Thursday 30 June 2016

Two Reasons

 Not To Go Back Up Moel Tryfan! 
With 2 walks done look how close I'd been to these buggers, without even 
realising they were there. I was 5 minutes away from them,
I swear it will take a serious accident before this idiot stops releasing these animals on common land, and then the animals will suffer!  
OMG - My washing is on the line!
Anyway a nice third walk for us around Llyn Cop, and at least I know where the bloody cows are now! 
But not even this walk was peaceful, thanks to two loose  Westies a Collie and a Lurcher!

Wednesday 29 June 2016

Ruthin Critique



Another lovely Critique for Loki - this time from Darren Clarke at Ruthin
1 Stanley’s Lokean Of Banik, lovely masculine dog. Pleasing head with strength to skull & correct overall length & balance. Good earset & size. Full dentition. Good reach of neck leading to a well laid shoulder & corresponding upper arm. Strong bone, flexible pasterns & good feet. Firm backline, short muscular loins, good hindquarters. Moved soundly out & back & showed great extension from side gait. Stable temperament & pleased to award him BOB & G4.

Tuesday 28 June 2016

Today's Gold Star

Goes to Jezi! 
 Toddling along a single track road at "Finlay pace" gives Jezi and Nico more time to run about, but also more time for mischief. Concentrating on him I jumped out of my skin when Jezi seemed to flush out what I thought was an injured pigeon from the undergrowth. I quickened my pace to have a look at the bird that had just made it over the wall into neighboring fields. Shit, it was a duck, a female duck. What the hell was it doing up here? I turned to look at Jezi who was standing cocking her head left to right and realised she had a brood of ducklings between her front paws. Suddenly they panicked and started running in all directions. I grabbed Jezi, pulled her away and tied her to the fence. Finlay continued eating sheep poo and Nico came to investigate. Four of the little ones made it under the wall through to the field, the other two ran up and down along the bottomof the the wall calling for their mum. I had to help, but I hate nettles! lol. Anyway I eventually got hold of them and helped them over the wall into the field. OMG they were so beautiful. My heart wanted to kiss and cuddle them, but my head was thankfully in reasonable working order, so I put them straight over the wall. So stars to all three Baniks for good behaviour, but a huge gold one for Jezi who was excellent!

The Long Coat Gene

Sammi - coat returning
As I sit here "playing" on Facebook all hell is breaking out in the yard. Sammi and Ziva have an excited Loki on the floor and they are pulling strips off him, all in the interest of fun and games I hasten to add! Ziva went out to join the madness when she heard Sammi squeal. Mummy's always quick to defend her daughter, but also adores her adopted stepson! So what is going on? Well Loki is getting a little amorous with Sammi and Sammi to a point is "playing the game!" This slight sexual excitement has been going on for a few days, though as yet Mikey is not taking any interest.
On the 15th of July it will be 6 months since Sammi last season, previously she has gone over 7 months between season but she may be about to throw a spanner in the works, she may not go 7 months this time! To be honest if she did come in early it wouldn't matter too much, as long as I have my 2 week recovery period after my Op on Tuesday it's doable! From memory there was great interest in her for 2 to 3 weeks before her last season too. Sammi's new coat is now coming through, thick and fast. Soon my Angel will be back in full condition .. god she's so beautiful!
Beautiful Jet from the "A" litter
David, Ole's owner has been posting daily videos of his first litter on Facebook. Having a vested interest, for me it's been fascinating watching the little guys altering from day to day. But now at 4 weeks old he has confirmed their are no Long Coats in this litter of 9. Early days yet to see if Ole produces them, mind you, simply (and it is a little more complex) the long coat gene has to be present in both sides to produce long coat puppies, so maybe the bitch doesn't carry the gene! As we know my line does carry Long Coats, and we've had them in every litter bar one - only Seffe didn't have any to date. (but her daughter did!)  If I was to be totally honest I'd be happy for the litter to all be Standard coats, it will give us more choice for showing. Neither of us who want a "show pup" want a fluff! Don't get me wrong, I like a Long Coat, a nice one is impressive, stunning and we never say never (hell I have a white!) but from choice they are not for me!
So now it's wait and see, if all the people who have "booked" a puppy still want one then I have 6 reservations for a Sammi pup, but nothing is on paper and therefore always subject to change I guess! I would still love to totally avoid the Xmas period so earlier may be better? All I can say is watch this space as I will post things on here that won't go on facebook!

