Puppy update - Quest and Piper, Dec. '08

Here are some recent shots of Quest and Piper from our last litter born June 16, 2008. Quest is still looking thin from some bug that he contracted but he's putting on weight again. These photos were taken at our last puppy class in mid-December.

I visited Piper and her family just before Christmas. Her owners, Cynthia & Greg, took these lovely shots of her with her holiday bells on. Piper is a very pretty girl, nice and compact, with lots of growing still to do.

Chloe is a senior Vizsla

Chloe (Varazs Chloe's Spring Cantata) is out of our June 1997 litter. She will be turning 12 in June of 2009. Her owner, Lana Pavelick of Winnipeg Manitoba, sent me this recent photo of Chloe at Christmas time. I love the senior dogs. Chloe is just as pretty with white hair on her face as she was when she was younger. Thanks Lana for sending me this beautiful picture of Chloe.

Kaiser takes Best of Breed!

On December 12 and 13, I had the priviledge of showing Blackbullet Jumpn Crackerjack aka "Kaiser", bred by Sherryanne Farr and Wes Daniels of Alberta Canada, at the Orangeville dog show in Ontario, Canada. Kaiser is actually 'family' to my dogs. His dad is Am/Can/Int'l CH Kizmar Touch of Evil JH, RA "Hudson" who sired our 2006 litter with CH Ferngold Varazs Innovation etc. "Nova". But Kaiser is also closely related to our dogs on his mom's side as he is a son of CH Blackbullet Varazs Legacy NAVHDA NA "Jewel" who is a daughter of CH Varazs On Point At Blackbullet "Amber", whom I sent to Sherryanne almost 11 years ago to become her foundation Vizsla bitch.

Kaiser's lovely family recently moved from Alberta to Ottawa, Ontario. Sherryanne asked if I would handle him as he still needs several points to finish his Cdn championship. I agreed and finally had the opportunity to meet Kaiser and his owner, Carey in December. Carey had done a fabulous job training him for the show ring so he was a delight to handle and he also has a fabulous temperament, just like his half-brother, Tyro, who is one of my dogs sired by CH Kizmar Touch of Evil JH, RA "Hudson".

There was only 1 other Vizsla entered on Saturday and Sunday and it was a champion. For Kaiser to pick up a point, he had to beat this Champion and take Best of Breed. Fortunately, that's what happened both days and so we added 2 more points to his tally. I think Kaiser is up to 5 points now. Next spring/summer, Carey and her husband will make the trek south from Ottawa for more dog shows and hopefully, we'll finish his championship.

Lloyd's Ball(s)

On December 7, Lloyd's owners threw a party for him. The theme was "It's a Ball' to 'celebrate' his neuter surgery since Lloyd wasn't going to be used for breeding. Lloyd (CH Varazs Nyar Cigany) was born June 17, 2006 and is out of our Nova-Hudson breeding. The party was a fun idea, particularly as it was nearing the holiday season, and guests were encouraged to bring food items that were balls like meat balls, melon balls, etc. As it was so close to Christmas, candy prevailed as the foodstuff of preference to bring so needless to say, Kristi and Mike probably didn't need to buy anything sweet for the holidays. Lloyd's Christmas presents included a 'chuck-it' and door bells to ring when he needs to go (from his breeder mom) and a Bowser's Bed from his human grandparents.

Here's Lloyd.



"How come I'm here, and everyone else is indoors partying?"



The colours of Vizsla.

VSO Booster show, Dec. 6, 2008

On December 6, 2008 I went to watch the Vizsla Society of Ontario's Vizsla Booster (supported entry) show. I was particularly curious to see the entries and what the judge would pick. The judge was Carmen Haller, a former Vizsla owner/handler whose dog, CH Vizsta's Royal Pacesetter
set many records in Canada in the late 1980's and early 1990's.

Entered were 2 puppies, Reese and Dexter, that are half-brothers to my Miska-Ozzie litter, Ozzie (CH Hubertus Quality Control) an import from Australia being the sire of these puppies that were born 10 days before Miska's litter. Reese and Dexter just turned 6 months old and this was their first show; they were in the 6 to 9 month class. Carmen picked Reese as the winner of this class and then she picked him as her Winners' Dog and also Best of Opposite Sex over a male Special for 3 points! A very nice win for this young puppy at his very first show.

Here's a photo of Reese:


Here's a photo of Dexter:


For her Best of Breed and Group 4th, Carmen picked CH Gardenway Lienroc Beatrice an English import whose sire is Hungargunn Bear Itn Mind (Yogi), a very famous Vizsla in Australia and England. Carmen appeared to like the bone and substance of her BOB and WD/BOS.

