Javelin

DCh DM Summer Squall at Scatpak FCh aka Javelin aka Jav aka Javvy...

Javelin was a hoot!  Beginning as a puppy, she was ALWAYS into something and it usually meant trouble!  One day, Laurie Soutar mentioned to me that as a 6 month old puppy, Javelin attempted to take over the position of alpha bitch.  Oops...  bad move!  Another time, Laurie told me that Javelin was climbing up shelving units to get to the "cookies" on the top.  Oh my...  Oops!  Another bad move....  That's the problem with a very smart animal, especially a greyhound bitch...  they use that brain and not always in ways we appreciate!

Mom and Javelin

Javelin was the first of Feather's pups to be born.  Feather had been in labor about 30 minutes or so and no pup was forthcoming.  I inserted a finger into the birth canal and felt around.  The only thing that either I or Laurel Drew felt was the bottom pads of one hind foot.  Javelin had gotten tangled up in there and Feather needed veterinary assistance.  We went off to the Emergency Vet on the Sunday of Memorial Day weekend to get Feather the help she needed.  The attending vet in her infinite wisdom & knowledge (not) gave Feather a muscle relaxer so she could get Javelin out, which she did.  However, there was one big problem with giving an in labor bitch a muscle relaxer....  it STOPPED the contractions!  With an unknown number of pups still inside her, Feather needed an emergency C-section.  (Yes, the vet took an x-ray to determine how many pups were in there, but it was so underexposed that you couldn't tell anything!  It was useless!)  We lost three of Feather's pups.  What should have been a litter of 9, wound up being a litter of 6.  Thankfully, both bitch pups survived!

Since the sire & dam were named, Barracuda & Summer Breeze, we decided to name the litter after sailing terms. Prior to their birth, Rob & I wanted to name any red or red brindle bitch pup, DM Wake of the Red Witch.  That was a favorite, John Wayne movie of mine.  However, she earned her name, Summer Squall, the day she was born. When the vet finally got her out, she came out squallin'!  I remember holding up this small, 10 ounce puppy who was a hollerin' and I declared, "This one is Summer Squall."  She's been like a whirlwind or squall line, quickly moving through ever since.

In living up to her name, Javelin was known for sprinting off of the line like a rifle shot at lure coursing events.  Lure coursing out here in the Western US is highly competitive and Javelin was one that run with the best of them!

This little red dynamo was proudly co-owned by us, DM Greyhounds, with Windrock Greyhounds (Kim & Colin Fritzler).  She spent time at both homes, coming home to New Mexico for a bit after the 2007 Grand National.  Kim and Colin sadly bid her good-bye to allow us to campaign her in some other venues.

In June 2009, I took Jav to the Colorado Springs Kennel Club shows to try for that elusive second major and also for the Fritzlers to see.  Javelin, after seeing Kim and Colin kept looking for them.  She really wanted to go back home to Grand Junction with them, so, after the shows, I hugged her tightly and quickly  handed Colin the leash, saying, "Take her, she knows where she wants to live"  . . .   I miss her dearly but I couldn't keep her here, knowing how much she loves Kim & Colin. The next day, Kim called me when they got home and told me that Javelin moved right back in and it was like she was never gone.

Javelin at the GCA 2004 Western Specialty

Jav's a little busybody, like her sister.  I've been told that she tells the calves to eat all their food and keeps the pups in line and out of the irrigation ditch. Javelin keeps an eye on things for the Fritzlers and they are glad she's back home!  Kim and I bred Javelin on her next season, after all of her health certifications  (hips, thyroid and eyes) had been performed.  Her results are on the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals site.

Javelin graced us with a lovely, single puppy girl - Windrock DM The One and Only - Nikki, who is owned by Kim & Colin.

Sadly, Javelin passed over the Rainbow Bridge not too long after Nikki's birth. I pray that she's up there in heaven getting into mischief with my mom, both of them causing St. Peter a smidgeon of grief.  Mom also loved her dearly.  I miss both of them more than words can say - my mom & my lovely little red witch, Javelin. I wish all the best for her only daughter, Nikki.