BIS BISS CH Rendition Treasured Moment CGC "Jewel"

Jewel is my heart dog. Recently I was reminiscing on things we had done together. She was in a photo shoot some years back for Pedigree. Pedigree had flown a famous photographer in from Canada and had a number of dogs ready for the photo shoot which took place in Los Angeles - Griffith Park. Jewel and Bailey were the only two Irish Setters there.

A number of photos of Bailey and Jewel were used on the Pedigree website as a result. The photos all had models handling my dogs. Bailey was shown walking with an older gentleman, Bailey and Jewel were used together and my favorite pose was Jewel laying on her back next to a female model. That photo was ultimately placed on the front page of the Pedigree website.

Here is one photo of Jewel from the Pedigree website. Jewel is such a hoot. She is always putting a smile on my face. Now, as she approaches age 11, she does her best work as a therapy dog putting smiles on the faces of others.

Monet goes WB at Burbank Kennel Club

Dog showing is a funny thing. We always try to predict what the judges will or will not like. We avoid some and follow others. I learned a long time ago not to "follow" anyone as there is no telling what other dogs will show that day or how I will feel or my dog will feel for that matter.

I try to avoid the shows when it is hot outside as Monet does not do well in the heat. We entered both our young dogs this past weekend only to support our local dog club when they were trying to build majors. I knew it would be too hot and I knew Monet would do badly. Once again I'm eating my words. It was hot - sweltering at over 100 degrees and humid like is expected in Texas. To top things off - Monet was in season. She showed well, ignored the heat and humidity and won for the girls. Our little boy, Drew, was insane because Monet was in season. Monet however - was perfect - a little gem! Hope our show picture turns out nicely.

Note to self: "Show when you feel like it and enjoy your dogs!"

Drew sleeping on Jewel's Thrown

Jewel on her Thrown in the Studio

Drew taking over Jewel's thrown......

Our dogs keep me in stitches. There is a leather chaise near my easel and Jewel is usually on it watching me. She lays there like the little princess she is. Then there is Drew - our typical "teenage" male Irish Setter. He just turned 19 months old.

I was painting and looked over to see the pretty delicate face of Jewel perched on her thrown only to see Drew laying about like such a boy! It was so funny - just had to share it.

Newport Beach

Rich and I were in Newport Beach (California) for a birthday party this past weekend. The party went boating around the harbor for a few hours. It was absolutely fabulous.

Being post 911 by one day - there were American Flags flying everywhere. It was just awesome. This one flag took my breath away. It had to be 60 feet long. Look at it in comparison to the boats and building below. What a sight.

God Bless America!

Remembering 911

Remembering those who lost their lives, thanking those that continue to protect us....

"I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."

Lacey the kitten and her Big Red Dog

Lacey to Drew: TAKE THIS!

Drew to Lacey: LETS JUST CUDDLE!

Dreamer the Irish Setter

This is Dreamer. Here is his story as told by his human mom:

Last year we had a litter in which 5 of the pups were diagnosed with Parvo. One of these pups was in the hospital for 2 weeks. It was touch and go, with the vet and the techs not knowing if he would live or die. During his stay, they became quite attached to little "Tan Boy". He did eventually get well and came home from the hospital. There were 2 others that had the parvo pretty bad, but this one was, by far, the worst. When he came home, he was so skinny and weak. It was a real effort for him to walk, let alone play. I let him and his 2 other weak brothers out in the yard alone to move freely for a few minutes each evening. This boy came up to me while I was sitting in my chair, sat down and looked up at me with the saddest eyes. It had been determined that he was a pet and not show quality before he got sick. In that look, he seemed to be telling me that he was home, and he never wanted to leave again. How pathetic his look. I began to cry and took him in my arms and told him that he would never leave. He was ours forever. The litter theme was mountain. His name - Belvedere's Climb Every Mountain. He had climbed his mountain! His call name is Dreamer. Now, of course, when he was out in that yard, I had the camera. I took 2 pictures of that sad boy, with his pitiful look. I have cherished those photos since. He is not small or skinny anymore. He is a big, hyper, happy boy, who will knock you over if he jumps on you. He wants to please and will instantly sit or down on command, but he cannot keep his feet still for 2 seconds. He is great in the house, but wants to play fetch constantly. I am so glad that I made our home his home. Well, I sent the 2 photos to Dawn Secord. I wanted a portrait of this boy! Tonight, she surprised me by sending me a photo of the finished portrait. I can only tell you that when I opened the tears came into my eyes as I remembered the day he begged me to keep him. Dawn has done it again! She captured the whole instant in her superb work! Thank you, Dawn.

