A sad day

Yesterday was a very sad day. After a year long struggle with chronic renal failure, Ch. Castlewood WhyaskWhy at Surry crossed the rainbow bridge. She was 14 years old and remained alert with a strong heart right up to the end.

I knew that this day was going to come but still wasn't prepared. As we took our final walk in the morning, she came right along with me. But renal failure had taken its toll (I'll write about this in a later post).

Tilly was quite the girl. I remember her as the boldest and baddest of the puppies that Gina Cheatham and Robin Moody had from their breeding of Ch. Sumo's Ahoy All Decked Out CD to Can. Ch. Ranbourne This Bud's For You. She bossed everyone from the time she was able to crawl. Tilly became my first BISS winner and produced BISS winners herself. Her son Ch. Surry's Brick in the Wall became a BIS winner which is infrequent in the Labrador world.

Yesterday was filled with a lot of tears, but today I am grateful to have had her in my life. She opened up doors to friendships, taught me that patience is a virtue and that dogs can be stubborn as mules. She was a grand old girl.

Rest in peace Tilly. I'll see you on the other side.

Please.....

The following is reprinted from Indigo Ravenwood's blog Shattered Prose. It really touched my heart.


"I’m a writer.

But it’s not all I am.

I’m also someone who rescues animals; strays to be specific.

Tonight I just want to be the writer. Because I don’t really know how much more my heart can take - how much more compassion, endurance or fortitude, I have left to watch another life slip out of my hands. Only to realize too little, too late and wonder was it enough?

I didn’t ask for this. Never in my wildest dreams did I foresee this for myself. Yet here I am, sitting with a heavy heart and trying my damndest to make some sense out of it all.

Counting slowly back through my memories, names and personalities remind me of the ones that survived, the strays I did manage to make a difference for.

I’m only one person.

They all had homes before me, a place where they lived and learned to be domesticated. The question remains, what happened to those homes?

They come to me broken and unsure if I’m trustworthy. Will I chase them away, kick them or scream at them? “Don’t come any closer,” their stance says, betraying the fear they have of humans.

Patience slowly wins them over.

I can’t describe the joy as unique personalities emerge and most importantly trust is gained. Eyes lit up in expectation and excitement to see you, until finally the one moment that gives way to all your patience, the rub. The classic don’t hurt me; I’m going to try to let you close enough to pet me move. And I melt.

Why?

Because the evidence of the road they traveled to get to me is there for all the world to see in each scar, the missing hair, the bug bites and the skinny frame from lack of food.

Yet for one moment they dared to trust and I was worthy.

I’ve seen this same scenario play out over and over. I don’t get it. I don’t understand how someone could cruelly pull up in a car and toss them out, or one day suddenly decide they weren’t worth the time and lock them out of the only home they ever knew. I don’t understand how someone can simply stop caring.

As a writer, I take my writing seriously. As a pet owner, I take their lives into account from beginning to end. There is no, I changed my mind they’re too much work. There is no, I don’t have time or patience for this.

Kittens and Puppies don’t stay that way forever, they grow up, they get old and they need to be taken care of every single day of their lives.

So the writer in me is using the biggest tool I have available to me – my words, to ask, please be responsible pet owners. Know what you’re getting into before taking that leap and falling for a pet that will be the recipient of whatever decisions you make.

If you think you have what it takes to go the distance, please consider a shelter or abandoned animal. All they want is to be loved. They never asked to be thrown away.

Maybe someday everyone who owns an animal will take that responsibility seriously and I won’t feel the need to make a heartfelt plea like this. I don’t know if my heart can take losing another stray, wondering if they had enough time to know someone cared. I’m only one person, one writer, one human being. Stop and think before you give a pet for a gift this holiday or any day and make sure you understand what that new puppy or kitten entails. Please…"

Halloween Dog

Camryn, one of the Surry girls owned by Mardy, will be going to two Halloween parties this year. One of her parties will be at the Franke Home where she will entertain residents. Here is her cute costume:


I think that she will be a big hit at both parties.

