On July 27th, a litter sired by Geraldo was born at Kelvington Shelties.  Kelvington's Elec Tri Fying (Sony) had six puppies---3 blue merle males, 2 blue merle females, and 1 tri male.  Sony is owned by Elaine Kelvington.  Geraldo is a proud papa, and I'm really looking forward to watching this litter grow up too!

 

Geraldo and I had an incredibly nice weekend at the Golden Retriever agility trial in Cheswick, PA on July 23-25.  We Q'ed on five of our six runs, and Geraldo was running like the wind!  He now has 19 of the 20 QQ's that he needs for MACH 2 and almost half of the 750 points he needs as well.  It is such a joy and a privilege to run with him in agility.

 

The Calvin x Zelda puppies arrived in the wee hours of the morning on June 28th!!  We have one tri boy and two blue boys in the litter, and mom and pups are doing great!  We'll be posting puppy photos to the litters page later this week.  A big thank you to Debbie Miller-Gurchak for sitting up with Zelda and me and for helping us with the whelping process.  We are tired but happy!!

On June 19th and 20th, Geraldo and I attended our last agility trial prior to taking time off to spend with Zelda's puppies.  It was our sheltie club's agility trial, and it was both a successful and fun filled weekend for us.  Geraldo Q'ed on three of his four runs and picked up 29 MACH points.  It was nice to head into our summer break on such a high note!

 

On June 4th at the Cuyahoga Valley Golden Retriever Club's agility trial in North Olmsted, Ohio, Geraldo finished his Excellent FAST (XF) title with a first placement!  We had been chasing that last XF leg for quite awhile, so I was very happy to finally put it to bed.  Geraldo also picked up an additional 28 MACH points during the weekend.  We had so much fun!!

Chet Kids were "on fire" on Memorial Day Weekend.  On Thursday, Kelvington's Dancing 'N Moonlite (bred and owned by Elaine Kelvington) was WB for a three point major in New Castle, PA.  On Saturday, Hollybush's It's About Thyme PT NA NAJ (bred and owned by Debbie Miller-Gurchak) was WB for two points in Kalamazoo, MI.  Last but not least, Barb Westerman's tri Chet son, Gypsy's Night Moves, was RWD in Kalamazoo, MI on Sunday and Monday.

 

 As icing on the cake, CH MACH CastleGate's Daily News OF ("Geraldo") picked up 30 MACH points at the GTOTC agility trial in Cheswick, PA.   We'd love to have a few more weekends like this one!!  <G>

 

Zelda's pregnancy was confirmed via ultrasound this afternoon!  She's having four puppies for sure and possibly five.  Her most likely due dates are June 28th -30th, and we're very excited about the prospect of having puppy breath in the house again!

 

On May 20th, Bliss won Best of Breed from the Open AOAC Class under Jack Ireland in Marietta, Ohio.  That was Bliss' first BOB and our first homebred BOB, so it was an extra special win for us.  A huge thank you to Judy Stachowski for presenting Bliss so beautifully at this show!

I spent Mother's Day in Edinboro, PA doing one of my favorite things---running agility with my dogs!  Geraldo had a fantastic weekend, and I was thrilled with the number of Q's and points he earned at the Hamburg Trial.  Elsa came out of retirement for the weekend to run just for fun, and she did a marvelous job too.  She seemed really happy to be running agility again.  Elsa will probably continue to run at some of the summer trials while Zelda is home awaiting the arrival of her puppies.

On May 2nd, Bliss (CastleGate's Seventh Heaven) was WB/BW/BOS for two points under Carolyn Herbel.  Bliss also earned points as a puppy, but these were her first points from the Open Class.  Our thanks to Judy Stachowski for presenting Bliss so beautifully at the Eaton, OH shows.

 

Geraldo had a great day on May 2nd too!  At the CABTC's agility trial in North Olmsted, OH, he earned the final QQ that he needed to qualify for the 2011 AKC Agility National in Lexington, VA.

 

We'd love to have a few more weekends as nice as this one was!!

Geraldo QQ'd on April 24th and again on April 25th at the POTC agility trial in Zanesville, OH. Geraldo now has five of the six QQ's and more than half of the 400 points that he needs to qualify for the 2011 AKC Agility National in Lexington, VA. We would love to be able to go to the National again next year!!

 

As an added bonus, one of Geraldo's sons (Tuxedo owned by Sue Botsford) earned his first Q in Excellent B this weekend, and I was so happy to be there to see that run in person!

