Monday, April 11, 2016
How has the first quarter of 2016 already passed? I guess welcoming guests and sending puppies to new homes makes the time fly, but things are never really dull around The Ottcienda.
Our plans to finish River's Grand Championship prior to breeding didn't happen. We showed her toward the end of January at a weekend of shows and she picked up one defeat toward her Grand Championship, but we realized we had more things needing our time than attending dog shows. Amidst sending puppies home, we brought Isami the Scottie back into our home to breed to Bomond and then managed breeding Danica and River. We somehow survived the Spring 2016 "Bitches In Season" season between our Scotties and Bouviers up through the end of March.
Not to dwell on bad news, but on March 11th we got some very depressing news. Mirina - La Chanson's On Broadway - that exported to Columbia had a devastating mishap with a fresh-seal food bag and her owner Sandra came home from her vet clinic to find Mirina no longer breathing. This horrible accident had us in a very low place for weeks and to this day we find ourselves tearing up at the memory of our beautiful puppy and the joy and then profound sadness Sandra has dealt with since this happened. It was a freak accident, but it has made us much more aware of situations puppies can get in to when left unattended and we will be including "suffocation prevention" materials in future puppy binders.
In lighter-spirited news, when it was time to breed River to her "boyfriend in a box" from Michigan, I drove to Colorado to work with the repro vet Dr. Greg Burns that spoke at the Repro Seminar at the Bouvier National Specialty last fall. Watching their trans-cervical insemination (TCI) process was unique and eye-opening. It was a very busy week, but a week filled with not-to-miss opportunities - working with top-notch canine repro specialists, spending time with my parents and early birthday celebrations, and spending time with the Johnson family and sharing two of our Passion grandkids with them. Our Katcher x Misty girl Nikki - La Chanson's One Singular Sensation - is now living in Colorado and entertaining Candace, her kids, and loving on all the Woodman Kennel clients. We are so thankful to still be co-owners of this young little lady and are more than appreciative of the love and expertise the Johnsons have to impart upon her.
Once I returned to SoCal, we knew we were expecting Scottie babies, but I took off to Scottsdale for a 3-day dog show weekend with Scotties and Bouviers. It was a weekend to put into a memory capsule and hold on to when we don't have the best of weekends. Friday, March 25th with Scotties had us going Winners Dog/Best Opposite Sex with Louie - Bravo Striking Performance - for a 3 point major and Gabby - Bravo Gonna B Eatin' Steak At Sardi's - was Winners Bitch, Best of Winners, and Best of Breed for a cross-over 3 point major. That same day in Bouviers our lovely Nita - CH La Chanson's Martini Madness CGC - re-entered the show ring and went Select Bitch but her singleton son Bennett - La Chanson's Orange Is the New Black - made his first foray into the show ring and ended up going Best Beginner Puppy In Show. We knew this young boy pup of ours had something special about him from the get-go!
The next day, our Bomond x Lara son Turner - Bravo The Tide Has Turned - went Winners Dog from the Bred By class and won his first major and Gabby, once again, went Winners Bitch, Best of Winners, and Best of Breed for another cross-over 3 point major. The final day, Gabby did it AGAIN and we came home with 9 points, 3 majors, and 15 breed/all-breed points on our young Scottie girl. This would ultimately rank her #16 Scottie and #20 all-breed Scottie in the country.
Upon returning, we awaited Scottie puppies and on Wednesday, March 30th, our wonderful vet Dr. Cheema delivered 7 new babies - 5 girls and 2 boys - via c-section. Bomond's third sired litter in the U.S. gives us great excitement to watch these puppies grow since his first two litters are representing the breed and Bravo Scotties so well in the show ring and in beloved homes around the country.
Not to leave much at idle, we had a strong suspicion that Danica and River were both pregnant and expecting puppies. Sure enough, ultrasounds confirmed that we are truly expecting both of our planned Spring litters and we can not be more ecstatic.
We say this all the time, but we are more thank thankful and appreciative of those who have worked for years and years before us to have the experiences, knowledge, success, failures, and boot-strap pulling-ups to impart to us as we carry on the preservation of the Bouvier des Flandres (and the Scottish Terrier, but this IS the Bouvier website after all). After several litters over the past 4 years, we see the far-reaching impact the breeders before us and those that collaborate and/or allow us to forge ahead have imparted to us. We are forever grateful, as are the people we ultimately sell puppies to.
Whether we come home with dog show ribbons or not, Rod and I are pleased with the generations of Bouviers and Scotties we are producing and look forward to seeing what this year's "batch-o-Bouvs" brings forth.