And I was also delighted to see 11-year old CH Gardenway Celtic Breeze entered as a Veteran. Bree is the mother of my Nova and grandmother to my Miska and great-grand dam to our June 2008 litter. She was handled by Jr Handler, Erin Wilkes, Eileen Wilke's daughter.

Susan Garrett's Puppy Camp, November 2008

I'm sure you're wondering what the heck happened to me & my dogs for the past 6 weeks? Well, lots; too much in fact which is why I didn't have time to update my blog.

At the end of November 2008, Diva and I were fortunate to attend a 3-day Puppy Camp at Susan Garrett's Say Yes training facility. This is the second time I've been. Two years ago I took Tyro when he was a puppy. The great thing about Susan's workshops is that she is always learning and passing on her new knowledge, experiences, and ideas to others. Although there was lots of information that was 'old hat' for me, it was still a good review and refresher. Much of her theory is based on operant conditioning and the work of Bill Bailey whose DVD's I bought a year ago from Clean Run. And Susan really emphasizes motivation and building a relationship with your dog. "Work is play and play is work." is one her well-known phrases that I have memorized to heart.

Of course, for Diva who wasn't quite 6 months of age, the workshop experience was all new. Much of the first day was spent in the classroom but days 2 and 3 were a lot of activity with handlers and their dogs. You'd think that 3 solid days would be enough time to cover everything, watch Susan demo, and practice lots but it wasn't. We really could have used 2 more days but since this camp is for puppies, the puppies were quite exhausted at the end of it, as were many humans. Nevertheless, I found it very energizing and worth while and was so glad I had the opportunity to attend. After training with Susan and her assistants, the one thing I will say is that it makes it impossible for me to go back to training with 'traditional' trainers but perhaps more about that in a future post.

Susan Garrett's Blog

Susan Garrett has a Blog and I'm going to add it to my "Other Woof Stuff" list on my Blog but just want to draw your attention to it with this post. Here's the link. http://susangarrett.wordpress.com/

For those who aren't familiar with Susan Garrett, she's one of the world's foremost dog trainers & agility competitors and she happens to live in Ontario, Canada - about 45 minutes from where I live (I am so lucky!!). When I attend classes, workshops, camps at her school, I have to sign a waiver saying that I will absolutely NOT use any force or corrections - verbal or physical - on my dogs or I will be kicked out (those are my words but that is the gist of her waiver). The use of NO FORCE / CORRECTIONS is the important point in her training program because it means you have to think about how to set your dog up for learning and success. It also means that there is no "one way" or a single method to train your dog because she by and large uses shaping - which I have also adopted for my dogs.

Here's a link to a post she wrote about the Puppy Camp that Diva and I attended in November 2008.
http://susangarrett.wordpress.com/2008/12/02/you-only-get-one-chance-to-make-a-first-impression/

Gunner - Mr Black

On November 23/08, we joined Eileen Wilkes who is Nova's breeder and the owner of Bowsers Beds, and other Vizsla owners, for a walk. Joining us was Gunner and his humans. Gunner was Mr Black from our June 2009 breeding between Miska (Am/Cdn CH Varazs Kiralyi Kedvesem Am/Cn CD, FD, JH, Am RE, Cdn RA, NAVHDA NA Prize III, CGN) and Ozzie (CH Hubertus Quality Control FDJ). Mr Black was the fearless puppy who was so curious to meet our older males, Chili and Tyro. Chili didn't feel the same way and was quite scared of the puppies. Anyway, Gunner is turning out to be a very nice looking boy!

More rally-o news!

It was another great weekend for 2 dogs out of our kennel. Milo (pictured right) and his owner Corrine Sellars, earned 2 legs towards their CARO Rally excellent title on Nov. 23/08. In their second trial, they earned a 3rd place with a score of 192/200! Were it not for a minor handler error (arrgggghhh!) in their third trial, they would have finished their title. Darn. But all in all, a tail wagging great weekend for this pair and an excellent year overall in 2008 with 3 new titles and 2/3 towards their 4th. Great going Milo the Magnificent & Corrine!!!

And on the same day, Shandy and her owner Chrissie Diron, earned the final leg of their CKC rally novice title to add [another[ RN (Rally Novice title) to their registered name. This was their 3rd title in 2008. Fanastic work Shandy and Chrissie!

I am very proud of the accomplishments of my the dogs coming out of our breeding program and thrilled for their owners. Shandy and Milo - you're awesome pawsomes!

2008 VCA Nationals, Arizona

We had a very brief trip to Arizona in November, partly to see the 2008 Vizsla Nationals (held in Tucson) and partly to look at real estate rentals. I enjoyed the dog show much more than looking at real estate, but 4.5 days down there weren't enough to do either justice.

