Hiding From Holidaymakers

After a manic time in the new Sport Direct in Porthmadog I walked back to my parents house. I took the track I use to walk to school. The footpath follows the line of the Gorseddau tramway from distant slate quarries to the harbour, and the tramway itself followed the once-navigable canal between Tremadog and the coast. The water of the "Cyt" is now black, smelly and deep in places, for obvious reasons I therefore opted to keep Ross on the lead. 

God things have changed. The little woodland we called "Coed John" (John's woods) is blocked off and now the by pass has a fly over the main path. Another little pathway over a slate bridge to what we called "Cae Capel" (Chapel's field) had disappeared; but thankfully the path into one of the fields was still open so it gave the pups a chance for a good run around. 

The mountain of Moel Y Gest was my view from my bedroom window till I left home in my early 20ies, and when I moved I could still see it from my kitchen window. The lights where not that great to get a clear photo, I'll try again another day ...

WOW - Look At This

GSD conformation show 1926 with Judge Max von Stephanitz.

the founder of the breed

A lot has changed, a lot hasn't.
Three of the colour combinations are seen here, black and tan, sable and 2 maybe three bi-colours (Hard to tell on one in this photo). I can't think when I last saw a bi in the show ring in the UK.  Most of the dogs are obviously being attracted and are standing forwards on the leads. There are no short stumpy legs and heavy fronts on deep chests, flappy pasterns and dippy backs.. so much for the "English Alsatianists" saying their type is true to the ancestors of the breed.
Coat quality has changed dramatically, mind you I've seen that over my life time too. Rear angulation has changed with a lot of dogs now being overdone and I would agree unsound. Shame. But in my opinion a free standing German bred dog isn't that far removed from the origin of the breed is it!

10 months Old Today

Having being weighed 10 days ago I would guess that Ross is still approximately 36KG.

He's not the best at finishing his meals, but he must be getting enough to keep him fulfilled.  When measuring him I think he's 65.5 cms possibly 66cms at the wither and I don't think he's got any taller in the last month. Height wise though he'd be classes as top height he's ideal for my liking really. 

He's an adorable young man, a huge character. He's sure been a learning curve for me but I adore who he is, well most of the time! You can't dispute he's a handful, he's vocal and he can be quite head strong; but he's also pretty obedient, especially so when he's with Kaiah as her recall is one of the best and he's learnt to follows her back. I hate the way he roughs her about at home, but it's no worse than Loki was with Sammi. On a walk he's more respectful of her and it works well to walk the two without Loki, it keeps the situation calmer. The only problem that causes me is that walking Loki with Ziva and Sammi causes tension which is a shame. 

I know Ross is not everyone's cup of tea. I know the colour is not to everyone's taste, but when being critical people should remember that when they look into a show ring and see a sea of black and rich tan dogs that sable was the original breed colour. I my self am influenced by colour, I prefer a rich tan to a pale tan, but with Asha I've also felt sadness that maybe the better dog was bypassed because of colour .. so yeah I see that both ways. Maybe colour should only be considered when splitting hair between winners. 

Anyway back to Ross, yeah he's not everyone's cup of tea and I was told by someone at the show last week that no way could they live with "that!" The person saying they'd batter him if they lived with him because he's so vocal. I have to say that there are times when you do wish he would shut the f**k up, but he is who he is and he's great fun to share a life with. I wasn't offended at the remark at the time, but in true form for me I've mulled it over a lot in the week and would now like to say that maybe everyone should look closer to home before being critical of each other dogs .. I don't mean the dog in the show ring, that's the game we play, I mean the dog him/herself .. the person. (if that makes sense)

Ross is more or less what I spent last year looking for. Of course he's not perfect, his lack of coat is distracting for me .. and the elbow .. well that's another story, it's no one's fault and what will be will be. But as a dog I'm really happy with him, he's really good looking and so much fun, and of course we do have some very cuddly sweet moments, usually when he's tired! Would I swap him? Send him back? Would I hell! I do wish things were different as breeding from him and Kaiah was part of the big Blanik plan, but it looks like it's not to be, but it doesn't make me love him any less does it! 

