Home Again, Home Again



Back-to-back show weekends are grueling. What was I thinking when I signed up for that?! I don't think I'll do it again. (If I do, you may certainly call me on it!) I'm exhausted both mentally and physically, and so glad to be home. It was a tough weekend for all of us and I am thrilled to walk away with two second place ribbons. I met a bunch of nice people this weekend. Because this venue was so spread out I think people were more comfortable walking around and socializing. Two professional handlers and a judge said Jedi was a good looking dog and should do well. I hope they were being sincere. Or maybe it was code for "You really need to get your shit together." (Let's go with option number one.) I'm getting better at spotting and avoiding the jerks too. Surprisingly, I see the same group jerks at nearly every show. Small world, hunh? I recognized one woman from the West Palm Beach shows who bitched for six hours about the judge not picking her beauceron. I noticed other people avoiding her too.

I learned a lot this weekend as well. For example:

• Think ahead. We were at an outdoor venue and subject to the elements. Saturday was overcast and it sprinkled off and on, with the sky opening up just as we were leaving. We didn't have any rain gear so we're fortunate the weather held out. Sunday was sunny and humid -- not pleasant for any of us. I'm glad we packed plenty of water, but a beach blanket would have been nice to keep Jedi off the grass (or rather, keep the grass off Jedi).
• Stock the tack bag. Jedi was limping and I didn't pack his Rimadyl. We found a Petsmart and bought some overpriced canine aspirin, but it didn't do much. We were in a bind too. One dog didn't show up, leaving seven dogs -- the minimum number of dogs to make a major. If Jedi didn't show then we would have broken the major (a Cardinal Sin in the dog show world). I had a more experienced handler share some Rimadyl and show me a way to present Jedi that reduced him limping. One of his dogs won on Sunday, so I guess it helped him out too.
• I need to run more. Seriously. The Saturday judge had us run around the ring twice before looking at the dogs. I thought I was going to die.
• Keep track of judges. I need to write down the judges I show to and what I think of them. For example, I didn't care for one of the judges in Deland (even Jedi shied away from her) and would rather not show to her again. But two judges have told me that Jedi was "typey" and "will do well when he fills out." Those judges would be worth showing to again. See, I'm getting it!
• I need to pack food. We ate the stuff sold at the concession stands -- overpriced and underwhelming. And then we ate out in the evenings. My doctor would cringe if he saw all the crap I put into my body over the weekend. And it significantly added to the cost of the weekend.
• And on that note, I need to put Kaopectate in the tack bag. Jedi and I could have both used it this weekend.
• Practice! Jedi and I really need to work on stacking. The bitch that won on Saturday just walked into the most beautiful stack. It was impressive. And I need to lean forward and take long strides to show Jedi's best gait. Easier said than done. Hubby broke out the video camera so I can see what I'm doing.
• Find ways to keep Jedi entertained. Jedi gets bored in the hotel. I need to pack the 20' long line so he can run more outside without wearing me out. And maybe a few more puzzle toys.
• Get better sleep. I should get a room with one king-sized bed instead of two double beds. Jedi doesn't want a bed of his own, he wants to share ours. And maybe if I was better able to wear him out beforehand he wouldn't be up and down all night. But then again, who sleeps great in a hotel room?

Jedi approved of the beds.


So we have a lot to work on before our next shows. I don't know when that'll be, but apparently there are LOTS of shows between now and May. And there are two handling classes weekly that we can go to as well. In addition to the Creekside Obedience and Handling Group on the other side of town on Tuesdays, K-9 Obedience Club now offers one on Wednesdays. I think it would behoove us to take advantage of them before entering another show. My biggest problem: follow through. I make a hundred plans and they always sound great. Then life happens and my plans go by the wayside. If I had done what I planned 6 months ago we'd be doing so much better right now. UGH. Any thoughts? Suggestions? -- K

Here We Go Again

I'm writing this on the go. Sorry in advance for any typos. Sometimes my smart phone ain't so smart. (Or, more likely, my fat fingers aren't as nimble as I'd like.)

Hubby, Jedi and I are on our way to Ocala for the Jacksonville Dog Fanciers Association shows. I'm rethinking the decision to enter back-to-back shows. I wanted to work on stacking, pacing and baiting between the last show and this one and I haven't done a damn thing. It doesn't help that my new partner started this past week. I'm grateful to have him and I think he'll do well, but training someone to do my job -- while I'm actually doing my job -- is a lot of work. Throw in all the last minute projects my boss (and my boss's boss) want completed before the end of the fiscal year (TUESDAY!) and I have no time or energy left for myself.

