Monday 30 June 2008

Well Done

Well done Karen and Maggie, you done brill. Are you going back next year ?

Well done Karen

It sounds like you and Maggie did really well at Hall Barn, you must be very proud of Maggie.

WELL DONE

To Karen and Maggie sounds like you did very well
Brilliant pics and video Elspeth, at dog training one day someone thought Ilka was a Dalmation cross too !
Ali, I've sent you an email about South Wales don't know if you going or not but....
Got my results:

Water: 14/20
Memory Retrieve:15/20
Seen Retrieve: 17/20
Hunting:24/40

Total: 70/100

Hall Barn

Had a great day yesterday, despite getting lost in Beaconsfield - still arived on time. I haven't got my scores yet as although I stayed until the prizes were being handed out for 1st, 2nd and 3rd there was a large crowd around the score table and Maggie had just had enough hanging around and so we left before I saw them. Sue very kindly said she would email them onto me so I will let you know.

I was over the moon with Maggie though.

The first was a water retrieve. The dummy was thrown into the lake by an instructor and I had to sit Maggie off the lead and ask her to wait until being told to send her in. she went straight in retrieved the dummy, swam straight back and handed to me in my hand! She lost points though because I had to hold her back as she was a bit too keen to get in the water! The instructor said she did well and was very keen.

The second test was a seen retrieve. I had to sit her by my side off lead. A gun was shot right next to her and someone in the bushes threw out a dummy. This time I got her to stay until I was told to send her on. She did this perfectly - straight to the dummy, and retreived it to hand. Was very pleased and in my eye did it perfectly.

The third test was hunting. I had to let her off and ask her to cover an area of ground as thoroughly as I could. I let her down here because I was a bit nervous of her running off (a dog earlier disappeared for 20 mins!) So I think I didn't send her out for long enough and kept pipping the whistle. Was not sure what I was doing so let Maggie down on this test. When asked to call her back in though she came straight back.

The fourth and final test was a memory retrieve. I was dreading this as I had watched a few and the dogs were being asked to sit and stay for a long time. I had to walk off with the instructor to a point with Maggie on the lead. I then had to take her lead off and walk her to head to a further point, which she did beautifully. I then had to ask her to sit and stay while I walked on alone to another point and then turn and face her. I had to throw the dummy off to the side behind a shrub, then walk back past Maggie still sitting there up to the instructor and then ask Maggie to go and get the dummy. I lost points on this because instead of going straight to get the dummy she came back to me first, but then when I told her to go find she went straight to it and brought it back. this time she dropped the dummy at my feet but I asked her again to pick it up and give it to me which she did.

All in all I was very proud of her. When I got home she flaked out and didn't move all evening - me too!

Great video and pictures Elspeth! I have never had a dalmation cross!

Happy birthday for Thursday Karen

Ali - May go to Richmond but am probably going to Birmingham - will you be going there?

Sunday 29 June 2008

Ceilidh looks like she had a lovely walk Elspeth (or should I say run, I can't see her walking much). Well done at Windsor too.

Domino feels a bit neglected this weekend as I've been doing housework which is quite unheard of here. I've cleaned the carpets, they are green now instead of Domino coloured, sorted out stuff for my party on Saturday. My birthday isn't until Thursday, so if any of you see me here much before then, tell me to get back to work.

Domino will have to stay on her lead at the party while there's food around, she is just like Ceilidh, waits until you turn your back and pinches anything. At a party we went to a few weeks ago, Domino stole a piece of birthday cake, and I even had her on a lead then.

We're off to the next class up at training on Wednesday, so I'll update after we've been there. Will try to get some photos too in the next couple of days.

Happy Birthday Karen

Not sure if it is today but if not then for when it is your birthday!

The place at Stafford is called Cannock Chase. Really great place for us to stop easy to get to and from motorway so we will need to remember it for the future.

Good news for all footballers wives... tonight is the final of the Euro cup!!! Thankgoodness!













