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| The mustard is blooming in Napa! Beautiful! |
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| Sawyer surveys the land at Alston Park as we start our walk this morning |
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| It's a pretty quiet day so far but he's hoping to meet a friend or two |
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| And he does! These two are quite the match and the pairing makes for a nice quiet afternoon for me! |
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| More of the gorgeous early spring flowers |
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| What's a Vizsla to do in between shows, hunt training and naps? How about an awesome run on the Bay at Point Pinole this morning? |
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| Sawyer buzzes by again... Smiley! |
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| Sawyer loves the water and enjoys his fun day splashing around |
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| With lots of help from the VCNC members Sawyer is introduced to birds, here he is watching seasoned hunting Vizslas do their bird work. And it also seems that he is working on his free stack as well, way to multi-task! |
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| Sawyer hitting the scent cone of a chukar that was planted for him |
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| He's learning that birds are an awful lot of fun! He's introduced slowly and safely to birds and the sound of the blank gun before ever being fired over with live ammunition. |
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| Sawyer and I have begun our next endeavor, the pursuit of the Junior Hunt title "owner-handled", here is Sawyer working it at Hastings Island in Rio Vista, CA yesterday. We are very fortunate to be members of the VCNC, Vizsla Club of Northern California, and have many knowledgeable members who are great mentors! Thank you to everyone who had a hand in showing us the ropes and getting Sawyer and I on track! A very special thank you to Steve A. and Pam L. for getting us hooked. |
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| No exciting ring photos, but here we are taking our first official Best of Breed photo!!! Its nice to see the results of all the hard work you put into these amazing red kids! |
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| Then comes the challenge to not look freakish yourself in your picture! Smile! Look up, smile down at your pooch. Straighten out your jacket! Its a work in progress! |
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| AND here we go! Our first trip into Groups! Here we are with all the other lovely Best of Breed winners from the Sporting Group. |
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| Here we are waiting our turn, trying to stay entertained as well as looking good! A special thank you to handler Bill McFadden for graciously letting me enter ahead of him, I had no idea it was a free for all and frankly I think I was about to be trampled! |
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| Nervous? Who me? Uh, yes. |
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| Advice from my Peanut Gallery! It was mostly, "Get that bait out of your mouth!!!!". Oh yeah, judges don't really like that, and seeing photos of hot dogs jammed in your cheeks like a chipmunk storing up for Winter, not pretty! |
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| Now he's over stretched, but better not to fuss with anything at this point, hey! He is standing still! There's that... |
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| He's being such a good boy! This was a long time in the ring for Sawyer, and he's handling it like a champ! |
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Almost all the breeds have been examined, now time for the "Pick me! Pick me!" look, can I manage that with what appears to be yet another hot dog in my cheek?
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| Our second Best of Breed from the following day! |
Here are Joye and I back at it in 2010 with Sawyer and Brenna!
The Cow Palace show is always interesting, a two day benched show makes for a long day, but it is only once a year and we are always amongst good company. "The AKC is proud to recognize AKC Breeder of Merit participants who are dedicated to breeding beautiful purebred dogs whose appearance, temperament, and ability are true to their breed. These accomplished breeders are the heart of the AKC." I am always happy to be there to support Sawyer's Breeder, Joye Bondanza of Aristo Acres who has always been a tremendous support for Sawyer and I during all these new adventures! She has a wealth of knowledge, and I would say Sawyer and I are still novices. There are over 1200 dogs entered, representing 136 breeds. |
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| Here are Joye and I waiting for the classes to finish up before the Breed ring |
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| Always nice to have your husband take pictures so you can see how your dog is stacked. In my case not so well! |
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| Here we are on the second day, doing a little better! Practice, practice, practice! |
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| Much better! But Sawyer? Where is your tail??? (this question is often followed by a bark! So I chose not to ask today) |
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| Ms. Brenna getting her turn with the judge, despite the time and all the hard work, it was a great weekend with friends! |
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| Joye (here with Brenna) and I are all smiles for the first day of the show!!! One of our favorites due to the fact that its actually in San Mateo! Its too close to home to pass up, and maybe we miss showing a little bit....? |
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| Here's the line up for Best of Breed! I obviously did not get the memo on wearing red for today... |
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| Trying to figure out what the heck he wants us to do now. This is our third meeting with "Joe". Always memorable...Never the same! |
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| Not a bad showing! And Joye and Brenna take Best of Opposite Sex! Go Momma Brenna! |
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| No... I was mistaken and did not miss the ring as much as I had imagined! Today Sawyer takes a turn around the ring with his buddy Josh |
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| Beautiful Brenna floats around the ring with Joye! If you look carefully you will see that neither one of them are even touching the ground! Wow!! |
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| On to day 3! And a little practice outside the ring couldn't hurt! |
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| Sawyer loving on Josh before ring time... I'm always amazed at how lovey-dovey my little mouthy bruiser is! Its all an act! |
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| No, that sweet look is not for me! |
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| Sawyer gets a nice thorough examination from Judge Mrs. Betty -Anne Stenmark |
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| Note to Self: The boy can free stack! Remember? Stop fussing with the dreaded (and disliked by Sawyer) hand stacking! |
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| Every dog has his day! Today is not Sawyer's but I think my little man looks pretty good! |
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| Nothing like a good stretch after the show! Look fast or you'll miss him! Sawyer is in hot pursuit of his BFF Bond |
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| OK. Not the most regal photo, but Sawyer, Chloe, Bond and Diamond are tearing up this field! |
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| Ms. Chloe only has eyes for Sawyer |
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| The prize! |
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| Day 4! And the last show of the cluster, the Oakland Kennel Club |
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| Dog show etiquette! Pay attention to your dog! Make sure he is not swapping spit with another male because you weren't paying attention! "Don't look at the fat ass losers or freaks, look at me!" - Hamilton Swan, Best In Show |
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| And we're done. Four shows in 4 days. Now I remember why I get so stressed out over this! Time for a break so we can forget all over again! Happy New Year!! *Smile* |
