Nautilus Whippets

SOMOS NOTRA 11/19

Wendy — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 03:52:23 +0000

Lemmy did great in his second meet, coming in 2nd, 2nd and 4th in his 3 races. He bounces all the way to the box, he loves it and runs with everything he’s got. Tony Crafts got some wonderful pictures of him.

Goodbye Nemo

Wendy — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 03:44:36 +0000

On 11/5/11 we said goodbye to Nemo (Shaldra Mikater Elam), the best damn dog in the world. We adopted him 14 yrs ago just before his second birthday. We were his 5th or 6th home and he came with issues – severe crate anxiety and he didn’t trust people at all. He warmed up to us eventually and became a huge part of our lives. He was there when we bought our first house, when we got married, etc. He was so excited when we got home from our wedding that he ran outside, jumped straight up in the air and grabbed a bird on the wing. It was the best wedding present we received. He was always an odd dog and kept us laughing. He almost blew up our house once scrabbling to eat peanut butter cookies that were cooling on the stove. He turned on a child proof burner and filled the whole first floor with gas. He survived 4 major surgeries after he turned 10, including eye removal, liposarcoma, mast cell cancer and a 1lb lipoma. He was a stoic, tough boy and I learned a ton from him. I thought I was prepared for him to go, especially after he was diagnosed with lymphoma early this year. I knew our time was short, but I was still not ready. I am so grateful and lucky to have had him past his 16th birthday.

He was my first whippet and he will always live in my heart.

His memorial thread on Whippet World: http://www.whippetworld.net/board/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=11941

SOMOS Jax NOTRA 10/29

Wendy — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 00:04:16 +0000

Lemmy was entered in his first oval meet last weekend. He won his first race handily and got tough draws for his second two, in which he placed 4th and 3rd. He came in 25th out of 44 whippets and was high opposite D dog. He is crazy for the lure and really loves to race.

Photos from Sat: https://picasaweb.google.com/102130125601066259635/JaxNOTRA1029
Photos from Sun: https://picasaweb.google.com/102130125601066259635/JaxNOTRA1030

Lemmy Pins Vick

Wendy — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 15:00:53 +0000

The only way to safely handle Michael Vick, is face down by the scruff of the neck. If you’d like a Vick of your own to chew on, see: http://www.officialvickdogchewtoy.com/

Happy 16th birthday Nemo!!

Wendy — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 03:27:42 +0000

Our Nemo turned 16 today, quite a feat after being diagnosed with lymphosarcoma 5 months ago. He lost an eye, defeated mast cell cancer, liposarcoma and survived having a 1 lb lipoma removed at 13.5 yrs old. We celebrated with a special birthday meal – in his salad days he used to get a birthday Whopper but as he’s aged we switched to healthier and more digestible treats. I don’t think we have much time left, one of his prescapular nodes has been growing rapidly, about the size of a plum now. He also incontinent, deaf, blind (only sees light/dark) and suffers from dementia. He still does love to eat and so I made him a special dinner in honor of this major milestone.

Today he got a meatloaf cupcake, frosted with beef baby food on a bed of four cheese mashed potatoes surrounded by sardines.

I think he approved.

Lemmy – 18 months

Wendy — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 17:32:14 +0000

We went to Ponte Vedra beach last weekend and got some nice shots of Lemmy. He delighted in chasing birds, jumping in the surf, tossing seashells in the air and looking for crabs.

Sowagla Trace of Quick Silver – 15 months

Wendy — Thu, 12 May 2011 00:14:54 +0000

WD/BOS in Elkton, FL

Wendy — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 00:30:00 +0000

Lemmy went WD/BOS in Elkton, FL under judge Karin Ashe on 4/10/11. She commented that I’m going to have a lot of fun with him, which of course, I always do. Our next shows are in Fort Myers 5/14 and 5/15. Here’s a photo of him in the back yard from last week.

Click here to read more.

Training Break Through – Crate Games

Wendy — Sun, 03 Apr 2011 23:31:50 +0000

Lemmy and I are taking Susan Garrett’s 5 Minute Formula for a Brilliant Recall, a 5 week online course. One of the core exercises of the course is Crate Games, which I was concerned about. I bought the DVD a month or two ago and was never able to get past “Yer Out Yer In” Lemmy never wanted to go back in the crate and when he did it was slow and sullen. Yesterday I watched the DVD again and geared up to give it another try. The one thing that I think made the difference this time is that I used a neutral crate. The last time I tried it I was using one of the 2 crates I had set up already, the one he slept in at night and the one he went in when I left the house. This time I brought in his travel crate and set it up in the family room, a place he had never been crated before. It went much smoother and he actually went back in the crate. Today when I was working the collar grab game as I released him to go back in the crate the cat chose that moment to jump the gate and run past him. Lemmy veered towards the cat and pounced on him, then immediately broke off and ran back in to the crate without any direction from me. I am so proud of him!

Celtic Classic – Eastern Whippet Specialty 2011

Wendy — Sun, 27 Mar 2011 00:13:23 +0000

Last weekend we attended the Eastern Whippet Specialty in York, PA. Lemmy did well although it was a long stressful week for both of us. The crowning achievement for the weekend was getting 1st place in the 12-15 month class under Iva Kimmelman on Friday’s supported entry. I got a lot of nice compliments from breeders and exhibitors and we ... Click here to read more.