Monday 27 June 2016

A Visit

Today a friend from my Freshfields days came to visit. Brendan is a lovely man, a true friend, but also a very clever man. He continues to work part time as a consultant anesthetist and part time as a G.P, and what does he do in his spare time? Well he goes to Freshfields to shovel out horse shit!
I know he's not a vet but having always valued his opinion I asked him to have a look at Mikey. He gave him a bit of a going over feeling for swollen glands etc  (Can't say the vet did that!)  and then he had a good feel of the lump. He said he thought it was very unusually and was quite taken aback at how hard it was. He said as a Doctor he always considers how the patient is looking, and in the same light felt Mikey looked fit and well. Obviously I told him that the test had shown no cancer cells present and he came to the conclusion that it's a benign muscle tumor. He totally agreed that leaving well alone was the best course of action and felt that cutting into something like this was too risky. So I guess here the Doctor agreed with  the Vet!

First Blooms Of Heather




I just love this early Summer heather. Two types are already flowering. I particularly love the darker flower that is in bloom now. But I do also love the smaller paler one that flowers later in the Summer. Sadly they don't seem to flower together.  The later, smaller more subtle flower is far more prolific up here .. soon the mountain will be purple! 

Sunday 26 June 2016

Happy Tali



Following on from my previous post I think these are apt!
Happy Tali doing her hydrotherapy in the lake, even though it's raining! 

How Old Is Too Old?

When do you decide enough is enough? When do you think this dog has had enough, I'm keeping him going for me and not him? Well I guess there is no answer. It's all individual, and age has little bearing on an individual. The average life span in the breed is now listed at 9 - 13 years, in my 25+ years with the breed that has changed from a static 9 and a half years. Yeah it sounds like we are going the right way. Health testing and education must be a huge asset but common sense must always prevail in the end.
Finlay is now 13+  ... a very old dog for this breed! He's incontinent has early CDRM and poor hearing. We also know he has a tumor on his spleen so we take every day as it comes and some days are far better than others. He sleeps a lot and potters about, he enjoys his food providing it has something "added," and he really wants to go for his walk. We have adapted and changed our routines to suite him. The walk is so important for him mentally, the mind is very willing, but sometimes the body lets him down. I'm happy that Finlay still has a good quality of life and all we can do is reassess daily!
Tali is old now too. There is no doubt she has "aged" over the last six months. Her hearing has deteriorated, she's lost a bit of weight and she sleeps more. But Tali, at 11.5 years still does a full walk, still plays with her toys, swims like a fish and still has an attitude problem! (being honest .. of course I don't want that to change .. who she is frustrates me at times, but her independence and strength of character can only be commended, and she does make me smile)  Generally Tali seems fit and well but in this breed she is an old dog!
Then there's Asha and Mikey ... 8 years old next Sunday. Classed as veterans .. maybe not "old dogs" but they are older dogs, thank fully give or take a lump nothing has changed .. and I guess no one has told either of them yet!
Sadly I fear too many dogs are kept going for too long, an owner fearing the loss will do anything within their power to keep the dog going, and that may not be in the dogs interest. A vet suggest PTS, they refuse point blank to consider it as an option, go home and bury their heads in the sand!  Usually a vet does not suggest this lightly and the consequences of not considering the option could be that a much loved dog may be kept suffering in silence. On saying that often I feel we the owners know best, we live with them we see how thing are day to day, but lets not forget their ability to hide pain from us. We should only think of Krizzie and realise how good they are at hiding the pain. She practically had no liver left, and was still bouncing into the car and barking at passers by!
I hope sanity prevails, I hope they are reading him correctly, I hope his health and well being are paramount! Simply, I hope they put him first!

Saturday 25 June 2016

Where Do You Go To My Lovely?

Happy Birthday.
It's been years since you showed your face. 
I'm sad to no longer have you're prescence in my life,
but I wish you peace, love and happiness

Friday 24 June 2016

Walks To Clear my Head ...




