AKC Ch Paisley's Foxtrot Oscar CGC RATI
Gordon "Ramsay"
Pictured @ 5 Years
AKC BISS GCH/UKC Ch HiSpot's Simply Sublime CGC x AKC BISS BIS SGCh/UKC Ch Paisley Choco Chip Brownie Delite RN CGC ROM RATI RATN RATO
|
Bred by: Sue & Jessica MacMillan, & Wendy G McCance
Owned by: Brandee Massey & Sue MacMillan |
AKC# NP32159705
BHA# BH-17487 / L 23" June 8, 2012 - September 14, 2023 |
Ramsay was my first black spotted Dalmatian, and my second show dog. We finished our AKC championship in 12 months, mostly owner-handled, with 3 majors (two breed specialty supported) in limited showing. We were halfway through our AKC Grand Championship, but due to prostate issues we had to stop. Our biggest win during our short time specializing was a Group 3 from a breed specialty supported, Non-Sporting Club Specialty. He had great confidence, a forgiving temperament towards my shenanigans and was always game for new experiences. Ramsay was named after the celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay, and his registered name was from one of his UK bistros.
Titles
In Progress
|
Health
|
Ramsay's Gallery
Ramsay's Pedigree
|
Sire AKC BISS GCH/UKC Ch HiSpot's Simply Sublime CGC "Louie" CHIC #44805 |
"Caddy" CHIC #35004 |
|
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
||
|
|
|||
|
"Xhilli" CHIC #69695 |
|
|
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
||
|
|
|||
|
BISS/BIS/AKC SGCh/UKC Ch Paisley Choco Chip Brownie Delite RN CGC ROM RATI RATN RATO (L)"Pauli" CHIC #65309 |
(L) "Argus" CHIC #42287 |
|
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
||
|
|
|||
|
(L) "Aruba" CHIC #33286 |
|
|
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
||
|
|
This dog was a life experience.
It makes it hard to explain, hence the delay.
Early in 2012 I reached out to Sue MacMillan for my first Dalmatian, and he was going to be my second attempt at showing. I'd researched them for a few years, had dog-earred local breeders, but decided I needed a dog that came with a Fargo accent. Actually, it was more over my complete admiration for Pauli (MBISS BIS GCHS Paisley Choco Chip Brownie Delite CGC RN RATO CZ8B ROM) that led me on a 18 hour round trip northwards. The root canal I needed at the same time wasn't going to stop me.
On the way home we stopped at a McDonalds somewhere in Iowa. I sat down with him in the grass to let him romp a bit. His whole vibe was "a naturally good dog" and that's what he tried to be - probably thanks to his dad, Louie (BISS GCH HiSpot's Simply Sublime CGC). Now, I am a dog connoisseur. A snob. That is to say, because I work with them, I am perhaps a bit ridiculous about my expectations of my own. Most dogs always require a little bit of spit shining, but every once in a while there's one who is just straight out of the box, good to go. It's something I can almost physically feel, and it's hard to explain, but Ramsay was one of those.
Now he could still make your eye twitch with some antics.
It was his temperament that made him naturally good.
Of course, as a Dalmatian, he was a quirk, and I mean that. Ramsay would flip his front feet under him when he laid down and he looked like an amputee all the time. A lot of his family did this. If he was in the yard and excited, he could potentially pants you. He’d grab the hem of your shorts and just tug downwards. He did it to me a handful of times, Nathan, dad, my sister, my mom, a few friends, and the best for last: my landlord. Draw strings were things he also liked to grab and nibble like a goat. He had the best breed characteristic smile that would allow you to count ALL of his teeth. His timing with it was always spot on. “Can I pet him? Will he bite?” “Yes, you can pet him, but he does have teeth.” Then Ramsay would do his introductory impression of Bruce the Shark from Finding Nemo, as if he knew that was a cue. If I needed a demo dog with an unflappable temperament, he was the one. His unilateral hearing was actually a treat for public service work because he would ignore everyone but me. He could catch a rabbit but didn’t know what to do with it. They were usually still alive, nearly unharmed, when he brought them to me. There wasn’t much of a prey drive there, he mostly just wanted to sun bathe on my front porch all day. He was a creature of comfort, and he was good at letting you know when he was dissatisfied with just a hard stare.
There was one instance where he refused to get in a friend’s older van to go to a dog show. I’ve never had him refuse to load but he was absolutely convinced this van was a death trap. Turns out he was right. By the time we got to the dog show it had lost its AC and was overheating. It had to be towed back home.
I hid this dog from my parents for almost a year. I didn't live with them, hadn't for years, but man sometimes you adults are dream crushers with your kids. I just didn't want to deal with "another dog" commentaries. This is where I learned ‘how to hide dogs in your car when the landlord comes by’ as a life skill. At some point we were moving out of our suburban home into our country home, and my parents were helping us move stuff. It became a game of where can I put this 50lb dog so my parents don't see him. Thanks to his good manners I was able to leave him in plain sight for some of it (in a hard plastic crate, of course). It wasn't until he won his first points at a dog show that I revealed his existence. Slapping a fist full of First Places, Winners, and Best of Winners ribbons from a mystery dog on the parents kitchen counter was oh so satisfying. Since then I don’t think I’ve ever gotten a “why another dog?” comment. Instead they've turned into cheerleaders and sometimes mini-sponsers.
