The 2008 ASDCA NATIONAL SPECIALTY

After being out of the show ring since February 2008, Moose traveled to Atlanta, Georgia, in September 2008 to defend his 2007 Best In Specialty Show title. It was an amazing show, with a high number of actual working dogs entered, making it a true test for Honorable Judges Carl Vitner (sweepstakes Judge) and Dorothy Collier (judge for regular classes). Alaturka had two dogs from its line do very well.

AWARD OF MERIT went to BISS CH Eiserntor AA Mustafa of Turkay (aka "Moose"). While Moose did not repeat his Breed Win a second year in a row, Linda and I are still very proud of this amazing boy!! Not many dogs can come right out of the pasture and still stand out in a show ring. With the competition that showed up at this show, we were thrilled the judge still saw Moose's special qualities.


BEST PUPPY IN SWEEPS went to TILSIMLI'S FLASH FLOOD (aka "Kedi"), a puppy bitch sired by CH Horizon's Zafer (aka "Rocky") out of CH Alaturka Tilsimli Taksirata (aka "Sira" - bred by me in 2004). She is owned by Lindsay Zirkel & Jamie Beaver and bred by Jamie Beaver. I look for great things from this little girl in the future.


BEST VETERAN DOG & BEST STUD DOG went to CH Kandira's Encore (aka "Ernie" -- Moose's Sire & Kedi's Grandsire) owned by Debi Grunnah of Island Farm. Ernie is a spectacular dog that I fell in love with the first time I saw him at the 1999 ASDCA National Specialty when he was just 18mo old. I knew then that there would be few dogs that would stand out like Ernie does.

All in all the National Specialty show surpassed all our expectations. I was overjoyed to see Anatolian folk I had not seen for many many years ... it was a real treat to sit around and swap dog stories and catch up on each others doings over the years. I really miss these get togethers and talking with old friends. I cannot wait until next time!!

KAI IN HIS NEW HOME:

Every breeder knows that having to take back one of their pups can be a very stressful and traumatic event for the dog. I took back a dog last year that had to be shipped all the way from Washington State to Florida. I was expecting a very sad pup. But, when the door opened from the transport bus he was shipped in, out came a dog that was very happy to be back with his grandma!


Kai was from my Dani/Kiral litter and the people he went to drove all the way from Washington State to pick him up ... they wanted the bonding time on the drive home. Seemed like a great home for him since he was my "social butterfly". However life happens, circumstances change and, after only two years, Kai was back with me and I had to once again look for a good home for him.

Although he was with me for a few months after getting him back, he was a real joy to have. He got along with all my dogs, even my older male, Safa, who seemed to adore him. Daisy, my youngest female, thought he was the most wonderful playmate she had ever had. I might have been tempted to keep him for myself, but three dogs is pretty much my limit nowadays.

After interviewing several people who looked good, but just not "good enough", I received a call from Tanya! After several conversations and several visits from her and her family to meet Kai, I was convinced this would be the perfect home for him ... he loved the whole family, including the other two family dogs, a neutered male beagle and spayed female doberman.

Finally, one weekend I told Tanya she could take Kai home ... with the stipulation that she would send photos and keep me up to date. Since the day she took him home, I have gotten regular updates on Kai's antics and stories about how "wonderful he is". And, although it has been nearly a year since he went to live with Tanya and her family, I still feel that this is the home he was meant to have all along. For an Anatolian such as Kai, Tanya's family was made for him.

MOOSE AT HOME AGAIN

Moose is back home with his Nigerian dwarf goats, Babydoll sheep, horses, chickens and cats, and especially back with his family, the Currans of High Springs, Florida. It has been an exciting year for Moose, his family, his co-owner and his breeders. This amazing dog has done his time and shown his worth in matching the breed standard for the Anatolian Shepherd Dog, now he is home and doing what he loves the most. It is a time for destressing and getting back to basics for him.

In a total of 65 shows in one year of showing, Moose has 42 BEST OF BREED wins, a Group One and a Group four. He won the 2007 National Specialty Show exactly one week after he turned two years old, he qualified for Eukanuba, finished 2007 as AKC's #2 Anatolian, and was invited to the 2008 Westminster show. That's an amazing year for basically a puppy!!

