Christmas Fun Day at Cowley

Just got the photos from our Christmas Fun Day... thank  you so much, Lore. 
We really had a great day, from the games at the Cowley Hall to the luncheon put on by the Back Country Outhouse Restaurant in Cowley.  
Congrats, Lore, on winning the 50/50 prize!!!  Our part of the winnings will go towards our Christmas do for 2015!!!
Enjoy the pictures and remember to pay your 2015 membership asap so you can also enjoy the discounts for club days and workshops.

Novel Rally is nothing like Novice Rally.

Every exercise is  proofing for your dog and entertainment for the rest of us.

Here's Carol doing the hula hoop exercise while Emily sits in wonder....


















                               Getting the dog to step up onto an inverted                                bowl was more difficult than it seemed.



Recall through the 'narrows' and 
then handler returns to heel.





We even offered a chance for dogs to do some
'nosework' and all of them had successful strikes on box #3!!











Easy to see that we are an easy-going group.  Check out the dogs' posture.  So relaxed.

Bailey was the entertainment for the day!  She was soooo excited to do the go-back to the treat bowl that she lost her cool and tore through the door, onto the stage, off the stage, across the hall and ended up with her feet on the kitchen counter!!!  Here she is barking at Nikki because she thinks heeling is over-rated.

 Once again, it is good practice for dog shows to have your dogs relax while waiting for their turn in the ring.  Here are Tubby's dogs waiting patiently for their turns.

 We had a flyable machine and a pitching machine set up so dogs could try out their luck at catching a ball.  Justice was not about to share his ball with Shar.






             

Once the games were done, our band of merry-makers moved to the Back Country Outhouse Restaurant for an enjoyable catered Christmas dinner.   Fun, good friends, and lots of laughter accompanied the meal and it was great to have everyone together.

Moira and Leo, host to "Top of the World" summer party, joined the fun, having just returned from a tour of Europe.

The last 50/50 draw of the year was won by Lore and it was over $50!!  Not bad for a little club.

As the old year comes to a close, and we focus on the new, may all of our members find peace, health, and happiness in 2015!

God Bless.

Merry Christmas Wishes

Greeting card customized with Smilebox

Merry Christmas!!

Hello, everyone!
  Planning is in the works for our Christmas Fun Day at the Hall on December 14th from 9:30 until noon.  Following our canine fun events, those who have responded "Yes" will pack away the pooches and regroup at the BackCountry Outhouse Restaurant for Christmas Lunch! 
 Can hardly wait!!

Also, our K9 Nosework seminar on February 7th is full and our Wonders of Weaves Workshop the next morning has five spots left.  If you are interested in learning a variety of ways to teach your dog to weave, please contact shadowbr@telusplanet.net for more information.

The Prez

Standards Rally on at Sit Happens!

Congratulations are in order for Sylvia Howard and standard poodles, Julie and Oscar.
They attended the Sit Happens! WCR trial this weekend.

Julie Q’d on 11 out of 12 runs!
She  had a knocked jump bar which NQ’d the team  on a Level 2 run.  Julie  received 3 QQ’s towards her ARCHEX.  The best part was that Julie was happy and up all weekend and so we both had a lot of fun.
Julie’s scores for the weekend were  208/210, 201/210, 195/210, 200/210, 207/210, 205/210, 202/210, 206/210, 207/210, 200/210, and 200/210.

  Oscar earned his Rally Level 1 Title and a Q towards his Level 2, with a  4th place score of 185.  He had some trouble with his downs but his focus and heeling was pretty good.

Sylvia is one very happy Rally enthusiast.

Congratulations, Sylvia.  All that hard work is paying off!

The Prez

Congratulations in Order

Today at the Red Deer show Nikki and Sophie finished Sophie's RAE in style with 97/100 in Advanced and 94/100 in Excellent Rally!
Congrats!!

The Prez

Brags from our Members and their Versatile Dogs

NEWS FLASH!!!

Tubby and Neo passed the American DD test!!! Another title Stateside for this team. 

