Wrapping up IPC 2015 Weekend... and Looking Ahead

Just a quick note. This wasn't my step-aside. I'll be posting a video recording of that very soon.

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Barks and Howls on a for a great and successful International Puppy 2015 Contest weekend!

First, I have to give two tails up to all four of this year’s contestants (Pup Frogger, Pup Figaro, Pup Havok, and Pup Wolf). Four excellent contenders for the title who had an amazing energy together. I can tell your class was rockin’ it! You are all winners, nothing less!

Again, congratulations, howls and wags to my new little brother, Pup Figaro, the new International Puppy 2015. A truly incredible pup with so much energy and, for lack of an appropriate term, pupsonality. To see this pup in action is to understand why he actually once kinda intimidated me. That part, though, has long since passed. What remains is the important point that Figaro is a pup I’ve long admired for what he brings to and does for his community. I am honored and privileged to be his title brother.

Now he will be bringing that same energy and drive into his new adventure as IPC’s International Puppy 2015. I have no doubts he will take this title and all it represents forward to new and exciting places. And I know that our pup community pack will welcome, support, and encourage him in all he does just as they did me.

I’m looking forward to working alongside Pup Figaro in the coming months to continue building and promoting our pup community.

Of course, the beginning of his new journey is also brings with it the close of a chapter in mine. Yep, I’m a wuzzie now! The last eight months just flew by, but they were eight months filled with fun times, opportunities to see more of our great pack, and to meet more of the people in it. It was a time of exchanging ideas and experiences toward mutual learning and understanding. A time of touching lives and having mine touched in a way I never thought possible.

These past eight months were a chance to get a message out to the broader leather and fetish community. A message that we are a part of that broader community, that we want to be seen, understood, and respected for what we really are and not by misconceptions and misunderstandings. Every conversation I had was an educational opportunity, and if I opened even one mind to a better understanding of pups, our community pack, or our play, then I call that a success.

These past eight months were a time of getting to know and connect with so many pups as well handlers and others in our community. So many with such an amazing variety of experiences and backgrounds. It truly is phenomenal and humbling to be part of it all. What stands out most, though, are the connections and conversations with those just beginning to explore their inner pup and the pack we’ve built. To have this opportunity to be there for them, to answer questions wasn’t just incredible, but a reminder of my own beginnings.

Yes, all the events I made it too were great fun. But what I will carry forward even more from my time as International Puppy 2014 will be the friendship s and personal connections I made along the way. In the end, this has been and will always be first and foremost about the people - the pups and handlers and everyone who make this pawsome community pack what it is.

I did have two goals set for myself during my title year; ones I knew couldn’t be fully recognized in just eight months. One was to keep doing my part to building up our community pack so that pups everywhere have a place to belong and something to be proud of being part of. The other was to build bridges to the broader leather & fetish community, to break through some of the existing misconceptions and misunderstandings.

I think I achieved some measure of success in those areas, but I also know that we aren’t fully there yet. I will leave it to others to decide just how far I got. Just as I will leave it to others to determine how well I represented our community pack. I can only assure you that I gave it nothing less than my full best, and I tried never taking anything with it for granted.

And now the next chapter of my journey begins. I promise that I won’t fade away now that my title year has drawn to a close. The passion, the dedication – event the love – I have for our community pack is too strong for me to just stop. My own inner pup is too deeply connected to his pup brothers and sisters. There are still things I hope to accomplish. More importantly, there is still so much for me to learn.

So this isn’t really farewell. This is just a door to the next part of the journey. This is still an exciting time for the pup community pack. A time for all of us to work together to meet the challenges that lie ahead and to shape our future into what we want it to be. And there is no way I can be sad when I have so many pup brothers and sister to be with as we get there!

ARUFF!

Winding Down as International Puppy 2014

In just a little more than three days, IPC will be anointing the new International Puppy 2015!

And, as I get ready to head out for the fun, the festivities, and the controlled mayhem that almost inevitably results when there’s a large number of pups in one place, I just want to take a moment to say thank you to everyone for the incredible support you’ve all shown me during my time as International Puppy.

