Regular Classes Winners Ribbon Colors

Winners Dog or Bitch - Purple

Reserve Winners Dog or Bitch - Purple & White

Best of Winners - Blue & White

Best of Breed - Purple & Gold

Best of Opposite Sex - Red & White

Award of Merit - Dark Green & Gold

Grand Champion Select - Light Blue & White

Best Bred-By Exhibitor - Dark Green

Best Puppy In Regular Classes - Dark Green

High In Trial - Blue & Gold

High Combined Open B & Utility - Blue & Green

Obedience/Rally Qualifying Score - Dark Green

Sweepstakes Ribbon Colors

Best in Puppy Sweepstakes - Pink & Green

Best of Opposite Sex in Sweepstakes - Lavender

Best in Veteran Sweepstakes - Pink & Green

Best of Opposite Sex in Veteran Sweepstakes - Lavender

Saint Bernard Specialty Show In Alaska

The St. Bernard Club of Alaska will host a Specialty Show today, Friday, July 29, 2011. The show will be held at the Alaska State Fairgrounds, 2075 Glenn Highway, Mile 40, Palmer, Alaska. The Specialty Show will be held in conjunction with all breeds shows hosted by Cook Inlet Kennel Club. The all breed shows will be held on Saturday, July 30th, and Sunday July 31st, 2011. Brandykegs would like to wish all the exhibitors good luck!

Junior Showmanship Ribbon Colors

Junior Showmanship Winning Ribbon Colors

1. First Place - Rose
2. Second Place - Brown
3. Third Place - Light Green
4. Fourth Place - Gray

Best Junior Handler - Rose & Green

Ribbon Colors

Regular Classes Ribbon Colors For Winners

1. First Place - Blue
2. Second Place - Red
3. Third Place - Yellow
4. Fourth Place - White

Non-Regular Classes Ribbon Colors For Winners

1. First Place - Rose
2. Second Place - Brown
3. Third Place - Light Green
4. Fourth Place - Gray

Saint Bernard Clubs In The United States (cont.)

Saint Bernard Club of Southern Oregon - Competition Type:  Obedience, AKC Rally, & Specialty

Willamette Valley St. Bernard Club, Inc. -  Competition Type:  Specialty

Middle Atlantic St. Bernard Club, Inc. - Competition Type:  Obedience, AKC Rally, & Specialty

North Texas St. Bernard Club - Competition Type:  Specialty

Great Salt Lake St. Bernard Club - Competition Type:  Specialty

St. Bernard Club of Puget Sound - Competition Type:  Obedience, AKC Rally, & Specialty

Greater Milwaukee St. Bernard Club, Inc. - Competition Type:  Obedience & Specialty

Saint Bernard Clubs In The United States (cont.)

Greater Omaha St. Bernard Club - Competition Type:  Obedience & Specialty

Northern New Jersey St. Bernard Club - Competition Type:  Specialty

St. Bernard Club of Greater New York - Competition Type:  Obedience & Specialty

St. Bernard Club of the Finger Lakes - Competition Type:  Specialty

Greater Cincinnati St. Bernard Club - Competition Type:  Specialty

Maumee Valley St. Bernard Club - Competition Type:  Specialty

Ohio St. Bernard Club, Inc. - Competition Type:  Obedience & Specialty

Saint Bernard Clubs In The United States (cont.)

Saint Bernard Club of Greater Atlanta - Competition Type:  Specialty

Greater Washington Saint Bernard Club - Competition Type:  Obedience & Specialty

New England Saint Bernard Club, Inc. - Competition Type:  Obedience & Specialty

St. Bernard Club of Greater Detroit - Competition Type:  Specialty

Greater Twin Cities St. Bernard Club - Competition Type:  Specialty

Heart of America St. Bernard Club, Inc. - Competition Type:  Specialty

St. Bernard Club of Greater St. Louis, Inc. - Competition Type:  Specialty

Saint Bernard Clubs In The United States

Alaska
St. Bernard Club of Alaska - Competition Type:  Specialty

Arizona
St. Bernard Club of Greater Phoenix - Competition Type:  Obedience & Specialty

California
Orange Coast St. Bernard Fanciers, Inc. - Competition Type:  Specialty
Sacramento Sierra St. Bernard Club - Competition Type:  Specialty
St. Bernard Club of Greater San Jose, Inc. - Competition Type:  Specialty
St. Bernard Club of Pacific Coast - Competition Type:  Obedience, AKC Rally, & Specialty
St. Bernard Club of San Diego, Inc. - Competition Type:  Obedience, AKC Rally, & Specialty
St. Bernard Club of Southern California - Competition Type:  Specialty

Florida
St. Bernard Club of South Florida - Competition Type:  Specialty

Illinois
Northern Illinois St. Bernard Club - Competition Type:  Obedience & Specialty

