We had 4 Open shows this weekend - Canterbury Kennel Association on Saturday and The Plains Kennel Association on Sunday.
We really enjoy the Open Shows. They are much more relaxed than the Champ shows, the judges are really conscientious because they're still learning their craft, and the numbers are usually much lower, which means you sometimes get bragging rights for Group wins you might not normally get, because you were the only one in the Group.
The other fun thing about Open Shows is the Group composition is quite different, so instead of the 20-30 Cavs we'd normally see in a Champ show, there was only 1! And the Long Coat Chihuahuas were the biggest breed entry in the Toy Group.
Show 1 on Saturday and Ben was manic. There must have been a bitch in season nearby because he was a complete nutjob. He won Best Dog (Lord knows how!) and spent the entire time in the ring trying to get to the ladies. A much more mellow Ava took Reserve of Breed, Tinky took Best Intermediate Bitch and Stella came 2nd in the Baby Puppy class.
Ava went on to take Best NZ Bred of Group.
By Show 2, Ben had settled down somewhat, although he was still in lurve with every girl dog he got within sniffing distance of. He took Reserve Best Dog and then went into the runoff for Junior of Breed. He was so besotted with the bitch he was up against that the Judge suggested we just let him face her, because he was never going to stand still otherwise, so anxious was he to flirt with her. It was a grand idea. What a stack he put on to impress his utterly unimpressed would-be girlfriend. It did the trick, however, and he took Junior of Breed and then went on to win Best Junior of Group.
Tinky again took Best Intermediate Bitch while Stella appeared to have an epiphany in the ring and suddenly stopped bouncing around like the Energizer Bunny (poor Duracell - it was actually their ad with a bunny in it, not Energizer's) and started walking like a show dog. She was even lined up in first place as the judge walked them around, but she had a bit of a bunnyesque relapse and ended up coming 2nd again. Oh well.
Ava really did us proud, though and took Best Bitch, Best of Breed, Best NZ Bred of Breed and then went on to win Best in Group and Best NZ Bred of Group! Once again, when Ava won the Group, the judge thanked us for entering her and said she really is a lovely girl. We think so too.
Day 2 and this time it was The Plains shows. Ben was on his best behaviour and took Reserve Best Dog, Junior of Breed and Reserve Best of Breed.
Ava took Best Bitch, Best NZ Bred of Breed and the Best NZ Bred of Group, Stella came 2nd (again!) in the Baby Puppy Class
The real star of Team Kitaco however, was our gorgeous Tinky, who took Reserve Best Bitch but also Best Intermediate of Breed. Although it might seem like a minor win, it was actually quite significant because she beat the Best Intermediate in Show from the previous day to get it. Go Tinky!
The 2nd Plains Show and the 4th for the weekend was all Kitaco. Ava took Best of Breed, Best Bitch and Best NZ Bred of both Breed and Group. Stella finally got everything right in the same show and took Baby Puppy of Breed. And hot off her earlier win, Tinky took Reserve Best Bitch and then beat out Ben for Reserve Best of Breed. She also took the Intermediate of Breed for the second time that day. So, sooo proud of our Stink Bug. She is a beautiful girl, an utter delight and shares such a fabulous bond with her owner, Debra, that it always makes us happy when the two of them do so well.
Thanks to the CKA and The Plains KA committees for putting on such great shows, Rose and Mark for stepping in to handle Stella when we needed an extra handler, and to the very considerate person who decided the shows should be held indoors. Much appreciated.
