Hooray for Snow!!!!

It snowed all day yesterday. We LOVE snow. We were bugging mom to go outside constantly since about 2:30AM! We can't get enough. Here are some pics of us enjoying the white stuff.

In this picture, we're telling mom where to put her camera!

Cleveland Weekend

Hi everyone! This is Calvin. Mom says I get to tell you about our 3-day weekend in Cleveland. On Friday, mom took Sefina up to the IX Center to play AKC Rally. Mom was hoping she would get her Advanced title but Sefina says the place was real big and there was so much going on that she didn’t feel like playing. She was too busy checking everything out so Mom called it quits at the 5th station. But Sefina wanted a souvenir so while mom was getting her leash from the ring steward, she went back and grabbed the stuffed monkey out of one of the bowls in the offset figure 8. She went strutting out of the ring looking really proud and everyone laughed but the ring steward took the toy away from her. So then Mom & Sefina went to stake out a spot in the grooming area for me on Saturday & Sunday. Then they went shopping. Sefina got a little stressed out by all the commotion so she was feeling down by the time they left but as they were walking out, who did they run into? Sefina’s favorite Boxer Izzy! Oh boy, did she get excited. Sefina loves to get tackled and drooled on by Iz. None of us can quite figure out why but Sefina says that was the highlight of her day.

Saturday was the Keeshond Specialty. Mom took me up early since another Kees person, Ann, offered to help groom me. She didn’t find her until almost ring time for the Sweepstakes so mom did the best she could which is too much in my book. But then Ann saw me and insisted on fixing my feet so they fussed even more. Then I went up against 3 other males in the 12-18 month age group and ended up last but mom says we got $2 for that. Then Ann fussed with my feet even more. Then I went back in the ring and since I was the only 12-18 month Open dog I got 1st place and a Xmas mug and socks for mom. I thought it should have been Xmas cookies or bones for me since I had to do all the work. I got the short of that deal. Then I went up for Winners dog and didn’t make it. Boy did that judge check us out though. We had to go around the ring 4 or 5 times. I was getting pretty bored by the end. Then mom & I watched the rest of the Keesies. There sure were a lot of us. And the judge made everyone go around and around. It took a long time. After that was over, Ann fussed over my feet even more. I wasn’t happy about that but worked it for lots of treats.

Sunday was quite the experience. You see, instead of getting a motel, mom drove between Pittsburgh & Cleveland each day since she couldn’t take all five of us into the IX center. Friday & Saturday were sunny, dry days but Sunday morning it started to rain right before we left and turned into ice when it hit the cold ground. Mom saw that there were lots of accidents on the news and they were closing roads so she rushed me out the door as quick as she could. We barely made it out of the driveway – it’s really steep but we got out and mom drove real slow. But then she went around a curve by our favorite ice cream place and we went flying! Mom was real worried that we were going to hit a car that was pulled over but we missed that. But then we headed into some posts sticking out of the ground and a telephone pole. Mom thought for sure we were going to hit but managed to escape damage by inches on the driver’s side and inches from the telephone pole in front thanks to some shrubs. Mom was so relieved! So then she backed out and pulled over into another driveway (after taking another slide) and got out to make sure there was no damage. Then she got back in to get ready to pull out and here comes a car from the opposite direction in a slide heading right towards us! He managed to stop a couple feet before hitting us. Whew! So then we got back on the road. You see, mom used to live in Alaska so she isn’t daunted by the weather around here, but she does have a healthy respect for icy roads. We went real slow and got on the freeway and then we got stuck behind cars going really, really slow and blocking both lanes so it took a long time to get to the turnpike. But we finally made it and mom was careful. She says by the time we got past New Castle, the roads were OK so we were able to make ring time – barely. She fussed over me real quick for about 15 minutes and then we went in. It was a repeat of Saturday, 4th in Sweepstakes and I didn’t make the cut for Winners dog. But she says it was a good experience. She learned more about grooming me (I could have done without that) and she was happy with our performance in the ring both days. When we got home, mom found out that we left just in time because they closed all the highways soon after we left.

