WOTR Website

       Extreme Dogs at the Red River Exhibition
    The Red River Exhibition was extra special this year. The Extreme Dogs an annual event is a real crowd pleaser. All kinds of dogs do their thing in agility. Some are amazingly fast! This year Helen and Tara were invited to join the group to perform at the Ex; how exciting is that - wheaten mixed in with those hot shot border collies!
    It was thrilling to watch and Tara did not disappoint - the prettiest dog out there. My favorite event was when Tara did 12 weave poles. 6 are hard enough. Helen said it was her 1st time. Wow!
    Helen and Tara performed at every event the whole week. Agility is exciting and fun but also hard work. The group has to set up and remove the equipment daily. Everyone lends a hand. Did I mention how hot it was? Helen and Tara did a phenomenal job. The audience agreed.
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2010 - Hi Neighbour Festival parade
Hi my name is Muggins. This June I participated in the local Hi Neighbour Festival parade with my people. We started our day off by picking up a really neat souped up truck. Next we picked up some of our friends. They helped me hand out goodies to the kids along the parade route. Along the route I got to ride on the float with the Brownies and Girl Guides (they had the best ice cream!), and walk along with the Beavers, Cubs and Scouts. As well, I got to trot along with the Winnipeg Police Pipe Band. (I never did find that squeak toy they had!) I met up with some friends I hadn’t seen in a long time as well as made some new friends. At the end of the parade I was able to play with some of the kids as well as stroll through the fair grounds. What a perfect day!

       2009 - The Blessing of the Animals Service
   Prior to the month of October there will be announcements in the local papers about a special service to be held in various churches throughout the city usually the first week end in October. ’The blessing of the animals’ This custom is conducted in remembrance of St. Francis of Assisi’s love for all creatures. He’s the patron saint of animals!’ People enjoy the opportunity to take their animal companions to church for a special blessing. Church is the place where the bond of creation is celebrated. I have often heard about the service but usually was out of town but not this year. So I decided to take Gulliver and experience this custom.
   The closest church was St.George’s Anglican Church in Transcona. So off we went. When we arrived there were several dogs waiting inside where we were warmly greeted and invited to sit up at the front. I could sense some apprehension from Gulliver as he wasn’t quite sure where he was. It was too quiet to be a dog show or a vet’s office but the nice lady did have some dog treats on the table which caught his eye. He watched as more dogs entered and than he heard some sounds from the row in front. Hmm sounded like a cats meow.. Yes now he definitely was alert.
   The Minister arrived and she was very cheerful as she made her way around the room greeting each animal while she gave them a pat. The Minister explained how the custom began. There were a few short readings and we sang a hymn. As she looked around the room she admitted it was her first time to perform this special service. She chose to give the blessing individually rather than as a group. She approached each animal and gently placed her hand on their head and gave a blessing. At this service there were cats and dogs and 1 guinea pig. Last year there was a Shetland pony.
   The blessing of the animals is very special.
   I think Gulliver liked church. He certainly enjoyed the treats at the end.         (Eileen O)

       2009 - Lower Fort Garry National Historic Site Dog Days
   A first for Lower Fort Garry National Historic Site. On Sunday June 14, all families and visitors were invited to bring their dogs for a day of fun-filled activities, interactive history and doggy treats! Competitions, shows and heritage presentations will focus on dogs, their historic role at sites like Lower Fort Garry, and their modern role as lovable companions!
   We decided to stop by and check out the event while we were in the area. Weather wise it had to be the hottest day of summer. Even early in the morning the sun was beating down and we barely completed the tour of the grounds. The dogs were seeking out the shade wherever they could find it - a wheaten thing.
   When we arrived we were encouraged to enter through the front entrance into the museum with our dogs. A most interesting tour and than we checked out the area with the doggy items. The dogs were very well behaved probably because they enjoyed the air conditioned building. We started a rather long walk on the grounds and through all the exhibits. It was really neat to have our dogs with us. The staff at each exhibit were very friendly and informative. They greeted the dogs and at the bake oven even had some freshly baked dog cookies. That won them over immediately. Most of the planned events had not started as this was the first time dogs were allowed and staff were busy setting up various play areas.
   Had it not been for the sweltering heat (really) and sparse shaded areas we knew the dogs could take only so much. This is an event well worth attending and once all the kinks are worked out it will be more enjoyable for the public to revisit with their dogs. We are told they plan to make this an annual event. Most of us made it back to the car but lucky Maggie got to ride.         (Eileen O)