I had a chance to saw the veterans sweeps and watched a 15.5 yr old veteran female (CH Equinox Sassafras MH CD NA) in the 12 years and older class which brought me to tears in reminder of my beloved Sasha who died on January 22, 2008 in his 16th year. In the photo below, she is pictured at the L. She had some difficulty gaiting around the ring but at that age, it's not surprising. She's deaf now and couldn't hear the cheers and applause for her but relished, I am sure, all the attention and pats she received before and after going in the ring. The veterans classes are always my favourites at a national speciality show and how wonderful it was to see several quite old Vizslas in the ring.


I also had an opportunity to see in the flesh a descendant from my kennel. Mr Fritz (CH Red Dawn Mr Fritz JH) an almost 3-year old male Vizsla bred by Pamela Lambros is out of our Sara (Am. Ch Varazs Sara's Full of Grace MH) who is a daughter of our Abby (Am/Can CH Varazs Abracadbra TT). Fritz's sire is Am CH Copperfield Mik Ket Szazcsok JH). Fritz is a beautiful male with a dark, rich coat. His face really reminds me of Abby. Fritz is turning heads in California and the national specialty judge, James Reynolds of Ontario Canada, pulled him out for his final cut of about 12 dogs for Best of Breed. Quite an accomplishment for a young dog and we are very proud of him, his breeder Pam Lambros, and his handler. Well done!






Sadly, we had to depart for home before Best of Breed judging because of work commitments but we once again, enjoyed our limited time at a national specialty show. Congratulations to all the class placements, class winners and other winners and also a big, huge THANK you to all those who played a part in organizing/hosting the Nationals. Without your hard work, we wouldn't have a show to attend each year! Well, I already have my hotel room booked for 2009. See you in Charlotte, North Carolina in October 2009!!!!

History unfolds before our eyes

Either way the American election went - Republicans or Democrats - history was unfolding last night before our eyes and I found that exciting. Of course we live through events each day but we don't often know in advance that they will be or become historical. This election was either going to vote in its first president of colour or its first female VP. Now we can all say that we were alive when, in this case, the United States elected its first African-American president. Congratulations to president-elect Obama. As a Canadian, my hopes are that you can truly make a positive difference to the US and to the world. You certainly have a monumental task ahead of you and I pray that you can perform this task with all the exceptional skills and support from others that needed for the job.

Mr. Bob & his Magic Ride

Bob (Varazs Summer Solstice) born August 22, 1995 is the inspiration and model for a children's book called, Mr. Bob's Magic Ride in the Sky, written and sketched by his owner, Karen Johnston. It was published in 2002. The book is now sold out although there are some used copies still available. I thought it would be nice to repeat the promotional information about the book and especially about Bob since he recently turned 13.

Reprinted from Chapters.Indigo.ca:

From the Publisher

"You don''t have to call him Mr. Bob, some people just call him Bob the Dog. But no matter what you call him, you''ll want to join him in his magical ride in the sky. Mr. Bob loves to spend his days watching the world around him. He loves to wonder what it must be like to be one of the other animals that he sees and how the world must look to them. One day, Mr. Bob makes some new winged friends who carry him into the sky to see what the world around him looks like from up above. Young readers will love this sweet tale about he amazingly detailed pencil illustrations that accompany it."

From the Jacket

"Meet. Bob.

Bob the dog to some,

Mr. Bob to others.

Here is his story and the tale of how his dream took flight.

Bob had a dream. He dreamed of flying. And one day, with the magical help of some friendly birds, his dream came true."

"Through incredibly detailed illustrations, the story of a dog with a dream takes shape. Karen Johnston has captured the essence of an endearing canine as he stares out the window of his home, gazes out of the car, always looking up at the sky. Both children and adults will be captivated by the artwork and enchanting tale of this wistful dog."

"About the Author

Born and raised in Toronto, Ontario, Karen Johnston attended the Ontario College of Art before becoming a graphic artist and art director. When she became a stay-at-home mother, she dreamed of writing and illustrating a children''s book. When she is not drawing, she creates mosaic frames and clocks. She has lived in Nova Scotia for the past six years but has recently moved back to Ontario. Karen loves taking long walks with her husband Doug, daughters, and her two Viszlas, Bob and Rita."

Recently I wrote that Bob turned a lucky 13 years old and I asked Karen to send me some photos since I haven't seen Bob since he attended Sasha's 12th birthday party 3 years ago. Bob has become much whiter but is still as sweet and handsome as ever.

