Albuquerque Dog Show

Two weeks before the big show in Albuquerque, Cooper decided it was a good time to loose most of his puppy coat.  I hate the puppy coat because it is hard to comb and take care of.  It is wooly and soft.  But, I thought he was really looking good for the show until he lost it all.  But, we packed up and left at 6 am for four days of showing.  It was just Cooper and I.  We got to the fair grounds with plenty of time to spare.  I parked in the back lot near the sheep barns (more on that later).  Took out the grooming table and fluffed as much as I could considering he had no undercoat and off we went.  Cooper had to pee on every tree we passed, but that meant he wouldn't have to go once we got inside.  We had to wait a bit, but not too long.  We visited with friends and saw some people we haven't seen in a long time.  The ones from Colorado that were at the Denver shows were surprised at how much Cooper had grown.  He actually had grown about an inch or more in the last few weeks, but didn't gain any weight to go with the extra height.  So he was a bit thin.  He showed pretty good, let the judge go over him and look at his bite without too much wiggling.  He gets better at every show.  He didn't get anything (well, first in his class, but he was the only one).  We met my mom at a restaurant for dinner and then went to my brother's concert.  He sings with the Westside Concert Chorale.  It was a great concert.  Cooper would have loved it, but he had to stay in the car.

Sunday was more of the same.  We left the motel with plenty of time, got to the fair grounds, fluffed and he showed better than he did the day before.  The results were the same.  On Monday, he showed even better and got Reserve, but on Tuesday, even though I thought he showed even better than he had the other days, he didn't get anything again.  The puppy took Winners all four days.  I think it was because he was the only dog with any coat.  The other dog that was being shown had lost his coat like Cooper had.  Plus, Cooper was a bit thin because of his growth spurt.

All in all, we both had a great time.  We got to mingle with other people with the same interests, we got to visit with my Mom and my son took me out to lunch for Mother's Day.  I did some shopping which is always a good thing, even if you don't buy much.  I learned the things I need to work with Cooper on the most for him to do better at the shows.  It was good to get back home though.  Now, to find another show to go to that isn't too far away.