SparkyTansy

You guys all did great, it was really good to watch! well done all of you, you should be very proud of your dogs!

RS and MG you both did so well yesterday!! And congratulations to miss Ruby for taking out the top prize!! I was happy to see a few breeds represented at the trial and hopefully more of that in the future. I think quite a few people were gobsmacked that the Weimaraner could actually retrieve... After 4 weeks of no training, Lulu has gone from having a wonderful recall and at least returning with the prize, to running away and parading her prize. We have a long way to go before we can even consider competing!! :laugh: CC the next RATG is in April I think. Sorry whipitgood, my whelping box would be able to house at least 4 cavs with litters and room to spare, but what about using one of those shell pools? would that be too small for a cav?

Hey RS, was talking to Jo at tracking today and she is hoping to change Zeba over from Assoicate to associate gundog. I told her to hurry up and do it before the next RATG!! :laugh: Ari was entered tomorrow although I knew she wouldn't be ready, and now she is in season so has to be scratched anyway! going tomorrow anyway to watch and support everyone :) Yeah he must never be fat but at the same time he will put on weight as he is still filling out. Growth plates are closed but he will still be developing. The last 2 months he has put in a kg every 2 months so that's slow and steady. Will chat to the specialist on Thursday to see how I know if he is just putting on weight from inactivity or growing a bit. If his growth plates are closed he technically shouldn't grow at all am I right?? What about filing out? He is only 8 months old. did the vet say his plates were closed based on his xrays or just a guess? Maybe they have closed, he has always been a pretty fast grower and looks pretty mature for his age. if his plates have closed he will fill out but not get any taller.

absolutely gorgeous mirawee!!!

I definitely agree with this particular statement SSM. I have two breeds however heartbreaking issues in the two English Setters caused me to go back to Weimaraners. I will have more ES one day, and I continue to research lines, follow particular dogs and keep an eye on dogs I like. I could talk to most of the lines from the UK English Setters. I threw myself in Weimaraners and have since bred my first litter. i know lines I like and follow most lines throughout europe, the US and Australia. I also show Old English Sheepdogs, I can groom them, discuss pedigrees and conformation with the best of them, but I won't own or breed them for myself. I learned a lot about conformation and breeding from all three breeds and I strive to learn about other breeds as i believe this makes me a better breeder for my own breeds. I think that it can work both ways - some people breed more than one breed for the wrong reasons, but I also believe that sometimes people that stick to one breed, and don't make the effort to open themselves up to learn about other breeds, are missing out on crucial information that could help their own breeding (not saying everyone should have/breed more than one breed, just that looking at other breeds helps you learn).

how exciting Mirawee!!! look forward to some piccies :)

Ok... just finally finished catching up on everything!! Phew!! ok, apologies if I miss someone!! Ptolomy - congrats on sticky puppies/puppy breath and how exciting that Chica is coming home soon! to Rosie! RS fantastic news about Millie and her associate gundog! I remember talking to the retrieving club about it as they weren't sure how it was all going to work with getting associate gundogs so you must be one of the first to get through! MG - Glad to see Gibbs is doing better since his surgery. What a horrible thing to have to go through (sort of been there!). Keep going on supplements and treatments. James has been doing so well since I started his treatments with Deb, and while he is always a little stiff in the rear, he is SO much better. He turns 6 this year, and he's doing quite well given it's both hips. He couldn't have cartrophen injections administered by me as he really didn't like having the needles - however since discovering the possibility he has thyroid issues, I'm hoping his unusually thick skin returns to normal and perhaps we can try again. Also, MG with your holistic puppy food, if you can't find a taker for it, why not donate it to a rescue organisation? that's if you are ok to give it away, that is. RV sorry to hear about Toby, but glad he is doing better Washa congratulations on your new baby - he is adorable! with food, my two weis get approx 400-500g raw a day, James gets a lot less til his thyroid treatment starts, and Spartan gets 2 cups dry with supplements. Mirawee - how exciting your new bundle is nearly here!! don't envy you with the puppy proofing... i lost two pairs of thongs within 24 hours yesterday, from madam Lulu who is very sneaky! i can't wait til she grows out of it! planning to put up some pics at some point today. I didn't get any pics of clumbers, sorry MG. They weren't represented in the BIG lineup either, and I'm not sure why. I didn't hear the reason but i think it's possible that the BOB winner was not approved by the vet and disqualified from the group. Gundog day was quite rediculous - so many people there, and I spent all my time outside the ES ring, which was very rewarding seeing so many beautiful ES in one place. The winning BOB ES was shortlisted for the group - a stunning blue dog. ES have now been listed as a vulnerable breed in the UK, so the breeders are going to have to start thinking about expanding their genepool to help their breed move forward. the shopping itself at crufts was just amazing. A lot of people say it's expensive, but compared to what we pay for some dog products in Australia, it was all pretty cheap! I brought back a few things for myself. One of my favourites is a beautiful handmade leather collar for lulu (pink, of course) and a bronze setter statue which I had to leave with my mum in Jersey because I already had too much stuff to bring back! I'm sorry if I've forgotten anyone!!

Lulu had a pretty good weekend at the second show on the western classic weekend, taking out RBCC and Puppy in Group!! I'm very proud of my girl :D So glad that someone could get her to the show as I am currently overseas.

