Birthday Celebration

Shall I just step over that fence?

Watson is wondering if he should just step over the fence and leave the dog yard.   Snow is so high he certainly could, but no one has yet.  If Mariah was home, she probably would, she's at that age, but the others respect fences they could easily walk over and into the rest of the yard.  Think some shoveling is in order tonight, to reduce the temptation!

Yesterday was Ron's birthday and we went out for a nice dinner at LaGrolla, an excellent Italian restaurant in St. Paul.  They have a small bar next to the kitchen and we enjoy sitting there and watching all the activity.   In my next life I will be involved in the industry - as a food critic or writer, restaurant owner, or perhaps as a chef.  I've always found such things fascinating.  We had a particularly good server last night, which always adds to a positive dining experience.  Although we almost never have dessert when we eat out (sure saves on the calories) we had Tiramisu last night, and I brought home most of my pasta - I'll have an excellent lunch for the next two days!  Ron said he didn't want dessert but he ate at least half of mine.  Knew he would!
http://www.lagrollastpaul.com/.

A friend asked if this was a Special Birthday for Ron.  I assured her that NO birthdays were special at his age.  In retrospect though, perhaps ALL birthdays are special since they mean you are still alive!

As it currently stands we will NOT be entertaining the California girl who is being bred to Argus, and we'll do chilled semen instead.  I would have enjoyed having her here, but she probably would not have enjoyed our weather!   Hopefully we can get the collection/shipment done before we are due to leave for St. Louis, but have the name of a backup vet in St. Louis if we need to go that route.  With two free weekends before St. Louis, and two or three free weekends after St. Louis, it would really have been nice if she'd waited, but that was not to be and we will get this worked out.

Enough Snow Already!

My little garage is getting buried

The weather forecasters were right once again - unfortunately.  We did indeed get 10-13 inches or more.  We got the "or more" part here, at least 15 and possibly 19 depending on who you believe.  Fortunately, a holiday weekend made it a lot easier to manage and gave us an extra day to shovel.  We got the cars out without too much difficulty, which is always the toughest shoveling chore.  If my garage was large enough for my van I could get it off the street, but then where would I put all the junk that normally lives in my garage?  If I built a larger garage I would have to give up the dog yard, and that won't do either.  Hopefully we are done with major snowfalls for the season.  Fingers crossed.   It's been quite a winter!

Argus plays well with babies, including son Eddie

I met Lisen & Jerry at Medford on Saturday to pick up Eddie and drop off Mariah for a week of "puppy camp".  Eddie will be going up to Canada while Lucy comes down to be shown this spring.  He's a cute little guy, still possibly show quality, but not really a star.  He has a wonderful personality, smart, calm, and very cooperative.  A very special puppy.  He's already totally house-trained, and very good in a crate.  Lisen & Jerry have done a very good job with Eddie, and who ever ends up with him will get a very nice dog.

Shoveling needed

Argus has a lovely wife coming from Southern California, but before she arrives we still need to shovel out the west side of the house!  That's where the door to the basement is, a door we rarely use in the winter, but the one that leads to the basement.  Visiting ladies share the basement with all the fish tanks, and use the side door when going out for walks.  Not sure this visitor is going to be too impressed with our weather, and her owners are quite sure she will not enjoy snowy walks, BUT she still needs to get out.  The drifts on the other side of that gate are a good 4 feet tall, so I'll start working on that when I get home from the office today.

Hopefully the timing will work out OK for us to still go to St. Louis, but we'll have to see how that goes.  Weather could be an issue too, and some years we are unable to make the trip due to bad roads somewhere along the way between St. Paul & St. Louis.  Because this girl is older, she'll get a series of progesterone tests to pin point the optimum day for breeding.  We always used to depend on the dogs to pick the right days, but it's also nice to have science to fall back on if there is any question.  Hopefully everything falls into place here. 

Out Of Time

Sherman & Deb

No time to blog, still playing catch up at home and at work.

Great time to use this picture of "Sherman" and his owner Deb.  Sherman was the patched boy from the Argus/Boji litter, the happy-go-lucky guy who was everyone's favorite.

Thanks Deb, for giving him such a good and loving home.

Back!