Finlay having a good day 

Scary Times Ahead!

The pound has just crashed against the euro.
In two hours the UK economy has lost $350 BILLION. That’s equivalent to 40 years of EU contributions.
Well done people - UK Pension funds have already collapsed
It's not even been an hour and Farage has come out and said that the leave campaign's promise that £350 million a week would be spent on the NHS was a mistake an WON'T HAPPEN. Proud?
Not a fan of smarmy Cameron but ... PM Boris and President Trump. Please tell me this is a massive social experiment and we'll all be told it was all just a big joke. The world is f****d.
Only time will tell what the future holds I guess? Still, we got what we deserved given the lack of facts, misinformation and downright lies from both sides. Unfortunately it looks like the United Kingdom isn't going to remain United in creed and colour much longer,  sadly the politics of hate and fear have won.
Some edited quotes from friends this morning that bring the concerns to light and express how I feel. Lets just hope this country can move on without being a "Farage racist nation," Or for the first time in my life I'll be backing devolution!  Without the EU agricultural subsidies that kept Wales afloat I fear this poor country will sink, how the hell will the farming communities survive?   More than glad to be proved I was wrong, and maybe in time be happy we came out but huge changes are now afoot. Time will tell if for the better, but shit I fear for the younger generation ... I fear the future in this country!
Think I may build a spaceship and leave ....

Thursday 23 June 2016

Rose Tinted Glasses Off!

Ok if you compare Sammi's eyes to Mikey's they are a tad light! 
I suppose Nico and Ziva's are the same shade so I've just got use to it. 
Glasses back on ... she's a perfect angel!

Wednesday 22 June 2016

Lazy Walk For Tired Human Legs!




Second photo? ...  Yes that's what you can see!!!!! 

Anglesey Critiques

G (5,1a) 1 Stanley’s Lokean of Blanik, 20 months b/t male, medium size, strong. For me, he is a little too compact. Liked his overall type. Masculine head & expression, would prefer a slightly darker eye to be critical. Correct bite & dentition. Firm ears that were used to advantage. Good wither height with well laid shoulder although a touch short in upper arm. Very good brisket depth to leg length proportions but can stand a touch narrow in front, decent feet & pasterns. Well sprung ribs, firm back, short loin. Good underline. Nice hind angles but would prefer better length & moulding over his croup. Good tailset. Slightly close away & back but very good in profile with good deportment. In excellent coat & condition with a lovely temperament. RBOB, congratulations! 2 Hughes’ Marinita Saskia.
 PG (2,1) 1 Stanley’s Blanik Ivana, 26 months b/t bitch. Medium size, medium strength. Loved her proportions although she can be stood slightly overstretched which can give the impression she has stretched proportions. Really appealed in her correct size & type. Absolutely feminine in head & expression but, again, would benefit from a slightly darker eye. Correct bite & dentition. Nice wither height & layback of shoulder & overall front assembly. Ideal brisket depth to leg length proportions & straight limbs when viewed from the front with correct feet & pasterns. Well sprung ribs, clean in overline. Short loin with nice underline. Very good hind angles. A touch flat over the croup but with a good tailset. Very sound away & back with an easy side gait & powerful hind thrust. A nice unexaggerated type of bitch in nice coat & condition. BOB & thrilled to see her take G1, congratulations!

Yeah very nice and mostly have to agree! But I don't think Loki is compact at all, that has never crossed my mind. At one point I was worried that he was too long, which he sure isn't now. But, I don't think he's too short in body length either. I also don't think he's too narrow either, but in fairness he says "can stand a touch narrow!"
So Mark stood Loki too narrow and I over stretched Sammi! LOL  I only disagree with one comment in Sammi's critique .. Sammi doesn't have a light eye, Loki does, but Sammi's eye colour to me is perfectly acceptable. Everything else, including the faults, I see it as he sees it!

