Today was Karma’s day to shine in the ring! Both Cleo and Karma did great and placed 1st in their age classes under Judge Mrs. Jean Fournier. Karma then went on to take Winners Bitch and Best of Winners, earning her first point toward her AKC Championship! Many of our friends were ringside today cheering on both girls and we appreciate them so much for taking time to be there to give our kennel support! Many thanks to Cleo, Karma, their handlers – Daniel Sanchez & Vanessa Lanz-Sanchez – who worked very hard all weekend, Judge Fournier and to our friends who went to show support! Below are our favorite photos of the day, enjoy! Karma’s ribbons for her first point:
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The day Orso and I had been preparing for had finally arrived! Orso passed his first two of the three required legs to earn his Rally Novice title back in July with high scores (93 and 86) and on the first try. Since July, there were no local shows offering Rally-Obedience, so the soonest we could be back in the ring to compete for his third leg was today. It was a long wait, but well worth it. We arrived at the show very early in the morning since Cleo and Karma were showing pretty early. Unfortunately, the Rally ring was running almost 2 hours behind, so Orso had to sit around all day waiting for his turn to compete. By the time it was his turn to go, Orso was grumpy and tired and had zero motivation! I was very stressed that he wouldn’t do well after all the effort and practice we had put into getting ready for today. Orso proved me wrong! He started to course very slow and disinterested but quickly changed his mind and did awesome! He was ever herding me around the cones like he does at home when we practice! He loves to nip me in the hip on tight turns, which I find to be very cute of him! Today was no different! At the end of the course, we were scored a 97 by Judge Mr. Robert Withers, putting us in the running for top 4 placement, a big deal for the Rally-Obedience ring! We both had a great time in the ring – watch the video below and see for yourself! When all the competitors had their turn, everyone who passed was called back into the ring to present the ribbons. Orso and I won 3rd place overall, beating out many well-trained dogs! I am so proud of my boy! He did awesome and as a reward, we bought him new toys (including the one in the video), 2 gorgeous hand-stitched leather collars and a matching hand-stitched leather traffic lead! Below is a video that’s about 5 minutes long showing Orso and I going through our Rally-Obedience course then the presentation of the ribbons by Mr. Withers! Also below is a photo of Orso, Judge Withers and me and a photo of Orso’s new collars and lead. Enjoy! In the photo below, from left to right – Yvonne Alemán, International Multi-Champion Mar e Sol Orso di Costa Bel, CGC, TDI, RN aka “Orso” and Judge Mr. Robert Withers: Part of Orso’s reward:
Today was my first time seeing Cleo & Karma in the ring and it proved to be quite a great experience! Both girls showed beautifully for their handlers, Daniel Sanchez & Vanessa Lanz-Sanchez, under Judge Mr. Joseph Gregory. Cleo and Karma both took 1st place in their age class. Cleo then went on to win take Winners Bitch, Best of Winners and Best of Breed Puppy, earning her first point toward her AKC Championship. We are very pleased with how both girls did! It was also great that the shows were in Miami because my parents, Frank & Eva, were able to go watch and cheer us on! Many thanks go to Danny, Vanessa, Cleo, Karma, Mr. Gregory, Mom & Dad! Special thanks goes to Kathi Wisdom for all of the show training she put into Cleo while she was living in Colorado with her! Below are our favorite shots from today, enjoy! Cleo getting some pre-show pampering: Karma getting some pre-show pampering: Both girls waiting patiently outside the ring: Despite going through a “funny” stage, Karma is coming along very nicely: Below is a great photo of Danny with Cleo and in the background (left to right) Frank and Eva (my parents). Cleo FLOATS around the ring! She is an amazing mover: Both our girls, Cleo in front with Vanessa and Karma in back with Danny: Best of Breed class, Cleo is at the end with Danny: Cleo’s ribbons for her first point!
Our show handlers, Danny & Vanessa, got into Miami today with Cleo & Karma for the shows this weekend! I was already at the showgrounds with Orso practicing for our Rally-Obedience trials this weekend when they got there, so as soon as we finished practicing, we went straight over to their RV!
It was already dark out, but this didn’t stop me from busting out with the camera and trying to get photos of my first time meeting Cleo, our female who has been living in Colorado since she was born in February. This was such an exciting – and nervous – moment for me! I was also getting to see Karma again for the first time since she went to live with Danny & Vanessa! It was definitely an emotionally charged moment for me. Orso stayed in the Jeep while all this was going on, especially since Cleo is in heat AND both girls are clean for the shows – with Orso around, no one stays clean! Both Cleo & Karma looked great! Karma was very happy to see me and covered me in kisses! It felt great to grab her face and cheeks and kiss her nose! Cleo was a bit hesitant at first when she met me – she is a Corso afterall, LOL – and it took a little while before she was coming up to me and kissing my face. On the other hand, there is a definite love affair between Danny and both girls – they ADORE him! Same with Vanessa! They both are all over them, kissing them, jumping on them, watching their every move, it’s awesome to see that such a great relationship has developed between Cleo & Karma and Danny & Vanessa! We are very excited to watch them in the show ring this weekend! Below are my favorite pictures from tonight, enjoy! Orso and I went today to the security department of South Miami Hospital to have Orso’s photo taken and Pet Therapy Program ID made, which will allow him to visit with patients in the hospital! As a registered therapy dog with Therapy Dogs International, Orso has the important job of making people feel better when they are sick and we think he will be very good at it. His new job starts in January 2012, but for now, he can wear his new ID badge around the house, see below: All this excitement of getting a new job must have made everyone very tired around here, because it was an unusually peaceful night at home, see below:
We are posting this in case any local folks want to head out to see what dog shows are all about! It’s a small show, but it’s still a lot of fun and a wonderful experience!
