It feels a smidge sacrelig to say Snowed Out, as my favorite band is Hanson and they're album was "Snowed In" but that's what happened to us for the Lenape show. In the morning, my husband was driving home from his shift and made the call that we were not going to travel an hour away in the weather. Not worth it. So I ate my 36 dollars. That's the second one. I should not be eating this many entries when I just started last year and have no points!!!!! Anyway...
Now it's the countdown to the upcoming bulldog litter. Next weekend. Unbelievable. Obviously I'm more excited to go be with the pups on the 25th. I can't wait to experience being around them and seeing their cute little faces. One of my facebook "friends" had a litter last night. Such sweet little faces!
I was joking with another bulldog friend about stacking the puppies. Most breeders will stack them all at four weeks so they get used to it. The ones that are just for pets forget about it and don't need it and the show dogs keep working at it and have an early start. I told her I'll be trying to stack the two week old puppies. We had a good laugh. I don't think their eyes are open yet by then.
Hudson has been adjusting to my husband being back at work. Now he's very cuddly with me in the mornings and nights when Chris is working. I do like that.
We also have a potential and promising family for our foster Elvis. I hope it works out. There's kids. He loves kids. I would love to see him spend his final years with kids that shower him with attention. I know Hudson will be excited in the spring and summer when the kids in our neighborhood are outside playing. He loves to get attention from them! They all lay on the ground and let him lick their ears. He has them trained!
Monday, January 30, 2012
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Um, 2 days til Lenape?
Wow! Time flies!
Saturday is the Lenape Bulldog Club Specialty Show. I'm using it as my judge as to whether or not I want to keep showing Hudson. I want to, and I think he's handsome, but there are a lot of things that make me think I ought to stop with him for now and just let him be. We were able to pack a few pounds on, but the weight is starting to go in places it shouldn't, so we backed off the high-fat stuff. I want him to look like the other bulldogs, but what I really want is for him to be healthy and live a long life. If he turns into a tootsie roll, the latter won't happen. We're up against one other dog in our class on Saturday, so we'll see how we fare. We could get our first point on Saturday, but more than likely, we'll just help someone else get one.
In other exciting news, I've been talking with a breeder from Virginia since about October in hopes that we'll be able to start our own breeding program. The hubby and I thought we ought to look at getting our female soon, since she'll need to be mature before reproducing, and Hudson isn't getting any younger!
Most responsible breeders either refuse or take a long time to give up a female to be bred. That's a good thing. Bulldogs especially are very hard to breed. It takes a lot of time and energy. It's also easy to breed some of the very common health problems that exist because of poor breeding. I knew I would need to start to build a relationship with someone who would be willing to mentor me and trust me with a female from their litter and hard work.
Laurel's next litter will be delivered by C-section (as they all are) on Feb 11th, unless the girl goes into labor earlier. She's going to let me come down and stay with her when the puppies are two weeks old so that I can learn about taking care of young puppies. Sometimes bulldog pups have to be tube fed, so I'll learn that technique, and often the mom isn't interested in getting them to potty after they eat, so I'll learn that as well. I'm sure I'll also learn what tired really is. Maybe I'll be able to relate to new moms better!
I'm very excited about this opportunity and thrilled that Laurel is allowing me to come to her home and learn from her puppies. I've had a blast talking to her several times over the past couple of months. She's a hoot and we're a lot alike in our "craziness." She's been very encouraging, and I appreciate beyond measure how much she's been willing to teach me already.
In ten years, I see myself in her shoes...minus her two daughters. She's just too amazing for my abilities. I'll have to substitute work for the "skin kids," as us dog people call them. ;) It's nice to have an answer to that question. Where do you see yourself? Oh, I know where I'm going.
The 4-6 month old puppy class is something else I'm excited to start. My next puppy? Not the old mistakes I had with Hudson not knowing what the best food was and starting the stacking training and other show work well after 6 months old! Heck, I'll probably help Laurel stack her puppies at another visit when they're a little older...like 5 weeks!
Meanwhile, praying that Hudson will stack as well as he does the first time I do it every night, instead of the awkwardness that follows on the 2nd, 3rd, and 100th stack. Oh, my crazy little boy!