Another of those lovely photos taken last Saturday

On Home Ground

 Jezi and Nico - so well behaved

 Ziva, Asha, Loki and Sammi were the naughty group of the day. 

Asha wasn't naughty, she rarely is just the group is judged as a whole and the other three where annoying and badly behaved so .. sorry Asha

Ross and Kaiah - full of fun and well behaved.
The sun bouncing off the rocks on top of Moel Tryfan

Just a short video of Ross having a "moment!" 

Veg For Breakfast

There was great excitement from the Blanik ladies this morning as they had raw vegetables added to their breakfast. It was a case of right time right place yesterday as Tesco were just marking up their out of date veg when we were by the counter. There's no healthier treat for them than raw veg is there. Of course the three boys declined, though Ross did eat one piece of cauliflower he left the carrots and broccoli. Loki and Nico both ate around theirs but there where plenty of volunteers to clear up! Little Kaiah eyes where on stalks, she loves food as much as Asha does but has a particular taste for raw veg. I never see the point in cooking veg for them, you loose so much of the nutritional value by cooking veg but of course I have no problem with them having our left over cooked veg, but even then Nico won't eat them. He's such a pig, a really greedy dog but he won't eat veg at all, not even chips!
There's no news yet regarding Ross' Xrays, but the boy is fine, full of fun and mischief as usual. Because I've told myself that I won't be able to use him at stud on Kaiah I've started looking around at suitable males.

Hell I've got a year to think about it but it's never too early to look is it? There's a very nice sable L/C in the kennel where Ross came from. One they have bought in but carrying their sable Idol in the breeding. I've never used a L/C .. but I've no problem with it and though I' prefer a S/C pup taking everything into account I would keep the pup that had the best prospects for me, regardless of coat! There are also some stunning standard coat black and tan young males about and with 12 months to think about it I've got time to see who's producing quality pups with good health test results.
Kaiah is looking super, yes she's light framed but there's so much to like about her. Maybe giving her this season and the next in the show ring before mating her is the best prospect, which would mean mating her at the end of 2019. I don't know .. we'll see.

Ross And I Are Still Friends

By bed time last night I had a huge bruise and swelling on my leg, but nowhere near my knee. It's about half was down to my ankle and on the inside. I can only come to the conclusion that Ross hit me as I took a step and the impact caused me to twist my knee and that is what gave me the horrendous pain. As it eased the burning sensation that I felt lower in my leg was actually the point of impact. God at the time I honestly thought I'd broken my leg or dislocated my knee. Anyway long term no harm done, I'll just have to be more careful around Nico for a while. He is like a bull in a china shop here and gives no regards to anything in his way. At certain times of the day if you don't say "wait" when opening a door then you better move pretty damn quickly or he'll have you over. He's the one that has run into me on several occasions and once left me struggling for days after a collusion with my right knee. He's truly a wonderful dog .. just a little exuberant at times!

Beautiful Nico - with his best mate of course! 

Walking With No Leads

Not feeling at my best I was worried about driving to take the pups out, but if they don't go then they are a nightmare later in the day. Steve offered to drive and come for a short walk with me on the track in Cwm Dulyn. The others would just have to cope with a run around the field when we got home. They don't mind that occasionally but wouldn't cope with it daily as it really is just like their back garden.
The track in Cwm Dulyn is not a long walk, we don't usually bother walking it and just go straight to the walks by the lake, so it was a change for these two to do this walk. As we arrived I realised I'd left my bag at home. My bag contains my leads, poo bags and the camera .. I had nothing. Usually there are spare leads in the van. But no not today, I specifically remember taking them in to the house as the leather was getting mouldy and the chains rusting in the damp weather. I found a check chain and a slip collar and decided we'd have to manage!
Within minutes of setting off young Ross who was running hell for leather after Kaiah ran into my leg, walloping me just below the left knee. I've not felt pain like it in years and all I can say was thank god it wasn't my already sensitive right knee. With his usual sympathy Steve said, walk, walk on it, it'll cease if you don't move. My god I wanted to cry .. but he was right, the movement gradually helped and the burning sensation seemed to go down my leg and eventually eased.
The rest of the walk was pretty unadventurous and thankfully we didn't see anyone so got away with the facts that we had no leads. At least if someone had come I would have been able to tie what we had to their collars. Pretty decent photos from the phone yeah!

