My Trip To PCA
I have been gone for a little while and have not posted to my blog. I will try to catch up and tell a little about my trip. I have a number of pictures that still need to be developed and will add them later or in a different post.
I spent 8 days in Salisbury, MD at the Poodle Club of America's National Specialty last week. I had a lot of fun, met new people and put faces with people I know from the internet. I also saw a lot of Poodles and spent some time shopping at all the Poodle vendors.
Thursday (6-8) - I left my house with Chauncey and headed north to pick up Joyce, who was to ride up there with me and share the motel room. After loading all her stuff and dogs (Chip, Carmel, and Brown Puppy), we met up with Anne, who would follow us. We drove all day, only stopping a couple times to walk the dogs or get food. We stopped for the evening in NC, a little south of Rocky Mount and got some sleep.
Friday - We hit the road early and made it to Salisbury by 1:30pm. We checked in at the motel and unloaded our suitcases and stuff we didn't need in the van. We then headed out for the hunt test site, to meet the judges and set stuff up. Anne and I got the job of following the driving directions and posting directional signs. That wasn't too bad until I hopped back in Anne's van after getting in the bushes to tack a sign to a pole and discovered a small tick crawling across my shoe, EWWW. We then set up the tents at the site and left to get ready for dinner. At the motel, Joyce got out her forced air dryer and we went over all the dogs looking for ticks. Chip and Carmel had 2 each and Chauncey had one, which Joyce removed for me. We met the judges and other workers at the steakhouse for dinner. Yummy, they had some good steak and crab cakes. My steak just melted in my mouth and I did not need any sauce. After dinner, we tooke the dogs for a walk in the field beind the motel. They enjoyed it there and liked to run around and play.
Saturday - We left the hotel early and headed for the hunt test site. We set up our van with crates and shade tents for our dogs to hang out during the tests. Lots of commotion going on as everyone ran around to make sure that there were enough workers at all the stations. We had 3 different levels of tests going on, Junior hunter, Senior hunter, and Master hunter. They needed another worker at the master test, so I volunteered. I ended up in the same blind as Anne. I blew the duck call and released the bird, then Anne shot the gun (the duck was already dead). There were 8 dogs in that series, so we got to watch them run up close. Annehadher camera out there and was able to get some really neat shots of them going in the ditch and returning with their duck. Two of the dogs did not pass that series, so we had 6 in the second one. Again, Anne and I got the job of planting the blinds, dead ducks hidden in the field. the handlet then must guide the dog with whistles and hand signals to where the ducks are. All six of the dogs made it past that level, I couldn't not see them work from the blind where I was hiding, so missed most of that. The third series was a very tough water blind and double marks. Only one dog made it past the hird series, Charlie, who I loved to watch him work and his handler, Jacquelyn, handle him. You could tell that they knew each other well and flowed smoothly together. Charlie had a rough time at the fourth series and did not pass. It was a great test and all the people were very friendly and helpful. the judges were extremely nice and wanted to help everyone. One dog passed out of 3 in the Senior test, and 2 dogs out of 7 in the Junioer test. One of the Junior dogs was Chip, it was his and Joyce's first hunt test and they earned their first qualifying leg. It was a great day and we were exhausted, so got back to the motel, showered, and walked next door to eat breakfast. I had some good pancakes and could tell that I would need to go on a diet when I got home.
Sunday - We headed back out ot the site for the WC/X test. I was a little burned from Saurday, so Joyce sprayed some sunblock on me. After I checked all the entries in, I was able to get in a good position to take some pictures. I really enjoyed watching the tests and the judges let us ge a lot closer than we were on Saturday. I took over 200 pictures with my digital and 6 rolls with my Minolta. One of Chauncey's puppies was entered in the WC test, Peter (Blueberry's brother) and he passed his test. Chauncey's first puppy to earn a title. His owner, Brenda, was thrilled and so was I. Chauncey did bery good both days hanging out in her crate. We did let them out at the test site in the evening and run around. It was big, open, and fenced, so the dogs had a lot of fun. We went to eat that evening with some of the crowd from Florida, I think about 12 of us. I had the most delicious crab cakes, very good.