Roundworms rob toddler of his sight

During a recent routine visit to my veterinarian, I read an extremely disturbing article about a toddler in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada who has lost his vision and some mobility due to roundworms from raccoons, an animal found throughout southern Canada and the United States. Here is a link to the story about the toddler. http://www.thespec.com/News/Local/article/445081 All I can say is 'how absolutely awful' for him and agree that no one deserves what he is now suffering from because of parasites from the raccoon species. Here's a link with information about Baylisascaris (raccoon) Infection from the Center for Disease Control. http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dpd/parasites/baylisascaris/default.htm

My vet has recently attended some meetings with local pediatricians and veterinarians about the spread of parasites in Canada due to global warming. More and more children and pets are being infected by parasites. Of course there are different sources of parasites but raccoons are ubiquitous in these parts, especially in cities; even in rural areas, the number 1 road-kill critter on country roads is the raccoon. They are smart and sort of cute but they carry diseases. My veterinarian is now recommending more frequent worming of all of our dogs and we shall be carrying out a more rigorous protocol to protect both them and us humans in the household. I thought it would be very useful to spread information about raccoon roundworms to my Blog readers, especially if you have dogs and children.

The Great Vizsla Pumpkin

Hallowe'en Greetings from the Varazs Vizslas!

[Photos courtesy of Corrine Sellars.]

Milo the pumpkin

Miska the princess, Sasha the ghost, & Milo the great pumpkin

Hunting instinct lands Miska in trouble

Sometimes it's a mixed blessing owning hunting dogs when what they hunt can cause injuries or sometimes worse. Miska has very strong instincts for hunting both feather and fur. We don't get much wild upland game where we live so most 'hunting' around here is for fur. When I say 'hunting', I am not carrying a gun to shoot game with; Miska just hunts naturally whenever we head outdoors.

Yesterday while out walking along our usual trail in our neighbouring conservation area, Miska found a creature in the woods. I usually know when she's hot on the scent of something because often she barks at it, usually because it's up a tree. In this case, it was on the ground. I could see her and Nova working as a team to corner it. It was big and dark and ambling along the ground. Fortunately Tyro and Diva didn't join in when they heard me shouting 'leave it!' at the top of my lungs. My shouts turned to screams, however, when neither Miska nor Nova paid any attention to me. When they get so excited and aroused by the hunt, I'm sure they don't hear me at all because they are so focused on the prey.

At first I thought it was a raccoon, then I thought it was a skunk and because the dogs were so close to the creature, I was certain they had been sprayed. But I couldn't smell any skunk odor. Finally Miska backed off and away and then I saw her face - she had a muzzle full of porcupine quills. Boy, she got it good. Obviously, she had tried to bite the porkie. Nova was spared. Of course, it had to be the one occasion when I didn't have my cell phone with me and we had quite a long walk back to the house. Poor Miska kept trying to paw her face. I tried to carry her for a few yards but an extra 43 pounds of weight was very difficult to hoist for long. Needless to say, I was so relieved but so exhausted to get her home. My vet was closed for the evening and doesn't provide 24 hour emergency service so I phoned around to find a clinic that was open after 6 pm. Fortunately I did, only five minutes drive away, and so a short while later, she was recovering and sleeping off the sedative and I was $110 poorer. Ouch - those quills really, really hurt when being pulled out which is why they need to be sedated. She had a few in her mouth but most were around her muzzle; maybe about 40-50 quills. It could have been a lot worse. Will that teach her a lesson? From what I've heard of other people's experiences with their dogs, not likely.


The photo at R is of Miska's brother, Vadasz taken in April 2008 with a number of quills in his body. Most likely he had found a dead porcupine and rolled on it because of where the quills were situated. They were also quite soft and easy to extract.

Then on today's walk, Miska found half a body of a squirrel. That wasn't something she killed and ate; probably leftover kill from a fox or coyote. Being the ultimate retriever that she is, she always brings these things to me. Oh happy day- NOT! Fortunately I had a bag to dispose of the carcass and a treat to give her. Sometimes I wish she didn't like to hunt quite so much.

Nova's grandkids turn 4

Happy Birthday to Nova's grandkids: Rodaidh, Okos, Drake, Genmai, Ramses, Polo and Pia who turned 4 years old on October 23. The mom of these Vizslas is Nova's daughter Shandy (CH Varazs Artemis Vizsandy CD, AGN, AGI, RA (CARO), CGN) who is a sister to our Miska. Most of these Vizslas live on the west coast of Canada and so we haven't met any of them in the flesh. But best wishes for many, many more birthdays to come and lots of wiggles and licks from the Varazs Vizsla clan here in Ontario.

