Clover in Clover

Sorry, the pic had to be done ... :o)

 

Snogs, etc

Go, Go, Gadget Legs!!

Ginger n Blonde



Sleepin' Wiv My Eyes Wide Shut :)

In a different universe these three are soooo mummydog, daddydog and poopydog! 



Clover has been with us almost 3 weeks, it feels like longer! But in a good way. She continues to be utterly perfect and every day she is building her own lovely relationships with each of the other doglets, with me, and with the big wide world. She's growing like a weed - gaining 1.5 kilos in her first fortnight here! You can practically see her growing. This weekend we didn't have a show and so put some special effort into the whole Socializing thing. She went on the bus, saw a steam train, watched cricket, went to the pub, rode on a trailer behind a tractor. She met people, dogs, sheep and alpacas. She is a very cool girly, a little wary at first but she's a real thinker and very quickly sums up whatever situation she finds herself in and makes friends with it, in her quiet sweet little way. She is rather fluffy! Looking back at pics of 'ickle Maisie Mouse at a similar age, Clo's fluffier already, eeeek! Hopefully she'll have a slightly more sensible collie coat though?!...

Poopie snog

More snogging, ahhhhh xx

I've been emailing with Clover's wonderful foster mum in Ireland and we will definately keep in touch with her special Auntie Mags :o) She was so very pleased to hear how she's landed on her paws. She said "thank you ... for loving one of our death row puppies and giving her well deserved forever home". Death Row - what a sickeningly awful thought ...

Have to mention the mega news of the week from Newton Heath when Jules and Jette got their Agility Warrant (Bronze). Wooooooooooooooooooooo! This has really taken work and perseverance and belief and we're very proud of them!! :) What a super-fabby-labby team they've become!

Oh & my little nutter Tim turned three last week! Still showing very little sign of growing up, he's crazeee but ace, very loving and so much fun. Happy birthday my super ginger lad xxx

This Friday were off on our jollies for Lune-Barrow week - very very excited, totally unprepared in any way, not trained or anything for yonks, Clover's eaten most of my underwear & socks, I'm way behind with work, it'll be right, can't wait!!!!!!

North Derbyshire

Awwwww!

First time to this show in the very pretty thatched-cottagey village of Ashbourne in North Derbyshire. Arrived on Friday evening to snowdrifts!!?! Well, they were 'haildrifts' as it turned out, but still very surprising! Apparently there'd just been a huge hailstorm!

This was Clover's first camping trip. She took everything in her happy stride, she really is a very cool little girl!

Saturday morning I got up late-ish as for once no courses to walk first thing ... except it turned out I'd read the ROs wrong and Tim should've been in part 1, not part 2, of an agility class, so I'd missed walking it. Watched for a bit, couldn't get my head round it enough to run him so didn't bother. He's challenging enough to run even when I feel confident about where I'm going, teehee!! Later we had another agility class. Maisie really wasn't up for it - it was quite warm - and I handled her like a numptie anyway, somehow we got nearly round after a fashion but she knocked one of her very rare poles. In her next class later she was off form again so I brought her out for a cuddle, it was warm for a well-fleeced girl. Tim was then up in the same class. The start was simple enough but hard for him as you did two jumps then a sharp right pulling off the A-frame - he made the turn but that headed him towards the judge who was v close by and when his rosette flapped temptingly Tim just couldn't resist ... lol, ooops! I used my stern voice and so he sat down and scratched his left ear. It's a good job I so love that little dog!!! Of course he then went on and ran the rest of the course fast and beautifully, including some tricky bits, even doing 12 weaves very closely followed by a tunnel. It was a really pleasing run anyway. I think we gave up for the day then and had lots of walkies.

Clover had a super time walking around, she even went round the rings and hardly batted an eyelid at the noise, movement, people, dogs, tannoys, etc. You don't get anywhere fast with a cute pup as everyone wants to say hello!! She had some fab positive experiences with people and dogs. The evening was sunny and warm, I sat out with her and Billy and a beer for quite a while. Billy even had a very small play with her!!! He's never really played with Tim (though they are quite companiable in a blokey, sniffy, leg-cocking, ball-chasing kinda way) and he only very rarely plays with Mouse when they're on their own, so it was nice to see he's taken to the little 'un so well. He's a good lad. The evening took its usual course of Chinese food, beer, cakes, raucous giggling, singing and more cake :o)

Sunday was a different day altogther - cool and wet, VERY wet! Jules and Helen came for the day too so that was super, and we had yummeee cupcakes ... :)

Can't remember our runs much - Maisie got an OK clear but stopped after the weaves to thoroughly shake a bucketful of rain out of her coat ... Tim did two runs, was utterly miserable with the rain, and so we called it a (soggy) day. Will I ever get a dog who will work in any weather? Wot softies!!