There are lots of breeds I admire, even love, but few that I think I could really own. Gundogs generally suit me and I love the look of them and their temperaments... My heart, though, is with the English Setter... but my lifestyle and love for dog sports means that at this point in time the Weimaraner suits me better. I have two of each ;) I have a real soft spot for Irish Setters and Brittany's though :)

Ptolomy you should do a search... I remember your post about your homemade reptile heat lead/pad... I found it when I was looking for information about the best heat sources. I used a reptile lamp in the end... but I found reptile leads in the pet stock in cannington I think, where I bought my heat lamp... at least, i think it was a heat lead thing. From memory, you got your heat thing from a place in rockingham!! I only gave my girl calcium during whelping and a couple of times afterwards. I gave her lots of bones for natural calcium although she too is raw fed so not too much different to usual except for upping the amount!

I'll try - I'll take a pic of the BOB, but I'm afraid I'll likely be planted in front of the English Setters for most of the day!!! I didn't know you liked Clumbers!?

Yes they are very different. I loved the melting expression on the Irish Setter in the video. Also loved the irish red and white - and you could tell it was a working dog too :D Thanks for posting Sheridan :)

Yes I am having a great time MG. Crufts starts tomorrow, mum and I get into Birmingham in the morning, but we won't be going to the first day... Gundogs is Friday and we will be there bright and early! There are so many dogs, i have the book with the numbers in it but not a hard copy yet. There are at least 350 Irish Setters and just under 200 English Setters. Around the same Weimaraners... I think numbers are down in the docked breeds this year as some gun dogs are still eligible to be docked (gun licence/working gun dogs) but the rule is that if the public pay entry, docked dogs cannot compete... so they lost huge numbers in breeds where people from the US and Europe and gun dogs even within the UK usually compete. Pretty stupid if you ask me...

Hi everyone just checking in!! Just thought I'd tell RS and MG that there are SO many labs here, gorgeous ones too. Today we went to the woods and saw 4 labs, two blacks and two chocolate. The chocs were stunning, and they were all a fabulous weight too. One of the chocs played with Charlie (well, outran him given he has actually never been to the woods before and he was free of coat for the first time ever!). Her name was Ruby! Anyway, to please AP and RosieFT, if it's not a lab, it's a terrier... lots of them, mixes, purebreds... LOTS of terriers and they are so cute. I've seen loads of Fox Terriers in particular. Today I saw a GSP though which just reminded me of my girls and made me a bit sad! So as per above, yesterday we spent most of the day brushing out char in preparation for clipping, which we did shortly after. it took a really long time, and Char is really happy. after he got off the table, he got a bit excited, then he noticed his tail, I guess for the first time ever given that he has always had hair there. he spent about 10 minutes chasing his tail and he couldn't understand why he saw it more when it was wagging!! anyway... so I got some good news from RV about Lulu who also had a fairly successful time at the western classic on Monday, taking out Puppy in Group and reserve challenge bitch. So exciting!! I read everyones comments so a BIG fat congrats to everyone that did really well at the shows and obedience and agility! Very happy for you all

Congrats to Ptolomy and the red kids!!!! :party: thats brilliant well done.

Hi everyone! I've finally had a chance to get on here and read everything you've written over the last week!! It's 8.30pm on Thursday here. It's beautiful in Jersey, even in the winter. It's not too cold at the moment... about 10 degrees which is warmer than Jandakot in the Winter mornings! there is a lot of mist though. It's the type of place that you can see yourself walking around with your dogs, and it makes me miss them a lot!! I've seen a few dogs though! plus Charlie is here and he had his first haircut, which my sister gave him, and I tidied because she is crap at cutting hair :laugh: so at the moment, poor Char has had a total haircut, on his head only. He looks as though someone has shot a shrink ray at his head Anyway, I hope you all had fun at the obedience challenge (those who went!)... no one had posted on here it seems!! Also I hope that everyone who is showing tonight and anything else that might be on tonight goes well. Ari's breeder is coming over from Vic with some dogs and is kindly showing Lulu for me (RV is picking her up for me!). I hope that she behaves. So I have a week left in Jersey before mum and I head to crufts. I cannot wait! so excited about the shopping and all the different events to watch. First day we go is gundog day so I'll be spending most of my day next to the setter rings, but the rest of the time will be spent evenly amongst the shopping stalls and the other dogs sports and showing, plus of course Best in Show on the final day!!

If there is one, it's not on the ANKC website. I thought they all were now.

if only 30 got in even more reason to send out a letter...

Poor Nova thoughts are with you Allerzeit.

ok i'll whinge - but not about canine Why does everyone have to wait til the last minute before booking or changing or needing something from me, when nearly everyone knows it's my last day today, and in preparation for this day I sent out an email weeks ago asking for things that I would need to be completed before I went away?!! :banghead: :banghead:

Spartan - named after Sparky and Tansy James - Nothing really just think it suits an english setter Ariane - apparently (in a name book) it was a german name and means "silvery" so even if that isn't true, it's perfect for a Weimaraner Lulu - named after the character Lulu from True Jackson VP (Nikolodeon kids show!)... Lulu comes across quite dumb, but is actually rather smart.

Glad to see Chica's journey is coming to an end and she'll be here soon Ptolomy. Make sure you take some pics when you visit her!!

Glad all is well... Erny, that is lovely and so very true...

Go Zora and RV!!

wow! well done kelpiesrule!!