Argus At Westminster

What an adventure!  No time to do a travelogue this morning, but I will get that done.  We had a terrific time in New York and Argus made me very proud.  Luck was not exactly on our side as Argus got a sneezing attack (too much dog hair?) on the first down and back, and had to be regaited.  No one's fault, just one of those things.  The second one was perfect, but the first one was used on the Dal judging video, which annoys me, as Argie's down and back is normally perfect.  When we got our picture, the judge commented that Argus "had BEEN the dog to beat" but did not go away correctly the first time.  Sigh.  Nothing I can do about that, just wish the video editing had been better so I did not have to be reminded when I looked at the video.  Oh well.  He look good otherwise, though started off just a bit nervous.  Showed fine, but I could read it in his eyes & ears.  He got over that quickly (probably as I relaxed) and I thought he showed very well. 

It was great fun and I am already to go back, although the three hour delay on the trip home DID give me some (more) gray hairs!  More later . . .

Dalmatian Colors

Liver, black, liver, black

Someone asked recently about liver-factored blacks and I never got around to responding.  Finally occurred to me that there is no point in reinventing the wheel, as I have an excellent color resource on my website.  Although the color pages were done a long time ago, most of the information is correct although there have been a few "discoveries" that affect the non-standard Dalmatian colors.  I've also received a number of pictures that I'll add when I finally get around to updating my website.  Sorry the pictures are rather small on the website, but it was created at a time when most of us only had dial up Internet connection, and it took the pages a long time to load unless the picture file were small and compressed.

Sue MacMillan's Dalmatian Color Pages

So if you want information and pictures of black & liver, lemon & orange, tri-color, brindle, trindle (brindle tris), blues and long-coats, check out my link.  The color page is also linked to a page on patching.

New Pups Coming



Jingles

Meet Jingles & Bella, two 6-week old pups from Argus & Tess C.  They will be traveling to Minnesota sometime after Westminster.  I have no idea where they will end up, or if either will stay wit me.  We'll see how they develop.  Ideally, Jingles would stay in the area and perhaps go on a co-ownership, with my keeping the option to show him.  Bella may be competing with Mariah for a permanent spot in Paisleyland.



Bella



And then there's Eddie who is still down with Lisen & Jerry in Iowa, but will be spending some time in Canada before I make a final decision on him.

We'll see how he develops, and whether he should go to a show home or a pet home. 

 

Although you can show any dog without a breed disqualification, and many people do show dogs that are less than outstanding, we don't.  Only the very best dogs get shown, the ones who can finish their championships quickly and with excellent records.

 

Count Down To Westminster

A gaiting shot of Argus

OK, who stole my weekend?  Lots accomplished, but still oh so much to get done before we leave.  House is reasonably clean as I hate coming home to a mess - and I can count on Ron to be an "enabler" there.   He sees no point in wiping down counter tops, or sweeping up dog hair,  but he takes good care of the dogs and fish, so I can hardly complain.

Took mom to dinner yesterday - she was eager to go to our favorite Mexican restaurant as long as we were home in time to watch the Superbowl.  And what a fine game it was!  Way to go, Packers!  Mom is doing very well for an 86 1/2 year old!

Spent much of Sunday shopping and got some excellent deals on slacks and sweaters, a new rug, and a new shower curtain (I WILL get that bathroom finished).  Never found the perfect suit, but I do have a gorgeous new Paisley jacket and the suit I wore last week is quite dressy, and is obviously a good luck garment. Everyone reminds me that if you go Best of Breed, you have to go shopping for something new to wear in the group.  I have no expectations of going Best Of Breed in that fabulous competition, and I KNOW I'd rather watch the dog show than go shopping!

Chatted with Meg who will be joining us for some of our New York City adventures. Because she goes to the Garden every year, she knows all the right places to eat!  It may be a dog show, but it's also a vacation!

