Dog Stories Part IV -- Haven

Haven was our first show quality dog. I purchased her from a woman that breeds and shows her poodles that also lives in Michigan. Picking out a show prospect is serious business. Four of us were there to evaluate the quality of the litter at 8 weeks of age and determine which would be the most suitable to show. Haven had the conformation I was looking for as well as that "look at me attitude" that is essential for a show dog to have. If you would like to learn more about evaluating a litter of puppies, look at "Puppy Puzzle" by Pat Miller.

Unfortunately, Haven broke her leg at a round 10 weeks. The break was very close to the growth plate and the vets at MSU Veterinary School thought that the bone may not grow anymore and she may end up having to have the leg amputated. We are very fortunate that did not end up being the case. The leg did end up being about an inch shorter than the others so she actually walks like she is missing a shoe. It is because of the injury that she was unable to be shown.

She is from beautiful health tested parents and has been very healthy thus far. I am currently working on competitive Rally and Obedience titles with her. We do think she may have some arthritis issues from the break, because she does move slowly when she gets up in the morning.

Haven is wonderful with people of all ages and very loving. She loves to nuzzle you and sit on the couch resting her head in your lap. She has her Canine Good Citizen certificate and can also do the local children's reading program.

She is not, however a lover of other dogs. She absolutely hates Ruby and will try to kill her each and every time she sees her. You can imagine this has posed quite a logistics problem for us because all of our dogs are loose in the house. We are very careful that Ruby and Haven are never in the same room together.

Despite her nice pedigree, since temperment problems can be hereditary (not always) I did go ahead and spay her because of her iffy temperament. I just didn't want to risk it being passed on to puppies.

Dog Stories Part III -- Ruby

Ruby is our first official standard poodle and she is registered as a red. Now that she is 6 years old her coloring actually resembles the color of a brown paper bag, but she is still considered a red. You would think by this point, John and I would have gotten a bit savvier about where our dogs come from, but no, those damned classified ads strike again.

I saw an ad for a litter of Standard Poodles so I called on them and the lady had a red girl for only $400. People, you are not going to get a puppy out of health tested parents for $400! Generally in Michigan the average price for a companion quality dog out of health tested parents will cost between $800 and $1000 dollars. I was marginally smarter this time. I had learned that health testing was important. I did take the time ask the lady about health testing. She said it was done and it was good. I didn’t bother to ask what health testing was done, or see copies of the test results. Just saw this beautiful bundle of Red fur and said “I’ll take her”.

Now that I understand that in breeding dogs, you not only have to consider the sire and dam, you must also be familiar with the lines of dogs they come from. Since this breeder was less than reputable, we decided to spay Ruby rather than run the risk of some hereditary disease raring its ugly head. Of course Ruby is priceless in our eyes and we did fare better in the temperament department than we did with Tucker. She has been a very healthy dog as well. I have done more training with Ruby than any of our other dogs and it shows. In later posts I will brag about her accomplishments.

The low down on Poodles in AKC Conformation

I got into showing dogs because I loved dogs and I wanted to make new friends that liked the same kind of dogs I did. Sure I wouldn't turn down winning once in a while, but I wanted friends to hang out with on weekends. Silly me, the other people were showing dogs because they want to win that ribbon and finish their dog’s championship. I’m not saying that when the judges pointed at me for winners, my heart didn’t jump and I didn’t float around the rest of the ring, I did. Boy I did. I would have loved to finished my dogs championships. As it was I quit when Morgan was half way there and Cruise had three points. Winning is really cool. I am just not cut throat and I was not expecting to have my throat cut.

Hold on to your seats folks, I am going to let you in on a little secret. Things get dirty in showing dogs. In poodles, we have more ways to stack the deck in our favor than other breeds because of their trim. Many add extra chunks of hair (called “wiggies” or “pieces”) to their poodle’s top knot to make it look fuller. Often the black and brown dogs you see in the ring are that nice rich color because of Miss Clairol. Yep it takes quite a few bottles, but owners dye the dogs hair to cover up mismarks, or fading color. Dog a little on the thin side and won’t eat? Force feed them. Bad nose pigment? Just grab a marker or some shoe polish to cover up that fault. Tail not set and carried at exactly 12 o’clock? Surgically repair it. Don’t think the judge knows who you are? Hire a professional handler to take your dog in. If the judge is a middle aged man, the best choice would be a hot young thing with her bra straps loosened so she gets a nice bounce as she moves the dog around the ring. It also helps if the judge is good friends with professional handler too. Often judges forget to look at the bottom end of the leash where the dog is, instead as they examine the class of dogs in front of them, they look at who is handling the dogs to figure out who they owe a favor to or who may be able to help them get their next judging assignment.

These are all things I witnessed while showing dogs. I was not a saint when it comes to following the rules by any means, I will confess to force feeding Morgan to keep her in a good weight to be shown (she is a really fussy eater). I really regret it because she hates me for doing that to her. I would also use hairspray to put my dog’s topknot together. Each one of the things I mentioned are illegal according to the rules of the Poodle Club of America and AKC rules yet are done every day at every AKC dog show. Unfortunately, the desire to win, trumps all. Doesn’t matter who you hurt or what you have to do winning is what matters at the end of the day for most dog show people.