There may be the occasional dog show here and there, but the most important thing is that Moose has nothing to prove when it comes to strutting his stuff in the show ring. He has more than proved he is fit to join the ranks of other outstanding Anatolian Shepherd Dogs!!

THE WESTMINSTER EXPERIENCE

This will be only the second time a dog I bred has ever been invited to go to Westminster in New York city for the big event held every year in February. The show is televised and all the dogs that win their breed get to have their minute in front of the camera in the Group ring. It is a very exciting and very exhausting experience. This year Moose was invited as AKC's #2 Anatolian for 2007. Normally, we would not have considered this, but since we had decided that Moose needed to get back to what he really loved, being a Livestock Guardian, we thought this would be an important show for him to go to. So off to New York City with Gary Sheetz, his handler for this show.

The first day of the show we watched as dogs in other groups strutted their stuff and vied for their chance at a group placement. On the second day, we found out that Moose was not awarded Best of Breed and would not be seen in front of the camera in the Group ring, but he did take the only AWARD OF MERIT for our breed. We were very excited. Moose had already done more than we ever expected in just one year of being a show dog and we were very happy with AOM he was awarded by Judge Beverly Capstick.

THE FLORIDA JANUARY CIRCUIT

This year the competition was pretty intense. Out of the ten shows on the January Circuit, Moose took BEST OF BREED only seven times. He did manage to finish up #1 by the end of the month, but, of course, that doesn't mean much at the beginning of the year. Here are some photos of Moose in the Group ring at a couple of these shows. As you can see he really enjoys his short vacations in the show ring.


We are grateful for the experienced training and grooming performed on a daily basis while Moose has resided with Gary Sheetz this past month.

KHYRA IN HER NEW HOME

Khyra is a pup from my May 2006 litter and is a very sweet girl. As I am getting older and not as energetic as I once was, I had to downsize my kennel to a more manageable number of dogs. So Khyra was placed with a good friend of mine in Wisconsin. Here is a photo of her the first day getting acquainted with "Ozzy", an 8-month-old male Anatolian ... of course she had to pretend she wasn't interested in him at all!

It didn't take long for the two of them to become best of buds, but Khyra had to make sure he knew his place!! Khyra is, of course, in charge of everything. She eats first ... she picks out the toys they play with ... she lets him know when it is okay to wrestle ... and she makes sure he knows that it is his job to keep her warm while they watch TV. They have now become pretty much inseperable.

Here are Khyra and Ozzy in August 2007, doing perimeter checks around their 5 acre yard. It is almost impossible to see Khyra and not see Ozzy right beside her. Ozzy is so thrilled to have a playmate, he's afraid to let her out of his sight! One of their favorite games is to play "tag! you're it!" by chasing each other all over their yard.

Here are Khyra and Ozzy in December 2007. Wow! What a difference a few months makes. They love to play in the snow and it is almost impossible to get them to come in the house when there is lots and lots of snow to play in. They feel it is even more important to do their perimeter checks when it is nice and cold outside. And, it is more fun to play and run when it is so cool ....

2007 ASDCA National Specialty Show

This year the National Specialty show was held in Gray Summit, MO at the Purina Compound. Although this was one of the smaller specialty shows we have had since we went AKC, it will always be remembered as one of the greatest days of our lives. This year, our boy, CH Eiserntor's AA Mustafa of Turkay (aka "MOOSE") was the winner. Our judge, Mrs Chris Walkowicz also awarded him a GROUP ONE!! We are still up in the clouds!



Linda Curran of Turkay Anatolans co-owns Moose with me, his breeder, and we could not be more thrilled. He has only been showing a few months, but his show career has been phenomenal ... finished his AKC Championship in FOUR WEEKENDS with five BEST OF BREED wins OVER CHAMPIONS and a GROUP FOUR!! As of October 1st, he is AKC's #3 Anatolian all systems. To say we are proud of this boy is a huge understatement.

To make it an even better weekend, Moose's dad, CH Kandira's Encore was Best Veteran at 9 years old, Best Stud Dog and was awarded an Award of Merit. Moose's niece, CH Island Farm's Roxanne, took Best Opposite Sex. Moose's half brother, Horizon's Moses, took Best of Winners and another niece took Winners Bitch. All in all it was a remarkable day!!

