Enter Brooke

The Duracell puppy joined us on 24th October, life has not been the same since introducing a girl into the pack!!!

` My Special Boy


December 22nd 1997 - August 19th 2012

We first met on 13th February 1997, I had gone to see a red merle bitch and on entering the room penned in a corner of the room were 9 puppies, but a little red and white boy stole my heart, but no, I was going to get a girl. All the puppies were let out into the room to play and although the little girl was lovely my eyes continually strayed to the red boy who after the third time of climbing into the coal bucket and becoming blacker by the minute I could resist no longer, so Roli aged almost 8 weeks came home that day to join Leo aged 6 months. From the moment they met they were best pals, sharing a bed and even chewing on the same bone, such a lovely pair.

Roli took to agility like a duck to water, his enthusiasm was boundless and although I never intended doing any shows, after his first run at Cranleigh Show we were hooked and so started a wonderful new life which for someone who had not had a holiday in 30 years was a revelation!

I remember the day Roli won me out of Elementary, he went like the wind and finished seconds ahead of the next dog. Perhaps speed was Roli's downfall as once in Starters and the jumps were higher poles often fell like rain but he was such a happy boy and we did so enjoy ourselves. When he went clear he was often in the top ten places, it was rare for him ever to miss a contact and I recall falling over, (as I so frequently do) but even so Roli remained steadfastly on the A Frame until I released him! His strange way of jumping with his hind legs tucked well underneath was often his downfall.

Roli hadn't a bad bone in his body, I have never known a dog with such expressive golden eyes, I used to awake every morning to find him gazing down at me, such a precious boy who went almost blind just before the end of his life, nevertheless he instinctively knew on walk when I was throwing toys, he would circled several times before running happily in the wrong direction....such a special boy who will always remain in my heart.

Training Morning

Photographs taken by Rosie Ison during Brigg's monthly training session with Natasha Wise on a cold frosty morning.

An Eventful Walk

Such a lovely day for a walk around the Nature Reserve when all went well until we were on our way back, I do constantly check that I have all my dogs but suddenly I realised that Roli was missing so I started walking back in the direction we had been constantly calling, to no avail. Sara and I then split forces and went in opposite directions around the lake, it is a very big lake too! It was not easy keeping calm knowing that my old boy might well be in a panic at being lost however Sara was convinced that all would be well as the nature reserve is well fenced in. There was no sign of him around the lake so Sara decided to return to the car park while I went in the opposite direction to the river calling all the time, there were few people about and the 3 I met had not seen him. The relief when Sara phoned to say she had him was enormous, he had found his way into a bog and could not get out by himself, Sara managed to lift him out none the worse for his ordeal, he had been missing for around 30 minutes! We surmised that at a certain point where the broadwalk is broken, (which is the route we always used to take before it was put out of commission) Roli must have veered off thinking that was the way to go. I must admit the thought that it was Friday 13th came to mind! Needless to say our walk was somewhat longer than intended and I notched up over 12 miles!

Farewell 2011

2011 has flown by and with it an eventful year of highs and lows fades into history.
The dogs had a good season, Brigg has amassed a goodly collection of trophies and won into Grade 4 in our home county of Lincolnshire making it a very special occasion, he is doing well in Grade 4 already having several 2nd and 3rd places under his collar. Keeto qualified for a Final at the JDA Show and did very creditably and Chart was finally promoted to grade 4 on points so I now have 3 grade 4 dogs which simplifies things for me. Kai, now aged 11 is semi retired and will only run in Veteran classes, he has been a great dog to train and compete with. Tambi now 13, does the occasional Allsorts when the jumps are at Micro height screaming his way around the course with excitement, so no change there! Roli celebrated his 14th birthday just before Christmas, despite being seriously ill during the summer with an infection in one of his heart valves he made an excellent recovery and is still full of energy and enthusiasm despite having impaired vision due to cataracts.
During September my niece Annabel gave birth to her 3rd daughter, Sophie Jane, sister for Lilly, 4 and 2 year old Jessica, bringing my brother's total of granddaughters to 7!
The development which has rumbled on beset with problems for almost 2 years still continues as the council turned down the plans which were finally reviewed on 7th December so we have to wait for an appeal plus revised plans which will mean another 4 to 5 months of living in a state of limbo. I really do not want to move and wish that my neighbours who have dragged me into this situation would sell their houses in the normal way.Since moving here some 29 years ago I have seen the building to the rear of my property replaced by two massive three storey offices, mainly glass, and the cottage next door into some 30 retirement flats so faced with yet another development dwarfing my little bungalow which would possibly have gone ahead without me was not an option!
I finally replaced my old van in September, at 11 years old it had served me well. I was so fortunate to find a 3 year old Mercedes automatic van already fully caged and fitted with a tow bar and dual electric's. It was strange not having a gear lever but I adapted very quickly.
Now that the show season is over we are enjoying long walks in a variety of places. I continue to teach, my adult pupil took her grade 2 exam a couple of weeks ago and despite pressure of work (she works for the Tax Office)! and not being able to put in the required amount of practising she managed to pass with 117 marks while another 13 year old pupil just missed a Distinction in Grade 4, a shame as she had worked so hard but suffered badly from nerves on the day.
May 2012 bring all my friends peace, joy, health and happiness.

Crackers!

Crackers are fun especially when one small great niece employing her body weight into pulling the cracker topples backward as the unexpected resilience of the paper object suddenly split, but no harm done and she was able to retrieve her prize from the floor wherein she lay!
How crackers have changed from those of my childhood which were of a stiff paper covered with brightly coloured crepe paper concealing a paper hat, cheap trinket and a snap which more often than not failed to produce the satisfactory 'crackle' when pulled. These days crackers come in all sizes plain or highly decorated according to price which of course reflects the quality of the gift concealed within. I cannot say that the quality of the jokes have improved though! One of my brother's most successful box of crackers contained a set of tiny hand bells complete with a numerical score for various carols and popular songs and nursery rhymes. After the fun and success of that first year these bells are now becoming a traditional ending to our Christmas meal and for the first time my orchestra swelled to 2 extra members aged 2 and 4 who made a very creditable contribution to our musical renditions!

Roli

My precious boy Roli is 14 today.