A video is to follow...
We have had a lovely weekend, the drive down on Thursday was beyond awful! But the rest of the weekend more than made up for it. The show was lovely, great to see everyone and to met Karen and Maggie! Maggie is just beautiful, very well behaved at the show too. How did you get on at Hall Barn today?
Ceilidh came 3rd in her class so very proud and as Ali says, everyone did really well. Genna was shaking when in the ring she was that spooked by the planes, it was such a shame.
Mathilda is just like Stella and their mummy Summer with her colourings, she did very well too. The judge really liked her.
In the afternoon we went to the park near my brothers with Lia his girlfriend. She was so pleased to get home to find we were already back. We had a lot of fun and Ceilidh ignored a jogger which is quite rare for her. She normally runs and jumps beside them barking because she thinks it is a game. She also tried to climb several trees after the squirrells and couldn't quite understand why they wouldn't come back down when she barked at them.
Saturday was Richmond park which she loves to bits. We were with both my brother and sister and their partners so Ceilidh was very excitable. It was very busy and we met lots of other dogs, a few showed a bit too much interest in her so she ran off a couple of times but apart from that she was great. Came everytime we called for her when we saw different deer and horses so she did an excellent job.
She was a bit troublesome when we had a BBQ at night though, sneeking in to plates and steeling corn cobs and when we were through the house later on she topped off the rest of the cake plate!!! No wonder she had a bit of tummy ache through the night. She was much better today though and loved the walks we found on the way home for her. For Stafford show next year we found a fantastic after show walk Ali, all of the dogs would love it!!! It is only about 15 mins (including a wrong turning we made) from the hotel we stayed at at Stafford so not far at all.
Fantastic pictures from everyone, it is good to see the pups are all doing so well. We got a lot of springer or "funny type of spanniel" from people when Ceilidh was younger, we still do sometimes. The best was a few days ago when someone that comes to work didn't know what a munsterlander was looked it up and came back to me saying that it looked like a cross between a spanniel and a dalmation!!! Never heard that one before! It will be because of the flecks that some of them get but even so a Dalmation???
Ilka has fully recovered, just had an energetic game of fetch with Sid, but Dad's still calling her larger lout.
Have a HAPPY BIRTHDAY KAREN.
How did you all get on at Hall Barn? Hope you all had a good time.

Ringo's Morning

We took Ringo to a car boot sale today for some interaction with more people and dogs. He has a habit at barking at everyone on a walk. He loved the car boot and all the attention he got and he soon stopped the barking. We had a lot of comments ' what a lovely springer' mostly one even said 'I've got a springer collie X l he looks just like him' when we said he wasn't four months yet they were most surprised. I think we could have sold him a few times . Next week we are going to a barbeque at our allotment , and in July to the fun day at the local park. He is now asleep with his new elephant and Teddy bear:)
Hope all of you going to Hall Barn are having a good time today.

Well done to the winners at Windsor, pleased you had a good day Ali. Hope James's knee is OK and has a great time on the IOW. Are you home today?

Rosie, sounds like your water might have made you poorly. Hope they sort it out soon, I wouldn't drink the boiled water either. Lovely pictures of the puppies, they do grow quickly. Hope Ilka recovers from her hangover OK.

I'm busy cleaning carpets and getting ready for my big birthday this week when life really starts!

Larger Lout

Yesterday evening Dad went out the room to come back in to find Ilka with all four paws on the table drinking Stella Artois and shes had a lie in, Dads been calling her larger lout and Stella all morning.
Good luck at Hall Barn today.

Saturday 28 June 2008

Well done

Congratulations to all who won at Windsor. We are having fun here as our water has been contaminated with a bug so all water has to boiled even for animals . Its costing a fortune in bottle water as boiled then cooled water is horrible. We have been poorly for 2 weeks and I'm not convinced that it wasn't the water, almost everyone you speak to has had an upset stomach for weeks rather than days. Its going to be at least another 3 weeks before we are back to normal.
Today Ringo swam with Stig really properly for the first time he had a great time, Pete said he needed no encouragement he just followed. I loved the photo's of Brodie and Hudson they are all getting big.

Windsor and Catch up

We had a lovely day, and really needed to get out for the day and see friends, a bit tough once or twice when people asked after Leah but then they asked because they cared about her which was also nice if you know what I mean.
Kearen it was lovely to see you Maggie and Frank and I am sorry I didn't get to say goodbye, we were taking things back to the car when James got tripped up by a GWP who fancied Prima, he went flying and twisted his knee so coming back in was not possible as it hurt to walk on. I did ring Elle and explain, so sorry I didn't see you again. You are right Mathilde is Summer's daughter and Sella's sister, Ann did so well with her as it was her first show and she was rather naughty but she came second and qualified for Crufts so WELL DONE to them both. Sharon and Elspeth did really well too especially as little Genna was spooked by the low flying planes overhead. The judge has given Logi Best of Breed before so he couldn't go but Diva did and showed her socks off, we only managed a 3rd but then if you saw the results and knew the dogs you would see that any of the clear back and whites like Diva and Prima were chucked or down the end of the line, you get judges like that that have a dislike for certain colours and wont place them, either to white or too black!!!!
We got stuck in holiday traffic on the A303 so it took hours to get home but it was good to get in and see the others. Karen we must try and meet up at a show again and this time Summer will come, how about Richmond which is held at Guildford?

Thanks to Arlene and Katie for you lovely words and yes we miss Leah terribly it is so quiet and empty without her.

