Little girls are made of...

Some of you know that I love my male dogs.  Girls were nice, but too many times I've seen traits that really didn't fit my personality or style of training.  My mom always said that females were more loyal, loving and overall better dogs to be around.  Our dachshunds were mostly females, except for the one that grew up with me.  "So High" was the only dog we owned with papers, and even though he had a tendency to wander if the gate was left open (yes, he was intact until the day he went to the rainbow bridge), he had that demeanor that upon looking back, just fit my personality.  Sure, our girls were fun and loving and loyal, but they were GIRLS!  Fast forward to my first dog when I left home, a GSP bitch.  I listened to mom and got a bitch versus the gorgeous male the little girl was holding when I walked through the door of the breeders house.  MISTAKE!  I spoiled her a little (ok, maybe a lot) and while she loved to hunt and go for rides, she was stubborn, vindictive in a way, and truthfully, she really didn't care if she pleased me or not (yep, it was all about her).  The day I placed her she just walked away and never looked back.  Wow, talk about a slap in the face.  I said I'd never own another female.  And then I discovered the world of dog showing...

Swing, Oct. 2011

I started showing in obedience with my male GSP (the son of the one I placed). He was a wonderful Novice A dog, very forgiving but also a little slow to mature and pick up what I was trying to teach him. He always tried for me and that is what I like about males. He never tried to defy me in any way and he was loyal and loving. His only fault was he loved to chase cats, and if he got out of the back yard then he was off and running through the neighborhood. He got his CDX and was starting to show in Utility when he got cancer. By then I had gotten my first Weim and since I had been exposed to the breed ring (showing Welsh Springer Spaniels) I wanted a dog I could show in breed as well as obedience. Five finished his Championship when he was just over four years old, all owner handled and on average we showed about 17 times a year in breed.  Yeah, it took a while but I was a green handler and he was a Canadian bred dog that didn't have the same style that a lot of the dogs here in the east have (he was from a breeder north of Vancouver).   My next dog came from a breeder here in PA and when I met her I told her I wanted a male that I could owner handle to his CH, show in obedience, tracking, etc.  I wanted an all around dog that I could do it all with.  I got Dodge and so far he's panned out to be exactly what I had hoped for and more in many ways.  Our journey is far from over.

Which brings me to Swing.  I realized that there was only going to be one way I would ever get a male puppy from Dodge so I told Amy that if she could produce something like her old bitch Indi-Anna (http://www.graytsky.com/Indy-Anna.html), whose style/type I like, I would consider getting a bitch.  Indi-Anna, like most of the GraytSky bitches, is very sweet and pretty as far as I'm concerned.  She's Dodge's great grandmother and has the pedigree that contains dogs that I find pleasing.  When Amy told me that she was going to be involved in a breeding that went back to Indi-Anna's sire I figured it was a sign, here was my chance to get a bitch with the pedigree I like that I could breed to Dodge for that future male puppy!  I was in (and I didn't arrive at that lightly)!  And the M&M litter was born.

What do I think of owning a female?  Nancy my obedience trainer asked me last night what I thought of Swing and without hesitation I said "she's a blast!".  Mom is right, she is very loving, loyal (so far) and sweet.  Maybe I'm a bit wiser and I've learned some things about raising and starting a puppy.  Life is all about her but on my terms.  She has the drive and work ethic I like in a dog and she always tries to do things that please me.  Yes, she has a couple of small quirks that I chalk up to being female characteristics, but she's NOTHING like the GSP bitch I had 25 years ago.  She may be my one in a million, time will tell but I certainly hope that she isn't.  She still has a lot of growing and maturing to do (she's only 5 and a half months old) but I am optimistic that she'll be a fabulous competition/show partner, along with being the wonderful pet that she is right now.  So while I never thought I would own another bitch I am finding that this new adventure is more exciting than I could have imagined.  Yeah, I'll keep her...

To finish the title, Little Girls are made of "the old, mixed with some new, add in some tried and true rearing, and a Grayt team of breeders", you just can't go wrong.