Tuesday 21 June 2016

Cheshire Show

Today we were at Cheshire Counties show...now Royal, apparently! Not quite as successful a day for Loki, being second in Limit (Limit?? Why did I put him in limit???) but still the boy did well. The judge was very complementary of him saying that for 21 months he was very impressive, but that he just didn't drive enough for him (Ok hindsight, he should have gone in with someone else!)
Anyway it was mostly a good day. but I was very concerned to find a smurf had made his way to Knutsford! Where will they end up next?
Bit of a dampener on the day though .. well don't imagine the scene but I was having a wee in the loo when I heard someone say .. "Oh there's a German Shepherd out there, that's one breed I can't stand, Oh it's not yours is it?" Person two replied .. "No I have a Border Collie!" Person one then said "Oh good I've no idea why anyone would want one of those as a pet!"
Well I was not in the mood to leave it and came flying out of the cubical announcing "The German Shepherd is mine!" Not knowing who had said what I waited for the silence to break and get a response. Eventually the woman at the next sink spoke to me .. "Well I was bitten by one!" My reply, was " well it wasn't that one was it!" She said .. "Well that's what the owner of the other dog said!" A tad confused by her reply I just said again.. "It wasn't my dog that bit you was it, it wasn't that dog!" I couldn't be arsed anymore and turned and walked away. Unknowing to me as I walked out she shouted "Horrible dogs, horrible breed!" ... Linda who by now was out of a cubical too shouted back at her .. "No they are not!" I wish I'd heard her because I would have gone back, I just wasn't in the mood to let it go! Silly cow. After walking Loki through crowds and around all the stall, paw perfect, I was seething and upset and yeah it did kind of spoil an otherwise great day!

Monday 20 June 2016

Handsome Hans

Beautiful Hans - Nico and Summer's singleton son. 
My word my boy is producing beautiful pups.

Scans and Memories

 Seffe, Dexi, Steve, Blade with Nikki and Krizzie pup in front
Dec 2000 - well snowed in! 
 February 1996 - Sweet Sultan with 2 of the "A" litter pups 
December 1997 - Seffe, Blade, Pepsi 
Dexi, Nikki and Sultan 

Yesterday Evening!

If you're going to pinch someone's hard earned prize from the show at least have the decency to hide the evidence. Loki hoped Ziva would get the shits, but she didn't!

Loki and I are bloody knackered - Cheers Steve, 
but I do kind of like it .. not enough to put on Facebook though! 

Sunday 19 June 2016

No Stopping The Boy


Huge Congrats to Ian Turner on handling our Loki to BIS today at the Nantlle Vale Dog Training Clubs 30th year celebration show. Lovely show, thanks to the committee for their hard work and to Claire Stokes for loving Loki enough to give him BIS.

Saturday 18 June 2016

Ruthin Show



Lovely day at Ruthin C.S, nice to catch up with friends ... and my young man does me proud again ... Though standing alone in GSD Grad, he took BOB and Group 4. Thanks to the judge for his lovely comments and to exhibitors in other breeds (and one of the other show's judges) who took the time to come over say "Hi" and compliment Loki. Very touched! Thanks to Ian for taking us and to Linda for the ice cream saga ...  I'll let her post the pic on her own page ... Lexi's Life

Friday 17 June 2016

Anglesey C.S In The Paper

Just waiting for the critiques now please Mr Newton

Thursday 16 June 2016

Football Today



Dogs walked. Washing done. Football about to start ... think I'll have a snooze!
Steve says I should be more patriotic, hell I'm Welsh and proud of it. 
But I really don't do football! 

What? Have They Gone?

Tali doesn't here the click of the camera anymore. In the past as soon as the photo was taken she was off with the others. But for a few months now Asha and Ziva are off ... and she just sits there, often giving me the chance of a lovely photo of her.  Don't feel sorry for her, She fine, for an old lady. No aches and pain, well that are obvious to us anyway! She does have nuclear sclerosis, but it doesn't affect her life at all, and as it's very dens already our ophthalmologist vet doesn't think it will get any worse. Tali is going a little deaf .. but that hasn't changed anything in everyday life as she's never taken any fecking notice of anything I say anyway! Oh and IBS, which we have to help her manage with diet and supplements .. but I can't see eating poo helps her there!

Wednesday 15 June 2016

My Troops










Walk Three - Everyone Loving the Ditches
Love Sammi's nose dive! 


Ladies Loving the water too
Love the reflection of Ziva and her ball


Yes, lovely photo of these three, but my look at those clouds! 
Finlay having a good day today.