Love all the puppy pictures especially the alien one!!!!! Thanks Sharon for you lovely card and what fantastic writing you have. We are having a quiet weekend as James goes away for a week with his old school in Overton, he is so excited they are off to PGL camp at the Isle of Wight, so need to get his clothes washed and packed and he needs to re charge his batteries before he goes.

Looking forward to more pictures, thank you everyone.

WELL DONE

TO EVERY ONE WHO WENT TO WINDSOR
LOOKS LIKE YOU ALL DID VERY WELL
FOUND THE RESULTS :
http://www.highampress.co.uk/windsor/largemun.asp?show=Windsor%202008&ttl=Windsor%202008%20-%20Large%20Munsterlander
Dearest Ali, Andrew and James,
I'm absolutely devastated for you with loosing gorgeous Leah. Such a beautiful girl, and a dignified, effervescent character. You seem to be having such a very sad time at the moment, and myself, Stan and Nancy are thinking of you all. Huge commiserations on your very sad loss, and I hope your other fabulous furry friends are helping you through the grieving process. Apologies for not knowing about this sooner. Loads of love to you all xxxxxx

Friday 27 June 2008

So sorry Ali to hear about poor Leah, you must be missing her so much all of you, such a big empty space without them, Arlene

Hudsons Friday Night Walk

Hudsons Friday night walk to Parsons Meadow with his cousin Oscar








Windsor

Had a great day today at Windsor. Lovely to see you Ali and James again with the very lovely Prima and Diva (would have loved to have seen Summer!) - I did meet Ann and Mathilda though - hope I've got this right but I think Mathilda is a Summer baby - Stella's sister? She was lovely. Lovey to meet you Elspeth - congratulations on coming 3rd - really great as quite a large class - I came third with Maggie once but I wasn't showing her and there were only 3 in the class! LOL. I missed Ali and James going in so not sure what happened - so busy talking (or eating!) - but it was really great to meet so many Munster owners I hadn't met before. Sorry I didn't get to say goodbye Ali - thought you were coming back in - the weather did get bad though - I sent Frank all the way back to the car to get my coat and by the time he got back it stopped - ooops! We ended up in the benches tent rather that a beer tent but still nice to sit and chat and stay dry. Maggie enjoyed her day I think - I bought her an ice cream on the way out, her favourate - she is now collapsed fast asleep. Hope you all got home ok.







Here's a few pictures of Brodie's walk today. His teeth are coming in too but he hasn't lost any of his baby teeth yet. He weighed in at 17.6 kg at his visit to the vets this morning.

Hope everyone has a good weekend.

Teeth

I will be looking out for the teeth now though! Someone told me that they generally swallow them is this correct?

teeth

Do you think we will find any of the missing teeth? Last year we only ever found one of Stigs.
Hudson does look like he has been taken over by an alien :)
Love the pics Ali, Prima is a pretty girl and Diva, always like photos of beautiful Diva and handsome Jiggy, can't think why ;-), and the bottom two are funny.
Hudson does look abducted, Gald you had a good time Karen.
We're moving to the end of our workshop in 2 or 3 weeks which will be good.

Teeth

Glad you had good weather Karen!

Just had a good look at Hudsons teeth and yes he has his front two coming up behind his baby ones! ahhh

We're home

after a busy week at Butlins. The weather was kind after all so we had a good time and kept dry.

Lovely to be home and Domino is pleased to see us, although my friend has just told me that she took Domino for a walk each day we were away so she did have a nice time too.

Good luck to all at Windsor today. Ali, hope you have a good day.

Thursday 26 June 2008

Alien Munster!!

Has Hudson been abducted by aliens?!!

Thats so sweet that Ringo has lost some teeth and has new ones coming, aren't they growing fast. I don't think Hudson has lost any yet. Connie is still waiting for her first ones so maybe they will get them together!

Good luck everyone at Windsor x

Two front teeth

We were just playing with Ringo and have just noticed some of his front teeth are missing :) We can see the new ones coming through bless him, he's chewing everything he can at the moment. He has had a growing spell as well and is now bigger than Stig he's still my baby though.

Bon Jovi

Bon jovi where great has always, but why do people buy tickets and do nothing but shout at each other all the way through. If they want to chat do it after !!!!! I didn't want to move because we had a good spot.
After dragging Tony along with me over the last 8 years Bon Jovi finally played Blaze of Glory, which is Strider's name, then went on to play Summertime, Stella and Keep the Faith ,Beau so all the dogs songs played. My camera played up all my picture look like light has got into them, does this happen with digital ?
Anyway off to do some shopping for Ali now, then Windsor tomorrow.