The end of summer

I thought that I'd post some photos from the great time that the dogs had in the water this summer. Some are my dogs and some are ones that I received from other people who own one of our dogs.

Anyway, the great thing about Labradors is that beach weather for them is all year round.

Updating

I don't know where the time goes but it has flown by. Here is some of the news that has occurred since the last time I posted:

• I received a photo of the Weimaraner that I picked for Best of Breed at the Clermont show in Ohio. Unfortunately, I didn't get any photos of the Labradors that won. But I thought that the Weim was quite nice.
• Barrett sired a nice litter of puppies out of Ch. Bayou Bay Blond Ambition JH. There were ten puppies born (6 black boys, 1 black girl, and 3 yellow girls) and all are doing well.
  
• I received word that Sally Wright's wonderful old boy Ch. Wright's Bennigan of Millab CD JH passed away. I remember when Benn was just a baby and Sally was showing him to me at a dog show. Rest in peace Benn.
  
• Speaking of getting older, Tilly, our old grande dame is still hanging in there and enjoying life. She will be 14 years old on November 22. She has some trouble now and again with a bladder infection and her kidney creatinine levels are regularly high, but she is a tough old girl. I hate to think about losing her.

• I heard from Ann and Paul Key that their Neilley celebrated her sixth birthday in August. She enjoyed a birthday cake decorated with a pupperoni stick. Neilley had a slow start in life as it was touch and go for a few days until I started nursing her with a bottle. She latched on and grew strong. Now she is Ann and Paul's constant companion as they travel with their Heelin' Hound business. Happy birthday Neilley.

The dogs are enjoying the slightly cooler temperatures. I am enjoying them too! If you have something that you would like for me to post about or photos to share, please send them along.
I have some emails to answer and photos from summer activities to post and will get around to that soon.

Dogs are enjoying the weather

The dogs are enjoying these cooler mornings. Although the summer hasn't been too hot, it is nice to have low humidity and some cooler weather at 6 AM.

The hounds and Tilly are the first to go for their walk. Tilly is slower than the greyhounds! She is 14 and still trots along. Fortunately, the greyhounds are respectful of her.

After their walk, the other Labradors get turned out in the paddocks. They run around, sniff, do their business, and chase each other. They stay out for a couple of hours until my husband feeds them. It's great that he is retired because the dogs get to spend much of the day outside in their paddocks.

When we were both at work, we didn't like to leave them out in case they decided to dig out or a fence got breached. Even though we are a mile down a dirt road, it is still easy for these dogs to get to the main highway.

So the dogs are enjoying the best parts of the day, the early morning and late afternoon. I guess that I am too!

Getting through provisionals

I went to the Cleremont County show in Ohio to judge last Sunday. The entry was small in Labradors. I had a good entry in Weims but on the day of judging there were quite a few absentees. Because I am still provisional for Weims, I need to be observed three times by the AKC representative at a show.

Unfortunately, due to the absentees, there weren't five bitches to be observed on. This is a disappointment since there is little reimbursement for expenses when one judges. Most small clubs only pay $3.00 a dog when one has a provisional assignment. So after all is said and done, I didn't get observed.

Of course, I enjoyed being there. I enjoyed the dogs and the people. I did get to be mentored in Golden Retrievers which was interesting and informative. Hopefully, I will be able to finish up what is needed to get to regular status with Weims (being observed) and then can apply for goldens.

I'm seeing why those who want to judge start at a young age. This is a time consuming and expensive process.

Posting again

I have been negligent in posting to the blog. In fact, it's been too long since I've posted. So I decided that I needed to become active on this site and put up some information.

The incident with the surrender of about 50 Labradors made me realize how important it is for breeders to know when they are over their head. The man who surrendered these dogs was a former President of the Hoosier Labrador Retriever Club. He was a respected Labrador breeder. But apparently he fell on hard times and did not reach out for help when it became clear that he could no longer give quality care to his dogs.

I know that breeding and showing dogs is an expensive hobby. And having 50 dogs to feed, vet, and care for can be very expensive. It's well for every breeder to assess whether of not they have the time and money to care for the animals that they own.

