Bree earns her Canine Good Citizen

Little Ms. Serious passed her Canine Good Citizen!

Birthday time!

Happy birthday to all the pups! YEAH. They are one year old. Jaspar is certain to be narcissistic for the rest of his life: the whole world will be coming out tonight in costume to celebrate his birthday with tricks AND treats!!

In anticipation of the celebration, Jaspar practiced his flying dog act (Good Lord only knows hoe I got this picture. I just aimed the camera in the direction of the projectile headed my way, and clicked!).

Happy 1st Birthday!!!!

Happy 1st Birthday

Bree, Cooper, Dante, Jack, Jaspar,

Josie, Ren, Rogan and Salsa!!!

Good Luck getting an awesome "action" shot of me like my sister Ren's....

Dante Picked up a 2nd JH Leg

Last weekend Dante picked up a 2nd JH leg at the last hunt test of the year. He had an awesome outing finding 2 live birds and 1 dead in the JH field. The judge commented to John that his dog has "one hell of a nose".

We were lucky enough to send Dante up for a month to work with Mark and Becky Smith. John has continued to take Dante up every other week to Mark and Becky's for training. Though now that it is getting dark so early, those training sessions have come to an end until next year.

John plans to continue working with Dante over the winter months (as much as he can with the weather) and have him ready to go come spring. We are also very lucky to live 5 minutes from the Kettle Moraine and the Ottawa Field Trial Grounds - so Treeva and Dante have been able to get out and run frequently.

We are just waiting for Dante's body to mature more before we bring him back into the show ring. Right now he is a typical teenage boy - all legs, skinny body, no chest.

Happy Birthday to the Litter!!!!! Hard to believe they will be 1 year old tomorrow!!!!!!!

Ren has a new title!!

Hi sibs!

I have been having FUN running around outdoors. Mom and Lin (the BIRD GODDESS human) say I now have a new "title," whatever THAT is. They say I am Magnolia Prairie Storm JH. (Humans get so weird about words. SMELLS are much more important, obviously!)

New JHs!!!!

Just more updates for the blog...hopefully soon, we can provide some pictures. Magnolia Prairie Storm Siren, aka Ren, and Magnolia Heartsong Latin Lyric, aka Salsa, are both proud recipients of their JH titles!!!

Thanks to Lin Kozlowski, for their training & for running them in the tests. Maybe, soon, they'll *come back together*, and will continue to compete in the conformation ring. If not, for Salsa anyway, we'll move onto obedience/agility.

2nd JH legs for Ren and Salsa

Little Ms. Ren and her sidekick, Salsa, both picked up their second JH legs today in Iowa!! another shot at it tomorrow, and then they are both off to Joplin, MO next weekend.

Chicks rule!!!

Salsa's First JH Leg

From Karen:

Well, on Sunday, the results were reversed. Salsa got her first JH leg, but Ren did not. Lin said the scenting conditions were horrible and the birds were worse.

So, we'll see how they do this weekend in Iowa and the following weekend in Joplin, MO. Cross your fingers that we can get this out of the way, and that they will have come back together to get back in the conformation ring!!

Ren's First JH Leg

From Karen on 10/10/09:

Little Ms. Ren picked up her first JH leg today!!! Sorry to say that her sister, Salsa, did not. But we have our fingers crossed for tomorrow.

Dante Update from 9/28/09

From Mary:

I have been lax about updating everyone on Dante. He returned from his month long bird camp extremely fit and happy.

Weight wise I'm guessing he is around the low 40s - most of that being head. I have now had several people say he is all head and no butt. So, like his sister Salsa, the show ring is no place for him right now.

Dante is entered in his first hunt test next weekend. We are keeping our fingers crossed that he gets at least one pass.

Otherwise, he has been doing well in agility class - or least as well as his teenage brain allows him to do. :) He has now been on all the obstacles (and has taken flying leaps off most of them too).

He is just the sweetest boy and we love him to pieces.

Salsa Update from 9/27/09

From Karen:

Hi everyone,

So glad to hear that all the pups and their wonderful owners are doing so well!!

