Soda (Goodtime's A Dewar & A
Sodashaker CDX RA) is now mostly retired from active competition. She was
diagnosed with hemangiosarcoma in 2005 and underwent surgery for the tumor on
her lip, followed by 6 rounds of chemotherapy. This type of cancer is usually
fatal within a short timeframe, but her most recent bloodwork (May, 2007) showed
she's still doing fine. Her hair is all back, and she's active as ever ...
running, chasing balls, and wrestling with Harpo.
In her obedience career, Soda had 3 high-scoring runs in Franklin, TN, January, 2005. She
earned her Companion Dog Excellent (CDX) title in a single weekend with scores
of 193 1/2, 197 and 197. On two occasions she placed higher than the #1
obedience dog in the history of the sport, Jo Johnson's Hobi. One day she and
Scotch (who also bested Hobi twice) were in the runoffs together!
It was only a few months before that, at TVKC's fall shows, that Soda made
her obedience debut. Her first time in the ring, in a class of 20 Novice B dogs,
she took 1st place with a solid 195. The next day, she scored 196 1/2. Everyone remarked how beautiful she looked
and how precise her performance was. Many of George's students and friends were
on hand, and the applause was thunderous. She finished the Companion Dog title at her very next trial, in Chattanooga.
In her Rally debut in Franklin, she qualified both days, including a 2nd
place (only 0.1 seconds behind 1st) in a class of 70 dogs. She finished her
Rally Novice title her 3rd time showing, in Louisville, KY. Her Advanced title
followed shortly thereafter.
