Good Sunday to you all! The other day Lori tagged me. I’m supposed to tell you ten new things about me. Haven’t I already told you everything there is to know about me? I finally decided it would have to be something really old or something really new in my life. So I’ll tell you a few things about me and dogs. That ought to do it.
1. I have loved dogs all my life. And been obsessed about purebred dogs for a very long time. When I was little, me and my sister shared a room. And yes, believe it or not, we are both still alive. Anyways, I used to torture her by making her listen to me list off all 125 of the purebred dogs accepted by the American Kennel Club–I had them memorized. That was in the olden days. Now the AKC accepts 165 purebred dogs!!
2. I made a list of 25 breeds I was going to own when I was grown-up. My plan (I think) was to be independently wealthy and to have a beautiful kennel, and to own a pair of all these dogs AT THE SAME TIME.
3. Breeds of dogs I have owned in my life so far: Miniature Poodle, German Shepherd, Cocker Spaniel, Standard Poodle, Lhasa Apso, Doberman Pinscher, Shih Tzu, Maltese, Bouvier des Flandres, Dachshunds, Great Pyrenees (mix) and Pug. Some of these breeds weren’t even on my original list. I have a ways to go.
4. If there were sound effects in this blog, there would have been the sound of screeching brakes after the mention of Cocker Spaniel. I got my first Cocker Spaniel for my 13th birthday. And I convinced my mom that we should breed and show cocker spaniels. Until I was about 28 years old, we raised and showed many many cocker spaniels.
5. One of our male cockers was one of the top winning cocker spaniels in 1976. He and another male were two of the top producing studs, producing 36 and 54 champions. Don’t ask how many actual puppies they produced…
6. I was a ‘professional handler’ for a while (charged people to train, groom, and show their dogs. I did all right. The top award I ever won was a Sporting Group First. That was also at the same time I was my ‘skinniest’—I weighed 124 pounds. I love that picture.
7. I owned my own grooming shop for quite a while in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area. Then when I moved to Wichita Falls, I opened up a pet shop with my brother, and I still had a grooming shop in the back. THAT WAS FUN!
8. Now I think it is immoral to spend so much money on dogs. I think it is a crime what purebred breeders have done by concentrating on the beauty of the dogs, and not paying attention to the health. I know this will make some people mad. But just get on any purebred dog site, and read the long list of hereditary diseases and physical problems that almost every breed has. And yes, I was guilty of this as well, during the years we bred cocker spaniels.
9. But I still love purebred dogs. I still love beautiful dogs. Thus, the adoption/rescue mindset.
10. Dogs are amazing. Their loyalty and unconditional love are an inspiration to me. I LOVE watching dogs work. It is absolutely amazing to watch guide dogs, herding dogs, police dogs, obedience dogs, etc. I always get teary watching them. Last night Mr. Monk and I watched a new movie, Hachi, A Dog’s Tale. Just a sweet story of the extreme loyalty of one dog.
The end….for now.
debby weighs in 
Wow, you have been a dog lover from way back! I bet that WAS fun to have a pet store…did you have a “store dog”?
Mr. Monk watching TV is too cute…and Sophie wanting to join him – love her!
So, which breed has been your favorite?
Ooh, that is a very hard question. Probably my most favorite dog of all time was my first rescue dog, and my first dachshund, Celie. But that was partly because of when she came. I didn’t have any dogs for the first time in many years, and she had been abused. So we loved each other so much it was almost embarrassing! But probably my favorite breed overall is the Standard Poodle. They just fit very well for me in particular. Only thing is, I don’t really enjoy grooming any more, but I don’t really think anyone can do as good a job as me, and I do like the look of a beautifully groomed dog… but I think I will have a Standard Poodle again someday.
Love it! Aren’t animals just so amazing. Total and undying unconditional love.
Aw, I love this Debby. We have had Labs since my husband and I have been married. I love Labs – love love love them.
Any chance you’ll move back to Dallas? That’s a heck of a lot closer to me than California! 😉
Labs are on my list of dogs now too! My list of dogs has changed from when I was young. Then it was all about how they looked, and there were lots of long haired dogs on there. Now, I am intrigued by dogs that are loved so much by their owners–like labs!! That is why I wanted a pug. Their owners are just crazy about them. Same with dachshunds.
Oops, forgot to comment on Dallas. Not much chance for Dallas. Only reason I might move would be to be closer to my brother, but he lives in the panhandle. It sure would be fun to live closer to you, though. Cake and exercise and knitting…is there something wrong that cake was first on that list??
were you a nurse too when you did the dog shop/showing stuff? or did that come later? My middle child will love to read this tomorrow – she loves your dog pics and stories.
No, not at all, Vickie. You ask the most insightful questions!
When I was 29 years old, I went back to college to become a nurse, and graduated when I was 32. My brother got engaged to be married and went to work at a higher paying job, and we sold the pet shop. But I supported myself through school mostly by continuing to groom dogs in my garage!
Very interesting post. We had miniature poodles when I was growing up, but now that I’ve had my Cecilia I’m firmly in the mixed breed camp! I’ll never say never about breeds, but I can promise that I’ll never pay a breeder for a dog. There are so many pups in need of rescue. I’m so glad you are Monk’s happy ending!
I thought about Cecelia when I wrote this. I’m not kidding, Cecelia is one of my all time favorite dogs!
Wow, this was an interesting post! I remember your mentioning having experience with showing dogs, but I didn’t know about your pet shop!
There were lots of pets in my childhood, and I’m grateful for that. Ones of note were my step-dad’s Pembroke Welsh Corgi (favorite dog ever) and our Cocker Spaniel (also a sweetie). When my husband and I got a dog, we decided to go the rescue route, so I was a regular visitor on the Corgi rescue sites. We found our Bela through one; she’s a Corgi mix, but she has more of a shy, sweet personality than the confident, outgoing (what I think of as the “big dog”) personality that the Pembrokes seem to have.
Gotta say, Mister Monk sure is a cutie!