Seasons

Last week it was summer, this week it is winter. Anyone seen autumn anywhere?...

Vaccinations

Oh yes, that dreaded annual event for Billy & Maisie. The bad bit is the kennel cough vaccine up the nose. I debate with myself about them having this vaccine every time, it really is a horrid thing to endure. What I decided this time was to have Billy done but not Maisie - two reasons: one is that though Billy is also very upset by it, he gets over things more easily than Maisie does; secondly, when Tim had his earlier in the year, Maisie developed a minor sniffle which suggests that she picked up some of the live vaccine shed from Tim's nose - harldy surprising as those two do live in each other's faces! Also, now Billy's been done there is a fair chance of him also shedding some of the vaccine to the other two and so they share the immunity around. Anyway, it'll have to do.
Today we saw the vet who originally dealt with Billy's heart issues and I was interested to hear what he thought of his heart now, whether there had been any deterioration - well, no!!! & not only that but it has improved again to the point that in every way it is within the "normal" range!! YippEEEEEE! He said that if he'd never met Billy before he wouldn't say that he was a dog who'd ever had a heart problem at all!!! Big smiles :-D I do so love that big soft dog.

Sulking

So then it was Maisie's turn. Went out to get her from the Landy. As she jumped out, on lead, she realised where she was going and she shot off. OMG, her lead slipped through my hand and she was away. I was soooo scared as it's near a road - can't believe I didn't doubly secure her, not like me at all as I'm completely paranoid about her safety especially. Of course I immediately leapt after her and dived to rugby tackle. My head nutting the wing of the car parked next to us made such a bang it actually startled her into stopping dead and I grabbed the lead as I landed, so she only actually got a couple of feet away. Ouch (again!! lol). So I gathered us together and staggered in, trying not to look like a total loon, but as I was sat there with her I could feel blood oozing through my trouser legs. I've got two badly grazed knees and an elbow - look like a 7-year-old after a bad playground tumble! and an egg on my head! Anyway, back to Maisie ... she did very well and also has a clean bill of health. Checked both their weights and they are both a little leaner than last year - Maisie about 14.8kg and Billy 17.9kg. I think Billy's slightly on the lean side myself but the vet was v pleased with him at that. I think their body shapes have changed for the better since they've been having more raw food.

Told you there's a whippet-slim doglet inside this Polar Bear suit, nurrr!

Also got a bucketful of their firework meds and we're as prepared as we can be for that horror to come.
So hopefully they will avoid the v.e.t. until next year ... Tim's due at a different time but he is soooo easy to do compared to the wibbly jelly pair.
Called to get them big bones as a treat on the way home but there were none, so they've got a big disgusting pile of tripe instead. Me, I need a stiff drink!!!!!!

big dogs small bed (cont.)

You use all that effort to get your second pair of legs in and then
 the first pair pops out. Ohhh my brain cell's too tired, zzzzzzzzzzzzz

darkening nights

This week started off wondrously when Tm stuck his toenail in my eye! Not his fault really - he was pestering Maisie to play with him and she kept saying "No, Tim, go away", and Tim being Tim kept prodding her more till she said "SOD OFF TIM!!!" and Billy joined in: "YEAH, SOD OFF TIM!!" So he sodded off ... over my shoulder ... via my eyelid. Result was some handsome bleeding, swelling and afterwards a black scabby eye. Dogs!!!! Course it was my good eye and the other one is so duff I was a little stuffed till the swelling went down as I couldn't actually see much - like: the road (so no driving), computer screen, phone display, telly, mirror!!! - so at least I couldn't really see how awful it looked, haha! 
Anyway, wounds heal. 
Whilst pottering round in a partially sighted state I came across an old puppy bed of Maisie's so gave it a wash (just to keep it fresh, there is no patter of tiny paws!!) Left it out on the landing to air and it started all sorts of fun!... Both Billy & Tim have come over all Goldilocks and have to keep trying it for size & comfort. Honestly, it's only about 18" across, they are Too Big!! But they're both constantly in and out of it - & when one of them's in, the other lays beside it looking mournful and waiting for his turn! Maisie thinks they are nuts and reclines in luxury in the big bed in the other room.

Billy's good squidging technique

Tim tries the reversing in method ...

Ummm nearly ...

Duh, look, just can't quite get that last ear in!



Boys are buffoons

 Training
No shows for 3 weeks (arrrrg!) but we had a training day on Saturday. I am soooooooooo chuffed with how Tim has started working the past few weeks. No bogging off, fab focus. We've kept everything pretty simple for him all along, to build his confidence, and now it's really starting to pay off and it feels like we've turned a definate corner. When I get the handling right he can do lots of the harder stuff already and he's so keen & speedy. Sort of by accident we ended up playing with the higher grades group and I wouldn't have thought he would cope but he did really, really well. Oooo exciting boy!!!!! Just need to keep working on transferring that focus to shows now ... Still not decided whether to do the indoor shows with him; much more looking forward to the spring anyway though. Maisie bounced off the subs bench & did the last bit of the training session and ran at medium and she was a very happy girly too and quite giddy!

This morning loads of crazy people ran up our road. The dogs wuffed for a while but soon got bored. It was the Bradford City Run. Well done crazy people.

Weather has really turned this week and it's quite chilly at night. Not lit a fire yet but it's stacked up ready to go. Brrrrrrrrrr.

