FIW-11 EUJW-11 JWW-11 JFRW-11 LTJW-11 Tirhan Quantum Hoops "Ninja"

Hey!

In the beginning of this blog I made a post about Nelli, and now it's Ninja's turn :)

Ninja 6 weeks old

Ninja (Tirhan Quantum Hoops) is our little "living statue". She's so funny. She can sit for 8 hours straight just staring at me when driving.. Poor dog, but so funny :D For my Finnish readers, we gave her the name "Jäyhä Jököttäjä" when driving to Oulu last summer. I can't translate that to english, sorry!

Ninja 6 weeks old

Ninja is Nelli's puppy. She has a brother, the tiger-striped Tirhan Quiz Show "Patu". He has the color brindle, and is not shown in dogshows according to his color. Ninja was born 5.5.2010. It was time for Nelli to have her puppies, and of course it made us have puppy-fever!

Ninja 10 weeks old

When the puppies were born we made a visit to their breeders, Esa & Laura Ruotsalainen. I immediately fell in love with the tiny Ninja. Ninja was so little, that her breeder told me she maybe wasn't going to grow even to a kleinspitz! I thought that too when I looked at her.. But I decided to take that risk, that she wasn't ever going to be a showdog, if she wouldn't grow to a kleinspitz. In Finland we can't change the breed to pomeranian, that's why (which is by the way a great thing!).

big and small

So the beginning of July came, and we got both Nelli and Ninja home. I thought about names a lot, and decided it would be either Minnie or Ninja. I asked for opinions about the name and came to the decision that it would be Ninja. And I haven't regretted it! :)

Ninja 3 months old

The waiting started.. Would she grow over 23 cm? I gauged her almost every day.. And so finally she reached 23 cm. What a happy day! And now she's even higher than Nelli.. 25-26 cm I think. And what did she become...

Ninja 10 months old

Then our first show would take place. The very first show wasn't a small start, because it was down in Slovenia in EUW-10 show! She was 4 months old and there was a baby-class. Ninja was BOB-BABY both days, and in the speciality she won BIS-3 BABY. That was huge!

Ninja BIS-3 BABY in speciality show

In the first Finnish puppy show it was a little quieter start. Under judge Kirsi Honkanen Ninja got HP and 2nd place. The judge thought she was a little too pom-alike. The start of her beautiful career started in her 5th show, still in puppyclass. First she was BOB-puppy out of 4  puppies and the in the finals she got res. Best In Group! I was speechless.. My mini-Ninja ♥

Lohja puppyshow, 18.01.2011, Jarmo Vuorinen, BOB-PUPPY BIG-2
"Very promising & stylish puppy. Expressive head. Correctly carried, small ears. Shoulders could be set a little better. Excellent body. Correctly set & carried tail. Excellent texture of coat. Moves beautifully."

Ninja winning CAC and EUJW-11 in the Netherlands

Kokkola INT, 03.07.2011, Natasa Blanusa, Croatia, CAC BOS BOB-JUNIOR
"Very balanced female. In all of her parts very close to the standard. Very beautiful outline of the body. Nice feminine head with sweet expression. Very compact. Excellent mover. Beautiful tail set. Very stunning and showy female with excellent temperament. Nicely presented."

Then her first time in junior class she won BOB-JUNIOR and got the title Lithuanian Junior Winner-11!
The next day she was also BOB! After this she won even more...

13 x CAC
4 x CACIB
7 x BOB
BIS-4 JUNIOR in Nat. Show Porvoo
RES. GROUP WINNER in Int. Show Helsinki
shortlisted to 6 in BIG-junior
Lithuanian Junior winner 2011
French Junior Winner 2011
Junior World Winner 2011
European Junior Winner 2011
Finnish Winner 2011

This is what my 22 month-old Ninja has reached this far ♥ My little showstar!

Ninja being shortlisted to top-6 in BIG-JUNIOR
in the French Winner show

Jyväskylä INT, 20.11.2011, Theo Leenen, Belgium, EXC/1 BB/1 CAC CACIB BOB
"17 months. Very well balanced bitch. A real beauty. Good size. Good proportions. Feminine head. Dark eyes. Scissors bite, missing some permolars. Well set ears. Good neck, shoulder & topline. Nice tailset. Compact strong body. Nice coat. Moving well."

Ninja in the airplane "I don't wanna be here!"

She's got the looks, but more importantly, her character is so fine. She's friendly to everyone, and doesn't bark a lot. She's just a "chill" dog who knows how to relax. Love her!

Here below two videos of Ninja in Kokkola INT show where she won BOS, BOB-JUNIOR and CAC :)






We'll see what we can achieve in the future.. I'm so excited!

ps. Not this, but next weekend we'll have a show! yeeey! And I've got a dog to compete with also! I will compete the other day with the beautiful wheaten terrier "Martta". Can't wait!


♥ Hilde ♥

One show in a weekend keeps you healthy.. or? For dog-people at least!

Just got a call from a friend, 21st April I'll help out in a speciality show for havaneses! That'll be fun and I even sent the entry in time for junior handling there also :) Thought that would be a no-dog weekend, but noup, and that's fun!