Autumn colours

This autumn in southern Ontario, Canada has been spectacular for its colours; some have said this season has been one of the best in many years probably because we've had a lot of sunshine. The colours don't last long as the deciduous leaves start to drop and the hard work of raking and blowing has been underway for the past 2 weeks. But I managed to take a number of pictures which are displayed in the photo album below that I hope you'll enjoy. Many of the photos are of our property or close by where we live.



One of my favourite 'autumn' photos is of my first Vizsla lying atop a pile of leaves. This is Csarda (1977 - 1991) taken in 1978 when he was about 16 months old. (No digital cameras back then so this was scanned from a printed photograph and may be a bit grainy.)


Vizslas blend in so much with the autumn leaves that now I usually put their hunting collars on when we go for a walk so they are more visible. This is Miss Diva kinda looking like a little pumpkin with her orange collar.

Vizslas to be featured on Animal Planet!

I just received an email from Grace Suriel of Animal Planet Digital Media telling me that Vizslas are among the 5 breeds to be featured in this Saturday's (Oct. 25) episode of Dogs 101

Click on the link below to find out what dates and times the program airs & you can also get a reminder email sent to you. Don't miss it! And spread the word!

http://animal.discovery.com/tv-schedules/series.html?paid=15.14743.124100.35358.1

How Dogs Drink

Most of you probably know how dogs lap liquids but if you don't, you'll learn how from this Discovery Channel video clip. It's over 4 minutes so takes a while to download, even with hi-speed Internet. If you want to FF to the part about how dogs drink, it starts at around 2 min. 25 seconds. Neat to see in slow-motion. Thanks to my friend Chrissie Diron for sending me this link.

Our American Vizsla relative

This past weekend, south of the border - in the US, that is - one of our American Vizsla relatives finished his AKC Championship title. CH Red Dawn Mr Fritz is a son of Sara (CH Varazs Sara's Full of Grace MH). Sara lives in California and is out of our 2001 breeding between Am/Can CH Varazs Abracadbra (Abby) and Am CH Voros Vadasz Cyrus Barat MH. Three of Sara's kids from two breedings are now American Champions. Well done Sara and congratulations to Pam Lambros, Mr Fritz's breeder and to Mr. Fritz's family!

CH Varazs Sara's Full of Grace MH (above) winning
Best of Opposite at the 2004 Vizsla Club of N. California Specialty show

Am/Can CH Varazs Abracadabra TT (above)

BOS winner at Vizsla Canada's national specialty show (1999)

Milo earns his 10th title!

Today Milo earned his Rally Advanced title from the Cdn Association of Rally Obedience (CARO). It was 3 years since legs 1 and 2 were achieved! Milo completed Leg 1 in Sept. '05 with a 1st place & score of 190; Leg 2 in Nov. '05: 1st with 190; and finally Leg 3 in Oct. '08: 3rd with 186. To earn the "cum laude", the team's average score must be between 180 and 189; their average was 188.7. So he gets to add CL for 'cum laude' after the RA - therefore RACL. Yes, Vizslas are smart; this just confirms it!

This is Corrine and Milo's 10th title. Milo is officially known as Varazs Mokany Ficko FDJ, RN (CARO), RN (AKC), RACL (CARO), AgNJ, AGN, SSGDC, SADC, CL1-R, CGN. Way to go team! If you need a guide to these titles, look below.

Translation of Titles:
FDJ - Field Dog Jr (hunting)
RN - Rally Novice
RACL - Rally Advanced Cum Laude
AgNJ - Agility Novice Jumpers with weaves
AGN - Agility Novice (Standard)
CL1-R (Standard Agility title in the Canine Performance Events org.)
SADC - Special Agility Dog of Canada (Agility Assoc. of Canada)
SSGDC - Special Starters Games Dog of Canada (Agility Assoc. of Canada)

Final decision

After weeks and weeks of deliberation, I've finally decided on which puppy I'm going to keep!

Both of them!

Diva (above) stacked at 17 weeks

Quest (above) stacked at 17 weeks

But only Diva will live with us. Quest will now live with his canine Uncle Vadasz and Gary Krammer in Toronto, Ontario. It was a very hard decision since Quest is such a sweet Vizsla and reminds me a lot in looks of his great uncle, Jazz and in personality, of his grandfather, Sasha and I already miss him terribly. In some ways, that's why I didn't want to have him live with us as he would probably remind me too much of Sasha whom I still grieve for and miss dearly. But I will own Quest and handle him in conformation and perhaps field and rally and so it's the best of all worlds for me, Diva, Quest, Gary and Vadasz. And Vadasz will now have a canine companion at home to play with.

Quest going home with Gary & Vadasz

Reunion with Piper at Erin Fall Fair

Last Sunday I took Diva and Quest to the Erin Fall Fair in Erin, Ontario northwest of Toronto to meet up with Piper and her family. I hadn't seen Piper since she left for her new home at 8 weeks of age.