TAnyone who reads this blog understands how versatile our members' dogs are. We are blessed to have members who compete in many different events because we always seem to have a 'go to' person when new members wish to get involved in dog sports.

Several of our members have Draft Dogs and most of us owe our start to Tubby Miller, who has shared his expertise and mentored many of us from the first day to our first competition and first titles.

On September 27th, 2014, Neo, RainCoast How Deep Is Your Love,  CD. DD.  Am. CD., owned and handled by Tubby Miller of Calgary, attended the Draft Dog Tests in Tappen, British Columbia, coming away with his Canadian Draft Dog Title under judges Phil Chagnon, Paul Bagnall, and Lea Doane. 

 The Draft test requires the dog to pass three separate exercises.  Failing to complete even one of them fails the dog entirely.  Congratulations, Tubby and Neo on this Title and we have fingers crossed that you come home from the Washington with an American DD as well.
 

Another of our members, Denise McKay, from Fernie, B.C., travelled all the way to Topeka, Kansas with her Dobermans, Spanx and Jagged, to compete at the Nationals in Agility and Rally Obedience competition.

In agility, Spanx finished her Novice JWW title and got a T2B Qualifying score with a 3rd place and 8 pts. her first time ever in that class.

Jagged got a T2B Qualifying score with a 2nd place and 9 points. She ran fast and happy as always!

In the Rally Obedience ring, Spanx picked up a 4th place in Rally Novice B with a 96 her first time ever in rally competition.

Jagged, not to be outdone, not only got her first Qualifying score in Rally Novice B but she did it with a perfect score of 100, the only 100/100 at the Nationals competing with Dobermans.

Congratulations, Denise. It certainly made the long trip worth it.

Great Falls Dog show results.

          
           Judi, Joan, and Tubby after the Novice B Rally Class August 30th with judge Betty Winthers. We are missing Carol and Maureen in this shot.
       
On August 30 and 31st, Joan, Tubby, Carol, Maureen, Darryl and I travelled to Great Falls, Montana, entered in their 2014 Rally and Obedience trials.
                       What a weekend!!! 
I hope I get this right.  Everyone won so many classes, our heads were spinning!

A High in Class obedience run with Neo, which gave him his new American CD!

A High in Trial obedience run with Hank, which gave him his new American CD.

Three Q's in Rally Novice B for Cagney, to give her an American RN title.

An American Rally Excellent title and High in Class for Emily in spite of a pretty nasty bang on her knee going over the jump.

Four High in Novice B Rally scores (two of them Perfect Scores) with Castle which gained him his American RN title and ended up being good enough to win the High Rally Aggregate and $80 U.S. with 398/400.

Four Q's in Novice B rally, one of them a  perfect score for Drummer which gave him his American RN title with a combined score of 395/400.

Three Q's with both Dani and Szuree, one of them a perfect score, to give them both their American RN titles after which they both qualified in the Advanced Rally class to gain a leg each towards the Advanced title.

High in Class awards for Levi to gain her American Rally Excellent title and then two Pairs towards her American RAE which gave her the High Combined Rally Award.  

We thank the Great Falls Dog Training Club for their hard work in putting on this very successful trial. Your extra touch in providing dog toys for 1-4 placing dogs, your silent auction, and your raffle gifts gave everyone so much enjoyment.

Maureen came away with three prizes from the raffle and I was lucky enough to pick up a shepherd size Guardian soft crate for $40.00.
 
Everyone came home safe and sound despite the horrific winds all the way from Great Falls to Calgary.

Darryl & I  stayed in our Open Range trailer right  at the Expo Park and were lucky to be on the asphalt for full hook-ups and a very quiet area, thanks to Ron Green, the president of the Air Stream Trailer group who adopted us and gave us a spot next to their function.   

The venue was spacious and very quiet. Rows of chairs were set out for spectators and the show ran absolutely flawlessly, thanks to a dedicated crew of volunteers.

Castlegar and Cranbrook Scent Hurdle results

Due South members,
   Here is an update on your dog's points based on the August races in BC.