TWO OF MY EARLY DOGS

As an owner of Anatolian Shepherds for nearly 20 years, it has been my great pleasure to have lived with some very nice examples of this ancient breed!!

ALATURKA'S "SAGI"

Here is my second Anatolian, Sagi (pronounced "Sah Gee"), with one of the many kittens that have been abandoned on our property over the years ... to say that Sagi was a good babysitter is putting it mildly to say the least. It is amazing to me to go back and remember all the times this girl stepped in and took over the care of these little guys.

I guess my fondest memory is at dusk one day when Sagi was laying out in the yard with three new very small kittens ... Sagi was stretched out, supposedly sleeping, when an owl came down from a tree after one of the kittens. Sagi went from fully stretched out laying down to full protective mode in the blink of an eye. The owl didn't stand a chance ... and Sagi's kittens were safe!!

Sagi was a beautiful apricot fawn and one of many top show dogs that I have had over the last 20 years, earning four championship titles in less than a year and retiring as ARBA's #1 bitch.

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ALATURKA'S "HEAVEN'S TO MURGATROID"

My first Anatolian, Murgatroid, a silver fawn male with a black mask, came to live with me in October of 1987. Murg was my "Heart" dog (had total control of my heart) and was my best guardian dog.

Murg was a sweet gentle dog, but could be very serious when he felt his "flock" was being threatened. He loved children, and I cannot begin to count the number of stray puppies and kittens he "rescued" over the years, making me bring them back to the house and care for them until they were healthy enough to go to new homes.

Over the 11 years that I was privileged to be loved by this dog, he showed me over and over what Anatolians are all about -- Nobility - Loyalty - Love (especially "LOVE"). I shall be forever grateful that I had the opportunity to know such a dog.

DOG PARK PLAY DAYS #1

Christmas is always a very busy time at Dogwood Dog Park ... we have lots of stockings that we give out to our visitors, with homemade dog cookies, red and green tennis balls and lots of other holiday toys to play with. Here is Tawni & Khyra in front of the Christmas tree greeting visitors as they come through.

We also have a holiday get together for all the members to come and share stories about their beloved pets ... and some of these stories are really funny!!

If you ever get to Gainesville, you have to come visit my favorite place for dogs .... DOGWOOD DOG PARK!!! It is on Archer Road, just west of I-75 on the left hand side of the road.

We call it "DOGGY DISNEYLAND" because it is 15 acres of beautiful parkland, with two swimming ponds and a "dry area" for the dogs to go to after swimming to play while they dry off a little. There is a huge sand pile for them to play and dig in. Water is available all over the park, along with plastic bags for you to pick up after your dog. All dogs are carefully screened so that your precious pet will always be safe in the park. And, of course, it is especially nice for groups of folks who want their dogs to have a really great time playing and exercising.

A DAY AT A DOG PARK

As an Anatolian owner/lover since 1987, I have always strived to put my dogs in as many social situations as possible. One of the ways I socialize my dogs with other dogs is to take them every weekend to a dog park. These are some photos of my dogs having the time of their lives!! The pinto is Daisy, the white ASD is Happy, and the other two in the water are Vizslas that came to join in the fun.

This is a photo of Michelle and her two Anatolians, Happy (3 year old male) and Masallah (12 year old male). She drove all the way from Washington State, going from Dog Park to Dog Park all along the way, just to come stay with her son in Ocala. She has become a regular member of the Dog Park and shows up every weekend. And, believe me, my guys really look forward to seeing them!!


This park has TWO large ponds to swim in and there are 15 acres of running around room for the dogs to chase and play. Since I started taking all my dogs to the park, it has been really easy to get their socialization skills to a really high level. It is rare for any of my dogs to cause a problem at a dog show or anywhere else. The most fun of all of course is all the funny things they do that make you laugh.


The above photos were taken October 7th, 2006 ... the day my newest member of the family, Tawni, turned 5 months old. This photo of her was taken right after she found out the pond is really fun!! Tawni is a great great granddaughter of my foundation bitch, Tilki, who recently went over the rainbow bridge, making her a 5th generation puppy for the Alaturka line. Tawni came to me from Indiana as a very special gift from a good friend of mine. I look forward to many photos of her at the Dog Park!!