This morning saw us dragging ourselves out of bed on a cold, frosty morning for the NZ Dog Judges Association Annual Judges exam, where candidate Mark Lawrence was up for his Toy Group qualification.
There was a moment, snuggled up in bed when I thought "Hey, there's 10 long coats entered. They don't need us!" A phone call at 6 :00 am to Tracey to that effect eventually resulted in us deciding that "Oh well, we really should go and support the NZDJA."
3 Best of Breeds, 2 Reserve Best of Breeds and a Junior in Show later, we decided it was, indeed, an excellent idea to get out of bed on a frosty morning and well worth the effort!
Our Poms did really well, with Emma (I Em Ma Duchess at Tribble) taking Best Bitch, Best Junior of Breed and Best of Breed. Tabitha (Tribble Witch With A Bee) actually walked on a lead (she was adorable) and showed brilliantly on the table (even though she is still sans coat) taking the Reserve Bitch, Best Puppy of Breed and the Reserve Best of Breed. Emma had better look out, in the future. Once she gets through her puppy moult, Tabitha is going to give her big sister a real run for her money. Thanks so much to Alastair at Nouveau Canine Design for his wonderful grooming. I'm sure that's what gave them the edge!
We then cleaned up in the Smooth Coats, too, Spenny (NZ CH El-Toro Rey Spencer at Kitaco), yet again, took Best Dog, Best Intermediate of Breed and the Best of Breed, while the delightful Delilah (NZ CH Maraschino Princess Ala) took Best Bitch, Best Junior of Breed and Reserve Best of Breed. Spenny was knocked out of the Intermediate In-Show lineup by the eventual winner.
It was the Long Coats where Team Kitaco really stepped up, though. Kyrie (NZ CH Kitaco's Valkyrie Warrior), yet again, proved what a quality dog she is by taking Best Bitch, Best Junior of Breed and Best of Breed. And just to prove that wasn't a fluke, she was then walked out as a finalist for Best in Show, which eventually went to the Chinese Crested. Kyrie had caught the Judge's eye, however, and he didn't hesitate to give her Junior in Show, knocking Emma and Delilah in the process (3 Juniors in the lineup? We so didn't think that one through!)
Narci (GR CH, GR JNR CH, NZ CH Mystic Legion Narcissus) took Open of Breed but was knocked out of the In-Show line-up by the Pug who took Reserve in Show.
We are so proud of Kyrie and how she is maturing. And stunned by how much she looks like Nikita at the same age. We imported Narci from Greece because we wanted to improve the NZ lines by "breeding better Nikitas" and so far. that appears to be the case. Kyrie's 6x6 scissor bite, her fabulous movement and her bullet-proof temperment (all of which she inherited from her father) added to her mother's charm and good looks is proving to be a winning combination. What is even more exciting is that Kyrie's little sister Jade is shaping up to be a better version of Kyrie.
Hope everything went well for Mark and he passed his exam. For what it's worth, we thought his judging was excellent,
Mother and daughter - pick which is which!
