Web Site Excerpts from the Quarterly Newsletter

November 1998 - Issue 12

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Vizsla Fun Day by Becky Smith
CWVC Field Trial Report by Mark Smith, Field Trial Chairman
Ottawa Hunting Dog Seminar by Penny Honetor
Ways to Win! by Becky Smith
1998 VCA Nationals Report by Becky Smith

Vizsla Fun Day

by Becky Smith The Central Wisconsin Vizsla Club had its 2nd annual Fun Day on Sunday, August 9, 1998. Good people, good Vizslas, good food, and good "fun" made it a day worth coming out for. After the club meeting, a great lunch, and the handing out of door prizes, Jacqui Fredricks gave a talk on emergency first aid for our canine friends. She included a comprehensive list of things to carry in your first aid kit, what to do in cases of cuts, abrasions, broken bones, and various other emergencies you might encounter when out hunting or enjoying activities with your Vizsla, and then answered questions. Everyone learned a great deal! Next came the games. Many Vizslas and their owners participated, and all had a good time. After all, there was no pressure-it was just for fun! The winner of each game received a nice prize. The Longest Point was won by Mike Shea with Maverick. Four quail were placed in the field in a trap. Each handler had the choice of leaving their dog on lead or taking them off and letting them find and point the birds. No "whoaing" was allowed. Maverick made an impressive point from 30 feet. Mike and Maverick received a canteen for their efforts. The Best Kisser had to be divided into two categories to accommodate those Vizslas that were a bit shy about demonstrating their affection for their owners in public. Three judges had to choose which Vizslas were the best kisser in the categories of sweet little kisses and all-over wet kisses. Participants had to name their category before they started. Winners were as follows: Sweet Little Kisses Category: Joy Sonsalla with Reesa (not quite fair as Reesa was a 4-month-old puppy and what judge could resist that!), All-Over Wet Kisses: Ginger Tierney with Comet. Next came the Longest Ear/Tail Combination. Some Vizslas were a bit more cooperative about being measured than others, but all finally cooperated. Winners were Lyn Frank with Babe, whose ears measured 5-1/4" and tail 10-3/8" for a total of 15-5/8". Lyn and Babe won a canine doormat. The Weiner Walk was for dogs who had a propensity toward food (like that narrows it down!) Eight paper plates were placed on the ground with a slice of hot dog on each one. The dogs were turned loose one at a time and the dog that found and ate the wieners in the least amount of time was the winner. Tommy Ruhland with Allie were the winners of the canine doormat. Musical Chairs was next. One observer called it cut-throat musical chairs. When the music stopped, the handlers, who were healing their dogs around the chairs, had to put their dog on a sit/stay before they could get a chair which numbered one less that the number of handler/dog teams. If their dog got up during the sit/stay, they had to get up out of their chair too. If the person who had not gotten a chair in that round could get their dog into a sit/stay quicker than the person whose dog got up, they could try to take the empty chair first. Winners of this event were Lyn Frank with Babe. Babe took home a stuffed gorilla for her good sit/stays. Lyn reports Babe absolutely loves it and has been keeping Lyn busy sewing up the holes! The last event was the most popular: The Fastest Vizsla in Wisconsin contest. Once again, Kerry and Cheryl Brimmer donated an etched trophy to the winner. Basically, the fastest Vizsla in a 50-yard dash with cheering and exclamations of "Look at that dog go!" or "Man, is he/she fast!" Winners this year were Becky Smith with Seger with a blazing time of 4.68 seconds. In addition to the games, Mark Smith and John and Mary Seyer spent the afternoon introducing beginning dogs to birds. Thanks to everyone who helped with this event and to everyone who donated prizes. We'll look forward to seeing you all again next year!!!.