Glad That's Over With

Kyle went in for his surgery today. Thankfully it went well and he is now at home recovering. With both he and Jethro now neutered I can breath a sigh o relief. Both had retained testicles and the risk of not neutering them was too great. More often than not if a dog has a retained testicle, due to the heat within the body the testicle turns cancerous in middle age so there was no choice other than to neuter. (Testicles are suppose to stay cool outside the body) The surgery may be a little more complex but Kyle has been neutered at exactly the right age. He is now 17 months so his bones have fused and there is no risk of the neutering affecting his joints. Looking forward to seeing him again ..

Father And Son

Today I opted to take Ross with the girls and Loki and Kaiah together. This would give Kaiah much more chance to run off some energy! To be honest Ross was a pain with Sammi and pestered her for the whole walk. He doesn't do that with Kaiah now he seems more respectful of her. I do wonder why these youngsters bully Sammi so much, and with her character I wonder why she lets them do it?
Anyway having walked the four of them I blocked off visibility between two crates and took Nico and Loki in the van together .. bad move. The aggression between them was frightening. They both growled on and off for the whole journey, it was serious growling and with their voices sounding the same I wasn't sure who was worst, honestly they were awful.

 Nico and Mikey were not friends but they were not like this with each other. Both Loki and Nico generally get on well with other dogs but from today's antics it proves these 2 should never be left in a room together, and that's put the kibosh on my plans of NWGSD in 2 weeks. I had entered both and was planning to show both, but now if they both won their classes it would mean they would have to stand next to each other in the ring, I think not! Bloody shame but I fear Nico will be staying at home!

A New Walk In Nebo

 Ross out with Ziva, Asha and Sammi.

We went to a new place which caused great excitement

But Ross did torment Sammi so much

 Jezi and Nico loved a run by the lake in Cwm Dulyn

 Loki and Kaiah also in Cwm Dulyn

Not sure if Loki was encouraging Kaiah over here or getting ready to pounce when she came down the other side. Funny pic though. 

Caleb

I was approached yesterday by a lady showing a Welsh Springer, she said .. "I believe you are the breeder of the lovely Caleb." (Sammi's brother) She went on to say that she and her dogs run with Arthur and Caleb in the Canicross and that he was a fantastic dog, a credit to breeder and breed. In this day and age when we always seem to be defending our breed I was really touched that she made the effort to come over and speak to me. Just a lovely thing to say and do... but he is a cracking dog!

Three Lovely Walks To Llyn Cop

Pictures Posing and Playing

Nico and Jezi

Splashing about

Ross and Kaiah 

No, you're not coming out

Sammi and Loki use to play this game too.

Loki, Sammi, Asha and Ziva

4 dogs and one toy!

Ross On Film

With no one to take photos inside yesterday I was over the moon to recieve this last night. Ross had beaten the puppy dog in the class and was challenging the puppy bitch here for BPIB. Having recieved BPIB he does his lap of honour with Bella who was BOB.
I sent the video to Ross' breeder last night  who commented that he seems sound ... That's the problem and why I didn't rushed to do Xrays, being he's lame sometimes and not other times is quite confusing. After the breed judging was over we were taking photos outside. Ross was like an idiot, digging, leaping up at seagulls and throwing twigs about, so when we got home and he was quite lame. He then had his meal and crate rest for a couple of hours and then he was ok again. Honestly does my head in!

