New addition...

I flew to Pennsylvania this past weekend to attend the dog show at York, PA.  I was only an observer as my primary reason to attend was to see a litter of puppies sired by "Dudley" -- GCH Puddleduck Solas Smoke on the Water.  Dudley caught my eye at the 2014 National Specialty and I really liked his pedigree.  After seeing the litter - I had to come back to Arkansas with a souvenir.  Introducing Sanddigger First Time's a Charm.  Call name Charm.

This is Charm chillin' in the Sherpa on her way back to Arkansas.  She did so good on the plane!

 

 

Here is Charm's first official show dog picture.

 

 

Breeder of Merit recognition

I have been recognized by the AKC as a Breeder of Merit.  I am proud of this accomplishment having only bred Cardigans since 2006. 

 

 

 

 

These are the requirements that AKC has established for inclusion in the Breeder of Merit program.

AKC Breeder of Merit Requirements

The following must be met in order to be accepted into the program:

• Has a history of at least 5 years involvement with AKC events.
• Earned AKC Conformation, Performance or Companion* event titles on a minimum of 4 dogs from AKC litters they bred/co-bred.
• Member of an AKC club.
• Certifies that applicable health screens are performed on your breeding stock as recommended by the Parent Club.
• Demonstrates a commitment to ensuring 100% of the puppies produced are AKC registered.





Bad news / Good news

First the bad news Willow didn't have any puppies.  We were so looking forward to this litter -- but, it wasn't meant to be.  I thought when we bred her it may have been a little bit early.  However we had limited options as the optimal breeding date was on a Sunday.  We will try again next time she comes into season later in the Spring.

The good news is that Gloria won Best of Breed in Des Moines Iowa at the January shows.  This gave her more than enough points to earn the title of Grand Champion.  This girl continues to amaze me.  She has such a wonderful personality and she is wicked smart to boot.  We have big plans for her in 2015.  Motherhood is on the agenda as well as a try at the Agility ring.

 



Big news ....

We bred our girl Willow (Giants Dance Poinciana) to the handsome Milo.  If all goes well we should have puppies in early February.  This litter could provide us with a rainbow of colors -- brindle, black and white and red.  Here are a couple of pictures of Willow taken in September.





Willow





Willow



Here is a link to a picture of Milo (CH Lynn Farm's What Not to Love)
http://www.stubbyacresfarm.com/Dogs.html

Here is a link to the pedigree of the litter:
http://www.cardiped.net/testmating.php?sire=81446&dam=83894

Group 1 Picture

I just received this picture of Gloria from the Benton AR show back in October.  This is her winning the Herding Group 1.  I am proud of this girl.



Gloria continues her winning ways

It has been a fun ride in the dog show world this past few weeks for me.  Gloria has exceeded all expectations by being a Herding Group placer a few weeks ago at the NW Arkansas KC show.  Here is a picture of me and Gloria showing off the beautiful Group 3 yellow ribbon.  I am proud to say that I handled her to this win myself.  Or maybe I should say that she won despite me being her handler.  Either way I was thrilled.

 

 

 

Then this past weekend at the Benton Arkansas KC show she did even better.  She became a Herding Group winner!  Unbelievable.  I have been show dogs since 1984 (yes I am old) and this is the first dog that I have had that won a group.  I am thrilled beyond belief.  In the three weekends she has been shown as a Special -- she has accumulated almost all of her points needed to be a Grand Champion.  The amazing part is that she is only 18 months old.  This has been a fun ride already and she is still a baby.  Here is Gloria showing off her blue ribbon with handler Linda Williams who does a fantastic job with all of my dogs.

 



 





Cybil's New Home ....

Cybil went to her forever home yesterday.  She is now in residence with new mom Janet and her Pembroke brother Woody.  By all accounts they have all hit it off famously.  I am sure she is ruling the roost!