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Post by Irena on Jan 10, 2006 1:04:51 GMT 1
Just thought I'd start a new topic for that!! By Greydove:
We are lucky in Australia, in our state we have shows every weekend, we only show one day on the weekend...you can usually find a show will be on most weekends about 1/2 hour drive from our house or if not that close then not more than just over an hours drive.
Narelle  By Daniela:
That's amazing. The closest shows here are few and far between. I guess the most local show is around 1 hour away. The rest are anything between approx. 3-4 hours' drive. If you want to travel to Scotland from here, you are looking at around 8-9 hours.
When the clocks go back, it's so dark and depressing having to travel to shows but in the Summer it's not too bad.By Fala Love'a:
First show in Poland in 2006 is on 21-22 January 450 km from Warsaw (where we live) so about 5 hours driving... Our girls are registered for it but we are not sure if we manage to go there as there can too much snow to drive ... By Greydove:
Gosh, thats amazing, I guess we don't know how lucky we are here....
NarelleBy Daniela:
When I travelled to Ireland, it took about 6-7 hours to get to the ferry port, and then three or so hours on the ferry, then we drove to all the shows across Southern Ireland over seven days.
The last show day was in Tralee, right on the west coast, and I had to bomb it back from Tralee to Dublin ferry port (on the east coast) before our ferry left in the evening. Once we hit the UK, I drove through the night and finally had to rest up in a petrol service station at 5am in the morning to catch some ZZZZzzzs before doing the last stint.  By Kobie:
As we live in a very small country, we have to drive minimum 1/2 h. and maximum 2 h for a show. 
Luxembourg is about 3 h, so also very close. For Paris we count 3 h.By Daniela:
I'm moving |
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Post by Irena on Jan 10, 2006 1:11:25 GMT 1
Gosh, we have some stories too!! Say, how about finding out a night before starting out that they've started major road works and that the speed you'll be able to go at will be 20 km/h for one third of the journey!! We never regretted starting out at 2 a.m., as we were able to go much faster than that because there was no traffic at night. If we hadn't been warned, we would have probably made it in time for the Finals.  ;D Or, the trip to the Euro Dog Show in Austria this year - our Kennel Club had rented a bus, and it was a nice big comfy bus as it is, but that still meant that my pup was sleeping in the seat right next to me the whole time, partly in my lap of course!! The trip took us about 22-24 hours, as we were mostly on the road and only stopping for short potty breaks. (We did stay in the Czech Republic, right next to the border (with Austria) overnight on the way to Austria. All in all we crossed 5 countries to get there.  ) |
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Post by Irena on Jan 10, 2006 1:14:58 GMT 1
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syrinx
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Post by syrinx on Jan 10, 2006 5:05:57 GMT 1
Well, it's only every weekend if you live in the city! We have one in January, and it's at the end. The next is a string of shows on the coast, 3hours + from home. And that is considered pretty much a local show for us. On the same weekend, there is another one an hour inland. Sydney is a three hour tip in my van loaded with dogs and trailer. I got to a Sydney show late, no preparation time due to the Highway being closed, just in time for judging. Got around to the back of the trailer, and I could smell something that............shall we say...........you don't want to smell at a show. Opened the doors, to find the trailer interior covered, as were the dogs. Forgot about the show and went to find a tap. That was when I discovered that Phantom was MUCH more relaxed travelling in the van than in the trailer!  Then there was the last show I went to, where I decided to camp and sleep in the van. Cold snap. Not nearly enough warm stuff to sleep under, and I shared with Phantom. Yeah - I shared my pillow, my blanket, woke up many times, and ended up stiff as a board. He seemed well rested!  Wendy |
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Post by Irena on Jan 10, 2006 5:35:08 GMT 1
Wendy, ROFL!! Knowing how Audry usually hogs everything, I CAN imagine!! ;D ;D I just remembered another one, very recent.... We often go to shows with other people to share the costs and to be in a fun company. So this time it's an International show in Tartu, Estonia - our neighbour country up north, and Audry and I are joining our friends with a Rhodesian Ridgeback to go there in their car. We have to cross the border in a town that is divided between the two countries - the Latvian side is called Valka and the Estonian side is called Valga, LOL. So, our car stops at the customs, and an Estonian lady borderguard comes up to check on our papers/passports etc. It somehow doesn't look good at all though, and in a few minutes she announces we can't get into Estonia. We are !!! It turns out that not only has the mandatory insurance on the car expired, but also the car didn't pass it's technical inspection fully last time and was given a month's "pass" which however is NOT good to enter another country!! The judging starts in about 2 hours, we are still half way from Tartu, and it's a peaceful and dreadfully quiet Sunday morning in Valka/Valga, with no buses or anything going to Tartu! We decide to try stopping the few cars passing through this crossing point. Guess how many stop, seeing three people with two large dogs on leashes..... Right, NONE!! They seem to totally ignore us. I see a man getting into his big, roomy, EMPTY van and run up to him, full of hopes (we were very ready to pay to get there!), only to hear that he is going to the church service a few blocks away. Geez, we probably thought of a dozen of other things we could do, until finally someone told us there is ANOTHER crossing point outside the little town, which is used by big trucks and such. We get into the car and find that one very soon, and the lady's husband drops us there and returns to deal with the paperwork. We can only take the most necessary things - forget the cameras and sandwiches, and equipped just with the show leads and treats we decide to try and stop a truck. We were actually saved much quicker and in a much more comfortable way than we had EVER dreamed we would - we see an SUV coming into the customs and I jokingly signal to stop it, and what do you know!!!! They are from Latvia too and going to the SAME SHOW with their Pomeranian!!!!!  So thus ended our little adventure. LOL We made it in time, even about 15 min before the judging!!!! |
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Lois
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Post by Lois on Jan 10, 2006 11:42:16 GMT 1
Reminds me of a time many years ago when I lived in the country and some friends and I went to some shows several hours away. We went in separate cars but shared the accommodation. The first morning one of my friends went to walk her two Great Danes and found that one of them had had diarrhea during the night and had sprayed very smelly poop all through her van. Worse still the two dogs had trodden in the poop and it was ingrained in the cloth seats and even on the roof lining. It was EVERYWHERE! We cleaned it and the dogs up the best we could and went off to the show. Unfortunately it was a very hot day and by the end of the day her van was so smelly she had to park it away from everyone else. She decided to drive home that night rather than stay the next day for the show.