Llandudno C.S

Well it was not our most successful show with Ross being 3rd out of 4, Loki standing alone and Asha being last! But it was still a cracking day with lots of laughs and it was lovely to see Bella, Loki's sister gain BOB and group 4. Ross did manage to go Best Puppy In Breed out of the three GSD pups exhibited but in the group it was just obvious the judge had no interest in him what so ever. Her loss!
Ross was sound and happy all day, no problems in or out of the ring but maybe digging for moles .. or what ever it is he's doing, on the grounds was not such a great idea. Anyway he was full of fun, leaping in the air, throwing sticks and twigs about .. not surprising that he was lame when we got home. Now after a sleep he's back on full form!

Doesn't he look great.

A Couple of lovely shots of Asha.

Dead chuffed with these ..

Too Fat?

Asha is entered in the pastoral veteran class tomorrow, I'm now wondering if maybe she's carrying a little too much weigh, again! She lost weight nicely with a change of diet 2 years ago, but now on a Salmon based food she's looking a little chunky! To be honest with Tali on a special diet I couldn't afford to keep Asha on the Senior diet that she originally lost the weight on and I put her on a CSJ Salmon food. I hadn't noticed the weight creeping up..  just now it's there. Ah well Asha is known for her greed from day one and her puppy name was GeeGee which stemmed from me calling her Greedy Guts within minutes of her being born. Still wet she was suckling before Al (Kai) who was born a good 30 mins before her had even realised where his mother was, boys eh! 

Anyway we may get chance to get some better photos of her tomorrow; I wouldn't dare go without her, win or loose she'll be over the moon to go and will spend her day begging and stealing food! 

Almost a Crisis

Jezi now in competition with her mum for the greediest Blanik

Yesterday evening at the end of our meal I sat patiently waiting for Steve to finish his meal. We always have Nico and Jezi in the living room at this time as they can be trusted to behave, usually. I've mentioned before I have a water spray on the table next to me to keep the cats out of my food. Seeing it is usually enough for good manners. Before discovering the water spray I'd sooner eat with the dogs than the cats in the room any day. Greedy cats are so cheeky!

Anyway it was the end of the meal, and against house rules Steve gave his left over Garlic bread to Jezi and Nico. Before I could think Jezi flew over and grabbed the chicken bones off my plate. I panicked, threw my plate onto the floor and grabbed her by the top jaw pushing my other hand deep into her mouth I managed to retrieve one bone quite quickly, but I couldn't feel the other bone. With heart sinking I let go of her and was just saying to Steve, she bloody swallowed it when she quickly started chewing again. Grabbing her top and bottom jaws with separate hands I tried to shake the bone forward .. somehow I got it out of her gob and a crisis was averted. 

This is not the first time Jezi has snatched something off my plate. She once took a hot sausage and swallowed it whole, only to vomit it up whole about 30 mins later! Actually we use to let them eat the lefts overs and lick the plates every night but stopped it due to Jezi's bad manners of coming closer and closer to your plate .. but yeah the water spray did work with her too. I'm afraid after last night we'll both have to honor house rules .. no titbits at tea time!

St. Helens Critiques for Ross and Loki

German Shepherd Dog J 1 Stanley and Bibby's Silkenwood Poldark of Blanik, 9 month old dog. Masculine head with erect ears carried well. Good, dark eyes with alert expression. Still some growing and filling out to do. Moved freely with drive from behind. 

 O 1 Stanley's Lokean of Blanik, 3 and a half year old dog. A handsome dog with alert expression, well placed ears, nicely sized and positioned eyes. Good reach of movement, well muscled forequarters.

Supplements.

