Category Archives: Dogs
Foster & Maddie
It was so nice to meet this family at Southland Dog Park two Saturdays ago. (yes, I am behind!) Foster
and Maddie are two wonderful dogs and Corinne and Brian their nice people. Tashi loved them and gave her tough to earn ‘paw of approval’. Tashi, Bella and Buddah had a good romp in the mud with Maddie and Foster (the state of my vehicle will attest to how much fun they really had). Click on over to my Pets and Their People Page to meet them officially and read more of their story. I have three more great stories coming up this week! Cheers! SheilaLittle Warriors
Meet Xena and Rambo, two adorable little Chihuahuas out for their first big off leash adventure of the season.
It was a typical Calgary, windy Spring day…or as I like to call Mud, Ice, Dead Grass and Dirty Dog Season. It was a very busy Saturday at Southland Dog Park, lots of people getting out to enjoy the sunny day. I ran into some new friends that I took photos of earlier for my project, Brian with Shayla and Brody, it’s so nice to be able to go there now and wave and chat with people I now know a little. Shayla wasn’t feeling that great the day I took her photo but I noticed instantly that she was had more of a spring in her step and her little tail was a wagging. It was great to see! Please head on over to my 100 Pets and Their People page to meet, and learn more about my newest friends. Cheers!Canine Good Neighbours!
Last Saturday I went into Calgary to watch two of my good friends and their dogs, Kathy with Diego
and Ashleigh with Lola attempt to complete the Canine Good Neighbour Program Test. It is a non-competitive program and not formal obedience. It is a test to show that these dogs can be counted on to present good manners at home, in public places and around other dogs. They have to pass 12 exercises, some of which include:– Accepting a Friendly Stranger,
– Walk on a Loose Leash,
– Perform a sit, down, & stay in place,
– Come when Called,
– Calm Down Quickly after Play/Interaction, and
– Supervised Isolation for 3 minutes.
They receive either a ‘Pass’ or ‘Not Ready’. Diego and Lola both received a Not Ready; Diego because he moved from his Sit/Stay and Lay Down and Lola because she didn’t remain in her Down/Stay. Besides that they were super dogs! The testing was conducted by Larry Nielson of Konfident Kanines Inc. There were quite a number of dogs there. I am not sure how many dogs passed, but they did fantastic and looked like they made pretty amazing doggie ambassadors too.
I met Sandy and her person Leslie here, they were also doing the test. Sandy was such a sweet dog and I really enjoyed chatting with Leslie. Pop on over to my 100 Pets and the People They Love Project page to meet them and read their story.
Little Luna
So happy to meet this wonderful little Mexican girl, Luna and her people Susie & Yuki! She has newly immigrated to our country and sure seems to be settling in well. Read more of her story over at my 100 Pets and Their People page! I believe it took a couple of months to get all her testing and paperwork completed in order for her to travel. She was worth the wait!
Meet the Boys, Baker & Lenny
These two beautiful boys are the epitome of what a Labrador Retriever should be like. Smiling happy faces, easy going and comical. Get over to my 100 Pets and Their People page to learn more about them and their person Brett.
Well, it was inevitable, I heard my first “no” of the project. Actually it was only half a no…no from the person but yes to their dog, and that’s okay. I can understand, I don’t always like my photo taken, there is a reason I’m behind the lens more than I’m in front of it. I did have a lovely chat with Charlie’s person, she told me he was 14 1/2 and had been coming to the park almost daily since he was a puppy. What a handsome, sweet face he has, a real gentle soul!
The Cookie Lady and Rowdy
On one of my outings this week I had the distinct honour of meeting Dulcie and her Bassett Hound, Bella. Dulcie is fondly known as The Cookie Lady at Southland Off Leash Park. Hop on over to my 100 Pets Project Page to meet them. I must say Bella is a lovely sweet dog and has such a generous nature, sharing her person with all the other dogs at the Park.
Another cute old fella I met was Rowdy a 14 year old Scottish Terrier. He was at the Park with his people and 3 other dog buddies. Although I didn’t get a photo of them all together (the dogs had no real interest in posing) we had a great chat and I was saddened to learn that Rowdy was deaf and was dealing with cancer. Their vet has told them Rowdy is past his expiry date but he’s still plugging along. He is a sweet, friendly guy and I just had to take some photos of him.
It was great seeing him out at the Park meeting new friends and getting lots of pats and scratches. I do hope I get to meet him again.
Connection…
I admit…I have been slacking…not in taking photos for my 100 Pets Project but in sitting down, editing the photos and posting them with their stories to my blog project page. Well, no more procrastination, I poured myself a glass of wine this evening and got down to business adding four new subjects (that’s not really the right word I want to use) on my Project Page. I continue to get great enjoyment meeting all these new pets and their people; I love how people warm up to the idea of my project (usually after a slight hesitation, wondering what I am selling) when I spend a few minutes talking to them and hopefully putting them at ease.
I’m not sure if any of you are familiar with the One Little Word project that Ali Edwards does each year but I attempted to give it a try last year. It can be a very powerful thing choosing and focusing on one word for a year. Last year, my word was “Connect” and for some reason I struggled with my choice. Now this year with my project, I think connect would fit perfectly so I may go back and revisit this project. I am loving how I am making such wonderful connections every time I go out and meet new people and talk to them about their pets. I love how people light up when I ask them questions about their pets and I love the connection I see between the people I meet and the four legged friend they love so much.
Anyway, I hope you enjoy meeting my new connections. Just because its good to have a photo with a post I’ll leave you with this funny girl I met last weekend at the park. I couldn’t figure out who she belonged to but I just loved her smiling face and happy nature.
Now grab yourselves a glass of wine and head on over to my Project Page. Cheers! Sheila
Dogs and Dogs and Dogs…Oh My!
Last weekend I got the chance to take in the Alberta Kennel Club winter classic held at Spruce Meadows in Calgary. This was a Conformation, Obedience and Rally competition and the perfect place to find myself some wonderful pets and their people. (Psst…go check out my Pets and the People They Love project page for new additions!) I saw lot of preening and primping going on as I walked around

Tibetan Terriers (Adult and Pup). These are what my dogs would look like if they weren’t wild wood running dogs 🙂

The handler puts her scent on a dumbbell by rubbing it in her hands then the Judge places it amongst the other dumbbells,

The dog then returns to the handler and sits in front of them with the dumbbell in its mouth. Amazing!

2 1/2 minute sit stay with handlers out of the ring and room! They also did this in a ‘down stay’ too!
Here are some of the Junior Handlers working with their dogs in the show ring. What a confidence builder for the kids and a bond builder between the kids and their dogs.
There was lots of waiting around time for the dogs and you were able to walk around and interact with the dogs and their owners or handlers. I met some really nice people who loved talking about their pets. The show had a Sheltie and Collie Specialty which meant there were a great number of entries of those breeds at the show (I think there were 35 Shelties!) so a win at a big show like that is quite prestigious.
It was a fun couple of days; I got to meet a Tibetan Terrier breeder that was great to talk to and had adorable dogs. I love this breed (or combinations thereof like Tashi) they are such a cool dog. I learned lots about the different dog sports and got to get out and shoot with my camera. So for me…dogs and camera equal a perfect day! Cheers!