Home of the Large Munsterlanders and NSDTRs.
Sunday, 29 October 2017
Happy 3rd birthday Rana
Our beautiful girl is three today (aka Trick or Treat or Foxy). Some worrying times over the past 3 years but she’s fine now and so loving, gentle and elegant.
Thursday, 20 July 2017
Windsor and Hall Barn
The end of June saw us travelling to Windsor and Hall Barn working test. As we were staying for a few days and only two of us able to go, we decided to only take Lyric and Trio. Both to be shown at Windsor and Lyric to go to the LMC working test.
Windsor was a long day as we travelled down early that morning for the show, which meant a very early start for us all. The weather was good, not being too hot but pleasant for the dogs and us too. There was a lovely atmosphere around the LM ring, it was so nice to relax and not rush between two breed rings for a change!
Lyric won post graduate bitch and was considered for the reserve best bitch, but being a typical munster character she messed around so missed her chance. Anyway, it was one of those things and she's still rather young and immature. Trio had a 2nd in open bitch, and really enjoyed being back in the ring again.
We rushed over to the stakes ring after breed judging to compete in the brace class, something that seems like a good idea when the entries were completed. To our astonishment Trio and Lyric went really well together and impressed the judge enough to be awarded 3rd out of a huge class 13 entries.
Lyric was a very busy girl and also took her Kennel Club Good Citizens Bronze award, passing this well with all of the distractions of the show and unknown dogs completing the test alongside her.
After the show we took the opportunity to walk in to Windsor and have a walk around the castle, we even managed a walk on the 'long walk'. The dogs loved having a run and it was then time to go to Hall Barn for a well deserved rest.
This WT was our last one of 3 that we did last year, this year it was our first and possibly the last. Lyric is no longer a puppy and so had to make the transition to the novice category. Novice is judged in a similar way to the puppy test but the obedience section is omitted, so only hunting, water retrieve, and two other retrieves (in this case, a seen and then a blind).
I was so pleased with Lyric as we hadn't managed to put too much practice since the start of the year, all I wanted from her was to see an improvement from last years tests. Well she didn't disappoint at all.
The water test should have been her strong point, but she had to be sent back out for the retrieve as she came back to me at first. I do think that she is picking up nerves from her handler as water is not normally a problem for her.
We then moved on to the retrieves, starting with the seen. This was in a small wooded area, up a steep incline where the dummy was obscured from their view, they really had to mark it well. Lyric set straight off for this and then within about two foot of the dummy came back to me, I then had to walk her out to it which she successfully retrieved.
The second retrieve was through the wooded area and in to a grass track, the dogs needed to ignore where they had just been sent for the 'seen retrieve' and go down the track and just around the bend to the dummy. To my utter amazement Lyric went straight out to the bend, something that I hadn't expected from her as we have done so little work on blind retrieves. As with the other retrieve she got within a few feet and then came back to me and had to be sent out again.
After some thought I have come to the conclusion that this is coming down to confidence and the possibility that she has noticed the dummy thrower with has unnerved her as she has fully understood what was wanted from her.
The hunting was the biggest improvement and she scored over 3/4 of the total marks. The ground was so different to what we normally have at home and it was hard at times to see the dogs working in such long grass.
So all in all a fab weekend, lots of fun and things to work on for the future.
Windsor was a long day as we travelled down early that morning for the show, which meant a very early start for us all. The weather was good, not being too hot but pleasant for the dogs and us too. There was a lovely atmosphere around the LM ring, it was so nice to relax and not rush between two breed rings for a change!
Lyric won post graduate bitch and was considered for the reserve best bitch, but being a typical munster character she messed around so missed her chance. Anyway, it was one of those things and she's still rather young and immature. Trio had a 2nd in open bitch, and really enjoyed being back in the ring again.
We rushed over to the stakes ring after breed judging to compete in the brace class, something that seems like a good idea when the entries were completed. To our astonishment Trio and Lyric went really well together and impressed the judge enough to be awarded 3rd out of a huge class 13 entries.
Lyric was a very busy girl and also took her Kennel Club Good Citizens Bronze award, passing this well with all of the distractions of the show and unknown dogs completing the test alongside her.
