BROM and...
We got confirmation at the beginning of the month with that Bougie has earned her Breed Register of Merit title from the Weimaraner Club of America. In short, it means that her offspring has earned enough points to warrant notice by the parent breed club. It's not common for dogs to get their BROM, honestly. Even a very nice dog who has produced very nice dogs don't always have the opportunity.
There needs to have been x amount of points earned from conformation and x amount of points can be earned from field titles. In order to be considered, the dam has to have 5 Conformation Champions which I am proud to say was achieved by the Sea Monster Litter on their own! A bonus of Barbie finishing her CH with a BOS and BOB over specials at 9 months AND Dylan finishing his CH with 3, 5-point majors followed closely by his first BISS!
Given Bougie's massive success in the beautiful, well-tempered dogs she has produced, we had to really reconsider not breeding her one last time. She is happy, healthy, and still young at 4 years old. In discussion with everyone involved in her breeding and career, we chose to delay Breeze's first litter and steal the idea of a litter with Stoli for Bougie's last litter.
I am ecstatic and cannot wait to raise another gaggle of puppies.
Working away...
This Summer we've had a lot of fun traveling to show the puppies and see the country. Bougie has been loving all of the travel and all of the deer/moose/elk parts she's been finding.
In May we travelled to Iona, WI for an evaluation with Hoffman Deer Recovery & Training. Now, we're all inclined to think the best of our own dogs. We know what they're capable of.
Realistically, I know not to expect much when we try a new sport, but the mom in me can't help but assume that they will be good at everything immediately. Bougie did not disappoint.
During our intake conversation, we were told to expect to be at training for ~3 hours. We drove the 3 hours North, pulled in the driveway, and Austin immediately took Bougie on the long line. She went with it with a wagging tail. As we walked, he explained that he had laid 3 trails. The first was meant to be pretty easy to see how naturally she starts the process. The second a bit of a challenge with a longer trail, more turns, and a change in terrain. The third Austin warned us that Bougie might need help to get though it. We had several terrain changes and turns.
Color me impressed when we were back at the car ~15 minutes later and Bougie had nailed every track. I think Austin was as excited as we were. So, truly, watching her do something my gut said she would love and having her be SO good at it immediately has really driven a Summer of tracking training. We cannot wait to be able to do actual recovery and title her with United Blood Trackers!
Back to reality...
The Ad Astra litter truly was a joy to raise. We did wind up holding onto Hubble (teal collar) which we will find the time to announce at a later date.
Meanwhile, Bougie took a trip up to Iola, WI in early April for an assessment with Hoffman Deer Recovery & Training Kennel. It turns out her affinity for finding deer remains is extremely transferrable to blood tracking. A new goal of United Blood Tracking Certification has emerged and we're having a lot of fun training for a new sport. Weims are meant to be versatile, right?
Bougie also went 4/4 at her first Scent Work trial of the year at the end of April. The last trial we were able to attend was Sept of 2022! It has been a hot minute and she picked right back up like we never stopped. This year is going to be very busy and very fun.
Ad Astra litter has arrived!
Bougie and Dylan welcomed 6 puppies (4 boys and 2 girls) on Feb 1st, 2024. They're all doing well; happy, healthy, and fat! Please follow along on the litter page (Ad Astra). Bougie loves her babies and is such a good mama, but she's also very ready to get back outside.
We will be on a pause for the next 6 weeks or so while she helps to raise and wean her nuggets and then we are likely done with Bougie's puppy journey and conformation journey. Our next steps will be blood tracking and working on our Scent Work and Agility games.
And she's crossed the finish line!
We made it 2 years of adventuring to dog shows - taking home ribbons and cheering on friends. In those two years, Bougie has done some amazing things to prove everything her breeders, her admirers, and of course - I - see.
Bougie wrapped up her final dog show weekend by placing 3rd in Maturity behind some lovely bitches.
This certainly isn't the end of fun. While Bougie might not be entering anymore dog shows, we've got a lifetime of work ahead of us to finish a field championship, add to her Scent Work titles, and certainly get some OB/Rally titles under our belt. Plus, we're hoping she will honor us with just one more set of perfect grey nuggets.
A slight miscalculation...
When Bougie finished her Championship I promised her that we would make it through her Maturity year and be DONE with dog shows. I started crossing my fingers that we would finish her Grand before her Maturity. She is so happy to be included and play around, but showing - more specifically standing still - is not her favorite thing.
