Our video card!

Hope you enjoy!

...And a Festivus for the Rest of us

Lzzy closed out our year of conformation shows by going Winners Bitch for another point!  She is up to 5 now with a major.  This was an unbathed, ungroomed dog too.  Makes me feel good!

Westminster 2014:

Conformation - Lzzy got in!

Agility - CC did not get in.  Always next year!

In other news:

Lzzy and I went to NYC with our friends Amber and Mark and we went to the Metropolitan Museum of Art.  I havent been there in easily 12 years and forgot how huge it was.  Lzzy is turning into a great assistance dog for me.  She is willing to work and not phased.

Christmas:

I got some essentials (gift cards) and a Rush calendar!
Most of all I got to RELAX and watch movies for 2 days in a row.

Also, on Christmas night, Matt Smith, the 11th Doctor, had his final episode.  The episode overall was "empty calories" as Geddy Lee would say but the last 30 minutes were good.  I am excited for Peter Capaldi to be hopefully bring back the BAMF Doctor.

And Santa Claus also brought me a nice cold.  Bah.

2013 Holiday Card

 

 

Wishing you all the best!  

Happy Birthday CC

A day late but CC is THREE years old already! 

I am enjoying every day with her.  She is naughty, noisy, and intense but I love her.  She is awesome. 

Here's to you, my  "Screaming Meech".  May we have many more years together. 

BENIGN!!!

On 11/27, Priscilla underwent surgery to remove 3 mammary tumors  and get them biopsied and get spayed. 

She came through with flying colors and is back to her old self aside from blowing all her coat. 

I got the best news ever when Dr. Gus told me the biopsy report was benign!!! 


In trial news:

CC and I got our rookie stripes off in Excellent - had lots of close but no cigar runs.

Ryka got 2 legs in Open Jumpers and 2 legs in Open Standard.  Almost there!  :)

2 weekends of foo foo dog shows with Lzzy then a winter off (with the occaisonal agiltiy trial). 

Priscilla update

I haven't updated on my favorite pooch in awhile.

Priscilla has suspicious looking tumors in her mammary glands - my local vet found them during a routine exam, and I somehow missed during my daily check. (Another good reason to get the dogs felt up once a year by the doctor).

They sent needle aspirations to the lab and the report wasnt too hot looking.  So she needs them out with hopefully clean margins and she is going to get spayed while she is under for good measure. 

I am extremely nervous.  Priscilla has always been a happy healthy dog - and she is the same age Darien, my greyhound was when he got diagnosed with inoperable prostate cancer. 

This is also costing me a lot of money that I do not have, so lean Christmas for everyone (at least from me.  But I am a scrooge anyhow).

Staten Island Dog Training Club / Garden State Norwegian Elkhound Club

CC got a big Goose Egg both days at the Staten Island trial.  My timing needs to be better with her.

However Ryka got her NJP and NAP titles!  with all clean runs!  She is the fastest titling dog I had to get out of novice.

Next up was the Sunday at the Norwegian Elkhound Trial.  We didnt in Saturday so I moved our entries to Sunday.

Ryka got her first Open Jumpers Leg but had 2 refusals in Standard. 

CC finished her Open Standard title!  WOO HOO!  We got an NQ in jumpers for her popping out of the weaves but it was lovely.  One of those heartbreaking runs. 

Now to enter CC in the Westminster agility trial and to see if we get in. 

NEW TITLES!

October was a good month for us.  

Both Lzzy and Ryka passed their CGC tests!

Ryka went 3 for 3 in novice jumpers and 3 for 4 in novice standard to get her first agility titles!

CC now needs one AJP leg and one OAP leg...

Wow! Some great trials!

Ryka made her AKC debut at Princeton Dog Training Club's agility trial and got her first Novice Jumpers Leg!



Ryka finished the day with a double Q!



CC finished her Open FAST title and got her first Open Standard leg!





And then CC got her first Excellent Q!  This means a LOT to me as this is the first Q I put on a dog at this level.  Very proud!

We've been busy!

Labor Day weekend brought us back into the dog show game.

Lzzy has needed lots of work at playing showdog.  4 days of dog shows over Labor Day weekend should help!

She is behaving a LOT better on the table.  Still like nailing Jell-O to a tree at times but not a battle.   We got free-baiting and everything!  And she moves so nice!

Saturday Newton Kennel Club offered Veteran Groups and I entered Priscilla.  Well she brought home a Veteran Group 3 with tough competition - lovely dogs in there!

Sunday also brought great news - Lzzy got her first points - A MAJOR - by going Best Of Winners! On her 1 year birthday!! So this qualifies her for Westminster 2014 in the classes!  So happy!

Then she got to go to the beach to play with her pals, Chance the Rottie and fellow cardigan Radke.

And this past Saturday, CC finished her OJP title with a clean run!  This also qualifies her for the Versatility Certificate from the CWCCA!  Great couple of weekends!

Whole lot of nuthin

I have not updated my blog in a month - we went to an agility trial here and there.  CC got 2 legs for her Open FAST title.  

Otherwise it was just us being lazy lazy dogs.  

yup.  something like that.

Priscilla's glory run and CC fun video

Forgive me for going backwards - Friday the Garden State Golden Retriever Club hosted a Glory Run for retired agility dogs.  Proceeds went to either the Golden Retriever Fund or the Morris Animal Foundation.  Priscilla is retired but still loves the spotlight so I entered her.  We each got to write a speech about our dog and we got a Rosette with our dogs name on it.



Also I made a fun video last week of CC.

Hope you enjoy!

Great Trial!

Despite the heat, CC was awesome at the Bayshore Companion Dog Training Club Trial!