Julie    470 pts.  Needs 30 more to gain her SHDM title.
Betty   555 pts.  Now can apply for her SHDM title.
Castle 160 pts.  Now can apply for his SHDX title.
Sporty 255 pts. Now can apply for his SHDCh. title
Drum   910 pts. Needs 70 more to gain his SHDMX title.
Max     240 pts.  Needs 10 more to gain his SHDCh. title
Kona   605 pts.  Now can apply for her SHDM title
Jagged 540 pts. Now can apply for her SHDM title.


Congratulations, everybody.  Unless I hear differently, our next race should be at Lethbridge in November. By then we will have the Cowley Hall in place for indoor practice. 

By the way, our Cranbrook blended team managed a 39.78 second run.
And we came in FIRST!  My goodness,  first!!! We almost fell over.
What a rush!

Results of the CKC Herding Trials at Pincher Creek

RESULTS FROM HERDING

High in Trial: SHADOWBAR'S PARDON MY DUST German Shepherd

Reserve High in Trial: BLUETRIX REMINGTON RANCH HAND Cardigan

High in Trial: WINDMAR'S FANDANGO Belgian Shepherd 

Reserve High in Trial: BLUETRIX REMINGTON RANCH HAND

High in Trial: KARAB'S SHOWGIRL Shetland Sheepdog

Reserve High in Trial SHADOWBAR'S PARDON MY DUST German Shepherd

High in Trial: BLUETRIX REMINGTON RANCH HAND Cardigan

Reserve High in Trial" SHADOWBAR'S PARDON MY DUST

Scent Hurdle Results From AKC

So proud of our Due South scent hurdle team! Two days of racing at the Alberta Kennel Club Dog Show boosted our points and had some of the dogs gain new titles.

Here is an explanation of how many points a dog needs to obtain any title.

50 pts.                  Scent Hurdle Dog    SHD
100 pts.                Scent Hurdle Dog Excellent  SHDX
250pts.                 Scent Hurdle Dog Champion  SHDCH
500 pts.                Scent Hurdle Dog Masters  SHDM
1000 pts.              Scent Hurdle Dog Master's Excellent SHDMX
1500 pts.              Scent Hurdle Dog Master's Excellent silver  SHDMX-S
2000pts.               Scent Hurdle Dog Master's Excellent gold    SHDMX-G
2500 pts.              Scent Hurdle Dog Master's Champion       SHDMCH
3000pts.               Scent Hurdle Dog Master's Grand Master's Champion  SHDGMCH

Congratulations to all the handlers and dogs on the Due South Team. Here are your current points.

Dog #1       410 points
Dog #2       605 points
Dog #3       540 points
Dog #5       520 points
Dog #7       125 points
Dog # 10    255 points
Dog #11     885 points
Dog #12     240 points

Good luck to all the dogs and handlers attending the BC shows in the next two weeks.

The Prez

Good Luck!!

Good luck to everyone who has entered the Alberta Kennel Club Dog Show events this coming weekend.  There are over 32 specialties for spectators to see.  In addition to conformation, the club is offering obedience and rally obedience, plus agility trials..... and, of course good luck to our Due South Scent Hurdlers, who perform after Best in Show on Friday and Saturday.  My dogs will be pooped after a day of NADAC agility but I know our team will give it 100%!  
                           GO DUE SOUTH!!!!
A reminder that the Great Falls Dog Training Club has its entry close on August 13th for those who wish to join us Stateside.

Cranbrook closes August 6th so hurry, Murray, if you want to play at Cranbrook, always an enjoyable show.

Please join us at the Winchestser Cattle Co. Ranch 16 kms. south of Pincher Creek from Tuesday until Thursday to watch some all breed herding trials.  You will have the pleasure of seeing Australian Cattle dogs, Shetland sheepdogs, Belgian sheepdogs, Cardigan corgis, and German shepherds herd sheep.   

