Little boys growing up

We had a fun week-end at the Centennial Retriever Club trial.  It was a busy time as Kenny and I, along with some other wonderful people, put it on.  We're a little exhausted tonight to be sure.

Darbi finished the Open with a Reserve JAM.  She ran great, but got out of the water early and hunted a bit around the pond to the last bird.  I think she knew where the last bird was, but she was just too old and wise to make the giant swim to it.  9 1/2 year old dogs know their options and she certainly knew hers.

Only two dogs made the swim all the way to the bird and Miss LIBBY was one of them...as test dog.  She got dropped after the water blind after needing too many casts to get out on the point.  But she was amazing in the fourth and I was so proud of her.  It was spine tingling for me to watch.  Libby needs 1000 more marks and 1000 more blinds to be a consistent Open dog, but geez...she's not even 2 1/2 and she's made it to the water blind in 2 of her first 3.

Libby also got a 4th place in the Qualifying at this same trial.  Not sure what it will take to get her Qualified All-Age, but we're plugging away.  Quals are the most difficult stake to win for a variety of reasons...and I have to keep reminding myself that she's still little baby...or at least Kenny reminds me often when I get too ahead of myself.

I just received some updated pics of Goose and Stewie, two of the Arson x Miikka pups.  They are really growing up!!  Gordie has started Basics and is doing well here with us and I can only imagine that his two brothers are as bright and intense as he is.

Goose has his mother's face.

And his father's intensity.

And Stewie looks like his dad.

Stewie with his big "sister" Emma.

Emma is from the Tiger x Darbi litter of 2006

She looks like she has her mom's aversion to having her picture taken.

Proud of the gang

We had a great week-end.

Our truck of dogs is so young and we know we need a couple years to re-build an All-Age truck, but it's sure been fun watching them grow and develop.

I think out of our 22 dogs that we have in training (including my girls), 18 of them are 4 or under.

Well, the kids rocked it this week-end.

We got 1st AND 2nd in the Open!!  My boy Boomer WON and Darbi's young son Turq (Prime x Darbi 2008) got second.  Boomer is not actually mine, but I like to pretend he is.

Riot, who's a riot, got SECOND in the Amateur and he's only 2 1/2 years old!  And Pacer was fourth in the Amateur as well.  We just got Pacer back, and he spent a number of years with Kenny earlier in his career.  He's a cool dog.  (He's FC AFC Fat City Pacer for those who follow trials).

Miss Libby, as you know, got 4th in the Qualifying and we also got third and RJAM in the Derby with Roy and one of my little boys Stanley.  I now like to think of myself as Stanley's "other" mother.

Hard to believe we had FIFTEEN yard dogs in January.  It was a lot of work, let me tell you, getting all these guys up and running and we have a few more in the pipeline itching to make their debuts.

Ahti is coming along, as is her brother Razor, and we're holding them back a bit as they are a bit...um...shall we say...wild?  Not at all what I expected from a Darbi pup, but it is what it is and we're rolling with it.  We're hoping they'll be ready to break out in the Derby in July.  Plus poor Ahti had to sit out 6 weeks with her wrist injury at a critical time in her training.

Our dogs are fun to train and we're sure having a lot of fun training them.

It's hard work and it's a grind, but it's perfect.

Tired girl

Miss Libby ran 7 series yesterday.  She must be a tired gal.

She finished the Qualifying with a fourth place!  She ran great and I was very pleased with her.

AND she made it to the water blind in the Open.  While she got the bird, she was loose at the end and got dropped, deservedly so.  I was so proud of her efforts in some tough tests in the Open.

And Darbi is back!  She didn't do the first series of the Open, but not for lack of effort.  She was bouncing on line and totally into her job.  So nice to have her back after her surgery.

But it was kind of bittersweet for me to see a subtle changing of the tides.  My 9 1/2 year old didn't do the first series of the Open, and my not yet 2 1/2 year old did it real nice.  I have a bright future in Libby, but I hate that Darbi is getting old.