Loved this gaiting shot taken by a ringside photographer last weekend.  Argus does not have the big "flying trot" that came into vogue when Spotty made his debut many years ago.  Dalmatians are not supposed to move like German Shepherd dogs, racing around the ring like they are being pursued.  They are supposed to move like carriage dogs, at an easy, efficient, ground covering trot.  Dals should trot with level backs (no rumps in the air like so many gaiting shots), moderate head carriage (with their heads neither upright nor totally level with their bodies), and their gait should be balanced front and rear - sort of like two pairs of scissors with blade angles that match.  This picture was shot at exactly the right time, and I love the way it shows the left front foot lifting off he ground an instant before the left rear foot touches down.  Most gaiting shots show the rear foot passing on the inside or outside of the front foot.  "Over reaching" is only correct for German Shepherds and perhaps Brittanies.    

Miss My Dog!



Argus & Stella are waiting for a cookie.


Jess borrowed Argus yesterday, as Argie had an interview with a reporter from one of the local newspapers in Jess's area.  The reporter wanted to do a story on a dog who was going to Westminster, and write about dog shows and show dogs.  Jess borrowed a couple of show pictures, one of Argus's Best In Show rosettes, and his Westminster "invitation".  Sounds as if both Jess & Argus enjoyed the experience, although the poor reporter probably took home a lot of souvenir Dalmatian hairs!  Amazing how much I miss his cheerful face this morning!  He'll be home later.  I know he really enjoys visiting Stella the Cavalier at the office, and the two Shepherd girls at Jess and Don's.

Jess wrote -
"So the interview is over.. Argus had a marvelous time covering Jackie in kisses and dog hair. He disappeared for a couple of minutes and came back with Addie's giant stuffed Lady Bug. He offered it to Jackie and then ran around with it. After I retrieved the Lady Bug, he pulled the fuzzy squeaky mouse off the counter and tried to hide it in various places (with Simmie hot on the trail). He was awesome and friendly and Jackie was very impressed. I did however, forget about the thawing chicken backs in the laundry room and had to explain them to Jackie when Simmie and Argus each came up the stairs with them!"

Writer's Block? Well Maybe Not.

Argh! I can think of absolutely nothing to write about in the next 9 minutes! Several good topics come to mind that would take much longer, but I'll need to work on one of those during the day and then put it on the blog the next morning. A tribute to a wonderful Agility Dalmatian too (not one of mine, just a dog I admire) but that will take some time as well. One of the reasons I have a blog is to work at spontaneous writing - forcing myself to write when I don't "feel like writing". No way to become a famous author until I learn to do that! Being a terrible procrastinator often interferes with my writing.

No pictures to post either. I have quite a few on my camera that need to be downloaded. Wish I had a better camera so we would not fight the "red eye battle" when taking Dal pictures. Ah, that reminds me, when taking Dal pictures the black dogs usually reflect green "eye shine" while the liver dogs reflect red. Blue eyes also reflect red - has something to do with the lack of pigment on their retinas. Some black-spotted brown-eyed dogs reflect red on one or both eyes because they have unpigmented retinas.

When I took the puppy pictures of Mariah I noticed that she reflected green in one eye and blue-ish in the other, something I had not noticed before. When she had her CERF exam two weeks ago, I asked the Veterinary Ophthalmologist about that, wondering if she had an unpigmented retina. Nope, she just had a small area that was a bit more lightly pigmented which was causing that affect. Meaningless, but interesting. Actually, retina pigmentation would make a good article. Something else to study up on.

Oh, that reminds me, Mariah's eyes. She passed her CERF exam with no ISD or Iris hypoplasia - those are additional issues that are noted on Dalmatian eyes but are pretty meaningless, and seem to be much more common in liver-spotted dogs. I'll send her results in to CERF and they will go to the OFA database. Because Janey has sent in the hearing results for the litter, Mariah will have 2/3 of the requirements for her CHIC number. We'll have her hips and elbows x-rayed at two years of age to get the 3rd requirement. Eye exams OR thyroid panels are required, but we'll do both if we decide to show and possibly breed Mariah.

And Mariah, well she's going through the uglies right now.  It's nice when pups grow up evenly and always look beautiful.  Mariah is still beautiful, but her pieces no longer fit.  She's lumpy in front and cow-hocked behind.  Ugh.  This too shall pass.  I try not to look at it.   Well do I recall taking 4 month old Pauli out to show to a Dal friend.  I'd told her what a wonderful mover Pauli was, but on THAT day she sure wasn't.  Ugh.  I was embarrassed.  But her lovely came back in a few months.  Presumably Mariah will do the same. 

