2013, Day 194 - Muppet racing

Today Frankie got his first ribbon!  We went lure coursing which is much more suited to his style of running, beautiful but slow.  It is a very subjective thing but it isn't all about speed which means he was able secure the ranking of next best qualified; it means he came in fifth in a very competitive field including some of the best racers in the country.

It was an all breed event so we had some whippets, an Italian greyhound, a couple of Rhodesian ridgebacks, and an afghan hound.  His name is Lil Mo and he is a bit of a chicken.  At check in Mo had to let someone other than Mom touch him which he found rather traumatic but he chased really well.  Given the heat Mo has been partially shaved and looked much like a giant Fraggle running around the track.  I wish there were more muppets to race because I like taking their pictures.

Canon 1D Mark IV, Canon 70-200/f2.8L IS Mark II
200mm, f4, 1/8000 sec @ 320 ISO

2012, Day 21 - Siblings

For my more ardent followers it should come as no surprise that I have a strong affection for all dogs in the sighthound family.  They are, for the most part, gentle, sweet, lazy, and expressive.  The more elegant they look the goofier they are when away from prying eyes so Afghan hounds rate pretty high up there of the silly scale.  These two had already competed as puppies at the dog show and collapsed on top of each other while their person finished watching the adults.

The cardinal rule at dog shows is that you ask before making new friends.  The adult Afghans take hours, literally, to groom into show readiness so you don't want to undo someone's hard work.  But because these two were done competing and because they still have their puppy coat we got to visit.  The boy, on the left, kept trying to scoot across his sister to get closer without actually having to go to the effort of standing.  It's odd to think that such grace and athleticism is tempered with complete sloth but that's what I love about them.

Canon 1D Mark IV, Canon 24/f1.4L Mark II
24mm, f2, 1/160 sec @ 1000 ISO