title is attained. Several years ago, I showed a 14-year-old veteran bitch. Well, “Busy” hadn’t forgotten her old tricks; whenwe camebackup thediag- onal mat to the judge, she walked into her stack, and within five seconds, she stomped her foot and “woo—wooed” the judge. She had been out of the ring for at least 12 years at that point. Yes, she absolutely was Best Veteran that day! Who would have ever said no to that? My husband took our first homebred champion, “Widget,” to work with him everyday for 12 years. After Wid- get passed, “Baby Grace” filled the position, and after she passed earlier this year at 14 years old, the mantle passed to “Fiona.” They are also reg- ulars at Home Depot and Lowes. His office dogs have always been great ambassadors for the breed as they are out in public and seemingly thrive on the attention. In closing, I feel so blessed to have had these little dogs inmy home and inmy heart for all these years. What started as a love affair with a little exotic dog many years ago has bloomed into an all-consuming passion. I cannot imaginemy life without the dogs. I am grateful that every day I am blessed with so many little flat faces, and ev- ery night I go to sleep serenaded by Pekingese snorts and snores. What could be any better than that?
especially with exercise, and most will snort when excited and snore when relaxed or asleep. Severely affected animals have more pro- nounced airway noise, appear to tire easily with exercise, and may col- lapse or faint after exercise. Symp- toms are often worse in hot or humid weather. Because of conscientious breeders, this symptom is seldom seen in the show rings anymore. Other health concerns include Inter- vertebral Disc Disease (IVDD) and sebaceous cysts. Pekingese require regular grooming. A dog with a correct, harsh outer coat will generally only need to be brushed out once a week. They do benefit from regular bathing. If you have trained your dog to be groomed on the table, and on his back, he will en- joy the grooming and the time spent with you. Nigel Aubrey Jones of St Aubrey Els- don fame said, “Breeding Pekingese is not for the fainthearted. It is prob- ably the most difficult of all breeds to produce consistently.” I know this to be the absolute truth. C-sections are more the rule than the exception, and at times, the puppies can be dif- ficult to rear. Show breeders gener- ally run puppies on for 4-8 months to assess quality. Pekingese generally enjoy the shows and even enjoy them long after their
“PEKINGESE REQUIRE REGULAR GROOMING. A DOG WITH A CORRECT, HARSH OUTER COAT WILL GENERALLY ONLY NEED TO BE BRUSHED OUT ONCE A WEEK. THEY DO BENEFIT
FROM REGULAR BATHING. IF YOU HAVE TRAINED YOUR DOG TO BE GROOMED ON THE TABLE, AND ON HIS BACK,
he will enjoy the grooming and the time spent with you.” 24 • T op N otch T oys , S eptember 2021
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