We got our first leg ever in Open FAST - First Place

We had a nice run in Open Jumpers despite the NQ

And...we finished our Novice Standard title!!!!  First Place!  So happy!

Got very sunburnt but it was worth it - fun courses under Marquand Cheek.

CC and I really coming together as a team and it is paying off.  So proud of her.

Lzzy on the move

Lzzy on the move.  I am so pleased with how she is growing up.  Excuse the video as I had dog in one hand and phone in the other.

Nice NADAC Weekend!!!

I had 2 dogs entered in 8 runs and we got 6 Q's!  All first places!!!  Iggy Pop finally finished his NJC (novice jumpers) title and his O-TN-N (outstanding tunnelers novice) title - which requires 6 Qs in tunnelers.

Very proud of my critters!

Updated Lzzy pictures

Some new pictures of The Lizard!  Hard to believe she is 8 months old already!  

Staten Island Trial

The good:



CC got her second Novice Standard Preferred leg!  Clean and first place.

The Bad:

CC decided 12 weave poles in front of a tunnel was too much to ask.  NQ in Open Jumpers and T2B.

The Ugly:

Iggy Pop fell off the A-Frame in T2B.  :(  But the rest of the run was great.  I think he will be ok.

Yes I am back and alive.

What a whirlwind 2 months since my last post.

Lzzy is doing fabulous, she is 8 months old today and starting to look like a nice dog.  She is so funny and smart and NAUGHTY.  But in agility class she is picking up on things super quick.  Havent been showing too much due to finances but hopefully soon.

Lzzy showed instinct when she was tested on sheep but not enough to pass...had too much puppy-ness.  But we got a video anyhow.




Ryka: Also in training for agility and doing well.  Need to get the weaves down.  She passed her herding instinct test last weekend!




Here is a video of her herding with the farm BC.



CC also did awesome and was passed her instinct test with flying colors!  Maybe we will do a clinic up at the farm.



Agility we are still doing - just very limited.  Trying to get on my feet again.

Win pics.

Catching up on scanning in pics from CC's conformation show career.  Very proud of my Meech!  

Our first CD title!

Obedience was never my forte, and it will never be.  I love and appreciate a dog with higher obedience titles,  and I know the amount of work that went into getting them.  But I was a lousy trainer and I would stress beyond belief at trials that I dont do for Rally or Agility.

I had the bright idea of going right into obedience with Priscilla after getting her RE title (Rally Excellent).  How hard can it be?

Very.  Im a verbal person with my dogs I talk to them a lot.  So now I cant talk to them - it was hard.  Priscilla liked Rally because I could and did talk to her.  But she was not the easiest dog to trial.  She was too smart and figured it out right quick what she felt was "acceptable" in her world.

We got our first leg in our first attempt at Novice A...then it all went downhill...a year and a half before our second leg.  Most people would have given up.  I did, actually.  I am a member of a local dog training club that hosts a summer indoor trial.  I was working the trial all day this past July so I figured what the heck I'll enter Priscilla.  She wont Q and we can really give up this obedience stuff.  Well...she qualified.  I can't let 2 legs dangle like that.  Darn it.

I entered her in a trial in January.  NQ - broke on the down.  I saw an "All Novice" trial - 2 trials, one day at Port Chester Obedience Training Club.  Ok, whats to lose - we have 2 shots.

First trial - Broke on the long sit.  Ok, second trial.  She sat, and then stayed on the down...I almost fainted. I returned to my dog...and the judge said our number was one of the 4 qualifiers for that day.  I fell on Priscilla and hugged her tight and told her what a great awesome girl she was and cried.

We did it.  It feels like I won a Best In Show.  Our score was shit, but it was a qualifying score.  We placed 4th out of the 4 qualifiers (9 entered, 7 showed and 4 qualified) but we got a Rosette, a new title Rosette, a Qualifying Rosette and a patch that says CD and a goody bag of treats.

Priscilla is my heart dog and is 7 now.  I told her she can retire once we get a CD...and she is done.  Its bittersweet.  I love her beyond words.  It took 3 years...3 years in which I gave up and got back in and tried again thanks to a kick in the ass from my friends and trainers.

Thank you for being my partner P.

Good Bad Dog Agility

So back at the agility trials again.  

I was SO SO PROUD of CC - we tried for months to get her on the teeter and we worked very hard...and she got her first Q in Novice STD!



Iggy Pop decided weaves were optional...Darn.

New Champion!!!

Our newest Champion!

CC went Best of Winners to finish her AKC Championship!!!

She is my first Champion in a while so it was a fun journey.  Now onward to more agility titles.  :)

Bad Bad Blogger!

Yes, I have neglected my blog.  :(

Christmas and New Years was uneventful.  Came and went.  

Lzzy is a great smart wonderfully naughty puppy.  We took her to Canine Learning Experience (a very large match show) and she won best of breed puppy AND a puppy Herding group 4 with a large quality entry!  Very cool!

Took 3 of the girls to get CERF exams and all of them were Normal.  Yay!  Plus CC is PRA Clear by DNA analysis through Vetnostics labs.

AND on a training note - she did the see saw for the first time, full height yesterday!  (had to get in a training session before the Blizzard hit) That was better than a billion Best in shows - the fact that she can do it with confidence.  Cannot WAIT to get cracking at AKC standard courses!  

Monday is Westminster, I cant believe it.  I am so so nervous, mostly because I know it will be on live stream...so you cant hide anything.  Crazy that it is here already...

Ryka is so freaking smart she should be ready to run the end of this year maybe next spring...she is a lovely dog who is very aware of herself.  And super super athletic.  

Priscilla will be getting spayed this spring and Iggy Pop is still the man of the house.