The Saga of My Dogs at the ‘Rainbow Bridge’

Long time, no see, my amazing Animal loving friends.

This is the second part of this three-legged journey entitled “The Saga of My Dogs at the Rainbow Bridge”. Last month I told you about Diva; the amazing pancake-stashing, strong-minded canine who was so stubborn that even when her body failed her, her mind was still as tough as ever. This segment is called “My Best Friend, My Companion: Forte” Read more

The Saga of My Dogs at the ‘Rainbow Bridge’

A 3-part Saga

“Diva: Warrior Canine”

I wanted to share something with you that happened recently. I don’t really know where to start, so I’ll start from the very beginning. Read more

Finale of the “ABC’s of AKC”

Alrighty, my fantastic animal-loving friends – it’s the time to conclude the saga that is the “ABC’s of the AKC”! (Are you as excited as I am?!) Let’s see… we covered Performance Events and Companion Events so all we have left is….Conformation. In this event, your dog is judged based upon its type of breed and group. If you’ve ever seen the movie “Best in Show”, it loosely depicts what showing your dog is like.

There are currently about 160 different breeds of dog, and each breed has what is called a “Parent Club” where the breed is defined (very specifically, I might add). It explains what the dog can look like, what the dog’s temperament should be, how it should move when it trots (or “gaits”), and much more. These breeds are defined by seven groups: Sporting, Hounds, Working, Terrier, Toy, Non-Sporting, and Herding. These dogs are more-or-less evenly distributed into these groups based on what they were originally bred to do.

First of all, your dog must be purebred and be registered and entered in the right class with the AKC to compete in Conformation. There are two sections of classes: those where you have already earned a championship, and those which you haven’t, and a championship is earned by winning over a certain number of dogs (breed specific) from the lower classes. *Phew* (I hope that made sense!)

Basically, you are either in a puppy class, or what is called the Open class and you compete against dogs at your level until you win over enough dogs to earn a championship. Then, when your dog is a champion, you can compete against the lower classes, and try to win ‘best of your breed’, ‘best of your group’ and finally ‘best in the entire show’!

Best in Show (or BIS in the dog-show world) is very prestigious and doesn’t happen very often to most of us folks. People also take their dogs very seriously at shows. I mean, like, really seriously. It’s kind of fun to watch, sometimes.

Another aspect of conformation is Junior Showmanship where children ages 9-17 show their dogs together. There are three levels: Junior (ages 9-12), Intermediate (13-16) and Senior (14-17) and each level is broken up into two classes: Novice or Open. The child begins in the Novice class, and if they get three first place wins against at least another child, they move into the Open class. The child is judged solely on his or her ability to show a dog, not how close the dog resembles the standard. I loved to show in Junior’s – it was a lot of fun and it really built my love for dogs!

I hope the conclusion of my AKC epic filled your canine literary belly. Catch me next time when I delve into 4-H!!  And remember: “EVERY GOOD DAY HAS ITS DOG!”

The Art of AKC

Long time, no see, my dear fellow animal-lovers & friends! I seem to be lacking in the deadline-making arena, and I apologize. I was going to continue in July’s edition with the “ABC’s of the AKC” as planned, but I failed you – I hope I can dazzle you enough with this edition that you forget that ever happened ☺
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Give That Dog a Bone!

It’s that time again, animal-lovers, for a segment I like to call, “Give That Dog a Bone.” Most animals (not just dogs) do things for the betterment of themselves. I’m not saying they read French novels or refine their golf swing, but they often do things that benefit them; if something makes them feel good, they’ll probably do it. This is true when training your animal, too. If they are instantly rewarded for performing a desired action, they’ll probably want to do it again. Read more