It’s been an amazing ride since last November, filled with great people, lots of fun, and plenty of great memories. But it’s also been a reminder of just how great our pup community really is, and to see it all happening on the wider scale… well, it makes me even more happy and proud to be part of it all.

One question I'm getting more as IPC 2015 gets closer is if it bothers me that I've only had 8 months as the titleholder. In truth, not at all. For on thing, I've packed a lot into those 8 months. But also, there will be more for me after this weekend (the fall schedule is already lined up). And I have some idea of what i want to do in the future as well.

Most of all, this is about all of us, and I'm just one small part of it all. And I'm looking forward to having a new brother or sister!

I will be writing a more in-depth reflection of my adventures here in the coming days. But I wanted to go into IPC 2015 weekend by first saying thank you to everyone in this great pack of ours! Y'all are PAWSOME, and I can only hope you believe I represented you all well.

In Puppyhood and Pride,

Pup Tripp
IPC International Puppy 2014

Hell Hath No Terror

You cannot frighten me with your tales of the terrors of hell. I have faced my own inner demons in the darkest watches of the night, and either defeated them or accepted them as part of myself. And there is no worse fear than that of being lost in the inner dark of the self and not knowing if you can find the way back.

International Puppy 2014 at the 6-month Mark

Wow! It doesn’t seem like it’s been 6 months since that surprising moment on a stage at the Flamingo Resort in St. Pete. But, yep, come the 9^th, it will be six months since I became International Puppy 2014. Halfway there!  And, damn, what a ride it has been to this point! And there’s just as much ahead in the 2^nd half (actually, a little bit more).

Yes, it IS true that my step aside is in July, when IPC’s International Puppy 2015 takes the banner for his/her year, but I’ve been told I can still finish out a full year as the 2014 titleholder. And, looking at the schedule from mid-July through the beginning of November, I’ll definitely be out there!

Yes, the travels and the events have been fun, and I’ve enjoyed it all immensely. I know they’ve been mainly on the eastern side of the Mississippi ( I did get to cross it in New Orleans!), but that’s going to change in the 2^nd half of the year. From Tampa to New York City and New Jersey, Ohio in both Columbus and Cleveland, from New Orleans to Toronto, and a few points in between, I’ve been fortunate already to meet so many great pups (and their handlers) and to make, not just new friends, but new brothers and sisters.

No matter where I’ve gone, the energy that we all share has been amazing! Be it a fund-raiser bar night, an educational presentation, or a major event like CLAW, there’s just something special that draws us all together. Quite often, it has been part of the energy that has kept me going.

And no matter where I’ve gone, I’ve always come back having learned so much. We really are a very diverse community, with a wide array of interests and needs. That our common bond of being pups brings together so many who are so different is truly amazing. And no matter what the difference, you’ve all taught me so much more about being a pup and our community.

And, for all I’ve learned thus far, there’s so much more yet to be learned, and I look forward to all of it! As such, I can comfortably say I will never be an expert on pups or the pup community. I’ve never thought of myself as such, and now I really know why. But I can say I’ve gained a lot of new insights and increased my understanding. And, more than that, I can say I’m more proud and blessed than ever to be one of you!

I don’t want to start saying too many thank you’s just yet (I’ll save that to for the step aside in 2 months, and even then, I’ll try to keep it brief).  But I have to acknowledge that I wouldn’t have made it this far without a lot of support from people throughout the community and from IPC. Y’all have made sure I’ve been taken care of. I haven’t had to ask for much of anything. Y’all have invited me in, made sure I had what I needed, and opened the door for fun and successful events. More often than not, a phone call or an email was all I needed to smooth the road.  I’m looking forward to that continuing over the next 6 months!