Fun is being with an Irish Setter Terry Z

Lucy and Hogan - Irish Setters

Lucy and Hogan's portrait has been in the making for some time. The first time they were photographed was in Arizona - April 2008. It was very hot and windy at that time and we all decided to take more photos at a later date.

We took pictures of Lucy again in October 2008 in Pleasanton California. There were some truly wonderful photos. Lucy is a gorgeous girl so it would have been nearly impossible not to get a good photo. She was born to be a cover girl!

Recently Hogan's owners had taken some great shots of him in an outside park setting. He was sitting on a bench just giving the camera the "rollicking" look of an Irish Setter. It was "that" look that his owner was trying to capture. Hopefully this painting will give you a look into the wonderful world of Hogan and a glimpse of the beauty of Lucy.

My only concern with this painting has been sneaking it out of my house - and away from my husband who has laid claim to it and does not want me to ship it off to its rightful owners!

My website features a number of finished works and prints - both limited and open editions for sale. Please go take a peek! http://www.dawnsecord.com/

Baby Drew Secord

I just came across the attached photo of Drew. He was a young pup in an exercise pen when the photo was taken. If you look closely his doggie lips are both pulled up so it looks like he is smiling.

Is there anything cuter than an Irish Setter Pup? Perhaps to some the answer is Yes! But to me - hum - I have to say baby Irish Setters are the cutest!!

Golden Retriever "Prince"

This is Prince - a Golden Retriever. At this time he is gone. He lived to be almost 15 years old and we understand he had quite a healthy life. Prince lived with a great family who adored him.

He was a beautiful dog inside and out. His family told emailed about his portrait, "It is beautiful and captures his soul. You made us cry in a joyous way."

Thank you to Prince's family for allowing me to paint their special boy.

Irish Setter "Moxie"

This is a portrait of Moxie - in the dog show world she is known as BIS/BISS Am. Can. Ch. Windntide Sand In My Genes CD, JH, RN, CGC, VC.

Moxie has been an Irish Setter I've admired for years. She is a few months younger than my heart dog, Jewel. There have been few but wonderful times we've shown against Moxie in the ring and I've been able to admire her from an intimate distance.

It was a joy to be secretly approached by Patrick at the Arizona ISCA National Specialty in 2008 to paint Moxie's portrait as a surprise gift for Carol. We took a number of photos of her there and additional photos were sent to be afterwards. Moxie is quite the little "sailor" and can be found yachting around the Northwest Pacific. It was a perfect scene to paint her sitting comfortably in the vessel she knows so well.

If you are interested in having me paint a portrait of your dog please email me at fff@linkline.com or call me!

Thank you to Moxie's parents for the wonderful experience of working together on our "Moxie" project. I hope Moxie touches you when you view her portrait as much as she touches me.

Watson

Watson is a very special dog who was rescued from a hording situation in Illinois. He is a cross of hound and husky. Due to his lack of socialization he was a candidate to be euthanized.

The local shelter there would only release Watson to one person - his current owner. Watson has thrived in his new loving home and has blossomed into a wonderful companion. This portrait of Watson is to be a Christmas gift from one sister who lives here in Southern California to her sister that lives with Watson in Illinois.

It was an honor to paint such a special dog.

