Traveling to the show

So, I thought I had a brilliant idea to stay at Georgeann's house this weekend when traveling back and forth to the Richmond shows. She is only about 1 1/2 from the show and that is certainly doable. Well, if you have never traveled around DC, try to avoid it. We left Saturday morning and was in stop and go traffic for the entire trip down. It took us over 2 1/2 hours to get there. Where was everyone going? I guess the beach. Another exhibitor was 15 miles behind us, calling every 20 minutes or so asking, "has the traffic let up yet"?. Anyway, we thought that Sunday would be better and it was. We zoomed down to Richmond. The problem was that on the way back we once again sat in traffic. What the heck? It seemed we were stuck in the coming home beach traffic. The only problem with the weekend, was we sat in beach traffic both days and never saw the beach.

Big weekend

Wow. What a great weekend. We went to Richmond to hopefully grab a major for Matt. Well, the ladies down there did a great job at holding the major. Elaine, brought her two babies with her, Valerie brought out her old girl, and Sherry brought her girl who was injured.. And it held it was great. Matt was WD, BW and BOB for his CH.. He is undefeated in the US since I have been showing him. He is truly a wonderful dog and I will be sad to see him go back home.

Now for Obedience. Yesterday, well, we did not qualify. He decided that he had to poop in the ring. BIG NO NO!!! But today, well completely different story. He was on him game. Score 188 and 2nd place... He was something else.

I have just enjoyed this guy so much. Having him here had made Tanner being away a little easier. Thank you Eve...

So I am up on a Saturday morning at 5am. I am on my way to Richmond for a dog show. Why Richmond? Because that is where the major is, and Matt needs a major to finish. Now, this might be tricky. The major is in the bitches. So, not only does Matt have to go Winners Dog, but also Best of Winners to steal the major. Some judges don't like to do that. Our judge today is a bit of a wild card. There is a major tomorrow as well. I would love to get this done today. And than maybe he and I can concentrate on the obedience title. Wish us luck...

The Cat Lives

How long to cats live for? I ask this because I have three and I think they are way too old. They are each over 10 and one might be close to 15. Anyway, we got these cats when we lived on the farm to help with the mice situation. When we moved back to the neighborhood, we brought them with us. They were mostly inside/outside cats. But, I just could not deal with the litter box and soon the cats were laying all over the place and dropping ticks all over my house. That was it. They were moved outside. Now, don't think I am mean. These were farm cats. We still bought them their Meow Mix. But I just couldn't have them in the house anymore. If you have ever been to my house, you know I have offered up the cats to any takers. ( so far none). The other day, Marlin, came out of the garage wobbly and unsteady. I didn't even notice it. Newell pointed out that there was something wrong with the cat. What to do? He called the vet and she thought maybe the cat had a stroke. Well, we don't want the cat to suffer. So the next morning we put him in a carrier and I took him to the vet's house so she could take him to the office and put him out of misery. Imagine my surprise, when she said the cat has an inner ear infection and would be fine. HMMM.. fine. Now, having one less cat around would have been ideal for me. The cats pee in my garage, often on Echo. Which is pretty sad. I was ( to be honest) very disappointed that the cat was going to fine. Now, I have to give him an antibiotic for 2 weeks. This cat I can barely get my hands on. Great. How long do cats live for?

puppies

These 7 week old puppies of mine are so unhappy. It has been so hot here that I can't seem to find a place to put them to make them happy. They are not happy in their whelping room, they want to be out, so they holler and scream, Mostly just one of them does, that would be mine. But anyway, when I put them outside they holler and scream because it is too hot. My friend Georgeann bought me the coolest thing. It is an ocillating fan that you hook the hose up to. The fan blow cool water over the puppies. I put that on and they are happy. They all jockey for position under the spritzing water and fall asleep. If you look at them, they have a think layer of mist over them. It almost looks like they are covered in frost. I'll try to post a pic of it.

Now everyone is happy. Especially me.

So I have been thinking about how I first got started in this crazy lifestyle. How is it that I have come to love these dogs so much that I am just about obsessed with them. Well, my story starts when I was very young. My dad was dying and I was staying with a friend of my family. We went to visit a kennel in Northern NJ, because their next door neighbors were getting a new dog. I remember, like yesterday, pulling into the driveway and before my eyes were the most beautiful dogs I had ever seen. We walked around and looked at puppies and adults and I could barely contain myself. As we moved along, I remember hearing the owners talk about their dogs and how some of their older dogs were available for adoption. Retired show dogs that were looking for a good homes to live out their lives. My heart started to race. I knew we could never afford a puppy, not with Dad sick and all. But certainly, we could give a home to one of these older guys. I went home and begged and pleaded. My mother, of course was not keen on the idea. After all her plate was pretty full. Facing a life without my father and raising 3 kids by herself. But I was relentless. I eventually just simply wore her down. We brought her home, CH Sanctuary Woods Early Bird. She was my salvation. She was the most beautiful and regal animal I had ever seen. She made me sane in a world that was quickly going out of control for me. She lived 2 years with us. She got me through one of the worst times in my life. And after she died, I knew in my heart that I would never own a different kind of dog. I didn't know how long it would take, but I knew Bernese Mountain Dogs would be a part of my life. Little did I know at 15, how much a part they would really become.