JUDGING SCHEDULE

AUSTRALIAN CATTLE DOG CLUB OF CANADA 

CANADIAN CARDIGAN CORGI CLUB

AUGUST 5, 6 & 7, 2014

JUDGES:  GLORIA GRAHAM, LYNN LEACH & KRISTIN THOMSON 

TUESDAY AUGUST 5, 2014

9:00 - GENERAL BRIEFING (***TUESDAY ONLY***)

FOLLOWED BY SPECIALTY STOCKDOG CARDIGAN CLUB AND CATTLE DOG CLUB HANDLER’S BRIEFING AND RUNS, THIS WILL BE FOLLOWED BY SPECIALTY ARENA BRIEFING.  

Runs will begin with Advanced.  Lunch break will be at Judges discretion.

SPECIALTIES (CARDIGAN CORGIS AND AUSTRALIAN CATTLE DOGS ONLY)

ALL BREED TRIALS

CANADIAN CARDIGAN CORGI CLUB

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 6, 2014

GENERAL BRIEFING AT 7:30, FOLLOWED BY TRIAL #1 HANDLERS BRIEFING

ALL BREED TRIALS

AUSTRALIAN CATTLE DOG CLUB OF CANADA

THURSDAY, AUGUST 7, 2014

GENERAL BRIEFING AT 7:30, FOLLOWED BY TRIAL #1 HANDLERS BRIEFING

Winchester Cattle Co

Township Road 45 - A

Pincher Creek, Alberta

Directions to Trial Site

From Calgary:

Take #2 South, then head West on #3, then head South on #6 - Pincher Creek.  You will be skirting the edges of town so be sure that when you come to the traffic circle you go ¾ of the way around that will keep you on #6.  At the traffic lights, there is only one set, take an odometer reading as it is 16.5 K on #6 South to the turnoff.  You will be going South toward Waterton Lakes National Park. You will be turning west (right) onto Township Road 45 - A. It is a gravel road. Follow for 2k. As you come over the hill you will see the farm. If you go under a train trestle you have gone too far! Turn around come North and take the first turn to the west (left). We have a lot of deer, elk and moose in this area so watch for them when driving from Pincher Creek to the farm please. I will have bright orange Cardigan's marking the trail from the highway.

Neo the Newf Debuts

Once again the Spruce Meadows Prairie Dog entertainment group has a Newfoundland on course thanks to the Miller family.  Neo, gentle giant, was out to show the crowd that a well bred, well- trained, well- behaved dog is a pleasure to behold, large or small.  The tunnels that shepherds can whiz through require a  dog of Neo's stature to stretch out in order to go through but he did it!
Always an enjoyable show, the Prairie dogs have been a fixture at Spruce Meadows for over 25 years providing quality canine entertainment to the thousands of people who pass through the gates.  Good on you, Neo, for your part!

Old Dogs

I just looked around our kennel yard and discovered that my dogs are getting old.  And that there is nothing quite like an old dog.  They have different rules...... the usual rules simply don't apply.

Like the recall, for instance.  Needs modification if Token doesn't hear.  And so off I go in my slippers and housecoat doing the "can you see me dance" in hopes that she will actually notice my arrival and join me.

And the schedule of in and out.... that changes.  Mesa dictates that immediately upon arriving in the house and doing a quick check of cat bowls and a search for rawhide parts, that she should be let out to lie in the cool grassy shade of the kennel, leaving everyone in the house on RED alert should a car turn into the drive way, where upon the race to catch Mesa before she rushes down the drive to greet the vehicle ensues.

Ownership of 'things' increases its bubble of propriety and the young dogs now stay 10 feet away from anything on the floor in front of old dogs, whether they own it or not.  Lip lifting is key to ownership.  No need to growl or get closer to object.  Just lift lip.   They know.

And the walks are different, too.  Rather than have "the girls" follow along in tow, we now make the pasture the most interesting place for walks, with 'stuff' dropped around so that it's more of a search than just a walk.   And sometimes it's a race to see who can find what in the least amount of time.
Doesn't matter.  There's always enough for two.... or three.

I thought of my friends and we each have at least one old dog.  Just got an email from LouAnne and a great picture of Never, her corgi, who has taken over the supervision of the greenhouse.  A new job for an old dog.