Many labs surrended at shelter in Indiana

The Morgan County Humane Society got an unexpected delivery and they desperately need your help. A breeder who fell on financial hard times had to get rid of more than 40 dogs and puppies.

Even before you step inside in the Morgan County Humane Society, you can hear dogs barking.

"Our capacity is fairly small compared to some shelters and to have this much come in in one day," said Matthew McPherson with the Morgan County Humane Society.

The shelter off West Mitchell Street in Martinsville is normally busy with activity, but they're now overwhelmed after getting such a large animal drop off.

"Our typical capacity is about 45 dogs and puppies total and in just one run we had picked up 48 dogs," McPherson said.

Last week, Morgan County deputies brought 38 adult labs, 10 puppies, a cat and two quail to the shelter. They rescued each one from the same place.

"It's pretty sad, it makes you want to help it makes you want to come and get one," Mary Cramblett of Indianapolis said.

Officials say the owner of the animals fell on financial hard times and did not know where to turn to get help.

"Once they are in good sound health, then we would be able to adopt them out to the public," McPherson explained.

According to officials at the Humane Society, when the puppies arrived last week they were emaciated, flee-infested and malnourished. But now they are full of energy and they've bounced back.

"The conditions when we got them in were just completely horrible," McPherson said.

The adult labs are separated from the puppies, one of them even showed signs of malnutrition.

"Some of them were as low as 30 pounds for an adult lab," said McPherson.

Now officials are working to get the labs back in shape. They're also depending on their volunteers and dog lovers to help find them good homes.

"All the animals that are here; it's not there fault that they are here and it's people that do things that they shouldn't be doing and it's up to who ever can help out to come out and help out," Chris Beasley of Morgantown said.

The Morgan County Humane Society is looking for foster homes for the Labrador Retrievers. They are also in need of monetary and food donations. If you would like to help you can contact the shelter at 765-349-9177.

You can also go to the Morgan County Humane Society web site and make a donation via Pay Pal. These labs are in need of a lot of attention.

Mr. Cooper died today

Mr. Cooper, a friend's greyhound, was put down this afternoon after a bout with osteosarcoma. It's bone cancer and very painful.

Cooper was a greyhound rescued from the track. He loved to run and especially liked to run on the beach and at dog park. He would show off for the crowds. Last month, he developed a limp that wouldn't go away. An x-ray revealed bone cancer.

Cooper was on pain medication but amputation of the limb wasn't an option. Within the last few days, the pain medication wasn't doing much. He was crying out in pain. So after a final walk in the surf this morning, he went peacefully this afternoon.

The photo above was taken this morning as he enjoyed his last time at the beach where he loved to run.

I'm going to post more on this devastating disease later.

Merry Christmas to all

I haven't written here for a while and will have to catch up. So here are some things that have gone on:

Thanksgiving--it was a nice day with good food for people and the dogs. It's actually my favorite holiday because it is so low key. And the dogs benefit from the turkey left overs.

Judging--I went to Florida to judge an all breed show and had a fairly low entry with Labradors. It's okay as I got to combine it with a mini-vacation to visit St. Augustine and a few other places.

Christmas--It's been a nice time. I've enjoyed the festivities, the time off to play with the dogs and go to doggy park, and just relaxing. The dogs once again got quite a feast of turkey and ham scraps added to their kibble. I also went to a few parades and enjoyed my time out on the water.

I hope that each of you had a great holiday. I hope to be more on focus with posting to the blog. It's easy to get sidetracked with other things.

Cool weather at last

Tonight it may actually go below freezing here. I know that many areas of the country have had frost and even snow. We are a bit cold weather resistant here due to proximity to the coast.

So we've put straw in the kennels so that the Labradors can hunker down. They love having new straw, as evidenced by their running around inside their houses, rooting at it with their noses, and then flopping down with only their noses exposed. Labradors really like to snuggle in that straw although I doubt that they would be too cold without it. They have excellent coats right now.