Having spoken to Jan this morning I may have a long wait for results of Ross' X.rays. She waited 3 weeks to a month for Elsa's results.  Elsa was chronically lame and had to have surgery following an accident where she got her leg caught in a gate. It took 6 months for her to recover, but now she's doing a daily 5 mile walks with her mother and Jan.
I've started Ross on Turmeric and fish oil capsules.(omega 3) Turmeric is well know for it's health benefits in humans and animals but I'm particular interested as its a natural pain reliever because it helps relieve inflammation. It may do nothing to help Ross .. but it won't do any harm!
The use of fish Oil for dogs is far more recognised and it is reported that there are 5 great benefits of Fish Oil For dogs and cats. EPA, one of the two omega-3 fatty acids in fish oil, acts as an anti-inflammatory. It will help with any condition that causes inflammation of the heart, kidneys, skin, and joints—such as arthritis. So hell we'll give it a go!
I'm also considering glucosamine and chondroitin for future use, but I'll start with the turmeric and fish oil rather than throw everything at him in one go. Perhaps the most important aspect of glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate supplements is that they are thought to help slow or prevent the degeneration of joint cartilage, the underlying cause of osteoarthritis pain. Glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate dietary supplements may also help alleviate existing joint pain which is why it's often given to older dogs.
Anyway I'll keep reading but before I spend anymore money I'll wait and see what comes back from the specialist. One interesting paragraph that I found on a site about ED in dogs is .. "The timing onset at the progression of symptoms varies substantially from dog to dog. In most cases, dogs first exhibit symptoms between the ages of 4 and 12 months. These symptoms usually get progressively worse for several months. In most cases, the symptoms improve dramatically or disappear entirely once the dog reaches an age of 12 to 18 months of age. This improvement is probably the result of several factors including the dog reaching its maximum size and the dog adapting to the constant discomfort."
This is very interesting, as I look back Ross was just over 4 months old when he started to limp .. and first saw the vet. She diagnosed then that the pain was in the right elbow.  Previous to that I had commented to friends that I thought he had a strange front action but he hadn't been lame. So best case scenario for me would be that this limp does go away as he matures and that we can control any discomfort with natural medication until later in life. (when he my then need conventional medication)
Of course I will be disappointed not to be able to breed from him, it was all part of the big plan. But unless the specialist come back and says this is definitely an injury then I won't be going down that path; and lets face it taking everything into account that is now highly unlikely! It looks like Ross is more likely to have a genetic elbow problem than anything else, but we must remember that no one is to blame. It can happen to any of us at anytime. His parents have clear elbow scores as do his grand parents .. sadly it's just something that happens. I'm gutted that this time it's happened to me, well to my baby boy but I'll do everything I can to make sure he continues to live a full, active and happy life.

Just To Show

Shit video but just so you can see that mostly there is nothing wrong with Ross. In a pet home no one would notice there was anything but we scrutinise don't we. 

Steve says I shouldn't post the video as the house is green .. well who's looking at the house? Seriously it always goes green over Winter and we'll wait for better weather for pressure washing. 

Confession

Well it's been a tense few weeks for me. I'm so critical of people who are careless, but I hope more accepting of people who make a mistake. After all we all make mistakes in life and I guess that he who is without sin should cast the first stone .. No I'm not turning to religion but I sure hope people will be understand I made a mistake.
I'm going back a few weeks, it was before Ross was on restricted exercise and Kaiah was in season. Ross had suddenly discovered how to open doors and I hadn't yet realised how quickly and easily he got out. The girls were out and Ross was meandering between the middle room and the kitchen .. Loki and Nico were in crates and I was cooking, Steve was in the living room with his nose in his kindle. I suddenly noticed an open door, with my mind on other things I closed it and got back to cooking with Ed Sheeran for company. Dinner was nearly ready and I wondered where Ross was .."Ross .. Ross" Where the bloody hell was he? Suddenly I panicked .. OMFG ... yes he'd opened the door and gone out ... and I'd shut him out. I repeat,  I had shut a young male dog out with a bitch in full season .. and for about 20+ mins. They both came running in full of the joys of Spring and I put both in crates, honestly I was shaking with panic. But of course with time logic takes over, they are both maiden dogs as regards to mating and in 20 mins they could never have "got it together," could they? Well Jay did, but in my experience I guess Jay was the exception to the rule.