Time for more pics.....

Send us one of your old dog.

The Prez 

SAWHDA at NACA

Whoa!  Congratulations to Carol and Emily on their first leg towards the RAE title with an 89/100 in Advanced and a 98/100 in Excellent!  Not bad for someone who was "tagging along"...
 Joan and Zsuree not only Q'ed with High in Class Advanced A, but gained her RA title as well.  One of Zsuree's pups, Gemma, whom we met in Red Deer at the nosework test, earned a HIC Rally Novice A and her RN title. Very cool.
 And.... Maureen and Levi took the Rally Advanced B class with that ever exciting perfect score !!!!!!  Yayyyyy!
Best of luck today to everyone. 

While the ladies were struttin' their stuff at NACA, we in the South were enjoying the perfect day with friends and dogs doing scent hurdle, obedience, and rally in the sunshine.  It was a relaxing day and all the dogs provided us with some good performances.  We must do this again!
 Amanda took the best pictures to record the day! Thank you so much, and thanks to everyone for making the trip to Shadowbar! 
Thanks, Mother Nature, too.

Good luck to everyone at the Lethbridge show in Coaldale next weekend! Remember to pitch in where you can as the club is small but mighty and appreciates help.

The Prez

New Jackets for Scent Hurdle Team

Huge thanks to Gwen Unrau for undertaking the sewing of new jackets for our Due South Dogs!!
The jackets will be ready for our race dates in Lethbridge June 6/7.  Can't wait to try them on.
As well, our handlers will be sporting new white pinnies  (like the ones the handlers in specialties wear) with Due South embroidered on them.
With our scent hurdle rules looking at other dogs being allowed to run with our team in times of need, we can now offer the new dog's handler a bib to put over his original team outfit and he will become a Due South member just like that.  Magic.
 I am looking into having crests of our  SAWHDA logo made so we can have those sewn on the bibs, too.
 Hope some of you can make the practice and fun day at Shadowbar May 31st.  Last chance before the  show.

Happy to see that we will have a good number of team dogs racing at Lethbridge.  Beautiful venue.

The Prez

Clap for the Cardi's and BC's

Hands together for Lore and Daisy May and Remi as they attended the Dave And Trudy Vickland clinic and the AHBA sheep trials at Watrous, Saskatchewan, last weekend. And what a weekend. 
Despite the rainy conditions, Daisy May finished her Level  1 arena title with a High in Trial, and then completed her Level 1 stockdog title as well. Remi picked up one score in each class at the level 1. Fido got his title for level 1 stockdog and a leg on level 2. and went on to complete his level 2 arena title with ..... A High in Trial!  What a rush!!
Congratulations,, Lore!!!

Amanda is pleased as can be with the awesome performance in the field trials at Okotoks, this weekend.  Brit worked with some very tough sheep and held her ground and Leo managed to pen his sheep and get a first place in his class!!!  Working two dogs with such different personalities is taxing and Amanda manages to have just the balance needed to make it happen.

Look out sheeps!!!!

The Prez

SAWHDA Happenings

Sad News

Lifetime Member, Kevin George of Sentry Dogs Ltd., suffered a massive Stroke on Friday. The prognosis is very dire, where his time is limited to be with us, we hope that you will keep Kevin in your prayers.

Should you care to visit, Kevin is at the University Hospital, Cardiac Unit 5A6, Room 24, visitors are welcome 24 hours a day.

Please call Wanda first before you stop by780-240-5002.

Kevin over the years was known to be one of Canada's top and most knowledgeable dog trainers and handlers over the years. He was instrumental in training many of our local Bouviers in Obedience, Agility, Poison Proofing, Tracking and Personal Protection work. He also trained the Bouviers at the Storyland Valley Zoo and was in charge for many years training the Edmonton City Police dogs. He was Awarded an Honorary Lifetime Membership with the Alberta Bouvier des Flandres Club, had judged our Puppy and Veteran Sweepstakes and sponsored the Trophy in conjunction with the Shirdan Award .

