A Very Special Puppy

My Aussie Siren's sister had puppies 6 weeks ago.  I got to be there for the birth of all of these puppies except the first born (same thing happened with Siren's litter-I wasn't their for Siren's birth).  Anyways, I wasn't planning on getting a puppy from this litter for myself, but if the "Perfect Junior Puppy" for E was in this litter, then it would come and live with us and be his dog.

I think we found the Perfect Puppy.  Her puppy name is "Viper" and she was the first born and the only black-tri. (Siren was the first puppy born and the only blue merle in a litter of black-tri's.)  

I don't believe a lot in reincarnation, but when the puppies were a few days old, I had a feeling that Viper was Mazie (Factor's girlfriend) reincarnated and that she was meant to be E's junior dog.  I put this out of my mind though, because I thought it was crazy thinking.

Mazie and Factor

As the puppies have been growing, Viper has been trying to make her case known.  Viper was 3 weeks old and she and E had some special bonding time.  E got to pick a puppy to watch tv with one night while we were over visiting them and he picked Viper. She snuggled with him while he watched tv and she tolerated anything that he did with her.

As the weeks have progressed, she has been smitten with him.  She seeks him out to give him kisses, she never chews on his clothes and she follows him wherever he goes.  I thought that maybe I was trying to see something that wasn't there, but at the beginning of the sixth week-I couldn't doubt it anymore.  

Viper is that Perfect Junior puppy!

We brought the puppies on a field trip to experience some novel things.  Viper kept true to form and followed E everywhere he went, including on a scooter board and through a squish machine.

Viper is behind E

Viper and Cuda are watching E as he goes through

Viper following right behind

She made it!

 E went back for another go and Viper was right there to do it again with her boy! 

I asked E what he thought about a couple names for his new puppy and he has rejected each of my suggestions.  I asked him what he wanted to name his puppy and he responded with, "Optimus Prime."  It is his puppy, so I guess he gets to name her.


He has been very adamant about this name and I am having a very hard time convincing him to change it.  
I am ready to concede-I don't think I can change his name.  
E will call her Optimus Prime and everyone else will call her "Opie" or "Prime" or "Opti"

"I like to challenge my Pee-Wee's"

 I am so proud of E!  He showed Ace and Factor at 4 UMASC conformation shows the first weekend in March.  He had so much fun!  He has always enjoyed being around the dogs, but he is really starting to "get it."

His attention span is still that of a 3 and a half year old, so it is fleeting, but he he is really getting into this dog show thing.  He wanted to look "handsome" and wear his suit, he couldn't wait his turn to go in the ring, he made sure that Ace was brushed, and he wanted to practice whenever the ring was empty.

E showed in four shows over the weekend.  Each show was judged by a different judge.  The first judge on Friday night was a distant friend of the family.  E did really well with him, the judge was very friendly and got down on his level.  The first judge on Saturday was also friendly, she asked E if he liked showing dogs and she asked him what his dogs name was.  E led Ace around the ring like a pro all by himself and presented Ace to the judge like you would expect a Pee-Wee to do.

The second judge on Saturday was a little special.  This judge wanted a parent in the ring when a Pee-Wee was showing.  I obliged, even though this wasn't his "first rodeo."  She asked him how long he had been showing dogs and E responded with, "Two hours."  I corrected him and told her since Nationals.  She then asked E to take his dog around the ring (he was showing Factor this show-Ace needed a break), I watched them go and the judge ordered me to follow-I looked like a fool running behind them.  We returned to the judge to present Factor and the judge made a comment to the ladies working at the table, "I like to challenge my Pee-Wee's"  She then asked E to show her the dog's bite.  E stared at her, I also stared at her!  Really, she was asking a three year old that she didn't trust alone with a dog in the ring to stick his fingers in the dog's mouth to show her his teeth, but he couldn't walk the dog on a leash by himself!?

Sunday's judge was good.  She forgot that Pee-Wee's didn't get placements and gave E first place and the little girl second, but she was quickly corrected!  E didn't notice, he was just happy to get another Lightning McQueen car.

Auntie Jan brought her puppy Mason to his first conformation show.  E took it upon himself to be Mason's "worker" on Sunday afternoon.  He brushed him with each tool available and spritzed him with a lot of water!

Both Mason and E learned a lot this weekend, it will be a lot of fun to watch them both grow up in this dog show world!  

E made multiple comments over the weekend about Mason being his Best Friend!  Isn't this how it is supposed to be?  

One Proud Mama

We went to ASCA Nationals in West Bend, WI the week of September 17th, 2011.  ASCA (Australian Shepherd Club of America) offers a non-regular pee-wee conformation class for kids 3-5 years old.  This is a great opportunity for young kids to do something fun with their dogs and get to experience the conformation class (pretty dog show).

E was signed up for 3 shows.  2 pre-shows before Nationals and then Nationals.  Adults who show in conformation, get dressed up and look nice and the same goes for juniors.

We brought with 4 different suits for E to wear.  My mom and I made three different ties-the pirate one above was one of them.  Thankfully, E was all about looking "handsome" and getting dressed up to walk his dog Ace.

Ace is a friend's almost 13 year old black tri Aussie.  He is the perfect Pee-Wee dog.  He can't hear very well and he loves treats.  He is very tolerant of E pulling him around as long as he had secure footing.  Ace did GREAT and so did E.

The white suit that E is wearing was the same suit that his dad wore 30 years ago when he was in his uncle's wedding.  Joe's mom made the suit and she was so happy that E was able to wear the suit again.

E was a natural moving Ace around the ring.  He followed the judges directions very well, he kept control of his dog, he demonstrated confidence in telling the judge how old he is, what his dog's name is and how old his dog is.

I am sooooooooooooo proud of my little man.  It gave me goose bumps when I saw him in his suits.  We couldn't walk through the fairgrounds without getting many compliments of how handsome he was.  Random people were taking pictures of him and posting them on their facebook pages.  A little odd for me, but also a very proud moment.

One of my goals as a parent is to raise a confident child.  Through my love of dogs, I am raising a confident child!