We entered the Great American Dog Show in Chicago because we had committed to show off our happy crew during Meet the Breeds. I figured it would be convenient to chip at the last 5 points she needed to meet the goal. There was a nice regular entry of Weimaraners! We were also inundated with visitors and questions during Meet the Breeds. Bougie won Select Bitch on Saturday but we were so excited about our friend Cali's television debut for Best of Breed and the turnout for Meet the Breeds that we didn't fully comprehend the win.
On Sunday, Bougie took Best of Opposite Sex for a 3-point Major! Woo! Again, we rushed back to Meet the Breeds and celebrated her win thinking we now needed two single points to finish her Grand... it wasn't until 2 weeks later when I was confirming her win had been updated from that weekend that I realized: Saturday's win counted for 2 points...
BOUGIE IS A GRAND CHAMPION! I am so, so proud of this journey we've been on. As promised, we have Maturity in Minnesota in the next couple of weeks and then - I am happy to announce - Bougie will be a retired Grand Champion Show Dog.
Agility Intermission?
For 6 years I've been training in and intimidated by Agility, but the last two years I've focused on training grown-up Baker, disseminating that knowledge and training down to Bougie as best as I can. On Saturday we took an intermission from the conformation shows to trial in our very first AKC Agility trial - my first exposure to any Agility trial setting.
After a very exciting start in ACT1 Trial One where we NQ'd, Bougie progressively recovered with an ACT1 Q at 85pts and then TWO ACT1J Q's at 95 and 100pts respectively to bring home her first (of what I hope will be many) Agility titles!
Since they were conveniently testing for Canine Good Citizen titles, we happened to wander on over there to finish Bougie's CGC.
We do our best to fit as much fun into our limited weekends as possible. This girl brings it every time bounding from Conformation to Scent Work to Agility to Obedience and anywhere in between. The whole time, her tail is held high and she's happy to see you.
Have I mentioned lately how much I love this dog?
Great American Dog Show
On Friday in Schaumburg at 9 weeks post-whelp, Bougie went Best of Breed and BOB Owner Handled for a 4 pt Major toward her Grand Championship! She followed that right up with her final Grand Major on Sunday going Select Bitch for another 3 pts.
In the interest of transparency, showing is not her favorite thing. It's very slow, standing still is very hard, and treats can only get an athletic girl so far. But man, I am speechless when she moves...
I am so happy to have such a wonderful companion and partner in all of the things we do. Even when it's not her favorite, she shows up and she gets the job done. I've promised that we will finish her Grand and hit up the Central Maturity in September and then Bougie will officially be all done with this silly chore - fun sports ONLY!
Remember, Remember, the 5th of November...
Surprise! Puppies came early and there are 8 happy, healthy, squiggly little silver nuggets. 5 boys, 3 girls - we can't wait to see what they grow into.
We're looking at final evaluations on January 9th.
We are currently looking for another show and performance home for both male and female puppies.
Join us on Facebook to see day-by-day updates on our little nuggets or follow along on their webpage.
BIGGEST NEWS YET!
Go sniff!
Bougie ROCKED her second ever Scent Work trial with the Basset Hound Club of America. She went 6/8, only missing her Buried Element. We will practice it more and get her overall Scent Work Novice title finished in no time! I can't wait to get into more challenging searches. She is such an impressive worker.
Babies?!
We are planning a breeding between Bougie and Ryder early in September. These puppies are much anticipated and will very likely be placed into performance and show homes. Please email me or click below for more information: greyhausweims@gmail.com
We do ask that all interested parties fill out the puppy questionnaire.
- Pedigree
- PennHIP
- Embark Clear for all abnormalities
- OFA Cardic N/N
- OFA Eyes CLEAR
Speechless...
Our trip to Colorado was a whirlwind. Bougie took 4 Owner-Handled Best of Breed placements, one Owner-Handled Group 4 placement, and HOLY COW a BEST OF BREED win with 19 Weimaraners entered! She also made the final cut in a huge Sporting Group.
As an amateur owner handler, this is a huge accomplishment. Our competition was tough with some of the top Weimaraners and top professional handlers in the country.
Bougie now has 8 Grand Championship points with MANY Champions defeated. Here's to many more!
BCAT for Bougie
Part of the fun for canine sports photographers is getting to occasionally photograph your own dogs when they run! I was so excited to have images of my own dogs, I didn't even realize that Bougie had completed her BCAT.