Over a few days, the straw will start to get mashed down and pulled out side their houses. About every 2 weeks it has to be changed out and fresh straw put in. I've never had any problems with the Labradors getting skin or eye problems from the straw. But it is necessary to change it out before it starts to break down.

Of course, the older guys and the greyhounds are in the dog room with a heater. Tilly is still the queen and hanging in there at 14 years of age. The greyhounds don't like to get chilly, although they don't seem to mind going for a walk on the beach or running at dog park.

Hope that your dogs are all ready for the cold weather that is to come.

Biting the hand

A friend of mine adopted a Lhasa Apso when one of her greyhounds died from cancer. She had decided that she wanted a small dog. The Lhasa had a temperament problem from the beginning. He was an un-neutered male who was crate protective and who growled whenever anyone would try to pet him.

She had him neutered and worked with him extensively. He went with her everywhere. She could groom him and hold him up near her but there were also times when he would suddenly get a demonic look in his eyes and growl.

She asked me to let him out one afternoon as she was going to be away until late in the evening. I was supposed to walk him on a leash of course. However, he wouldn't let me put a leash on him. He looked at me and growled menacingly. So I lassoed him with the leash. The problem came in trying to get the leash back off him. He barked, growled and lunged when I tried to take the leash off. So I left it on him and beat a fast path to the car.

Eventually, my friend revealed that the dog had bitten her toe and then her little finger. She took him to a no kill shelter to see if he could be adopted but no one wanted the growling Lhasa. I urged her to work something out to place him because it seemed that it wouldn't be long before someone would be hurt by this little dog.

The other day, she called to tell me that he had bitten her hand, hung on and had put deep puncture wounds in her flesh on the top and bottom of her hand. She went to the emergency room. And she called to ask if I would take the dog to the Charleston County SPCA.

So I picked up her little dog and took him to the shelter. I'd never dropped off an animal there or even been to the shelter. Thankfully, there was an open house going on so there were lots of staff available. I found someone that I knew and told her about the problem of the aggressive Lhasa. She helped me to get him to the intake staff who gave me paperwork to fill out on his owner's behalf.

The dog is now at the shelter and will be there for 10 days because he bit his owner. He has been deemed unadoptable. I realize what the result will be. But it makes me sad that this little dog had a great home, but due to poor breeding and perhaps lack of socialization early in his life, he now faces death.

I wish that things had turned out better for all concerned.

Moose is adjusting

Moose Traks, the rescued greyhound, seems to be doing well. He lets us know when he wants to go out. He is now sleeping in the house at night, without a crate. He leaves the cats alone and only seems interested when the Siamese decides to run like crazy away from him.

The only issue that I had was that he likes to pick up anything left on the floor and play with it. I left a pair of undies in the "dirty" clothes pile and he grabbed them, played with them and then proceeded to rip them. So everything has to be picked up which isn't a hardship since I don't like to leave any clothes on the floor anyway.

Fortunately, Moose doesn't like to chew up toys. His room during the day has lots of dog toys and he seems to not be interested in them. I worry about the dogs chewing up and swallowing any clothing or stuffing from toys. It can cause a blockage and in many cases, such a blockage will cause the intestine to deteriorate resulting in death to the animal. So if you have a Lab who is prone to chewing up toys or eating clothing, be very careful. It's best to remove anything that would be a potential danger and let them play with toys only under supervision.

What dog showing should be about

The following was sent to me by Ann Key. I thought that it was a particularly nice story. It may be true or not, but it gives a good feeling to me as it indicates how the sport of showing dogs is supposed to be.

"Yesterday, I experienced a very unusual thing indeed. It might restore someone's faith in humanity! I know it did mine.

As with all forms of competition, there comes a certain amount of ambition, goal grabbing, disappointment, anger and even revenge in extreme cases. Some of it, is just the nature of competition, the majority of it is just malice. Dog showing is no exemption.

Unfortunately, all too often I have stood at ringside and heard malicious comments, bitching and bickering. Dog show people can be very cruel to each other sometimes. I have on occasion been the brunt of these comments, but that's another story.