Zelda (CastleGate's Mercy Me, MX, MXJ, XF) has been bred to BISS Am/Can CH Homespun Casual Blues.  We're very excited about this breeding, and if all goes as planned, she should have puppies at the end of June.  We're expecting Zelda's puppies to be pretty, well built, and full of drive!  Zelda's first due date is June 25th, and we have the possibility of tri, blue merle, bi-blue, and bi-black puppies in this litter. 

 

On March 26-28, 2010, Geraldo and I competed at the AKC Agility National in Tulsa, OK.  We had a blast, and we met so many wonderful people and their dogs.  This was our first Agility National, and we were delighted to qualify on two of our runs.  We had two other really nice runs where we were oh so close to qualifying too. Geraldo ran well for me, and I'm very proud of him!  He's such an awesome dog!!  Check out Geraldo's web page to see a photo of him competing at the National.

On March 14th at the Butler Dog Training Club's agility trial in Edinboro, PA, Zelda finished her MX title with a glorious Standard run!! I expect her in season any day now, and I'm thrilled that she finished her MX and her MXJ prior to taking time off for motherhood.  Zelda also earned her first Master FAST leg with a third placement that weekend.

 

I hope someday that she follows in her litter brother's footsteps and becomes a dual champion too.

On March 6, 2010, at the Puli Club's agility trial in Zanesville, OH, Geraldo became CH MACH CastleGate's Daily News OF.  It's truly a dream come true for me to have a homebred dual champion. 

 

We went into that trial weekend needing just three points to finish our agility championship, and Geraldo got down to business on our first run of the weekend and put those three points (plus a few points to spare) to bed quickly.  I had been anticipating that moment for such a long time, and it felt even better than I thought it would!!  <G>

At the Olean Kennel Club's agility trial on February 5th & 6th in Edinboro, PA, Zelda earned her 7th MX leg, her 6th QQ, and 20 MACH points.  At the same trial, Geraldo and I shaved another 10 points off the points he needs for his MACH.  We just need 15 additional points for his MACH, and I can't wait to take that victory lap with my baby boy!!

At the APOTC Agility Trial on January 22-24, Zelda finished her Excellent FAST (XF) title, earned her 6th MX leg, and picked up 17 additional MACH points.  Although Geraldo and I weren't running in sync that weekend, we did still manage to shave an additional 10 points off of what he needs to finish his MACH.  It was a heat wave in he temperatures were in the high 30's for a good portion of the weekend.  <G>

At the BCSA agility trial in Edinboro, PA on January 15-17, Geraldo and Zelda had another nice weekend!  Zelda earned 29 MACH points, her 5th QQ, and her second Excellent FAST leg (with a first placement).  Geraldo picked up 24 MACH points and his 31st QQ.  We're in the homestretch for Geraldo's MACH!!  He just needs 35 more MACH points now!! 

After five weeks off from trialing and training classes, I was expecting our first agility trial of 2010 to be a free for all.  Geraldo and Zelda were raring to go, and we had a fantastic weekend both in and out of the agility ring in snowy Edinboro, PA.

 

Zelda earned 2 QQ's, 2 MX legs, and 65 MACH points this weekend.  She was fast and focused on every run, and she Q'ed on five of her six runs.  My Baby Girl now has 4 QQ's and 200 MACH points.

 

Geraldo earned 28 MACH points, one QQ, his second Excellent Fast leg and his first ever Triple Q at the Erie Kennel Club Trial.  He just needs 59 more points for his MACH.  <G>

We had a wonderful agility weekend in Edinboro, PA on December 4th-6th. Zelda picked up her first two QQ's and 54 MACH points to go along with them. This was only her second weekend in Excellent B for both Jumpers and Standard, so we are very pleased about those QQ's. Geraldo earned 23 MACH points this weekend, so he just needs 87 more points for his MACH.  I'm already looking forward to getting back in the ring with Zelda and Geraldo in January!

Oklahoma here we come!!  On November 22nd at the Mountaineer Kennel Club's agility trial in Morgantown, WV, Geraldo and I qualified for the 2010 AKC Agility National in Tulsa, OK!!  Geraldo also earned his 29th QQ at that trial.

 

His litter sister, Zelda, had a great weekend too. She finished her Excellent Standard title with two first placements and also picked up her first Excellent A FAST leg with a second placement. 

 

We're smiling from ear to ear at CastleGate!!

If you subscribe to the Sheltie Pacesetter, be sure to check out Geraldo's ad on page 7 of the Fall 2009 issue.