Dog shows generally run pretty punctual, so Miami time doesn’t work well at these shows. If there is a breed you want to go look at, make sure you are there on time. Again, this is a small show, so there will only be a few Cane Corsos there, but it’s good practice for the big shows they have next week in Orlando. For those of you who may want to see our females, Cleo & Karma, showing this weekend, below are the ring times for them:
Orso will also be there for sure on Saturday competing in Rally-Obedience and POSSIBLY on Sunday aswell if he doesn’t do well on Saturday. Below are his ring times:
These shows are great for kids, so bring them! Just let them know not to touch any of the dogs because you never know if the dog is friendly with children. Dogs who aren’t in the dog shows are not allowed, so leave your furballs at home! We hope to see you out there! Feel free to forward this post to anyone who might be interested AND who can be good and positive cheerleaders for us!!! The Costa Bel Clan’s Miami trio – Luna, Mouse & Orso – had a spa afternoon today with their awesome groomer, Eliades Betancourt! Orso is all cleaned up and ready for the shows this weekend! Thanks, Eli! If anyone is looking for an excellent groomer, let me know and I will pass on Eli’s information. He comes to your house in this fancy-shmancy grooming truck AND works not only with companion pets but also with show dogs! This guy ROCKS! Below are some fun photos from during and after their spa sessions, enjoy!
Today was a very long and emotionally stressful day for me. Cleo was finally making the move from Fruita, Colorado to Orlando, Florida! Coordinating today was a challenge because it involved the cooperation of Delta Airlines, Mother Nature, several different people & of course, Cleo. There were a lot of moving parts to this project and plans started early last week. Thankfully, all went great and Cleo arrived safely in Orlando as planned! The day started when Kathi Wisdom, who whelped, raised, trained, showed and has loved Cleo since the day she was born, left her house at 3am to drive Cleo to Delta Airlines in Denver, Colorado from her home in Fruita, Colorado. I coordinated my wake up time with Kathi’s departure time to make sure that I was accessible at all times. Kathi & Cleo arrived at the Delta Pet First offices in Denver at 8:35am, after a five and a half hour drive in freezing temperatures. She settled nicely into her giant crate at the airport and waited patiently for her turn to board the plane, see below. Cleo’s flight took off at 10:35am and had to connect in Atlanta. Her flight wasn’t due to land in Atlanta until 3:30pm, leaving me with a lot of free time to worry. What to do when you are stressed? Go buy dog food, lots of it, 9 bags of Orijen Adult at 30 pounds each, see below! Cleo landed safely in Atlanta and had a two and a half hour layover. She finally left Atlanta at around 6:15pm and landed in Orlando at almost 8:00pm, where Daniel Sanchez, her show handler, was eagerly awaiting her arrival. Cleo will be living with Danny & Vanessa (& Karma) while she is finishing her show career. What a relief when I finally saw online that she had been “scanned” at arrival in Orlando. Delta Pet First has a pretty cool system where Cleo was assigned a barcode – almost like a UP package, LOL – and was scanned at departure and arrival in each city. This would then show up immediately online for tracking purposes, see below. Danny immediately took Cleo to her new home with them and, with Vanessa’s help, got her settled in, see below! We will be meeting her this weekend when she comes to Miami for this weekend’s dog shows! I am so excited! A million wholehearted thanks go to Kathi Wisdom, Daniel Sanchez, Vanessa Lanz-Sanchez, Mother Nature and Delta Pet First!
Karma and her show handler, Daniel Sanchez, spent 4 successful days showing in Savannah, GA. According to Danny, Karma’s showmanship training is coming along beautifully and she is much more refined in the show ring! Karma came in 1st place in her age group each of the 4 show days and took Reserve Winners Bitch on Thursday. We are very proud of her progress and appreciate all of Danny’s hard work in and out of the show ring!
This morning, as a reward for behaving so well during his Rally-Obedience class at Paws in Motion, I allowed Orso to try the 5-foot A-frame. Last week, the A-frame was set at 4 feet, but today it was set a foot higher, making it steeper and much more challenging for Orso! He is so brave! Orso went over the 5-foot A-frame twice for me and I caught it on video, see below! Enjoy! |
YVONNE
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