Male Bonding

OK, I know this is not a remarkable sight in most doggy households but my Billydog is not a snuggler - well he luurves human snuggling but not dogs really. He does quietly adore Maisie and always has, and will let her lay with him sometimes, and recently in the back of the car he's even let her lay her chin on his flank! Tim is a huge snuggler and sidles up to Maisie a lot and rests his chin adoringly on her, which she sometimes consents to - yeah, she is the princess! But the boys ... snuggling together ... nah, never!... Tim sometimes brushes past Billy and Billy goes "ARRGG, GEROFF ME, MUM, HE TOUCHED ME, HELP!!!" (Think Christopher Biggins' "IT WAS ON ME!!!" moment with the rat in the jungle.)

This state of affairs held till just the last few days ... when suddenly snuggling broke out!!!!!!!! OK, it's only bum snuggling so far but ahhhhh just look at my sweet snuggley boyz!!! heehee :o) xxxx

Random pics

 Just coz the camera was gathering dust.

May the light of the universe shine bounteously upon his golden pate

Tim having a kip 

The beastie slumbers yet maintains a watchful eye

Billy having a kip

'Tis the season of the Swamp Monster

Maisie's daily bath

Lune @ Myerscough

We got a sunny day - sandwiched between the two very soggy days of Friday and today. Maisie, true to form, got swampy within about 30 seconds. She's really getting her winter Polar Bear coat on now so she looked a right state, lol! First up was the 1-2 Agility. Tim was in first and I got him there right at the start so he didn't have to queue for long, but the poor lad didn't cope well with the noisy big arena. He set off and ducked under the first jump, onto the dogwalk, which he almost crept over - normally his dogwalk is excellently rapid!.. & it didn't get any better. He was just freaked and I felt sad for him so brought him out and cuddled him. Maisie went in shortly after. The course should've been great for her - it was a bit weird! - sharp turns off both the A-frame and seesaw - she can do stuff like that, but she, also, was really not happy. She got uncomfortable on the startline - barky dogs, tannoy, no space - and she wasn't right. I hate hate hate how they corral the queue between barriers. She missed an easy weave entry even though I was close to support her, and then pulled in past a jump, so I just brought her out and gave her a big cuddle too. All this by about 8.45 - not the best start :o( Took them all out for a bit of a relaxing run. Then Maisie had her 1-4 gr Agility - luckily, this time it was in the far end of the smaller arena - it feels different again in there, though it's still busy, the acoustics are much softer. There was a queue a mile long (terrible calling in!) so I sat with her in the gallery for a while in the hope that it might go down - it didn't, so once she seemed a bit more settled anyway I took her ticket and joined the queue for a while, then asked the person behind us (with a stunning Flattie) to hold our place and I took her outside for a few mins before popping back in near the front of the queue. She ran OK, not outstanding but business-like. She did do a beautiful send on to a tunnel which took me by surprise! Anyway, she finished 3rd in the class which was lovely :) Then we had another course to walk - 1-4 gr Jumping. It was a twisty-turny one with v tight spacing in bits - a very Mousey course! She set off a bit distracted and the first pull-through bit was clonky, but then we got it together a bit more. On the tight bit at the far end I did about 17 front crosses (OK, maybe not quite 17, haha) and she liked that. Unfortunately, between us we had a pole down ... I'm not sure but I think it was a pole that's I'd half backed into going a bit deep into the box so I may well had dislodged it with my bum before Maisie rolled it?!!... Oh well, we are a team, we'll take joint responsibility ;o) Shame really coz the last bit of the course was ace - I did a sudden sprint past the cloth tunnel to a blind pick-up - love doing those, I think it's the danger!!! hehe. In the end she got 5th anyway on 5F - her time something like 0.05 behind the winner - and she did stutter a fraction after the pole rolled, so if it hadn't ...... Oh well, it would've been a fluke win anyway, we weren't that fast but could've just got ridiculously lucky :) So that was Maisie done! Debated whether to stay for Tim's 1-2 Jumping class much later in the aft but had to wait for results/presentations anyway so did. 
Helen & I took our big lad passengers Jock & Billy ' the pathfinder' Woof for a really pleasant walk - partly along a canal and stream. Never ventured much forther than the exercise field there before so it was a great find and lovely for the boys to have their special bit of day too. During the aft I took Tim into the arena to try to chill him out a bit. It's not an easy place to work with them though coz you can't really find a space to sit out of the way. Eventually our course went up and it was a nice, simple flowing one - very Tim really, and it was in the smaller arena. He was much better than in the morning though still quite distracted. One bit of it went well - sent him out over 3 jumps to a tunnel and then out straight on to another jump then weaves with me wide on his left - he made a fair attempt at the weaves though unusually entered on the wrong side.
I really don't know what to do about future indoor shows with him. He clearly took a step backwards yesterday from how well he's started to do at the outdoor shows. I don't want to stress him too much when he's been coming so good and am half thinking of just giving him a rest from shows over the winter and focusing on more training. It's so much about confidence with that boy - he is a very delicate little flower. He did wander round there a lot last winter and through the day yesterday and became quite relaxed outside the ring, but once you get in there and ask them to work it is different? Also I saw several loose dogs run into rings - two with bovver on their minds and I think a dog that was running was actually hurt. If something like that happened to Tim it really would upset him lots - well it would any dog :o( On that last run when it went awry I brought him into me and gave him a quick stroke and then carried on and calmly did a little sequence and praised him. so he did come out of the ring on a positive. I'm quite scared of being told off for blatantly "training in the ring" but sometimes it's what's needed. Will see how he does at the next one and then decide what to do.
We called in at my parents' on the way home and were stroked and fed, respectively, so that was a nice finish to our long day out.