My Boys

My two little boys are all grown up.  

I bought Stanley and Otto as 8 week old puppies and raised them.  I sold them to clients at about 6 months old.

Stanley and Otto were only born a week apart, so let me tell you it was a full time job raising two puppies at once.  I couldn't let them be together all the time, or even some of the time, so that they bonded to people and not each other.  They were on two different schedules and even had two different x-pens at training every day.

It was hard work, but well worth it.

Stanley (Horsetooth's Center Ice: FC AFC Shaq x FC AFC Ruby) WON the derby this past week-end at West Nebraska and has finished both derbies he has run.  Otto (Horsetooth's Otto Know: FC AFC Cosmo x Lucy QAA) has also finished both derbies he has run and got FOURTH this past week-end as well.

I'm proud of my little guys and I think they're going to have a fun summer with their owners.

A pic of Stanley today.  Such a big boy now.

Another third

Way to go Wibbs!

She got a third place at the West Nebraska field trial this week-end.  She was great from start to finish.

Darbi had to sit this one out due to her recent surgery, but she should be good to go for next week-end.

And Libby ran her FIRST Open there this week-end as well.  She didn't make it through the first series, but it's all great experience for her and she's ready.

She has a bright future we think.

GREAT DAY!!!

BENIGN!!!

ALL FOUR LUMPS!!!

NO Cancer.  Not a trace.

She's in the clear and life goes on.

I cried when they called me with the news.

Now...to keep her mostly still until the stitches are out next week.  She's driving me a little crazy.  I can't believe how fast she has recovered.  She wants to get back to work, but Dr's order are no work until next week and then life will go on as before.

Just so happy.

Darbi Update

So far, so good I think.

She had:
-a spay
-one lumpectomy from her leg
-two lumpectomies from her mammary glands
-one complete mammary gland removal

What my wonderful vet thinks:
-two lumps from her mammary glands are no big deal.  That's his initial thought.
-one lump from her mammary gland probably cancer, but we most likely caught it early and that's over with.
-her leg is probably the biggest deal.  While the preliminary pathology reports showed inconclusive, he thinks there's a 50% chance that it is a Soft Tissue Sarcoma.  That's bad.

Now I just have to wait until next week to find out which of the lumps are cancer and if we got it all out.  If her leg lump IS a sarcoma and we didn't get it all out, then that's very bad news.

I'm hoping it's the OTHER 50% and it's not a sarcoma.

Fingers still crossed.

Momma D doing pretty well considering, however she does look a bit like Frankenstein right now with all the scars and sutures.

Willie's new friends

We had some pro friends stop overnight this week on their way home from their winter trip to Texas.

They brought some guests with them and put them in our front yard.

Willie was a little perplexed.

Darbi

Just found out.

Darbs most likely has cancer.

I think we caught it really early, so that's the good news.  The lumps are the size of peas.

The one lump came back as a tumour, and it was inconclusive whether it was benign or malignant.  Chances are it's malignant as it's very hard and irregularly shaped.  The other two breast lumps came back as inconclusive entirely, so we're taking them all out.

And it sounds like the leg lump is of no concern, which is good news.

I told the vet I wasn't planning on spaying her as she was old and only had one heat cycle per year.  He told me that the chances of her developing pyometra after 8 years old is 75%.  That's all I needed to hear to decide to spay her the same time the lumps are taken out.

Surgery booked for this Thursday.  She'll be out for awhile, obviously, recovering.  Spaying is VERY hard on an older bitch, and I saw that first hand with Miikka.

But trials, schmials...I need to look after sweet Darbs and I don't care if she runs another trial again.

So, moral of the story...do regular breast exams on bitches older then 6, especially if they have not been spayed until after their second cycle.  I think her daily tummy rubs may have caught this before it turned into something very bad.  Let's hope anyways.

I had a fun week-end at a Field Trial in Nebraska this week-end.