We had a nice weekend at the Admiral Perry Agility Trial in Edinboro, PA on November 6th-8th.  Geraldo earned his 28th QQ and his first Excellent FAST leg (with a third placement) at that show, and Zelda was not about to let him outdo her!!  She finished her Master Jumpers title on Sunday and earned her first Excellent A Standard leg (with a first placement) too.  Geraldo just needs 16 additional MACH points in order to qualify for the 2010 AKC Agility National.  <G>

 

The weather in Edinboro was glorious last weekend, and after Saturday's show, a friend and I took our dogs for a long walk on the beach at a local state park.  The dogs had a blast on the beach!!  It was a great weekend all the way around.

Geraldo and I had a great weekend at the Shiba Agility Trial in Edinboro, PA on September 19th and 20th.  He Q'ed on three of his four runs and earned his 26th QQ and 22 MACH points in the process.  He placed in the 16" Excellent B Class on two of his three qualifying runs as well!  Geraldo needs 210 points for his MACH and 63 more points to qualify for the 2010 AKC Agility National.  His younger sister, Zelda, earned her 9th MXJ leg at the same trial and got third place on that run.  It will be two more weeks before our next trial, and all we want to do is run!!   <G>

The CastleGate Kids had an awesome agility weekend!!  On September 11th-13th at the Neville Island Agility Trials, Geraldo picked up two QQ's and 33 MACH points.  He now needs less than 250 points to finish his agility championship.  His younger sister, Zelda, had a nice weekend too.  She earned her 7th and 8th MXJ legs at those trials.  We can't wait for our next trial!!

On Labor Day Weekend, Geraldo earned his 23rd QQ and picked up 29 MACH points too.  He only needs 265 more points to finish his agility championship.  Zelda picked up her 6th MXJ leg at the same trial. 

Geraldo and I had a fabulous weekend at the YABTC agility trial in Washingtonville, OH.  Geraldo earned his 22nd QQ on Sunday and picked up an additional 25 points toward his MACH between the two days.  He only needs 294 more points to finish his agility championship. 

Daily (Shamont Most Unusual Day NAJ) wasn't about to let her son (Geraldo) outdo her in the breed ring.  On August 13th in Muncie, IN, Daily was Winners Bitch under Judge Robert Moore.  She now has six points/one major.  Judy Stachowski showed Daily to this exciting win.

The CastleGate kids had a wonderful agility weekend in North Olmsted, OH on August 7-9.  Zelda finished her Open FAST title with a second placement, and she also finished her Open Standard title with two first placements.  Not to be outdone by his little sister, Geraldo also finished his Open FAST title with a fourth placement and picked up 20 additional MACH points during the course of the weekend.  We're already looking forward to our next agility trial! 

On August 2, 2009 in Canfield, OH, CastleGate's Daily News MX, MXJ, NF, CGC ("Geraldo") was WD/BW for a three point major under Judge Ralph (Sonny) Ambrosio, and with that win, he became a breed champion!!  He's my first homebred champion, and I'm so incredibly proud of him!!  Geraldo is the second champion for his sire and the first champion for his dam. 

I've been dreaming of this moment for a long time, and I'm going to be floating on the clouds for quite awhile!!  Our heartfelt thanks go out to Judy Stachowski for showing Geraldo to this win and finishing his championship in style!!

The win photo for Geraldo's four point major has been posted to his individual page, and Bliss' win photo for her first two points has also been posted to her page.  Please stop by and take a look.  We're very pleased with both of those pictures.

We had an awesome agility weekend at the Golden Retriever Agility Trial in Cheswick, PA on July 17-19.  Zelda earned her 5th MXJ leg (along with 6 MACH points), her NA title, her first OA leg, and two Open FAST legs at that trial, and she got first place on all but one of her qualifying runs this weekend. Geraldo did quite well too! He Q'ed in Excellent Jumpers and in Open FAST on Saturday, and he triple Q'ed on Sunday in Excellent Jumpers, Excellent Standard and Open FAST.  I'm worn out but oh so happy!

Geraldo is on a hot streak!!  Over the Fourth of July Weekend, he earned his 20th QQ and 21 MACH points at the Blue Ridge Dog Training Club's agility trial in Winchester, VA!!  We are overjoyed to have completed all of the QQ's that he needs for his MACH.  From this point forward, we'll be working on increasing our speed in order to put to bed the rest of his MACH points as quickly as possible.  I'm about to burst with anticipation!!

I'm sure Chet is smiling down on us from Heaven today.  On June 28th, his Baby Boy won a four point major under June Penta at the Bushy Run Show!!!  Elaine Kelvington, our friend and one of Chet's biggest fans, was at the end of the lead for Geraldo's exciting win!!  She was wearing her lucky suit, so I think that gave Geraldo "good karma" from the get go!  <G>  It was very nice to have so many of our friends there to share that joyful moment with us.  We are going to be dancing on the ceiling for days and days over this win. 

