Time is getting closer to our planned Fall litters. Timing says Frost will be first. She will be bred to our Rider, Ch Arylan Custom Goldwing. Rider is Lindy’s baby boy. Rider belongs to Harry Griffith of Arylan. We could get all colors except blue.

Frost, Rockie Top’s Flying Snow, RN

Banner is next and she will be bred to the very handsome Rush, Bronze GCH Regents Midnight Rush. This litter will be black and white (Tri).

Ch Arylan Flying the Colors at Solstices

We are excited about both litters and if you are too let me know. There is a questionnaire and our kennel policies on the side of the blog so we can start to get to know each other. Both these litters are planned for late Fall/Early Winter.

Here is a link to the Banner/Rush litter.

http://www.cardiped.net/printable_pedigree.php?sire=67549&dam=68645&gens=4&images=no

I am spending a couple of weeks in Atlanta working for the Farm and since my birthday was over the weekend and I was less than three days away from Bestie the only thing to do was to jump in the car and drive 6+ hours to meet Leslie at a Dog Show just outside of Memphis, TN.

Leslie and I made a trip to Memphis famous Beale St. We checked out some Blues, famous landmarks like the Peabody Hotel and their ducks. It was Elvis week and there were lots of folks honoring the King if you can imagine. We checked out the Big Muddy. I had an interesting encounter with a local street gentlemen named Carl who was very enthusiastic about his tip for watching the car.

If we weren’t having a good enough time Kathy joined us and there was much laughing and eating and more eating, followed by more eating.

I was sad to leave my friends but it was such a bonus to get to spend my 50th Birthday weekend with them. Thanks guys for making my weekend special.

The figs are just starting to come in and the Solstice dogs are eagerly awaiting their arrival.  They were very disappointed last year after our poor fig tree suffered great damage from the crazy freeze we had in February of 2010.  There were no figs in 2011.

Bailey figures if she stares at them long enough they will fall off the branches.    I really feel bad for the poor tree, the Cardigans love it, they eat the figs, the leaves, the branches, nothing is safe. 

For those of you following the saga I wanted to give the final update.  Sadly Oz’s body was located yesterday, he had been struck by a car.  It was a heartbreaking end to an already upsetting story. 

Oz, escaped from an Xpen at the OKC Summer classic shows.  He was put out for just a few minutes and while Harry went back into the motorhome for a few minutes and it is believed that  Oz panicked due to an air gun going off at a near by construction site.  The folks in the neighboring RV alerted Harry but it was too late, Oz was already on the run.  There was much searching by the folks at the dog show.  Oz’s former handler Sherri Hurst and her team got posters made and helped with the search along with countless others.  Harry had to leave OKC to go home but Shelly and Ron Shirey took up the lead position locally.  There was press coverage and many local OKC folks on the look out for Oz.

I didn’t get to attend these shows this year so I spent my time working the social media aspect trying to get the word out and Oh how the dog community responded.  There were folks everywhere looking for Oz, volunteering their time, money, equipment and their dogs in an effort to help Harry find his lost boy.  Not just the Corgi Nation but people from all over dogdom.  Facebook spread the word as did as many as 25,000 retweets on twitter it was an amazing show of support.  I wish I had been able to share positive news.

Oz was not my dog but he was very important to me.  I’ve known him since he was a tiny puppy, his littermate is my beloved Banner and he is the sire of Lindy’s litter, Fifi, Rider, Einie and Mandy B.  I was his human rep at the 2010 CWCCA nationals where he was awarded winner’s dog and was in his cheering section when he finished both his Championship and Grand Championship.  A special dog and my heart hurts in his loss.

Oz won the breed at the Rio Grande shows in Albuquerque this past May and Photographer Brenna Spencer was taking candid ringside that day at the groups and on a whim I asked her if she could get some shots of Harry and Oz in the group ring.  I wanted a special photo for Harry since Oz had finished his Grand Championship at these shows.  It is hard for me to believe that this photo represents the last time Harry and Oz were together in the ring. 

I hope Oz will live on in our hearts not just as a memory of a special dog but through his kids.    A special thank you to everyone who supported Harry during this time, especially to the Shirey’s who not only kept the search alive in OKC but laid Oz to rest on their property in Oklahoma.   Gone but not forgotten, rest well special boy.

There were sightings today, the last one late today at 23rd and Drexler in Oklahoma City.  Please keep looking.

I have loved many dogs with great joy but some of them have left bigger pawprints on my heart.

It has been so hot and dry here that I empty and fill up the doggy pools daily. When I am filling them I let the dogs run in the big yard because they won’t leave the hose alone.  So I  dump the water and start to fill the pools and as the water soaks into the dry ground a set of paw prints emerge.

My first thought…….. Windy was stopping by to say hello, she left me years ago but it makes me happy to think she is never too far away.

And the paw prints……….. I am going to believe what I believe.

These are the good dogs, everyone got to wear the flag today, but only Frost and Banner were willing subjects.  Proudly we wave!