CWVC Field Trial Report

By Mark Smith, Field Trial Chairman The CWVC's second field trial was held on September 5 & 6, 1998. Despite temperatures in the upper 80's and high humidity, there were many awesome performances. Dogs were entered from Wisconsin, Minnesota, Illinois, Missouri, Iowa, Tennesee, Texas, and Pennsylvania. Congratulations to all club members who received placements and Honorable Mentions with their dogs!  I'd like to thank everyone who worked at this event. We had a number of club members who were not entered, but came to help out the cause anyway. The help was greatly appreciated and much needed. Also thanks to Ralston Purina for donating a blaze orange hat and an 8-pound bag of Pro Plan for every handler. This added a special touch to the CWVC's trial that you normally don't see, and all the handlers appreciated it. The club made just over $200 on this event, not including food. Expenses were higher than last year due to the club's having to rent two horses and getting more expensive trophies this year. We also closed the entry with fewer dogs because of the breakdown of the entries (we had more dogs in the stakes that run longer braces). Thanks again to everyone who lent a hand! CWVC Field Trial Web Page Results: * CWVC Member Vizsla Open Limited Gun Dog 1.  FC/AFC Lifo Riley - Gina & Tony Ordonez 2.  Dasa Motee - Dean Nelson 3.  Triad's Keepsake of Oakleaf - Linda Kelly* 4.  Oakleaf's Dust in the Wind - Paul & LaDonna Lange Honorable Mentions: FC/AFC Buster Brown Zak - Paul & Jill Howard CH Boumans Against the Wind MH - Mark & Becky Smith* Open Derby 1.  Wright's Deadeye Barkley - Curtis W. Wright 2.  FC/AFC Lifo Riley - Gina & Tony Ordonez 3.  Richie Whompums Rebel Rupert - Jim Couris 4.  Piper's Upwind of Bunker Hill - Valerie Piper Open Gun Dog 1.  Richie's Rebel Rouser Roxy Jim Couris 2.  AFC/JD Duke of Voorhies John Houck 3.  Oakleaf's Dust in the Wind Paul & LaDonna Lange 4.  Rebel Rouser Schuyler Larry Barnett  Amateur Limited Gun Dog 1.  FC/AFC Lifo Riley - Gina & Tony Ordonez 2.  Rebel Rouser Ice - Bill Elliott 3.  FC/AFC Buster Brown Zak - Paul & Jill Howard 4.  Oakridge Gunner's Bullet - John & Mary Seyer* Open Puppy 1.  Clearcut Barco Skidder - Lorrie Lee* 2.  Rimfire Deacon's Danc'n Willie - Jim & Joan Melicharek* 3.  Redwings Cranberry Tea JH - Leroy & Lois Greffin 4.  Copper Creek Casey - Larry & Teresa Barnett Amateur Gun Dog 1.  Desert Storm's Ginger Brandi - Barry Peterson 2.  Oakridge Gunner's Bullet - John & Mary Seyer* 3.  CH Maximum Strider SH - Wanda Berner* 4.  Golden Empire Oakridge Top Gun - John & Mary Seyer*

Ottawa Hunting Dog Seminar

by Penny Honetor What in the world is a lanyard? This and many other questions were answered at the first annual Hunting Dog Seminar held at the Ottawa Field Trial Grounds on August 30, 1998. The CWVC participated towards fulfillment of Ottawa-Eagle Field Trial Grounds Association member hunting breed clubs’ obligation to assist the DNR with public service activity in exchange for a supply of pheasants from the DNR at our field trials and hunt tests. Assigned to Pre-Event Publicity & Registration, CWVC volunteer committee members consisted of Mark Smith (chairman), Joy Sonsalla, and Penny Honetor. The committee created and distributed posters and flyers to places in southeast Wisconsin such as Ottawa & Bong State Parks, pet supply stores, sporting goods stores (Gander Mountain, Herters), and to local hunting breed clubs. Newspapers in Kenosha, Milwaukee, Madison, and Mukwonago were sent the details and writeups were printed. Pre-registrations were taken by phone & Email, and check-in was staffed by the CWVC committee one hour before the seminar began. Kettle Moraine English Setter Club volunteers put on the lunch. 48 people attended with their flushing, retrieving, or pointing breed dogs. The day started with a group talk from the DNR on grounds use and bird permit requirements, after which the 3 groups split up to be instructed by their respective professional trainers. The pointing breed instructor was Mike Kindler of Sandhills Kennel, a familiar face at our spring hunting test. Hunting training instruction and demos were given from beginning puppy work through advanced levels. Beginning after lunch, field work on live birds allowed participants to receive one-on-one work with Mike with help from others such as Mark Smith. Other clubs assisting were Badger State Hunting Retriever Club, German Shorthaired Pointer Club of Wisconsin, Kettle Moraine Chapter of NAVHDA, and Kettle Moraine Chapter of NSTRA. Due largely to the tremendous efforts of the CWVC committee members, this was one of the largest Hunting Dog Seminars ever of all those hosted throughout the state. About $1000 was raised to be used towards Ottawa Field Trial Grounds improvements, the most imminent being electrifying the pavilion. Great publicity, great weather, great food, and great trainers made for one great day! For those of you not-yet-hunters (like me), a lanyard is the rope you hook your whistle to and put around your neck. Ottawa Hunting Dog Seminar Web Page