Another poop story..... a friend and her husband went camping with their Dalmatian and the dog found some human poop to snack on when they stopped at a camp site. The dog used to travel on the front floor of their 4 wheel drive and managed to vomit up the human poop into the air conditioning vent on the floor. They could never get the smell out. Every time they turned the air conditioning on they would get the lovely odor wafting up through the vent.
And the last poop story for the day....... traveling home from Melbourne Royal with the dogs in my van, I stopped to let the dogs out for a leg stretch. My darling Rumour (who is so into doing disgusting things!) found some human poop to roll in and had big chunks of it stuck to her collar. I had to find a tap and luckily had some shampoo with me and get her cleaned up to drive the 5 more hours to get home. She has done this to me on several occasions. When I lived in the city the park I used to take them too was also the home of several itinerants who used the bushes as their toilet. Even at 11 she still likes to find stinky things to roll in.
ahhh dogs..just go to love them!
Lois
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Post by daniela on Jan 10, 2006 20:17:33 GMT 1
This is a great thread and if we keep sharing, could end up as a book  My mum and her friend when travelling to a local open show came face to face with a horse! Some how it had managed to get out of one of the fields either side of the motorway and was galloping into on coming traffic. That horse must have been in luck that morning, as both my mum and her friend are animal lovers to the core. Thankfully after stopping the traffic, and with help from the police they managed to catch the horse with a dog lead Then there's the other story of my friend who when leaving Crufts at the NEC, had to get a taxi to take her around all the NEC car parks so she could find her car. For anyone who has never been to the NEC before, this place is HUGE! |
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syrinx
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Post by syrinx on Jan 11, 2006 2:15:01 GMT 1
Oh Lois, that is HYSTERICAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! At least mine was only a trailer!!!!!!
It is so funny when it isn't you, or it is ten years since it happened. LOL !
Wendy
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Post by Irena on Jan 11, 2006 18:29:04 GMT 1
LOL.... Hilarious stories!!
Come to think of it, I used to have a German Shepherd (mix) that I considered pretty reliable in any situation, and my brother, Dad and I once went to visit someone where we couldn't bring the dog in overnight. I convinced Dad it would be no problem leaving Bella in the car (it was summer, so not cold or anything either). Dad was in doubt but I assured him there was NOTHING to worry about, what could possibly happen?
So in the morning, Dad goes out for a smoke and comes back in with the gravest expression on his face, and tells me - "Go look at what Bella did to the car." I was absolutely shocked to see the inside of the car covered with poop, pee, and things torn up and chewed on. Boy was THAT a surprise.....!!!!! I spent the whole day trying to get the car to where we could travel back home in it. It was an awful experience!!! ;D
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syrinx
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Post by syrinx on Jan 12, 2006 9:04:39 GMT 1
Ha Ha Ha! ;D I can relate to that! We have an Australian Kelpie who is terrified of fireworks. We live on a farm, only about 40 mins from the capital where they have a big fireworks display, so no-one gets fireworks. But someone did in 04/05. I heard all the boarders barking, went out, and heard the fireworks. I though that was what the barking was about, but then Kelly came along, so I figured that was what they were barking at. Dogs all tell tales. So I put her in my van as she always feels happier there. But I forgot about her. We are closed only 5 days a year, so I slept in, had a nice lazy breakfast, and eventually went outside. Kelly is VERY housebroken, and obviously needed to go to the toilet. She had tried to get out the door, and had EATEN the lining. She then started on the other door. It must have all gotten too much, and she had finally done a wee. She could have gotten into the back of the van just by walking between the seats. It was empty. The carpet can be taken out easily for cleaning. Is that where she went? You KNOW it wasn't! ON the drivers seat! It took 3 weeks to dry totally, I had to drive with plastic and a towel on the seat for three weeks. We found out the hard way about her toilet needs. We locked her in a house we lived in, and she tore up the floor covering in the kitchen, she started to eat door and the timber around it. I should have remembered that when I put her in the van! Wendy |
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