I was able to shop, pack and iron my clothes. That helps. And this morning I washed and blew out the dog by myself. We found a folding cart on sale at Harbor Freight that we hope will make things easier. Unfortunately, Jedi started limping again just before we left. I'm hoping it'll stop by morning. I can't show a lame dog! 

There are 8 dogs showing this weekend, one of them a gorgeous 11 month old puppy bred by my GSD Club president. I'm nervous. I'll post our results when I get home. But if you're near The Greater Ocala Dog Club Show Grounds, stop by and say hi. We'll be in Ring 8 at 1:45 on Saturday and in Ring 7 at 12:45 on Sunday. We could use a friendly face. Wish us luck! -- K

Wordless Wednesday

 

I can fly, I can fly, I can fly!

Jedi ran the Doggie Fun Zone after the dog shows this weekend. Do you think he had fun? Check out the blogs on this hop to see who else is having fun. -- K

 

 

Pet Peeves About Pet Owners

I deal with people everyday. Sometimes people say and do things that drive me nuts. My frustrated rants about abuse, neglect and callousness are justified and reasonable. But then there are those annoyances that are just me and my "anal retentive" ways. (Hey, I know I have issues!) Here are some things from category two. 

• Full-Blooded -- I hate it when people ask me if a dog is "full-blooded." Uh, yeah. Nearly every animal I deal with is full of blood; anything less than full is usually dead. And please note, horses are "thoroughbred" whereas dogs are "purebred" (and not "purebread" like I saw on a sign outside the flea market -- unless they're made of pumpernickel; that would be appropriate and punny.)
• Rockweiler -- I cringe when I see "Rockweiler," "Chawawa" and "Datsun." If you're going to own a specific breed, please learn to spell it. And on that note, I own a German shepHERD (as in bred to herd sheep) not shepard (a common last name). I have seen many animal control officers mess these up. I carry a cheat sheet with breed spellings under my ticket book so I can properly spell dachshund, schnauzer or vizsla on the citation. 
• Canine -- Do not use the word "canine" when you mean "dog." It makes you sound pretentious. Cops are notorious for this. I keep telling them: think of canine as an adjective, as in canine teeth or canine behavior. Technically, canine refers to the entire dog genus. If you are referring to the species canis familiaris (the domesticated dog) just say "dog." You can also refer to a dog by it's breed -- but you'd better spell it correctly!
• Designer Dogs --You know: labradoodles, chiweenies, morkies, puggles. They're mutts -- not that there is anything wrong with mutts. I like mutts! But these are overpriced, intentionally bred mutts. And I despise designer dog snobbery. It's like "My mutt is better than your mutt because it has papers."
• Spaded -- The past tense of the word spay is spayed. If you spayed (sterilized) your dog I will think you're a responsible dog owner. However, if you spaded (used a garden tool upon) your dog I will charge you with animal cruelty. See the difference?

So yes, I have grammar and spelling issues. Be happy this is my DOG blog, because I could go on for days about "I could care less" and "irregardless." Anyway, I hope my quirks have entertained you. Even more, I hope you've learned something. Now watch, the next time you hear that someone "spaded a full-blooded Rockweiler" you'll cringe too. -- K

Bark Box #6

Our September Bark Box came as we were getting ready for our first show. I did a quick peek, but haven't been able to go through the box until now. Want to know what was inside?

The first thing Jedi pulled out was a venison ear from Superior Farms. Jedi says forget pig ears, he likes these better.

Sticking with the venison theme, there was a Crunchy Deer Chew from Etta Says. Jedi loved it! Bark Box shared several duck products from Etta Says in our first Bark Box and Jedi loved them as well. Even picky Roxy liked the meaty chews. Note to self, buy Etta Says products for the dogs.

Another company used often by Bark Box is Barkworthies. Last month they sent a bag of bully flakes. The dogs loved them but the smell made me gag. This time it's an angus tendon. I haven't opened it yet. I'm hoping it smells better than the bully stick stuff!

An interesting thing in the box was a box of Tuscan Pizza Organic Dog Biscuits from Wagatha's. They're wheat free, crunchy biscuits. Roxy refused to eat it. (She doesn't like any crunchy biscuits, so I'm not surprised.) Jedi didn't know what to think either. He took it, held it in his mouth, dropped it, then held it in his mouth again before eating it. We had just had pizza for dinner, so I think he figured out it was not the same. BTW, Jedi prefers Domino's.

