The Dogs of Mustang…
Posted: July 17, 2011 Filed under: Apso Aficionados, Art and Photography 6 Comments..brought to you by Michelle Page and her Danger Dog Blog. Her blog and Nepal Art Dog project transport me to another world, figuratively. I could only hope for literally! Going to Mustang has long been a dream of mine. What would it be like to see this in person!
Here’s what Michelle wrote about this dog: This little Lhasa Apso is named Tashi and lives in the town of Eklaibhatti in Mustang. With his hair pulled back to counter the raging Kali Gandaki winds, he can see across the plains. See more Dogs of Mustang, compliments of Michelle.
The motto for the Nepal Art Dogs, Folk Art from the Himalayas, is ‘Micro-finance through art patronage!’ There is a tradition in Nepal of ‘beware of dog’ signs. Approximately one foot square, the signs are hand-painted on recycled metal and can be hung indoors or out. According to Michelle, on her most recent trip to Nepal, the Danger Dog commissions were the only art these artists were still hand painting. Their other work is mass-produced, digital or printed on flex.
You can commission a sign through NepalDog.com. Each commission is given to at least 3 signboard artists – giving 3 people work, the pet owner a choice and museum shops Nepali folk art. No money is accepted up front. If you don’t like any of the 3 choices, you pay nothing.
Vickie’s Danger Dog Sign…
Transition
Posted: July 4, 2011 Filed under: FFT Lhasa Apsos, Gompa Lhasa Apsos | Tags: Debby Rothman, Julie Timbers 3 CommentsTransition. The word has been in my head lately. Several friends commented – to me, not on the blog – about my End of an Era post, which followed Julie’s Saying Goodbye. Kathy thought End of an Era sounded like a final post for the blog. Vickie mentioned, “how does one comment on that post?” Perhaps Transition would have been a better title.
Transition; movement, passage, change from one position, subject, stage to another. I’ve been in a personal transition the past several years. Small transitions, but changes just the same. Adding another day to my work week really interferes with my creativity. Words used to come pouring out of my head. My fingers couldn’t wait to tap, tap, tap. Up by 4:30, coffee in hand, the keyboard lured me into the library. Fatigue seems to silence my fingers.
Other transitions pop into my head. Or are released from my head. Transition within the Gompa dog breeding program. Transition within my son’s life. My garden is in a perpetual state of transition, which is true of all things growing.
End of one era, beginning of another. We’d been talking about moving down a different path for years, a path with new challenges, something new to learn. Julie began her Judge’s Path some years ago. The Gompas have been my path for a decade, delivered to me August 31, 2001. While we share those paths with each other, it’s the ‘FFT Challenge’ path we’re walking together.
A couple three years ago we challenged each other to earn a performance title on one of our retired Champion. Julie chose a Connor daughter called Lily – Ch. Timbers’ She Tsabo Confidentially Yours. I chose Edie, a Connor granddaughter – Ch. FFT Carpe Diem RN. Note the RN at the end of Edie’s title. 🙂
Melissa upped the ante when she challenged us to have a dog ready to run agility at the upcoming ALAC National Specialty in October. Challenge accepted! Three of my last five FFT dogs have been in agility training for a year and a half. Julie has been working with Lily and Fernando for as long, along with her Gompa dog Rishi.
Looking at the list of agility FFT dogs (and one Gompa) – in training or in the ring – it seems appropriate that Victoria’s son Roman is on the list. Roman (and Mary). Lily (and Julie). Edie (and Debby). Rumor (and Judy). Fernando (and Julie). Rishi (and Julie). Elliot (and Debby). Chloe (and Ginny). Norma Jean (and Debby). And while we don’t deserve the credit, I’ll add Melissa’s dogs from FFT lineage to the list. Josie. Ella. Myth. Victoria is behind the majority of these dogs. As breeders, what better testimony is there? What more could we ask? What better way to make the transition? Champions Gone Agile!
Here’s Julie and Lily – Ch. Timbers’ She Tsabo Confidentially Yours – running and qualifying in Novice Standard…
Ella – Grand Champion FFT Melou “Well Said” runs a nice serpentine…
Rishi – Kunza Rishi – graduates…
Ain’t life Grand!
Posted: June 6, 2011 Filed under: FFT Lhasa Apsos Leave a commentA Grand weekend. Another Grand Champion, another off and running! And three Edmund kids picked up points toward their Championships.
Ella – Ch. FFT Melou “Well Said” – owned and shown by Melissa Torgerson, completed Grand Champion requirements several weeks ago at the Indianhead Kennel Club shows, topping it off with a Group 3 under breeder/judge Keke Kahn.
Stevie – Ch. FFT Take The Money and Run – finished her Grand with a Group 4 at the Fargo-Moorehead Kennel Club on Saturday. Sunday she was again awarded Best of Breed and a Group 3.
Ginny’s Ethan – Ch. FFT Midnight Flamenco Dancer – won Best of Breed at Flatirons Kennel Club, both Saturday and Sunday, the first time out in a year.
Edmund’s kids, Myth and Elliot, received 3 Best of Winners over the weekend; Myth’s was a major. And Norma Jean won her first point. Woo hoo!
