# Little brag for my little dog, mostly...



## selzer (May 7, 2005)

Matilda, who is not little, and who is not mine, but I am her breeder got her second utility leg today. This follows some frightening surgery, hemangio -- they took the spleen a little more than a month ago. But she is doing great. 

My little Quinnie (AKA werewolf), who hasn't been worked since she went into heat in July, save going to two parades, and running through a few finishes and come fronts and moving downs on those days. This week I panicked and started to train her, and went over board. She forgot 30% of what she knew, and I was freaking. And she did not like that. That was Monday. Tuesday was rainy so I put up the table in the living room and tried again, just a couple of finishes. Wednesday, I did 2 around finishes. Thursday and Friday, I did nothing, in hopes that we could just ride it out. At the show today, I ran her through her paces. Probably too much. I got there at 8 to see Matilda, and we did not show until almost 12. 

She forgot all she knew about the moving down and I was really panicked. Finally I promised her a hot dog if she got the moving down in the ring and left it to fate. 

I had to buy her a hot dog. 

She came through with a 98 out of 100 and second place and the Classic at the IX Center in Cleveland. The second show was under a different judge, and she got a 94 and 3rd place. Kool! I figure her Sit, Down, Walk around was a little sloppy because I had to point again and say Down. She went down and crunched into me, I said, STAY and walked around her. That could have been the whole of the 6 points, or maybe he got her on a sloppy sit, or me on a tight leash. Not sure. I was so flabbergasted at how well she did. Way to Go Quinnie!!! 2 legs. Now hopefully tomorrow.


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## Dunkirk (May 7, 2015)

Congratulations! I hope you got a hot dog for yourself as well. :-D


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## Sabis mom (Mar 20, 2014)

Amazes me what they pull off for us some times. Good job!


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

Yeah, thanks, a hot pretzel too. 

What is even more crazy is that she's never been crated. Kenneled, yeah, with another dog or dogs, that she knows well. But the only time she might have been crated is when taken to the vet with the litter for puppy shots. Might, because it could have been the litter we used tall laundry baskets, or the muck bucket to take them in. 

Well, I didn't have a soft crate, so I bought a 36tx24" metal crate and they hauled it to my spot and I set it up. I told her to go in. And she did. I closed the gate and then walked to the stewards table, and back. And let her out. Then she stayed in there while I did the walk through, and she never whimpered. After we got through with the class, I put her in there and went to get her a hot dog, which took a good ten minutes. She was lying down and relaxed, like an old campaigner. I was so proud. I am so proud of her. 

She wasn't thrilled about being petted by half a hundred people, but she put up with it. 

It's a big deal because there were thousands of people and dogs, and she lives with me, in the country, where I might not have anyone at my house for months. And those that do come, are usually my dad, fixing something, Walter the skinny guy that can crawl under the house and fix pipes or on the roof to fix leaks. Or my two nieces who come probably twice a year, but stay either overnight or over several. If I sell a litter, those people come to the house, but I haven't had a litter in over a year and a half. 

So the few classes she has gone to and the couple of parades we went to, and an occasional jaunt to medina or PA, very occasional, was enough. Anyway, what a great time.


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## tim_s_adams (Aug 9, 2017)

Congratulations! Those are impressive numbers!


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## Daisy&Lucky's Mom (Apr 24, 2011)

Congratulations to you and Quinnie. Bet she enjoyed her hotdog.


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

Yes, and I enjoyed her hot dog all the way home, ugh! I explained it to my nieces by saying something to the effect that the hot dog gave her some supersonic gastrointestinal emissions, LOL!

Today was good. She did not want to go down, but I pointed and told her and she did. Halt, Sit, Down. And then on the Come-Front, Around Finish, Sit, her leash got caught up as I strung it behind me for the around finish. I moved forward, and then stooped to free her from it, as it was impeding our progress. I went on, and otherwise the run was clean. 

I waited for my score. 89. I was disappointed. The first dog had already gotten a 100, and I wasn't going to top that on my best day. But I did not think we lost 11 points. Then the bull mastiff that pooped in the ring yesterday had a 93. And then another dog made a good run and got 96. Another got 89, and I was in peril of not placing. So when I went in for the awards, I really didn't know. The judge came up to me to talk about the collar -- she had the stewards remind me to get the tags off my collar. She came up to me to explain. But I told her I took the collar with tags on it off her both days and ran her in the martingale. She said it was a shepherd in a fur-saver. I told her I don't have a fur-saver, mine's a leather collar with the tags. Then she said she couldn't believe my dog did that to me. I said, yeah, she didn't want to go down, but she did. She said, No, it wasn't that. And asked what she did. I said, I didn't know and was going to ask her. "She did not sit after the around finish." I said, I sat her but she was caught in her leash so after I started her I stopped and got her freed of the leash. The lady said she missed that. So I think that maybe I got dinged for 10 points that I maybe shouldn't have. But who knows? I wasn't looking at her butt. My nieces said she sat. But whatever. It doesn't matter really. It's the green ribbon that matters. The rest is pride. The idea that it could have been a 99 is WOW enough. That would have been my highest score, I think. It's ok. Years ago I would have had a 99 and a 100 if the judge and I both learned how to count to three by the same method. The judge dinged an awful lot of people that day. In the end, it's the green ribbon that matters. 

So I got a red, a yellow, a white and 3 greens and a title. I am beyond proud of my little girl. 

After dragging the crate and stuff to the car, we came back in with Quinnie to shop and have a little lunch. The dogs were not allowed on the carpeting where the food venders and tables are. I couldn't drag a table over. So I sent the one kid for a couple of hamburgers and a hot pretzel, and the other kid for a couple of pieces of Pizza. Then I put Quinnie on a DOWN, and walked the 30' to the nearest table, sat down and faced her. The kids came up with the food. Finally. And I went back to her and shared the two hamburgers with her. Then I had her stay again while I sat with the girls and ate the pretzel. One time I had to go back and re-stay her, because someone was coming up to her. But after that she was perfect and some lady came over, said she was watching her, and asked to pet her. She had a kid with her and both were petting her and the lady actually kissed her. I said, "She is ok, but not every dog will let you do that." She said she has shepherds, and she knows she would be ok. We had a nice conversation. 

So long story short, the pup that couldn't stay to save her life as a puppy has a solid stay, with distractions. Perfect is in Heaven, and the one re-set might have been a miscommunicated signal. The day was a success.


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## sebrench (Dec 2, 2014)

Congrats to Quinnie and you! Sounds like a weekend you can be proud of!


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## Daisy&Lucky's Mom (Apr 24, 2011)

Sounds like a good weekend. Way to go Quinnie. Winning behavior outside the ring too.


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