by Neil Crone on February 24, 2010
Okay, the cards may have been stacked a little against ‘Owen’ and me this past week. Just two days before our Thursday night classes, Owen went in to be neutered and have his hind dewclaws removed. This, of course, meant no walks for a few days, very little rough play and wearing the dreaded plastic lampshade of shame. I confess I felt for the poor guy. I think males everywhere feel a pang of remorse at seeing another of their gender having the ‘change taken out of his purse.’ But this is also a very smart, very kinetic animal and being under house arrest for the past week was akin to telling an eight-year-old Wayne Gretzky not to pick up his stick for seven days.
The net result was that Owen seemed even spacier than usual at class. Teddy of Daytripper had emailed some very good advice about coming to class with a Kong® toy stuffed with peanut butter and dog goodies. This would help keep Owen focused and quiet in between exercises.
Great advice and it seemed to work. Although, midway through class, I began to wonder if someone had slipped a tab of doggie acid into Owen’s Kong. He started to trip out – lying on his back, smiling, pawing the air, biting his leash. After a while he just didn’t care. I was waving treat after treat under his nose and all he’d do was glance back at me with this glazed look that seemed to say, “Dude…why are you so uptight?”
But again, there was a lesson to be learned here… and again it seemed to be me who had to learn it. Teddy and Lane would swoop in to the rescue and with some energetic words and a different kind of treat, would completely reanimate him to learning status again. Lesson learned: Always have more than one kind of goodie in your fanny pack. Duh.
By Neil Crone
by Alison on February 23, 2010
Attending Westminster last week had a surprising side effect on me, lets call it ‘missing-dog-show-circuit-itis.’ ‘Denver’ and ‘Flash’ are happily retired and come out only for the occasional specialty. That makes me, well, a semi-retired amateur handler.
Putting a championship on a dog is hard work, but man can it be fun. Watching all those handlers and dogs in the ring, I felt a pang of longing. Do I want to get up super early every weekend? Do I want to spend all my disposable cash on entries, gas and cheap motel rooms? No (but really, yes, yes I do.)
Though I’ve been out of the game for a while, dog showing is my sport. Westminster is the only televised sporting event where I know I know the game inside and out (sorry hockey fans, but I still can’t figure out some of the calls).
And, as it has been known to happen, I’ve fallen in love with a new breed. I love my Salukis, and there will hopefully always be one in my house. But it looks as though I have fallen hard for the breed that is in some ways the opposite of the gracefully waifish Saluki, the adorably stocky French Bulldog. Coveting a Frenchie is perhaps my later-in-life rebellion to my sighthound-person upbringing.
But, don’t expect puppy pictures anytime soon. The operative word in ‘Two dog household’ is ‘house.’ So while I am living in my apartment, it will remain just Denver and frequent visits from Flash.
But, with any luck and some financial planning, a house is only a few years away. Which means it’s time to start talking to some breeders…
by Alison on February 19, 2010
New York Daily News - Theodorakis/News
This year the buzz of the Westminster show scene was that a dog named ‘Sadie,’ a.k.a. Ch. Roundtown Mercedes of Maryscot, was the one to watch. I was skeptical, last year I spotted people wearing buttons supporting the Toy Group winner, a Brussels Griffon, and assumed that the dog with the hype was the one to watch. But then along came ‘Stump.’
But when I heard from David Frei that everyone was talking about Sadie, I thought maybe there is something to this ‘it’ girl. After all, she is the top dog in the U.S. and having won the Terrier Group at last year’s Westminster show, she would certainly know her way around the ring. And she did.
Despite an attempt to steal the show, Sadie was a pro. Watching her win was a reminder of what this dog show thing is all about: Beautiful, talented dogs.
Will Sadie become a superstar like ‘Uno,’ or will she take a more subdued route, like ‘Stump’? In any case, it’s a victory for the ladies because Sadie is only the 35th bitch to win this prestigious show. From all of us, let me say ‘congratulations’ to Sadie and her team, and, if I may be so bold, a heartfelt ‘you go girl!’
by Kelly on February 18, 2010
I just wanted to remind everyone that we have a list of the Canadian Westminster wins posted here.
We’ve done our best to track down the Canadian competitors, but if you see an error or omission, please let us know! We want to be sure that every Canadian-bred and/or Canadian-owned dog that won is recognized.
Of course, just being invited to compete at Westminster is an honour and a reflection of an incredible amount of time, effort and talent. Wins aside, I’d like to congratulate all of the Canadian competitors who competed at this year’s show.
by Kelly on February 18, 2010
I returned home yesterday, after what seemed like an awfully long time away from my dogs. For so many of us, the best part of going away lies in the return home - and, largely, because we know our dogs are waiting there for us.
I opened the front door yesterday and was greeted by a couple of frantic kisses and loud yodels from Ocho, who then proceeded to run around me in circles, also known as his “happy dance”. Next up, Jazz bestowed upon me a very rare kiss, whimpered a bit and then jumped up on me with a look that I interpreted as “just between you and me, I did actually miss you just a little bit.”
It was a wonderful few days in New York City, covering the Westminster show. There really is nothing nicer than being in the company of so many beautiful dogs - other than, of course, being at home and curled up with my own two lovelies.
I’m glad to be home.