After the show we took the opportunity to walk in to Windsor and have a walk around the castle, we even managed a walk on the 'long walk'. The dogs loved having a run and it was then time to go to Hall Barn for a well deserved rest.
This WT was our last one of 3 that we did last year, this year it was our first and possibly the last. Lyric is no longer a puppy and so had to make the transition to the novice category. Novice is judged in a similar way to the puppy test but the obedience section is omitted, so only hunting, water retrieve, and two other retrieves (in this case, a seen and then a blind).
I was so pleased with Lyric as we hadn't managed to put too much practice since the start of the year, all I wanted from her was to see an improvement from last years tests. Well she didn't disappoint at all.
The water test should have been her strong point, but she had to be sent back out for the retrieve as she came back to me at first. I do think that she is picking up nerves from her handler as water is not normally a problem for her.
We then moved on to the retrieves, starting with the seen. This was in a small wooded area, up a steep incline where the dummy was obscured from their view, they really had to mark it well. Lyric set straight off for this and then within about two foot of the dummy came back to me, I then had to walk her out to it which she successfully retrieved.
The second retrieve was through the wooded area and in to a grass track, the dogs needed to ignore where they had just been sent for the 'seen retrieve' and go down the track and just around the bend to the dummy. To my utter amazement Lyric went straight out to the bend, something that I hadn't expected from her as we have done so little work on blind retrieves. As with the other retrieve she got within a few feet and then came back to me and had to be sent out again.
After some thought I have come to the conclusion that this is coming down to confidence and the possibility that she has noticed the dummy thrower with has unnerved her as she has fully understood what was wanted from her.
The hunting was the biggest improvement and she scored over 3/4 of the total marks. The ground was so different to what we normally have at home and it was hard at times to see the dogs working in such long grass.
So all in all a fab weekend, lots of fun and things to work on for the future.
Wednesday, 31 May 2017
Things returning to normal
Well due to all the ups and downs that the year has brought so far the blog has been rather neglected. Now that things are starting to return to normal, I thought that it was an appropriate time to give it a much needed update.
It is so lovely to be back out with the dogs again after a prolonged enforced rest, the family have done such a good job of providing them with both mental and physical stimulation which has been much appreciated. It has meant though that Lyric hasn't had the one to one training that I had hoped for her, we are hoping to catch up with some of the gun dog training and also hope to make it to a few gun dog working tests again this year.
The girls and dogs have managed to get to a few shows where I've spectated, and they have done a great job as always. Summer is now fast approaching and I'm really looking forward to getting out and about again.
We did manage to get to Bath show last weekend, and it was such a lovely opportunity to see the grandpups again (Rookie - Seahaven Commander at Hartenziel being the sire). We managed to meet Nyx and Drake again, and also to meet their sister Pip too, along with Bea their mum. They are turning into such lovely young munsters, and Drake won Best Puppy in Breed from a good puppy entry. A very good day indeed.
Lyric showed beautifully in Post Grad and was 2nd in a good class, she's still looking rather babyish, so I was delighted with this result.
We also took Eve along and she won Open Bitch in the NSDTRs and then went on to be awarded Reserve Best Bitch. I showed Eve, which is something that I haven't done in such a long time and she moved beautifully for me - full of drive. She wasn't too keen on standing still though, she really had ants in her pants!
Now to get out and do some training now with Lyric, we have lost time to catch up on!
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| The Seahaven gang |
It is so lovely to be back out with the dogs again after a prolonged enforced rest, the family have done such a good job of providing them with both mental and physical stimulation which has been much appreciated. It has meant though that Lyric hasn't had the one to one training that I had hoped for her, we are hoping to catch up with some of the gun dog training and also hope to make it to a few gun dog working tests again this year.
The girls and dogs have managed to get to a few shows where I've spectated, and they have done a great job as always. Summer is now fast approaching and I'm really looking forward to getting out and about again.
We did manage to get to Bath show last weekend, and it was such a lovely opportunity to see the grandpups again (Rookie - Seahaven Commander at Hartenziel being the sire). We managed to meet Nyx and Drake again, and also to meet their sister Pip too, along with Bea their mum. They are turning into such lovely young munsters, and Drake won Best Puppy in Breed from a good puppy entry. A very good day indeed.