Sorry, No Time For Blogging

We'll get to the black & liver issue later this week.

Shoveling this morning before work.  Can't complain though as we only go about 5 inches of light fluffy snow.  The forecast sounds just awful for many other parts of the country.  Hope this will be the last storm for New York for awhile.  I don't relish the idea of camping out at Laquardia, trying to get home from Westminster.

The new Spotter is out. The Dalmatian Club of America's quarterly magazine.  Check it out here -  The Spotter

We were delighted that Argus was the #2 Dalmatian Stud Dog for last year with 6 new champion kids.  #1 was his sire Ch. "Marlin".  #2 Brood Bitch was Coral's daughter Ch. Leica" with four champions.  Cograts Meg & Leica!

Just Call Me Gracie

Linda & Gracie

Known simply as "Gracie" to her friends, she was officially known as

Ch Paisley Patch Mt's Amazing Grace RD, Am/Can CD, RN, NA, CGC, ROMX.

Gracie passed away last week at the age of 14+ and is very much missed by her owner Linda who wrote on her Facebook page:

"She is gone. My beloved Gracie. She eaves behind a legacy of over 100 performance titles in descendants, 24 Champions and the #1 and #20 Dal in 2010. She was my once in a life time girl and soulmate. My tears won't stop."

Gracie flew off with Linda & Richard 14 years ago.  She was a daughter of Ch. "Salem", litter sister to multi-BiS winning Ch. "Morris" CD.  Salem & Morris were from the wonderful combination of Ch. "Rob" CD and Ch. "Eloise".  Her sire was linebred Paisley as well, and Gracie (plus Chs. Sidney, Dobie & Carmen) represented the 13th generation of linebred Paisley Dalmatians.

Grace was Linda's foundation bitch and started a wonderful line of top show and performance Dalmatians.  Her first litter was by our Ch. "Watson" and produced "Carina" formally known as CT Ch PatchMtn C Pepper N Paisley RE OA OAJ OAP NJP NF RD CPC PAC CAN TDX AG AGNJ.  In addition to being a VERY titled champion and performance dog, Carina was also a fine brood bitch.  In her only litter she produced 5 champions which included her daughter Ch. "Daisy" who was the #1 Dal in breed points last year, and son "Corey" CT GBlackthorn Coreopis of PatchMt TDX RN NA NAJ Canadian CH & TDX.  The CT title stands for Champion Tracker, a particularly difficult title to obtain.  Both Daisy and Corey have themselves produced Champion offspring.

Bred twice to Ch. "Sawyer Brown" Gracie produced 6 Champions, including Linda's "Maeve" who also sports many performance titles, and will be filling in for her mother now, as Linda's best friend.


When Gracie won the DCA Road Trial the some years ago (pictured above),  Linda took riding lessons while training Gracie with a bike, and they passed their 12.5 mile course in style to obtain the RD.  Gracie's other titles were in the breed ring, as a top producer, as well as agility, obedience, and rally.  Truly an all around dog, but Linda will remember Gracie most as a wonderful companion and soulmate, the most important career for a dog.

Mutts Is Mutts

This YouTube video is terrific. If you listen carefully you will hear most of the arguments used to sell Labradoodles and other mixed breed dogs for vast sums of money. It used to be just Cockapoos, but now many breeds are crossed to create - expensive MUTTS. They are NOT healthier, smarter, or anything else. Responsible breeders of purebred dogs spend a lot of time & money doing health testing in an attempt to produce the healthiest possible pups - their goal, to produce ever better quality. Designer Dog breeders have a different goal - to make money.

Oops!

Drat.  Overslept.  Clock radio did go off, I just slipped right back into a sleep mode, perhaps because I stayed awake last night thinking about the national coming up in May. 

Should be an interesting year as the membership continues to fight over the backcross issue, and the breed judge has led the charge from behind the scenes.  There's a great deal of animosity floating around out there, and there are some people who won't have Specials entries because they expect "the issue" to affect the judging results.  Hope that is not the case, but I understand their concern.  I've always felt that at the national you show to many people besides the judge.  You are also showing to the ringsiders, especially the newer exhibitors, and you are showing off a dog you are proud of.  Although most people are pretty sure they know who will win, that isn't always how things play out.