I took 4 Open dogs and had two in the last series...Boomer and Meg.

While both had to handle it the fourth, it was SO much fun to stand beside a daughter of Darbi's in the last series.  I'd never run her at a trial before and she was a joy to run.  She's only 3 years old.

Darbi got dropped after the water blind.  She was very sick all Friday night and got me up in the hotel every hour to go outside.  Bad diarrhea and some vomiting.  I treated her with some metronidazole and she seemed to feel better Saturday morning, but I only had a shell of her on the water blind.

I think she caught a bug, as she's fully recovered today.

Still no word on any test results for her yet, but it's been on my mind.

I found some interesting facts on dogs and mammary cancer though.

If you spay a dog before her first heat cycle, then the risk of this type of cancer is less then 1%.
If you spay them before their second heat cycle, it's 8%.
But if you spay a dog at any time in their life after their second heat cycle, the risk is 28%.  So me spaying Miikka last year did nothing to reduce her chance of breast cancer.

But my vet is more worried about Darbi's leg lump, which surprised me.

I hope to get some news soon.

Fingers crossed...

I've been a little blog lazy since we've been home.  Sorry.

I've been bragging on here about how GREAT Darbi is doing.  Feeling great, training great and trialing great.  She's had a fabulous winter.  Especially for a dog her age.

And now...

3 breast lumps and a leg lump.

My wonderful vet is very worried.

He did fine needle aspiration on all 4 lumps and sent them off to pathology.

I'm off to a field trial tomorrow with Momma D.  No point sitting around and worrying when she's feeling so fantastic.

Keep your fingers crossed for her and me.

I'm a bit of a wreck at the THOUGHT of it.  That nasty bad word.  I can't even say it.

Good to be home

After almost 4 months on the road in Texas, it is sure nice to be home.

Darbi thinks so too.

Momma D got a RJAM in the Open at Cimarron this past week-end.  She was SO much fun to run!!  She stomped the last series water quad.  I just can't get over how, at 9 1/2 years old, she is having more fun running trials and training then she ever has.  We're going to have her best year ever...I can feel it.  She's already finished 2 of the 4 Opens she's run so far.  She had an almost 50% completion rate last year...pretty incredible in these tough Opens.

The Cimarron trial, which was in Oklahoma, was the first trial I'd ever been to where I knew the location of the closest Tornado shelter and had an emergency plan.  It was pretty hairy there for awhile.

(For reference: Willie attacking Miikka on the other side of the doggy door-giant toy snake beside Darbi).

Doggy Disneyland

The winter trip is winding down.  I'm ready.  All work and no play for us in Texas and we're both dragging our behinds a little bit.  All told we have 24 dogs here, and that includes the retired Miikka and puppy Willie.  Lots of work looking after this crew.  They are young and they are fun.  Willie is as much work as the rest of our dogs put together.  Kenny said I'm not allowed to raise another puppy for a little while after her.  We'll see...

This picture doesn't give it justice and you'd have to click on it to enlarge it for a better look, but this is the infamous technical water at Pin Oak Kennel in Ravenna, TX.  So many dipsy doodles that one loses count of the re-entries.  It can actually be a bit mind blowing, especially for young dogs trying to sort water work out.  Should I stay in?  Should I get out?

A smattering of Texas wild flowers near the piece of water we trained on today.  I thought it was time to put my four girls together for a photo.  From left to right: Darbi (I will NOT smile for the camera, ever), Ahti, Libby and Miikka.  Ahti still needs to grow into those ears.

Ahti had her cast removed last week and she's been given the green light to start light work...mostly water work.  She is happy to be back at it.  It was a 10 hour round trip to see the ortho specialist, who looked at her for 20 minutes and sent me out the door.  And on the way down I happened to be driving through Dallas WHILE 12 tornados were touching down around the city during a gale force rain storm.  You probably heard about it?  It was a hair raising experience.  The things I do for my furry friends.