Piper (above; 17 weeks old)

Lauren and Rae-Brynn were showing their cows again at the fall fair so Piper also came along with the family. It was a beautifully sunny and HOT autumn day so I tried to arrive mid-morning when it wasn't too crowded or hot at the fair. I tethered the 2 puppies together and wandered around the fair grounds, taking them past the rides, ponies (I forgot about the horse poop! Very tasty for dogs!), cows and vendors. Nothing bothered them at all. Then we met up with Piper's family by the cow barn.

Cythnia trying to control Piper (L), Quest (M), Diva (R)

Piper (L), Quest (M), Diva (R)

Piper (L), Quest (M), Diva (R)

Rae Brynn was inside the barn showing her cow. Unfortunately, her cow gave her a very hard time for some reason - it was a full moooooooon (ha! - I couldn't resist that one) and maybe that was why her cow was very ornery. I'm sure my puppies didn't spook her cow but I learned that dogs weren't allowed in the cow barn for that reason. Lauren also had problems controlling her cow earlier in the morning. After watching the cow handling, I am totally convinced that showing cows is so much harder than showing a dog, even when a dog won't behave. After all, there is about a 1000 - 2000 lb. difference between species! And I couldn't see any treats in Rae-Brynn's hand so how do you control a big beast with just a little stick? It's very challenging!

Right now, Piper's face and head remind me a lot of Tessie, her older half-sister who resembles Nova (Tessie's grandmother/Piper's grandmother). Piper is just a tad smaller than Quest and Diva but not by much. She's very pretty and very sweet but apparently, quite a chewer.

We had no end of people coming up to say hello and wanting to pet the puppies. And, just about everyone commented on how absolutely beautiful they are! Yes! We were rooted in that spot for almost an hour and couldn't move because someone else would come up to see the puppies. What a great place to socialize puppies! Needlessto say, Diva and Quest were quite worn out when we got home.

The next day, (Monday October 13), Lauren won top honor of "Top Showman" with her grandfather and great-uncle (reknown for their beef cattle) looking on. So WAY TO GO LAUREN! That's AWESOME!

Growing overnight

It's true. My eyes and brain weren't being fooled. I've confirmed that puppies do indeed grow overnight. In just two weeks, Diva gained six pounds from 24.4 to 30.4 pounds and today outweighs her brother Quest whose size has been almost neck and neck with her for the past two months. Two weeks ago there was only 0.3 pounds difference. But last week, an upset GI tract had its toll and resulted in less weight gain for Quest. So today, he was about 3 pounds lighter (27.6 pounds) than his sister. He will catch up and surpass her in the next few months, I'm sure - because he's a boy.

Happy Thanksgiving

On Monday, October 13, Canadians celebrate Thanksgiving. It's a time for family to gather, give thanks and usually eat roasted turkey with stuffing and cranberry sauce with pumpkin pie for dessert. Corrine Sellars sent me this great e-card showing her very photogenic Vizsla, Milo. Here's the card, courtesy of Corrine. Milo obviously got the bird, which is only just since he is after all a bird dog, but not the pumpkin.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING to all!

Diva goes to market

Diva at Milton Market

Outdoor farmers' markets are great places to buy locally grown and produced food and other artifacts (very important to support our local economy). Our closest one is in Milton, Ontario, Canada and it's an outdoor market and a terrific place to socialize a dog. Today Diva took a turn going to market with me and what a hit she was! So many people wanted to meet and pet her and she was so eager to say hello in return, particularly to children. She gave out lots of free kisses and was exceedingly well behaved - beyond my expectations! She didn't jump up on anyone, except to reach up and kiss children. Boy, was she ever popular.



And of course, there were lots of other dogs to meet and greet. One made me quite nervous though because it was huge. I thought it was a Cane Corso but not knowing mastiff-type breeds very well, I was wrong. It was an American Bulldog, very different from the English Bulldog that I am familiar with. The couple said he has a very gentle temperament and plays with their 3-yr old child. He looked like he could have eaten Diva in one gulp without tasting a hair but he didn't, thank goodness. Anyway, Diva was remarkable around all these stranger people and dogs and not at all shy or unsure about anything or anyone. Quite the contrary. This bodes well for her career as a show dog.

And tomorrow Diva and Quest will visit the Erin Fall Fair in Erin, Ontario where we hope to meet up with their sister Piper and her family, and see cows, horses and all name of creatures. And our gorgeous fall weather is forecast to continue all week! Yippee!!

