Go BIG or Go Home!!

No sooner did I say I was looking forward to the future with Copper and Olive, when we went out and had the best show ever! We always go to the Southern Colorado Kennel Club shows in early November, both for the venue, special Veterans Exhibition, and the fact that it's our last local show of the year...nothing more until mid-February.
Friday evening was the fun match, so Melissa and I showed Copper and Olive. Copper shows better the second day of a show weekend, so I wanted her to get warmed up for the real thing. Olive wasn't entered in the show, as I knew there wouldn't be any competition in Whites. They both won BOV in the match, and were the only adult terriers, so they went 1-2 in the Group. The judge pondered them for quite a while before choosing Copper first, and later said that was his hardest decision of the day.
Melissa showed Olive in Juniors, and won her class. But when they went up for Best Junior, Olive got just a bit too excited over the squeaky toy, and Melissa couldn't do anything to stop her. She couldn't put it in her pocket because, if you know Olive, you know it's literally IMPOSSIBLE to hide anything from her. So they didn't win, but it was a valuable learning experience!
Saturday morning we showed at 8am...seems either Juniors or Bullies are ALWAYS at 8! Copper went BOV over two class dogs, earning one point towards her Championship! Next were the veterans, the second year of Moms vs. Daughters: Me with Ivy vs. Melissa with Oprah, and this time it went to the kids. Beth Sweigart wasn't too keen on Ivy's crunched up ears and lumps and bumps. She told Melissa that Oprah was more up to the task today.
Next came Juniors, and while Melissa did a great job with her Pointer Maui, they didnt place in the very large class.

Terrier Group was first up, and I couldn't get Copper to go poop even though she had to; I just knew she was going to soil the Group ring. Judge Allan Pepper went over all the Terriers, then pulled us for the cut. I was thrilled! It's a big deal to even make the cut when you're in the ring with multiple BIS Terriers. He moved us all again, then pulled Copper out first. I quickly stacked her, thinking "holy crap, I'm at the front of the line!!". Then he moved us all together and when I got around he pointed directly at us and said "ONE!" Unbelievable! We just won the Terrier Group!!!!! I couldn't even talk...this was my first group placement ever! As a breeder/owner/handler this just means the world to me to be recognized and rewarded in such a huge way. All my dog show friends were there, and every one of them came to congratulate us outside the ring. Apologies to the Working group that was waiting to get into the ring...it was quite a crowd and there was much celebration!!


We went to have the photo taken, and I told the judge "You really surprised me." He looked square at me and said "Why?" I said because there were a LOT of nice terriers out there, and he said "Yes, there were." And that was that!
My first trip into the BIS ring went well, although Copper was tired and didn't give me much expression. Judge was Terrier man Peter Green. He chose the Newfoundland for BIS, but it was a wonderful experience anyway.


Day two, Copper won BOV again. Melissa won her class but was edged out of Best Junior by an older competitor. A win is great for her, and will count as her first win towards next years Eukanuba and Westminster qualifying. Peter Green judged the Terrier group, and while he appreciated Copper, he chose the Irish first, and placed Copper fourth. Not a bad way to complete the weekend!!

Silverwood 2009

We had a wonderful time at our first Silverwood! We left here on Wednesday morning, stayed in Reno, NV, and arrived in San Jose in just after noon.
Here's a photo of Ivy at the Bonneville Salt Flats, setting another land speed record for brilliant thinking or some such thing....
We got checked in, walked dogs, and went to meet people! Finally met Amy Woodman, who made it all possible to breed Raven's litter. Over the course of the weekend we met tons of online friends that I've been talking with for years but never met in person, including Raven's breeders John and Mandy Young from England. The weather was sunny and warm, and Ivy enjoyed the view from our 6th floor balcony.

Thursday evening was the puppy and veteran Sweepstakes event. We had a great time showing Olive and Copper; both placed second in their classes.
Melissa showed Oprah in Veterans, and I showed Ivy to her class win at the age of 11 1/2 years! She still loves it!!































Friday evening was the Futurity event that I've been looking forward to for well over a year. Olive placed second in her class, but Copper had a huge win, the going on to win Best 15-18 month old in the Futurity. She came up against Amy Woodman's red and white boy Floyd, also sired by CH Dazlin Defiance, for best Junior. Floyd won, but I found it interesting that it came down to half-siblings for the top two Juniors; always nice to see consistent judging! It was a wonderful evening that made the trip all worthwhile! The photo below shows Copper and Floyd going head to head for Best Junior.



We thoroughly enjoyed our first Silverwood competition on Saturday; watching it, that is! We didn't qualify, but hopefully the girls will be mature enough in the coming year to be competitive at some ROM shows. It took 9 hours to judge, but it was wonderful to see so many top class Bull Terriers together in one place. Congrautlations to all the finalists and Trophy winners!
Saturday evening's banquet was the one big meal we had on the whole trip, and it was really good! The BCBTC did a fabulous job with the banquet and the entire weekend; I can imagine how much work it takes, and they did a top notch job.


Sunday morning was the BTCA National Specialty. Melissa was up first for Junior Showmanship. Unfortunately there were no other entries, but she showed Oprah just as if she was in a full class, and I was very proud to see her out there representing how wonderful our breed is with kids of all ages. I hope everyone will encourage the young people in their lives to take an interest in showing bullies!




Olive again placed 2nd in her class. Copper didn't manage a placement in the Bred-By class of 7 entries; I was quite disappointed, but I know she'll do just fine with a little maturing, and I'm proud to have shown her to the best of my ability, and she's still the one I want to take home!! I heard so many lovely comments from both friends and complete strangers all weekend...my sincere thanks to everyone for your kindness and recognition. I'm looking forward to the future with both my girls!




So, we made it to our first Silverwood after 11 years in the breed, and now we're hooked! Hope to see you all in Pittsburgh next October!!

Silverwood!

On Wednesday morning Melissa and I will depart for San Jose!! I'm very excited, as I've been involved with Bull Terriers for 11 years but never yet been to Silverwood. Copper and Olive are in the Futurity, Sweepstakes, and National Specialty classes, and Ivy and Oprah will be in the Veterans Sweeps and classes. Melissa is showing Oprah in Junior Showmanship, and in the Veteran classes.
Wish us well, and we'll post updates when possible!

Time Flies!

Time sure flies when you have kids, dogs, work, and life in general to keep up with! The dogs are all healthy, although Gamble gave us a scare this week...he'll be on heart medication for life but it seems to be helping.

Had a few good shows this spring, and last weekend Copper went BOV for her first major!! She now has 9 points toward her championship. Olive is doing fantastic, staying healthy and wild as can be. She's only done one show weekend, but won both days and has a total of 2 points. She's maturing nicely and will be out for the Greeley shows in August, and then for our Bull Terrier Club Specialty in early September.