Apache was my first Schipperke dog. I got him from the breeders Vivian and Art Nunnally. They owned a home/kennel in Gardena. His legal name on his pedigree was: Magic Apache Tears of Li-Jan, CD. I saw my first Schipperke when I attended a Bouvier de Flandres show and someone there had a Schipperke. I wanted one! Apache was 4 months old when I got him. Art Nunnally said Apache was his personal favorite out of that litter. Apache's dad was the top winning Schipperke show dog Zeb. His mother was also a champion. Apache was more of what they called "pet quality." It didn't matter to me, I go more for personality anyway. And Apache had it in spades! He was what I called "full of piss and vinegar." He was smart and I swear stayed up at night master minding his next plot. At that time in my life I was big on showing my dogs in obedience competition. Almost every weekend we would go to dog matches and compete. None of my dogs were star competition dogs, but that was ok. We had fun everywhere we went, met lots of great people and dogs. Apache did get a C.D. both here and in Mexico. Plus he got a campion ship in breed in Mexico. Together we went with my Bouvier Tasha to adventures in Tijuana, Ensenada and Mexicali. We also competed twice in SuperDog. On a weekly basis we were out at Alondra park either taking classes or practicing or hanging out with friends. We were active members in Golden West Obedience Club. In 1985 Apache won Golden West's Novice Dog of the Year. We competed for the first several years of Apache's life. Heck he wasn't that keen on it anyway and we went to these places to just have fun. We'd often pile into the car first thing in the morning or late at night and go to the park where I would let them loose so they could run free for awhile. Apache was ornery and I loved that about him. I had a boyfriend that lived out in Ridgecrest from about 1992 to 1994. Apache of course came with me on those weekend trips to the desert. Some of the places we lived were Gardena, Woodland Hills with my new husband, Canoga Park, and Encino. Some of my nick names for him were: Patcher, Patcher Pups and Pupper Phis-ee. Our last big experience together was surviving the Northridge earthquake together. When earthquake first hit, I grabbed him and tucked him under my arm while at the same time hanging on to the bed for dear life. I thought both of us would die that morning. I've had dogs since Apache's been gone. And every dog that I currently have is my favorite dog or dogs. But if I had to pick just one dog that was my favorite of all time, it would have to be Apache.