Like Father, Like Son

Wow!
Jan got the photo of son Reef (right) in our yard a couple of weeks ago. The photo of daddy Kilo (left) was taken about four or five years ago. Can you see a resemblance?

Montana Shows - the final report

Staying in cut-rate hotels, we were not fortunate enough to have access to computers for the duration of the trip, so the blog did not get updated as planned. Here is a quick report on the rest of the trip.

As often happens in dog shows, things didn’t necessarily go the way we had hoped, but we still had fun and the dogs were good travelers!

We came back with a whopping six points (I think) and two majors – one on Mandy’s India and the other on Mandy and Jessie’s Rebel (both India and Rebel are grand-pups of Ecko's dad Kilo). I entered six-month old Ecko in Bred-by, because I am hoping to finish her from that class and was amazed at how well she showed, ending the circuit with 3 major reserves.

Galley is one of the most irrepressible PWDs I have ever seen! Her energy is unflagging and that tail never stops.

India showed well for the majority of the trip. She is super easy to travel with and basically turned into a big couch potato each evening when we hit the hotel. She adores Jessie and would try to drag me around after her any time we had them all out on leash together.

Rebel showed well but obviously prefers agility to conformation. He is happy but not over-the-top enthusiastic in the conformation ring, whereas in agility he is a real fireball.

I am ever so proud of our Stokie. She got several class placements along the way and lots of looks from the judges, but never made it past the other girls for the points. Lack of time, money and patience probably mean that Stoker, like her mama Chili, will not finish her AKC CH, but she is still a winner in our eyes.

It is always encouraging when the next generation is better than the preceding one, and I am very encouraged with our chances with Ecko. Hopefully she continues to fulfill the potential that several of the judges saw in her.

Yesterday was spent unloading the van, washing crate pads and laundry and giving puppy Ecko a shorter trim for the near future. Tomorrow morning will see Galley getting a new short 'do before hitting the road for the return trip to Sandy and Jim.

Montana Shows - Day 2

We hung out in the hotel all afternoon yesterday, reading our books and watching TV. When it cooled off in the evening, we found a park to run the dogs in and then hit a drive-through for dinner.

Still no points for our contingent today. There were three males showing today, but no luck for Rebel. We are going to try changing his grooming a bit for tomorrow and change his pre-ring ritual to see if we can get his attitude up. He's happy, but not as intense and showy as the other males. In bitches, Galley is showing really well out of the 9-12 Puppy Class. She's a bit silly, and rowdy but has great attitude. Ecko won Bred-by again today. India finished 2nd in the Open Bitch class and Stoker was 4th out of 4 (ugh!). Here are today's results:
WD/BOW: Galamar's Hydro Dynamic Edo
RWD: Floodtide Midnight Rambler
WB: Fishbay's El Sea Da Alto Mare
RWB: Lookout's FV Ocean Fury
BOB: CH Roseknoll's Perfect Storm
BOS: CH Blackjack Roughy Rain Dawg

Although I would love to be getting points, or at least placements on Stoker, I am really pleased with how Ecko is doing. To win major Reserve with her a six months and a couple of days is just amazing to me!

We are giving Rebel and Stoker a pep talk tonight and will hope for a more successful day tomorrow.

Montana Dog Show Circuit - Day 1

Jessie and I had an uneventful day of driving yesterday. The drive took about 13+ hours with a few minimal stops for essentials like rest stops for dogs and humans, filling up the gas tank (luckily gas is cheaper in Montana) and finding coffee! We ate lunch on the fly with sandwich fixings from the cooler. The dogs all travelled pretty well with only a little minor whining. All five dogs settled quietly into our hotel room for the evening.

Today saw our first day of showing and no points for our contingent, although the entire crew showed quite well. The Winners Dog (owner handled) took BOW also and will be moving up tomorrow. The Winners Bitch also supposedly finished today and may not be showing tomorrow (we should still have 7 bitches and a major, though).

Ecko had competition in her Bred-By class - a mature bitch that only needs one more major to finish. I was quite tickled that Ecko showed very nicely her first time out and won the class over this other bitch. Way to go baby dog! Here are the results:
Winners Dog/BOW (new champion): Nobreza Kimlyn Champagne N Kisses
RWD: Galamar's Hydro Dynamic Edo
Winners Bitch: Iron Thanks for the Memorys Em Voga
RWB: Fishbay's El Sea Da Alto Mare
BOB: CH Roseknoll's Perfect Storm
BOS: CH Blackjack Roughy Rain Dawg RA

More tomorrow...