Well, I just spent an hour on the phone with Jacqui.
Talascio, as it turns out, is completely infertile. She did have him tested during the summer but the results of this test were SO conclusive (and done by a canine reproductive specialist) that she thinks the original samples may have been confused. When he was tested on Friday, there was just...nothing. Unfortunately, Friday was also the optimum date to mate Vienna, Jacqui knew this because she had tests done every day for over a week to determine ovulation.
So, being the dedicated woman she is, she left the vet's office, threw both dogs in the back of the van, made a phone call, and tore 200 miles (Cambridge to Liverpool, Karen) across the country to the home of another male who was imported from Italy in the spring, to which she had breeding rights. She couldn't borrow him, because even the most stable male Maremmas (and these 2 are, Tirino, the other male, is one of the males I spoke of in the aggression thread who lives with a fellow intact male) can't be put in an enclosed space with a bitch in heat unless you like breaking up dog fights, so she couldn't take him home with her in the van.
All hopes are pinned on this one, admittedly good, tie...we know Tirino is fertile, he sired a litter of puppies before leaving Italy. If ever I needed good thoughts on the Maremma front, it's now.