My favorite thing in the box was the IQ Treat Ball. I love puzzle toys (as seen here and here) and have reviewed a half dozen or so. No joke, this is the one that Jedi has liked best. I pulled it out to entertain him while we were packing for the show. It worked! We even took it with us last weekend so Jedi could bat it around the hotel room.

The last thing in the box was very interesting: Liquid Bandage from VetraCare Pet. I spent a good 10 minutes surfing through their website and find it interesting. Coincidentally, Jedi has an irritation in his armpit. The site says that this product will provide a breathable barrier to promote healing. We're going to try this one out today!

Sadly, this our last Bark Box. Although fun, Bark Boxes are a bit pricy. We are spending a lot of money on showing these days, so I'm cutting a few things out. We've enjoyed sharing our Bark Boxes with you over the past six months. If you want to know what's in next month's Bark Box, you'll need to get your own here. Let me know if you do. -- K

 

We Did It!

Jedi and I competed in our first dog shows this weekend. WOW. Not only did I meet my goal of not throwing up in the ring, we also won first place for the 9-12 month German shepherd dogs and Best Puppy on Friday! The judge, Nan Bodine, was very nice too. When we had our picture taken she said "You have a very typey dog, and when you pull it all together you'll do well." I thought that was a kind thing to say to a newbie. Later I had a professional handler ask if he could give me a few tips. Uh, Yeah! He showed me how to get a longer stride to better show Jedi's gait and an easier way to stack my dog. I'm trying to remember it all. I do know that I need to walk/jog more!

Saturday was a bigger show and not nearly as well organized. Still, we got first place again (it helped that nobody else was in the class this time). Jedi was tired so we packed up early. Hubby too. I would have liked to stick around to see more, but I wanted to leave on a good note so that Jedi (and Hubby!) will think of dog shows as fun.

Lessons learned for this experience:

• Some dog show people are friendly and kind, willing to offer help and advice to newbies. They are gracious, good sports and kooky dog people. MY PEEPS!
• And some dog show people are self-absorbed, inconsiderate jerks. They don't pick up after their dogs (yuck), are poor losers and complain about everything. Their dogs are usually jerks too.
• A cart or dolly would be very helpful for toting crap around. There is a surprisingly large amount of show-related crap.
• Bring a towel.
• Drink more water.
• Pack a lunch.
• Catalogs can be expensive.

We're going to try it again next weekend in Ocala. I've been told that those rings are outdoors and bigger. I'm praying for clear and cooler weather. And will try even harder not to throw up. I'll keep you posted. -- K

Who's Limping Now?

Chili (Jedi's brother) still high after surgery. Poor Puppy!

I was so worried about the possibility of Jedi being lame at the upcoming shows that I never thought of myself. I probably should have. I've been walking Jedi and working him through his paces without thinking. Yesterday morning I could hardly walk. And today wasn't much better. I went to the doctor this morning to discover that I have trochanteric bursitis. Great! The doctor gave me some steroids and pain meds. Hopefully I'll be better tomorrow. I just need to be good enough to run around the ring for a few minutes. Cross your fingers.

 

Fortunately, Jedi's limping has stopped completely. I would bet that it was something benign. We're keeping an eye on him and are looking for another vet. I cancelled his UF appointment, but will definitely get a second opinion (and x-rays) should the limping return.

 

Yesterday I went to University of Florida's Small Animal Hospital in Gainesville with the Breeders and a few dogs. They wanted to have Jedi's sister (Pinky) and half brother (Trump) looked at. Pinky's been limping off and on for a while, always on the same leg. And Trump had a bad elbow diagnosis from the OFA and Breeders wanted a second opinion before removing him from the breeding pool. Jedi's other brother, Chili, had horrendous breath and the Breeders wanted to get that checked out as well. (It ended up being a stick jammed between two teeth in the back of his mouth. Go figure!) I went along as a third set of hands, but I was limping so badly that I don't think I was much help.

I was really impressed with the hospital. It rivals any human hospital I've ever been to. It's a teaching hospital so several people look at your pet, providing a built in second opinion. There are also specialists on hand and all the equipment you can imagine. Need x-rays or a CT scan? Need cultures or blood work? It's all done right there. It's awesome, but definitely not cheap!

 

OK, I need to cut this short. It's already 10 PM and I am not ready for tomorrow -- the BIG day. Meet me back here in a couple days and I'll share pictures and stories of our very first dog shows. -- K