Rex before he left his breeder

These are photos of Rex when he was at his breeder's home. Rex was born June 05, 1997, in Ontario, Canada. Sylvia Dorosh sent them to us sight unseen since we had no computers at that time and no digital cameras. Rex arrived with the understanding that if we did not find him to be what we wanted, he could be returned to his breeder. 

 Rex was a lovely moving dog, evident from early on as you can see above.

Rex loved to carry toys, the bigger the better.

The was Rex's frustration default..he would lift his head and howl if he was not pleased with what was going on or if he thought he had not had enough attention. He was such a character!


Thank you so much Sylvia Dorosh for sending Rex to us. He brought so much love and joy to our lives. He introduced  us, in   the most  wonderful way,  to the breed of Vizslas.  Thank you also for being such a great friend and mentor since 1997!

Rex

CJ and Rex 1997. CJ 7 years old and Rex 5 months old

Rex  1997 late fall.

CJ and Rex. Rex 3 months old

Diva and Rex 1997. Diva was from our 1995 litter of Dalmatians.  Is it any wonder that at the dogs shows Rex would become very excited when he saw a Dalmatian but could not care less about other Vizslas; he was convinced he was a Dalmatian!

 Sofie from Rex's only litter.  We were allowed to show her to her championship by her breeder/owner. Ch. Sofia Rose of Valley Ridge.  She was a lovely girl. She is also featured on Sylvia's website at   http://www.varazs.org/rex's_get.htm

Jasper from Rex's only litter. He was 11 years of age in this photo. He was the pick of litter but his owners would not allow him to be shown.  Below he is pictured with one of the children in his family. 

1997 - our first Vizsla arrives

Rex, Ch. Varazs Blackbullet OnThe Wing, arrived via air from Ontario  and soon won the hearts of dogs and mankind alike. Here Oreo from our 1995 litter was visiting us so he was part of the spotted welcoming committee. 

We had waited on the breeder's list for over 18 months and we were still not suppose to get a pup from the litter.  We were looking for an outstanding pup and the breeder was very careful about that goal for us. She had other people on her list too who were looking for such a puppy and when Rex came along, he was promised to another family. That family already had a Vizsla and lived closer to Sylvia. However when the pups were about 8 weeks of age, the other family received notice they were being transferred to Calgary and they did not know where they were going to live. We then received a phone call from Sylvia asking if we were ready to receive a boy she felt would be what we wanted.  We were delighted and a couple of weeks later, Rex arrived. 

 Rex really was attached to Paladin, our keeper male from our 1995 litter and those two played so well together. He was a wonderful pup, very loving, funny, and he taught us just what Vizslas were all about!

Rex quickly showed he was meant for the show ring taking group placements and puppy group wins. 

Rex was not an easy dog to show and  but he was rewarded in the group ring with many group placements .

Rex won the first Vizsla Canada Alberta breed booster before he was 2 years of age. There was tough competition from dogs from a 30 year Vizsla breeder who was showing her dogs that day. I handled Rex to his win  and  it was a very memorable moment for me. This is one of the prizes he won that even today is part of our decorations that brings him to my mind every time I look at it.  

Rex was the number 3 Vizsla in Canada in 1998, having achieved that while being a puppy for 1/2 of the year. In 1999 he was number 4 in Canada. 

With so much success in the rings here, we made the decision to send Rex to the breeder of his sire, Diane Shearer and Greg Gollick in Pennsylvania to compete for his American championship. He was handled by Greg Gollick pictured here stacking him in Enola, Pennsylvania as they prepared for the shows. 

 Rex was an amazing dog, and likely even to those  who do not know the breed,  it is easy to see  he  was a truly lovely dog.   He had good success in the rings in the USA quickly making his mark. 

Unfortunately Rex never returned from his show days in the USA. While in the ring in July 2001, he became weak and he passed away two days later from a very rare cancer..malignant histiocytosis.  He had shown no signs that he was not in good health up to that time. 

 It was devastating to everyone involved...receiving only his collar and ribbons from the USA was so hard. It was hell in fact. He was just 4 years and 1 month old. He was a wonderful, loving companion.

 He  had sired one litter in  February of 2001 to an outside breeding. Those pups lived wonderful long lives. In hind site so many times I wish I had taken one of those pups as our own.  

His breeder, Sylvia Dorosh,  has a page for him on her website too at  http://www.varazs.org/rex.htm