Do you remember Jay? 

Steve and I discussed the situation and common sense prevailed, of course no mating had taken place. We've both seen dogs who have just mated, or even tried to, and in our opinion these two had just been playing. I considered the morning after injection for Kaiah, but Rogers the vets words were ringing in my ears ... "That's a nasty injection you know!" Now come on, nothing had happened, I was sure of that, at that time anyway!
As the weeks went on our attentions were on Ross and his limp .. or not .. as the case may be, and to be honest short term I forgot about the incident. But then it got to almost 5 weeks and suddenly it came to mind again .. then it was 5.5 weeks and with my stomach churning in fear I found myself checking Kaiah for signs of pregnancy. Of course there was nothing... then it was 6 weeks and I was checking again. I knew logically that nothing had happened, I knew she wasn't pregnant but at around this time fear took over from logic and I was seeing things that were simply not there. From a breeding point of view, not only was Kaiah too young to be pregnant, but Ross is not health tested and had a limp! Not an issue for unscrupulous breeders, but a disaster for me and mine!
Well the weeks have gone on  and I've calmed down,  I can now plan ahead for when I will be breeding from Kaiah,  in 2019 .. Weeks of tension and a valuable lesson learned .. with a GSD never ever think that an unlocked door is a safe door ... and breath!!!!!

No Diagnosis Yet

As most people knew Ross was having his x-rays today. The poor boy was absolutely terrified at the vets, no wonder he's been so bothered about people going behind him at ring craft, this really has affected him mentally quite badly.
The vet decided to X.ray both elbows as she says the easiest way of assessing them is to compare one to the other. Sadly it showed that there is an abnormality in the right elbow, the vet doesn't think it's currently drastic but is unsure of what is going on and how it may develop, she therefore feels its best to sending the plates for specialist examination. The ball seems to fits neatly in the socket and the mobility on moving the joint about feels normal, but the edges of the socket look rough on the X.ray and this could be the cause of the pain.
I guess we have to wait now and see what the specialist say before seeing which way we go forward. As I told her today, what I want is a good quality of life for him. If I can't breed from him then so be it, but I want him to be able to do what the others do, I want him to enjoy his life. The vet was uncertain, but thought it highly unlikely that the elbow problem was caused by an injury .. but she will ask the specialist.
My poor boy is doped up and badly lame now after all that manipulation .. I do hope he get's over this and can get back to as normal as possible asap.

And ...

Mr Sore Eye 

Couldn't sleep last night, too much going on in the brain. They say it takes years to reroute its self after an injury .. I'm sure it can do it when I'm asleep instead of going over the events of the day .. and the events to come. I'm worried sick about today. I need an answer, but I'm also scared of the answer. Make sense? Maybe not but that's how it is!
Anyway back to yesterday, I keep going over it in my head. I'm still so shocked that Loki reacted the way he did. I would not have been shocked had it been Jezi or Ziva or many others like Simba before them, but Loki? It's just so out of character for him and I can only put it down to his inexperience and incompetence as the "older male." Had he been provoked I would understand, but I was sat no more than 6 ft away and watched it all unfold. Loki was completely out of line, he was without doubt the one in the wrong.
Of course we've had males bite each other before, but maybe with good reason, or I can at least understand why they did it. Blade bit a young Dexi and damaged his tear duct .. but Dexi was being very annoying at the time, and Blade had warned him and warned him. Loki gave no warning, he gave Ross no change to get it right, no change to realise the game was over.