       2008 July Charity Fun Match
   A small group of people that show their dogs, instruct junior handlers, and a local show photographer got together to put on a fun match with all proceeds going to Cancer Care Manitoba. A couple of sponsors were the Manitoba junior Kennel Club and Purina. The Waverley Baseball Center was made available for the day to hold various dog events. There was conformation, obedience, rally and agility.
   This was a great opportunity to practice your dog in any of the events and improve your technique, especially if you have plans to enter the outdoor dog shows. The area is quite large and very open which prevented the exhibitors from pitching their pop up covers to shield them from the blazing sun and the wind made the day more challenging. Dog people are very creative and handled the situation. Did I mention there were on site ’houses’? No problem there. To top off the day food was available at the on site canteen, fresh and so delicious that there was a second run for more hamburgers after the sold out sign went up. How they kept the prices so reasonable and offered such good food is unheard of today. It was a very relaxing fun dog match for both dogs and people.
   Amazing how so few people can put together an event mainly due to the hard work on the grounds, hauling equipment and working the canteen. Kudos to Faye Unrau, her sister and all their families. All donations were well received at Cancer Care.   (Eileen O)

       2008 June Paws in Motion at Assiniboine Park
   The sponser, Fairmont Winnipeg in support of the Winnipeg Humane Society, held the annual Pet Walk-a-thon on June 22 at Assiniboine Park. This has to be one of the largest gathering of dogs. Every breed and mix is well represented. Each year there are more wheatens in attendance, always fun to meet along the walk. Being the second day of summer we were in store for a very hot day. The route was well lined up with water stations and for the more adventurous, doggy pools.
   This year we started off at the beginning of the walk which was a good idea as the wheatens were quite anxious to get started and it didn’t take them long to find the shade alongside the roadway. It was much easier and cooler walking on the grass than on the concrete. This event is quite lively and everyone is so friendly. Upon completion of the walk there are many vendors, entertainment and food to enjoy. If you are able to find a shady spot a good time is dog watching. Boy! people and dogs sure do some strange things all in fun of course. Best of all, you can be sure you will have one tired wheaten that will sleep the rest of the day.Well maybe for some wheatens, mine had a catnap and than off to the WOTR agility day. More of that in another report.    (Eileen O)

       2008 Wheaten Science Fair Project    Ed Note: Occasionally we are fortunate enough to hear or read about the positive activites of our younger citizens. Enjoy Kennady's story.

   Kennady’s family became the owner of a wheaten puppy named Cooper in the winter of 2007. Kennady has been a very responsible owner, walking her puppy daily after school, making sure he was getting enough exercise, lots of attention and love and attending puppy class.
   January 2008, Kennady has decided to do her grade 3 science fair project on the Wheaten Terrier. She was going to weigh and measure Cooper (nose to tail and floor to top) each week. She was very excited about this. In February, Kennady finished her science project on the Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier with pride. She researched books, the internet, interviewed her breeder, and made her own observations by watching Cooper; noting height, weight, colour changes, and lost teeth. She wrote about the history of this breed, growth and changes,and appearance. Her project was judged yesterday and she is absolutely thrilled that she received a Silver Medal!!