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| Lyric at Bath |
Lyric showed beautifully in Post Grad and was 2nd in a good class, she's still looking rather babyish, so I was delighted with this result.
We also took Eve along and she won Open Bitch in the NSDTRs and then went on to be awarded Reserve Best Bitch. I showed Eve, which is something that I haven't done in such a long time and she moved beautifully for me - full of drive. She wasn't too keen on standing still though, she really had ants in her pants!
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| Eve |
Now to get out and do some training now with Lyric, we have lost time to catch up on!
Friday, 17 March 2017
Crufts 2017
Crufts was a bit of a different affair this year with the girls having to do all of the preparation in the the build up to this fab day out. Having four dogs fit and ready is no mean feat and they along with dad did them proud. All four were fit and beautifully presented.
As always it gives the opportunity for the Seahaven's from further afield to meet up again. Both breeds were well represented and in the awards.
Large Munsterlanders
Lyric (Seahaven Limited Edition) 3rd Junior
Yvie (Seahaven's Olympic Uthopia) 1st Limit
Trio (Seahaven Borrowed Heaven) VHC Open
Lyric collected her award for Top Puppy 2016 and loved meeting people on the trade stands.
NSDTRs
Bron (Seahaven's Gloriana) Res Limit
Milly (Seahaven Red Andromeda) 2nd GCDS
Tilly was unplaced in Veteran but cheered her children on with a big smile on her face, she also collected her Best Brood Bitch award. She was so pleased to be at a show again and really showed her socks off.
Eve was shortlisted in a huge open class, she looked lovely in the ring and worked so well for Eleanor. Sadly missing her coat it wasn't her day.
Tasha borrowed Eve for the YKC handling, a last minte change from handling Trio as the breed class was going to clash. Eve went really well for her in the busy YKC ring, not placed but thrilled with how she went.
Another Crufts over for another year, roll on summer!
As always it gives the opportunity for the Seahaven's from further afield to meet up again. Both breeds were well represented and in the awards.
Large Munsterlanders
Lyric (Seahaven Limited Edition) 3rd Junior
Yvie (Seahaven's Olympic Uthopia) 1st Limit
Trio (Seahaven Borrowed Heaven) VHC Open
Lyric collected her award for Top Puppy 2016 and loved meeting people on the trade stands.
NSDTRs
Bron (Seahaven's Gloriana) Res Limit
Milly (Seahaven Red Andromeda) 2nd GCDS
Tilly was unplaced in Veteran but cheered her children on with a big smile on her face, she also collected her Best Brood Bitch award. She was so pleased to be at a show again and really showed her socks off.
Eve was shortlisted in a huge open class, she looked lovely in the ring and worked so well for Eleanor. Sadly missing her coat it wasn't her day.
Tasha borrowed Eve for the YKC handling, a last minte change from handling Trio as the breed class was going to clash. Eve went really well for her in the busy YKC ring, not placed but thrilled with how she went.
Another Crufts over for another year, roll on summer!
Monday, 6 March 2017
Top Dog 2016 Awards
We recently received notification from the dog press that two of our dogs had won awards, they have been invited to collect these at Crufts next week. We are delighted to have had success in both breeds, and very proud of both dogs.
Tilly (Dinaskarreks Red Vixen at Seahaven) has won the Dog World/Eden Top Dog award for top brood bitch. Our foundation NSDTR who has given us such pleasure taking part with the children in most canine sports. She has produced progeny who have gained their stud book number in each of her three litters, a huge achievement particularly when those dogs are only lightly shown. She hasn't made many show appearances this past year as we have concentrated our attention on Eve and Lyric, but will be at Crufts in the veteran class.
Lyric (Seahaven Limited Edition) has won Our Dogs Top Puppy award which is sponsored by Natures menu. This lovely girl is such a special puppy being the only surviving puppy in her litter, she was destined to stay no matter what. She surpassed all of our expectations from the word go, gaining best puppy in breed at her first champ show. She gained group placings at every open show she attended when there was a breed class scheduled, and a special highlight of her puppy career was being awarded Best Puppy in Show at the breed club champ show.
