Kennel Belmara was established in 1985 by Aud and Øystein Tostrup. At the time they had both a newfoundland and swedish lapphund's in addition to shelties. They lived in the northeast part of Norway in the little community of Pasvikdalen.

None of them had any experience with dogs before they bought their first swedish lapphund, Kaisa, in 1977. She gave birth to the first and only litter of swedish lapphund's in the kennel. N SF Uch Sarek and the CC-winner Hilkka were born in this litter. They were both bought by Jørn Syrstad and Linda Warelius who now breed swedish lapphund's under the prefix Sabmebæna. They have had great success with these lines, and Hilkka and Sarek are in the pedigrees of many of their champions.

The swedish lapphund Heikki and the newfoundland Pia made their arrival in 1982. Heikki was a beautiful dog winning two CC's in only three shows. He was not steady in his temper, so they stopped showing him. Pia had the sweetest personality and a sound conformation, but due to hip dysplacia, she could not be bred. She lived a long and happy life as a pet, and has meant a lot for the whole family.

The first sheltie entered their lives in 1983. Her name was Maiken's Solveig Arctic Twillight, and was a heavily white factored shaded sable. In 1985 she gave birth to the first (and for many years the last) litter registered under the prefix Belmara. Six healthy puppies were born, and one of them, the tricolour Pastor Gullik Av Belmara, stayed put.

Because of family duties, this was the last litter born in the kennel for 20 years. They quit showing, and the dogs lived their lives as pets.

Today

In 2007, 22 years after the first sheltie litter was registered from Belmara, the second one was born.  Esmeralda By Me (N Uch Arcot Black Liquorice x Mellsjøhøgda’s Mystic Me) was the dam of the litter, and Degallo The Legend (GB Ch Orean Rainbow Warrior x Degallo Sweet Magic) was the sire. Owners of the kennel are now Øystein Tostrup and his son Jostein. 

We currently own five sheltie bitches that we plan to breed from. Two of them stay with loving owners on breeding terms and three of them stay at home with us. We love to travel around and attend shows and do so as often as we can. We have just started, but hope for many years with showing and breeding.

Jostein lives in Oslo at the moment and Øystein lives in Uddeholm, Sweden. Pictures below show the "torp" that Øystein moved to in 2006.