I picked this show for Tipsy because it’s small and less stressful for her. She did so well in Elkton and I wanted to have another successful show under her belt. We were the only entry in her puppy class and for that she did FABULOUS! Her tail wasn’t up but unlike every other dog that showed, she didn’t balk a bit. When on the table, she stayed focused on my and not on the judge.
The AKC is helping us all take precautions because of a new strain of canine influenza that is affecting dogs in the Mid-West. Judges are being instructed to refrain from touching the dog’s mouth for bite examination, but rather have the owner display the bite. When you think about it, I think this should be the case always! A judge could have their hands in a couple hundred dog’s mouths in one day so the odds of spreading things are extremely high. Then you have to take the Chihuahua breed into mind. They are tiny little dogs with tiny little mouths and when a stranger’s hand open that mouth, it can be pretty scary for them. I have decided from here on out, I will present the bite myself and when it comes to our tightly-wound Tipsy that all paid off. She is awesome! Heat and all!
It was when they called us back in for Winner’s Bitch when a flock of bird decided to fly through the pavilion and leave a trail of oooey-gooey bird pooey on the mats in our ring. All of us that were competing were in the ring as we waited for maintenance to clean it up. To kill time, the judge decided to have us hold the girls up for him to examine the heads, ears and bites. That has always been Tipsy’s downfall – strangers coming in from up in our arms. There was a growl and snarl but no nips – Thank GOODNESS! And I can proudly state that she walked her final go-round the ring with her tail up! Even though we didn’t place, we got a tail AND a very understanding “judge in her face” lessons. I say that’s still a win!