Monday - I spent the morning watching agility runs and learning more about it. Joyce had to judge the brown match that afternoon, so she left me at the hotel to get Chauncey groomed for Tuesday. It took me most of the afternoon to get her clipped and bathed. Joyce also introduced me to forced air dryers. Why no one has ever told me how much time they save, I will never know! I love the forced air dryer and am saving up to get one. I used Joyce's on Chauncey and then scissored her the next morning. I am not very fast, so this all took me a while.
Tuesday - We got up early and left for the civic center. Joyce had to be there early to wait with Michael at the grooming entrance. Since we did not show until 10am, I went ahead and took my stuff to get set up and relaxed ahead of time. Chauncey was very interested in the site and was not as focused as I wanted. I got signed in and warmed her up, as we were the first in our class. We made it through our routine and survived the first part. Chauncey lost a lot of points on both the heeling patterns and did her recall backwards. When I called her, she came to heel position, but back a little. When the judge said "finish", I gave Chauncey the heel command and she proceeded to come and sit in front of me. I think I need to re-explain the exercise to her:o) We did rally at the end of the day and that went well. Our score was an 89 out of 100, Chauncey only lost 1 point, while I cost us 10 points by not pausing long enough before starting to the next exercise. I guess I need to work on the exercises a little more, since I hace been costing us points lately and not the other way around.
Wednesday - I did not have to do anything until that evening when we were in the Parade. So, I took pictures and watched some of the standards and toy conformation classes. Joyce had not had a chance to bathe Chip yet, they had her going to the judges seminar and helping them at the classes. I volunteered and got him bathed and blown out, so all she had to do was scissor up his topknot and he was ready. We did the parade and that was fun. We each were given a ribbon with our dogs name and titles printed on it. After the parade I bathed and dried one of Michael's minis for him. It was a long day and we were exhausted. Here are some pictures taken by Steve Surfman.
Parade of Champions-Getting ready for our big circle around the ring
Chauncey and I listening to her credits
Joyce and Chip
Thursday - I tried to meet as many people as possible and still missed quite a few. I will have to try again the next time I make it to PCA. I was able to spend today watching and taking more pictures. I took wuite a few of friends and their dogs. In between pictures I helped Joyce and Michael with their dogs. I also went shopping and spent some money and got business cards from people so I could do more shopping later.
Friday - The big finale and I spent most of the day in the stands watching all the specials and taking notes. A big eye opener for me about certain dogs. I learned a lot from watching all those dogs move and quite a few of the standards I have seen in the catalogs. Some were very different in person. I enjoyed picking the dogs I liked and seing how the judge chose. We went out again and had a good dinner at the steakhouse. I will definitely need to go on a diet when I get home:o)
Saturday - Left early to drive all day. We made it to Savannah, GA and spent the night there. A couple from Fl also stayed at our hotel, so we went across the road to Hooters (first and last time I ever eat there) for dinner. Went back and hit the sack for an early start Sunday.
Sunday - I made it home by 2:30pm, after stopping on the way into town to pick Blueberry up from Maggie's. It took her a good minute before she realized who I was. She must have thought that I had abandoned her for leaving so long. I then headed into town to my parents, to get the keys to my house and to pick up Jasmine, who was very glad to see me. After getting everyone back home and unloaded, I headed to the hospital to visit my mon who was admitted Friday while I was away. Needless to say I enjoyed the trip and would love to do it again next year if all works out. I have been spending this week getting caught back up. Blogger is not letting me add any photos right now, so I wil add them as soosn as Blogger fixes itself.
I spent 8 days in Salisbury, MD at the Poodle Club of America's National Specialty last week. I had a lot of fun, met new people and put faces with people I know from the internet. I also saw a lot of Poodles and spent some time shopping at all the Poodle vendors.
