2014 GSWC Independent Specialty Show

Trophies for the 2014 GSWC Independent Specialty & WCA Eastern Futurity/Maturity. Not all are pictured. Thank you to our talented club member, KellyAnn Kwiatek of 2K Designs, for the trophy design of the Weimaraner profile with scrollwork.

Sunday, October 5, 2014 was the annual Garden State Weimaraner Club Independent Specialty Show at North Branch Park. The club put on our usual outstanding show and everyone had a great time showing dogs, eating the delicious hot and cold buffet supplied by club members and winning raffle prizes.  As trophy chair, I was in charge of buying and organizing all the trophies and sponsors for them and was pleased with how they looked set up outside the ring and the winners seemed to enjoy them.

Our Grayhart entry at the show included three pups from our Fast Times litter (Parker x Savi), Ice, Grayhart's Going All the Way, CeCe, Grayhart's Almost Famous, CGC, and Reagan, Grayhart's Wild Life, NSD, and two pups from our Rockstar litter (Summit x Jam) Ella, Grayhart's How High the Moon, and Ember, Grayhart Light My Fire, CGC (major pointed).

After the big rainstorm the day before for the WCA Eastern Futurity, it was wonderful that the weather cooperated for our Specialty and was perfect.  The day began with the Sweepstakes and only Ice, CeCe and Reagan were eligible to compete.  What a thrill when CeCe, shown by Steve Lane, who is the breeder/owner of CeCe's sire Parker, went Best in Sweepstakes under breeder judge Michelle Govette!!!!

CeCe, Grayhart's Almost Famous, CGC, owned by KellyAnn & Chris Kwiatek & Linda Hartheimer, shown by Steve Lane, Best in Sweepstakes at the GSWC Independent Specialty Show!!!

In the Specialty Show, judged by Frank Washabaugh, CeCe, shown by Bonnie Lane, placed 3rd in her class. Reagan and Ice looked good in their classes but did not get any ribbons. Ember, was the only entry in the Bred-by-Exhibitor class and littermate, Ella, was 2nd in a large Open class. Ella went on to win Reserve Winners Bitch to the Specialty 5-pt major! I was so proud of Ella, who has had limited showing and showed her little paws off.

Ella, Grayhart's How High the Moon, owned by Brook Ryan and Linda Hartheimer, Reserve Winners Bitch to a 5-pt major at the GSWC Independent Specialty!

We had a great time with many of our Grayhart family visiting.  Nina, with Rigby, Grayhart's Rider on the Storm, TD, came to the show for a visit and Rigby was able to play with her littermates, Ella and Ember, who she hasn't seen since they were eight weeks old.  The day before after the Futurity, we took seven of our pups on a fun run at the park.

L-r: Ice, Presley, Reagan, Ember, CeCe, Savi & Ella

Grayhart Pups at the WCA Eastern Futurity

On October 4, 2014, Weimaraners from all over the US and Canada descended on North Branch Park, in Bridgewater, NJ, for the Weimaraner Club of America Eastern Futurity and Maturity.  My club, the Garden State Weimaraner Club, hosted the event along with our Specialty show on October 5th.  As there are only three futurities offered nationwide, other than Mica, Grayhart Lightfoot River of Light, (Parker x Savi) who was able to attend the Central Futurity, we decided to enter all our other futurity dogs who were available in the Eastern Futurity.

It was truly a crazy weekend, with five pups from two different litters (Rockstars and Fast Times litters) eligible, and we entered dogs in shows leading up to the Futurity to get them trained and ready for the big event.  Ice, Grayhart's Grayhart's Going All the Way, was able to stay with us for almost a month to train and get ready for the shows. Two of our Rockstars (Summit x Jam), Ember, Grayhart's Light My Fire, CGC, with owners Aimee and Josh, and Ella, Grayhart's How High the Moon, came for the weekend as did Reagan, Grayhart's Wild Life, NSD, out of our Fast Times litter (Parker x Savi).  CeCe, Grayhart's Almost Famous, lives local and her owners KellyAnn and Chris brought her to the show and were a great help with all the dogs.  I could not have managed without the help of Aimee and Josh, staying at the house, helping with the six dogs we had here for the weekend!  Trixie and Jam went on a mini-holiday to stay with Reagan's owners.  I have to add what fun we had with all our Grayhart family at the show for a mini-reunion.

The day of the Futurity started out with a big rainstorm but shows are held rain or shine.  With raincoats and nonslip shoes, we showed the dogs and were proud of how they all did among such tough competition, with many dogs shown by professional handlers.  We are proud of how well our dogs showed and three of them received placements.

Ice, Grayhart's Going All the Way was 4th place Junior Dog Futurity class.

 Ella, Grayhart's How High the Moon, shown by Steve Lane, was 3rd place Senior Bitch Futurity class.