And the "kids" had quite a play session today.  Gordie (Arson x Miikka 2011) found a turtle shell and played keep-away with Willie (Chopper x Hoodoo 2011).

No, I don't want your stinky treasure.  But thanks anyways Gordie.

Open WIN for Adey!!

A daughter of Darbi's from her first litter WON the Open in Washington this week-end!!

Her name is Elmingo's Chasing A Whim (Adey) and is from the Tiger x Darbi litter.

VERY FUN and CONGRATS to Adey and her owners and trainer!!

I ran my girls this week-end at the Metro trial in North Texas.

Darbi pinned the first two birds of the triple and then was only 10 yards upwind of the difficult long retired bird and she kept punching.  It was heartbreaking to watch as lots of dogs never made it all the way out there to begin with, but I was so pleased with her effort.  She never recovered after running way deep and I asked the judges to have the gun help her as the mark was WAY out there and I didn't think I could get a handle on her back to the bird.  She got a pat and a "good work Momma" on the way back to the truck.  She really showed her warrior heart.

Darbi's son Turq (Prime x Darbi) ran a great trial competing against his mom and then handled on a very difficult quad in the last series of the Open.  And his sister Meg was dropped after the water blind.  Pretty good showing for those two young "kids".

Littermates Zink and Libby (Shaq x Miikka) both JAM'd the Qualifying at this trial.  They had great work going into the 4th series and both went a little bonkers on a tight test.  An "up the shore mark" messed with their heads a little bit and it was all over.  They're both very exciting young dogs and have bright futures in front of them.

I'm a pretty proud breeder this week-end.  I'm so happy to see the kids do well.

Mini Boom

Kenny and I call Willie mini Boom.  She reminds us so much of a dog we train named Boomer.  Willie happens to share the same sire as Boomer (NFC AFC Clubmead's Road Warrior).  We largely bought Willie based on Boomer, and other "Chopper" pups we know.

She's a handful, plain and simple.  Wild, intense and athletic.  Everything that Boomer is too.

I hope she is as talented as him too.

Willie in the beautiful Texas wildflowers.

Boomer at dusk.

I certainly see a resemblance.

Willie hams it up during the photo shoot.  I don't think I'd ever seen a dog roll their eyes before until I saw Boomer in this picture.  Even he thinks she's too much.

Ahti's Boo Boo

I think I'm breeding accident prone dogs.

Foundation stock all good and first generation trying to kill themselves.  The first year of Libby's life was full of many bodily injuries, and now Ahti.

Ahti somehow badly hurt her leg.  In her kennel we think.  We're not sure how she did it, but some imagination gives us some ideas.  Regardless, she came out of her kennel in the morning dead lame on a front leg.  We also considered that she may have hurt it training the day before and not shown any signs at the time.  We just don't know.  Regardless, she was non weight bearing and that is always a concern.

We sat on it for one day to see if she had a minor injury.  I palpated it and manipulated it and got no response, so I felt nothing was broken.  When she was no better the following morning, we took her in to the vet.  We got a referral to an ortho specialist the following morning after that.  We were told, by the first vet, that she possibly had a dislocated wrist (carpus) and might need surgery involving fusion of the joint and plates and pins put in her leg.

Ahti's career might have been over before it started.  I was a little devastated, but tried to keep positive.

We went to the ortho specialist this morning and received great news!  She basically has a badly sprained ankle.  Very badly sprained.  He put her in a cast and we hope we can remove it in two weeks and then spend some time rehabbing her back to training over a period of time.  She should be out two months-max, but not even that long.

He told me her saving grace was that I brought her in so soon.  I didn't think 72 hours after injury was very soon, but he assured me that I was much faster then most people whose dogs suffer these types of injuries.