I finally woke up and realized that showing dogs despite having some fun, had many more drawbacks and wasn’t how I wanted to spend my free time. So, after a show this summer, I bowed out. I cut Cruise and Morgan down into pet trim and they are enjoying playing and roughhousing in the yard which are things they couldn’t do because of keeping their long hair in good condition to be shown. I’m sure neither of them misses having to spend 5 plus hours on the grooming table for their weekly bath and blow-dry either.

Have you had to make tough decisions to distance yourself from and unhealthy situation? When is it okay to be a quitter? I enjoyed the actual showing of the dogs, and if I go back to showing, it will be in obedience where you are judged on just you and your dog’s performance, not being compared as a group as in conformation.

Dog Stories Part II -- Buddy

Buddy is our only mixed breed dog. After having Tucker about a year, John and I decided it was time to look for a friend to keep him company.

I was at the county fair (as foods judge no less) and met some people that said they had a little poodle mix they didn’t want any more (they picked him up in Florida while on spring break earlier in the year) and I could come and look at him at their campsite.

So I went home and grabbed John and we went back to the fair to meet Buddy. What we were greeted with was the happiest, filthiest dog ever. He was COVERED in fleas, and his tail was 3 times its normal size because it was matted solid with burrs. We were told that he had never had any vaccinations and was not neutered.

I was apprehensive to put him in that car because of the fleas so I asked if they could keep him yet that night until I could take him straight to the groomers to be flea dipped. They said “sure, we’ll just tie him to the picnic table tonight”. Needless to say, we loaded Buddy up, fleas and all, into the car along with Tucker.

Later that week I ran into the people we got Buddy from and they asked how he was doing. I informed them that he was adjusting fine and had an appointment to be neutered. Fine people that they were acted astonished that I would pay to have that procedure done as all I needed to do was wrap a rubber band around his testicles and they would just shrivel up and fall off. At this point I am quite certain that Buddy traded up in family. Buddy will also be turning 10 the month of November.

Dog Stories Part I - How did we end up with 7 dogs?

Dog #1 Tucker.

Tucker was the last puppy left of a litter of supposedly toy poodles at the home of this back yard breeder in a neighboring town. We knew nothing about how to locate a good dog. We just found an ad in the paper, and went and looked.

She wanted $100 for him and another $25 if we wanted his AKC papers. This a prime example that just because a dog has “papers” doesn’t mean it is a well bred dog. “Papers” only mean that both parents of the puppy were pure bred. It does nothing to ensure the that the health testing recommended for that breed was completed on the parents prior to breeding or that the parents had good temperaments or that the parents embody what it means to be that breed of dog. I don’t know about you, but I would have rather that my “toy poodle” actually have come from in size toy poodles and had a good temperament and that my poodle look like a poodle and act like a poodle is supposed to act.

Tucker will be turning 10 years old this month and I truly believe that any other family would have had him euthanized because of his awful temperament. I mean, this dog has a wire loose. He will sit on the couch with you and growl and snarl while he nudges you with his nose to pet him. He continues to growl and snarl while you pet him. It’s like he is confused. He snaps at me when I groom him and nearly bites me when I trim his nails.

Literally this was our first dog and we did everything wrong with him. He became very resource aggressive with the bed and would try to bite John when he would try to get into bed. Now Tucker isn’t even allowed in the bedroom. He sleeps in a crate that he is very happy with in the crate room with a few of the other dogs.

He isn’t all bad. He is very affectionate and loves to go for walks and retrieve a ball for me. He is the first one to sit when I give a group command to sit, and loves to “roll over” on command. If I am sad and crying he is the first one to be over licking away my tears.

We learned a lot about how to find a quality dog from the mistakes we made with Tucker. I learned a lot more about dog training after realizing where I went wrong in training tucker and that we let him get away with too much in the beginning that fostered his opinion that he is the alpha in charge and we are his pack that he rules over.

As a toy poodle, Tucker should have weighed under 10 pounds and measured less than 10” at the withers. Tucker actually weighs 35 pounds and measures 18 inches at the withers. According to the poodle breed standard (which can be found at www.poodleclubofamerica.org ) he is a standard poodle.
Live and learn.

Good Morning

Well, here I am. First time blogger, wanting to shout from the rooftops about my weight loss/fitness journey.

About me.... Brenda (35), married to John (43) for 13 years. No human children, just our 7 dogs named (in order of aquisition...) Tucker the 38 pound toy poodle...yes I said toy poodle. Buddy the token mixed breed, Ruby the red standard bitch, Haven a black standard bitch, Morgan a black standard bitch, Cruise a blue boy, and Leia the black standard poodle rescue. Yep, we have a full house.

I joined weight watchers for the first time back in '98 and lost 75 lbs. Not bad eh? Then I was bumped (union term) from a job I loved by a coworker I already hated and used that as an excuse to gain it all back plus.....

Joined again in July of this year and have lost 26.6 lbs in 12 weeks. Got my 25 pound medal last Wednesday night.