So that’s officially the end of our 2009 conformation/rally/agility trial season. We sure did a lot this year. Kiwi earned 9 agility titles and her TDI this year! Little miss over-achiever. But Sefina who idolizes her wasn’t far behind with 8 titles, including her CGC, TDI, Rally Novice, and 5 agility titles. Then there’s my crazy under-achieving brother Robin. He managed to get 2 agility titles this year, but that’s still really good since he only joined the family in March. And me, I earned 4 points towards my AKC Champion title. It probably would have been more if I didn’t have to sit out for 3 months recovering from a leg injury and also if I had a better handler (sorry, mom). Voodoo didn’t earn any titles since he doesn’t like to compete but he still has a noteworthy accomplishment to report. He is no longer afraid of sneezes! At least not of mom’s sneezes. The verdict is still out on other peoples’ sneezes. But after 3 and ½ years, that is a huge step for Voodoo!

AKC Agility in Edinboro

Hi all! It’s me me me me me me me me, Kiwi. Friday, mom took me to play at Clarion Canine Obedience Club’s AKC trial in Edinboro. Mom likes to take me there in the winter since it is usually really cold up there. She says I run faster. She’s always telling people that I’m slow but I must be fast ‘cause I got my Open FAST title Friday. Mom says that isn’t a game of speed though, that it’s about distance. I also double Q’d which means I qualified in both Excellent B Jumpers with Weaves and Standard. I was 1 second under in Jumpers and 8 seconds under in Standard. Mom says that’s a record for me so see, I am FAST. OK, not like Robin but hey, I’m perfect & beautiful so take what you can get, mom.

Thanksgiving Weekend AKC Agility Trial

After eating turkey scraps, mom took us all to Washingtonville, OH where Kiwi, Sefina, and I (Robin) played in Youngstown All Breed Training Club’s AKC agility trial. Sefina and I had to wait a long time in the car while Kiwi got to have all the fun. They ran all the Excellent dogs first and there were a lot of them. Kiwi is an Excellent dog and she keeps reminding us of that – over and over and over. Anyway, mom says she needs a lot of Jumpers with Weaves Q’s to get her Master’s title and since it was cold this weekend, Mom hoped she would get some. You see, unlike me, Kiwi doesn’t run very fast unless she’s chasing deer in the yard, scolding us, or trying to beat us to some food. Well, Kiwi started off Saturday morning with a Q in jumpers and 3 seconds to spare but then she decided that mom takes her for granted so blew her off the rest of the weekend. Kiwi loves Standard courses and almost always Q’s so you know she was copping some attitude when she makes a mistake. Kiwi won’t ever let you forget that she’s in charge.

Sefina and I qualified in Novice Jumpers with Weaves both days. On Saturday, I beat Sefina but on Sunday Sefina decided to be like Kiwi and run a perfect course. I run so fast I end up running past at least one jump before I can stop and argue with mom about which one I should take next. I know mom gets lost a lot driving (she has to have this lady that lives inside of a little picture box tell her how to get places) so I don’t trust that she can find her way around an agility course either. Sefina is still afraid of the teeter so she did not run the Standard courses but I did. Those are really fun. I like to get to the top of the A-frame and dog walk and then fly off. I know I’m not supposed to do that but I LOVE to soar. On Saturday, mom told me to get on the table and sit. I thought this was strange since she always tells me to lie down when we practice. So I figured she wanted me to give her a big hug so that’s what I did. But she didn’t want to hug me back – she didn’t even want to touch me. That kind of hurt my feelings but after sitting for 5 seconds I was off and flying again so I forgot all about it. Anyway, I thought I should get extra points for style but the judge took lots of points away from me so I didn’t Q in Standard this weekend. But that’s OK – I had LOTS of fun.