 

Geraldo now has 13 points/one major toward his breed championship, and he's more than half way to his agility championship too!! 

At the Cuyahoga Valley Golden Retriever Club's agility trial in North Olmsted, OH in May 2009, the trial photographer (Paw Prints Pet Photography) took some lovely action shots of Zelda and Geraldo. Their individual web pages have been updated with these new photos. We've also added a wonderful tire photo (taken by Cindy Noland) to Elsa's page. Please stop by and take a look at all of our new agility photos!!  Our thanks to our web master, Michelle Worley, for posting all of the new photos so quickly for us.

 

At the TRSSCGP trial on June 13th in Cheswick, PA, Zelda earned her 4th MXJ leg and five MACH points. One of Zelda's littermates (Ziva) came from Maryland to attend the CastleGate Puppy Reunion that we held in conjunction with this trial, and it was fun to see the two girls together again!  Elsa and Geraldo had some nice qualifying runs too.

On June 5th, Zelda earned her third MXJ leg and picked up 10 MACH points in the process.  She also finished her Novice Fast title that day with a first placement!  Geraldo had some nice runs in Washingtonville too, and he picked up 19 MACH points for the weekend.  We're already looking forward to our next trial!!

On May 30th at the Toledo Kennel Club's show in Maumee, OH, CastleGate's Seventh Heaven ("Bliss") was WB/BW under Sharon Redmer for her first two points in the conformation ring.  We're delighted that our Baby Girl is now pointed!  Bliss was shown to this exciting win by Judy Stachowski.

On May 29th and 30th, Geraldo and Zelda had a great time at the Cuyahoga Valley Golden Retriever Club's agility trial in North Olmsted, OH. 

 

On Friday, Geraldo finished his Novice FAST title with a fourth placement and picked up six MACH points on his Excellent Jumpers run that day.

 

Zelda made her Novice Standard debut at this show, and she had two perfect runs!!  She placed first in a class of nine on Friday and second in a class of fourteen on Saturday.  Zelda also earned her second Novice FAST leg on Friday and placed third in the Novice FAST class.

On May 25th at the Golden Triangle agility trial in Cheswick, PA, Zelda earned her second Master Jumpers leg and 8 MACH points. I'm very proud of my baby agility dog!! Geraldo and Elsa had some nice Q's on Sunday and Monday as well and picked up 17 MACH points and 6 MACH points respectively. It was a great way to end the holiday weekend!! Cindy Noland took some lovely action shots of Zelda and Elsa this weekend, and we'll be posting those to their web pages soon!

Geraldo has an ad on Shelties Online this week.  You can see it here!

On May 16th at the CPE agility trial in Washingtonville, OH, I ran Elsa and Geraldo in Wildcard and again in Jumpers.  I am delighted to report that we qualified on all four runs, got first place on all four runs, and finished two CPE titles today--one for Elsa (CL1-F) and one for Geraldo (CL2-F).  I hadn't run Elsa myself for almost two years, so it was especially gratifying to have her Q on both of her runs with me today.

On the way home from the trial, there was a double rainbow on both sides of the road, and it was like driving under a rainbow archway.  I felt like my dogs and I found the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow today!!  <G>

On May 15th at the WCOTC agility trial in Delmont, PA, Zelda earned her first Master Jumpers leg and picked up 9 MACH points in the process.  As icing on the cake, she also placed 4th in the 16" Jumpers class.  Today's Jumpers run was only her second time ever in the Excellent B class, and it was her first time running outdoors too.  I was totally blown away by how well she did today. 

On May 2nd, we hit the agility jackpot at the Hamburg Agility Trial in Edinboro, PA!  Zelda finished her Excellent Jumpers title and took first place in her class as well.  I was so proud of her!!  She was flying around the course, and I really had to hustle to keep up with her.

Geraldo was not going to be outdone by his little sister!  He QQ'ed and picked up 19 MACH points on the same day that Zelda finished her AXJ!  That was his 19th QQ, and we're hoping that his 20th QQ is just around the corner!!

On April 24th at the ASSA National in Perry, GA, Geraldo took second place in the Open Blue class under Judge Dorothy Christensen.  It was such a thrill for us when the judge pulled Geraldo and his handler (Judy Stachowski) out of the lineup and moved them into second place. That was our first National placement, and the fact that Geraldo is a Chet son made the moment even sweeter for us. We'll be floating around on our happy cloud for quite awhile!!  <G>  Geraldo's win photo will be posted on his page as soon as it's available.

