That Black Guy in My Bed is a Superstar

The Black Guy in my bed on the trip.

So I've never been to a speciality before. Not even one for my breed let alone one for a breed I've never in my life owned. Dog shows in general confuse me sometimes although I have gained more understanding over the years.


Dog shows, particularly conformation shows, are interesting. Besides grooming and doing your best to pick and choose which judges to show under, there isn't a whole lot you can do to increase the odds that your dog will get picked by the judge. No amount of training is going to matter. Basically you have to go in and hope like hell that the judge likes your dog, and that's tricky as every judge is going to like something slightly different albeit still within standard. So while the judge on Thursday during sweeps didn't have Sarah's Kaleb in mind for his ideal, K is still within standard and is a pretty fine specimen if I do say so myself. Plus the judge on Friday really liked him, more on that in a moment.

My favourite boy, Kaleb.

Coming from the Pug world, I find FCRs fascinating. These dogs are not just pretty show dogs, they have letters on both sides of their name. Working certificates, obedience and rally titles, hunt test titles, tracking. They do it all. Yes they're a working breed and can't really compare them to Pugs, but my point is that FCRs are well rounded dogs who really can do everything and have the letters on each end to prove it. I like that. I like that a lot. The dogs in the veterans ring can still move well, largely they're still in shape, and I bet they all still get the sillies now and then too. I want a breed like that. 

Jona is a Liver coloured FCR, he's from the same breeder as K. I really liked him!

Anyways... The judge on Friday really liked Kaleb. Not only did he win his class (9-11 Veteran Males) he won one of only four Judges Award of Merit awards in the Best of Breed ring. What a good boy, he made his mama and everyone who knows him proud.

K winning 9-11 Vets. I think every one of us cheering you on was thinking the same as you, Sarah.

Besides the dogs, what I find truly spectacular in FCRs is the people. They're so friendly. They are welcoming and enthusiastic and seem to enjoy their dogs for everything they are. Again, something I enjoy oh so much. FCR people are just like their dogs, friendly and full of life no matter how young or old.

Do everything in life with enthusiasm.

This was a fantastic opportunity to meet new people and lots of dogs in a breed that I really do admire and will own one day. It's nice to have interacted with a larger sample size to get a feel for the breed. I went into this wondering if it would come back loving them even more or not at all. The answer is clear, I love this breed.

Thanks for letting me tag along for your special trip, buddy.

So that's my observations on the speciality. Tune in tomorrow for a run down on the Vancouver part of this adventure or possibly some talk of the sheer what-the-fuckery that went on during the whole trip, or maybe I'll write nothing. You never know unless you come check. Oh look, logs.