Almost but not quite perfect

Our puppies are close to perfection in behaviour as one can get because of my remarkable shaping and training skills. HA, HA! But, being human - oops I meant being canine, they create challenges, especially when they are left unsupervised for what seems to me to be a nano-second but in reality might be five minutes. (That is a no-no on my part and I know I am really the one to blame when they do things they shouldn't).

This week Diva, that beautiful puppy shown in this photo, started honing her indoor climbing skills (transferring her knowledge from the great outdoors in those videos I've already blogged) and figured out how to clamber onto a chair and from there onto the kitchen table. With her new-found ability, she also discovered that the table was the perfect spot to sun herself and stay warm one chilly day this week. She also encountered interesting things (to a puppy) on the table, one of them being hubby's reading glasses. Later that day, she also managed to reach up on my desk and grab my clip-on sunglasses. (At 4 months of age, she's now tall enough to just reach the edge of counters and begin life as a counter-surfer.) As one might expect, she explored both items with her mouth with the result shown in the photo. Fortunately neither was expensive and all glass, plastic and twisted metal parts were accounted for. No surgery was needed, TG.

The most expensive item to have ever been chewed and destroyed by one of our dogs was a bicycle saddle that hubbie had bought in California many years ago. It was sleek, it was streamlined and it was covered in beautiful, soft leather, it was gorgeous and also very expensive! Unfortunately, he left it in a spot where Nekah, our very first Vizsla puppy (and Diva's maternal great-grandmother) could find it instead of installing it on his bike. I thought he was going to kill her - just joking - but hubbie was rip roaring mad and I think I gave him money to replace it or something like that to placate him. We both learned our lesson since then - or thought we had.

What's an ATV?

For those visitors to my Blog who aren't familiar with my lingo, an ATV is an 'all-terrain vehicle" a.k.a. (according to WIKIPEDIA) commonly called a quad (quad-bike) in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, the United Kingdom and parts of Canada. Huh? Never heard it called that where I live in Canada. They are used extensively in agriculture, because of their speed and light footprint on the soil. Well, what about the noise, huh? And crazy teens who drive these things with reckless abandon?

If you want to know more about an ATV or quad-bike, go to:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All-terrain_vehicle

Teenagers on ATVs

I was having a pleasant walk in the woods with my dogs this afternoon - the weather was warm and sunny and the fall colours were starting to look gorgeous (our garden below)- when from afar I could hear noisy ATVs. Sound carries a long way in the country so I didn't know how close or far away they were initiallly. Then very quickly I realized they were coming down the same trail as us. There was a bend about 40 feet from where we were stood and suddenly one of them appeared. Grabbing and restraining Diva (Quest was at home recovering from an upset GI tract & the others were in the woods and more interested in hunting chipmunks), I put my hand up in the 'stop' position to slow them down. Well, they did - but barely. There were two of them, both teenagers, and they really couldn't care less about us.

I screamed at the top of my lungs, 'YOU AREN'T SUPPOSED TO BE HERE!" since motorized vehicles are prohibited from this conservation tract. Of course they couldn't hear me above the huge racket the motors make and the crash helmets they had on. There are no licence plates to identify them since these vehicles aren't approved for road travel. Thankfully this doesn't happen very often and I hope won't again. These kids are probably the ones making all the racket we've been hearing recently but we haven't been able to locate where they ride. Next time, I'll report them to the police. Sometimes in winter we encounter people on snowmobiles - again they are also prohibited on this trail - but I find the snowmobilers are usually adults and more likely to slow down when they see me and the dogs. Sometimes, I am actually grateful when the snowmobilers have been through to pack down deep snow, making it easier for us to walk in winter even though they are breaking the law.

Happy 4th month!

Our Miska-Ozzie puppies turn 4 month old today. It's incredible to think that these now 24-25 pound Vizslas could fit in the palm of my hand a mere 16 weeks ago when they were born on June 16.

I noticed that Diva has lost her two upper front teeth so teething has now begun. The other puppies will follow suit soon. Diva and Quest (Miss Yellow and Mr Green) continue to be smart, gorgeous puppies, with lovely movement, deep chests, great temperaments and abilities. Likewise with Blaze (Mr Blue) for whom his owners just sent me some photos. http://photoshare.shaw.ca/view/4019687269-1223253918-39931/0
Blaze is just a wonderful puppy and so handsome! I miss him a lot. Well, truthfully, I miss all the puppies.

Andras (Mr Red) is doing well, and adjusting to life with two older Vizslas. The local health unit in California where Andras lives is quite obsessive/compulsive about a puppy not being vaccinated yet for rabies because of a local problem with rabies in bats but I told his owners that as long as he avoids bats, they should be getting him out and about because the socialization window will be starting to close soon. His appointment for rabies vaccine is tomorrow.

