Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Taking Patriot Home to Arizona

The deal was I could keep Patriot until TEVCO's Specialty on September 5th but then he would have to go home to Bree and Josh, his REAL parents! As it turned out, Brianna was going to be in the area and could be "home" on the 18th. So we left Tigard on September 19th and headed to Reno, our destination for the first leg of this trip - it took us 10 hours! On the second day, we drove from Reno to Sahuarita, AZ, which is just south of Tucson. We drove through Hoover Dam but I have no pictures to share because they are on Bree's camera. I think the rest of the story can be told with pictures, so here goes!

Patriot and Paloma the day before we left to take Patriot home.


The gang's all there for one last gathering before moving the party to Arizona.


On our first night at Bree and Josh's, Paloma had a nasty encounter with this fellow - a tiny little scorpion that had made its way onto the coffee table. Paloma had been licking the coffee table when she started to shake her head and push her tongue out of her mouth like she had just been stung. Everyone immediately began searching but certainly there were no scorpions in the house! Josh grabbed the black light and found it hiding under one of the coasters. Scorpions glow under the black light and it makes it really easy to see them. Anyway, in the picture above, he is dead, dead as a door nail. Marc put the quarter there so you can all see just how tiny this creature was. Josh does a nightly scan of the yard as nightfall arrives. While we were there, he killed three scorpions and one black widow. By the way, the hourglass shape also glows under a black light.


The gang's all here and settled onto the couch.


A close up of Paloma sleeping - we gave her 25mg of Benadryl as a precaution in case she had been stung. At this point, we don't think she actually was, just that she was pinched or that it didn't taste good. A call to the emergency vet revealed the knowledge that dogs don't seem to be affected so much as we might think. Now, if she had developed shaking, seizures, a temp, then we would have needed to get her seen, ASAP. But, the vet said they have never lost a dog to a scorpion sting. Comforting knowledge that was indeed!




Marc built these gates to keep Patriot away from the side gate (which has a dip in the dirt under it) and from being able to get on top of the air conditioning unit. There will be no hopping the fences to get out of the yard. The house is one street away from the wide, open desert - no man's land and the area from which no dog would ever return.

ADDING SOME SHADE

A tiny Navel Orange tree is planted in the desert - hoping to provide the family with sweet pulp and juice.


A Queen Palm is added to bring a little sense of San Diego to the backyard.


An Olive tree is planted. This kind of tree did very well in Albuquerque and will do well here.



There are doggy neighbors on the other side of the fence.


Josh pulling weeds so Paloma couldn't eat them.


"Can we move to where the sun shines?"


You're home, Patriot!

Wednesday, October 7, 2009

Happy Birthday, Marley!

Please join with us as we wish Marley a Happy 6th Birthday!

You are my sweet girl, constant companion, and best face and foot licker in the world. I have been with you since the very beginning, even when Karen and I first saw "you" as a tiny pea on the ultrasound! :) I was with you when you were born and had secretly hoped you would come home with me after the evaluations. It was a happy moment when Karen told me I got magenta girl! I couldn't have been happier ~ I still am! Thank you for the love you have given us and for the pups you had almost one year ago. Because of you (and Kirby), there are five other families sharing the love!

We love you ~ Mom and Dad, Hannah and Paloma
P.S. When my REAL computer gets hooked up again, I'll have pictures and an update on taking Patriot to Arizona.

Friday, September 18, 2009

Happy 11 Months Day!

So, did everyone have a Happy 11th Month Day!? It's really hard for me to believe the pups will be a year old next month.

Patriot got to see his Mom (Bree is here for the day)! The whole gang was treated to a meal of The Honest Kitchen's Embark. Patriot and Marley cry, whine, bark until it's ready! Once in their bowls, they scarf it like they haven't eaten for days! And, yes, all the puppies had it before they went to their new homes so if you try it, they might also cry, whine and bark until it's ready! :)

Patriot starts on his trip home tomorrow. Josh and Bree have been patient while I had him his past show season and I thank them for letting me have him this long. I am really going to miss him, my cuddle buddy!

The pups might go through another fear period soon so if they suddenly act strange to something that has not previously bothered them, step back and take notice. Remember not to cuddle and tell them it's alright. That only reinforces the behavior they are exhibiting and actually makes it harder to work through when it happens again.

OK, Pups! Take care and give your families lots of licks and wiggles!

