The Newnan show is the closest thing to a home meet that is available to me. Unfortunately, it is a LONG drive for sweet Catie. She was wonderful and brought FOUR bitches to the show. Crystal and Bob brought three more. Basically, they made a major and they made it a long way from home. Thanks guys.

For my part, I brought Lexus, and she wore her Mother's lead. That is a pretty bold move. Morrigan's lead has never lost Winner's on a Saturday. Trojan wore it when I felt he was ready to win and he didn't lose for nearly a year. I think Lexus is MORE than ready. She drops off pretty badly after she has a litter and it takes a little time for her to get back to form. She has had her time and she is gorgeous.

It didn't hurt that Norlee Reece was handling her. To make a long story short, she won Winner's on Saturday and Sunday and earned her first two majors. She now has eight points. Pictures will follow.

I was impressed by several of the dogs at the show. Catie has a couple of very nice girls in Gracie and Gidget. Crystal has a nice boy in Brandon. He won Winner's dog both days. There were a couple other nice girls but I didn't get their names.

Finally there was Jennifer and Sandra's Mira. She is going to do very well. Jennifer is a little sensitive about the length of Mira's muzzle but she is going to do just fine. Mira won Bred-by both days, one of three.

Okay, whatever comes after finally, Catie's Reba EASILY wins the most improved award. She was WONDERFUL! I really enjoyed just being around her. Her top line has improved a ton, she has lost a little weight and she was excited to be there. You should have seen her pulling Catie around the ring! It was awesome!

BTW - Jennifer thought we should call the puppy 'Muddy'. The problem with that is that he has a beautiful clean coat! The silly thing is that Muddy deteriorated into 'Mr. Mud' and now he only comes to 'Mr. Mud'. James now wants to call him Brian after the dog on 'The Family Guy'.

Mr. Mud continues to grow and is a joy. At three months he is starting to get better manners. He is above forty pounds, has a rock solid top line and a perfect bite. He should start going into the puppy uglies soon but he still looks awful good. He got his rabies shot the other day, like a big boy, and now he jingles when he walks. I am actively looking for excuses to take him out and socialize him.

I can't WAIT for him to lose those puppy teeth though!

Laura sent me this link to an excerpt from the book written by Barbaro's jockey: Remembering Barbaro

I have never watched horse racing that much. Mainly because it isn't on the channels that I regularly surf. Then I saw Barbaro. There was a charisma about him that all truly great athletes seem to generate. I admire great athletes because I recognize the commitment it takes to become one. In a human, that commitment might mean endorsements and huge contracts. What does it mean for a horse? I think Barbaro ran for the joy of running. He tried so hard just for the sake of being the best. He was pure in motive and form.

I forget where I saw him first but I remember that we had to hurry back to the hotel room In Anderson, SC so that I could watch him run at the Derby. I was very excited but Laura wanted to go eat. 'Just a minute, baby. The race is less than a minute and a half and there are no timeouts!' Thankfully, she let me have my way and he did what he did. A dominating performance.

Then the tradgedy. I saw it when it happened and gasped. I was watching him when the gate opened and I screamed, "NO!" I knew what it meant the moment I saw his leg break and my heart broke with it.

I walked around the house chanting, 'Don't put him down. Don't put him down' I did not understand how high the odds where stacked against him. Barbaro fought on as the champion that he was.

Although I have never read it I am certain they collected him MANY times over the months that he endured. That makes me glad. There will be Baby Barbaros in the world and that is a good thing. Godspeed.

This is our Puddy. We have tried to name this puppy and we just can't. We have tried, Tristan and Rook but what we call him and what he comes to is Puddy. I know it is a stupid name. Jennifer hates it BUT, there is method to our madness. Grandpa Trojan is 'THE Buddy' so the little guy became 'The Puppy Buddy'. Well James shortened that to simply, 'Puddy'.

Whatever you call him, he is awesome. He isn't quite as big as Catie's mutant Jimbo but he is close. Jimbo weighed in at a healthy 42 pounds at his recent 12 week check up. When Catie's daughter Leila heard that she said, "You can walk out of here!" Puddy weighed 38 last night for his weigh in. Jimbo is from Trojan and Catie's Sara Lee. Catie told me I would, "kick myself in the ass" if I didn't take him. She may be right.

Yesterday (Saturday) I transplanted eight huge Holly bushes outside our house. First we pulled them up and then we transplanted them in their new homes. It took six hours and while I did it, my phone was sitting on a ledge. I forgot it and so it sat outside all night. This afternoon I finally missed it. I had seven missed calls. Five of them were from Catie.

I knew Catie was at a dog show and I knew she wanted to get me the results so I was anxious to speak to her. I called and I started walking. Catie and I had a horrible connection. I couldn't understand her at all. After two minutes of 'Can you here me now?' I hung up and called her back. The connection still wasn't great but I could hear her. She told me that Boudi won Winner's bitch and earned her first major on Saturday! Furthermore, Gidget, Boudi's daughter, took Reserve, Best Puppy and a Group 4 placement in the puppy show! Wow! Catie had a great day! But so did I. I continued my walking as Catie kept talking.

To say that I was getting anxious would be an understatement. As the phone connection began to deteriorate, Catie said the words I so desperately wanted to hear. She said, "I have a new champion with me." I was standing beside my precious Morrigan when she told me. I could barely speak as I thanked Catie.

You all know what Morrigan meant to me. She was more than a dog. She changed my life and without hubris I can say that she has changed the lives of many others. She was special. I want to thank all of those who have supported this dream of mine. It happened today and I am beside myself with pride for my beloved and for the friends that have helped the dream become a reality.

Tug(Heather), Oscar(Jennifer), Chocolate(Jennifer), Trojan and Boudi(Catie) are the five that have put her name among the best forever, but all sixteen of her babies are are a testament to her greatness. Congratulations to us all, the benefactors of CH Clas Myrrdin's Morrigan, MCOA Hall of Fame.