A bit of trimming (stripping), a bit of gardening ... it's all good :-)

After talking with a friend the other day, I got motivated to do some stripping on my 6.5 month old K-See son, Donny ...

I was happy to find out that he really didn't mind the whole process.  He's been worked on before, obviously (I get my puppies up on the table a lot actually, and from a very young age to get used to it) ... but not for a while, and other than the basics, not a lot.  Stripping isn't something that puppies love - adults don't seem to mind, but puppies aren't super happy about being restrained and the process.  But Donny didn't seem to mind at all, and was pretty cool with the whole stripping process ... I wonder if the dried chicken strips helped? :-)  So, if he sticks around as a show dog, this easy going attitude bodes well for more enjoyable trimming sessions -- for both of us! 

Michael grabbed the camera and took a few photos.  Here are a couple ... so, while you'll have to ignore the naked parts, based on what I am seeing, I'm thinking that he will stick around a little longer as a potential show dog!  In fact, I really like what I am seeing - up on leg (but not too much), nice short back (but not so much that he can't walk in a straight line), butt behind the tail :-) beautiful layback of shoulders - and of course (his moma had this also) gorgeous coat and color!  OK - he'll stay for a while longer :-)

That was yesterday.  Today, Michael and I decided to brave the elements (OK, it wasn't raining THAT hard!) and we went to a Rhododendon Plant Sale out in Langley.  The Fraser South Rhodo Society held their annual plant sale.  Donny joined us and got a LOT of attention there and at the nursery that we went to later on (and lot's of treats!) ... I got some really beautiful plants (Rhodos, Azaleas, Native Orchids, Clematis and another nice Dogwood Tree), and we all had a terrific time!  Not sure exactly when these will get planted since Michael's parents are coming in on Monday from Nova Scotia for the next few weeks - but that's OK, it's not hot weather yet and we'll get them in. 

If I don't update this for a while know that we will be spending lot's of quality time hanging out with the dogs (Michael's parents love them so much they have one of our retired show dogs - Sadie!) and I'm sure doing a bit of exploring in the Vancouver area - keeping our fingers crossed for good weather!

Side notes ... today really was a good day ... we came home from all of our 'out and about' with Donny - moved him to the front yard to run around and on the answering machine were 2 things ... (1) Andrew had called with the news that Joe got his 2nd AKC group placement (1st time in the ring as a "specials dog")! and (2) I WON a really beautiful Rhodo from the society's plant sale today (I always like to help out groups when I see a raffle - but I NEVER win!) ... I came out to tell Michael and the folks from the plant sale were at the top of the driveway with our plant!  This really was over the top, since they live an hour away.  I'll definetely go back to their plant sale again next year - and definetely bring another dog with me since Donny was such a hit today!

Earthdog events in the Vancouver area!

A fellow club member of the British Columbia All Terrier Club, which I am the President of, has provided information about upcoming Earthdog trials and practices.  This is in the Vancouver (BC - Canada) region ... for the Sea-to-Sky Earthdog Club.  Given that this is what the Welsh Terrier was originally bred to do, I thought that it would be useful for me to pass this information along.

Click this link for details!

If you are in the Vancouver area, have a terrier, want to see your friends instincts 'kick-in' for what they were originally bred to do, or just want to watch ... I encourage you to check this out!

Joe is now an American Champion!

Joe (now American / Canadian Champion Darwyn's I'm Not Arguing That) finished his American championship in style today! 

This weekend he went to the Northern California Terrier Association and Sacramento KC shows in California and went Best of Winners (or better) EVERY DAY!  The most exciting day was yesterday when he won BEST OF BREED, competing against his sire - a multi best in show and best in specialty show Welsh Terrier!  Click here for details.

Just think, a month ago Joe was home hanging out with Michael and I (and Paisa and the 6 month old puppies), and now he is a finished champion, and beat a dog that has been activelly campaigned for about 2 years!  WOW!  Of course, this is where you would expect a show picture - right?  Well, an earlier post this month has his first US Group placement photo, and don't worry, there will be time to get other show photos posted.  Today I wanted to show off his character!  The picture above was taken a month ago (very rough trimming by me) - he was on the deck for a few minutes and I guess decided that he wanted to come back in - and what better way to tell us, than to stare us down while being on the highest point he could get up on!  :-)
The ones below, taken a few months ago (obviously I had let his hair grow - and grow!) show him very interested in the world around him ... Michael, K-See and Joe and I had a great day out at Lighthouse Park!  One of my favorite places.