I hope to see Gunner (Mr Black) and Piper (Miss Purple) sometime this month as they live quite close by.

Vizsla event results in Canada

My friend & co-owner/co-breeder Sherryanne Farr of Blackbullet Reg'd Vizslas and Dalmatians and I started a new Blog. Well, the Blog was my idea but she got it started and set up and I'm a contributor. It's devoted to compiling results from Cdn Kennel Club events for Vizslas in Canada since the Cdn Kennel Club can often be months behind in publishing results. Its address is http://canadianvizslaeventresults.blogspot.com/ Right now it's devoted to conformation results but perhaps we'll add agility, obedience and field results if we have time. As we have just started it, there is only a few months' worth of data but as time goes by, we hope to compile a lot of info.

We've added labels so if you click on BIS which means Best in Show, you'll see that that two Vizslas have taken Best in Show in Canada so far this year! A Best in Show is incredibly hard for Vizslas to attain - they don't have the showy coat that so many dogs have and what you see is what you get - no finding any faults behind hair! So congratulations to the owners and breeders of these two dogs! If you click on any of the labels, e.g., Group 1, you'll see only those posts that have Vizslas taking a Group 1 or a province, it will list only those shows that took place in a particular province. Or, if you want to search for a specific dog, put in its registered name (or part of the register name) in the field at the top left corner of the Blog and hit search blog and it will find all the posts with that dog's name in it. It's a very nice way to sort and organize information. Let us know if this Blog is of interest to you by completing the poll.

Working and playing

Working
The Vizsla is a working dog. It was originally bred by the Hungarian aristrocy to hunt fur and feather, i.e, various game such as upland birds, deer, wild boar (isn't all boar wild?), rabbits. Neither my husband nor I hunt but our dogs are trained to hunt and compete in hunt tests and they sure do a lot of hunting on their own whenever they go outdoors or for walks. As the saying goes, you can take the dog out of the hunt but you can't take the hunt out of the dog. When our dogs aren't being trained for hunting or doing something else like competitive obedience, agility,. or looking pretty or handsome in the show ring, they sometimes get creative about the work they perform.

Years ago, our now dearly departed Sasha began picking up his metal food bowl and bringing it to me after he had finished eating. In return, he'd get a treat. This game eventually turned into a daily job for him. In addition to picking up his own bowl, I'd send him around the kitchen to fetch the other dogs' bowls, saving me time and energy. He was most enthusiastic about his 'job'.

Sasha with bowl (photo courtesy of Corrine Sellars)

Sasha kept up this line of work well into his 14th year. Only in the last two months leading up to his death did he fail to perform it daily. And, that's when his daughter, Miska, started taking over - and sometimes with a vengeance. (Many obedience trainers say that dogs hate to pick up metal which is the composition of one of the types of articles used in the Utility ring. Not in our dogs' cases.) Miska's a fast eater and would then beat Sasha to the bowls. I'd have to take one of the bowls she just fetched and offer it to him just so he could get a reward.

At times now, Miska can barely wait for another dog to finish its dinner or breakfast before she tries to snatch the bowl from under its nose and bring it to me. She absolutely loves this job! That's Miska in the two photos below and in the video.

And Miska's sister, Katya (another of Sasha's daughters), who lives in Ithaca, NY, also does the same thing? Is there a 'bowl fetching gene" in these dogs I wonder? Tyro is the only other dog in our house who has attempted this job but he's not very good at it right now because he doesn't bring the bowl to me. Instead, he takes it over to a dog bed and continues to lick it out. Or worse, he drops it on the tile floor and it makes a very loud clatter which drives my husband crazy! I'm working on his 'hold'.

Playing

It's not all work in the house. The dogs also like to relax and play. Here's Miska with the TV remote control about to settle down for some relaxing and below is Tyro watching TV.

Boys are such softies

Yesterday I took Diva and Quest in for their rabies and leptospirosis shots. The lepto vaccine can sting and puppies with little body fat, such as Vizslas, tend to feel the sting more. Diva was a bit bothered by it, trying to bite at the injection sites but still took treats while the effects were wearing off. On the other hand, Quest showed his true 'soft boy' colours by being a real baby. He wanted to crawl onto the vet's lap and be held and hugged. Poor boy! He felt very sorry for himself and milked the situation for all the attention and cuddles he could get while Diva wandered around the office exploring and looking for mischief. The reality is, Vizsla males are big sucks and softies; they are needy; they want to be with you all the time; give them a verbal correction or just raise your voice (not necessarily at them) and they can whither in front of you. The girls on the other hand, are often more independent, bounce back quickly from any chastisement and general more pain-tolerant. Of course, there are always exceptions.

Diva and Quest

Quest

Quest and Diva in the garden