By Greg Perry
Kirkland Realtor
When I'm not serving my clients in the real estate business, one of my hobby passions is purebred Cairn Terriers. One of our cairns, Kona (CH Cairngorm Coffee Tea or Me RA ME CGC) completed the title of MASTER EARTHDOG earlier in May. To put this in perspective, only two Cairn Terriers in the United States achieved the level of Master Earthdog in 2007.
Earthdog is a terrier sport where the dogs simulate a hunt for vermin....testing a terrier's insticts for what they were originally bred for. In Scotland, cairn terriers would enter underground tunnels created by fox, badger, weasel and otter. Their job was to flush the prey from their dens, so the crofter (farmer) could dispatch them. A good working cairn terrier was a crofter's most prized possession. (To learn more about AKC Earthdog events, click here.)
To reach the level of Master Earthdog, terriers must complete four qualifying Masters legs after titling as a Junior Earthdog and Senior Earthdog. After the terrier completes the quest for Master Earthdog, then he can also again compete at the Senior Earthdog Level. Terrier handlers with Master Earthdog titled dogs love to run both Master and Senior tests on the same day. When they successfully pass both test we call it a "Double Q" (Q for qualify).
After Kona passed his 4th Master Earthdog qualification leg successfully, we immediately went back to the Senior den in quest of his first "Double Q". He passed with flying colors. He also competed in two other weekends in May racking up a total of 3 "Double Q's" and earning a total of 8 green AKC performance ribbons for the month. On Saturday May 17th, Kona and his sire, Stiller, may have made cairn terrier history by becoming the first father and son to "Double Q" on the same day!.
Last year Kona earned the Cairn Terrier Club of America as one 7 Versatility award winners! Dogs earn this award by being an AKC Champion and earning at least 2 performance titles. Kona has also earned a Rally Advanced obedience title and holds a Canine Good Citizen award by the AKC.
To see more about our cairn terriers, visit www.croftersdream.com
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