Tag Archives: Orlando Cluster Show

Baaaaarroooo!

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The Best Awesome Exciting Long-Awaited Hound Group.

I think it is no surprise this is my group!  I decided to go to this show because 7 B&T Coonhounds and 2 Blueticks were entered. Only 4 B&T’s showed up though.  The one B&T owner that came in and I got to talk to was really nice. I fed their male, Walker, liver. It was funny cause many of the breeds come in with “stuff” like crates and grooming tables. These folks came in with chairs, a soft sided cooler with treats, and a zip lock bag with a few show leads. LOL  Very easy going. The Bluetick handlers were a couple and Stella was their dog.  They were also showing another Bluetick. They were so nice. Very easy going and asked if I had pictures of the girls (of course I have pictures!).

The other thing about the show was how much yanking they do on the dogs. Lots of leash jerking to keep the dogs with them. Now, I’m not sure why this is. I know some were handled by handlers. So, perhaps less of a bond there? Many of these dogs are young, so they might still be in training. But one dog, the Saluki pictured, really stood out. Mostly because the lady never had to pull or yank on the lead at all! I’m pretty sure it was her personal dog by the way they acted together. And, the lady’s long blond hair kinda looked like her dog!  LOL

Some of the pictures are a bit blurry. I didn’t want to use a flash and it was low light.  I do like how the Afghans’ long fur really does look flowing in some of their pictures though.  I was good, I got the pictures down from 70 to just these!

 

Orlando Cluster Show-Hound Group

Workin' Hard for the Money

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One huge thing happened for me in the working group. I love Rottweilers!! Who knew?  Honestly, up until now I had only really ever seen mixes and BYB type dogs.  The show dogs were amazingly beautiful. Short, stocky, and sleek.  I had also never seen the black and white Newfoundland. In fact, I didn’t even realize that was an accepted coat color!  I looked it up-its called ‘landseer’.

 

Orlando Cluster Show-Working Group

Procrastination

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Who else is a victim of procrastination?  Sometimes, when I feel there is a huge job I must do, I put it off and put it off.  I was so excited about the dog show I went to see, but the idea of writing and about all the groups felt like such a big job, I didn’t want to get started.

Then, while driving today I had the idea to just write about one group at a time. This is actually good for two reasons. One, I can break down my thoughts into smaller posts and not be so boring. Two, there are almost 300 pictures. This would overwhelm even the most hard core dog lover. Like your Uncle’s vacation slide show you had to sit through as a child.

Overall the show was fascinating.  There were no seats-I wish I had known to bring my own! The day I went had 1600 dogs entered. It took place in 13 rings in 3 different buildings.  You could also walk right through all the prep/crating/grooming areas. I got to stand right next to the rings. When I first walked in I thought I had went in the wrong way-I had no idea I’d be allowed to get that close.  The little dogs have these carts that have 4 built in cages all in one. I had never seen anything it. In fact, somewhere there is a show dog warehouse full of all sorts of things people ‘need’ at these shows.  And phew! The poodle area was hard to breath. They use more hairspray than we did back in the 90’s!

The RV setups were just outside.  I know some of the folks do dog showing as a profession but some of the set ups were over the top!

Up first is the Herding group. I didn’t get to see any of these individual breed matches, just the group competition. So my thoughts? I still don’t understand why we want German Shepherds with ankles that almost touch the ground. It looks like they’ve been hit by a car to me.  I really liked the smooth Collie.  I tend to think I prefer short coats-brushing just isn’t much for me.  The Puli was awesome!  You just don’t see those often. I saw the handler getting the dog ready. It had the chords all separate, pulled into clips going through them one by one.  That is way too much work. My dogs hair can not take longer than my own to fix. (click the picture below to see the album)

Orlando Cluster Show-Herding Group

Almost the Weekend!

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I’m counting Friday (tomorrow) as weekend time. Why you ask?  Well, I’m going to my first conformation show!  It is a huge 3 day event, the Orlando Cluster Show. It is within decent driving distance.  There is also a rally event afterwords that I will be staying to watch.

So some of the breeds I will not be missing (I’ve printed and highlighted the judging program): Black and Tan Coonhounds, Bluetick Coonhounds, Italian Spinoni, and the Gordon Setters.  The Gordons are my secret crush. I might even want one someday. There is a whole list of others I’d like to see, but this show has 1600 dogs in 3 buildings, 13 rings, in 6 hours. Then the Best of Show happens. That will be a whole bunch of running around. I can’t wait!

Yippee!! Weekend is coming!!