Well, yesterday I had a breath of fresh air, as it were. I was stewarding at the Rough Collie Club of Ireland's Championship show. It's a relatively popular breed here in Ireland. Always a big entry. They had a wonderful judge from the U.K. This lady has been in the breed since 1949. So, it goes without saying, I was pretty privileged to steward for her.

Anyway, just before the Novice class, one of the club official's came into the ring and, I overheard her tell the judge about the one entry in the class. I thought it was unusual that there was only one entry in the class, but later found out the reason why!

I called the class, and, in walked an old man and his Rough Collie. I've only ever seen this man at our St. Patrick's Day show. He's an old man, rough around the edges and, well, his dog, is really unkempt by show standards. He marched proudly into the ring with the dog on a great big thick rope lead!

While the judge was going over the dog, I was filled in on his story. I was told that he lives in an old folks home in Galway. (The other side of Ireland.) He has no family left living and no visitors at the old folks home. He's been showing this dog for eight years only ever on St. Patrick's Day or the Club show. He'd traveled 150 miles on a bus yesterday morning. Which takes about 5 hours in Ireland. The nurses in his home, usually phone the club to tell of his departure, and the club usually phone back when they spot this old man at the show. He has only ever shown the dog in Novice, and people over the years never compete against him.

The nurses told the club officials that when he wins a rosette at a show he wears it for weeks at home in the old folks home. The dog lives with him at the home and, is quite a celebrity "Show dog" with all the residents. The pride and joy of this man's life. He spends half the year, telling people about the last dog show and the other half of the year, looking forward to the next one!

Anyway, the judge was so considerate to this man. And, boy was he proud to show his dog off. When the judge asked could she look at the dog's teeth, "Oh yes," the man replied and instructed the dog to "Smile." With that the dog showed off a perfect set of choppers! The judge replied "Aren't you a clever dog?" With that the man said "Oh, he is very clever, he'll shake your hand too if you like!" I couldn't help smiling when I heard this, and full credit to the judge, she shook hands with the dog.

The dog won first in the class and every exhibitor at the show, gave this old man and his dog a standing ovation. He was cheered and clapped as he did his own lap around the ring. People came over to the ringside to congratulate and pat the man on the back as he left the ring. Talk about Elvis leaving the building, this man was certainly the king when he won his class. He was just so proud of his accomplishment. He lapped up every minute of it.

It was the first time I'm sad to say that I've seen people being genuinely nice at a dog show. They really made this old man's day. Possibly his year! Heaven help the residents at the old folks home when he returned home last night. Not only did he win a rosette but also won a great big trophy. I'm sure it will take pride of place on the mantle piece.

Isn't this what dog showing SHOULD be about?? Giving people like this old man a day out to enjoy the only family he has. His best pal, his dog. A memory for an old man to hold on to, to brighten his day, something to share with his friends at the old folk's home? Something to be proud of, however small the achievement?

Anyway, that's the story, just a thought, an observation and possibly an inspiration to us all? I know it's one of the happiest memories I have of a dog show." Author Unknown

Catching Up

I don't know where the time has gone but it has flown by. A lot has happened since my last post about dear Belle. Since then, I've added another greyhound which is a unique story.

I've had Hoffa since January. She was adopted through Greyhound Crossroads. I really like her personality. She loves other dogs and people and gets along with the cats too. So I wrote to the kennel where she came from to ask if there were any of her siblings available for adoption. I found the information about the kennel on the Greyhound Database. I knew that a couple of her siblings had been adopted. I didn't hear anything for a while but then an email arrived from Joanne at Greyhound Crossroads. She told me that Hoffa's littermate, Moose Traks, was available for adoption.

So I drove up to Clinton Animal Hospital to meet Dr. Dixon and pick up Moose Traks. He had been neutered and had been in recovery from his surgery until I could come get him. He is just like Hoffa--friendly, happy, like cats, and enjoys meeting people and other dogs. So far there is nothing about him that isn't great. He enjoys staying with Tilly during the day while we are away from the house. He loves the other Labradors and ignores his sister! I'll be posting more photos of Mr. Moose here soon.