Our first dog show weekend was on the verge of a hot mess though. A navy pantsuit that desperately needed to be fitted was what I wore. It was 2013 but I felt like I was wearing something from the 90s. Ramsay had a nylon check collar that was too big and a Coastal dog leash that was probably a mile long. An absolutely humbling experience that was cushioned by Angie Greer Henderson when she swooped in and saved us. I took him in for his exam, but she would take him back in for winners where he finally looked decent. Something along the lines of “He can win this, let me take him back in'' and she was right. I’m still fresh enough to remember that learning how to show a dog is a tool. She told me what equipment to purchase and I still bought the wrong stuff (right lengths, too thin). I never did get Ramsay to be a polished show pony, not like the ones I have now. You’d set one foot and he’d just move another; even as a veteran he wiggled like a six month old puppy. He was forgiving and patient with my bumblings. Flashy was not his ring personality, but he wasn’t a deadhead either. He was just an ideal dog to learn things with, because all he wanted was just to be there.
That said, at our first National in 2013 he made me leave the ring in tears because he decided to do a jig on his down and back twice in a row. I believe Deby Harber tried to soothe me as I passed by because I was that visibly upset, and I didn’t even know her at the time. I look back and laugh now, because I don’t typically cry from embarrassment, just when I’m incredibly frustrated, and that’s usually hard to explain to people because I don’t think it’s a normal reaction.
We missed a Sweepstakes ring time once at Amana and Jessica MacMillan probably wanted to flog me. It’s the only time I’ve accidentally missed a ring time other than an act of god, like the one time I ended up in a highway median at 4 am in the morning due to ice. What did I learn from this? Nothing. I will show up ringside with 10 minutes to spare - I mean ‘I found a place to park and walked right in’, not ‘I’ve been here for hours, waiting’ showing up.
Showing dogs has always been a “budget” hobby. I need proof that a weekend at a dog show isn’t a waste if we come home with points. On my measly beginner-groomer income he made sure to meet that goal each weekend we went out. He finished with three majors in specialty supported entries and a couple of singles here and there. I did start on his Grand but due to prostate issues he made it about half way before we had to stop. His biggest win was in a Non-Sporting Specialty where he went Best of Breed over a ton of other Dalmatians (we had breed specialties that weekend). I think Rosie Branaman could sense my slight panic because she had to tell me to breathe when I got pulled out and put in front of the line. He went on to get a Group 3 that day too.
He was the reason for a lot of things I have done or will be doing.
I got him as a companion/show dog, maybe to campaign because I was a dreamer, but not to breed because that was too much to handle in the beginning. This led me to Quill, and then later Parker. The house we currently live in was because of him. I have the cars that I have because they fit his needs. I have had two successful Dalmatian litters due to what I learned from him. My handling skills were founded by him. A majority of the best people in my life now all go back to him. Even my decision to go back to school is because of him. Since his appearance on June 8, 2012 he’s probably been the most influential part of my life, even if most of it has only been behind the scenes. I think Nathan is the only one that has surpassed him.
He wasn’t a heart dog, but he was a life altering one.
He’ll probably be that for the remainder of my life.
It makes it hard to explain, hence the delay.
Early in 2012 I reached out to Sue MacMillan for my first Dalmatian, and he was going to be my second attempt at showing. I'd researched them for a few years, had dog-earred local breeders, but decided I needed a dog that came with a Fargo accent. Actually, it was more over my complete admiration for Pauli (MBISS BIS GCHS Paisley Choco Chip Brownie Delite CGC RN RATO CZ8B ROM) that led me on a 18 hour round trip northwards. The root canal I needed at the same time wasn't going to stop me.
On the way home we stopped at a McDonalds somewhere in Iowa. I sat down with him in the grass to let him romp a bit. His whole vibe was "a naturally good dog" and that's what he tried to be - probably thanks to his dad, Louie (BISS GCH HiSpot's Simply Sublime CGC). Now, I am a dog connoisseur. A snob. That is to say, because I work with them, I am perhaps a bit ridiculous about my expectations of my own. Most dogs always require a little bit of spit shining, but every once in a while there's one who is just straight out of the box, good to go. It's something I can almost physically feel, and it's hard to explain, but Ramsay was one of those.
Now he could still make your eye twitch with some antics.
It was his temperament that made him naturally good.
