Kanzu turned 7 years old in July 2013 making him eligible to show as a veteran at dog shows that have the class available. In January 2014 Kanzu showed at the Rose City Cluster in Portland Oregon at a Rhodesian Ridgeback Club of the US (RRCUS) supported entry. He was shown by Julie Eschilling who just 2 years earlier had chosen Kanzu to breed to her girl Kayta. Julie is now the owner/co-owner of several Kanzu x Kayta puppies and it was a special event to have her and Kanzu show together in the ring at the same show with 5 of Kanzu x Kayta puppies in the ring on the same day. With quite steep competition Judge John Bradfeldt awarded Kanzu Best in Veteran Sweepstakes making for a very special win.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

The 2014 Rose City Cluster of dog shows in Portland Oregon was the opportunity for several of the Kanzu x Kayta litter to come together for the first Dragon Litter Family Reunion.  Five of the Kanzu x Kayta offspring showed in the 4 days of conformation shows.  On Thursday Jan 16th Logan, Bakari’s Logan Msaka was first in the Open Class.  On Friday Jan 17 Pilot, Bakari’s Lucky Dragon Flight was 1st in a large Bred By Exhibitor Class and Reserve Winners Dog.  On Saturday the 18th, Kanzu won Best Veteran in Sweepstakes and daughter Kaia, Bakari’s Fabled Treasure Kaia was Select Bitch.  Finally on Sunday, Pilot again won the Bred By Exhibitor class and Kaia earned her Grand Championship with a best of Opposite Sex.  Kara, Bakari’s Firestar Karisma and Kuyu, Bakari Tigris African Legacy both did some lovely showing and made us all proud.  After the formal showing there was time for some family photos.  It was a very, very special opportunity to see Kanzu and Kayta’s get all together and to renew K-9 and human connections.

 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Like his dad before him, Kuyu and Linda have been practicing  to compete in Rally and Obedience. Qualifying legs in Rally and Obedience are no easy tasks for Ridgebacks (especially the boys who like to sniff their way around a course).  Three qualifying scores are needed to earn a title in each of these events.  Kuyu made his debut in Rally Novice and Beginner Novice Obedience at the Orange Coast Rhodesian Club Specialty in April 2014 where he earned a leg in Rally.  He was busy guarding and watching the judge in the obedience ring and just missed a Q when it took 3 signals to urge him to return to mom.  At the Bahia Sur Kennel Club Show in Chula Vista in June 2014 he earned his second leg in Rally and his first leg and a 4^th place in Beginner Novice Obedience.  While the Qs were welcome, they were extremely humorous as Kuyu was more interested in sniffing the bunny droppings on the course than lifting his head when he walked the course with Linda.  He has just one more leg to go in Rally for his Rally Novice (RN) title and 2 more legs to go in Beginner Novice Obedience for his BN title.  And, the best part was that after the Bahia Sur shows Kuyu and Kanzu got to celebrate at the Lazy Dog Café in San Diego.

 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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The Ridgeback, Issue 2 – 2014
2013 RRCUS Top Performers Issue

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Kuyu made his debut in Canada in January 2013 at the Ladies Kennel Club of BC in Cloverdale, BC. He showed for 3 days with handlers Don Rodgers and Emma Marshall. In December 2013 Kuyu met up again with handler Don Rogers in Canada at the Auld Lang Syne Dog Association shows in Chillawack, BC. In these 3 December shows Kuyu earned his Canadian Championship, two Best of Breeds, and a Group 2 and a Group 3 placement in the Hound Group on successive days.   Kuyu’s performance in Canada in these 2 weekends of showing in 2014 led to his conformation ranking as the #11 Rhodesian Ridgeback in Canada for 2014.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Kanzu continues to enjoy therapy dog visits to several locations. One of his favorites though is an Alternative School in San Bernardino.  For Easter, Kanzu arrived at the school as the “Easter Dog”.  He delivered candy filled Easter Eggs that were hidden for a hunt.  One egg held a photo of Kanzu and the boy who found that won the golden egg with a crisp Two dollar bill inside.  Kanzu on the other hand enjoyed lots of treats. A great time was had by all!

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A nightmare for many owners of dogs who compete in conformation is standing nervously ringside with their dog waiting for the professional handler who never shows up. This is just what happened on March 6 at the Sequoia Kennel Club the first day of the Hanford Shows. With the Best of Breed (BOB) class going into the ring and no handler available, Linda rapidly got Kuyu’s armband, slapped it on and ran into the ring completely unprepared. For those of you who may have no frame of reference, going in the show ring in jeans is like wearing brown shoes with a tux. It is horribly awkward and uncomfortable. The ring steward and Judge Lisa Warren were as gracious as possible and encouraging. Kuyu thought this was highly irregular and lots of fun to be out in the ring with mom. Thank you judge Lisa Warren for overlooking the lack of handling skills and judging the dog and awarding Kuyu Best of Breed. Thanks too to Geri Griffin who graciously showed Kuyu in the Hound Group making a lovely showing. It was quite the day to remember.