The great news is that all of Hoffa and Moose's littermates have now been adopted. And their dam, Tycam Lebatts has also been adopted. That's a happy story.

Some things are hard to talk about

I've avoided writing about this topic because it has been too difficult to do so. I received word about a month ago that Surry's Division Belle, a daughter of Ch. Surry's Interstellar Overdrive, was attacked by other Labradors and died from her injuries.

Belle's story is one that has haunted me for a long time. It started when she was sold to a couple who wanted to show her. I won't go into the specifics here, but the situation proved to be one in which Belle was not what the couple wanted. I co-owned Belle and after much discussion with the couple, it was agreed that she would go to a friend of theirs who trained dogs and promised to give Belle a good home.

And this is where I am at fault. Rather than buy Belle back from the couple, I talked to the lady who wanted Belle, and agreed that it was best that she go to this new home. All seemed to be going well until I heard that she had been attacked by her dogs, was severely injured, and subsequently died.

I am convinced that the lady who had Belle is indeed heartbroken about this. But I am also convinced that such a tragedy could have been prevented--if I had bought Belle back and brought her to Surry to live out her life.

Over my years as a breeder, I have only had a few bad experiences. And the ones that weigh heavy on me are with those individuals to whom I've sold a dog to "show". No bad experiences have been had with those friends of mine who were showing and got a puppy from me. The problems were with individuals who I didn't know personally but who wanted to get started in the breed.

I know now that wise words told to me by an old timer years ago ring true--Never sell a puppy for show, unless you know the individual well and count them as your friend. Even then, be cautious and have everything in writing.

Poor Belle--you deserved a lot better.

Memorial tribute

The last day of Beach Bound Hounds included a sunrise memorial service for all the greyhounds that were living and those that had passed on. It was really moving to see so many people write the name of their beloved pet in the sand as the sun rose.

There were prayers for those greyhounds that were with us still and hopes that we could all join together again next year with our dogs. At the end, we each received a memorial charm for the loss of a loved companion. I haven't lost a greyhound since Hoffa is my first one. But this memorial service made me think about all the Labradors that have died over the years. I thought about Cain, Doc, Daisy, Haley, Clondike, Annabelle, Porter, Tombee, Gabby and others that have met untimely deaths or passed on with old age. Too many little puppies that never made it past one or two days of life or were still born. All were in my thoughts. I don't think any of us left the beach that morning without tears in our eyes.

First day of Beach Bound Hounds

Today was the first full day of the Beach Bound Hounds get together. Every year for the past eight, members of Greyhound Crossroads adoption group put together a big meet and greet for greyhounds and their owners. This was my first year attending.

I didn't know any of the people but soon met them through a common love of our adopted friends. There were seminars on first aid for dogs, greyhound cancer research, agility with your greyhound, and a canine good citizens test.

I think that the thing that Hoffa enjoyed most was going for long walks on the beach with the other greyhounds. Hoffa is the black and white girl taking up the rear on the photo above. She really enjoyed the other dogs and wanted to do her bouncing for joy routine to show off for the other dogs. I had to laugh at the comment that she was full of herself. Obviously, these folks haven't lived with Labradors! Now they are totally full of themselves and are so much stronger than greyhounds. Having had bouncing Labradors on the leash for so many years, it feels like next to nothing to have a greyhound on the end of the leash.

Our first day at the BBH get together was fun.

Off to Beach Bound Hounds

I'm heading up to Myrtle Beach for the annual Beach Bound Hounds event. It is a gathering of rescued greyhounds and their owners. This will be the first year that I am attending since it's the first year that I have owned a greyhound.

Hoffa is going with several different "outfits"--new martingale collars with one being a zebra striped number and the other a tropical fish collar. There will be lots of opportunities for her to meet other greyhounds and for me to listen to seminars on first aid, cancer in greyhounds, and to participate in beach walks and the greyhound memorial gathering.

I think that the Labradors are a bit jealous. I know that Tilly misses Hoffa when she is away. Well, I'm off to pack for Beach Bound Hounds.