Saturday is the Lenape Bulldog Club Specialty Show. I'm using it as my judge as to whether or not I want to keep showing Hudson. I want to, and I think he's handsome, but there are a lot of things that make me think I ought to stop with him for now and just let him be. We were able to pack a few pounds on, but the weight is starting to go in places it shouldn't, so we backed off the high-fat stuff. I want him to look like the other bulldogs, but what I really want is for him to be healthy and live a long life. If he turns into a tootsie roll, the latter won't happen. We're up against one other dog in our class on Saturday, so we'll see how we fare. We could get our first point on Saturday, but more than likely, we'll just help someone else get one.
In other exciting news, I've been talking with a breeder from Virginia since about October in hopes that we'll be able to start our own breeding program. The hubby and I thought we ought to look at getting our female soon, since she'll need to be mature before reproducing, and Hudson isn't getting any younger!
Most responsible breeders either refuse or take a long time to give up a female to be bred. That's a good thing. Bulldogs especially are very hard to breed. It takes a lot of time and energy. It's also easy to breed some of the very common health problems that exist because of poor breeding. I knew I would need to start to build a relationship with someone who would be willing to mentor me and trust me with a female from their litter and hard work.
Laurel's next litter will be delivered by C-section (as they all are) on Feb 11th, unless the girl goes into labor earlier. She's going to let me come down and stay with her when the puppies are two weeks old so that I can learn about taking care of young puppies. Sometimes bulldog pups have to be tube fed, so I'll learn that technique, and often the mom isn't interested in getting them to potty after they eat, so I'll learn that as well. I'm sure I'll also learn what tired really is. Maybe I'll be able to relate to new moms better!
I'm very excited about this opportunity and thrilled that Laurel is allowing me to come to her home and learn from her puppies. I've had a blast talking to her several times over the past couple of months. She's a hoot and we're a lot alike in our "craziness." She's been very encouraging, and I appreciate beyond measure how much she's been willing to teach me already.
In ten years, I see myself in her shoes...minus her two daughters. She's just too amazing for my abilities. I'll have to substitute work for the "skin kids," as us dog people call them. ;) It's nice to have an answer to that question. Where do you see yourself? Oh, I know where I'm going.
The 4-6 month old puppy class is something else I'm excited to start. My next puppy? Not the old mistakes I had with Hudson not knowing what the best food was and starting the stacking training and other show work well after 6 months old! Heck, I'll probably help Laurel stack her puppies at another visit when they're a little older...like 5 weeks!
Meanwhile, praying that Hudson will stack as well as he does the first time I do it every night, instead of the awkwardness that follows on the 2nd, 3rd, and 100th stack. Oh, my crazy little boy!
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Saturday, December 17, 2011
Are we the pharmacy?
We have an even more extensive routine right now at feeding time...mostly at dinner. I've started Hudson on herbals for his skin, though its looking stellar right now. Erm, maybe not stellar, but vastly improved. Regardless, he now has echanacea and fish oil with dinner. We've also added coconut oil and now are back to puppy food to help pack on the pounds.
Meanwhile our foster is being treated for possible causes of his diarrhea lsat week, so he gets two and a half pills hidden in your standard grocery store cheese balls. We also concoct a probiotic and deworming powdered medication in yogurt he eats every night.
Dinner is quite a production at our house. If you need free entertainment, come on by!
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
39 days til Lenape!
Hudson and I are strongly against cold weather. We prefer not to have to go out in it. Though I will admit, it does make his morning potty break go a lot faster. ;)
We've been a little consumed with our foster lately, he had a nasty bout of diahrrea. That's right, bulldogs are not all glamour. (Just mostly!) Poor Hudson tries so hard to do things for him that when there were accidents in his crate, he would look very guilty, but it wasn't his fault! Silly Hudson! I'm not sure how we got to have such a good little boy.
Hudson has been improving on his lead. We've been back to our nylon one, and he tends to listen pretty well with that one. He fights me a lot less when we're outside, so hopefully it'll continue to be better and better.