   Breeder's comments: Quite an impressive project and accomplishment. Congratulations Kennady and Cooper, her inspiration. We are very proud of you. The project will be displayed at the WOTR annual picnic and at the general meeting for others to enjoy and learn all about the Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier. (Eileen)

       2008 Purina Dog Heroe    MaggieMay, a rescue wheaten terrier owned by Cyril and Suann DeCourcey was awarded a 2008 Hero award from Purina's Hall of Fame in Toronto on May 5th.
   MaggieMay'S owner, Suann had fallen asleep on November 16th, and was unable to hear the carbon monoxide detector which was alarming to warn of high levels in her home. MaggieMay continued to lick Suann's face until she eventually sat up and then heard the alarm. The fire department was notified as was Manitoba Hydro who stated that the furnace had broken down and was emitting high levels of Carbon monoxide.
   Many thanks to Gail Litke for entering Maggie's name to Purina for consideration. We will be ever grateful for MaggieMay's vigilance - she probably saved a life!           If you do not own a carbon monoxide detector, invest in one today.

       2008 Wheaten Blood Donor Clinic On May 10th a Blood Draw Clinic was held at Red River College for the SCWT DNA Bank at the Canine Genome Project & Canine Phenome Project. This was an opportunity to contribute samples for use by researchers to identify the genes responsible for causing diseases such as PLE, PLN, Renal Dysplasia, Addison's Disease, certain types of cancer, and other disease that affect our wheatens.
   Helen Larson organized the clinic which was no easy task. Much time was spent setting up the location, printing necessary information and authorization forms and working with the vet tech graduates who donated their time and skills. Kudos!
   A total of 28 wheatens were very cooperative under the gentle guidance of the young techs. The wheatens had a great time socializing while waiting their turns. The ages ranged from 8 months to 13 years.
   Thank you WOTR volunteers. Ruth Smith, Gail Litke and Eileen Olensky. A huge thank you for the people who were contacted and able to attend with their Wheatens, a large proportion of Wheatens on the Red members. Kudos (Eileen)
   Watch for another clinic this fall!

       2007 Great Manitoba Dog Party    The 13th Annual Great Manitoba Dog Party was held at Assiniboine park. Since the move from other locations this is by far the most attractive and spacious area to hold the event. There is ample parking as people are coming and going throughout the day. Attendance is usually around the 20,000 mark. Everyone with their buddy on leash visiting the site. It is amazing there are so few encounters between dogs. They must know to be on their best behavior.
   Along with the usual events this year there was a demo on sheep herding. The public were enthralled with the sheep and ducks carefully moved by Pistol, a Border Collie who thrives on doing his job.
   The Terrier Group was well represented by the Red River Terrier Club and Wheatens on the Red. Gail and Trooper represented the wheaten at the Parade of Breeds and Ivy and Gilbert had a go at the second Parade while Gail was busy fielding questions at the Breed Tent. Surprisingly there were quite a few Wheatens spotted in the crowd.
   This event is hosted by the Manitoba Veterinarians. They do a remarkable job! (Eileen)

       2007 Charity BBQ    Several friends with their dogs attended a fund raiser BBQ with proceeds going to The Humane Society being held by the Royal Bank McIvor Branch on Friday Sept. 17th, 2007.
   A pleasant lunchtime of hot dogs, perogies & visiting with friends was had by all attending. Ivy came with Wheaten Gilbert. Attending were several Cairn friends, Andre and George with their darling Lucy who flirted with Gilbert and finally settled for sitting with him. 8 month old Angus, Lucy's son, with his owner Pat. Rose ' Ed and Westie also joined us and Gilbert thought she might be fair pickings Holly just looked at him and said I'm not in that business anymore buster, bug off. NO LUCK Gilbert!!
   The dogs were very well behaved and socialized with everyone who came over to visit with them. No doubt hoping for a weiner to drop. The BBQ appeared to be quite popular judging from the numbers of people eating their lunch so we hope the Humane Society were the recipient of a handsome cheque to help the stray dogs and cats of Wnnipeg. Thank you for participating with the Cairns. (Andrea)