Here’s my boy!

Well, it’s about time, some people might say.  I’ve been reluctant to do it.   It seemed….wrong…for some reason….to post about my own dog.  But almost every client who isn’t local asks why they didn’t see any information or photos about him on my webpage.  Then when I looked at other pet photographer websites, I saw that nearly everyone had at least one post about their dog, and usually more!  So the more I thought about it, I decided it would be something fun to post during off-season, when I knew I wouldn’t have any clients wanting me to photograph their dogs (in case you haven’t been to Telluride during off-season, it isn’t spring here….and it won’t be til the end of May).  And now I almost feel guilty, as if he isn’t worthy of a post!  He very much is.  And you will have to excuse the length, this is very different than blogging about a two hour session.   So here he is folks, Can CH Coastalight Once in a Blue Moon JH WC, otherwise known as Blue!

I have this image as a canvas at work and all day long I get “Oh look at that Lab!”  Yeah, yeah, I know he looks like a Lab a bit in this photo, but he isn’t.  He’s a Flat-Coated Retriever.  If you’ve been following the blog, you are already familiar with the breed since I have had quite a few Flatcoat clients, even though they are pretty rare.  Blue came into my life as an adult because his first owner returned him to his breeder, which I still have trouble imagining, because he is pretty much the light of my life.

When I got Blue, it was under the agreement that three months after I got him, I was to drive him to Oregon for the Flat-Coated Retriever National Specialty (imagine Westminster Dog Show, but just hundreds of Flatcoats).  As well as conformation, I was entered in a field event called unsteady singles, an event that simulates a hunting scenario on land and water, and there are several setups until the judges decide on a clear winner out of all the dogs entered.   Alrighty….I had owned this dog three months.  I got him in January so there was no way to train for this in several feet of snow.  I had never even seen or entered a field event in my life before.  I think I read the rules 100 times, which includes the five times the night before the event.  I deeply regretting agreeing to this.  I drove to meet up with his breeder the morning of the event, and had a 20 minute training session on the lawn of a church with a woman named Bunny who I knew by name as a “field goddess”, and was deeply intimidated and honored she would take the time to help.  After going much further away than I thought he would have to retrieve, and throwing a bird, I was to send Blue from a heel position, and he would return to me and deliver the bird (we won’t go into the fact that I am vegetarian and really couldn’t believe I would have to take a dead duck from my dog).  After a few corrections from Bunny, she looked at his breeder and said “She’ll be fine.”   All I could think was “If you say so, you crazy people!”

Here is a snapshot of us in the blind before our turn.

I thank goodness I have video of this event, because I don’t really have a memory of it.  I was so focused on not getting eliminated because of something stupid on my part, and so full of adrenaline, I think my memory brain cells were not given the chance to work.   I also only watched two other dogs compete, so I had no idea how we did compared to everyone else.   When they were announcing the winners, and I was thinking “PLEEEEEESE let us have a placement”, imagine my shock when they announced Blue as the winner.  I never thought in a million years that I could walk into this event without any experience and WIN.  It was all Blue.  I had just concentrated on not doing something to screw him up.

Here’s a shot of my talented boy holding his ribbon after we returned to Telluride.

That was when I knew Wendy (his breeder) had sent me one special boy.   As time went on, I got to know Blue better and learn a bit more about his personality and what he loved to do.  His “grandma” calls him an enigma, because sometimes he is rather hard to figure out, but some things I know for sure.  Here are a few fun facts about my charming boy.

Number one:  He loves to leap.
And when I say he loves to leap, that includes snow, not just water.

And I thought, holy moly….I should enter him in a dock diving competition!  So I did.  And at his very first competition, he jumped 19 feet.  I don’t have any photos because it is really hard to jump your dog and take photos at the same time.  😉  He LOVED it and was totally obnoxious, barking while he waited his turn to get on the dock.  I couldn’t believe how annoying he was being, he never barks.  He started lunging when another dog would leap.  He thought that dock was his!  Here is a photo of Blue (looking quite smug, I might add) with the ribbons from an event.   This photo never fails to make me laugh.   Lose the attitude, buddy.

 

Number two:  He loves snow.

And a little vole hunting never hurts, or maybe he is just trying to cool off.

And sometimes, he loves snow a little TOO much.

 

Number three:  He loves the ocean.

He knows how to ride waves….

…and just loves leaping for joy at the ocean’s edge. 

Or, like a crazy dog, come barreling out of the surf ready for another throw.  

 

Number four:  He loves kids.

I LOVE this about him.  He adores children.  The more attention, the better.

 

Number five:  He is a TOTAL goofball, and the king of giving you very expressive “looks” — and sometimes the two go together.

Hello there, you aren’t thinking about taking my new birdie away, are you?

 

Grass?  What grass?

 

If you are not allowed on the furniture, get up there quickly and then be very still.  They might not see you.

 

Find as many tennis balls as you can.  I can fit three, but my mom keeps taking them from me.  

 

Always be a ham for the camera.  You’ll probably get some treats.

 

I’ve gone blind.  What the heck happened??

 

You’ll attract more attention is you carry your toys strangely and walk around with your eyes closed  (I don’t think Ruffwear wants to use this for an ad).  

 

Number six:  He is a great traveler.

I don’t know, Mom.  The Evian water is nice, but the bed doesn’t seem quite right (this was NOT a setup shot).

 

I’ll be patient under the table….I know I will get some bacon at the end.

Number seven:  He loooooves to hunt.  Pheasant, in particular.  I don’t get to take him as often as he would like (daily), but when he is out there, he is a different dog.  He knows what he was bred to do.

 

Number eight:  He can be just plain photogenic (and sweet as can be).

Blue at 10 years old, taken in May.

Lastly, he was a great big-brother until Santé left….helping Santé get sticks in the river (no, he didn’t land on him), and sharing his bumper even when he didn’t REALLY want help bringing it back in.

There was oh-so-much-more to my boy than this…I wrote this when Blue was 8, and added a few photos at the end.  Blue died from cancer at almost exactly 10.5 years old on June 21st, 2015.   He spent the morning at the lake playing as if nothing was wrong, and that night he was gone.  The loss is indescribable, and I have no words to express my gratitude to Wendy for trusting me with this boy, he brought me more joy than anything during the time that I had him.   He is, I know, at the water’s edge right now.