On April 19th at the ASSA National in Perry, GA, Geraldo Q'ed in Excellent B Jumpers under Carla Boudrot and earned some additional MACH points as well.  That was the first time that he and I have competed in a performance event at an ASSA National and the first time that we have competed on a dirt surface.  We were delighted to have a qualifying run, and Geraldo and I proudly displayed his Q ribbon at our setup for the remainder of the week at the National.

In March 2009, Chris Lynch took some lovely new photos of Geraldo. You can view those photos at the top and bottom of his individual page.

At the Mountaineer Kennel Club's agility trial on April 11th and 12th, Geraldo, Zelda and I ran in the FAST class for the first time.  I'm pleased to report that Geraldo Q'ed in Novice FAST and placed first in the 16" class on both Saturday and Sunday and that Zelda Q'ed in Novice FAST and placed third in the 16" class on Sunday.  We really enjoyed ourselves, and we will definitely be entering the FAST class again!  Geraldo also Q'ed in Excellent Jumpers both days and picked up 14 additional MACH points.

On March 28th at the Western PA Kennel Association's Rally Trial, Elsa finished her Rally Novice title and placed third in a large Novice B class.  Our thanks to Elaine Mayowski for training Elsa and showing her to her first Rally title.  They're both Super Stars in our book!! 

Geraldo, Zelda, and I had an incredible agility weekend at the Youngstown All Breed Training Club's agility trial in Washingtonville, OH on March 13th-15th.

Geraldo QQ'ed ALL THREE DAYS and picked up 44 MACH points to boot.  He now has 18 QQ's and 281 MACH points. 

Zelda was entered in Jumpers for the weekend, and she had a great trial too.  On Friday, she finished her Open Jumpers title with another first placement, and on Sunday, she earned her first Excellent A Jumpers leg with a second place finish. 

At the Butler Dog Training Association's agility trial on March 7th and 8th, Zelda competed in Open Jumpers, and she qualified and placed first in her class on both Saturday and Sunday.  She ran fast and happy, and we're very proud of our baby girl.

February 21st was an incredibly sad day at CastleGate Shelties.  On that date, Chet, our foundation male and the light of my life, went to the Rainbow Bridge.  There are no words to adequately describe how profoundly we feel his loss.  Click here to read our tribute to this sweet and noble dog.

At the Three Rivers Shetland Sheepdog Club's Specialties on January 31st and February 1st, Elsa competed in the Rally Novice ring for the first time, and she qualified on both days!!  On Sunday, she also placed third in the class!  Elsa was trained in Rally and shown at the Specialty by Elaine Mayowski.  As always, we're very grateful to Elaine for all of the wonderful things that she achieves with Elsa.

Zelda started out the New Year for us with a big bang!!  On January 3, 2009, she finished her Novice Jumpers with Weaves title at the Erie Kennel Club's agility trial in Edinboro, PA.  In addition to finishing her title, she also placed first in the 16" Novice class. 

Geraldo had a great day too.  He earned his 15th QQ at that show.  Five more to go!!  <G>

On 12/27/08, the CastleGate shelties attended a CPE agility trial in Washingtonville, OH, and they had a great time!

Zelda (CastleGate's Mercy Me) Q'ed and placed on two of her three runs.  As an added bonus, the show photographer got a picture of her doing the "happy dance" that she does on her hind legs at the end of each run. 

Chet (Am/Can CH Kelbren Blue Flame CD, RN, NAJ, AJP, CGC, CTL1-S, CTL1-F) Q'ed and got first place on both of his runs!!  It was such a joy to be on the course with him again.  He hasn't run agility in almost a year, and I was amazed at how quickly he got back into the groove of things.  His Jumpers Q at this show finished another CPE title for him. 

Geraldo (CastleGate's Daily News MX, MXJ, CGC, CL2-S, CL2-R) Q'ed and placed on three of his four runs.  He heads back to the conformation ring soon, so it was nice to end his agility year on such a high note!

It was a long day (12.5 hours at the show site plus three hours of travel) but oh so worth it!!

CastleGate's Mercy Me ("Zelda"), our budding agility star, now has her own web page!  We've also added several new photos to Bliss' page.  Please stop by their pages and check out What's New!!  <G>

The CastleGate kids had lots of fun at the Clarion Canine Obedience Club's agility trial in Edinboro, PA on December 5th-7th.  On Friday, Elsa finished her Master Agility Excellent (MX) title.  In addition to finishing her title, she also earned her seventh QQ and reached the milestone of 100 MACH points.  It was quite an exciting day for us, and we can't thank Elaine Mayowski enough for the fabulous job that she does training and showing Elsa.

