Yaddle Goes to Texas!

Showing Yaddle!

On April 6, the day of the Longview show, it was almost one hundred years to the day since my beautiful Yaddle went to stay with her Mama Kathleen. Well, four weeks, actually, but I felt her absence strongly--and still do, every day, almost another month later. She's gone to stay with Kathleen before. She was in Texas for a month as a puppy, in 2021, but this visit is an open-ended one and it's gone on far too long already.

One reason for her seemingly never-ending visit was the dog show in Longview, TX the first weekend of April. Kathleen and our friend Cheryl took Yaddle to the North East Texas American Eskimo Dog Association (NETAEDA) show, along with a few Toy Fox Terriers. Our plan was to take her there in an attempt to "finish" her; that is, earn her champion degree with UKC. There were three days and six rings available that weekend, but we could only afford for her to go to one day. We decided to enter under Kathy Short and Nancy Elks, two wonderful judges who have been with UKC for a long time and really know their dogs. Teddy Roosevelt Terrier competition has gotten really stiff in the last couple of years, but I knew that these judges would give good opinions, unswayed by politics or handlers, that I could take to the bank.

Sadly, while both judges thought enough of Yaddle to give her first place in her class, she was not good enough to beat the outstanding sable female who earned Best Female in each ring. I never mind losing to a better dog and this girl was just a little bit better than Yaddle on that day. She just needs one more competition win and 40 more points (of 100), so we should be able to finish her later this year. But, for the record, it's my opinion that we still walked out of there with the BEST Teddy Roosevelt Terrier, ever. You go, Yaddle!

(Can I make a confession? As much as I would have liked to see her finished, I'm happy to have the chance to be there and handle her when she does. Does that make me a bad person?)

All the same, the show was not a total washout. The Rowan is within two wins of finishing her champion degree, while Feather finished hers at this show. It's always a good day when you can go home with a new champion in your car, no matter how many snafus got you there.

Boys! Boys! Boys!

Yaddle is my special girl. I know that she's a good representation of a Teddy Roosevelt Terrier, has a good temperament, and has a royal pedigree. Her genetic testing has come back clear of any carried conditions and diseases that might cause harmful issues in her or in any of her offspring. Other than her accident as a puppy causing her to be a "special needs" dog, she's a great candidate for carrying on my lines. I will evaluate her and her puppies after they're a couple of months old, to see where they are physically and psychologically. If I think that all is well, I might breed her one more time next year before I spay her. If I have any concern, even a slight one, she'll be spayed and retired to being my blood sugar detection dog and Rally obedience dog.

Because I won't be breeding her more than twice, probably not more than once, I need to get this right. I've been looking at pedigrees, structure, color, conformation show performance, instinct, and more for several months. I think I have it down to my choice (Naughty), but with all the important things being equal, it's the little things that are going to decide this for me. Boss' legs are a little long for Yaddle, I think, and Bud's bone is a little bit light. I think that Naughty's spicy temperament, as well as his bone and leg length are better suited for Yaddle than the others. If I could wave a wand and make him a pearl tuxedo (S/sp) instead of a pearl tricolor (sp/sp), he would be the perfect candidate, in my opinion. Such is life!

Just Chilling

Now that the show is over and the wait to meet her boyfriend continues, Yaddle is just taking it easy and relaxing at Auntie Kathleen's. She's spoiled by twice daily romps in Kathleen's large, fenced yard and bed privileges at night. She loves sitting in Kathleen's lap when Kathleen is using her computer. She also "supervises" at mealtimes and is really blossoming into being her bossy self again. I miss my Yaddle very much, but she's having a great time. Hope to see you soon, Yaddle!