Salsa still has the same nicknames....Sassy Salsa, Sassy Pants, Sassy Britches, see a theme here?!?! Maybe her nickname should have BEEN Sassy. :)

She is at bird camp with Lin Kozlowski in Missouri, along with her sister, Ren. She is entered in some upcoming hunt tests in October and Lin is going to run her for me. She is at that awkward teenage stage and does NOT need to be in the conformation ring at the present time. :)) Lin reports that she is having a ball, not a care in the world, eating like a pig (that little witch!!!), and doesn't miss me even a little. She is her mother's daughter, after all. :))

I'm guessing she weighs around 47 lbs. She is going to be a lot of woman!!

Ren Update from 9/26/09

Mom took this picture of me in the hotel. I'm not doing that silly breed show stuff right now though; I'm HUNTING BIRDS. Which is WAY more fun! Mom says I get to hunt birds all fall. Yippee!

Jaspar Update from 9/24/09

From Jaspar's mom:

Jaspar is doing very well.

Nicknames are still the same ones: little guy (not true any more), slobber jaws, thief (specializes in countertop items, toilet paper, and recently, thanks to my cold, Kleenex-the ones with lotion being the BEST!).

Crazy things he does: loves to get his paws on my shoulders when I am sitting down, and get a hug, massage and stretch all the way out!

He always comes out of his crate in s l o w m o t i o n. Then he freezes, and I brace myself for the EXPLOSION of energy that follows!

Exploits: Treadmill. Great for channeling excess energy into positive activity! I trained him on it using peanut butter, spread all over an ice cube tray. Takes long to clean out. He licks and runs at the same time. Now I am trying to figure out how to get him to run without the enticement. Meanwhile, buy peanut butter stock and see your returns skyrocket. There is a "run" on peanut butter in the east coast. :>

Josie Update from 9/8/09

From Josie's mom:

First off, my little girl is still only 33-34 pounds. She’s
such a sweet little peanut! She has also continued to earn
her primary nickname of “the Mess” with a capital M.

She’s no longer a chowhound, which I suspect has something to
do with her not having to compete with 8 other little punkins
anymore for her meals. She finds melon (especially watermelon),
tomato and mango very yummy.

She loves to burrow in the pillows on the bed. When she
greets people, she has to weave in between their legs. She
hides her treats before eating them. She love, love, loves to
snuggle (if she’s this snuggly while it’s as hot as its been, I can’t
wait until it gets cold!). Whenever she gets “crazy legs” (which
is daily), at some point she’ll stop and spin in place for 8-10
rotations, all the while making “rrrr, rrrr, rrrr” noises. Silly girl!

Pretty pose.

Sleepy Josie.

I see you, Mr. Squirrel!!!

Ren Update from 9/3/09

From Ren:

Hi sibs!

Mom took me to some shows and I now have one point --

whatever THAT is. And we had another vizsla staying here

for a while -- Mom called her a "rescue foster". ( I called her

somebody to play with. She was my age and we liked to dig

holes together.) She left Monday. I am BORED.

(That's me looking for dragonflies to chase.)

Mom says next week we will go back to Missouri and start

hunt test season. I think that means I get to find birds.

Thank goodness, something that makes more sense than

running around in circles on a rubber mat.

I weigh 42 pounds and am 22 inches tall. Oh, and my big uncle

Bowie is gone. They said he died and they all got real sad. I

don't understand this "dead" business, but I do miss Boo.

I mostly have the same nicknames except that Ed keeps calling

me "that little one" -- usually when he's blaming something on

me. (Hey, if he doesn't want me to carry his shoes around, he

should put them in the closet.) I had fun playing with my sister

Salsa at the shows, but she can NOT have my blanket.

Bree & Dante at the Vizsla Club of Illinois Specialty

On July 11, 2009 Bree and Dante were entered at the 

Vizsla Club of Illinois Specialty in Belvidere, IL.

It was the first time both dogs were shown outside but

you couldn't tell by looking at them. Both dogs looked 

very confident and moved beautifully around the ring.