Those of us who attended Kevin's Search and Rescue seminar at the College in Lethbridge will forever recall the fun we had and the energy Kevin put into his work. The Prez

Mission Impossible

Sorry to have to tell our SAWHDA members that we have decided to rethink our plan to host a WCR APDT Rally obedience trial here in the South. 

We feel that the expense of hosting this single event will interfere with our ability to hold other events.  And therefore, we encourage all WCR members to support the Sit Happens! trials in the Fall of 2014.
Once again, keep checking our blog for information on coming events of interest.

Our Draft Dog clinic on May 24th is now full and participants can expect agendas, receipts, and directions to the venue within the week.
 
May 31st , Obedience, Scent hurdle practice, and Rally Obedience fun outdoors at Shadowbar
begins at 9:30 with scent hurdle, all levels of progress, followed by obedience and rally.
Bring lawn chairs.  Please let us know if you are able to attend so we can plan our snacks.....

The Prez

 www.shadowbarshepherds.com

Springtime in the Rockies

Good grief!  Can you believe that it is mid-April and it is snowing and turning to heavy sleet here at Shadowbar?  Yecht!  Glad I don't have the agility equipment out yet.

Looking forward to a fun-filled Saturday with Donna McLaughlin and her miniature horses, who have volunteered to be the animal of choice for our clicker training clinic.

We start at 10:00 a.m. and break for lunch (salad and chili) at noon. We resume at 12:30 and work until 2:30 or so, learning how to shape desired behavior in our horses.  A great idea as we tend to get to complacent in our abilities and our standards when clicker training dogs.  Using the horses will force us to revisit the principles of operant conditioning and will make us think 'out of the box' more as we break down the training into small slices.

We have room for 2 more people in our clinic so if you want to take advantage of this opportunity, it will cost your $75 to attend.

The clinic is held at Shadowbar Shepherds this Saturday, April 19th.  We are located 1 km. north on Highway and 1/2 km. west on Township Road 7-5.

Hope to see you there.

Congratulations to Bailey and Nikki for passing the DOT test in nose work.  So proud of you.

Get out your weave poles, your tunnels, barrels, and jumps!!!!  Due South, our SAWHDA performance team, has once more been invited to perform at Heritage Acres on September 13th.
Never to early to start practicing. 

HAPPY EASTER TO ALL!!!  GOD BLESS.

The Prez 

WCR APDT Rally Obedience at Cowley

Hi, Everyone,

  We are moving ahead with our plans to host a WCR rally obedience trial at Cowley on September 27/28 weekend.  We are presently looking into the cost of running a two day trial and will really need volunteerism if we are to pull this event off successfully.
 From judges fees and expenses to rosettes and prizes, and trial officiating jobs, our small club will need help from everyone.
Please set aside that weekend to compete in WCR rally obedience.
To register your dogs and get your numbers, google Rally Dogs and it will bring you to the WCR website.  You can get your numbers immediately if you register by phone.

To those of you headed to the Red Deer Dog show this coming weekend, the best of luck to you in all your endeavors.  If you get a chance, cheer on Shar's GSD, Justice, at the herding ring!  We want that championship.

For now.

The Prez

SAWHDA Fun Match

The Southern Alberta Working/Herding Dog Association held a fun match at its club day on March 22nd at the Cowley Hall.

We started the day with some pretty nice scent hurdle dogs, some in training, and some already competing on the Due South Scent Hurdle Team.

 

31 dog/handler teams were entered in the SAWHDA fun match at Cowley, Alberta with teams coming from as far away as Jaffray, Lethbridge, and Calgary to attend.

 

In the Rally ring,  Judge Lore Bruder awarded  High in Novice RallyClass to Liz Saunders and her flatcoat retriever, Cava and a score of 99/100.  Advanced Rally High score went to Joan Michaud and her Belgian shepherd,  Zsuree with a score of 97.  And High in Excellent Rally was won by Sylvia Howard and her standard poodle, Julie with a score of 93.  Lore pointed out some common handler errors that we weren't thinking of at the time.