See you there!

For The Love Of Dogs . . .

Well, silly little Mariah was a hit at the nursing home.  Both Jess and I worried a bit about how she would handle the situation, with wheel chairs & walkers & crutches & canes, unusual noises, strange smells & sounds, and lots of strangers.  We needn't have worried, she handled it like a pro.  I'm including a couple of stories courtesy of Jess & Don, who took her along on a visit to see Don's father.

"WOW! What an awesome hour. Don and I took took Mariah over to the nursing home & at 4 months, Mariah was FANTASTIC!!  I wish I had photos. Jim was having a bad day and his face lit up when Mariah was on the bed. She just laid down next to him and he stroked her ears. She gave him lots of kisses, didn't move. Still makes me smile. She so good with everything and everyone. She can come back anytime."


"I was just so impressed with how good she was. We also met a couple of people in wheelchairs and walkers and Mariah just shined. I will smile all evening. Just seeing her with Jim earned awwws from Don, his mom and sister-in-law."

"Don just told me another story about Mariah's adventure. He took her for a walk around the building and stopped to talk to a gal in her 30's....  The gal was hugging Mariah and was asking questions, including her name. When Don told the gal, she had him repeat it and he said Mariah. All the color drained from her face and she got all teary. Her daughter's name was Mariah and she died from cancer last year. The gal sat on the floor and Mariah climbed in her lap and covered her with kisses. I think Don learned the meaning of "special" dog. Good girl, Mariah."

When Jess posted these stories to Facebook, several of our friends responded with the following stories . . .

"We were at a show one time and there was a mom pushing a wheel chair with a severely handicapped child in it. The child wanted so bad to pet our dog Marshall. Marshall climbed right up in the chair with the boy and hugged him. The mom asked his name and she cried when I said Marshall. The boy's name was Marshall too. We stayed there for a LONG time letting the boy pet him. I will always remember that."

"We had a similar experience. We were at a festival with Indy (in her young very-spirited uncontrollable time) and I could see a handicapped 20-something young man who spied here and kept mouthing the words "pet the puppy".  Well Indy saw him and headed right for him with her focus only on him, just cuddled up to him and was such a charmer the young man started crying. Even his parents cried. I will never forget how each of them was so gentle with the other. They spoke without words. We still tear up when we think of it."

And THAT, my friends, is just one of the reasons we love our dogs.  

Time For Another Camping Trip

This is the kitchen water bowl.

I'm feeling much better, thank you.  Made it through the day yesterday, and today should be easier.  I'd feel guiltier about going to work with a cold if I wasn't so sure that's where I got it.  Am rarely sick, but this is the second year in a row I've gotten a winter cold.  It always seems to happen when I am short on sleep, something I need to remember next January.

Two different nurses as well as the doctor made a point of telling me that heart attack symptoms are often much different in women than in men, and shortness of breath is always of concern.  They did an EKG on me, just to be sure things were OK.

The dogs really need more outside time, but the weather is not cooperating.  20 below forecast for tonight.  Mariah especially has a lot of pent up energy and would benefit from some running.  Last night she dug all the water out of the dog bowl - what a mess!
She's going for an overnight with Jessica.  Although Mariah is outgoing and extremely friendly, she's a little "squishy" right now and will benefit from getting out and doing things.  Unfortunately the weather makes that more difficult.   If it weren't mid-winter I would take her with me to the dog shows that are coming up, but she's too young/small to sneak in the building, and it's too cold to leave her in the car.  Jess will take her to the office to play with Stella, home to play with the Shepherds, and is hoping to take her to the nursing home to visit Don's father. 

It's vitally important that all young dogs get enough socialization to grow up confident and well adjusted.  Show dogs in particular need to be exposed to as many novel situations as possible.  Need to touch base with some friends who have volunteered to take a pup for camping.  Jaime stayed with them for a weekend while he was here and everyone had a great time.  They have a Josie son as well as two human sons for Mariah to play with.