Joe is now my 12th American Champion Welsh Terrier!
(not counting Canadian Champions in this)! 
Another exciting thing (for me) today is that I also got a chance to see a litter he sired that are now 6 months old  ... all I have to say (well, 2 things) ... (1) I'm thinking that he has a stud future in front of him, and (2) I'm not really looking forward to competing in the ring against your offspring ... Brecon and his sisters, are very nice looking Welsh Terriers ... too bad I don't own them ;)

But seriously, I'm really proud of Joe - and him being my 12th Am. Ch.  As many people who know me, it is clear that I do not have (and never have had) a very large breeding program.  While Michael and I are retired and have the time (and property) to dedicate, we enjoy living with our dogs also.  A couple of years I have stretched things and have had 3 litters, but the vast majority of years that I have been involved, I have had 1 litter a year ... sometimes none.  I know that I could have made up more Am. champions than this (there are some pretty awesome looking pets out there!), however, as I say, you can't keep them all, and there are some amazing pet homes - right guys?  You know who you are - thank you :-)

Happy upcoming 11th birthday Sonney!

I received a wonderful message about Sonney tonight!  He was my 2nd Welsh Terrier.  I imported him from Wales in 2000, from the well known Felstead Kennels.  He sure was a sweetheart!  A few years later the perfect person came along - Irene had just given her family welshie to a close family member and really wanted one to replace him - Sonney fit her needs perfectly!  It sounds like they are both doing very well ... here is her message:

"He is the best and most affectionate dog in the world. My biggest problem with him is everyone is trying to kidnap him because he is so adorable. He helped raise a kitten and treated it like his baby -- that was so cute! He was really upset when we gave the kitten to my nephew (I was just caring for it for awhile). And, Sonney really gets along really well with with Sparkey, another Welsh Terrier I had adopted from Barb of Snowtaire kennels. I'll send more pictures soon!"

Doesn't that just want to make you smile?  Happy 11th birthday Sonney, and take good care of Irene!

Must do Joe's webpage ... 1st weekend out and Mrs. Michele Billings gave him Group 3! WOW!

1st weekend out and Mrs. Michele Billings found Joe a group placement (from the classes)!  Thank you!

Of course, Jenny Wornall presented him wonderfully, and a big thanks to www.mydogphoto.com for this great  photo!

A couple of weeks ago our boy Joe, (Can. Ch. Darwyn's I'm Not Arguing That) made the trek to California to join Wood and Jenny Wornall's team.
Joe finished his Canadian Championship pretty quickly as a puppy (a few Group placements and a Best Puppy in Show award ... Aaron, you did a great handling job that day!). While he was still 'in coat', I took him to a couple of US shows (where he got both of his majors -- owner/breeder handled, and a Group 2 in the Bred-By Group at Northern California Terrier Association in Sacramento). After last summer, I just let him grow up at home while were mostly preoccupied with lot's of puppies. Joe's hair grew (and grew and grew) ... he had a blast playing with the young puppies and being Paisa's running mate in the yard and on the couch.
A couple of months ago I decided that his coat was a 'do-over' ... and wouldn't you know it, but he had grown up and had a beautiful welshie body under all of that hair! Given how much he LOVED the show ring as a youngster, I seriously started to consider "specialing" him in Canada ... and then Woody and I chatted.

The decision was previously made for Parker to come home, play a bit in the Canadian show rings, and enjoy home life on our acreage for a while. I decided to send a few pictures of Joe in my rough trimming to get their opinions on how he was growing up, and they were VERY excited about what they saw!  I must admit, I was also with what I saw :-)

I made a couple of travel arrangements -- Woody drove (back) down to LAX the day after he came home from CRUFTS (he was THAT excited about picking up Joe) and we changed a few entries around.  Well, Andrew Peel and Wood & Jenny Wornall tidied him up to get him into the start of a show coat and away they went to Yosemite KC in California a couple of weeks later.

I was on cloud 9 when I went to the new website (http://www.dogshowresults.com/) and saw that his FIRST weekend in the ring, he was awarded a GROUP 3 (and at a place where there were some pretty darn nice terriers!). I am very grateful to Mrs. Michele Billings for "finding" him a Group placement, and recognizing his quality - from the classes!