 

                                                   
                                               Carol and Hank winning High in Novice Obedience

Hank, who hovered close to homelessness due to his rather exuberant display of nonsense in the Excellent Rally Ring, WON the Novice Obedience hands (or should I say paws) down.

In the obedience ring, Judge Deb Girvin, who travelled from Cranbrook to officiate the festivities, had some encouraging comments for each of the teams. 

In particular, Deb reminded us to take advantage of all fun matches and rather than view them as a test of our dog's progress, we were advised to use them as an opportunity to help our dogs be right. In other words, we should be pro-active rather than reactive in a fun match situation. 
For example, if we knew that our dog would anticipate a finish, we should praise him for doing a nice front, and forget the finish, thereby ending on a positive note.

She reminded us to be careful not to step into our dog when we halted in order to cover a wide sit, and to give our dogs a command/signal before moving.  She told us to talk to our dogs in order to keep them engaged. 

It was a super SAWHDA Saturday and we thank everyone who came out to play.

The Prez

SAWHDA members rock!!!

All kinds of congratulations are in order after this weekend

Let us begin with Laura and Wayne's poodle, Sir.  

Sir has passed his PALS  evaluation and will now join the PALS program as a visiting therapy dog. He has earned his blue scarf and will be visiting at the Foothills Hospital with seniors.  All of us know what a wonderful effect therapy dogs have on residents of hospitals, senior lodges, long term care facilities and schools. We are all so proud of Sir as he and Laura give back to the community in which they live.

This weekend a World Cynosport Rally Obedience Trial was held at Sit Happens! in Calgary.

The entries were well-supported by our BC members and southern Alberta members, some of us entering two dogs.

On Saturday, Denise McKay and her dog, Jagged, received the honor of being the first Doberman in Canada to achieve the ARCHX title.

This is huge as it involves multiple double and triple qualifying scores in  two or three levels at each trial.  In addition, Denise and Jagged are the number 1 WCR team in Canada. This pair has certainly set the bar for the rest of us.

Two of Denise's rally students, Jenn Williams, with her border collie, Abby,  and Sylvia Howard with her standard poodle, Julie, received their ARCH titles.  

Julie was so much fun the morning of the first day.  She was so spunky and happy.  She got her 1st 210 on her Level 3 run.   Julie Q’d on 10 of her 12 runs.    Oscar was so silly and boyish.  Sylvia was proud of him as he had 4 good runs.  On the 1st 2 runs, they went over time.  Sylvia got him to speed up a little and he got his 1st 2 Q’s in Level 1, 170 and 192.  What a great weekend we all had, so much fun.

Sylvia and Julie are ranked #2 in Canada for WCR rally.

 

 

This weekend was also a great weekend for Sylvia and John's parti-colored poodle, Oscar, as he managed to pick up two 4th place Qualifying scores in Level 1 A  with 170 and 192!

Jenn Williams and her dogs did a great job racking up points for higher titles.  She had a fantastic run with Abby with a blistering time of 1:34 and a perfect score of 210/210.  We love watching this team as they are both so happy.

Last but not least Judi Snowdon and Drummer and Castle had the "Rally Ride" of the weekend!  

On Saturday, both Castle and Drummer finished their Level 1 A titles (despite rusty handling on the part of you know who). Drummer received 2 first place finishes and High Score in Level 1 A for the day and Castle picked up two third place scores. 

On Sunday morning, Judi left Castle in Level 1 B  for the practice and he qualified nicely with a 200 score which would have been a perfect 210, had his handler not touched him on his head before leaving him on the bonus exercise. This gave him another third place. 

Drummer moved on to Level 2 A and qualified with a 210/210 score, picking up  first place in Level 1A. 

Sunday afternoon, Judi moved Castle to Level 2 A and had a great run with a 207/210 score which placed him second to Drummer in the Level 2 class in points and a time of 1:49.

Drummer took first place in the class with another 210/210 score and a time of 1:47 and High Score in Level 2 for the day. 