Robin’s ‘Tail’

Hi everyone! This is Robin. This is my first time blogging. I haven’t been too interested before but all the others say I’m crazy so it’s time I set the record straight. I am NOT crazy. I’m just really enthusiastic – about everything. I’m a sweet, loving boy and quite mellow when there isn’t anything going on. I REALLY love my mom - like a whole lotta bunch. I used to live in Ottawa, Canada with my first mom and 10 other dogs just like me and 3 smaller ones that kind of looked like me – they were called Pomeranians. Anyway, I lived there until I was almost a year old but my first mom said that there were too many of us and she didn’t have time to spend with me and I really needed something to do. So she found me a new mom in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. I wasn’t so sure about that but my new mom came to meet me and she carried treats in a bag on her hip and taught me a new trick right away so I decided she was really cool 2 minutes after I met her. Then she set up a jump and a tunnel and I thought that was fun. Then I showed her how fast I could run by flying in and out of the dog door every 30 seconds. Her eyes got real wide so she said she’d take me home. I was a little anxious for a few days so stuck real close to my new mom – she wanted to change my name to Velcro but I really like my name. There are 4 other dogs just like me here so I get more attention and Sefina & Calvin are really fun to play with since we’re almost the same age. I think Kiwi is hot stuff and she flirted with me for a few days but now she keeps telling me No No No! But I’m a persistent guy. Maybe one of these days she’ll say yes. Mom also taught me my favorite trick – jumping in her arms since I can jump really, really high. I LOVE to do that. But she doesn’t always catch me – sometimes her back is turned or she isn’t paying attention to me. And why can’t she catch me when she’s holding something else? She really freaks when I race across the yard or a big field to jump in her arms. That is the most fun. I love to run really, really fast and jump really, really high. Sometimes I can land on her shoulders and crawl on top of her head. Mom says she shouldn’t have taught me that trick but I don’t know why. I just love her so much and want to show it. Anyway, I was still nervous about things, especially riding in Mom’s car. I thought maybe I’d be going somewhere else to live again but then I figured out that mom takes us to a lot of fun places - especially Splash ‘n Dash. That’s where she teaches me agility and that has changed my life. Oh boy, do I LOVE agility! It is so much FUN. Mom says I am learning really fast and entered me in my first trial after only 3 months. I love trials. The obstacles are so much further apart than where we train so I can build up a lot of speed. Everyone calls me a ‘rough-coated border collie’. Mom says it’s because I’m really fast and I like to talk constantly while I’m playing agility. I just get so excited, I can’t help myself. Everyone says I will be an awesome agility dog some day but I need to learn to control myself and mom needs to learn how to handle a dog that’s as fast as I am. I don’t care, I’m having fun NOW. That’s all that matters, right?

NADAC Agility

Hi everyone. This is Sefina again. I get to tell you about our weekend playing NADAC agility. It was at the Storm Harbor Equestrian Center in Slippery Rock, PA November 21st & 22nd. OMG! It was the best place EVER! I’ve been a little unsure about this agility stuff. At trials I make mom cheer me on at every obstacle (I think it’s funny and so does the crowd) and I especially like to go visit the ring crew. But this place was different. It had really soft dirt to run on and the courses were wide open. And it smelled wonderful! I Q’d 3 times in Novice Regular (what NADAC calls a Standard course) so I earned a title in one weekend. Isn’t that cool? I didn’t Q in the other 8 runs but mom was thrilled to see how happy I was playing agility that weekend. She said I was like 3 parts Kiwi (who is slow but perfect) and 1 part Robin (he’s super fast but wild).

Big sis Kiwi did really well as usual. She likes running in the horse barn, too plus it was cool (in the 50’s which is perfect summer weather for us) so Kiwi was running faster than usual. She Q’d 7 out of 11 runs and earned her Open Regular title and her Novice Touch ‘n Go title. She finally Q’d in Tunnelers. Because it’s always been so hot and they run that last, Mom says she keeps missing a Q by less than 1 second - she was as close as 0.01 seconds once.

Robin – well what can I say about my brother Robin? He’s a wild & crazy guy! He started off the weekend with a perfect Jumpers run – he Q’d and got first place but the rest of the weekend he was busting out of his skin. He was flying off of the TOP of the dog walk and kept arguing with mom at every obstacle. It kind of went like this: “Mom, mom what should I do next, mom?! This one? Are you sure this one and not that one? I don’t know mom, mom tell me what to do mom. I think I should do this one, don’t ya think?! Mom! Mom! Look at me Mom! Tell me what to do, mom! I see your arms waving and your lips moving but I can’t hear you over my voice, mom! Yell louder mom!” So needless to say, he didn’t Q in any of the other runs. But he always has fun & mom says she has fun running him even though she looks really frazzled afterwards.