She is currently listed at #35 for the breed in national rankings and absolutely loves the game (as she does most things).
We will be taking a break from heavy activity until Pheasant Season... more on that coming soon.
SURPRISE! NADD Regionals Invitation
We were still riding the high from the completion of Bougie's Conformation Championship. Our next dog show in Waukesha, WI had the Great Lakes Mobile Dock parked conveniently out front and we did some Day of Show Entries. It must be lucky for us because...
Somehow, Bougie managed to jump her way into a Regionals invitation! We are thrilled to be recognized, although we won't be able to take the trip out to Iowa. We're so grateful for the journey of this year so far... there's so much more planned.
AKC Champion!
On Saturday, July 16th under Judge Alfred Ferruggiaro, Bougie went Best of Winners to finish off her last points toward her Championship! Mr. Ferruggiaro complemented Bougie's movement around the ring and was a pleasure to show under (not just because it went our way).
We brought Bougie out to debut in Minnesota, 2021. We have travelled all the way to CO and OH with countless class 1st placements and Reserve Winner's Bitch placements. Every show we have had complements from amazing judges and beautiful bitches in competition. Thank you to every single person who helped us and to every single judge who looked at our girl!
Here's to getting her Grand (4 points down so far)!
Putting that nose to work
Bougie started in my Beginner Nosework class last month and LOVES it. She did a few practice runs with her Junior Handler and we decided she would join her brother at his first trial of the Summer. For Your K9 hosted the Greater Chicago Scent Work Association and Bougie partook in Novice Interior, Buried, and Container trails.
For each trial, Bougie took about 15 seconds to realize that the judge wasn't there to pet her, but when she went to work, she sure went to work! We went 3/3 with a 2nd Place placement in Interiors.
We cannot wait for the next trial in September!
Bougie at Weimaraner Nationals
On Thursday for Futurity, Bougie was handled to perfection by her co-owner Amy Fast. They took first for her class of Intermediate Bitches. Bougie was very happy to strut her stuff.
Friday was another day of success at the 2022 Weimaraner National Specialty where Bougie took first in Open Bitches.
Here's to hoping June brings us our last two single points to finish her AKC Championship!
A Major in Minnesota!
We travelled back up to MN for the North Star Weimaraner Club Specialties where Bougie earned a Reserve Winners Bitch with a brand-new, first-time-in-the-ring friend, Charlie! They did so well - we can't wait to see what Charlie does with her new Doberman puppy!
On Sunday, Bougie snagged a major under judge Larry Abbott. She did such a good job and boy does she move!
Dock Diving Senior (DS)
Bougie took a run head-first into the pond this January. She was after some ducks and couldn't be phased by the ice or the cold water. In typical Bougie fashion, she had no regrets!
That kind of enthusiasm had me enter her in her first official NADD event at the Windy City Cluster in June. She didn't hesitate to leap off the dock - her first recorded jump was 10'9" and three days later she hit 18'9".
We entered another local NADD event after renting the pool a few times (thanks, Biscuit Beach at Flint Creek Dogs) where she finished her Dock Diving Senior title!
Just to top it off, two weeks later to wrap up her first NADD season, she jumped her Personal Best of 20'! We will keep working toward that Dock Diving Master title. Go Bougie!
Our first dog show
We took our annual trip up to Minnesota a little late this year. The January specialty was pushed to April, which worked out absolutely perfectly for Bougie's 6 month debut! She got to meet her daddy's breeder, Grandma Steph; see her siblings Luna and Vettel; and see her breeder/first family, the Purchases.
We did a lot of dog parking, socializing, and enjoying the show.
With fantastic complements from fantastic judges, Bougie was awarded Best Bitch in Sweeps AND Winner's Bitch at two shows for her first conformation points.
And away we go!
We have a S.T.A.R.!
Bougie followed in her brother, Baker's footsteps and attended Wisconsin-Illinois Agility Group (WAG)'s S.T.A.R. Puppy course. It wouldn't be pushing it to say she was the brightest star in the joint!
I'm so excited to see where we go next.
WELCOME!
This Christmas, Greyhaus welcomes Bourgeoisie (Bougie) to our crazy grey family.
Bougie is out of:
Ch. Foxfire's Speed Queen of Angenehm CD JH JHR CGC TKN VX
and
Multi Int'l and US Ch. Silversmith Flying Eagle RN BROM
bred by: Susanne Wilson-Purchase and Amy Fast
owned by: Alyse Henderson and Amy Fast