What to Write About

So.. when I got my Master's Degree, my final project was a Memoir called "Follow Me to the Dog Show". This was a series of short stories about my experiences and takings of my life in the dog show world. Since I have been writing this blog, I was thinking, (because you know I do that a lot) why not write a book. So.. What do you think? Would there be interest in a book about dogs, dog shows and the funny things that happen along the way. I thought I would call it " My life as a Dog" Let me know.

Belle is coming

So.. I am getting a new puppy from Tanner. Her name will be Belle and she is bred by Trisha Olsen. What is funny, is that I have been waiting for a while for Trisha to decide which puppy to send to me. There are only two girls. She has sent pictures of them. We have talked. She just couldn't make up her mind. Well, yesterday the e-mail came and the decision had been made. Puppy B would come here. She went on to explain her reasoning. This about heads, and bone, that about stacking but in the end she said I was getting the one that was ( uh how did she put it) full of attitude. Well, that is code for the one who is yelling all of the time, or the one you are saying no to all of the time. Well, what is funny... for those of you who know me, that is what exactly is in my backyard. Chris wills say, Tanner was the one that was into everything. For the longest time I am sure he thought his name was "Tanner NO"/ Jada, screamed and screamed while all of her litter mates slept soundly around her, and now Kendra, uses her siblings as a latter to jump out of the box and xpen. So... Welcome Belle to Blackrock, you should feel right at home.

Kinda Kute Kendra??

Faith

I have got to tell you.. my faith has been restored in the dog showing world. I know many of you who try to show their own dogs and lose get very frustrated, and I do as well. . Most times we try to blame it on the judge, she just likes the handlers... We like to say. But.. I have been happily surprised. In the past weeks I have had a beautiful male here at my house to show from Canada. Many of you know this dog. While showing him, I have competed against the top handlers in my area. And in all cases, this dog has won. There has not been even a hesitation. He has been WD, BW and often BOB in almost every show he has competed in. The lesson learned. We should all strive to have the very best in the ring.. And if we do, we will be rewarded, every time. The judges know a good dog and will find him. Thanks Eve, for this great opportunity to show the absolutely wonderful dog....and to have my faith restored in showing dogs.

They like him better than me...

So.. the kids came home yesterday, kind of a surprise. They never just come home. Well, today was Father's Day and they wanted to celebrate their dad. How nice. They bought him a gift, and they treated him like a king. How nice. What happened on Mother's DAy. I don't remember..

When his birthday comes, we get a cake and sing and give him presents. When my birthday comes, I don't remember. They like him better than me. Hmmm....

Judging Jada

So I have my bitch from my JJ litter. We call her Jada. She is a great dog, but.... not quite the show dog we would hope. She is a little small, she is out of proportion because of all of her coat, and she has a bad front. I have been toying with the idea of placing her in a companion home. I had pretty much made up my mind this past week. I put the word out to some of my friends and lo and behold, we had the phone ringing off the hook for her. Anyone would be just thrilled to have her. So, I narrowed down my prospects. Spoke to the people several times and pretty much decided that she would be right for them. I am going to the show this weekend and as it happens it is near where these people live. We made plans to meet at the show so they could see Jada and I could meet them in person and decide if this was a good match. Last night, I put her in the tub to give her a good bath, and...... SHE IS IN SEASON!!! Go figure. All bets are off. She can't go home with these people now for 3 weeks. Maybe she heard me talking on the phone, and she really doesn't want to leave. I wouldn't put it past her..

So. the puppies are now 6 weeks old. They could not be cuter..They wag their tails and bark for attention. Their prospective owners are coming to visit and everyone is just as happy as can be. Now comes the hard part. Which one stays here for me. It sometimes happens that the puppy for me just stands out and the decision is easy. But sometimes it is not. This is one of those times. The puppy I like the best, does not have the correct markings for a Bernese Mountain Dog. And without the correct markings, everything else has to be perfect. The one that is correctly marked, well I am just not that sure about. Should I not keep one. Well, that has never been an option, because that is why I breed, to keep a puppy for my program. So, I am in a dilemma. Keep one that is perfectly marked, but does not WOW me, or keep one that I like that isn't marked well, or not keep one at all. Hmmm.. What to do, what to do...

So I would like to start a petition to get rid of Wednesdays. They are of no use. There are no holidays on Wednesdays and you know that when you wake up on Wednesday, you think " it should be Thursday". For me, Wednesdays are just too long. I am a morning person. I like to get up, get started and by 2pm have my nap. On Wednesdays though, I have to work in the afternoon. I get up do my things and when nap time comes along, I have to go to work. Last night, (Wed. night) I went to work and then went to the YKC meeting and didn't get home until nearly 9:30. I am tired this morning. Don't you think it would sound great if our work week was Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday. I think it rolls really well. Just get rid of Wednesdays. Whose for it?

It is hard being the smartest person in the room... ALL OF THE TIME!!!!

So, I thought I just did this, but I guess not. I am being told that I don't blog enough. Well, I don't have that much to say. I go to work, and don't get home until 3 and I haven't eaten yet. I am tired, hungry and my feet hurt. The things I am thinking about now are why hasn't Vetgen told me which puppy to keep. They said two weeks and it has been three. Does anyone care about this? I don't think so. I worry why Echo has decided to jump the fence like it isn't there. Does anyone care about this, I don't think so. I am thinking that we need to move, because I can't keep the dogs I want living here. Oh well, I am the only one that cares about that. I will try to be better at this. Just be patient.