Yesterday, Chris made a fabulous cheese soup. It had 2 and a quarter pounds of cheese in it! We gave Hudson some (a very small amount). I hope it stuck to his bones! He's gained a little weight. He's up to 54, but we still need more. His proportions are good, but he needs to be just a little bigger. He definitely doesn't mind the extra food and treats.
We're also are about to finish our first 6 weeks of Atopica. After that we should be able to tell if its working and we can go to every other day. I think it has helped to a certain extent, but I'm nervous it won't be enough. I'm not entirely sure all his hair will be back in 39 days from now. As long as we don't get any new infections, it should.
I'm waiting anxiously, hoping that the local contact gets back to me about some practice in the ring. Official handling classes don't start until Feb for the Celtic Classic, so I might not get any "professional help" until after Lenape. *sigh*
Also, stay tuned about our family growing.... but don't start any rumors! :)
We've been a little consumed with our foster lately, he had a nasty bout of diahrrea. That's right, bulldogs are not all glamour. (Just mostly!) Poor Hudson tries so hard to do things for him that when there were accidents in his crate, he would look very guilty, but it wasn't his fault! Silly Hudson! I'm not sure how we got to have such a good little boy.
Hudson has been improving on his lead. We've been back to our nylon one, and he tends to listen pretty well with that one. He fights me a lot less when we're outside, so hopefully it'll continue to be better and better.
Yesterday, Chris made a fabulous cheese soup. It had 2 and a quarter pounds of cheese in it! We gave Hudson some (a very small amount). I hope it stuck to his bones! He's gained a little weight. He's up to 54, but we still need more. His proportions are good, but he needs to be just a little bigger. He definitely doesn't mind the extra food and treats.
We're also are about to finish our first 6 weeks of Atopica. After that we should be able to tell if its working and we can go to every other day. I think it has helped to a certain extent, but I'm nervous it won't be enough. I'm not entirely sure all his hair will be back in 39 days from now. As long as we don't get any new infections, it should.
I'm waiting anxiously, hoping that the local contact gets back to me about some practice in the ring. Official handling classes don't start until Feb for the Celtic Classic, so I might not get any "professional help" until after Lenape. *sigh*
Also, stay tuned about our family growing.... but don't start any rumors! :)
Friday, December 9, 2011
43 Days til Lenape!
I was disgusted with myself at nationals this year. Try as he might, my husband could not get me off my pedastal and I was sorely disappointed. Going in a little nervous is much better than thinking things will be great. Don't get me wrong, by the time I got there and was waiting to go on, I was shaking, nervous, and totally messed up Hudson's game. I'm finally going to suck it up and take some classes to improve myself. And keep working at my stacking.
So in 43 days is our next venture, The Lenape Bulldog Club's show. It's not too far from home, so that's good. It will be one of our last opportunites to participate in the 15-18 month class, so I want to try to get a point or two before we move to open, or our time might get even harder.
I wish I had jumped on this bandwagon a lot sooner. It will definitely be different with the next one, that's for sure.
My next bully is going to be coming from Kaigan in Virginia. The breeder, Laurel, is absolutely fabulous, and her dogs are beautiful. She's originally a Mastiff breeder (also beautiful), but she told me she's considering going exclusively bulldog. Her last litter was picture perfect, each one was show quality.
I'm also getting a lot of great advice on Hudson and how to better him for the ring. He needs to gain some weight, probably about 6 lbs. Thankfully, there are sometimes boys that mature this slowly, as bullies can take up to 2 years to come into their full grown status.
I need to get some pictures up here soon! I have yet to even look at the ones from nationals that Chris took. We did get fourth place (of four), so we got a ribbon and some other fun goodies, but I plan to do a lot better in 43 days!
So in 43 days is our next venture, The Lenape Bulldog Club's show. It's not too far from home, so that's good. It will be one of our last opportunites to participate in the 15-18 month class, so I want to try to get a point or two before we move to open, or our time might get even harder.
I wish I had jumped on this bandwagon a lot sooner. It will definitely be different with the next one, that's for sure.
