So a Xolo, a Newfoundland and a Cesky walk into a ring …
KITCHENER — Ever heard of a Tibetan terrier? How about a miniature Xolo or maybe a Norrbottenspets. No? Perhaps a Norwegian buhund? Do you know the difference between a Norfolk and a Norwich terrier? And what the heck is a dandie dinmont?
If you are drawing a blank on such exotic names, these breeds and several dozen others will be strutting around the show ring next week at the three-day Elora Gorge Kennel Club’s 15th annual show, opening Wednesday at Bingemans Conference Centre.
And with 400 dogs in the show ring each day, it could be overwhelming for dog enthusiasts. It’s also exciting for the dog owners and handlers.
“It’s something fun to do and there’s a lot of camaraderie and people go out of their way, helping each other,” said Laurie Gleiser, owner of two beautiful Nova Scotia duck tolling retrievers, a Canadian breed from the East Coast developed for, what else, hunting ducks. Luckily, when not on the water, the dogs are wonderful family pets.
Enter Gleiser’s home and the greeting committee consists of Ty, a seven-year-old toller who particularly likes to anchor guests by lying on their feet, and 12-year-old Reese who is the furry, silent type until company arrives, then it’s showing-off time. There is lots of galloping around the house while whooshing Christmas decorations off the tree with those magnificent fluffy tails.
It’s hard not to adore these beautiful and sweet dogs, especially when they decide your ears need a good licking.
Over the years, Gleiser has made many friends in the dog show world, like-minded people who simply love their canines, whether it’s a spaniel or a Chihuahua. Just like human relationships, there are dog breeds that appeal to certain humans even if it’s big and slobbery or small, pointy and weirdly hairless. There is no such thing as ugly in the dog world, only unique.
For Gleiser, it was not hard to fall in love with the red and white
tollers, a breed often thought to resemble a fox. She came upon the breed quite unexpectedly while living in Calgary.
Gleiser grew up with large sporting dogs, usually Labrador crossbreds, but as an adult she hoped for something a little more compact. It was at a dog show in the early 1990s that she first spotted the breed and asked the name.
“I said ‘a what?’ ” she recalled. “It was a nice size, with a nice temperament.”
A friend hooked her up with a breeder in Vancouver.
Gleiser had never heard of a Nova Scotia duck tolling retriever, which isn’t surprising because the dogs are not that common and there are only a few breeders in Ontario. Pups from a reputable breeder can cost $1,800 to $2,500.
The toller — toll is a term that means lure — is the smallest of the retrievers, successful as a duck hunting dog because of one unique feature: it’s extraordinarily fluffy red tail. As the dogs patrol pond edges, hidden by marsh grasses, its tail sticks up sentry straight, waving and waggling and causing curious ducks to swim closer for a better look.
The toller swims out to retrieve birds subsequently shot by the hunter.
According to the tollers’ national association website, the breed was developed at the beginning of the 18th century, originally known as the Little River duck dog or the Yarmouth toller. The breeder was not admitted to the Canadian Kennel Club until 1945 and in 1995 it was bestowed with the title Nova Scotia’s provincial dog.
Gleiser has owned four of the dogs and done well in the show ring. Her niece, Kira Hewton, showed Ty in junior handling, a class designed to train and encourage young people.
“Junior handling works altogether differently,” she said, noting junior handlers are being judged on their skills handling dogs rather than showing off the attributes of a particular breed in a conformation class.
Judges are also more generous with their time, offering encouragement or advice to the young handler directly.
“There’s three days of junior handling (at the show),” she said. “A lot of the kids are really good.
“Winning gives them confidence.”
As for her own dogs, they both retired from the show ring but Gleiser continues to enjoy the unique charms of the Nova Scotia duck tolling retriever, even when it causes her bodily injury.
“Buy lots of tennis balls,” she advises new owners. “They will retrieve for hours or until your arm falls off.”