Driving home, the traffic was being slowed down because there was a swan on the hard shoulder of the M1, it was accompanied by lots of flashing lights and chaps standing around trying to work out how to capture/remove it! Life's never dull!

Clover, Tim and the sex-toy! ;o)

Lucky Clover

Butter wouldn't melt ... or would it?!

Once upon a time there was a small golden puppy ...

It's taken me a few days to get my head round this story but here goes. She must've been about 10-12 weeks old when she was taken into Ennis Pound in Ireland as 'found straying'. I think I'm right in saying they have only three days to be claimed or killed there. Already she became one of the very lucky ones when she was taken out by a local rescue group. She was then put into foster care with a lady who obviously cared for her very much. Much of this story comes from a beautiful letter she's passed on with her and this is something to treasure; it even includes photos of her as the tiniest fluffy blonde bundle! She asked for her forever home to contact her to let her know the happy development of her story so I've just sent a very happy email! Clover was then called Kia-Kiora (odd but pretty name!) The lady says in her letter that she was starting to come out of her shy shell and loved playing wth her little niece, but then after a week she suddenly became terribly sick and was rushed into the vets. It turned out she had parvo and was a very poorly pup indeed; she was on a drip for five days and so nearly died ... The lady said that all the people in her village were praying for her and that somehow she miraculously pulled through!!! She then went on to stay with another kind foster family for a couple of weeks or so before being picked up on one of Many Tears amazing collection runs over the Sea, and she was then taken back to the centre in South Wales. The second foster family have also passed on more info about her and her development, etc. The first foster lady's letter explained how much she loved her and  would've loved to keep her herself but couldn't give her what she needed, and she signed her letter off saying "Goodbye my little princess ... hope you have a lovely life my little miracle puppy xxxxx". How amazing is that! 

So how did she end up here? I've been toying with the idea of adding number four (as you do!) and had a look around over a couple of months, but I then decided to be strong and wait until next spring ... I told a mate this on the Thursday evening and then on Friday lunchtime I had one last look round the rescue websites, and there she was ... Can't explain how I felt when I saw her except I literally stopped breathing! lol. I thought for about 20 seconds about all the reasons for being sensible and waiting, then filled in the online application anyway. A tense weekend followed - that one at Nottingham which was not good in many ways - on the Sunday I phoned and got the gutting news my application had been turned down! Couldn't believe it as Tim had already come from MT and I thought I had the perfect set-up for her. To cut out a lot of heartache and grovelling and me explaining exactly how she would fit into my working life, they finally agreed on Tuesday that she could come to live with us after all!!! (Huge thanks to ace mates who stopped me going completely nuts till the good news came!) So on Thursday a 10-hour round trip brought her home. Couldn't believe how tiny and sweet she was when I met her! She must be about 5 months old but small for her age and skinny, she has comedy knees and paws though so I think she'll grow and she is eating like a Shetland pony! She'd already been spayed which I felt a little sad about as I'd have liked her to grow first, but understand the pragmatism behind such policy. I was dreading the journey home - two years ago coming home with Tim was a stressy seatbelt-eating nightmare!... but she literally slept the whole way apart from loo breaks, ahhhh.

Considering what she's been through in her little life so far she is an incredibly well-adjusted pup - great social skills with dogs, shy with people at first but soon comes round, and she has completely bonded with me already and gives ace snuffly waggy smiley kisses. Her house-training is not bad at all, she kinda walks on a lead and has a recall(ish) - I've never let one off lead (in a safe place) so soon. She's a nutter and very playful, cheeky, hilarious, chewy, into everything, total kleptomaniac, hyperactive, a fuzzy whirlwind force of destruction - just as a young pup should be! What an absolute credit she is to that chain of kind people who helped her on her way, and what a very, very, very lucky pup she is to have received that help and care.

Oh, and contrary to rumour ... she is NOT Maisie and Tim's lovechild! Though she looks uncannily like she could be! She looks like a Welsh Sheepdog but presumably isn't? Her eyes are soooo like Maisie's (she was a v similar age when she came), a lad who'd spent time with her at Many Tears said she seems to gaze into your soul - and she really does - with shyness but trust. We all love her to bits already. Tim is astounding me as a 'big bro' and he worships at her fluffy little paws (delighted to have somone of his own mental age I think!! teehee) Maisie's been very sweet and gentle too, if a little wary in the house, but she is coming round and plays beautifully with her outdoors. Billy Woof seems quite pleased to have someone else to mutter and glare balefully at!
She is ace!!!!!!!!!!! xxxx

My biggest bro!

Hmmmmm?

Pwetty girlies!! xx

Coming mummeeee! :)

Duffing Ging!

Hehehehe!

Clover :) xxxx