What I loved about this vet is that he was an old-timer, who was obviously very knowledgable.  He was an orthopaedic professor at the Texas A & M vet school and was well versed in his subject obviously.  But what impressed me most was that he went straight to Ahti and spent a great deal of time assessing her and her injury without yet referring to her x-rays.  I always told my paramedic students to "treat the patient and not the machines" and loved seeing someone as knowledgeable as him not need machines to make a thorough and accurate evaluation.  After this, he then referred to her x-rays to confirm his thoughts.  I was awe-struck and somewhat smitten.

Here is Ahti with her cast this evening.  She thinks she's living large being back in the house and she'll be spoiled rotten.  While I'd love to have every dog in the kennel inside, it's just not possible, so she has now become one of the "chosen ones" that gets to come in every night.

And no, she is not possessed...I just used my iPhone to take the picture.

The moral to my story is two-fold...

1)  I have always believed, in both human and canine medicine, that one needs to find the "guy" when cases such as these arise.  Whoever the "guy" is...find him/her and heed his/her words.  General practitioners are wonderful and I respect their work immensely, but if I would have followed a general practitioner's advice with Ahti, then I would have had someone trying to reduce an ankle that wasn't dislocated to begin with.  Seek out the "guy"...and do whatever it takes to go see them.  15 years in Emergency Medical Services led me to this conclusive long before I found out it was the same in Veterinary Medicine.

and

2) If you have a first generation Elmingo dog...wrap it in bubble wrap.

Duck, Duck, Goose

This is Goose.  You've seen pictures of him before.

He's from the 2011 Arson x Miikka litter and he just turned 6 months old.

What a handsome little guy!!!

Kudos Crufts!!

I usually don't post my "opinion" on this blog.  I try to keep it about my dogs and their kids.  Poor Kenny is usually the brunt of all my "opinions", which are many if you know me.

But I have been reading with interest what is going on at the Crufts show in England.

I have been disheartened, since I got into the dog world, to see the ever widening gap between the show dogs and field dogs in the Sporting Group.  Some of them don't even look like the same breed.  The dog above did not compete at Crufts, as far as I know, but he's a representative of a show winning Labrador of recent years.  It's gross.

Some breeders are doing it right.  My friend Liz breeds Flat Coated Retrievers (Blazingstar) and I have always admired her dogs and the fact they win in the show ring AND do what they're bred to do.  Sadly, this is not the case for most Sporting breeds, nor CAN it be the case.  The PIGador shown above could not be expected to withstand a full day's hunt, and my own dogs would be laughed out of the show ring.

3x NFC AFC AND Ch Shed Of Arden

Dual Champion Cherokee Rocket

But looking at the above photos of Dual Champion (show and field champion) labradors from the 40s and 50s, shows that the breed has gone in the wrong direction in the show ring, as far as I'm concerned.  The over exaggerated head was not present 50 years ago, and the dogs had some leg.  I'd like to think that my dogs are closer to these old dual champion dogs then the dogs showing in AKC bench shows are today.

True, I admit, that many current Field Trial dogs are as far removed from these great dogs of yester-year as the show labs are: snipey heads, curl tails and slim frames.  In breeding for the elusive Field Trial blue ribbons, many of the field breeders are forgetting the labrador's breed type as well.  We're also guilty for breeding some manic, frothing at the mouth dogs that would be an absolute NIGHTMARE to have on a day's hunt, or just living in our house with us.

And it's not just in labradors that the gap is widening.  I'm proud to say that I was once owned by a very self important English Springer Spaniel.  She was 100% of the show variety.  She had zero, zip, zilch desire to retrieve birds.  I know this, because I tried.  And her long, down to the ground coat was tangled in more burrs than you could count after a walk in the field.  I had to tie her ears up when she ate so as not to get in the way, and groom her incessantly.  Of course, this very pretty dog was a show Champion.  But so far removed from the job which she was bred to do that I was discouraged from buying anything "show" bred again.

The field bred English Springers looked absolutely nothing like her.  Not even of the same breed.

Isn't there a way to meet in the middle?  