Indiana
Central Indiana St. Bernard Club, Inc. - Competition Type:  Specialty

Willamette Valley St. Bernard Specialty Shows

There will be two Saint Bernard Specialties held today by the Willamette Valley St. Bernard Club, Inc., Friday, July 22, 2011; at the Portland Metropolitan Exposition Center, 2050-2060 North Marine Dr., Portland, Oregon. Mrs. Michele C. Mulligan and Mr. O. M. Capodice will be the judges for these Specialty Shows. The Portland Kennel Club, Inc., will host All Breed Shows on Saturday, July 23rd, 2011 and Sunday, July 24th, 2011. Brandykegs would like to wish all the exhibitors at these events the best of luck!

Puppy Socialization (cont.)

The best time for puppies to form new relationships with other puppies and animals is between 4 and 14 weeks of age. During this time puppies might be startled by sounds or movement and exhibit fearful body postures. If a puppy is not socialized they are unable to know the difference between something that is dangerous versus something that is safe.

Taking a puppy to a dog park and just setting them loose; is not a good socializing technique. Socializing means placing them in a environment that will be pleasant not fearful. If your puppy is showing fear never force an interaction. Try to keep negative encounters out of your socializing.

Puppy Socialization (cont.)

Once puppies have had their first shots, introduction to situations and people outside your home can take place. Prior to that you must protect them from environments and exposure to things like parvo. Be sure to vaccinate your puppy, check with your veterinarian for vaccinations they will need and when.

The first three months of puppy's lives is your window of opportunity for socializing them. At this time sociability outweighs fear. This is the prime time for your puppy to adapt to new people, animals, and experiences.

Your puppy should be exposed to a wide range of age groups (infants to elderly), handicapped individuals (with canes or wheelchairs), people wearing hats, tall or large individuals. Make their exposure as diverse as possible during those three months.

Puppy Socialization (continues)

After puppies have passed the newborn stage, consider setting up a pen in an area of your home where there is more activity. This exposes them to new sounds and sights. This way sounds like televisions, washing machines, vacuums will be introduced to the young puppies.

Puppy Socialization (cont.)

Puppy Socialization actually begins with the breeder. They handle them daily from birth and introduce them to a diverse variety of surfaces, objects, and sounds during their first six weeks of life. Puppies are held in different positions and different parts of their bodies are touched as well. Paws are gently held while petting and talking to the puppy. Grooming on a limited basis can even be introduced to the young puppy.

Puppy Socialization

Puppy socialization is very important. The most critical period of time is between the ages of 7 to 12 weeks of age. During this development period your puppy determines what makes them feel safe in their encounters with the world. Your puppy should be exposed to different people, situations, and surroundings during this time. This way they become accustomed to people of many different backgrounds; various situations teach them how to react to a change in their environment; and it is also when they learn how to interact with other puppies, dogs, animals in general. You should strive to see that all these encounters are positive experiences, bad encounters can be very difficult and sometimes impossible to overcome. So take the time to offer these varied experiences but make sure it is controlled. Know the people, know the area, and know the puppies/dogs or other animals you are exposing you new puppy to; during this critical period.

Mentoring (continues)

Be a responsible breeder and mentor. Share your wealth of knowledge and experience with the novices. Your breed of dog will only benefit from embracing the idea of mentoring. We love our dogs, we are proud of them, let's keep the lines of communication open.

Mentoring (continues)

Invite your puppy/dog owners to Fun Matches, Obedience/Rally Events, Sweepstakes and Conformation. Encourage them to participate in any or all of the events. Give them names and contact information of handlers who are taking on new clients. If they are interested in handling their own puppy/dog give them some basic pointer tips. Some clubs offer training sessions on handling.

Mentoring (cont.)

Consider having a puppy party. This is a great way for the new puppy owners to meet their puppy's littermates and their families. It is a great way for everyone to share their experience of puppy ownership. Discuss chewing, digging, barking and how to handle these undesirable behaviors. Find out if the new owners are interested in showing their dog in conformation, participating in obedience/rally events, fun matches, or if they just want a pet. Finding out this information early helps you know how you can help each owner achieve these goals.

Mentoring (cont.)

Offer some basic obedience training to your new puppy owners. The importance of training should not be overlooked. A two fold way to approach obedience training is to add socialization to the session. The benefits to training and socializing a new puppy should be highly recommended.

Mentoring (continues)

Share with the new owners the importance of grooming. Invite them over to observe a grooming session. Show them the type of brushes to use for their breed, recommend a shampoo, or if they are not up for doing their own grooming put them in touch with a local grooming facility that you trust. All new owners should be encouraged to regularly brush their dogs, dogs love the one on one attention.

Mentoring (cont.)

