The Santa Barbara Poodle Parade

The 17th annual Santa Barbara French Festival was a tres bon party this year, with the Poodle Parade on Sunday afternoon drawing oohs and aahs all around. Even for some entrants who, according to the Santa Barbara News-Press, appeared to be somewhat less than poodle-ish.

That hulking 100+ pound Burmese Mountain Dog named Gunther didn’t fool very many parade attendees, despite his French racing cap or the fact that he was pulling a cartload of four toy poodles in the parade. Nor did Alan Fay’s Chihuahua named de Gaulle. Last year Fay entered his Doberman named Fifi, so he obviously believes his canines are French ‘enough’ to pass muster. That Chihuahua’s got “a lot of de Gaulle to get in this parade,” Fay joked. Joking has quite a bit to do with the Poodle Parade. It’s all in good fun.

“They say poodles are supposed to be smart,” said Allen Harrison of Burbank of a certain Winslow [a genuine poodle]. “But he made several mistakes on my income taxes.”

In the end there was general agreement that this year’s Poodle Parade was no more or less hilarious than any of the past parades. “To me, it was all just one endless stream of canine topiary,” remarked emcee and director Steve Hoegerman.

Field and Hunting Poodles

I’ve offered quite a lot of information and videos of poodles who have been trained to service jobs – search and rescue, guide dogs, assistant dogs, etc. There is another class of working poodles (in addition to sheep herding and such, which they also do very well). It is the field and/or hunting dog.

Poodles were originally bred as hunters and retrievers, and their water skills led to a whole different poodle-like breed, the Portuguese Water Dog – of which the Obama family’s “Bo” is currently most famous. Their tendency to tolerate gunshots near them without fear also led to them being among the best of war dogs.

The best site I’ve seen out there on the web for all sorts of information about these sporting poodles – and yes, sports like these are indeed work – is the Working Field Poodle section of the Versatility In Poodles site. They offer excellent information about finding the right trainer, what a good training regime should look like, what things must be covered during that training, and it offers great lists of skills to be earned from the beginning through intermediate and advanced training.

But perhaps more important overall is the good information on choosing just the right poodle puppy for this sort of activity. The first criteria is to choose a driven retriever. Which my beautiful black Kenya proved herself a star. This is a pup who’s always got a ball or stick or toy in his or her mouth, and is constantly trying to get you to throw it. Not only do they chase, they also bring it right back so you can throw again. Kenya would retrieve anything, but her best was a snowball I’d throw into a snowbank. Now, THAT is a committed retriever!

Second on the list of inborn traits you’ll want to look for is a love of water. Not just being unafraid of a bath, but ready, willing and able to jump right into water and swim. If the pup hasn’t yet been exposed to water enough to swim in, a pup that plays in their water dish, chases water from a hose or really enjoys a bath is a bood bet.

You’ll want a pup that likes people and isn’t aggressive to other dogs. You want one that doesn’t act skittish or try to hide at any sudden noise. A pup that will confidently walk with you over unfamiliar terrain is good too, try flattened cardboard boxes or creek bridges.

Poodles are such intelligent dogs that it’s not that difficult to evaluate traits early, even at 6 or 7 weeks of age. Some are better suited to certain tasks than others, though almost any well-bred poodle can be trained to do things other dogs only dream about. Go on over to the Versatility in Poodles website and check out some of their good information about all sorts of poodle jobs!

More Search and Rescue Training

In keeping with the SAR Training of two beautiful standard poodles that we’ve followed here since they were mere pups, 15 month old Angelina is shown in this video from searchdogtraining practicing “deep shelter” search, finding a hidden victim by sound clues.

Looks to me like Angelina is going to be a valuable ‘first responder’ in her working life, and perhaps an international star as well!

Poodle News Roundup

In Recent Poodle News we’ve got everything from a clinically depressed (and overmedicated) poodle putting the gnosh on Jacques Chirac to a Best in Show poodle with no name in Detroit. So let’s get started!

Jacques Chirac: Poodle Snack – Former French President Jacques Chirac was rushed to a Paris hospital in February after his poodle Sumo turned on him in a “vicious, unprovoked attack.” Sumo, a white Maltese poodle, had been undergoing treatment for clinical depression. Apparently Prozac for Poodles doesn’t work any better than it does for people. The 76-year old ex-President was treated and released, no word about what Sumo’s condition.

FoxNews

Runway Runaway at Logan – Boston’s Logan Airport experienced flight delays as a toy poodle eluded police and airport officials for 17 long hours this past October. Turns out the poodle, Coochy, was just trying to have some fun. She was finally captured by an offer of treats, after having escaped from her transport crate after a flight from Detroit. Passengers on many of the delayed flights expressed amazement that it took so many men so many hours to catch one poodle. We Poodle People are not surprised. Poodles are some of the best escape artists since Houdini!