Me showing havanese Torcedore's Aria El Amore "Siiri"

We've been thinking about the Bundessieger-show in Germany in October. There are great judges for our dogs (maybe we could have the last CACIB for Nelli..?) and it would be nice to see some kleinspitzes in their original country too. We'll see!

The statistics for entries in WW-12 for junior handling has been published. Now it seems like around 40 juniors will compete in the selection rounds, and 20 as representatives for their countries. I really wonder what's up with the numbers of representatives.. In Paris last year there were about 40 juniors representing their country? Weird. At least the selection rounds will be a nice competition with many juniors! And we are 7 from Finland, that's great too!

Well, talk to you later, I don't have much to say today!

♥ Hilde ♥

this and that

Hey again!

To keep something up in this blog, I thought about posting some pics (a picture tells more than 1000 words..) and articles about my junior handling that have been made in the past year :)

Koiramme-magazine

Koiramme-magazine

Koiramme-magazine

Showlink Annual 2011

Reviiri-magazine

Koirauutiset-magazine

HotDog magazine

A pic of Ninja 22 months old, without grooming though.. love the strength in her body!

22 months old :)

Also some cute pics of Nelli and Ninja..

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♥ Hilde ♥

your thoughts..

Hey!

I just added a new feature to this blog, because I'd like to know what you think about it. If you don't feel like posting a comment (which you are very welcome to do!), you can just with one click tell me what you thought. In the end of every post, this included, are four different "reaction" buttons. You can choose between: Interesting, ♥ , :) or :(. If you want, you can share your reactions on the old posts too, so I now what you like to read.

Also if you would like to ask something or you'd want to wish for some special "topic" that I could write about; Feel free! I'd like that very much :)

Thanks!

♥ Hilde ♥

Breeder's course - check!

Hello you! :)

Whoopee! Breeder's course - check & passed! Yey! :) Now just waiting 'till I turn 18 years old, which means almost a year, and then I can apply for my kennel name. And which would that be.. hmm. I have absolutely NO idea :( But hey, one year time to think.

baby-Ninja and Nelli the mother ♥ 

The course was pretty interesting. Okay, the most of it was kind of basic things, but I at least had no idea of mating and genes and all that stuff. So at least I learnt something! Now I should have the basic skills, but to succeed as a breeder I will need help and advice from experienced breeders. Also, of course; when you do, you learn. I think every dog owner should take that course, because it's basic information about dogs, not just for breeders, but to dog owners.

the whole family, Nelli (mother), Ninja (daughter) and Otto (father)

The biggest challenge for me will be finding the right dog to mate Ninja with. I do know what I want the offspring to be, but how do I achieve that and how do I find the right dog with the right pedigree..? That'll be a challenge.

That's the future, now I'm one step closer.

Last year in Lappeenranta with
american akita Inuline Keep Honest "Vanilla"

And oh yeah, the time when there's a dogshow for every weekend is coming closer! It starts on Easter, 8-9.4 with Lappeenranta NAT show. And then there'll be no end until September. So bye, free weekends! :D

Ninja BOS & CAC at 11 months old in Lappeenranta last year,
the breeders group "Tirhan" was also shortlisted to top-6 in BIS-BREEDER

♥ Hilde ♥

Cruft's is over..

..And I wasn't even there! Still irritated.. As I said, watched the International Junior Handling finals online where my lovely friends represented so good!

 

The IJH-final has about 40 competitors every year all from different countries. Each country decides their own way how to choose their representative. This year the judge was Mr. Espen Engh from Norway who's known for his successful greyhounds. I think he did a great job judging these juniors. He asked just normal things to do, like a triangle and up-and-down.

Cruft's has it's beauty there. There are two rounds, first with your "own" dog (the one you've asked for, you get the dog's just one hour before the competition.) and the second one with a swapdog. This is what I personally appreciate. You get two dogs you've never met before, and you have to create a cooperation in a short time. That's what measures the skills. It's not easy, and there you separate the sheep from the goats.

2nd place went to Pernilla Lindström from Sweden!
© Theodóra Róbertsdottir

My opinion of this year's handlers was a bit weak. I don't know what it is, but many of them had a lack of basic skills. Things like: take a nice distance from the judge when stacking, nicely collect the leash in your fist in every occasion so it doesn't disturb, the WAY YOU RUN; this was especially horrible in some handlers, if I'm honest. These are stuff that you shouldn't have to think about in the ring, they should come naturally. And yes, if you don't have control over them, it is disturbing and affects the whole overall impression.

The happiness is amazing, IJH winner 2012, Raquel Colaço
representing Portugal also with a german pointer

Some of the handlers were very nervous, which is of course understandable, but if you want to do a great performance, you have to keep your nerves together! With the swapdog.. what can I say. There are not many that manages to make a contact with a dog they've got 5 minutes ago. And that if something, is a shame.