Malibu Art Festival July 2009

The Malibu Art Festival this year was so much fun. The weather was remarkable. Last year it was much warmer and overall just not as pleasant. This year the ocean breeze was cool and refreshing and it was just awesome to be outside. So much of my time is in the studio with limited people contact (other than my persistent requests to friends to meet me at Starbucks!!) Being out with people discussing life and art was a welcome change to my regular schedule.

I was working on a painting of four Irish setters - four generations, a great grandmother, grandmother, mother and daughter. It was so interesting to see how the painting invoked responses from people. The white faces on the older dogs just touched the hearts of dog lovers. A lot of people stopped to watch me paint and it was simply great fun to be there.

Huge thanks to those who traveled up to Malibu to visit me in the booth and see my latest works. Hoping the weather in Malibu is great next year too!

Irish Setter Club of America National Specialty 2009

Rich and I are home from the 2009 ISCA National Specialty. We drove to Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Over the course of 12 days we traveled 5700 miles and saw 20 states. OH MY GOSH - we had a BLAST!!! We traded off driving every 3 to 5 hours. It was great!

We had rented a Toyota Sienna minivan. Driving there, we could see out the back of the van. However, on the way home - the back part of the van kept getting fuller and fuller!

Our plans did not originally include driving to Atlanta, Georgia - but we did end up there staying with Tammy and Duane Sasso. Boy was it nice to stay in a real bed in a real house after staying in hotel after hotel. Drew and Monet emptied the Sasso's dogs toy basket with in minutes. Thanks to the Sasso's for their hospitality.

From there we headed for Texas to see my brother, his wife, Paige, and surprise my mom. We looped Monet's leash over mom's front door knob, knocked and hid. Once the door was opened Monet walked right in and stood up on my step father. It was really funny. She knew who he was but he did not recognize her immediately. He expected her to be in California! My brother took me to his new property - 12 acres north of Dallas. We took those show dogs out in the "country" for some down home romping. The only one that ended up with a tick was me....... We took 100s of landscape photos for my paintings.

As always, it was so much fun to the show the dogs. Drew placed 4th in his 12 - 18 month old dog class - quite a thrill to receive a placement at the National! Monet showed well, did a little running off of her exuberance. She had fun and she had me in stitches in the ring. She is such a happy dog!

It was wonderful visiting with everyone at the National. I never imagined my art would become such a blessing to us - we've met so many fabulous people as a result of my artwork. We can't thank people enough for coming to our booth to visit with us. It is so heartwarming to be able to see people in person that normally are communicating with me via email or the telephone. Thanks to the show staff that put all the work into the show - it was awesome.

We came home, bought a Toyota Sienna and are looking forward to our next road trip!

I Love my Irish Setters

This past weekend was the Irish Setter Club of Southern California Specialty. It was a bitter sweet day.

I had three of our dogs entered. The baby, Drew (15 months old) went Reserve Winners Dog. Monet (2 years old) placed 2nd of 5 in American Bred Bitch. Then I entered my heart dog, Jewel (10 1/2 years old) in the parade of Champions.

When Jewel was two she won an ISCSC Specialty going Best in Specialty Show from the open class. Several years later she went Best of Opposite Sex. Last year, at the ISCA National Specialty, I retired her. 10 months prior, unbenownst to many, Jewel had cancer - an injection site carcinoma from her rabies shot. To get all the cancer part of her tendon had to be removed. While healing she put all her weight from her left rear on her left front leg. She did have a limp which is now gone. Actually today she had a senior check up at the vet and her movement and range of motion is once again 100% - no less than a miracle.

Jewel loves to show. Actually Jewel is the reason I love to show. She taught me showing is more than winning - showing is about joy - the joy of accomplishing something with your dog - the joy of making friends - the joy of celebrating with others - the joy of camaraderie.

I put Jewel in this show - in the parade of Champions. She was not in competition but she didn't know that. She ran around the ring totally acknowledging the applause of those outside the ring. Her pace quickened and tail wagged more when people started clapping for her. It took all my strength to hold back my tears. I wish she would live forever.

I love our dogs and love to show our dogs. To us - it is just another day at the park - a time for treats and pets and simply having that special time together.