Each took 1st place in their respective classes. Yeah!

While they both still have some growing up to do,

they are off to a great start in their 

conformation careers.

Bree and Dante waiting for someone to treat them.

Salsa at the Miami Valley Vizsla Club Specialty

Karen and Salsa looking like pros!

"You gotta hold your mouth just right!"

*photos by Holly Hatfield*

Wow, Can you believe they are 7 mo old?!?

Time sure flies when you are....well busy! I am still amazed that they are now 7 months old. It sure has been a fun 5 months. Dante has been busy with agility classes - which he is doing pretty well with. We hit some fear periods which put some of our progress on hold while we stuck to the areas he was comfortable with (tunnels, weaves, the table and baby jumps). Conformation training has just been well funny. His baby brain lasts for about 20 minutes and then you can tell he has had enough so we leave. I have definetely seen progress from the 1st class where he was so distracted he couldn't see straight - but as all of you who are going through the same thing, the baby brain can only handle just so much standing still or letting strangers touch them in odd places. There is one instructor in particular that I've gotten some great pointers from. Our next step will be putting these learned lessons into application at Dante's 1st show coming up.

He continues to make us laugh every day and is such a joy to have in our lives. His personality is so funny - he likes to spin in circles chasing his tail and we refer to that as the "wind up" because as soon as he's done with that he starts racing around the house at top speed. He also has a habit of taking out all the toys - brining them to you, when you throw it he promptly returns it to you so the game can start again. I've found he can also amuse him self by throwing his toys around or tossing them in the air and hitting it with his front feet. Such a clown!!!

Dante & Bree in Eagle, WI

I have been so terrible about not getting these pictures on the blog site. As Polly posted, Dante and Bree had a reuion in May in Eagle, WI at the Field Trial Grounds, not far from our house. Though it was a chilly spring day, the two of them had a great time running and playing together at the grounds. They had an opportunity to carry around a dead bird, see a live bird which was flapping around, see horses and take in the distant sounds of gun shot. John and Polly took both dogs down to the Junior Hunt field to run them, along with Treeva. This Wednesday Dante will be going up to Mark and Becky Smiths (Remark Kennels) for his initial hunt evaulation with plans for him to spend a month with them in the near future for formal hunt training. Mark worked with John on training Treeva and did a fabulous job. It was great to see that Bree and Dante were both unfazed by carrying around the dead bird and sticking their faces next to the live grouse which was actively flapping its wings around. It was so much fun seeing the two of them enjoying their reuion!!!! So glad you could come up Polly!!!!!

Bree's Fun Weekend, Part Two

The much awaited Part Two of Bree's Fun Weekend:

On Sunday May 17th, Bree, Rainey & I drove up to the

Ottawa Field Trial Grounds in Eagle, WI so we could 

hang out at the Central Wisconsin Vizsla Club hunt test.

I wanted to expose Bree to the sights, sounds and smells

of a hunt test. There was lots to be exposed to. She saw

her very first horse (and discovered that she REALLY likes 

horse poop), heard the pops of gunfire from the Master/Senior

field (didn't even notice) and was very curious about the

fluttering in the bird box.

And the other cool part was that Bree had a reunion with 

her brother Dante! They were happy to see each, though 

it's hard to say if they recognized each other. Both are 

such happy dogs!

After things wrapped up in the Junior field, John and I took

Bree and Dante for a run. I don't think there were many quail 

left in the field, but they sure had fun running together.

When all of the tests were done, Bree got her first real 

introduction to live quail. A club member planted a couple

for her and let her find them. While she had always had an 

interest in birds, this definitely turned something ON in her.

When she got crated while another dog took their turn, she

started to bark her head off. She wanted back in the field!!!

My friend Sue snapped these pictures of Bree with her new

"friend." We look forward to getting Bree back on birds 

real soon.

Bree's Fun Weekend, Part One

Since the weather has been wonderful, we have been 

making more and more trips to the dog park. It's 44

acres of pure joy for the dogs. I think it has been really 

good for Rainey and Bree. They have definitely bonded

closer than we have ever expected. Here is a photo

recap of our trip on Saturday May 16th.