Provide your new puppy owners with information regarding Specialty or All Breed Clubs in their area. Encourage them to attend a meeting to a local club. Clubs are a wonderful source for dog related issues; meet other people who have the same breed, training classes, fun matches, and countless other activities. Specialty and All Breed Clubs should consider offering an entry level form of membership that is free to the new puppy owners out there.

Mentoring (continues)

Mentoring means staying in touch with the new owners of your puppies. Call or email them the day after they take home their puppy. You want to make sure all is going well. This way you are letting them know that you care about this puppy, keep those lines of communication open. Be sure to let them know they can contact you with any questions they have.

Mentoring (cont.)

Responsible breeders should provide a transition bag when the new owners come to get their puppy. Things to include would be a three day supply of puppy food, make sure you include the brand name. Tell them why you use this particular brand, such as health benefits. Explain to them if they do not want to use this brand, that they need to gradually introduce the brand they will be using. Include the shot and worming history for the puppy, the new owner will find this useful when they take their new puppy for it's check-up to their vet. AKC registration paperwork, stress the importance to the new owner about registering their new puppy. Make sure you include a card with your phone numbers, email addresses, and home address(it is a good idea to include a back-up contact person just in case you are not available). Remind the new owners that the next few days of transition will be difficult for their puppy; they will miss their Mom and littermates.

Mentoring

What is mentoring? Basically it means guiding, counseling, tutoring someone. There are two very important qualities that responsible breeders should exhibit, trustworthy and mentoring. Being trustworthy means being honest about the dogs you breed. Share health issue information, behavior problems, don't just answer questions posed by someone; volunteer important information to people. New puppy purchasers don't always know what questions to ask. Mentoring should last till your help is no longer needed. When you place your puppies, do your homework. Make sure this will be a forever home. Always be available to help with advice on training, health care, behavior issues(like aggression), the importance of socialization, and always have a return policy. There should always be an open line of communication between the responsible breeder and the owner of a dog from their breeding line.

Canine Good Citizenship

The Canine Good Citizenship program started back in 1989. The CGC program recognizes dogs that demonstrate good behavior at home; as well as in the community. The CGC program is two-fold; one part of the program stresses the importance of responsible pet ownership for owners, the second part is basic good manners for dogs. All dogs that successfully pass the 10 step CGC test can receive a certificate from the American Kennel Club.

This program is often used as the first step in training a dog. Not only will you be training your dog, but you will have a great time doing it. It is a wonderful way to further the bonding between you and your dog.

After receiving the Canine Good Citizenship Award; consider going further with training. There are obedience, agility, tracking, and performance events.

Entries Close Today For Oregon St Bernard Specialties

Entries for the Specialty Shows hosted by the Willamette Valley St. Bernard Club, Inc., close today, Wednesday, July 6, 2011. There will be two Saint Bernard Specialties held on Friday, July 22, 2011; at the Portland Metropolitan Exposition Center, 2050-2060 North Marine Dr., Portland, Oregon.

Grand Championship Point Ranking

GRAND CHAMPIONSHIP POINT RANKING FOR SAINT BERNARDS IN CALIFORNIA

1. GCH CH Summerlyn's Keeping It Real - 98 GCH points
2. GCH CH Alta Vista's Billion Kilowatt CD RN - 58 GCH points
3. GCH CH Amberdee's Lion Roars Tonite Of Subira - 39 GCH points
4. GCH CH Dilettante's Quintessa - 36 GCH points
5. GCH CH Wintercrest Joy To The World - 27 GCH points

These standing are from events processed through May 31, 2011.

Colorful Fireworks

A few more shots to enjoy.

Fireworks On The Fourth

Just in case you won't be able to see some fireworks tonight, enjoy these photos.

Independence Day

Independence Day or the Fourth of July commemorates the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. The day is celebrated with parades, fireworks, barbecues, baseball games, and family reunions to name a few activities. Whatever your plans for the day, have a great day and stay safe.

Holiday Weekend With Fireworks

Keep in mind this holiday weekend, that our pets are often startled by fireworks. The loud noises, the flashes of bright light in the night sky can be quite distressing to them. You might want to bring them indoors if there is a lot going on in your neighborhood and they are scared.

Cesky Terrier

The Cesky Terrier has been added to the list of registered breeds in the Terrier Group by AKC, effective June 1, 2011. This breed was developed by Frantisek Horak(a geneticist) in Czechoslavakia. They are active dogs that love to play. Their coat is soft long and silky; colors of coat are charcoal to platinum.

Finnish Lapphund

The American Kennel Club has added the Finnish Lapphund to the Herding Group as one of their registered breeds, effective June 1, 2011. This dog was developed north of the Arctic Circle, their coat is thick and profuse to protect them from extremely cold temperatures. Coat colors include black, blonde, brown, and tan; their sweet face reminds one of a teddy bear.