Lyric had also qualified for the prestigious Welsh Junior of the Year, held last weekend at Builth Wells, Tasha took over the handling of her for this and after a break from showing clearly remembered what it was all about. She didn't get through to the final round but had a lovely day and came home with some lovely mementos.
Tilly (Dinaskarreks Red Vixen at Seahaven) has won the Dog World/Eden Top Dog award for top brood bitch. Our foundation NSDTR who has given us such pleasure taking part with the children in most canine sports. She has produced progeny who have gained their stud book number in each of her three litters, a huge achievement particularly when those dogs are only lightly shown. She hasn't made many show appearances this past year as we have concentrated our attention on Eve and Lyric, but will be at Crufts in the veteran class.
Lyric (Seahaven Limited Edition) has won Our Dogs Top Puppy award which is sponsored by Natures menu. This lovely girl is such a special puppy being the only surviving puppy in her litter, she was destined to stay no matter what. She surpassed all of our expectations from the word go, gaining best puppy in breed at her first champ show. She gained group placings at every open show she attended when there was a breed class scheduled, and a special highlight of her puppy career was being awarded Best Puppy in Show at the breed club champ show.
Lyric had also qualified for the prestigious Welsh Junior of the Year, held last weekend at Builth Wells, Tasha took over the handling of her for this and after a break from showing clearly remembered what it was all about. She didn't get through to the final round but had a lovely day and came home with some lovely mementos.
Friday, 30 December 2016
2016 - A Year in Review
As the year comes to a close it gives us an opportunity to reflect on what has passed during the last twelve months. There have been ups and downs but we're here looking forward to next year, 2017.
We started the year looking forward to having Lyric out at some shows, and having a go a some HPR working tests. The working tests being a bit of a steep learning curve, having only attended one to help and so not actually seeing too much during the day.
The intention was to take Lyric to the LM. Club working test at Hall Barn in May, having helped at this event the previous year we were keen to have one of our taking part. Training ended up being more problematic than expected as there were no HPR trainers withing a 2 hour drive for us to attend. Training took place by using a bit of common sense, a vague idea of what might be expected and some tips from friends, along with lots of encouragement.
In April we made a late entry to attend a HPR working test about 3 hours away, chosen as nobody had talked about going, and it was being judged by someone we knew who knew the breed. There ended up with 3 LM puppies, all owners having the same idea as ourselves I think! What a great support though, as we watched each other, offering encouragement and laughter. It really was a great day, topped by Lyric actually achieving marks in each section. Most importantly we were on the right path to move her forward with a little bit more confidence.
Hall Barn saw a huge improvement in how she was handled and a massive improvement in her marks for each section, again she gained points in each.
Lyric has exceeded all of our expectations in the show ring, we started the year just hoping to qualify her for Crufts; something she did on every occasion at a Champ show.
In all she gained
The others Munsters haven't been shown much at all, however Trio has made a few appearances this year showing her daughter how to have fun in the ring.
Tilly came along to the NSDTR show too, and did us so proud by gaining a 3rd place in the Veteran Class. She also took part in the rally competition, handled by Tasha.
We started the year looking forward to having Lyric out at some shows, and having a go a some HPR working tests. The working tests being a bit of a steep learning curve, having only attended one to help and so not actually seeing too much during the day.
The intention was to take Lyric to the LM. Club working test at Hall Barn in May, having helped at this event the previous year we were keen to have one of our taking part. Training ended up being more problematic than expected as there were no HPR trainers withing a 2 hour drive for us to attend. Training took place by using a bit of common sense, a vague idea of what might be expected and some tips from friends, along with lots of encouragement.
In April we made a late entry to attend a HPR working test about 3 hours away, chosen as nobody had talked about going, and it was being judged by someone we knew who knew the breed. There ended up with 3 LM puppies, all owners having the same idea as ourselves I think! What a great support though, as we watched each other, offering encouragement and laughter. It really was a great day, topped by Lyric actually achieving marks in each section. Most importantly we were on the right path to move her forward with a little bit more confidence.
Hall Barn saw a huge improvement in how she was handled and a massive improvement in her marks for each section, again she gained points in each.
Lyric has exceeded all of our expectations in the show ring, we started the year just hoping to qualify her for Crufts; something she did on every occasion at a Champ show.