Ember, Grayhart's Light My Fire, CGC, was 4th place Senior Bitch Futurity class.

For those unfamiliar with what the WCA Futurity is, this info is from a previous blog post on the topic with information from the Weimaraner Club of America website.

WCA Futurity and what it means


The owners of the stud or dam of the WCA Best Dog/Bitch in Futurity/Maturity receive the coveted "Pewter Dog"

Dual Show and Field Futurity Program

The Futurity Program is a breeder’s classic for Weimaraners, comparable to the Kentucky Derby for breeders of top running horses. In 1954, the Weimaraner Club of America inaugurated the Futurity Program. This program has proven to be one of the most important ever undertaken by the Weimaraner fraternity. No other program has done, or can do, as much to advance the cause of the breed both on the Bench and in the Field.

The purpose of the program is to insure the future excellence of the Weimaraner. Much time and effort has been expended in the past toward the development of the breed as we know it today. The Futurity Program is the means for the continuation of this development and improvement.

The Futurity is also a challenge, or a gamble on the future. The breeder has picked a certain Bitch to be bred to a certain Stud. It is his opinion that this breeding will produce offspring of the desired conformation and ability that will win in competition over the offspring of other breedings that are enrolled in the Futurity Program. To back up his faith in his judgment, he pays moneys into a fund that will be divided among the winners of the Futurity. These moneys are correctly termed “Forfeits” as the breeder agrees to forfeit the money if his opinion of his breeding did not prove to be correct.

Proper conformation for a hunting dog is the basis for the Weimaraner Standard. This standard describes the perfect Weimaraner. While we cannot hope to achieve perfection, the standard sets a goal for the conscientious breeder to strive toward. The conscientious Weimaraner breeder chooses, as a potential brood bitch, a female that most nearly approaches the standard. She will, in many instances, be from proven stock, and hopefully, she has been proven herself, by competition on the bench and in the field. When the breeder feels sure that his chosen bitch is an outstanding example of the breed, he begins to look for a suitable stud dog that will complement his bitch. The stud will also usually be from proven stock, and has also been proven, and has a reputation for producing high quality offspring. The use of proven bitches and studs gives the breeder little better odds, but this should not preclude using quality bitches and studs that have not previously produced. Many fine young Weimaraners were produced in the past from just such breedings. Since the Weimaraner is a hunting dog, the natural instincts of nose, desire to hunt, boldness and independence, and trainability, should also be given equal consideration when planning a breeding for the Futurity.

Because of the date lines that govern the W.C.A. Show Futurity, there are three age groups at the final date of judging. Show Futurity pups vary in age from approximately 11 months old to a maximum of 27 months. These pups are judged in three different age groups. Prior to the judging, the judge is provided with a set of the rules, which define the method of judgment. This procedure is followed so that each Futurity Class winner has an equal chance to win Best Dog in Futurity or Best Bitch in Futurity.

The W.C.A. Sectional Field Futurities are held in conjunction with the various National Classics and Championship Field Trials. The datelines established forthe Field Futurities are such that the ages of the pups in contention range from approximately 10 months to 30 months old. Field Futurity puppies are judged according to the AKC Derby Dog Standard of Judgment.

The goal of all Futurity Breeders and owners is, of course, to record a win in the Futurity. The “Ultimate Goal” is to win both a Bench Futurity and a Field Futurity with the same dog. A breeder or owner can also take great pride in a placement in any of the Futurity Sectionals. It should be remembered that all of these pups are bred for excellence, and a placement in this type of competition is indeed a prestigious accomplishment.
There are also financial rewards for winning.

Ember's Major Win!!!!

 We had an amazing win at the Mid-Hudson Kennel Club show in New Paltz, NY last weekend.  Ember, Grayhart's Light My Fire, CGC, from our Rockstar litter (Summit x Jam) went Winner's Bitch from the Bred-by-Exhibitor class and then on to go Best of Opposite in the Best of Breed class to earn a 3-point major win!  Ember defeated three bitch specials, including her mother, Jam, which gave her the additional bitch number needed to turn the 2-pt win into a 3-pt major!  This was unexpected and we were thrilled that Judge Pat Mowbray recognized our lovely Ember who moves with big sidegait.  She also commented how happy she was and we have to agree, Ember is a pistol and her tail never stops.

 This was only Ember's 4th time in the show ring and she was solid and showed like a pro thanks to the wonderful training of her co-owners, Aimee and Josh.  They are training Ember for agility and obedience and plan to debut in those venues this fall.  

Party all night long

 The Rockstars partied like it was 1999, each celebrating their first birthday in their own way.  Above, Ember, Grayhart's Light My Fire, had a party that would make any pup envious.