I'll admit that I'm far from perfect, but I've always kept the Labrador type in mind when doing a breeding.  Mostly, my quest for performance overrides that of beauty and form, but form follows function as they say.  I've bred a couple dogs that I think are close to the ideal specimen of a labrador retriever in my mind, both in form AND function, but I've also bred dogs I judge with a critical eye in that they are too tall, too small, too snipey or poor coated.  But my critical eye also has to look out for performance shortcomings, such as dogs I've bred that are too wild, have questionable desire or intelligence and everything in between.  A critical eye to performance is something show breeders are mostly not concerned about at all.  I will keep trying to produce the perfect dog, but an outcross to a show bred lab to thicken my dogs' tails or broaden their heads is NOT in my future, I can promise you.

But I digress.  Crufts disqualified several of the breed winners for failing a post-win health check.  The Clumber Spaniel, specifically, for having ectropic eyes.  Certainly NOT something somebody wants in a gun dog. The Kennel Club over there may be trying to garner publicity for this "stunt", but they are also trying to preserve the health of 15 breeds they deem to be in danger, including the Clumber Spaniel.

I applaude them and hope it's a wake up call for all of us.

Should this dog be removed from the gene pool as she has many wonderful qualities?  No.  But should she win one of the biggest dog shows of the year as the IDEAL example of her breed.  I say no to that too.

More on what is happening at Crufts on my new favourite blog:

http://www.astraean.com/borderwars/2012/03/ectropion-and-the-failed-crufts-dogs.html

On a happy note

Gordie has a new home.

He is from the Arson x Miikka breeding and is very special to us as Arson passed away just a couple months ago.  We are all still reeling from his loss.  We were not going to let Gordie go far, and he looks like a very promising puppy.

Gordie is now owned by Brad & Diane Clow, who also owned Arson.

I couldn't think of a more fitting home.

And I took a picture of the Clow's other dog.  His name is Riot, and he's a riot.  Riot got third in the Qualifying this past week-end at the Red River trial!  He's also a handsome dude.

And Willie T!  She's growing up!

She loves to stick her tongue out.

The Bluebonnets are starting to come out in Texas.  The fields will be flush with them in the coming weeks.  Such a beautiful time of the year.

Red River

Just a little vent from me today.

Why is it so difficult for some judges to give out Green ribbons??  Why?

Please, judges, don't think you're withholding the ribbons from the pros, you're withholding them from the Amateurs that own those dogs.  If you say "it's no big deal", then you're wrong.  A green ribbon IS a big deal to some people...no matter the stake.

I'm not suggesting calling back bad work so that everyone feels warm and fuzzy.  I'm suggesting that dogs that finish a trial without a disqualifying fault or collection of faults is worthy enough of recognition of a ribbon that awards no points and qualifies no one for any Nationals.

Just because a judge lays an egg doesn't mean the contestants have to pay for it.

Phew...there it is.  That's my rant.

Anywho, the Red River trial happened this week-end in Bonham, Texas.

I could not be more pleased with how my sweet Darbi ran.  She ran a very nice first and second series.  Ran a better than most water blind and then had a very respectable fourth series with a hunt on the long retired.  I think you all know what I have to show for it.  And 12 other people feel the same as me today I suspect.

Libby was Loosey Goosey in the Qualifying.  She has a problem with check down birds right now and she is ALL punch these days.  We're working on it.  We're always working on something with these athletes.  There was a nice short bird thrown onto an island in a large channel of water and a longer bird behind it.  Libby went through the island bird...twice.  And that was that.  Short bird.  And short bird thrown in front of more water...definitely not Libby's strong points right now.  Give me a long retired at 400 yards and I'll show you a dog.  Give me a short bird thrown in front of water at 100 yards and I'll show you a dog that looks like a 14 year old girl who just got told Justin Bieber is down the street.

And don't even get me started on the Derby.

Sigh...I'm glad this week-end is over.

I'll be in a better mood next time you hear from me.  Promise.

Rain Day

Had to take a rain day today.

Was out working a yard dog when the weather started rolling in.  We went running for cover.