Plus….. found out later that Drummer had won another High in Trial award and a portable jump as a prize.

What a wonderful organization!!! Thank you, Sit Happens! for giving us this opportunity.

 

DON'T FORGET THE FUN MATCH THIS WEEKEND.

SEE YOU ON SATURDAY AT 9:45 for registration. 

Due South Scent Hurdle Dogs …. 9:00 sharp if you want a chance to practice. 

         The Prez 

Dr. Karen Becker Discusses Turmeric

WCR National Results

Congratulations to Denise McKay and Jagged for their first place finish in WCR results in Canada.
Second place goes to Sylvia Howard and Julie and third is Jenn Williams and Abby.  Jenn's Jack Russell, Spencer, came in 12th place.  Super work on everyone's part.  So proud of you.

My gosh, Drummie and Castle, you do have huge shoes to fill if you want a piece of this in 2014.

Sit Happens! next trials are March 15/16, 2014.  See you there!!!

Time to step it up if you are entering the Red Deer Dog show, April 4-6. Join us in Cowley tomorrow and March 22nd for some practice time in obedience and rally o. 9:30 a.m. Two rings going at the same time. 

Sport Dog Detection Tests are being held in Red Deer on April 26/27.  Good luck to everyone who managed to get into the tests.  Practice, practice, practice.

The Prez 

Cool stuff

Hey, everyone.  Check out the website for Shootin'theBreeze and you will find Laurie and Hoebie featured doing Scent Detection work.  Thanks to Brad Quarin for yet another fabulous write-up on our club activities.

Happy 12th birthday to Tubby's Newfoundland, Lexi.  This is a huge marker for the breed.  Look at all she has accomplished in her 12 years.  Given that Newfoundland dogs generally are done at 8 or 9, we can all say that Lexi has certainly 'set the bar' for those of us with big dogs.

Missed the NADAC trials today due to a terrible cold, but Michelle was kind enough to grant me a credit for entries for other trials.  NO WHERE, and I mean nowhere have I been given this opportunity.
Will I continue to trial NADAC?  Oh, yes, especially with this group.  Thanks, Michelle.

Looking to book the Cowley Hall for a couple of Saturdays over the next two months.  If anyone has a preference of dates, please let me know.

We will definitely try to get a spot before the Red Deer Show and we will run it as a fun match.  Anybody up for judging the Rally or Obedience?

Also, last chance to say whether or not you would be willing to drive to Red Deer to scent hurdle on the Friday after Best in Show at the Red Deer Dog show.  Let me know.

I think this little poster is worth sharing.  Really puts the onus for enjoyment of life on each of us.

The Prez

And Then There Were Two!

Just have to share the news!  It is official…..  Deb's little shiba inu, Beckett, just received notice from the CKC that she is now CH Mountain High's Go Black Gold!  She joins her brother in being the second pup in the same litter to gain her championship certificate.
Thank you to the judges who saw in Beckett that special charm, giving her Best of Breed and Group placements.  
Congratulations to Deb Golding and to Stu and Sharin Laurie, Beckett's breeders, who own Mountain High Shiba Inus.  Thanks for entrusting Beckett and Castle to our care.

And thank you to Lore Bruder for making sure Beckett was properly groomed for the breed ring.
                                                        Isn't she gorgeous?

Just had to share Justice's photo from the summer AKC show at Spruce Meadows after his Puppy Group win which gave him entry in the Purina Nationals…. thanks, Angel, for making this ad a great representation of Osar German Shepherds.  Thanks, Larry, for presenting Justice so beautifully.

And yet more news!!!  Our Due South Team tied for first place at the AKC dog show a couple of weekends ago. Here are the dogs' points gained and their total points.  We are moving up the ladder to those titles, gang.  Keep up the good work.  Thank you, Maureen, for being our box loader , Wayne, for being our statistician, and Donnie for "catching and keeping" the dogs during our runs.

Here are the points we gained…….

Dog points 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Julie Kona Jagged Betty Sporty Drummer Max 135 370 270 325 20 565 115 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 190 430 350 60 625