Ways to Win!

by Becky Smith Seems like any of us who participate with our Vizslas in conformation, obedience, field, agility, or any other venue have that competitive spirit. We LIKE to win--some of us more than others. Mark and I certainly have the competitive spirit, and we've done our share of winning. If we hadn't, I doubt that we would load up our dogs, our tack boxes, our crates, etc., etc., etc., and go to the field trials, the shows, the agility trials. Something keeps us going! Part of it is the camaraderie, part of it is the fun, but part of it is the feeling that our dogs can compete, and win. Still, as I look at the six years we've been involved in showing Vizslas in the various venues, there are very few wins I actually remember. I remember when I got a Sporting Group placement; I remember the first field trial win; and I remember going BOW at the Illinois specialty. But guess what. There are very few, if any, other wins I truly remember. One flows into the other. So, how important is winning? Or perhaps a better questions is, "What constitutes winning?" The answer to the last question is different for each person. Winning does not necessarily mean you take home the ribbon or trophy. Let me give you some examples: The 1997 National Field Events was a banner event for us. Did we bring home a ribbon? No. Did we get called back for the second series? No. But one of the event judges made it a point to come over to Mark one evening to tell him how much he liked our dog (even though he had gone birdless that particular day). He said, "You know he reminds me of the best dog I ever had. You maybe heard of him--Brooks Willie Whompum." Mark was on cloud nine. To top it off, another long-time and well-respected Vizsla person came up and said, "I haven't seen my husband's eyes light up like that over a dog in years." Her husband had the first dual champion and first field champion in the breed in the United States (if I'm not mistaken). Mark said afterward, "I felt like I won the whole works when she said that to me." What about the guy who belongs to the Vizsla listserv on the Internet who uses his dog for search and rescue? Several months ago he related a story of his dog finding a little child who was lost. Did he get a ribbon for it? Heck no! But he was a big winner that day! Winning can come in so many ways. Mentoring and helping beginners, helping people find the litter that held the perfect puppy for them, helping someone who is having trouble in the show ring, or from helping people work through a problem they are having with a dog. In some cases, those people are considering giving the dog up and end up keeping it because we were able to help them or put them in touch with someone who could. Not only did we win, they did and so did their dog. I guess what I'm saying is that whether you are just starting out or have been in the breed and participated in competitive events for awhile, don't put too much emphasis on ribbons and trophies. There are many things you will do, many people you will meet, and many nice things that will happen to you because of your dog. Those will stay in your mind much longer than the moment the judge pointed at you and handed you the ribbon. Recognizing them as being what is really important is what will make you a winner!

1998 VCA National Events

by Becky Smith The 1998 VCA National Events were held during the last week of October 1998 in Nebraska. The field trial was held in Lincoln, and the obedience, agility, and conformation events were held in Omaha. The stained glass Vizsla piece donated by the CWVC received the highest bid of $350 at the silent auction. It was purchased by Suzanne Gray. The National Amateur Championship Trophy that was donated by the club was won by Dean Nelson and his Vizsla, FC/AFC Dasa Motee, from Michigan. Members of the Central Wisconsin Vizsla Club in attendance at 1998 VCA Nationals included: John & Mary Seyer, Robert Tomczak, Paul & Jill Howard, Mark & Becky Smith, Jim & Lyn Frank, Wanda Berner, Inge Siggelkow, Brian Schumacher, Gwen Tomlinson, Polly Poulos, Sharon Shea, Debbie Taylor, Penny Honetor, Joy Sonsalla & Bill Quandt, Sue & Steve Prim, Linda Kelly, Lorrie Lee. Congratulations to the following members who earned ribbons and trophies at this year's National Events: Robert Tomczak ●  Mishka ●  Field Trial Wanda Berner ●  Jennie●  Field Trial Inge Siggelkow ●  Emma ●  Conformation Gwen Tomlinson ●  Kizzy ●  Conformation Brian Schumacher ●  Anna ●  Conformation Sue Prim ●  Faye ●  Agility Joy Sonsalla ●  Rhode ●  Agility Penny Honetor ●  Neela ●  Agility Lyn Frank ●  Babe ●  Obedience Polly Poulos ●  Buckley ●  Obedience  As you can see, the CWVC was represented well in all aspects of competition and everyone enjoyed themselves! Next year's VCA Nationals will be held in Northern California.

End November 1998 "The Paw's Print" excerpts |  February 1999 "The Paw's Print" >>