Moma Sadie (Mercedes -- Am/Can Ch. Darwyn Class at a Glance), a Montgomery Winners Bitch herself, will be very proud I am sure - her new owners (Michael's parents :-) will be here pretty soon for a visit from Atlantic Canada and I can't wait to share this news with them!

I guess I now need to do Joe's page on my website.  Well, our guest that we have had here for the last week goes home tomorrow, so perhaps I'll work on it soon after that.  I'll at least try to get around to that. :-)

Paisa's siblings reunite for a wonderful day in the park!

Today we had an amazing day at a local park ...
... good weather, great friends, 3 very happy (6 month old) puppies and a very happy little girl!
(click here for more photos)

Michael and I have had a guest stay with us for the last few days, up from Oklahoma City, with his welshie girl Charlie (Paisa's full sister).  As it turns out , Jerry is quite aware of Paisa's son, Grover, from my page for him on my website, and their owners pictures of Grover on their own website (owner is a talented website designer, database developer/programmer, and photographer).  I just love Grovers family (and Tyler, who isn't quite 3 years old yet, constantly amazes me!), and since they live fairly close, I thought that it would be fun to meet up with the siblings.  Well, we had a GREAT day out!  We met at the park, had a wonderful walk and just had a whole lot of fun.  Cosmo (the girl at the back of the picture) enjoyed herself and Monty (on the left) had a BLAST running around with his brother Grover (on the right).  All of the puppies went home after that late morning excursion "tired and shagged out after a long squak" -- as Michael would say, Tyler had fun playing with all of the puppies, the few mud holes and the sand box, I left knowing that I made an awesome decision months ago when I placed Grover with this family and it seemed like Jerry really enjoyed the puppies, the group and the experience to see relatives of his girl (Am. Ch. Sanherpinc Nora Charles - or as they refer to her in the therapy dog world - Charlie) :-)
I'm looking forward to meeting up again guys!

To see more photos - click here - and Martin (Grover's owner) put up a bunch of photos from today.

Yippee! Becky's mammory lump is benign! Please check your older girls!

A few weeks ago, Becky's owner Kate found a small - pea sized - lump near one of her nipples.  Kate's vet informed her that girls that are spayed later in life are suspectible to this.  It turns out that with each heat cycle, the hormones can encourage things to develop.  I am writing this blog post today to encourage others to screen your older dogs, and just be aware of what is on their bodies (and you can do this with a daily dose of belly rubs!)  In the chance that a lump is not benign it is much better to find it earlier rather than later.  So, please check your girls - I am SURE that they will enjoy the process (I know that mine sure enjoy their belly rubs!).

The GREAT news for 11 year old Becky, is that the 2 lumps they discovered, after a biopsy was done, are benign!  Whew! 

Here are a couple of pictures taken of Becky recently - last month when we all met to go for a walk, and then just relaxing at home - not a care in the world! ... Click here if you want to see her in her younger days (PS. she still kayaks a number of times a week, but Kate tells me that they will hold off for the next couple of weeks, until the stiches heal!).  What a life, eh? :-)

Let's not make it 6+ years until we meet again ... ok?

Parker (Am. Ch. Darwyn's Webslinger) came home -- woo hoo! ... but, tonight's blog isn't about that ... I'll do one about that (and the dog show) a bit later, ok?  Tonight I wanted to just say how wonderful it was to see Peggy and Dylan again!

Parker came home late last Tuesday night, and since he was in *perfect coat condition* (thank you Wood & Jenny Wornall and Andrew Peel!) and there was a dog show in Red Deer, Alberta a few days later, I decided to drive there and show him for the 2nd time in his life in Canada (1st time he was just barely 6 months old).  I took both Parker and a 6 month old puppy (Monty) with me.  Six and a half years ago I placed a puppy with an Airedale owner who had recently parted with her previous Welsh Terrier.  This boy - Dylan (U-CDX Darwyn Hotspur CDX, RX, AgX, AgXJ, MADC, RL3) has gone on to do some pretty amazing things.  He is at the top levels in Agility, has done very well in Obedience and recently started (and done well in) Rally-O ... it sounds like he is going to be doing some Earthdog trials too!  I haven't seen him since he was a young puppy, but I have to say that by his (conformation) looks, I could have EASILY finished his Canadian and American Championship -- he has a beautiful structure (front and rear), perfect size at 15" tall at the shoulder, beautiful welshie expression, and definetely "welsh terrier" by looking at him -- not overdone and certainly not slight ... a really beautiful boy, who also has the attitude that he "owns" everywhere that he walks into!  I must admit, I was *very* happy to see how he was looking!  So, while he is neutered and not in my 'breeding program', he is certainly representing the breed well when he goes out to the dog shows to do his obedience - Rally-O - Agility, and whatever this team decides to do!

