Lisa Medeiros

For over 40 years, Lisa has been involved with working dogs, both in a professional capacity and as an owner and breeder. She started as a drug detection dog handler for the US Navy, where she taught dogs the art of drug detection at the Lackland Airforce Base in San Antonio, Texas and she then worked with and trained her German shepherd “Goliath” for 3 years.

Lisa first took notice of the Portuguese Water Dog breed when she was looking for a non-shedding dog that would be able to run with her as she trained for marathons. The PWD was an excellent choice because they are up for a long day’s work doing anything you ask of them, including covering miles of distance during an intensive marathon training schedule. The breed was the perfect fit for her and she has loved and owned Portuguese Water Dogs for over 20 years.   

Her first PWD came to live with her in 2001. She is a strong supporter of responsible breeding and wants to own and raise dogs that exhibit sound, correct confirmation. This has led to success showing and all of her Portuguese Water Dogs have achieved their American Kennel Club Confirmation Title. Not only does she expect her dogs to be excellent examples of the breed conformationally, but she also wants them to be true working dogs and love the water. She has worked with all her dogs in water training and competitions and has achieved water titles on three of her dogs, Habibi, Rainha, and Destino. She has also trained and competed in agility with her dogs, and one of her dogs was a therapy dog who loved to accompany her to an elderly care facility to greet the residents.  

It was a natural transition to start breeding Portuguese Water Dogs to help promote and maintain the true characteristics that make this breed so incredible. Her goal in breeding is to create dogs that bring together the best lineages and health to produce amazing puppies that will be the perfect addition to their new families. She complies with all the health testing that is required by the Portuguese Water Dog Club of America to ensure that none of her puppies are affected by the diseases known in this breed. At Boatswain’s Mate, Lisa hopes to find the best homes for her puppies and have the pleasure of giving people a bundle of fun, joy, and many challenges for many years.