Bourbon and Cheslie at Westminster!

We are so proud of Bourbon's huge win in New York this week at the Westminster Kennel Club. She and Cheslie were incredibly beautiful in the big ring of Westminster!

Bourbon is owned by Justin Smithey, Cheslie Smithey, Dr Ken Lattimer, Judy Descutner, and Nancy Shaw. Bred by Justin Smithey and Yvonne Sovereign, Bourbon is shown with love by Cheslie. 

Bourbon Continues Her Winning Ways

 

Yesterday Bourbon won Best in Show #20 in Wheaton, IL. What an exciting year this is for our pretty girl! Bourbon is the #1 Whippet, #1 Hound, and #3 All Breeds dog in the US.

GCHB Pinnacle Kentucky Bourbon

GCHB Pinnacle Kentucky Bourbon

 

We are excited to be part of the team showing this flawless Whippet beauty in 2019! Thanks to Justin and Cheslie Smithey and Dr Ken Latimer for the opportunity.

Russell is a Champion!

Thank you to our good friend and handler Justin Smithey for completing Russell's AKC Championship in record time! Russell earned his majors in one weekend in Deland, FL. We are very proud of our handsome boy. Russell is anxious to begin performance events.

Ch. Hickory Tavern Gold Margarita

(Ch. Sporting Fields Son of a Beach Babe x Bo-Bett O'Calla Lily of Hickory Tavern)

June Dog Fun

Russell

Russell won Best of Winners in Canton, OH June 10 under Barbara Alderman for two more points. He has settled in nicely with dog show training and is really enjoying his time in the show ring.

Otis

 The amazing Hickory Tavern Superdog JH, Otis, is owned by Sam Descutner and the two of them have worked very hard training for field events. Otis has a ton of drive and I recently competed with him in Mantua, OH at an NADD dock diving event where his one and only splash resulted in a Master's level jump of 20'6". I'm really looking forward to more dock diving with this fun guy!

Finally, Flynn got an OFA rating of 'Good' on her hips. This was great news as we prepare to breed Flynn later this year.

Hickory Tavern Over and Out

From too much sun to too cold! The top photo is our Bruce, now called Sunny, leaving for his new home with long time Whippet owners Ed & Pat. Sunny is bringing some excitement to the older dogs in the house! Sunny is such a sweet boy who is being totally spoiled by Ed & Pat.

Below is our little Tina, leaving with David for her new life. Tina has been super special to us for a lot of reasons, and she was really a tough one to let go. We're fortunate that all three pups live very close to us so that we can all get together. David & Tina will be great pals!

Hickory Tavern Tina Vallerina

New Homes for Puppies!

Hickory Tavern Full Throttle

Our wonderful and lively Margot has gone to live just 20 minutes from us with her new family, Steve and Maggie. Now called Josie, we have a special fondness for this clever and bold girl. We are really looking forward to seeing what her future brings.

Momma Love

This is Calla with her boy Bruce. She loves playing with her puppies!

Pupdate!

The Calla & Tanner puppies are doing great at 3.5 weeks. They have started to eat solid food and play together. All of them are so beautiful! Calla is a really good mom although she is starting to spend less time with the pups. Soon we will start taking them outside for short play periods. Bruce and Margot now weigh over 4 lbs. Bruce is next and little Tina is the smallest. She is growing faster with the addition of solid food and we are really pleased with the entire group

Russell

Margot

Tina and Bruce

The puppies are one week old today!

We are treasuring our time with them.

Calla's Puppies Are Here

Just after midnight on July 29th, Calla went into labor. Her contractions were consistent, but sadly her first puppy girl presented breech, out of the sac, and stillborn. Calla then delivered a girl and two boys in quick succession, took an hour break, and delivered girl #2. Immediately her instincts kicked in and she began to care to each of her perfect little puppies. After her huge appearance, we expected a large litter and were very surprised that Calla's size was only from 5 good-sized puppies. We had a quick vet trip for an xray to make sure that no other puppies remained, and Calla has now spent the day attending to the new crew. We are so excited to see these pups grow and feel blessed that Calla has successfully delivered these beautiful new babies.