Of course, as a Dalmatian, he was a quirk, and I mean that. Ramsay would flip his front feet under him when he laid down and he looked like an amputee all the time. A lot of his family did this. If he was in the yard and excited, he could potentially pants you. He’d grab the hem of your shorts and just tug downwards. He did it to me a handful of times, Nathan, dad, my sister, my mom, a few friends, and the best for last: my landlord. Draw strings were things he also liked to grab and nibble like a goat. He had the best breed characteristic smile that would allow you to count ALL of his teeth. His timing with it was always spot on. “Can I pet him? Will he bite?” “Yes, you can pet him, but he does have teeth.” Then Ramsay would do his introductory impression of Bruce the Shark from Finding Nemo, as if he knew that was a cue. If I needed a demo dog with an unflappable temperament, he was the one. His unilateral hearing was actually a treat for public service work because he would ignore everyone but me. He could catch a rabbit but didn’t know what to do with it. They were usually still alive, nearly unharmed, when he brought them to me. There wasn’t much of a prey drive there, he mostly just wanted to sun bathe on my front porch all day. He was a creature of comfort, and he was good at letting you know when he was dissatisfied with just a hard stare.
There was one instance where he refused to get in a friend’s older van to go to a dog show. I’ve never had him refuse to load but he was absolutely convinced this van was a death trap. Turns out he was right. By the time we got to the dog show it had lost its AC and was overheating. It had to be towed back home.
I hid this dog from my parents for almost a year. I didn't live with them, hadn't for years, but man sometimes you adults are dream crushers with your kids. I just didn't want to deal with "another dog" commentaries. This is where I learned ‘how to hide dogs in your car when the landlord comes by’ as a life skill. At some point we were moving out of our suburban home into our country home, and my parents were helping us move stuff. It became a game of where can I put this 50lb dog so my parents don't see him. Thanks to his good manners I was able to leave him in plain sight for some of it (in a hard plastic crate, of course). It wasn't until he won his first points at a dog show that I revealed his existence. Slapping a fist full of First Places, Winners, and Best of Winners ribbons from a mystery dog on the parents kitchen counter was oh so satisfying. Since then I don’t think I’ve ever gotten a “why another dog?” comment. Instead they've turned into cheerleaders and sometimes mini-sponsers.
Our first dog show weekend was on the verge of a hot mess though. A navy pantsuit that desperately needed to be fitted was what I wore. It was 2013 but I felt like I was wearing something from the 90s. Ramsay had a nylon check collar that was too big and a Coastal dog leash that was probably a mile long. An absolutely humbling experience that was cushioned by Angie Greer Henderson when she swooped in and saved us. I took him in for his exam, but she would take him back in for winners where he finally looked decent. Something along the lines of “He can win this, let me take him back in'' and she was right. I’m still fresh enough to remember that learning how to show a dog is a tool. She told me what equipment to purchase and I still bought the wrong stuff (right lengths, too thin). I never did get Ramsay to be a polished show pony, not like the ones I have now. You’d set one foot and he’d just move another; even as a veteran he wiggled like a six month old puppy. He was forgiving and patient with my bumblings. Flashy was not his ring personality, but he wasn’t a deadhead either. He was just an ideal dog to learn things with, because all he wanted was just to be there.
That said, at our first National in 2013 he made me leave the ring in tears because he decided to do a jig on his down and back twice in a row. I believe Deby Harber tried to soothe me as I passed by because I was that visibly upset, and I didn’t even know her at the time. I look back and laugh now, because I don’t typically cry from embarrassment, just when I’m incredibly frustrated, and that’s usually hard to explain to people because I don’t think it’s a normal reaction.
We missed a Sweepstakes ring time once at Amana and Jessica MacMillan probably wanted to flog me. It’s the only time I’ve accidentally missed a ring time other than an act of god, like the one time I ended up in a highway median at 4 am in the morning due to ice. What did I learn from this? Nothing. I will show up ringside with 10 minutes to spare - I mean ‘I found a place to park and walked right in’, not ‘I’ve been here for hours, waiting’ showing up.
Showing dogs has always been a “budget” hobby. I need proof that a weekend at a dog show isn’t a waste if we come home with points. On my measly beginner-groomer income he made sure to meet that goal each weekend we went out. He finished with three majors in specialty supported entries and a couple of singles here and there. I did start on his Grand but due to prostate issues he made it about half way before we had to stop. His biggest win was in a Non-Sporting Specialty where he went Best of Breed over a ton of other Dalmatians (we had breed specialties that weekend). I think Rosie Branaman could sense my slight panic because she had to tell me to breathe when I got pulled out and put in front of the line. He went on to get a Group 3 that day too.
He was the reason for a lot of things I have done or will be doing.
I got him as a companion/show dog, maybe to campaign because I was a dreamer, but not to breed because that was too much to handle in the beginning. This led me to Quill, and then later Parker. The house we currently live in was because of him. I have the cars that I have because they fit his needs. I have had two successful Dalmatian litters due to what I learned from him. My handling skills were founded by him. A majority of the best people in my life now all go back to him. Even my decision to go back to school is because of him. Since his appearance on June 8, 2012 he’s probably been the most influential part of my life, even if most of it has only been behind the scenes. I think Nathan is the only one that has surpassed him.
He wasn’t a heart dog, but he was a life altering one.
He’ll probably be that for the remainder of my life.