In all she gained
- 3 Best Puppy in Breed at Champ shows with CCs on offer
- Best Puppy in Show at the LMC Championship Show
- 3 Best Puppy in Breed at Open Shows; 2 x group 2 & 1 x group 3 award in the Gundog P. Grp
- Best Bitch at SWKA
- Winning Limit Bitch at National Gundog
- Placed in Open Bitch in her other visits to Champ shows with CCs on offer
- Winning Best of Breed and Group 4 at Pembs Agricultural show
- Winning Special Bred by Exhibitor at the LM Club Champ Show
The NSDTRs have also been making us very proud this year. We attended the NSDTR Club Champ Show in March and came away with a number of trophies!
Eve won every class and delighted us all in wining the bitch CC!
Trying something new, Eleanor has been attending Rally training and they took part in their first competition gaining a 3rd in the special class; open to all levels and so beating many dogs and handlers who were at a much higher level than themselves.
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| Cooper & Eve at the NSDTR Club Champ Show |
- 1st Limit bitch
- 1st special working and the CC
- Placed in the JHA semi finals out of over 20 handlers
- 3rd Special Rally class
Tilly came along to the NSDTR show too, and did us so proud by gaining a 3rd place in the Veteran Class. She also took part in the rally competition, handled by Tasha.
- 3rd Level 1 Rally with an excellent score
Other highlights include
- Cooper (Seahaven Galatic Storm at Wulalowe) Dog CC and Best of Breed at NSDTR Club Champ show
- Tegan (Seahaven Bewitched by Cedarlake) Reserve CC at NSDTR Club Champ Show
- Seahaven Olympic Uthopia Bitch CC at Driffield
- Megane became a calendar girl for Haringtons
- Rookie Seahaven Celtic Commander having all of his health tests completed with good results becomes a sire.
The two dog papers run competitions throughout the year for Top Dogs. We are so proud to have two dogs, one from each breed represented:
Lyric (Seahaven Limited Edition) gaining the Top LM puppy award from Dorwest/Our Dogs.
Tilly (Dinsakarrek's Red Vixen at Seahaven) gaining Top Brood Bitch from Dog World
Saturday, 3 December 2016
Introducing Some Extended Family
Thought it was about time I introduced the Rooklets.
These lovely babies are Tarkanya Meas Moonshine x Seahaven's Celtic Commander of Hartenziel (Rookie). This makes them Maddie's grandpuppies.
Bea is a super mum and is doing a fabulous job. Been to see them twice already!
These lovely babies are Tarkanya Meas Moonshine x Seahaven's Celtic Commander of Hartenziel (Rookie). This makes them Maddie's grandpuppies.
Bea is a super mum and is doing a fabulous job. Been to see them twice already!
2 days old:
10 days old:
Proud mum Bea
So looking forward to seeing some of these pups grow up, so pleased with them.
Jess and Proud Clueless Rookie
Friday, 25 November 2016
An Introduction to Rally
A couple of weeks ago, (yes I've been a bit lazy keeping this blog upto date!) we attended our first Rally competition. It was the inaugural competition for our local club that was set up earlier this year.
To make it more attraction to Rally competitors it was held in Carmarthenshire, our neighbouring county, and it did indeed attract a healthy entry. Many competitors had travelled some distance, we even met another toller who had come all the way from East Anglia.
As helpers, we organised the refreshments we had a rather early start, and a cold one.
Tasha had opted to handle Tilly as Trio doesn't like all of the sit transitions found in Rally,this is due to her hock injury a few years ago. They had entered L1 and L2, I had also entered the same with Lyric. Eleanor had decided to only enter the L1 as she felt that this was enough to start off with, we did persuade her to enter eh special class as well. Though we didn't have any idea what this would entail.
The L1 was on quite early and sadly Eve and Lyric were eliminated. Eve for weeing in the ring, Eleanor had rushed in after manning the refreshments and hadn't taken her out for a toilet break. Such a frustrating mistake to make, and she didn't make it again for her special class. Lyric found it difficult to concentrate and went the wrong way around one of the cones, and eliminating error. Bless her she has only been to one Rally training session, and we only went to give us a little bit of experience. Tilly did a super round, being so responsive to Tasha, so thrilled when they were place later on.