Rainey LOVES to roll. Sometimes it's to roll on 

something stinky and other times it's for the joy

of rolling in the grasses. Here Bree is nosing 

around where Rainey just rolled.

After watching Rainey do this several times,

she started to do it herself! I don't think she 

knew why she was doing it, but thought if 

Rainey did it, it must be good!

The joy of the dog park! 

I just love this picture of Rainey. 

Bree standing on the edge of the pond. Here she

only has a paw in, but she eventually went in

on her own.

Running around the bend.

Sharing a stick with Rainey. More proof of 

how well close they have become.

Weeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

Having another roll.

Running through the grasses.

Rainey in the grasses.

Playing keep away in the big field.

Team work.

Posing in the big field.

Part Two of Bree's Fun Weekend to come soon!

TV Debut

A couple of red dogs made their TV debut over the weekend:

http://lxtv.com/1stlookchicago/video/9906

Enjoy!

Vizslas Galore!

On Saturday, Josie was invited out to a play day in Wimberley...

and talk about redheads galore! We tried to conduct a head count,

but all the pups were zooming around so much, I don't think we

were very accurate. So we're guessing there were at least 15 

Vizslas, two German Shorthairs, one German Shepherd and two 

Westie looking guys.

Josie was the youngest and smallest of the Vs by far, but my little 

squirt did her best to keep up with the pack. When she dropped

too far back as they raced around the property (it was at least 

8-10 fenced in acres), she would patiently wait for the mob to 

come roaring back in her direction, then she would join them in 

the front...running as hard as she could until she was left in their 

dust again. I can't begin to say how many times this process took

place, but just watching them made me want to take a nap. 

Needless to say, Josie slept all the way home...and then some.

I wish more of my pictures turned out, but the second I had a 

lens full of red, they were gone just as fast.

By the way, Josie is now up to 26.4 lbs. She's such a sweet little 

muffin! 

This is about half the hoard. 

Josie is in the front left foreground.

Hey, nice bandana!

Josie waiting for the pack to race back her way.

Uh, oh! Someone's in jail for getting frisky 

with the ladies.

 

One of these things is not like the others.

Bree Update

Little Miss Bree has been a very busy girl! She recently 

finished another session of obedience classes and has 

been continuing with her agility classes. She absolutely 

LOVES the tunnels and will sometimes dive into them as 

they are being carried off to be put away! She is actually 

starting to understand to take the line of obstacles in 

front of her.

Speaking of agility, Bree has been tagging along with 

me and Rainey to some agility trials. She loves to come 

along to visit with all the nice people (they feed her, so 

of course she loves them) and hang out with her canine 

friends. She likes to watch the agility runs, especially 

the fast dogs.

This past weekend Bree made her conformation debut at 

the Dairyland Classic shows in Jefferson, WI. It was her 

first road trip since we brought her home and her first 

stay at a hotel. We were rooming with my friend Sherrie 

and her vizslas Allie and Will (Rainey was with us too). 

Bree absolutely LOVED playing with Will (and Allie loved 

that Bree gave her a break from Will). Even though he was 

much bigger than Bree (he's a handsome 16 month old), he 

was very gentle with her. Bree loved jumping around 

on the beds and playing keep away with the toys.

For her first time in the ring, I was very pleased with 

her. She was such a peanut compare to the other puppies 

in the 6-9 month class (many of them were just shy of 9 

months), so she was the real baby of the bunch. She was 

pretty squirrely when it came to stacking and having the 

judges go over her, but they were very kind to her. By the 

time it got to the last day of the three day cluster, she 

really let the judge go over her. 

I wasn't expecting to get anything out of the weekend 

except for some socialization and ring experience, but 

was very pleased that she ended the weekend at the 

Central Wisconsin Vizsla Club specialty with a second place 

in the puppy class. For now we will continue to go to our 

conformation classes and let her grow up a little 

more before her next show.