On Saturday, July 7, 2007 Bogart, Katie, and I set out on a 4,107 mile motor home trip to visit Dane (Judy Simmons), owner and breeder at RivrVue Kennels in Mississippi. Dane owns Addi (AKC: Ch. Quiche's Xtra Special Addition), Bogart's mom. Bogart's dad, Buzz (AKC: Ch. Obvious Mister Muchacho) lives elsewhere. Lin flew into Memphis, where we picked her up and drove to RivrVue Kennels in Shannon, Mississippi. Lin had not seen Bogart and Katie for more than fifteen months, and she was thrilled to see them, touch them, hold them, and witness that they really did remember her. Dane was also excited to see one of Addi's "kids" at roughly 27 months of age. She judged that Bogart was one super little Bouvier, and she wishes he could have been shown in the ring.
The visit was planned months and months ago, but Katie hurt her back and I had shoulder surgery. Both of us are now fine. We wanted Dane to see Bogart, and I wanted to see Addi and possibly Buzz (Bogart's mom and dad). It was also a chance for Lin to be reunited with her puppies, whom she dearly loves and missed. I had promised that I would bring them east for a visit. Bogart's brother, Fozzie visited RivrVue last April; he was there for his second birthday. He lives in San Diego, California with Rob and Masha, his human mom and dad.
Bogart and Katie behaved impeccably. They loved the off-leash play in the fenced exercise yards. They loved the smells, the sounds, and the feel of all the other Bouviers. Dane knew which dogs were OK for Bogart and/or Katie to be with. Bogart could not, for example, play with his brother without close supervision; Charlie had only recently assumed Lou's top dog role, and with some females in heat, Charlie might not tolerate another male around, especially handsome Bogart (just a joke). Bogart and Charlie did play some, with Dane on the watch for any signs of problems. All went well.
Dane and her husband, Buck, live on a 70-acre property, where they recently built their beautiful, new home just yards from their wonderful lake. They built a state-of-the-art kennel with a huge apartment upstairs. Lin stayed there, while the puppies and I retired each night to the motor home. The kennels include indoor, air-conditioned pens, covered outdoor runs, and the really nice, spacious exercise areas. Dane also has her grooming room, and a special room for geriatric, older dogs (Moses, Penneloppe, and VeeVee. Here is the RivrVue Web site: http://www.rivrvuebouviers.com
RivrVue's brand new kennels, ready in April of 2007. There were thirteen Bouviers present for our visit. They included one of Bogart's brothers, Charlie; Addi, his mom; two of his sisters Tweetie and Chit Chat; and many others, including 11-year-old Moses, one of my favorites. Others were Lou (the God Father), Penneloppe, Rivr (pregnant by Charlie), VeeVee (Am/Can Ch. Quiche'sVim and Vigor), Chloe (Ch. RivrVue Desert Song of KJO), Peeches (Ch. RivrVue Peeches and Cream) and CASH (Ch. Rivrvue The Man in Black) and Joe (Ch. Donlee Broadway Joe).
Great view of Kennels, Bogart and Katie, Lin and I in background; also, the lake.
Bogart, Lou in middle, and Addi, Bogart's mom. Lou is the old guard; he had handed over top dog to Charlie. Note that Lou and Addi are fawn color; this really makes for interesting brindle coats when bred with charcoal or black Bouviers. Bogart is a good example of this.
Addi, with her short cut, inspects things upon Bogart's visit.
Here I am with the puppies in one of the two huge, fenced play areas.
OK, OK, I know.....what's Bogart doing on the couch? Hey, it was our vacation. This is the kitchen and lounging room at the kennels. The window over my shoulder looks out into the indoor kennels.
Bogart and his sister Tweetie romp unrestrained. They had a blast.
Note Katie in the far corner; she could not be mixed with Chloe without risking a fight. Chloe loves to play ball. Yes, she looks a lot like Tweetie, but it is Chloe.
Bogart and Katie asleep in the motor home. They did amazingly well in the motor home, especially when one considers that they spent a full two weeks aboard. They rode, slept, ate, lounged - it was their dog house for two weeks.
Exhausted, Bogart rests before meeting Chit Chat and Tweetie, his sisters.
Well, a little rest, and then we must be going. We have a long trip before we will be home again. Maybe dad will let us drive; it doesn't look all that difficult to us.
We want to shout out a special THANK YOU to Dane and Buck for having us as guests for three nights. We had great conversation, really good food, and special bonding with all the Bouviers we could be with. It was a very special time for us all.
We drove from St. George, Utah to Shanon, Mississippi, roughly 1,750 miles; then back the northern route through St. Louis, Chicago, and Denver, roughly 2,357 miles. Here was our journey:
St. George; Flagstaff, Arizona (KOA Campground); Albuquerque, New Mexico (KOA Campground); Shamrock, Texas (Econo Lodge); Checotah, Oklahoma (KOA Campground); Memphis, Tennessee (Motel 6 for 2 nights); picked up Lin at Memphis Airport; Shannon, Mississippi (RivrVue Kennels for 3 nights); Cahokia, Illinois (Caholia Campground); Elmhurst, Illinois; Omaha, Nebraska (KOA Campground); North Platte, Nebraska (Motel 6); Glenwood Springs, Colorado (River Dance Campground); St. George, Utah (Home, Sweet Home). Fuel costs were $1,430 for the 4,107 mile trek, or $.348 per mile. We stayed at three motels and six campgrounds. We came to really like the KOAs (Kampgrounds of Amerika); they are well run, very clean, nicely priced, well maintained, and have great stores and even, sometimes, dining. Special sights - the whole route from Denver to Grand Junction, including Vail, Glenwood Springs, etc. Oh, and we saw the famous St. Louis Arch in the distance; several days later, 200 tourists were trapped inside. Honest, I didn't do it.
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