Saturday, September 12, 2009

Patriot Wins His First Point - Show Picture

Thought you all might enjoy seeing Patriot's show picture from the Longview/Kelso show where he went Winners Dog for one point. The judge is William Bergum; he was handled by our good friend, Suzanne Horvath.


by Callea Photo

Sunday, September 6, 2009

Wow - What A Long Day!

Happy 8th Birthday, Hannah and 28th Birthday, Brianna!!

Trail's End Vizsla Club of Oregon's Sweepstakes and Specialty Show in Eugene, Oregon ~ September 5, 2009

We started out the day at 10am with Sweepstakes. Patriot, Paloma and Loki were all entered, this being Loki's debut in the show ring. The boys went in together - they looked nice going around the ring and Steve did a wonderful job handling Loki. Loki did a wonderful job listening to Steve! Suzanne wasn't able to handle Patriot in Sweepstakes so Karen handled him foe me. It was close but Loki was awarded first and Patriot second. Paloma was in all by herself and was awarded first for her age group. Steve and I took the pups back in for Best Puppy in Sweeps - I couldn't believe it when I had to go in behind Steve. Well, not Steve, but Loki! The mere sight of me tends to put him over the edge with excitement and I didn't want to ruin it for them. As it turned out, Loki was more interested in what Steve had to offer and my presence didn't faze him. Paloma was moved up next to Mojo for the last go round the ring. Mojo was awarded Best Puppy and the handler behind us took Best Opposite with her puppy bitch. We didn't win but it was nice to be noticed!

Regular Class - Emerald Classic Cluster: Patriot and Loki were in the ring together once again with Suzanne handling Patriot. Again it was really close and each handler had to work for their placement. This time Patriot was awarded a blue rosette and Loki the red. Patriot went back in for Winner's Dog but did not place. Paloma went in with Leah (Valley Hunter breeding); Paloma took second to Leah as she has in every show they've been in together since Canby. With this portion of the show over, Steve and Loki went in search of the dog park to play and get muddy in as it had been raining all morning. The pups went to the car for a nice rest while Karen, Suzanne, Nancy, Kathy and I hit Applebee's for lunch. We returned to the fairgrounds around 3pm to begin preparation for Specialty.

Specialty - Patriot and Loki were in together once again under Breeder Judge Evelyn Hilbert. This time Loki went over Patriot. Steve and Loki went back in for Winner's Dog but did not place. Paloma was in by herself and won a jar of treats and a blue rosette. Paloma went back in for Winner's Bitch but did not place. Those honors went to both entries from the 6 - 9 month class. With all three shows now complete, the pups went to the car for a nice rest while I helped clean up and finish the Silent Auction for the club.

The only casualty for the whole day was the brand new crate I bought to take to the Puget Sound Specialty last month. I had taken Paloma out to work with her and Patriot didn't like that I didn't take him, too. He grabbed the mesh doorway and tore it with his teeth - ripped a nice "L" shaped hole in it and I called him a ****head! I think I will send his owner an invoice for repairs. Just kidding, Bree! The crate is now with Rhonda who will repair it for me. On the brighter side, I won the crate offered in the Northwest Vizsla Rescue Alliance, Inc, raffle!! That is so cool! Now, Paloma has a new crate!

We left Eugene at 9:30pm. The ride home was nice, the pups were asleep, the weather had cleared and there was no rain the entire way home. Traffic was light and after dropping Karen off at home, I walked in the door at 11:30pm.

It was a very long day for all of us but it was nice to see people we only see once a year and a good chance to get together with those we see more often. All in all, a very good day for the Catch A Fire family! Now, if I could just hear how Jasper did on his first dove hunt of the season, all will be perfect!

Take care and enjoy the rest of this year's Labor Day Weekend.

Sunday, August 30, 2009

Patriot Wins His First Point!


Under Judge William Bergum at the Longview-Kelso Kennel Club Dog Show

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Tired Loki

On Wednesday mornings, for the past two weeks, Loki and Steve have been going down to Kirsten's at Field of Dreams Kennels in Sweet Home, Oregon, for bird training. So far, Loki has shown that he has a good nose, a pretty steady point and loves finding birds. In the evening, they have been attending show handling classes. So, it's not a wonder that Loki is one tired pup this Wednesday night!



Loki's first shows are coming up on September 5th when he joins Patriot and Paloma at the Trail's End Vizsla Club of Oregon's Sweepstakes and Specialty in Eugene, OR. On Saturday, all three pups will also be entered in the regular class of the Emerald Classic Cluster. They should all look like Loki does tonight when it's all over. Should be a quiet drive home.

Hope everyone is doing well - enjoying what's left of the summer while looking forward to a nice Fall.