And as I go into that 6 months, I want to repeat something I said at the beginning of my title run. I don’t see this as my title. It belongs to all of the pups out there. I’m the one that’s been chosen and entrusted with carrying it and representing our community in a positive light, and to bring us all closer together. But it also means I’m here, to hear what you all have to say, to hear your ideas of what the future can look like, and to do my part to make it happen.

Whatever that future is, it belongs to all of us, and we all deserve to be heard. There isn’t a one among us who can claim to know what’s best for us all (well, aside from safety concerns), and no one voice should be any louder than the others. We’re in this together, and together we can build a future pup community where we can all be proud to belong.

I have a feeling the next 6 months are going to kick ass! ARUFF!

A Bridge Not Yet Far Enough

One of the goals I set for myself as IPC’s International Puppy 2014 was to work on bridging the divide born of misunderstanding, misconception, and a certain level of unawareness between the broader leather & fetish community and the growing pup community within it. Having feet planted firmly in both places, there were already doors of opportunity open through which I could work to make new connections and strengthen old ones. Those avenues allowed for quicker progress toward the dialogue and discussion that is absolutely essential if we are to keep taking the necessary steps forward to mutual understanding. That there were voices within both communities urging me to take on that task only reinforced its importance and my commitment to it.

I believe I can safely say that I have made some measure of progress toward that goal. There is no way possible that it can be fully realized within the span of a couple of years, much less just one. However, at almost six months into my title year, I have already engaged in or facilitated a number of conversations that have been positive, enlightening, and constructive for all sides. More than enough to reaffirm my belief that the progress and the openness to make it happen are there.

Yet with them comes also the reminder of just how far we still have to go. For all those who are open and inviting to the pup community, there still remain the roadblocks that make the journey toward being one community united that much more difficult. For each success we achieve toward breaking through that wall of separation there remains the unbending rebar trying to hold firm to the existing structure. For each door that is unlocked, there remains some being held by hands on the other side so they can’t open.

The leather community today is not what it was 15 or 20 years ago, just as the leather community of 20 years ago was not what it was in the 60’s and 70’s. Nor will the leather & fetish community 10-15 years from now be what it is today. The change and evolution has been there all along and always will be. As each generation comes in to the leather and fetish community, it brings with it new ideas and concepts. These, in turn, meld with existing traditions, gradually replace those that have fallen into obsolescence, or themselves fall to the wayside. Together, it’s the fuel that propels the evolution of our community so that it can remain relevant and vital to those within it and inviting to those who want to join us.

In this present time, one of the instruments of that change and evolution is the emergence and growth of the contemporary pup and handler community. Like so many others before us, we’ve come to the threshold and found the way in to the broader community set with challenges and hurdles. And, like those who have come before us, rather than just give up and walk away from the party, we – as an overall community – have chosen to rise to those challenges, address and overcome them, and show that we’re just as much a part as anyone else.

And, yes, the pup & handler community is very much a part of the whole community. Even as we bring to it something new and different, we bring also new ways of adopting and living the traditions and protocols that have made the leather community the rich and enticingly mysterious entity it is. We bring with us paths of self-expression and acceptance taking their place right alongside those already there. Within the pup community there really is a melding of so many of the various parts of the broader scene. And, yes, it includes with it the flaws to remind us we’re not perfect and that there’s always room to grow.

Maybe not all of us wear leather. But a large number of us embrace and embody those traits that are taught time and again about what it means to BE leather. Just as a leatherman isn’t defined by the hides that went into making his vest or chaps, a pup or handler is more than the hood or leash they use to express what they are. Just as many of the people in the leather community adhere to, believe in, and promote relationships built on D/s dynamics, many in the pup & handler community embrace those same concepts. There are some who come into the leather and fetish world just for the intense edginess of the play. There are pups and handlers who have that same interest and fascination. Pup play, at one of its most basic levels, is a form of BDSM/kink play – different from any other form of play only in the specifics of what’s being done.