 

The weekend got even better when Zelda (CastleGate's Mercy Me) and I qualified on the Novice Jumpers course on Saturday and earned Zelda's second Novice Jumpers leg.  As an added bonus, Zelda took first place again in the 16" Novice Jumpers class.

 

It was a snowy and cold weekend but well worth the trip!!

On November 30th, CastleGate's Mercy Me ("Zelda") made her agility debut in Novice Jumpers at the Youngstown All Breed Training Club's agility trial in Washingtonville, OH.  She ran beautifully and not only qualified but also took first place in the 16" Novice JWW class.  I'm very proud of my Baby Girl!!

On November 14, 2008, our newest homebred show hopeful, CastleGate's Seventh Heaven, took a major reserve from the 9-12 puppy class at the Dayton Kennel Club under Sharon Redmer. That was only Bliss' fourth show ever, and we were so proud of how well she showed for Judy Stachowski.  Her dam, Shamont Most Unusual Day NAJ, took a major reserve the following day under James Noe.  Daily was beautifully presented by Judy Stachowski too.  So, we had two big "almosts" at the Columbus cluster last week!

On November 8th at the Admiral Perry agility trial in Edinboro, PA, Can Ch Kelbren Come Hither, AX, MXJ, CGC ("Elsa") QQ'ed, earned her 9th MX leg, and picked up 11 MACH points.  She and Elaine Mayowski are on fire!!  We're so excited that Elsa's Master Standard title is just around the corner! 

At the Clarion agility trial on November 2nd in Edinboro, PA, Elsa and Elaine had a blast!!  At that trial, Elsa earned her 5th QQ, her 8th MX leg, 10 MACH points, and a fourth place finish in the 16" Excellent B JWW class.  Thanks, Elaine!!  We really appreciate the wonderful job that you do with Elsa in the agility ring.

Elsa and Elaine are continuing to burn up the agility rings!! <G>  On September 20th and 21st at the Shiba Club's trial in Edinboro, PA, Elsa and Elaine earned Elsa's fourth QQ, her seventh MX leg, and 14 MACH points.  We are delighted with those results!

Geraldo and I had an awesome weekend at the Beaver County Kennel Club's agility trial on September 12-14.  We Q'ed on five of our six runs which gave us our 13th and 14th QQ's this year. Geraldo has spent more time in the conformation ring lately than in the agility ring, so it was really nice to have such a great agility weekend in between his conformation shows.

Elsa had a nice weekend too.  She earned her sixth MX leg and ten MACH points at that trial.  Our thanks to Elaine Mayowski for the great job that she always does with Elsa.

On September 5th and 6th at the Cleveland Shetland Sheepdog Club's agility trial in North Olmsted, Ohio, Elsa earned two QQ's and finished her Master Jumpers title.  She and Elaine Mayowski were burning up the rings!  We are so proud of our Elsa Girl!

 

At the same trial, Geraldo qualified all three days in Jumpers and added ten MACH points to his treasure chest.

 

On August 23rd, Geraldo (CastleGate's Daily News MX, MXJ, CGC, CL2-R, CL2-S) was WD/BW at the SugarBush Kennel Club under Raymond Filburn, Jr.  On Sunday, he was WD at the Western Reserve Kennel Club under James Frederiksen.  Geraldo was beautifully presented to both of those wins by Judy Stachowski.  Geraldo and Judy are really on a roll, and we love it!!

On August 22 at the SugarBush Kennel Club dog show in Chagrin Falls, Ohio, Kelvington's Once 'N Blue Moon (Solomon) became Chet's first champion by going WD, BW, and BOB under Judge Sonny Ambrosio.  Solomon's dam is Ch Kelvington's Elec Tri Fying, and Solomon is her first champion too.  At the same show, Solomon's tri litter sister, Salma, was RWB.  We're so proud of both of them!

On August 14th in Muncie, IN, CastleGate's Daily News MX, MXJ, CGC, CL2-R, CL2-S was Winners Dog under breeder judge Sue Christie.  The following day, he was Winners Dog again under F. Susan Godek.  Judy Stachowski showed Geraldo to both of those wins, and we're delighted with how well she and Geraldo are clicking in the ring.