Thursday (6-8) - I left my house with Chauncey and headed north to pick up Joyce, who was to ride up there with me and share the motel room. After loading all her stuff and dogs (Chip, Carmel, and Brown Puppy), we met up with Anne, who would follow us. We drove all day, only stopping a couple times to walk the dogs or get food. We stopped for the evening in NC, a little south of Rocky Mount and got some sleep.
Friday - We hit the road early and made it to Salisbury by 1:30pm. We checked in at the motel and unloaded our suitcases and stuff we didn't need in the van. We then headed out for the hunt test site, to meet the judges and set stuff up. Anne and I got the job of following the driving directions and posting directional signs. That wasn't too bad until I hopped back in Anne's van after getting in the bushes to tack a sign to a pole and discovered a small tick crawling across my shoe, EWWW. We then set up the tents at the site and left to get ready for dinner. At the motel, Joyce got out her forced air dryer and we went over all the dogs looking for ticks. Chip and Carmel had 2 each and Chauncey had one, which Joyce removed for me. We met the judges and other workers at the steakhouse for dinner. Yummy, they had some good steak and crab cakes. My steak just melted in my mouth and I did not need any sauce. After dinner, we tooke the dogs for a walk in the field beind the motel. They enjoyed it there and liked to run around and play.
Saturday - We left the hotel early and headed for the hunt test site. We set up our van with crates and shade tents for our dogs to hang out during the tests. Lots of commotion going on as everyone ran around to make sure that there were enough workers at all the stations. We had 3 different levels of tests going on, Junior hunter, Senior hunter, and Master hunter. They needed another worker at the master test, so I volunteered. I ended up in the same blind as Anne. I blew the duck call and released the bird, then Anne shot the gun (the duck was already dead). There were 8 dogs in that series, so we got to watch them run up close. Annehadher camera out there and was able to get some really neat shots of them going in the ditch and returning with their duck. Two of the dogs did not pass that series, so we had 6 in the second one. Again, Anne and I got the job of planting the blinds, dead ducks hidden in the field. the handlet then must guide the dog with whistles and hand signals to where the ducks are. All six of the dogs made it past that level, I couldn't not see them work from the blind where I was hiding, so missed most of that. The third series was a very tough water blind and double marks. Only one dog made it past the hird series, Charlie, who I loved to watch him work and his handler, Jacquelyn, handle him. You could tell that they knew each other well and flowed smoothly together. Charlie had a rough time at the fourth series and did not pass. It was a great test and all the people were very friendly and helpful. the judges were extremely nice and wanted to help everyone. One dog passed out of 3 in the Senior test, and 2 dogs out of 7 in the Junioer test. One of the Junior dogs was Chip, it was his and Joyce's first hunt test and they earned their first qualifying leg. It was a great day and we were exhausted, so got back to the motel, showered, and walked next door to eat breakfast. I had some good pancakes and could tell that I would need to go on a diet when I got home.
Sunday - We headed back out ot the site for the WC/X test. I was a little burned from Saurday, so Joyce sprayed some sunblock on me. After I checked all the entries in, I was able to get in a good position to take some pictures. I really enjoyed watching the tests and the judges let us ge a lot closer than we were on Saturday. I took over 200 pictures with my digital and 6 rolls with my Minolta. One of Chauncey's puppies was entered in the WC test, Peter (Blueberry's brother) and he passed his test. Chauncey's first puppy to earn a title. His owner, Brenda, was thrilled and so was I. Chauncey did bery good both days hanging out in her crate. We did let them out at the test site in the evening and run around. It was big, open, and fenced, so the dogs had a lot of fun. We went to eat that evening with some of the crowd from Florida, I think about 12 of us. I had the most delicious crab cakes, very good.
