mentors in other breeds, and her mom, who breeds Mudis, is a mentor to her, too. “She helps me with the process, and we help each other,” she says. “I’ve walked her through a lot of litters, because of the veterinary part of it is an easier role for me.”
“I recommend mentorship, it’s so important,” Stilger adds. “The people who have been in the breed for decades have so much knowledge, and good mentors will share it with you.” They know things like which lines have been crossed before, details about past litters, and have so much health knowledge to share.
“But on the flip side, it’s important to carve your own niche. I have my mentors, but then I have my own things that are important and special to me,” she says. “I think that making sure you have your own goals is very important, and that helps you advance with your own program and become unique.”
So, You Want an Icelandic Sheepdog?
Despite their temperament being comparable to that of a Golden or a Labrador Retriever, Stilger says Icelandic Sheepdogs can be more challenging. “They’re happy all the time, but they don’t want to do anything unless it’s fun for them,” she says. “They can be a fun challenge that way.”
While they are a herding breed and have some biddability, Icelandic Sheepdogs are also a Spitz breed, so their instinct is to be a bit stubborn. “They may not be the dog breed for everyone, or for first-time dog owners,” she says. “They do like to push boundaries, and they’re smart, so you do have to manage them if you want to maintain the skills that they have.”
Despite following their own hearts, Stilger says they’re relationship dogs. “They look at you, and your relationship is so special to them,” she says. Stilger notes that they love every person and every dog that they meet, but they still love their person — or people — the most.
Alongside her breeder friends, Stilger started a Facebook page called ‘So, You Want an Icelandic Sheepdog?’ She says the page serves as a resource for people who are interested in the breed. It allows Icelandic owners and breeders to answer questions from potential owners across the country, and they try to connect them directly with people who have experience with the breed. “It’s so important for people to meet the dogs, and talk with different owners about the variety of personalities that you can get — and the challenges, too,” she adds.
“I think it’s so special to help people find, ideally, exactly the kind of dog they’re looking for,” Stilger says. “I think that’s a big part of it, helping maintain the breed and then helping people have good dogs.”
These good dogs have an aptly named kennel, too: Apricity means “the warmth of the sunshine in the winter.” Stilger describes it herself as being out in the snow when it’s super cold, and you feel sunshine on your face. She picked the name because, she says, Icelandic Sheepdogs are such a joy.
“They are the happiest little dogs I’ve ever known. The slogan for my kennel is ‘Your own personal ray of sunshine,'” she smiles. “I just felt like it really made sense: sunshine in the winter.”
Comments