The girls were playing in the backyard, and Becky decided to see if we could get them all to be nice and pretty for a photo. It’s amazing what a little snack will do!

After many weeks of class, Bailey passed her CGC (Canine Good Citizen) test yesterday. She’s been in heat for the last two weeks, so she’s got mush for brains right now — I am really surprised that she was able to pass given her lack of attention span right now.

So now both her and Molly have their CGC’s. I’m betting Bailey adds an RN (Rally Novice) this year to follow in Molly’s pawsteps.

Congrats Bailey!

Today is Bailey’s 1st birthday! The other dogs in the house had a little party for her, which she got all dressed up for. It’s been a year full of fun and learning… can’t wait to see what her next year is like!

This morning, I got a call from one of the Berner folks that one of my favorite dogs, Too-Morrow, had left us quietly in his sleep overnight.

Too was a really cool dog, and a gentle giant. He seemed to like everyone, but when I’d show up, he’d light up like I’d hung the Moon. He was massive, and when asked, would stand on his hind legs, put those big forepaws on my shoulders, and let me snuggle up. Those were great hugs. Because of the way To behaved around me, Sio always contended that Too had a “man crush” on me. Maybe so.

Over the years — we’ve known Too for as long as we’ve had Molly — we were fortunate enough to have Too over for some sleepover time. I also had all kinds of opportunities to photograph him just chilling out, as well as performing on the agility field. The photo to the left is my favorite image of him though.

Becky got to see him just ten days ago, and he seemed like his normal self. We got a call yesterday, though, that he’d been diagnosed with prostate problems, and in examining that, a nodule had been found in his chest. Kris (Too’s owner) was advised to take him home, and keep him comfortable. Of course, Kris was and is devastated, and rightfully so. This was so very sudden and unexpected.

Farewell, old friend. See ya on the Rainbow Bridge someday.

Last week, I got a package that held a little surprise for me… two of my images from the BMDCA Speciality, and two 4th place ribbons! These images were from the “puppy” category and the “computer enhanced” category. I’d seen in the bulletins from the Specialty that I’d taken a couple of 4th places, but I wasn’t expecting ribbons. More stuff for the dog walls!

Coming up in May, the National Specialty for the Bernese Mountain Dog Club of America will be held in Wisconsin. Darla will be going, and taking at least one of the Berners with her. Molly will be marching in the Parade of Veterans and the Parade of Titleholders. We’re pretty proud of our girl.

They also have a photo contest, and I’ve dropped thirteen images on them for it. Here they are. Enjoy!

With the forsythia in bloom, we decided to try to get Molly and Bailey to pose in front of it in the late afternoon sun. Amazingly, they let us pose them and take their photos — good girls!

Molly had a surgery a week-and-a-half ago to remove a growth. It was sent off, and was found to be a cyst, not cancer. That’s great news. However, this weekend, her stitches weren’t quite holding well, and she’s gotten an infection in the sutured area. It’s not a big, big deal, but it was another visit to the vet for her yesterday morning.

Fast forward to last night. Bailey started being ill around midnight, and after a quick phone consult with our vet tech, we thought we were out of the woods. Just a short bit later, she was ill again, and it was obvious that something was wrong. Beck took her to an emergency vet hospital, and it was good that she did. Somehow, Bailey’d gotten hold of two socks, and had swallowed them whole. Her stomach was full of them, and they were starting to work their way through her system. This was nowhere near as bad as it could’ve been, but it meant a surgery. Bailey’s still at the hospital, and we’re hoping to bring her home tomorrow or Tuesday. She’ll have a week or more of recovery, and I don’t know how we’ll keep her still, given her six-month-old puppyhood, but we’ll find a way I’m sure.

Not a very cool weekend, but it could’ve been a lot worse.

We just got word that Bailey’s dad, Leo, is off to Westminster for the big dog show there this weekend. (You can see the owner’s blurb about it here.) I knew Leo was a big name dog, but I had no idea how much so. Take a look here to see more about his #1 ranking amongst Berners in 2009.

From the Westminster Kennel Club site, it looks like the Working group will begin airing live Tuesday night.

Go Leo go!

Our trip has paid off, and we have a bouncing Berner baby girl — Bailey!

We showed up at Trulli Kennels, with three little ones to choose from. They were all cute, and it would’ve been great to scoop ‘em all up, but we were there for one.

So why’d we pick Bailey?

She was the biggest. She’s a little chunk — 17 pounds at 8 weeks — and seems like she’s destined for bigness. We were told her pop was 120-130, and her mom was about 105. She’s gonna be big.

She was the fastest. Every time I ran around the yard, she was the first one to catch up to me. It was cool to have all three of them chasing me around, but you can’t compete with speed and girth.

And then there’s the markings. She’s beautifully marked with cute little freckles on the end of her nose — she’s easy to pick out in a lineup.

She’s wormed her way into our lives, and we’re thrilled about her!