Congrats to our friend Meg Callea who had a wonderful weekend in Southern California. Two new champions including Argus's puppy daughter "Bella" - you saw her baby pictures here last spring. Bella finished her championship in two specialty weekends from the Puppy Class, with 4 majors including a Specialty Best Of Winners. Bella's big sister "Tia" from the previous breeding of Argus & Tess earned 19 (of the 25 required) points toward her Grand Championship. A cheeseburger for Argus!
We spent Saturday at an all day seminar for breeders, sponsored by the AKC Canine Health Foundation. I'm NOT used to sitting in class from 8:30 until 5:45, but it was well worth it. Excellent speakers, good facility, nice lunch, and good company (Jess & Stephanie). One of the speakers addressed nutrition and the epidemic of canine obesity - that at least 60% of American dogs are overweight. Tragic! Just as with people, overweight dogs are prone to many health issues, and easily managed health issues can be more of a problem in overweight dogs. She stressed the importance of what she refers to as "healthy lean", and the fact that we as dog owners and show people need to spread the word. Many of the orthopedic problems in dogs, like hip dysplasia, are FAR more likely to occur in over-weight dogs because of the stress on the joints of growing puppies. Pleasingly plump is NOT a good thing. Fat is fat, too many calories are too many calories, and we are doing our dogs a big disservice by allowing this to happen.
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