Chloe, Grayhart's Walk this Way, our resident city girl, was a fashionista in her Princess attire, and yes, she wears that crown daily!

 Roxy, Grayhart's Silver Rocket, showing off one of the fabulous birthday presents, handmade tugs made by Rigby's mom, Nina, that she thoughtfully sent to all the littermates in colors that matched their original collars!

 Roxy enjoyed her frosty paws ice cream and then had even more fun destroying her party hat!

 Rigby, Grayhart's Rider on the Storm, had a birthday week which included a party at a lake, that's our beautiful girl on the dock and playing with her friends. She also got to go tracking with her mom and her tracking group.

Ella, Grayhart's How High the Moon, who was the first in the litter to get a title, her AKC STAR Puppy, had a great weekend home with her family.

Chase, Grayhart's Freeway Jam, got all kinds of fun presents and played with his BFF Mia.

Gabi, Grayhart's Something to Talk About, had a zen-like birthday doing yoga poses...

 and there is always one who parties a little too hard...sleep well Ember!

Happy 1st Birthday to our Rockstar litter!!!!

Where has the year gone?  This incredible litter was brought up during Hurricane Sandy and we lost power for 17 days!  We also learned about losing a life, little Miss Pink, no matter how much you do, it is the way of Mother Nature and tube feeding and nursing a baby boy round the clock, who was an amazing fighter and we never gave up on him.  They are truly Rockstars and make music wherever they go.  These talented pups have been busy training for show, tracking, agility, obedience and therapy dog work.

Happy Birthday to our Rockstars - Chase, Chloe, Ella, Ember, Gabi, Rigby and Roxy!!!

The Rockstar litter is sired by BIF BISS CH Pike's Peak Silversmith Summit, SH, SDX, NRD, V, BROM and  out of Jam, CH Grayhart's Purple Haze, CD, JH, AX, AXJ, SD, VX.

Rockstar Update: Rigby & Roxie...pirated post from Rigby's blog!

Thank you Nina for Rigby's (Summit x Jam) fabulous blog posts...now for your reading pleasure...

Catching Up a Bit

I haven't posted for a while about Rigby and her exploits, so in order to bring the blog up to date this posting will be a mix of subjects, stories and photos.

As Rigby continues to grow and mature into a lovely young dog she is going through some mischievous times and her curiosity leads her to many new adventures.

BURIED TREASURE

The couch in our living room is a sectional that curves along a corner of the living room, creating a bit of an open space where we have a lamp placed.  Since Rigby's arrival, that space containing the lamp has also become a storage area for our throw pillows, keeping them safe from puppy teeth.

Recently Rigby has become more interested in the open space and she takes her toys to that area of the couch and holds them there while gazing into the void.  Now it seems that she thinks it's a hiding space for her treasures and, when we can't find one of her toys, that is the first place we look.

The other morning, as I was preparing to take Rigby for a walk, I could only find one of my tennis shoes sitting by the couch where I had left both of them.  I searched high and low, room to room looking for my other shoe, not understanding how one shoe would be where I expected, but the other one totally gone.  Then it hit me, Rigby must have taken my shoe.  Sure enough, when I looked behind the couch, there was my shoe in her special hiding place!

CRATE GAMES

Rigby's favorite crate game is not one you'll see on any video for training dogs to love their crate, it's one she has developed and perfected on her own.  She loves to take her Nylabones and stick them through the openings in her wire crate and drop them on the floor.  Now, as you might imagine, this takes a bit of skill to get the bone positioned in her mouth just right so that she will have the correct angle to line the bone up with the openings in the crate, then to push it far enough through until it falls out of the crate.  Sometimes she will even use her paws to get the bone into the desired position.  

She knows that when Rocky hears the bone drop he'll come to get it and go chew on it.  Then she protests loudly, crying and barking, until Dan or I fetch the bone from Rocky's mouth and return it to the crate.  Because she has several bones in her crate, at times there will be two bones laying on the floor near her crate that she has pushed through the bars. 

IN THE PINK

Rigby loves pens and so we try to keep all writing utensils out of her reach at all times.  The other night, though, I fell asleep on the couch with a red marking pen in my hand.  It must have fallen onto the couch where Rigby was chewing a toy beside me.  I woke up to the voice of my husband telling Rigby, No, and him trying to wrest the pen from Rigby as she was totally destroying it.  There was red ink on a couple of the throws we had on our couch as well as Rigby's legs and her chest.  She did a pretty good dye job on herself, but we're just pleased that no ink got on the couch.

Aww, don't tell everyone what I did!

You can see the pink on the white spot on her chest!

Rigby Red Legs -- she might start her own baseball team!

This shows the ink on her chest and her legs.