Calla immediately loves her babies

Boy #1

Girl #1

Girl #2

Boy #2

Whippet Puppies on the Way

Our other big news is that Calla is confirmed pregnant!! We are really looking forward to our Whippet puppies, who will be here in no time at all. While Calla is getting fatter and fatter, here is a picture of athletic daddy Tanner racing in the Pacific Northwest.

Day 51 of 63. How much bigger will she get??

Tanner

Upcoming Whippet Breeding

Calla has finally come into season and we are preparing to breed her for the first time. We have selected a gorgeous Sporting Fields dog who lives in Oregon. Tanner is a champion show dog as well as a speedy racer. We are hoping for a successful outcome!

Back to the Whippet Ring!

I was thrilled to return to the Whippet ring after an absence of several years to win Best of Winners Thursday with Bo-Bett Lainies Surprise under judge Dr Steve Keating in Canfield, OH. Lainie Jane is, of course, bred by my great friend Carol Harris and owned by my sister Dr Jan McMaster and me.

Whippets will always be my true love in the dog world.

Calla Lily is Back!

Today is a monumental day for Calla Lily. Dr Radcliffe examined her and has cleared her to begin normal exercise! Last November, she broke her hind leg at the hock, and tore the ligaments that held it. After months of cast and bandage changes with weekly 3 hour round trip visits to the vet, she has spent the past weeks with very limited access to the small yard. Now we can begin long walks and gen...tle running. This may prove to be difficult, but we will monitor her and use the golf cart to exercise her.

We deeply appreciate all the good thoughts and care shown to Calla from our friends, from Facebook, from the dog world, and from the impeccable care of Dr Jim Radcliffe and his staff at Town & Country Veterinary Hospital, Wheeling, WV. I hope that all injured Whippets are able to get care of the quality given by Dr Jim. Calla may return to the ring later this year!

Whippet Calla is 3 Today

Our stunning Whippet Calla is celebrating her 3rd birthday today. Although it's been a rough year for her with her leg injury, she is recuperating beautifully and is now enjoying more time outside. We feel so lucky to have her in our home; she is an absolute treasure.

Calla Is Home!

The excessive drainage from the surgical incision has finally stopped, and Calla was allowed to come home today. We are so happy to have her back with us! She is bandaged, splinted, and wrapped together, and has to remain as quiet and still as possible to allow her ligaments and bones to heal. Dr Jim Radcliffe at Town and Country Animal Hospital in Wheeling, WV has done a beautiful job of repairing the damage to her broken bones and shredded ligaments; now it is up to us and Calla to follow the instructions that will help her get better!

What A Weekend...

Calla - The Most Beautiful, Sweet and Special Dog in the World

The ups and downs of my dogs...it's very bittersweet for the last of the puppies to leave. I'm so happy that the families love their new puppy so much, but it's hard to see their sweet little faces go...we put so much time and love into our babies. In the midst of this, Calla had a horrific accident in the yard Friday afternoon and broke her left hind leg at the hock. I immediately knew that she had broken her leg, and she was on the x-ray table at Dr Radcliffe's clinic in Wheeling within the hour. Calla had surgery to repair the bone and ligaments on Saturday afternoon, and she remains hospitalized for observation and treatment. This evening I packed up all of the puppy equipment and the whelping box, and tomorrow I'll set up two big crates for Calla's coming months of rest and rehabilitation. Sadly, it may be up to a year until she recovers fully. Sigh.

Happy Wednesday!

Happy Wednesday!

Carol Harris of Bo-Bett Whippets and Italian Greyhounds

My hero, mentor, and dearest friend, Carol Harris, is featured in the new issue of Purina's Today's Breeder magazine. Her outlook and knowledge that she generously shares have taught me so much over the years. In addition, there is no one more fun to be with!