Boston Globe

$5 million for False Imprisonment of Fifi – LOS ANGELES: Cassie Hughes was just getting settled into her seat on a United Airlines flight from Denver to Los Angeles when she thought she saw a carrier crate containing her poodle Fifi being loaded onto a different plane. When she asked, she was assured it was someone else’s dog, and when she asked to get off the plane to check, she was plied with booze by the attendant instead. Sure enough, Fifi ended up in Nebraska instead of Los Angeles, so Huges sued United Airlines for false imprisonment and intentional infliction of emotional distress. UA tried to settle for a $1200 “lost baggage” claim, but Hughes is holding out for the $5 million.

This Is True Archive

Forget the Westminster Sussex! – DETROIT: A white toy poodle who apparently has no name won Best In Show at the 102nd annual Detroit Kennel Club Dog Show on February 28. The poodle his/her/itself hales from Pennsylvania, and while his/her/its owners got their names in the news, nobody at the Detroit News bothered to find out if the dog has a name. Somehow, I don’t think that there’s much glory to be gained by winning a Best In Show trophy without a name on the plate. But since we are all in favor of poodles being perpetual Best In Show (whatever show), we will say Hooray for Him/Her/It!!! Way to go!

Detroit News

Most Prolific Poodle Pair – VANCOUVER PROVINCE: A female standard poodle named Charlie started popping out puppies on St. Patrick’s Day last year and didn’t finish until afternoon the following day. A total of 16 healthy poodle puppies – ten female and six male – round out the family for Charlie and her mate Magnum after a previous record-setting litter of 12. Good job, Charlie!

The Oregonian

Westminster: It’s a… Sussex?

The second day of the Westminster Kennel Club dog show wrapped up last night (February 10), with a 10-year old Sussex Spaniel named “Stump” taking the Best of Show honors. For those like me who never heard of a Sussex Spaniel, it’s a medium-sized, short-legged, longish-haired dog with a saggy face and Prince Valiant ears that looks kind of cool – but not nearly as cool as the dreadlocked Puli, which could have masqueraded as a Wild Mutant Mountain Poodle in desperate need of a haircut…

At any rate, the standard poodle took Best of Breed Monday night in the Non-Sporting group. Ch Randenn Tristar Affirmation, a six-year old white lady-poodle of great grace and charm (not to mention big hairdo) took the gold, beating out the French Bulldog who took silver and Bulldog-bulldog who took bronze.

Here is the Video Link from WKC on the poodle-judging, and there are available videos on the site for all breeds and groups, so do spend some time if you missed the show on television. And while you’re at it, do check out that spectacular Puli. I just might have to consider getting me one of those one of these days. If I ever get really tired of poodle-shaving, that is…

Obamas Narrow ‘First Dog’ Search

Portuguese Water Dog pup

During an interview last weekend with George Sephanopoulos at ABC News, President-Elect Barack Obama confirmed that he and his family had narrowed the field in their search for the ‘First Dog’ down to either a Portuguese Water Dog or a Labradoodle. While I don’t know why the Obamas nixed the idea of a purebred poodle – it can’t be that they just prefer to have a crossbreed ‘mutt’ since the water dog is considered a purebred in the working group – but Labradoodles can be the next best thing if they can find a reputable breeder.

Because the Obamas are also still strongly intent on getting a shelter dog, they will probably have more luck finding a Labradoodle in such circumstances. These dogs are not reliably hypoallergenic, though, because this is not a breed-true situation. In a single litter of pups, whether from Poodle-Labrador parents or two Labradoodles, there will be a range of coat and hair types, only one or two of which (if you’re lucky) will have the poodle coat’s non-shedding and non-allergic properties. Good luck getting a rescue with just the right coat and personality qualities.

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Obedience Training Young Angelina

From the SearchDogPoodle channel at YouTube, here’s a clip of Angelina – a 10-month old white standard undergoing intensive training for her future in the service industry – mastering her obedience skills. Now, we all know that poodles aim to please their beloved masters, so aren’t all that difficult to train even when you’re not doing it in an intensive fashion.

But this young lady is very impressive, and we could learn a few good things from watching how it’s done. At least, I know I could. Enjoy this beauty, and Merry Christmas to All!

Time for A Presidential Poodle!

Barack Obama has been elected to be the next President of the United States! And, as is a standard question for all newly elected Presidents with a lovely wife and children to share the White House with, Obama was asked what kind of puppy he was planning to get for the title of “First Dog.”