Myth as a puppy…
Looking for a photo of Norma Jean and Elliot to share, I’m reminded of people with more than one kid. The first one has an awesome baby book. The second one, a few photos. Nothing for the rest. Actually had that real experience when going through my mom’s house. The baby photo of my youngest sister was priceless.
This photo of Elliot clearly demonstrates we’ve had our head up our arse when it comes to conformation classes. We’ve been busy with agility. I claim total responsibility for iffy performances in the conformation ring. But hey! You should see him tunnel these days! It doesn’t look like this.
Norma Jean’s name is FFT Purple Marble. It’s a long story I’ll share someday, but these autographs are dear to me…
Victoria…end of an era
Posted: May 31, 2011 Filed under: FFT Lhasa Apsos | Tags: Debby Rothman, Julie Timbers, Kaylee Timbers 1 CommentIn Saying Good-bye, Julie wrote about the timeline, Victoria being there for significant milestones in her life. Looking for a graphic to include with Julie’s moving tribute, I came upon this page from an old ad.
Ah. Victoria. The foundation for the future. Biopsy normal kidneys. Olivia’s daughter. Fourth generation tail female to my foundation bitch Jelly Bean. Renal Dysplasia. Not giving up or getting out. For me too memories came flooding back, memories marking the long and winding road Julie and I have walked together. Indeed Victoria was the foundation for the future. She produced five Champion offspring, including the best Lhasa Apso we’ve ever bred.
(Sorry, but I cannot figure out how to exclude the ad from this slideshow of her Champion offspring.)
Champion FFT C’est La Vie
Champion FFT Sine Qua Non
Champion FFT Que Sais-je
Champion FFT Veni Vidi Vici RA NAP NJP CL3-R, CL3-F, CL3-H
Champion FFT Do U Wanna Dance
Each of these dogs had wonderful careers in the ring, including Specialty wins. C’est La Vie remains with Julie. After contributing to the breeding program, the other four moved on to forever homes.
Move on. We’ve talked about it off and on for years, including deep soul-searching in the mid-nineties. It wasn’t yet time. While enthusiasm waxed and wained there were still goals that excited us. Anticipation of a great puppy in the next litter. Another breeding dog achieving another Register of Merit as a producer. Kicking some a$$ at the next Specialty. Class dogs was my name and Best of Winners was my game. The group ring was Julie’s thing. She did it magnificently. We have bred and/or owned ??? 120 Champions. Our dogs have been consistent winners at Specialties, from Best in Sweepstakes to Best in Specialty Show. Many, many times. Fernando was a Best in Show dog. We’ve had dogs in the top twenty year after year. We still do, in spite of competing very little this past year. What more is there to do?
Tending garden sounds nice. Relaxing on the deck this summer sounds even nicer. Learning something new sounds grand. New challenges outside the conformation ring even grander.
Julie’s right. It is time to go forward on that new path. What’s grandest of all is that she and I continue to move along the dog path together. There’s nothing like old times and old friends, except perhaps, some old wine…shared, of course, with an old friend.
Here’s to us girlfriend! And to Victoria! Here’s to the end of an era! Here’s to our new path! Wherever that may lead us!
Mom
Posted: May 8, 2011 Filed under: DRambles on Black Mountain Leave a commentLast night I was really missing my mom. She’s been gone since 1997. Her cat Laura is still with me.
My home is filled with things I love, most remind me of someone I love. In the background of this photo I see Dante, Fernando, Julie, Ron. When I stop and observe my surroundings the people – and a dog or four – of my life are there with me. Last night sitting in the chair with Laura, across the room was the rubber tree mom sent me on Mountain Pet Grooming’s opening day in our new location. July 1995.
It sits behind my reading chair in the living room.
After mom died a friend told me after 14 years there were still times she started to pick up the phone, wanting to talk to her mom. Mom’s now been gone for 14 years. Oh! To have a phone call with her! I have so many things to tell her!
Mom exposed me to dog shows, allowing me several show dogs, a Miniature Poodle and a Shetland Sheepdog. A Standard Poodle person herself, she never understood my infatuation with the Lhasa Apso. She thought they were ‘stupid’. The things I could have shared with her along my own path! After Edie earned her Rally title, my sister Lori told me mom would have been proud of me. Obedience was one of mom’s passions. She taught obedience class right up until she went into the hospital. She had to sit on a stool to do it, but she taught. Mom was still old school. How fun it would have been to share c/t with her! To see Edie sail over the jumps this morning, doing a hard serpentine sequence… mom would see Lhasas aren’t stupid.
Julie and I discovered RD (renal dysplasia) in our breeding program in 1996, so mom was aware of that. I don’t remember if she knew about the initial research project or if that happened after her death. She gave me a love of reading and always had the latest dog magazines. Back in a time when magazines were full of articles, ads full of information rather than glitz. I devoured them. To be able to show her the research paper…she would be proud of me.
How I would have loved her to be along my side as I navigated the Gompa dog path. Not that she would have understood my infatuation – as I mentioned earlier. But she would have listened and encouraged me. I would love to tell her that I achieved something huge for my breed, the opening of the AKC gene pool. And that Haba is coming May 29th.
When I was in Vet Tech school, she’d phone every Thursday morning at 7am. Sometimes I begrudged those phone calls, stumbling down the dorm hallway to answer the phone. What I wouldn’t give today for that phone to ring and hear her voice on the other end!
Kunza at FleetFire Timbers 