Wednesday, November 30, 2005

2005 National Capital Kennel Club Dog Show

On Monday the 28th, I got to go to the National Capital Kennel Club dog show at the Howard County fairgrounds. The main reason I went was so I could see a bunch of pug dogs. One of my dreams is to own a couple pugs. I had one when I was a kid and I thought he was the cutest and funniest dog I've ever had. Unfortunately, my grandmother who we called Mimi (I have no idea why) made my mom give him away. We'd moved to Clinton, New York and were living with her at the time. Mimi for unknown reasons didn't want Puggsy as we called him to mess around with her two beribboned Yorkshire terriers. Mom as far as I know did find him a good home but I never forgot that Mimi made us get rid of him. It would be another item on a long list of grievances I had with that lady.

Anyway, it was neat to go to the dog show. All the breeds were there though some weren't in great number. I got to see one Chinese crested which was an interesting breed. They actually shave those dogs down to their bare skin which made me go "ooooo." I also got to see some bulldogs which were neat with their bat like ears. I also discovered the dog I typically think of as a bulldog was in fact a French bulldog. Those are the bigger bulldogs with the massive jaws. Regular bulldogs are a lot smaller. Before the pugs came on, I got to see some King Charles Spaniels which were cute. A young lady to the surprise of the crowd won best of breed with her spaniel puppy. It had a nice personality and the lady did a good job of handling it.

The pugs finally came on at 11 a.m. I think they had a total of either 11 or 12 dogs. They were neat to watch. One thing that surprised me about them is that pugs can let down their tails. The ideal pug has a tail with a double curl. However, when a pug is upset or nervous, they'll let their tails uncurl. One poor lady had that happen. I'm certain that cost her judging wise. Another thing that was neat about pugs was watching their faces. They have very expressive faces and it was something to watch their expressions. I thoroughly enjoyed watching the pugs. I big time hope to own a couple some day. I just need to get the place for them. Right now, I live in a two bedroom apartment on the third floor. An apartment is fine for a pug which is a small dog BUT puppies have to go to the bathroom a lot. I'm not prepared to carry the dog(s) up and down two flights of stairs five or six times a day. I hope to get a set-up like my Dad has. He fenced in part of his back yard which is connected to a glass door. When it's time for his corgis to do their business, he opens the door, they go outside, and they do their business. When they're done, he lets them back in. The fenced in part of the yard is covered in gravel and every 3 or 4 months, he'll take a heavy yard rake, rake up the dog poop, and throw it out. It's an excellent system. Some day, I'll be able to buy a house and set something up like that.

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