At the Greater Pittsburgh Golden Retriever Club's agility trial in Cheswick, PA on July 19th, Shamont's Paden Blu CD, RN finished his Novice Agility Jumpers title with another first placement.  Ellis is a Daily son, and I was delighted to be on the course with him for all three of his Novice Jumpers qualifying legs. 

On July 11th and 12th at the CABTC agility trial in North Olmsted, Ohio, Elsa earned her second and third MX legs and picked up five MACH points along the way.  At the same trial, Geraldo earned two additional Excellent Jumpers legs and eight MACH points.   If we could have just combined those four runs, we'd have had two QQ's.  <G> 

We want to thank Elsa's handler, Elaine Mayowski, for running Elsa so beautifully this weekend!

 

On June 26th at the Warren County Kennel Club's show in Lebanon, OH, CastleGate's Daily News MX, MXJ, CGC, CL2-S, CL2-R  was WD/BOS under Judge Tom Hale.  Two days later at the Dayton Kennel Club's show in Lima, Ohio, Geraldo was WD/BOS again under Judge Carl Liepmann.  Geraldo was handled to these wins by Judy Stachowski, and we're very grateful to Judy for presenting him so beautifully.  Geraldo is coming home for the remainder of the summer to grow some new clothes and do agility with me.  We're looking forward to having him back in the conformation ring in September!

At the TRSSCGP agility trial in Cheswick, PA on June 14th and 15th, I had the privilege of running a Daily son (Shamont's Paden Blu) in Novice Jumpers.  Ellis is from Daily's first litter (Kent x Daily).  Ellis qualified and got first place in the 16" Novice B class on both Saturday and Sunday.  Those were his first agility legs, and his Grandma Lynn was thrilled to be the one to put those qualifying legs on him.  Ellis ran incredibly fast, especially in view of the heat and humidity in the building that weekend.  He was 18 seconds under course time on Saturday and 19 seconds under course time on Sunday.  Ellis is trained and owned by Debbie Miller-Gurchak (Hollybush Shelties).

Bliss, our show hopeful from the Rainy x Daily litter, is five months old, and she now has her own web page.  Please stop by and take a look at it!   CastleGate's Seventh Heaven ("Bliss")

At the YABTC/GSCA agility trials in Washingtonville, Ohio on June 6th and 7th, Geraldo did his mama proud by earning his 11th and 12th QQ's.  It was incredibly hot at the show site, and Geraldo gave me his all on both days despite the heat and despite having to get up at 3:30 a.m. each day.  We have five weeks off before our next agility trial, and I'm already looking forward to the next trial!!  <G>

On May 30th at the Clarion Agility Trial in Cheswick, PA, Geraldo earned his 10th QQ and seven MACH points.  It's exciting to be half way to the number of QQ's that we need for his MACH!!

Geraldo and I decided to spend Memorial Day at the Golden Triangle agility trial in Cheswick, PA, and boy did we have fun!!  Geraldo celebrated the holiday in style by earning his ninth QQ and seven MACH points. 

On May 18th, Geraldo finished his second CPE title at an agility trial in Washingtonville, Ohio sponsored by the Four Seasons K9 Athlete Center.  He now gets to put a CL2-R at the end of his name along with an MX, MXJ, and CL2-S.  He ran great for me today and got second place on both of his qualifying runs!

 

The club that sponsored this trial gave out peanut butter bones for Q's instead of toys, and Geraldo heartily approved of that change of pace.  <G>

We had a great Mother's Day weekend at CastleGate!  

On May 10th at the WCOTC agility trial in Delmont, PA, Daily was entered in agility for the first time in almost two years.  This was an outdoor trial, and the weather and course conditions were less than ideal---lots of rain and mud.  Daily ran beautifully for me and finished her Novice JWW title.  As icing on the cake, she got first place in the 12" class too!!  Daily is almost eight years old, and she's now happily retired to her donut bed.  <G> 

Geraldo really rose to the occasion as well.  He Q'ed on three of his four runs on Saturday and Sunday and picked up nine MACH points and two fourth placements in the process.  We're very excited about the fact that he now has eight QQ's. 

Finishing Daily's Jumpers title and picking up another QQ for Geraldo were awesome Mother's Day gifts for me!

On April 25th at the Cleveland Shetland Sheepdog Club's agility trial in North Olmsted, Ohio, Geraldo finished his Masters Standard (MX) title.  Friday's trial was dedicated to the memory of Jean Clodwick, so finishing our title on that day was even more meaningful to us. 

Completing our MX title would have been more than enough excitement for me for one weekend, but Geraldo had something else in mind.  He decided to kick things up a notch or two by qualifying on five of his six runs in North Olmsted which gave him his sixth and seventh QQ's of the year and some MACH points too.