Within the leather & fetish community, it is repeated time and again that we are defined in no small part by what’s in our hearts. We are taught and told about the concepts of the slave heart or the boy heart, even the Sir or Daddy hearts. The pup heart and its handler counterpart are no less real and are equally definitive.  Within the social structure of the leather and fetish community is a wide array of roles and identifiers: Master/slave, Daddy or Sir/boy, Dom/sub, and so on. The roles of Handler/pup are just as viable. Among us you will easily find respected mentors and leaders, just as they are to be found throughout the diverse whole.

Just as the broader community has its avenues of addressing problems and problem elements within it, the pup community is equally aware of and determined to address its own.

Yes, there are most certainly things that make pups different. However, within a wide community where embracing and encouraging difference are part of our core, there is room to expand even further. We identify – and express – distinct canine characteristics and then incorporate them in to what we do. We, as a community, willingly take on labels and roles such as pup, handler, or trainer instead of some that may be considered more traditional. But rather than think we are tossing aside tradition in the interest of self-assertion, we’re doing our part to keep many of those traditions alive and relevant by adapting them to contemporary times and situations.

The pup community isn’t here to change everything. It’s here to give a place within the larger community to many who might not otherwise have ever found one. We aren’t out to upset the banquet table or take over the dungeon. All we’re really looking for is a place to put our dog bowls down and be part of the conversation, a corner in the dungeon to play so we’re part of the party, and the chance to be who and what we are alongside everyone else.

When the Pack Howls

Somewhere, in the late watches of the night, as the Moon rides supreme in the sky, the howl begins…

Do I howl in pain, venting my hurts and anger that they do not consume me?

Do I howl in loneliness, hoping another will answer?

Do I howl simply for the joy and wonder in my heart?

The Moon always knows why I howl, even when I may not know clearly myself.

How many things lay hidden in that howl, unnoticed by ears that hear but don’t listen?  For what may seem a lonely lament may often be a free spirit calling out.  What may seem a paean to the wonder of Night is a heart crying out in loneliness.

Listen, not with your ears, but with your heart, to the voice that echoes down the corridors of the Night.  It speaks, not with words, but with feeling deeply rooted.  Let it take you to a place where you no longer need language, where understanding comes directly through the spirit.

And then…only then…can you feel the real power of the chorus when you realize we never truly howl alone.

Keeping Disrespect on a Short Leash

As the pup community continues to grow and define both itself and its place within the broader leather and fetish community, there is a lot of discussion about what being a pup and pup play are all about. We often explore through discussions and interactions the various aspects and motivations we bring to it. Yes, we sometimes get into disagreements about it, but in the end we come back to a general consensus that there is no single right way or approach.

But one thing we almost always agree on is something that pup play absolutely isn’t about: that pup play and being a pup is not about having free reign to be disrespectful or disruptive. Being a pup does not excuse us from common or community norms for accepted public behavior. One of the most common complaints I encounter in my travels from leather and kinky folk is about people who will impose on someone’s personal space and then say that they’re a pup and they’re allowed to do it.

There is nothing that justifies disrespectful behavior, and putting ones nose in a stranger’s crotch without permission is just that: disrespectful. Being a pup does not allow for that behavior!

Yes, I’ve heard the counter that bio-dogs do it. For one thing, that kind of behavior with bio dogs is very much frowned upon. If a bio dog goes around biting or putting its face where it’s not invited or barking disruptively, it often gets smacked or dealt with angrily. It may even go so far as to having someone called or action taken to remove the dog entirely. If there’s a handler immediately at hand, they’re held responsible for the dog’s behavior.

For human pups and their handlers, it’s no different.

Or to put it within the context of how we play together as kinksters and leatherfolk. If someone came up to a complete stranger with a flogger and just started hitting them with it, there’s no way in this world or any other we would call that acceptable. No one would ever accept that it’s justified simply because that’s the play they get into. In fact, that kind of behavior isn’t merely disrespectful, it’s downright illegal and dangerous.

For pups and pup play, it’s no different.

Yes, part of pup play is about letting go our conscious concerns and inhibitions and just being in the moment. But, even so, we are still humans. The behavioral expectations placed upon as members of a community still remain. Just as we encourage thorough preparation for any kind of play scene to keep it safe and respectful, it’s important to adopt that same mindset when approaching a pup play.

