Dogs
Obedience
Belle was our first Irish Wolfhound, who had a skittish temperament as a puppy. To help with her confidence, I would walk miles with her after work each evening, and help her deal with groups of people. During the day my wife and children took her to the park and played with her. Obedience training helped her become confident around other dogs. With a lot of love and attention, Belle became the highest scoring Irish Wolfhound in competition, a record she kept for a few years. Wolfhounds, because of their size do not normally live long lives, I believe five to eight years is the norm. Belle died when she was thirteen years old, a testament to the love she had for our family. The picture above is of Belle in Las Vegas after the dog show.
Kick it up a notch
As if a loving Irish Wolfhound was not enough to satisfy the kids, along came Bobby, a beautiful if not hyper Old English Sheepdog. Bobby loved to be showed, but was pretty bad at obedience. She was a lovable ball of fur.
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Greased Lightning
Copy, was Angeliques whippet, who loved running but loved being with Angelique more. Copy ruled over the Irish Wolfhounds like younger siblings running rings around them.
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Champion Kestrel
Keystone Kestrel was a joy to everyone who knew him. A powerful and extremely gentle giant of a dog. I hesitate to say he was perfect, but I cannot think of any fault he may have had. He loved children, and was always a gentleman around other animals. Protective in a non-aggressive way. One day I was working out (Kung Fu) with a friend, Jim Goss, in the yard, we were throwing punches, kicks etc and throwing each other around, when Kestrel walked in between us and refused to move. We got the message and postponed our workout until we were in the studio.
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Field Champion Kestrel
As a racing dog Kestrel was strong, fast (for a Wolfhound), competitive, agile, and a joy to watch. Racing is between three Irish Wolfhounds running an irregular course , chasing a rabbit skin attached to a string that was strung around pulleys to create the course. As the string is wound in, the rabbit is pulled around the pulleys causing the dogs to turn. Competitors are judged on Agility, Speed, Follow, Endurance, and Enthusiasm.
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