My next bully is going to be coming from Kaigan in Virginia. The breeder, Laurel, is absolutely fabulous, and her dogs are beautiful. She's originally a Mastiff breeder (also beautiful), but she told me she's considering going exclusively bulldog. Her last litter was picture perfect, each one was show quality.
I'm also getting a lot of great advice on Hudson and how to better him for the ring. He needs to gain some weight, probably about 6 lbs. Thankfully, there are sometimes boys that mature this slowly, as bullies can take up to 2 years to come into their full grown status.
I need to get some pictures up here soon! I have yet to even look at the ones from nationals that Chris took. We did get fourth place (of four), so we got a ribbon and some other fun goodies, but I plan to do a lot better in 43 days!
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
Nationals...only 6 days left!
When I decided to enter the BCA Nationals show (Bulldog Club of America), I promised myself it was just for fun, there was no pressure, and there was no way Hudson was going to win anything. I wanted the most stressful part of the day to be the traffic and how Hudson looked. Until I got the judging program...
I decided to enter the Amateur Owner-Handler's class thinking it might be a good way for me to show along with other people who were as shaky in their showing as I am after only two tries and no training or classes. I expected this to be a pretty big entry since the president of our rescue group and a long time bulldog owner, breeder, and judge told me there are some pretty...interesting...entries at nationals. Out of 457 entries, we are competing against...4.
There's five in our class. Which means a better chance of a win and a point. Pressure's on!
I am feeling confident in Hudson's looks. We've changed him to an all raw, home-made diet (yes, cutting up the meat and veggies ourselves from the people grocery store) and he's bulked up in all the right places. He looks fantastic! But we did just start him on atopica, which has had his mood a little weird. He's more hyper, and I'm hoping I can get him to focus in the ring, something that's not normally an issue for him. I guess the only way to find out is to go and do it and see what happens.
I also found out there's going to be streaming video live and then a video done afterward that will show Hudson's name, mine, breeder etc. I'm sure I'll look oh so beautiful after a 2 hour car ride that will take at least 3 hours.
Despite everything that will probably go awry that day, I'm very excited. It'll be good to get Hudson back out in the show ring, and I'm going to be meeting up with a lot of people that I never met in person/haven't seen in a long time. But that's kind of the point of nationals for any breed.
In other news, one of our fosters finally has a new home. He's going there on Friday, and we're very excited both for him and the new owner. It'll be his first bulldog, so he's doomed for life now! ;) I had to laugh when he found out we only had a year of bulldog experience. Apparently, we've taken this thing way too seriously.
I'm dog people.
I decided to enter the Amateur Owner-Handler's class thinking it might be a good way for me to show along with other people who were as shaky in their showing as I am after only two tries and no training or classes. I expected this to be a pretty big entry since the president of our rescue group and a long time bulldog owner, breeder, and judge told me there are some pretty...interesting...entries at nationals. Out of 457 entries, we are competing against...4.
There's five in our class. Which means a better chance of a win and a point. Pressure's on!
I am feeling confident in Hudson's looks. We've changed him to an all raw, home-made diet (yes, cutting up the meat and veggies ourselves from the people grocery store) and he's bulked up in all the right places. He looks fantastic! But we did just start him on atopica, which has had his mood a little weird. He's more hyper, and I'm hoping I can get him to focus in the ring, something that's not normally an issue for him. I guess the only way to find out is to go and do it and see what happens.
I also found out there's going to be streaming video live and then a video done afterward that will show Hudson's name, mine, breeder etc. I'm sure I'll look oh so beautiful after a 2 hour car ride that will take at least 3 hours.
Despite everything that will probably go awry that day, I'm very excited. It'll be good to get Hudson back out in the show ring, and I'm going to be meeting up with a lot of people that I never met in person/haven't seen in a long time. But that's kind of the point of nationals for any breed.
In other news, one of our fosters finally has a new home. He's going there on Friday, and we're very excited both for him and the new owner. It'll be his first bulldog, so he's doomed for life now! ;) I had to laugh when he found out we only had a year of bulldog experience. Apparently, we've taken this thing way too seriously.
I'm dog people.
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