And now, back to our aspiring butterfly, Axel.
As I picture my large and overbearing Rottweiler boy fluttering around with delicate wings, I am thinking that perhaps I chose the wrong change metaphor for today’s musings. Perhaps I should have used the ugly duckling and the swan.
Axel has never been ugly, though. He did go through the typical gawky stage where he was all leg and no chest, but he has always had a beautiful head to reassure us that he would in fact grow up into a handsome, well-proportioned dog. Which he has.
As I’ve mentioned a few times, it’s rather quiet here because Axel is away. The goal is for him to finish his American championship before I run out of money. I say this only half-jokingly as I remind myself of how quickly his father finished, and try not to think of other friends and acquaintances who have spent five- and six-figure sums to finish their dogs.
If you’re not familiar with AKC championships, of course AKC’s site can explain it better than I can. Short version: Axel has to earn 15 total points. Points for a given show are based on the number of dogs entered for the breed. Two of those shows need to have a large enough Rottweiler entry to be worth 3-5 points. He must show under at least three different judges. Best case scenario: three shows, three different judges, three 5-point majors. Very unlikely. Worst case scenario (other than not finishing at all): see above, 5- and 6-figure expenditures.
Right now Axel is still in training. He’s living with his handler and traveling to the shows with her, her dogs and her other client dogs to get accustomed to the atmosphere and activities that he’ll soon be in the thick of. At last report, he’s progressing well. He has had a few issues with accepting strangers and strange dogs, but he’s getting past it and will soon be ready to make his ring debut.
Unfortunately, I probably won’t be able to watch him in the ring. It’s actually not uncommon for a dog to show poorly if Mom or Dad is in the line of sight. Axel is definitely one of those dogs. When we tried some show training with a local handler, I couldn’t even be in the hall at training. Once I was out of sight, though, he’d settle down and get to work.
His first show will probably be at the very end of this month, and I hope to have good news to post. If not, I hope there is at least a good story!
On a related note, I’m sure many of you have seen the recent news about PETA urging USA Network not to air the Westminster Kennel Club show in February, much as they did with the BBC and Crufts in the UK.
I am all for animal welfare. Welfare, not rights. I am totally against animal rights terrorists like PETA. I have never personally been at an event where dogs were released or poisoned by animal rights terrorists, but I do worry about it someday affecting me up close and personal, given the high profile of groups like PETA these days.
Ummm....Yeah...... says
Good luck to you and Axel!
kathi says
Thank you! Eagerly awaiting this week’s progress report probably tomorrow.