Louis and Jay 

Dexi also bit poor Jay .. but Jay had pushed him to the limit before he reacted. I'm surprised Dexi didn't drown him in the lake that day. He certainly held him under water a good while, but Jay being Jay he immediately carried on tormenting Dexi again. It never worked between those two boys, Jay was such a nutter, he had no manners and no respect for authority. He didn't have a nasty bone in his body though, and did get on well with Louis who was his son .. actually remembering back when Louis was young they did play too.
The swelling on Ross' face has gone down this morning and though I guess it must be sore he's been chucking his toys around in the kitchen. I guess the best thing we can do is be vigilant but not cause tension ourselves by being over cautious. Hopefully a one off mistake, hopefully things will be back to normal ASAP and the only tension that we will have to concern ourselves with will be between hormonal bitches!

A Little Shocked

Ross and Loki today

Another day of incredible fatigue and I find myself unable to walk the dogs. Luckily it's a bright sunny day and the youngsters entertained themselves playing outside. It was mid afternoon and the girls had come in and settled leaving only Loki and Ross still playing outside. I watched through the window as they played chase and also tugging toys. It was lovely to watch two entire males playing  so nicely together. I even commented to Steve that of all our males only Louis and Nico had previously played together. Louis would not play with Mikey and though Mikey and Loki got on well they never played together ... of course Blade would never have lowered his standards to play with Dexi. Blade was all about being the boss dog. (though Nikki was really in charge at the time .. girls usually do rule the roost!)

Dexi and Blade

With a bang and a crash the door flew open and they both came in. They were giddy and happy. I got up to close the door, sat back down and gave them a few minutes to settle. Loki lay down and Ross went over to him with a toy in his mouth. Ross dropped the toy and pawed Loki .. what happened next both shocked and disappointed me. With unnecessary aggression Loki went for Ross and bit him 2 or 3 times in the face, luckily only puncturing his face the once but frighteningly close to his eye. Ross had hit the deck and was screaming after the first bite but Loki saw fit to bite him again. It was so unnecessary and so disappointing to see Loki take such a drastic cause of action.
There is no doubt that Ross is a handful and often needs telling. There's no doubt that he needs keeping in his place, but Loki's reaction in this situation was totally unfounded. Fair enough they had been playing and in Loki's mind the game was over, but he gave no warning and his reaction was far too aggressive for my liking. To be honest both Steve and I were quite shocked. I understand he is the older male and no longer wanted to play, but a growl or a show of the full set of teeth may well have got the message over. It's not necessarily a nasty dog who growls, it's usually a fair dog who growls, a dog saying "I'm not happy with that.. stop!" Loki gave Ross no opportunity to get it right and move away, how was the pup to know the game was over if he wasn't told?

Nico and Louis 

Ross was obviously shocked and the girls seemed to freaked, I lashed out at Loki but he was too quick and moved away. I held Ross for a few minutes whilst Steve went to get antiseptic to clean the wound and he didn't take his eyes off Loki who was now nervous as I'd at least been able to verbally abuse him .. it was enough actually. There is no doubt that Ross will have a lovely swelling on his face now, but I guess that's the least of our worries. I had no hesitation in letting Ross loose again with Loki today, males rarely hold a grudge and with Ross being so young he then kept away from Loki. Though bless him he kept peeking over at him and you could see the confusion on his face.

Loki and Mikey

I think when a dog like Loki reacts like this it shocks you more. Loki though aloof with strangers is generally a lovely, easy, sensible and laid back dog. He's use to being part of a pack, the only thing he lost too young of course was the influence of an older male in the pack as he was growing up. He was thrown in at the deep end, being the only male with 5 bitches before his second birthday was a lot to ask and it did affect him at the time. Maybe that has contributed to his inadequacies in correctly deal with the situation? Maybe Mikey wasn't there at the right time to show him how it should be done? Maybe I'm making excuses for him? Maybe I'm trying to find a reason why he would handle a situation so badly? Whichever today I'm very very disappointed in him.