Return to Juniors Home Page

• Born: April 29, 1982

• e-mail: Click here to send me some e-mail!

• Juniors Dog: Emilie (Black and Tan Coonhound) Smokie (Collie)

• Past Juniors Dogs: Mork, Tommy, Bitzi (all Black and Tan Coonhounds)

• Most Memorable Win: I will never forget the thrill of the year that I made it to the finals at Westminster. There were four rings of juniors with about 30 in each group. First I made the cut of 12, then the cut of 6, and finally we were selected to be the two from our group to go to the finals that night. It was so exciting to be brought into the Garden just before they started groups that evening when they judged the 8 finalists in Junior Showmanship. I was nervous, but my dog Tommy thought it was great fun.

• Most Embarrassing Moment in the Ring: I was showing in juniors at Louisville, KY shows. As I was going around the ring with my dog, I tripped, slid on my belly like a baseball player, and my shoe fell off and went flying into the Poodle ring next to us. My mom said her most embarrassing moment was when I was 6 years old and in the group at a match and the judge asked to see my dogs BITE. Well, I just held the bait in front of my Collie's nose and said, "Georgie, bite it!".

• How old when started showing dogs: I started showing Collies and English Setters when I was 6 years old. I was given my first Black and Tan Coonhound when I was nine and she became CH. Shirtrai Moonlight Sonata, my first juniors coonhound.

• Future Dog Related Plans: When I age out I will apply for my judging license to judge Junior Handling. I also plan to become an All-Breed Professional Handler and use that money to pay for my college. And I still have to convince my boyfriend to become a "Coonhound person" instead of a "Newfoundland person".

• Future Non-Dog Related Plans: I will be going to school to become a Kindergarten teacher (they will be shorter than me).

  Junior Showmanship and dogs have been a very special part of my life. I have met so many nice people and learned so much. I have traveled all over and I want to make this my life.

  Right now I have a program that I do in all the Kindergarten and 1st grade classes in my school district. I visit each class for 5 days and we talk about responsibility of pet ownership, we learn about dogs, and we learn how to act when a strange dog comes around. I take a dog to school with me for each class and they all get to meet a well behaved dog and hopefully they will remember how to treat a dog and act if an aggressive or strange dog is near. It is part of the Best Friends Program sponsored by the AKC.

  
  
  

  

  
  
  Return to Juniors Home Page