And yes, it’s going to have to be a dog, because 10-year old First Daughter Malia has allergies she can’t escape with a cat, but could easily avoid with just the right kind of dog. Plus, as Obama mentioned, the family is going to want a shelter puppy…

“But obviously, a lot of shelter dogs are mutts like me,” said Obama, in an apparent self-depreciating reference to his mixed race heritage. “So whether we’re going to be able to balance those two things, I think, is a pressing issue on the Obama household.”

Yet a surprising number of shelter dogs are purebreds. We got our beloved giant mutant mountain poodle Beau (pictured at top) at our county’s animal shelter when he was 6 months old, and his pedigree was a whole lot more impressive than mine! A size-large standard poodle with your basic kennel cut would make a delightful First Dog!

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Fun For Kids: Poodle Stuff

If your poodle family has poodle kids – or if you’re a grandma like me, and are too old to be embarrassed by childish things – then you’ll have a great deal of fun with a simple game from Yuckles called Mr. Poodle Head. Yes, there’s a fine black poodle head, and all sorts of nifty accessories to drag and drop into place. Various ears, eyes, noses, bow ties, mustaches, hats and sill mouths can turn Mr. Poodle Head into something a lot funnier than Mr. Potato Head! I foresee many hours of fun with this one.

And now that it’s officially October, you might want to consider what costume you’d like to have for your poodle while you’re outfitting the kids. A well-dressed poodle carrying one of those plastic Jack-o-Lantern goody containers can significantly expand your children’s take for the night of door-to-door begging. Most costumes come in small, medium and large, and some suppliers offer patterns if you sew as well as tiny tea size costumes.

In addition to the pictured pirate costume, Yuckles also offers the standard superheroes (Batman, Superman, Spiderman and Wonder Woman), the full range of Star Wars character costumes (Yoda is the best, just for the ears!), your basic princess and ballerina and harem girl costumes for lady dogs (or male dogs in drag), and a few pun-ny costumes like “Watch Dog,” “Hot Dog” and “Lucky Dog.”

If your offspring are female, do consider the standard 1950s style Poodle Skirt with crinolines, sweater and scarf. That way all the poodle needs is a nice mask and matching scarf, those passing out treats will be delighted!

Famous Poodle People

It’s been noted here and there in posts to this blog that some famous people have been poodle-lovers – including entire regiments in European armies. So in this post I want to set down the list of famous people and their poodles.

The first thing you’ll probably notice is how many of these Poodle People are famous artists, musicians, actors, comedians and such. Thus it’s not difficult to see the poodle as Muse, which might be a more high-brow role in history than just being notorious hunters and dogs of war!

• Winston Churchill’s poodle was named Rufus.
• John Steinbeck had a poodle named Charley, namesake for the book Travels With Charley.
• Jacqueline Susann had a poodle named Joe, who was the subject of her short story Along Came Joe.
• Andrew Wyeth’s poodle was named Eloise.
• Jane Goodall the famous chimpanzee researcher had a poodle named Gigi.
• Julie Nixon’s poodle was Vicky.
• Both Louis XIV and XVI had standard poodles around to pretty-up the palace, and Marie Antoinette had her own poodle who didn’t lose his head.
• Pablo Picasso was a poodle person, so was Prince Rupert of the Rhine.
• Billie Holliday’s beloved poodle was buried in her best mink coat.
• Sammy Davis Jr. named one of his poodles Bojangles.
• Marilyn Monroe received a poodle as a gift from Frank Sinatra. She named it Mafia.

Other famous Poodle People (grouped in no particular order to save list room)…

• Juan Peron, Omar Bradley and Grover Cleveland
• Elizabeth Taylor, Princess Grace and Katharine Hepburn
• Barbara Walters, Barbara Streisand and Barbara Eden
• Jack Lemon, Betty White, Bob Hope and Cary Grant
• Claudette Colbert, Helen Hayes and Vivian Leigh
• Tallulah Bankhead, Lucille Ball and Liberace
• Joe Garagiola, Patrick Swayze, John Mitchell and Kirk Douglas
• Mariah Carey, Maria Callas and Gypsy Rose Lee
• Ingmar Bergman, Doris Day and Joan Crawford
• Walt Disney, Michael Wilding, John Lehmann and Jack LaLanne
• James Thurber, John Forsythe, Red Buttons and Robert Vaughn
• Ed Sullivan, Robert Mondavi, Walter Lippmann and Oribe.
• Benny Goodman, Gary Cooper and Clare Boothe Luce

Of course, poodles of all colors and sizes are one of the most popular breeds of dog ever since people started breeding dogs for special qualities. This is a (partial) list of just those Poodle People who have earned some fame of their own so readers will recognize their names. If readers have any knowledge of other famous people who loved poodles, contribute in the comments! The poodles’ names if you know them, and any anecdotes you may know about them.