Even as the pup community continues to build and define itself, none of us who are dedicated to it agree with these excuses that being a pup is some kind of “get out of responsibility free” card. We frown on and reject these behaviors. Even as we bring together a more cohesive and embracing puppy community, nowhere within it – or the broader leather and fetish world of which we are a part – are we trying to rewrite standards of acceptable social behavior. Nor are we, as a community, encouraging these continued examples of inappropriate behavior.

 

Pup play brings something different and distinct to the leather & kink world. That doesn’t include the liberty to be act irresponsibly and disrespectfully.  

There is No Box...

I'm a pretty open-minded person. I think it safe to say that anyone who knows me can attest to that. I'm not given to quick or rash judgments; I very readily acknowledge that I don't know everything, that I never will, and that I will ALWAYS have something to learn. And not only that, but I freely realize that I can learn (and HAVE learned) from those younger or with less time in the community than me just as much as from those older or with longer experience.

And it's also pretty safe to say I'm an easy-going person. It takes an awful lot to get under my skin, much less get me riled up.

But one of the things that constantly yanks my tail is the misinformed generalization of pups, not just as subs, but as wild-minded players in need of discipline and control. To me, it's both disrespectful and closed-minded.  Not all pups are subs! Let me re-state that, in case it didn't sink in the first time: Not All Pups Are Submissives! We do not all need to be locked up in chastity (although it can be fun for those who do!). That's something between each individual pup and his/her trainer or partner. It's not for anyone else to determine that it's needed. It's certainly not for someone else to assume it's required just because someone is a pup (or even a boy or slave).

And we are not a bunch of boys acting wild an in need of discipline. Are there individuals that fit that description? Yes. But is it grossly unfair to judge ALL of us by that. Many of us are well-respected (and respectful) members of the community. A good number of us are within stable relationships, D/s or otherwise. When flash judgments are made, our value as individuals within the community is eclipsed by misconceptions born of narrow-mindedness.

To know the pup community is to know that we are a very diverse and multi-faceted community, one that embraces a wide array of styles, personalities, and expressions. Take the time to see us as we are. If you want to enjoy being inside kennel with us, you have to first to think outside the box!

A New Year's Message from International Puppy 2014

Another year draws to a close. Like any other year, it’s had its ups and downs, its challenges and rewards. But as the last hours and minutes of 2013 tick down to the dawn of 2014, let’s take just a few of those minutes and look back on what we – the pups and handlers of our community – have accomplished. It’s worth taking that time, because we’ve grown a lot and come a long way in just 365 days.

As 2014 dawns with its still-undefined potentials, it’s important that we – the pups and handlers of our community – go forward into it together. For all the growth and achievement we found in 2013, this next year promises even more.  We haven’t yet fully explored or given voice to the power we have as a group. Let this be the year we make that voice, not just heard, but understood.

As 2014 opens with its as-yet unrecognized possibilities, it’s important that we cast aside the shackles of negativity and let our common bond of pup play be the foundation on which we build both our world and one of our connections with the broader kink & fetish community.

As 2014 comes in with its untold opportunities, it’s important that we use each and every one we’re given to better ourselves, as individuals, as pups and handlers, and as the big pack we have the potential to be.

As 2014 brings in the new, let’s all use this chance to cast aside the old that’s held us back. Carry forward instead all those things that strengthen and define us as pups, as handlers, and as part of a greater whole. The future truly can be what we make of it. So let’s keep only those things that make it better and dispense with all those things that will do nothing but inhibit our growth.

I’m looking forward to the possibilities, challenges, and adventures that await in 2014. I’m looking forward to getting out there to meet, have fun with, and learn from many of the amazing pups and handlers that make up our community.  Most of all, I’m looking forward to doing those things that will make our pack better and stronger, something in which we can all take pride!

Pup Tripp

IPC International Puppy 2014