Peggy and I went for a walk with Monty and Dylan ... and then Parker and Dylan ... and then Monty and Reggie (her Airedale) and later had Parker and Reggie play together.  What fun!  We were at a ~500 dog/day dog show (that also likely had another couple of hundred, at least, dogs competing in Obedience and Rally-O) ... well, when Peggy took Dylan's leash off and started to do some of her training exercises with him .... I stopped what I was doing and just stared!  What a team these two make!  Now, I know that this didn't just happen overnight - there was a lot of hard work that went into this, but by the looks of it, they are both having fun and clearly (by the rock hard condition that Dylan is in) it is great exercise also!

I had a great time visiting with them this weekend - really loved seeing Dylan and Peggy again ... enjoyed meeting her Lakeland Terrier breeder friend and I know that Monty and Parker also enjoyed the experience of playing with new friends (especially Reggie the Airedale ... the boys clearly like their girls, no matter what their size! :-)  I only wish that I had brought my camera.  DARN!

If you want to see more of Dylan - check him out on my website:
http://www.hotchin.net/welshterrier/photos-and-stories/peggy-and-dylan.html

After having so much fun this weekend, I have decided that I am NOT going to let it go 6+ years again before meeting up with Peggy and her terrier gang! 

Now, I'm off to bed as we have an exciting day tomorrow .... Paisa's sister is coming with her owner all the way from Oklahoma!  I'll try to recount in our next post Parker "debut" weekend in Canada! By all of the comments from everyone - he looked EXCELLENT!  :-)

Now ... go and play with and hug your doggies - that's what Michael and I did this evening! :-)

Why so many re-homing requests?

I don't know what has been happening lately, but over the last couple of weeks I have had NUMEROUS requests from people asking me to re-home OTHER BREEDERS' Welsh Terriers.  I am really happy to help people find out about the breed (invite many to my home to "meet the breed"), to see if this is the right breed for them (and encourage them to look at other breeds, when this really isn't the breed for their situations), to provide education and mentorship, and to help match up people with Welsh Terriers, when the need arises.

If I ever place a puppy, or dog, in a home where things don't work out, I take the dog back or find a suitable home for it.

Obviously not all breeders do this.  What really irks me is that I seem to be the FIRST CALL that people are reaching out to.  Either they know that their dogs breeder has no interest in re-homing their dog (got their money and the rest is up to them, I guess), or they see that I am active in this breed that I love, so I must be able to help them out.  Well, I can ... and will ... and do.  But, you know what?  I have a life also.  I have my own dogs and I have my time that I give to people that have one of my dogs - or people that are going to get one of my dogs in the future.  I am not a public service, for everyone to turn to simply out of convenience, simply because they don't want to bother their own breeder.

Folks - if you need your Welsh Terrier re-homed, and it isn't one that I bred, please contact your breeder first.  They need to know, and the rest of us need to know who these people are that are selling puppies that have no intention of helping out their owners after they get your money.  So ... come to me, but come to me after you first contact your breeder and be prepared to tell me who your breeder is.  It just might help that breeder understand that some of their dogs are being rehomed by other people.

Lastly - I know that puppies are cute .... please think about how that puppy is going to be in a couple of years and whether or not this really is the right breed for you.  If you are not active, perhaps get another breed ... if you live in an apartment and work all day, perhaps get another breed.  Or - perhaps you would like a retired show dog - one that isn't quite as demanding on your attention.

For people reading this - if you have an interest in a slightly older Welsh Terrier (2 to 5 years old), there just might be one available for you to give a new lease on life ... just not one that I have bred, at least not at the moment.

Happy Birthday Paisa!

Happy 4th birthday girl - you are our sweetie!

Your puppies turned 6 months old a couple of days ago and you are enjoying life on the couch and running in the yard with them (and us) :-)

Am / Can Ch Sanherpinc Paisa