I'm incredibly proud of my baby boy, and I love doing agility with him.

Geraldo QQ'ed on March 15th and 16th at the YABTC agility trial in Washingtonville, Ohio.  We've never had a perfect weekend in the AKC agility ring prior to this one, and I'm in total awe of my baby boy.  We're now just one qualifying leg away from his MX title and 25% of the way to the QQ's that we need for our MACH. I'm so excited that I could just pop.  Geraldo truly out did himself this weekend. That trial will be our last one for almost a month, so it's really nice to be heading into the break on such a high note.

In addition to our back-to-back QQ's, we also accumulated enough MACH points this weekend to break the 100 MACH point mark. That's a milestone that I was really hoping to reach prior to taking our break from the agility ring. Color me happy!!

Elsa and her handler had fun too!!  On Saturday, Elsa picked up her eighth MXJ leg and three more MACH points. She's closing in on her next agility title!

On March 8th at the Butler Dog Obedience Club's agility trial in Edinboro, PA, Geraldo and I earned our third QQ and six MACH points.  As part of that QQ, we also picked up our seventh MX leg. It was a very challenging weekend from a weather perspective.  We had almost two feet of snow from Friday to Sunday!

After our specialty show in February, I asked Mike Fine to take some new head shots of Geraldo.  I am delighted with the photos he took.  You can see my favorite new photo of Geraldo at the top of his individual page. 

At the Splash and Dash CPE Agility Trial in Washingtonville, OH on February 23rd, Elsa competed in Level Two for the first time, and she qualified and placed second on both of her runs that day.  Elaine Mayowski was with Elsa on the course for both of those runs.  As usual, she did a great job from start to finish with Elsa!

Geraldo and Elsa had a great time at the Border Collie Agility Trial on February 16th and 17th in Edinboro, PA . 

Elsa qualified in Jumpers both days and earned her sixth and seventh MXJ legs. She also picked up 10 MACH points in the process.  We're so proud of Elsa, and we're very grateful to Elaine Mayowski for the fabulous job she does with Elsa in the ring. 

Geraldo and I had an awesome weekend too!!  On Sunday, we picked up our second QQ and nine MACH points!! As part of that QQ, Geraldo earned his sixth MX leg with a fourth place finish.   After we moved into the Excellent B class, I didn't ever expect to place again, so that was a nice surprise.  I've never been prouder of my baby boy than I was this weekend.  He gave me his all!!

At the Tamarack agility trial in Edinboro, PA on February 9th and 10th, Geraldo earned his fifth MX leg. He's now half way to his MX title!! <G> He also qualified in Jumpers and earned five additional MACH points on that run.  After having taken three weeks off, it was really nice to be back in the agility ring with him.

The Rainy x Daily puppies arrived as expected on January 28th!! We got one of every possible color combination from this breeding:

-blue merle girl

-bi-blue girl

-bi-black boy

-blue merle boy

-tri boy

We're very excited about this litter, and we'll be posting photos to the Litters page on a regular basis.

On January 19th and 20th at the Admiral Perry Agility Trial in Edinboro, PA, Elsa qualified both days in Jumpers and earned her fourth and fifth MXJ legs and five MACH points.  Geraldo also qualified in Jumpers both days and added another eight MACH points to his point total.  It was a very cold and snowy weekend, but we had fun anyway.  Our thanks go out to Elaine Mayowski for handling Elsa to her exciting Q's!!

Shamont Most Unusual Day (Daily) has been bred to CH. PaRay's Make A Splash (Rainy), and we're expecting those puppies to arrive around January 28th!!  We have the possibility of bi's, tri's and blue merles in this litter.  Please check our litters page at the end of January for more updates and photos of the newborn puppies.  <G>

 

We had a fabulous time at our first agility trial of the New Year!!  At the Erie Kennel Club's agility trial on January 4th in Edinboro, PA, Geraldo got his first Double Q and nine MACH points to go along with it!!  Two days later, it was Elsa's turn to shine.  She got her first Double Q, her first MX leg, and her first MACH point that Sunday.  As always, Elsa was beautifully handled in the ring by Elaine Mayowski!!  Elsa loves to run with Elaine.

Our Sunday got even better.  Nicky, one of the tri males from Elsa's first litter, qualified and placed in Novice Standard that day.  It was his first agility leg, and we thought it was very cool that he earned it on the same day and at the same show where his dam got her first Double Q.  Nicky is loved and trained by Lou and Janet Norman of Erie, PA.

 

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