Winter Colds

Ugh, knew I had a cold coming on and it hit me full force yesterday.  Head was clear, chest very congested, but I felt OK.  The cold wind I faced from the parking lot to the building took but breath away, but I felt OK in my office until I started coughing and then couldn't breathe.  Pretty frightening to get no air!  I knew panicking would make things worse so I sat down, tried to take slow breaths and started getting some air.  When I could speak I called Health Partners for an appointment and the nurse they connected me with would not give me one - wanted me to go to the Emergency Room.  I argued for awhile, and she checked with a doctor and he said the same thing.  They did not want to have to call paramedics to the clinic - at least she was honest.

To make a long story short, it was an interesting day and the right decision.  I'm off to work today, taking along my new inhaler.  We'll see how long I stay but my desk was a mess yesterday and I hate getting further behind.

Ah, One Less Puppy!

Eddie looks quite pleased with his new friends.

Although the roads weren't perfect, Eddie and I made it to Mason City and met up with Lisen & Jerry at the PetCo - the same place  I met Paula when I picked up Patrick & Edward a few weeks ago.  Saved me some cross country driving!  Eddie will stay with Lisen for who-knows-how-long.  We'll see how it goes.

I've known Lisen for many years as she finished a Dal of our breeding, put points on others and kept several liver girls for "camping".  Husband Jerry used to run Brittanies in field trials, and my daughter Jess finished the championship on Jerry's Brittany "Fanny".  Their household currently consists of only one spayed pet Brittany & a cat, so perhaps it was time for a Dal fix.

Coral at with Caitlyn 12 years ago.

Lisen's daughter Caitlyn is pictured in the upper photo, along with her daughter Lila.  Caitlyn is also in the lower picture holding Coral who stayed with them for awhile.  Coral will be celebrating her 13th birthday in April, and is Eddie's great grandma.  The three liver girls who stayed there, Coral, her daughter Salem, and her grand daughter Brie, all finished their titles with good records, so we're hoping the good luck rubs off on Eddie.

Taking my mother to brunch later, then Mariah gets to visit a few pet shops for socialization.  Then I can get back to my wallpaper project which is going slowly.  Had to clean up the basement when I got home yesterday so I could put down the rugs again and have a place to train Mariah.  The puppy pen will stay folded and the rugs will stay down until Bella arrives in a month or so, if she turns out to be show potential.  Bella is a daughter of Argus and Tess, and so far she looks good.

Argus also has a wife scheduled for February or March, assuming she is on schedule.  Hopefully she waits under after Westminster and the St. Louis weekend, because she will have to fly in and stay here.  Even though Argus is not being actively campaigned this year, we're likely to have a few conflicts.  We're delighted that he is the lucky man this time, as this Dal girl is a beauty, and one of our favorites.

Another Long Weekend - Of Work?

Josie can cuddle like this for hours.

The last long weekend for quite awhile.  Things have been hairy at work, and I could use a weekend to relax, but I probably won't be doing that!

Off to Mason City in a bit, to deliver Eddie to Lisen & Jerry.  He'll be staying for awhile, being an only Dal (living with a Brittany) and freeing up some time around here.   He looks pretty nice, and will eventually be for sale.  I won't keep him permanently, but want to run him on for awhile until I decide where he should end up.  Excellent temperament & personality, and as cute as can be.

With Eddie out of the picture for awhile, I can take down the puppy pen, scrub the tile, roll out the area rugs and have my basement back for puppy training.  Mariah really needs to work on her baiting and stacking if I hope to have her ready for the spring shows.  She's growing up in "one piece" rather than going through stages, as Janey says Mariah's brother is doing.  Remembering what a noodle Argus was at 4 months, I am not surprised that Boca looks the same way.

Good news that the girl in the newest Argus litter out in Oregon has two brown eyes and hears.  Spotting looks good too.  So far, so good.  If she comes to me as my stud fee pup, I'll probably also get her brother to sell, so if you might be looking for a handsome, but colorful puppy boy he may be that dog.  Stay tuned.

We're delighted that one of our favorite liver girls is scheduled to be bred to Argus this spring.  Again, we will do this for a puppy.  She has a terrific personality and has had a great career and will hopefully produce something extra nice.

The Eyes Have It

Rough life!

