It's almost SHOW time!

By this time next week Bolli would have made his debut in the show ring...hopefully with fantastic results and a few rosettes to show for it.  It's been having quite the challenge getting him ready on my own..not easy trying to pluck and trim with a swirming puppy licking your face at every opportunity or giving playful nips on any piece of exposed flesh he can find.  Thankfully, teething is almost over and those new teeth aren't razor sharp.  As luck would have it we will be one of the first dogs in the ring Friday morning.  Still debating whether I should drive all the way out there the night before (after work in the rush hour) to set up, before driving double the distance back home to bathe Bolli, get him brushed dry, and hit the sack for a very early alarm.  It won't be any better for the BIG show in Houston...ring time there is 8am!  We fly in the night before....not much time to acclimatize to the new surroundings and the time difference.  This will be a real test for this young puppy....AND me!

Before I sign off....a BIG CONGRATULATIONS to "Jilly" who won Best in Show at the prestigious CRUFTS dog show in England!!  And yes, she is a PBGV!!

5 Months - What, no more bunnies?

This endearing photo was taken out in the back forty on one of those rare dry days on the island.  I was clearing out the blackberries and the ivy while Bolli explored all the brush piled up in the yard.  He likes to always make sure where I am and by the time this was taken he was pretty well worn out and ready to come inside.  I was ready too.  My hands were scratched, pricked, and torn from all the thorns and my barrels were full of chopped up branches.  Time to rest.

Something has been out back scratching around all the new piles of brush.  We have had rats, squirrels, raccoons and skunks visit the yard...none of which I hope to encounter with Bolli.  With all the major problems with bunnies at our local auto mall I'm almost tempted to bring one home to add to this menagerie of critters.  Probably not a good idea.

Only 3 weeks away from Bolli's first shows...the "cluster" as I'm now calling it will be the most intense series of shows that I have ever attended in the past 30 years of showing.  It's too bad in a way that they all have to come together but that is the way it worked out.  I'm willing and able to pull Bolli from the competition if it gets too much for him (I will probably be the one to conk out first!).  Once it is done there will be a longggg stretch to relax in before another show comes up.  Unfortunately his other "Mom" is unable to handle him at the shows so it will all fall on me.  The handling classes have been a great refresher.  We are so close to being ready.  Let's hope we have some points and rosettes to show for all the work :)

Pineapple Express and other woes

"Rain, rain, go away..."  The Pineapple Express has arrived on the west coast...warmer temperatures and copious quantities of rain.  Living on an island formed in the river delta (they don't call us "Mudflatters" for nothin') on a soil of sand and clay makes it problematic when the rains set in.  The entire yard is "squishy" which results in plenty of mud for the critters to pack in on their morning romps.  Bolli is easy...just a quick dip in the sink to clean the mud off his feet.  The Pyrs?...well, they prefer to head either under the shed or up on higher ground in the shed itself (not their preferred choice as they can't guard from inside a building).  Alex is up to his neck in it (okay, so I'm exaggerating a bit...but not much...lol) while Holly is so well hidden under the shed I sometimes wonder if she is still in the yard.  Even meal times is not much of an incentive to leave her comfy confines.

Handling classes are going well.  Moved to a new building and new trainer.  First class there she ran us through all the patterns....the up and back, the triangle, the reverse triangle, the "L", the "T", running two dogs side by side....I'm surprised she didn't toss the "Z" at us.  Only did that once for a judge in Alberta, talk about throwing a lot of handlers in a tizzy!  More room to move in this building, more crowds, more dogs, more distractions.  Bolli did sooo well on his patterns, his gaiting though starts out well but he tends to drag more and more on the second time around the ring.  He's a puppy, and though I want him to be in perfect form for the upcoming shows, I have to be realistic.  Puppy classes are just for that...puppies and all their charms and inexperience.  Bolli will grow up soon enough so I don't push him too hard.  BUT, gosh, can I get him to stand still long enough to get a picture?  No...he's does the one foot shuffle.  This will be a challenge to keep him stacked for just a few more seconds, at least long enough for a judge to see him posed and/or the photographer to take his Best Puppy in Show photo....*smile* and *wink*