Monday - I spent the morning watching agility runs and learning more about it. Joyce had to judge the brown match that afternoon, so she left me at the hotel to get Chauncey groomed for Tuesday. It took me most of the afternoon to get her clipped and bathed. Joyce also introduced me to forced air dryers. Why no one has ever told me how much time they save, I will never know! I love the forced air dryer and am saving up to get one. I used Joyce's on Chauncey and then scissored her the next morning. I am not very fast, so this all took me a while.
Tuesday - We got up early and left for the civic center. Joyce had to be there early to wait with Michael at the grooming entrance. Since we did not show until 10am, I went ahead and took my stuff to get set up and relaxed ahead of time. Chauncey was very interested in the site and was not as focused as I wanted. I got signed in and warmed her up, as we were the first in our class. We made it through our routine and survived the first part. Chauncey lost a lot of points on both the heeling patterns and did her recall backwards. When I called her, she came to heel position, but back a little. When the judge said "finish", I gave Chauncey the heel command and she proceeded to come and sit in front of me. I think I need to re-explain the exercise to her:o) We did rally at the end of the day and that went well. Our score was an 89 out of 100, Chauncey only lost 1 point, while I cost us 10 points by not pausing long enough before starting to the next exercise. I guess I need to work on the exercises a little more, since I hace been costing us points lately and not the other way around.
Wednesday - I did not have to do anything until that evening when we were in the Parade. So, I took pictures and watched some of the standards and toy conformation classes. Joyce had not had a chance to bathe Chip yet, they had her going to the judges seminar and helping them at the classes. I volunteered and got him bathed and blown out, so all she had to do was scissor up his topknot and he was ready. We did the parade and that was fun. We each were given a ribbon with our dogs name and titles printed on it. After the parade I bathed and dried one of Michael's minis for him. It was a long day and we were exhausted. Here are some pictures taken by Steve Surfman.
Parade of Champions-Getting ready for our big circle around the ring
Chauncey and I listening to her credits
Joyce and Chip
Thursday - I tried to meet as many people as possible and still missed quite a few. I will have to try again the next time I make it to PCA. I was able to spend today watching and taking more pictures. I took wuite a few of friends and their dogs. In between pictures I helped Joyce and Michael with their dogs. I also went shopping and spent some money and got business cards from people so I could do more shopping later.
Friday - The big finale and I spent most of the day in the stands watching all the specials and taking notes. A big eye opener for me about certain dogs. I learned a lot from watching all those dogs move and quite a few of the standards I have seen in the catalogs. Some were very different in person. I enjoyed picking the dogs I liked and seing how the judge chose. We went out again and had a good dinner at the steakhouse. I will definitely need to go on a diet when I get home:o)
Saturday - Left early to drive all day. We made it to Savannah, GA and spent the night there. A couple from Fl also stayed at our hotel, so we went across the road to Hooters (first and last time I ever eat there) for dinner. Went back and hit the sack for an early start Sunday.
Sunday - I made it home by 2:30pm, after stopping on the way into town to pick Blueberry up from Maggie's. It took her a good minute before she realized who I was. She must have thought that I had abandoned her for leaving so long. I then headed into town to my parents, to get the keys to my house and to pick up Jasmine, who was very glad to see me. After getting everyone back home and unloaded, I headed to the hospital to visit my mon who was admitted Friday while I was away. Needless to say I enjoyed the trip and would love to do it again next year if all works out. I have been spending this week getting caught back up. Blogger is not letting me add any photos right now, so I wil add them as soosn as Blogger fixes itself.
posted by Kim at 7:51 PM
3 Comments:
Sounds like it was so much fun! Welcome home, and I'm glad that your events went well.
Thanks, I am gald to be home and missed my girls:o) It went much better than I thought and I had a lot of fun. You will greatly enjoy PCA when you get to go.
Thanks, Ian.
Ticks like tall weedy/grassy areas or over grown brush. Those with mowed grass/lawns typically don't have a problem. The northern states have more problems with Lyme disease than we do in Florida, so I didn't want to mess with them.
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