Ch. Redclay's Fountain of Youth
Pedigree
THE BOXER UNDERGROUND
The Alternative Boxer News Magazine
CALEB, THE RARE PLAIN CHAMPION
by his breeder, Toni Boorstein
THE UNDERGROUND
EDITORIAL:
Ear Wars Rages On
BOXER BYTES
The Boxer Top Ten List
THE NEXT GREAT CONTROVERSY:
Moving the ABC
SITES OF INTEREST
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| Editor’s note: When we began planning
this magazine in earnest last year, we knew we wanted to feature a unique boxer in our
first issue. At about that time, we noticed a really nice plain brindle dog picking up
points pretty consistently in the show rings here in the SE. Shortly thereafter, that nice
plain dog was finished - in grand style - and we had our unique feature story. Here’s
Caleb’s saga, as told by his breeder. |
To set part of the scene, the pups were
about three weeks old when my husband became ill and was in and out of the hospital. We
were having major renovations done on our home. And we had a number of out of town guests
planning to visit for the upcoming Atlanta Olympics. In fact, the morning Michelle came to
see Caleb, the first plane load had just arrived. I didn’t know which way to turn
first; I just knew he was seven and a half weeks old and I had to get this puppy placed
and start clearing my plate. Not the ideal approach, I grant you, but luckily an angel was
watching out for Caleb, because she sent over Michelle Fountain and her two great
children, Stephanie and Ryan. I did manage to spend about an hour with her, and we talked
about his pedigree and that he was a pretty puppy, but plain, and they aren’t shown
because they can’t win. You know - the regular party line. As it turned out, Michelle
had been involved with showing and breeding Irish Wolfhounds, so the language wasn’t
completely foreign to her. But she was just buying a pet for the kids! So Caleb goes to
his new home that morning and I go back to juggling.
Michelle and
I keep in touch with the ordinary puppy growing up questions. She tells me everywhere she
goes people tell her how gorgeous Caleb is - you know, the real Boxer judges you meet at
PetSmart and gas stations. Well, he is pretty, but he’s still plain. "Michelle,
it would take a fortune to finish him, IF you could even find judges who would have the
nerve to put him up." But she’s not taking "no" for an answer.
You’d have to know Michelle, but the thought that white markings alone could keep a
good dog down was not a good enough reason. She would just show them. Go for it, Michelle.
But don’t say I didn’t warn you!
Caleb’s first
show weekend is the Peach Blossom Cluster in April - one of the biggies down here in the
South! Five point majors! Great, let’s make it as hard as possible! The boxer
handlers she called were already committed to other 9-12 mos. males, so she hires Rusty
Howard of Weim and Lab fame. Let’s really test the waters; let’s use a sporting
handler. Caleb goes second in his class two days and then Reserve at the Specialty. And we
were out of our minds when he just won his 9-12 class! At this point, I’m kicking
myself because I didn’t tell her to Futurity nominate him. Who nominates a plain
male, for heaven’s sake?! So while the rest of us are in Maryland, Caleb stays in
Georgia and gets his first point at a small show with Rusty handling. Nice, but not a
major. That’s going to be near impossible with the point schedule we have down here
and a plain dog to boot. But Michelle still isn’t listening to me (thank goodness).
Caleb goes to Rick
Justice in the summer. He wins under Joe Gregory, gets a major under Michelle Billings, WD
at the Regional under Duanna Young, another win by Anne Rogers Clarke, and finishes with a
third major under Jane Forsythe. He is now officially Ch. Red Clay’s Fountain of
Youth, and is back in Michelle’s bed being the family pet. And I can’t thank
Michelle Fountain enough...for proving me wrong! |