It poured and poured, and is still raining, though not as hard.

We were really worried about the water situation in Texas after their extreme drought.  We're not worried anymore.

A picture of one of the ponds at Vinwood on my first winter trip here a few years ago.  It's at the perfect level.  It's been quite low since we got here.

A picture of the same pond taken just an hour ago.  You can see the river flowing down the hill from an upper "technical" pond.

I think we're all good now.  It can stop raining.  No really.  Please stop.

Harper in Arizona

Harper made the trip south from Alaska to compete in a Hunt Test in Arizona with her owner.

She got two Master passes!!

WAY TO GO HARPER!

She is Elmingo's Violence On Request (Prime x Darbi 2008).

And she looks like she has her mother's affinity for having her picture taken.

Abbey

YEAH ABBEY!!!

Horsetooth Retrievers had 92 Derby points in 2011.  We're aiming high again for 2012.

Off to a good start.

Coastal Bend

I ran the Coastal Bend Trial in Texas this week-end with my "truck load" of 4 dogs.  I took my two girls Darbi and Libby, plus two client dogs, Boomer and Abbey.

Abbey and I WON the Derby.  It was so much fun.  The last series was a triple, which I'd never seen before in a derby, but happens from time to time.  She really was a doll and a joy to run.  Abbey is owned by a fellow Canadian.

Libby and I went out on the land blind in the Qual after doing a fabulous first series.  It happens and it was both our faults.  It's quite a jump for most dogs from Derby to Qual.  The blind in the Qual was behind the flyer and between the flyer and the long retired and we ran it immediately after the marks.  She was freaked out thinking I was sending her back to a mark.  She is VERY heady, just like her mama.  She just needs more exposure to this concept at trials and she'll be all good.  We do it in training and she does just fine, but she's still of the mind set that trials are places where "nice men" in white coats just throw her stuff.  I think she thinks trials are solely for her benefit.  As one vet put it, she is definitely "affected" with the Happy Gene.
I was MOST proud of Libby for running test dog in the first series of the Open the second morning the test was run and she did the two long retired birds of the Quad as good as anyone!

My buddy Boomer and I ran in the Open.  Him and I made it to the water blind and were dropped.  It was a tough blind that didn't suit a powerhouse like Boom, but we gave it our best shot.
And Boomer ran the best land blind I've ever had the privilege of running at a field trial.  It was hard and super long and he did it in 3 whistles.  I was shaking afterwards, it was such a high!  Only 21 of the 95 starters made it to the water blind and I was pretty thrilled to be there in such a huge Open.  Boomer is owned by yet another Canadian.

And sweet Darbi.  She was fun.  I was a little surprised when she was dropped after the first series and Boomer back, as I thought they had similar work.  I thought they'd both be back, or both out, depending on what the judges were looking for.  She had 2 extra loops on the flyer and a little wider line on the long retired, and that was all it took to make a difference.  She ran hard and looked good.  I couldn't be happier with her effort.

All in all a great week-end.  Lots of fun and lots of laughs.  The dogs tried and I couldn't ask for more.

Libby Third!

Libby ran her "first" Qualifying Stake today.  Well, it's actually not her first.  I ran her in one last year after Kenny told me specifically not to.  I listen so well that I entered her anyways.  She wasn't ready and Kenny was right...but don't tell him I said so.

So now she's ready.  She finished her "first" Qualifying with a third place!  I was so proud of her.  She had a giant hunt on the retired gun in the first series and I thought all was lost, but the judges kindly called me back and she nailed the last three series.  Waydago Wibb!

Momma Peanut came along for the day and she found her very own turtle on the trial grounds!  She was obsessed with it.

And Willie came along too!  We found two other puppies her age (one a littermate!) to play with.  Willie promptly beat them both up and we were quickly uninvited from the play group.  I gave Willie a little "time out" to think about what she'd done, but that didn't work either.  She's a renegade and that's that I guess.