Thanks and picture

Diva watching James and Prima train
Prima watching Diva this time, look at the black spots coming through in her coat, I think after this litter and she grows a proper coat she is going to be quite pretty and flashy and very spotty. Cleaning up we put Maddies bed on top of Primas, Maddie was not impressed and determind to still get into her bed.
Last thing at night and Maddie tells us she needs the loo, very well trained in the Blitzan home!!!!!
Karen and Domino I just wanted to say thank you so much, you know what for, really touched x x x x x x
Glad the weather is holding out for you Karen. When are you home? I work as a private medical secretary for a Professor of Endocrinology and because I work on my own at home I have no one else that can do my work if I'm away so if I can't do it there is no one else. His patient list is huge as he is the best in his field and at the moment I'm finding it hard to keep up. Maggie keeps me sane though! I'm finishing early today though and have tomorrow off to go to Windsor which I'm really looking forward to. So if anyone has any endocrine problems let me know )lol!

Wednesday 25 June 2008

Some lovely photos. Those puppies are beautiful Tracie, I wish I could have one right now.

Hope Bon Jovi were good tonight Judith!

What work do you do from home Karen?

Ali, hope you are OK.

Then end of a manic week at Butlins tomorrow. I am exhausted and all I do is follow the children around, dipping into my pocket for money every now and then. We have been lucky with the weather though so that's a relief. The children's school has an Ofsted inspection tomorrow, so it's probably a good job that Marcus won't be there to show off.

Missing Domino so much, will be glad to get home.
Had a stressful day today work wise - some times I think I'd like a less stressful job but not sure what else I could do and work from home, so will have to stick with it for now. Nice to see all the lovely photos on the blog. Zydo is a good looking boy. Tracie's puppies look scrumptious and some great photos of Ilka Sophie.

Prof Bedford was really nice Judith. Think he liked Maggie, she was very good letting him look in her eyes. When I got there they put the drops in and then I had to sit down with her and wait her turn. I sat next to a lady with three springers and a lab. She made a fuss of Maggie and said they're mad dogs these Munsters. Quite suprised me because no-one has ever know what she was before. After chatting she said she ran kennels and was a dog walker and had had a couple of Munsters to stay before. She said she thought they were lovely dogs but totally loopy and I don't think Maggie changed her opinion (lol

Really looking forward to the weekend with Windsor and Hall Barn. Maggie has been great with her training - such a quick learner, but I'm sure she will forget everything when it comes to Sunday!

PUPPIES

Oh my god Tracie, those puppies are georgous! Can somone move to Canada so I can go play with puppies and smell their puppy breath, oh how I miss the smell.

Photos

Random pictures of Zydo - haven't yet learnt how to display them properly.



Hope you enjoy the Bon Jovi gig Judith. Different sort of music but I'm off next month to see Leonard Cohen, a real hero of mine from too far back to mention who hasn't toured in this country for about 15 yrs.
!

Hopefully these shots will help cheer Ali up. The first 3 were taken when I visited my mum last week in Cardiff in the forest not far from her house - he was a bit surprised to meet up with a dragon but soon got the measure of him!







These two were taken on his first birthday. His birthday present lasted for all of 20 minutes!!!!! Have yet to find a "pull" toy (which he loves) that he can't destroy........



Ozzie pups

Ali, those pups are gorgeous....so chunky. I think you should hop on a plane and go get one right now.......then I woke up....if only.........
Hope you are all coping.
Hugggzzz Lindsey

Tracie's puppies in Australia

8 weeks old, there is one that is so like my Leah who is afterall Granny to them, but if she were here in the UK I think I would be having her.

Photos



Thought about putting these in two batches cos theres quite a few, hope you like them.
Wow that cat fish is huge and well done on the clear eyes Karen, good luck at hall barn every one going.

Raining here

Well it's just started raining here, hope its not going to be like it tonight has I am off to see Bon Jovi, for once they are playing in Bristol.
Well done on the clear eyes Karen prof Bedford is a lovely man. He comes out to my local kennels once a year so he always test my dogs.
The cat fishes where both over 100lb in weight, Tony also caught one of 142lb but he caught his at night or late evening and the only pic we got is from a Mobile phone , so not that good. They are off to Canada next year sturgeon fishing.
Hope you all have a good day today and i will put up pic from the concert tomorrow !!!!!!

Tuesday 24 June 2008

Some great pictures everyone. Wow Judith - the size of that cat fish - it's huge!!!!

I've been trying to do some trainnig with Maggie for Hall barn - but not going very well - she has decided that the dummies are worth a good shake and a chew before bringing them back to me, which is worse than she was before where she would just chuck it at me!

On a good note though I took her to Haddenham today to have her eyes tested with Professor Bedford and she is all clear.





Just a few old pictures. The duvet and pillows were in a pile to be flea sprayed and she adopted them as hers without batting an eye lid. Really looking forward to the weekend and seeing you Ali, thinking of you all. Ceilidh is wild tonight, in and out of the garden digging up all of the different chews we thought she had finished and tearing around the house with them. It is a pig snout at the moment.