Wish I had a better digital camera with a different flash.  Am so tired of the eye reflections on the liver Dals.  The supposed "red eye corrections" on my software and as a camera setting are totally useless.  Hard to justify the expense though, just for taking "fun" pictures.  I DO need to get a good sitting shot of Argus with a couple of his rosettes, and Ginger is going to have a clock made from it, but I'll probably have to schedule a sitting somewhere for that, now that Ron no longer takes pictures with his good cameras.  Hmmmm, maybe I can take pictures with those cameras - but do I want to fool around with a film camera?  Do they even make film?  Haven't used it in many years.

Will be glad when Eddie leaves this weekend and I have a chance to start working with Mariah more.  She really needs the attention (and training).  Eddie is a great little guy, but the puppy yapping when he and Mariah are playing is getting on my nerves.  She teases him and he yaps back.  I like my dogs quiet, especially before I have had my quota of morning coffee!

CERF exams scheduled for a week from Saturday.  Handy to have a clinic in the neighborhood two Saturdays a month.  I get Argus rechecked once a year, Josie is due for a recheck, and Mariah needs her first eye exam.  We got the Dal folks started on doing eye exams, but most of them did just one exam but never did a follow up.  Eye problems can develop at any age, so one exam really is not sufficient.  Also, eye exams can provide information about other health issues.  Because one of my former Vets did a very careful eye exam on Josie, he noticed something suspicious and suggested that I do a recheck with a Veterinary Ophthalmologist.  Josie's eyes had been done at 2 years  but by the age of 4 there were some changes.  The Veterinary Ophthalmologist followed up on what he was seeing, suggested that we have Josie's Vitamin E level checked, and we eventually found out that she had a problem with Vitamin E metabolism.  A very obscure problem, but easily treatable.  Josie was put on an inexpensive daily supplement and was spayed, just in case this was a hereditary problem - which it does not seem to have been.  There could have been serious consequences for this untreated problem, but Josie's done well and I just want to see what the VO thinks now.

Ready To Run

Get this pup off my treadmill!

Although Argus is not being actively campaigned this year, we try to keep all the dogs in good condition.  I like to think that my house dogs could go from sofa to show ring, with only a bath and perhaps whisker trimming.  I keep them all at the correct weight, and they get walked every single day.  Even when the snow is deep and the temps in the deep freeze, the dogs still get walked, if only around the block.  After I broke my ankle last year, Argus had to use the treadmill for real exercise, but Ron took over and walked him around the block everyday.  It's important for both their physical and mental health.  Trotting is the appropriate gait for conditioning a Dalmatian, especially for showing.  Heavy duty running is fun, but doesn't really develop the long easy trot that is a Dalmatian heritage, the one that allowed him to go with the horses for 8 to 10 hours a day.

Argus found a prize last night, a pound of butter still in the wrapper.  Must have dropped from someone's grocery bag.  I let him keep it and he carried it home with him and buried it in the snowbank at the corner of the block.  If I had called him to me and he had tried to hide what he had in his mouth I'd have known it was his favorite find, a cigarette pack!

Took my first fall on the ice last night but no damage done other than a slightly sore wrist this morning.  After the broken ankle ice event of last February, I have vowed to be extra careful, and fortunately the roads have not been very slippery this year.  I managed to find a bit of ice last night and am reminded that I need to wear my the ice grippers on my boots.  They aren't perfect but they help, and Ron Always wears them in the winter when walking dogs.  I find they slow me down, but another broken ankle would slow me down a lot more!

Chicken & veggies in the crockpot overnight, so the kitchen smells heavenly.  Broccoli salad in the fridge too.  I felt domestic last night, must have been the weather.

Dog Shows & Rumor Mills

Lucy's first American point.

Hope everyone enjoyed the YouTube link yesterday.  I thought it was absolutely hysterical, and it hits pretty close to home as I know of one vet who changed his career path because the clinic he worked at expected him to do precisely what the "vet" on the video was doing - to sell the clients products and services that they did not need and often could not afford.  That's one of the reasons we tell our puppy buyers NOT to consult with their vets about nutrition - they will sell you the product that is carried and promoted by the clinic, and there are far superior brands available for less money elsewhere.

