Guess at a bit over 4 years of age,
it's finally time to put up a page for "the ugly sister", as Bugsy is
referred to around here. A Riot daughter and full sister to my other
little hole dog Twiglet, Bugsy is even more intense in the field than her
older sister Twiggy. Which is exactly why she's still here. Certainly
she hasn't stuck around this long because of her fabulous good looks!!!
Oddly enough though, if you can somehow get past that head of hers, she
really is a pretty well put together little terrier. Bugsy has NO chest, a
great topline, extremely good movement, and the icing on the cake is that
she's smooth! All of that in a dynamite little hunting package.
Bugsy is one of the "Miracle
Babies", from Riot's third litter by AfterMax. Her diminutive size
intrigued me from the get-go, and when I saw how focused and intense she was
about quarry, that pretty much sealed the deal. Bugsy might have been
"last pick" in her litter, but so far, she's definitely "pick puppy" as far
as a worker is concerned. In the field her drive is incredible; another
one just like Snippet---she just can't stop
hunting! While not a headbanger, she sure has no problem getting up close
and personal with her quarry, and as little as she is, will invariably
engage and try to draw. I'm still trying to make her understand that at her
size, being a draw dog is just a personal fantasy! She works groundhogs
with ease, never afraid to spar with "nothin' but teeth". Bugsy never
blinks, and they never get away. Her first certificate was to a Virginia
groundhog that was half again as big as she was! She earned her second NHC
to raccoon on Groundhog day---a miserable, cold, frozen day in upstate New
York where she was underground for well over two hours with one very unhappy
and nasty raccoon who outweighed her by at least 3 times. But despite the
pounding she took, little Bugsy would NOT leave her quarry. When we
finally dug down to her and got her out, while she had taken a few good
shots, she certainly had gotten her "licks" in as well, as she had raccoon
hair threaded between her teeth on both sides of her mouth. And, almost a
year later to the day, Bugsy bronzed on a vixen fox just a few miles away
from the den where she found her coon.
While the conformation ring might
not be her strong suit because of her tiny size and that lovely head,
certainly she seems to excel in the broodbitch department. Her
first litter by Bear (see below)
didn't have a lug in the bunch; they were all exceptional puppies.
Amazingly, four out of four puppies ended up with gorgeous, strong heads,
great bone, and were all very well put together. Sometimes it's the
"plain Janes" that will give you the most awesome puppies. And, even as
little as she is, she free-whelped with ease, and was a fabulous mother.
Good broodbitches are worth a king's ransom, believe me.
So, while not looking like your
"typical" Sow's Ear terrier, little Uggy Buggy is definitely here to stay.
Perhaps with a little help from botox here and there, she might be able to
improve her plain Jane looks. And when they look like Bugsy, the more time
they spend underground, the better!! But as long as she hunts like she does
and produces babies like she does, the Ugly Sister is going to be a
permanent fixture, even if I do have to put a bag
over her head when I feed her in the morning!
Bugsy/Bear Litter