Sure there were some pearls in the sea. The ones that did a beautiful, natural and calm performance. Showed their dog to it's absolutely best and shone with self-confidence and happiness. The judge seemed to like it that way too. The shortlisted one's were (if I remember correctly, excuse me if I'm wrong!) the USA, Australia, Czech republic, Slovakia, Portugal, Denmark, Sweden, New Zealand, Monaco and a country that was represented by a guy, can't remember which. Sadly our Finnish representative Susanna Gourine didn't get to the top-10, but she can be proud of herself, because she did a faultless performance very professionally with her tibetan terrier.

Last year's winner, Paulina Lisiak with a german pointer

The top-3 then was: 3rd place to Monaco represented by Aleksandra Szydłowska with an english springer spaniel. Aleksandra has won Cruft's once before with the same breed, so this wasn't anything new for this experienced handler. 2nd place went to the Swedish handler Pernilla Lindström who showed her australian shepherd extremely calmly and beautifully. Sweden hasn't got that much success in Cruft's IJH, so way to go representing Sweden! And the highest award, 1st place went to the always with a big smile showing her dogs,  Raquel Colaço from Portugal! She competed with a german pointer, like the last year's winner. She was natural with a calm touch to her dog and a very professional way to handle. Above all that, the happiness shone trough her all the time! She's also been placed several times in international junior handling competitions. I could say, I had pretty much the same opinions about top-10 and so on with the judge. A nice IJH in Cruft's this year! My warmest congratulations to the three placed!

If you want to watch these cheerful moments, here is the video from the finals: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6X_pWiijug&feature=related

The whole competition can be seen here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O45RicPsavI&feature=related

Ninja 22 months old pictured some days ago

Ninja 22 months old pictured some days ago 

This weekend I will participate in the Finnish Kennelclub's breeder's course. I got the pre-material in the mail, and hahah, I have 150 pages to read about dogbreeding.. just a little light night-reading to do.. :p There will be a test in the end of this course, thumbs up so I'll pass it! If and when I pass it, I can apply for a breeding-name when I turn 18. That I'll do and then I can think of puppy plans.. exciting! :)



♥ Hilde ♥

Crufts oh Cruft's..

Hello you! :)

Tinker and me at Cruft's 2011! :)

Oh my, Cruft's is on for this year! I would've so much wanted to be there! Cruft's is the most beautiful dog show I've ever been to. The big finals are so nice and they get each and every competitor in the spotlight.

top-8 in the International Junior Handling final 2011

I just watched a bit of the finals, the last minutes of the toy group. Nice that the pom won! It's a shame I didn't have time to see the kleinspitz BUT I know the dog is beautiful, and I'm glad that it won the breed.

We were almost on our way to Cruft's this year, but I would've wanted to see the International Junior Handling final which is on Sunday and compete with Ninja in the breed. Ninja would have been today in the ring, and we should've left already yesterday. My school wouldn't have liked it as we're going abroad to Croatia and Austria this spring.. enough free days from school already. :(

Competing with the lovely aussie Allmark Muffin Muncher "Tinker"

But next year we'll be there! Ninja has the right to attend, so why wouldn't we? As a matter of fact, Ninja wouldn't probably succeed in the UK if there will be a British judge. They have different breed standards there and Ninja doesn't quite fit in. But I would like to attend for the experience!

Beautiful movements of Allmark Muffin Muncher
© HotDog magazine

Last year I had the most amazing experience, I was honored to represent Finland according to my win in the Finnish Championship final 2010. I thought about the breed that I would wish for a long time, but ended up with a breed I'd never shown before. It was an australian shepherd, and it couldn't have been a better choice!
As a 2nd choice I had a whippet, also a breed I'd never shown before, but ended up with the aussie in the ring :)

Showing Allmark Muffin Muncher "Tinker"
 in the International Junior Handling final
© Paula Heikkinen-Lehkonen

The australian shepherd I got was a beautiful male, Allmark Muffin Muncher "Tinker". There was totally 3 aussies in the IJH final last year. I think I did a pretty good performance for the judge Christopher Habig from Germany, and he thought so too, because I was shortlisted to the 8 best!! That was really the moment of my life. I hadn't expected ANYTHING! And so boom! I was in the top-8. Wow. I won't ever forget that moment. As a swapdog I got a german pointer, once again a breed I've never even touched, but it went very well :)

A german pointer as a swapdog
© Paula Heikkinen-Lehkonen

My success ended in getting into the top-8, but oh my gosh, that was SO beautiful. A Finnish representative has once won Cruft's, if I remember correctly in the 80's. After that, we haven't got that much success, so I was honored to stand for Finland that day :) And still I can remember when I go so many congratulations from all Finnish friends who were truly happy about it. I love you! It's so important everyone cheers for each other!

Girls, girls.. :) The girl with the pointer,
winner of the IJH final 2011, Paulina  Lisiak from Poland!
© Charlotte Page

This Sunday I will watch my nose attached to the screen on the International Junior Handling final and cheer for all my friends, and of course our Finnish representative this year, Susanna Gourine. I'm so disappointed I'm not there, but I'll keep my fingers and toes crossed for you my friends! GOOD LUCK! :)

Allmark Muffin Muncher "Tinker" owned by Neil and Angie Allan

 

Play-time with Tinker ♥   

♥ Hilde ♥