It was a fun show weekend, with Lucy picking up her first points, handler by her Junior handler owner.  We were delighted with Lucy and are looking forward to bringing her down to show in a couple of months.  Pauli also went Best Of Breed on Sunday, against some top competition, handled by Jess. 

I did OK standing at ringside, but just sent in some entries for Argus for upcoming shows.  Both he and I need to get out before Westminster, and Argus adores staying in motels and laying on the bed watching TV.  Argus is also the target of a rumor being spread by people who should know better, and is supposedly the victim of some obscure crippling disease.  Although he hurt himself doing something stupid (either leaping off the deck in pursuit of squirrels, or trying to climb trees after them) last summer, he's totally mended and in fact won the Group his first time back in the ring in the fall, and followed that up with his 100th Best Of Breed and a Group placing.  Bad weather and lousy judges kept up home for much of the rest of the year, not any kind of health problems.  Why waste time and energy, or risk having an accident on ice covered roads to show to bad judges?

That is one of the downsides of dog shows, probably of all kinds of competitions.  People love to tell tales about other dogs and people, especially successful ones.  As we always say, "consider the source".  I find that rumors are often started to cover up or distract from other issues the rumor monger would rather you not wonder about.

COMPLETELY HONEST VETERINARIAN

Too funny not to share.  I suspect that far too much of this is true, at least in some practices.

Time To Move On

Mariah & Patrick

Today I need to get things ready so that Patrick can fly out tomorrow.  Check up and health certificate done, as well as his first vaccination.  His new mom Michelle will take him back to Arizona with her, where he will meet Lucy, a Josie daughter and also an ear patch.  Patrick is a sweetheart, with beautiful black eyes and handsome spotting.  We had hoped he could go as carry on, but is just too large for that now and will have to ride in cargo as excess baggage.  Sounds so demeaning!  He will be last on, first off though, and pups handle shipping very well.  Patrick and Eddie are currently playing in the shipping crate, running in and out with toys, so he will be quite comfortable when confined.

Then we have to decide where Eddie goes for camp.  Will he go to Iowa and stay with my friend Lisen who is recovering from a broken ankle, or will he go up to Canada with Lucy's  family (this is another Lucy) when they go home from the dog shows this weekend.  Depends on whether or not Lisen is up to managing a puppy right now.  Stay tuned!

The pups have been really good in their pen in the basement.  They had a great time running around the basement several times a day, and coming up to play with Mariah and terrorize the adults.  They're no longer chubby little doughballs and have run off their pudginess.

Eddie continues to look good.  Quite a handsome little dude who actually looks more like grandpa Watson than he does like Argus.

We're Going!

Well, at least we have plane tickets.  Made reservations to fly to Westminster next month to attend Westminster.  Argus is entered, tickets are purchased for Madison Square Garden, airline tickets are purchased, and we have a hotel.  So far, so good.  Ginger & Mark are flying out a few days earlier, Laurie will arrive by train about the same time we arrive by plane, and we got great ticket prices.  It will cost a great deal more for Argus's round trip than for mine, and he doesn't get a seat.  On the other hand, he will have room to sit, stand, lay down and turn around in his 500# Vari Kennel, which is a lot more than I will have in my airline seat!

Dog Names

Dog Fort

Someone asked how I picked dog names.  They come to me in a variety of ways.  Watson was from a litter of three known as Peter, Paul & Mary.  He was Paul, not a name I wanted to keep.  When I was at PetSmart one day, there was an ad for a lost black & white cat named "Watson".  Good name!  Hope they eventually found Watson the cat.

Argus was named after a dog in mythology, a faithful dog who waited 20 years for his master to return from battle.  Not the Argus camera.  I first used it though when I did a litter that got camera names.  The only boy in that litter was called Argus, but his new owners changed his name to Mojo (ugh) so Argus was still available, and got used again when my Argie boy arrived from California.  Two of Mojo's littermates kept their camera names though.  Nikon went to Laurie, got registered as Paisley Shutterbug, and her kids Penny & Charlie are Paisley Photo Finish and Paisley Photo Op.  Appropriate when your parents are Argus & Nikon.  Leica went to Meg H and kept her name as well. 

More to write, but no more time.