These stories show just a bit of Rigby's personality, the crazy puppy side.  For the most part Rigby is maturing into a well-behaved family dog, who listens pretty well.  She has been accompanying me to many different places and meeting people along the way.  Her manners are improving nicely and it's seldom that she attempts to jump on people.  Her mouthing has gotten to a minimum and usually only happens when unknowing people dangle their hands above her head as though they are toys to play with.  Her play time with Rocky has taught her to enjoy other dogs and she is always friendly and happy to meet new friends.

A PUPPY CELEBRATION!

One of Rigby's sisters, Roxy, (formerly known as Miss Yellow) had a big day with her family earlier this spring as she reached an important milestone in a puppy's life -- at least a Jewish puppy's life -- when she celebrated her Bark Mitzvah!  Here are some photos from the celebration, as well as some family photos.

Roxy at the synagogue.

Roxy and her family.

Aunt Danielle got in the photo, too!

The perfect pose -- Roxy is ready to follow in her
mom's footsteps for a modeling career!

Roxy on the day of her Bark Mitzvah!

The Rockstars almost 5 months old!

Ember, Grayhart's Light My Fire, (Summit x Jam)

Most liked pics of 2012

A fun Facebook app made this cool collage of our most "liked" photos of 2012.  Are you surprised that the top picks are of puppies?  Brings cuteness to a new level...and these are all from our Rockstar litter!  Top left, Jam with newborn pup Miss Stripe aka Ella, top right, our breeding announcement for our Rockstar litter of Summit and Jam.  Bottom left, Miss Green, aka Ember, and bottom right, Miss Leopard aka Gabi at 8 weeks.

Chase in the Cupboard!

Look who we found in the cupboard!  Chase, only 9 1/2 weeks old, is such an inquisitive, bold pup and loves to explore.  I heard rustling noises and went to investigate and there he was, among the dish towels.  I took him out and he immediately wanted to lay in my lap but I had more cooking to do.  I put him on the floor and he climbed back into the cupboard and laid down to take a nap....well, I spoiled his fun and put him in his dog bed to nap.

J-S Pups: The Rockstar 8 week stacks

When the Rockstar pups turned 8 weeks old, we invited a few breeder friends over to help with the conformation evaluation.  These are respected and experienced breeders who have had great success in their breeding programs with show and performance dogs.  Ultimately, the decision was mine on deciding which pup goes to which home, but their valuable advice along with the temperament testing, makes my task a lot easier.  Below are our show/performance prospects who will be hitting show rings around the east coast.

"Ember"  Grayhart's Light My Fire

 "Gabi"  Grayhart's Something to Talk About

 "Rigby"  Grayhart's Rider on the Storm

 "Chloe"  Grayhart's Walk this Way

"Ella"  Grayhart's How High the Moon

The Rockstars are Produced by:

CH Grayhart's Purple Haze, CD,JH,OA,OAJ,SD, CGC ,VX

"Jam" 

x

"Summit"

Futurity, Specialty & Multiple Group Winner... 

CH Pike's Peak Silversmith Summit, SH,SDX,NRD,V

J-S Pups: The Rockstars go on Tour!

The last two weeks were beyond crazy and bittersweet as the Rockstars left for their new homes.  This litter was more work than usual due to hurricane Sandy and issues with Miss Pink and Chase, but the pups not only survived, they thrived and we are excited to introduce the Rockstars and their fabulous new families!

Presenting our Rockstars, born September 15, 2012, sired by Summit, BIF, BISS CH Pike's Peak Silversmith Summit, SH,SD,NRD, V and out of Jam, CH Grayhart's Purple Haze, CD, JH, OA, OAJ, SD, VX. 

Ember, Grayhart's Light My Fire, aka Miss Green, owned by Aimee Bederka, Josh Lutynski & Linda Hartheimer, off to a career as a show girl & agility star.

Chloe, Grayhart's Walk this Way, aka Miss Raspberry, owned by Michael Demkiw, Rosalie & Lauren Wong & Linda Hartheimer, off to a career as a NYC fashion icon, therapy dog & possible show pup.

Rigby, Grayhart's Rider on the Storm, aka Miss Purple, owned by Nina Biehler & Linda Hartheimer, off to Pittsburgh to be a performance star.

Gabi, Grayhart's Something to Talk About, aka Miss Leopard, owned by the Carver family & Linda Hartheimer, off to Virginia to become a show girl.

Ella, Grayhart's How High the Moon, aka Miss Stripe, owned by the Ryan family & Linda Hartheimer, off to upstate New York to be a buddy to Smokey the Weim & possibly be a show girl & therapy dog.

Roxie, Grayhart's Silver Rocket, aka Miss Purple, owned by the Dahling family in New York, already winning the hearts of the family, especially Aunt Danielle.

and last but not least, our keeper, Chase, Grayhart's Freeway Jam, aka Mr. Orange, has made himself right at home.