Articles published in this Newsletter do not necessarily reflect the views of the Committee or the Editor. Nothing may be copied unless permission is granted by the WTA. 

Shows

Bulawayo IPO: Weekend of 18 & 19 May Both Days Helmut qualified with Hexe and Helmut got an AD with Ricky on 20 May. Well done!  

Harare: WTA had its big weekend with four shows on 1 & 2 June. At some stage Gladys and I were run of our feet missing our hard working Chairlady who has gone to England for a hard deserving rest with her family. She made sure we had all our prizes and trophies sorted out. We run UBC obedience show on Saturday and on Sunday was our own Obedience. Quite some dogs did not enter as their owners were on holiday. On Saturday three Sectra dogs qualified and one GSD Club of Harare dog qualified. It was great to see two members of the GSD Harare entering on both days!On Sunday only one Sectra dog qualified, they have some very good working dogs, but did not do too well on the second day. The GSD Club Harare dog qualified again, which was a pleasure to watch. Ilse with Rosie also qualified in Novice. Bow Bow sponsored all four shows and our thanks must go to Mr John Henderson in helping us to make this an even better show than past years.Then we had our own member Guy and Bess qualifying and winning Novice, the surprise of the day for both! You did it Guy!

“Guy and Bess”

“Gladys and Pippa”

Gladys with her Pippa qualified and came first in Class A as this is Pippa's second win and qualifying she may not compete in "A" any more and so has to compete in "B" in future.Gladys already has her other dog in "B"; this will give her something to think about. Put both in or one in one show and the other one in the next?  Dog Jumping: Geraldine with Eisen qualified in DJ 2 on Saturday and Ted and Dawn qualified in DJ 2 on Sunday, what an achievement for both handlers and dogs. Congratulations. I am afraid that I will get complaints if I put in more pictures in this newsletter as it takes quite some time to download. So next issue we will see the other two dogs.It does take some time to organise this issue as pictures not only have to be taken, the dog AND owner must look good [which could take up to 6 or more exposures], then it has to be 'cropped' and the size made to fit the newsletter. This I only can do when I take the picture.

Dates to remember:

Well what dates now? We have had our AGM, a new committee was installed, lets hope even better than last year. Next dates are the June 1 & 2 shows, double obedience and double Dog jumping. Where are your entries??? June 15 & 16 are our double working trials dates. You all come to train on a Thursday, why not come and see what you are aiming for, contact Gladys or Ilse to find out where the venue is. Bring your dog as you might want to do some training as well, catering will be in the capable hands of Gladys with her helpers.

Welcome to new members:

Mrs PC Antrobus, Mrs Emma dos Santos, Mrs Britta Ryberg, Mrs P Fisher, Mrs E Ciampi

TOKYO, Japan (Reuters) -- Who says you can't teach an old robotic dog new tricks?

As of next month, Sony Corp. will offer free software kits for its plastic pet dog, called "Aibo," which will give owners many more training options. Aibo will even be able to meow rather than bark. Up to now, most Aibo owners could only play with a pre-trained computerized pet whose behavior was largely defined by Sony's programming, but the new software kit will allow experienced users to teach the dog any amount of new tricks. The release of the development kit, called OPEN-R SDK, is an about-face for the Japanese audiovisual electronics giant, which had tried to cage in independent developers who were hacking into the Aibo's electronic innards and making what Sony claimed were unauthorized modifications. "Sony wants to actively promote OPEN-R architecture for entertainment robots by highlighting its ability to modify the robot's functionality," it said in a statement, essentially admitting that open development would help widen the appeal of the robot. Sony says the development kit, which allows Aibo movements to be written in the C++ programming language, is intended for noncommercial use. Sony will also create a Web site where developers can exchange their custom-made Aibo programs. [I am not wanting to advertise for these people at all, but found this in a bit of news and wondered what now to expect? Do we do away with our own dogs?]

Signs

On a Plumbers truck "We repair what your husband fixed."

On the trucks of a local plumbing company in NE Pennsylvania "Don't sleep with a drip. Call your plumber."

Never Argue With a Woman!

A couple went on vacation to a fishing resort. The husband liked to fish at the crack of dawn. The wife liked to read.

One morning the husband returned after several hours of fishing and decided to a take short nap. Although she wasn't familiar with the lake, the wife decided to take the boat. She rowed out a short distance anchored, and returned to reading her book.

Along came the sheriff in his boat. He pulled up alongside her and said, "Good morning, Ma'am. What are you doing?" "Reading my book," she replied...as she thought to herself, "isn't it obvious?"

"You're in a restricted fishing area," he informed her. "But officer, I'm not fishing. Can't you see that?" "Yes, but you have all the equipment. I'll have to take you in and write you up.

"If you do that, I'll have to charge you with rape," snapped the irate woman. "But, I haven't even touched you," groused the sheriff. "Yes, that's true," she replied, "but you do have all the equipment."

MORAL: Never argue with a woman who knows how to read.