Lyric gave a similar performance in the L2 round, though not being eliminated but not gaining a qualifying score either. We have lots to work on if we want to give this another try.
Tasha withdraw Tilly who was so distracted by my presence by the ring, something that doesn't normally bother her.
Eleanor then had to have a go in the special class, little did we know that this was open to all levels and she had to follow a L5/6 dog and handler who did a super round. Eleanor took some convincing to go in, but she did in the end. We were all delighted when they were place 3rd in such a strong class.
They made such a good impression that they have both been selected as subs for the Welsh Rally team at Crufts.
Otherwise life has been a little quiet for us, though were still enjoying just being out and about with the dogs.
To make it more attraction to Rally competitors it was held in Carmarthenshire, our neighbouring county, and it did indeed attract a healthy entry. Many competitors had travelled some distance, we even met another toller who had come all the way from East Anglia.
As helpers, we organised the refreshments we had a rather early start, and a cold one.
Tasha had opted to handle Tilly as Trio doesn't like all of the sit transitions found in Rally,this is due to her hock injury a few years ago. They had entered L1 and L2, I had also entered the same with Lyric. Eleanor had decided to only enter the L1 as she felt that this was enough to start off with, we did persuade her to enter eh special class as well. Though we didn't have any idea what this would entail.
The L1 was on quite early and sadly Eve and Lyric were eliminated. Eve for weeing in the ring, Eleanor had rushed in after manning the refreshments and hadn't taken her out for a toilet break. Such a frustrating mistake to make, and she didn't make it again for her special class. Lyric found it difficult to concentrate and went the wrong way around one of the cones, and eliminating error. Bless her she has only been to one Rally training session, and we only went to give us a little bit of experience. Tilly did a super round, being so responsive to Tasha, so thrilled when they were place later on.
Lyric gave a similar performance in the L2 round, though not being eliminated but not gaining a qualifying score either. We have lots to work on if we want to give this another try.
Tasha withdraw Tilly who was so distracted by my presence by the ring, something that doesn't normally bother her.
Eleanor then had to have a go in the special class, little did we know that this was open to all levels and she had to follow a L5/6 dog and handler who did a super round. Eleanor took some convincing to go in, but she did in the end. We were all delighted when they were place 3rd in such a strong class.
They made such a good impression that they have both been selected as subs for the Welsh Rally team at Crufts.
Otherwise life has been a little quiet for us, though were still enjoying just being out and about with the dogs.
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| Not a brilliant pictue, just the dogs having a blast on Plumstone mountain. |
Thursday, 3 November 2016
News!
Seahaven Halloween litter celebrate their 2nd birthday.
Well two years has certainly passed so quickly, and what fabulous dogs they're turned in to. These pics of Rana were sent in by her owners this week, she's looking so grown up now.
Lyric celebrated her 1st birthday!
But a bit of a bittersweet day - remembering the little brothers and sisters who didn't make it.
What a year she's had though, she has certainly surpassed all of our expectations, and is such a great addition to the family - couldn't imagine life without her.
She has taken part in two Gundog Working Tests, partnered by a very novice handler too - we've managed to score in each category on both occasions too.
She has attended eight Champ shows this year, gaining Best Puppy in Breed at 4 of them. At open shows she had 3 where breed classes have been on offer, and then gained 2, group 2 and one group 3 places in the gundog puppy groups.
We will be continuing with her gundog training and start her agility training over the winter, so looking forward to the next year with this young lady.
Rookie's sired his first litter
Rookie - Seahaven Celtic Commander at Hartenziel is to become a sire later this month. All details are on Jess's website http://www.hartenzieldogs.com. So looking forward to seeing these puppies.
Well two years has certainly passed so quickly, and what fabulous dogs they're turned in to. These pics of Rana were sent in by her owners this week, she's looking so grown up now.
But a bit of a bittersweet day - remembering the little brothers and sisters who didn't make it.
What a year she's had though, she has certainly surpassed all of our expectations, and is such a great addition to the family - couldn't imagine life without her.
She has taken part in two Gundog Working Tests, partnered by a very novice handler too - we've managed to score in each category on both occasions too.
She has attended eight Champ shows this year, gaining Best Puppy in Breed at 4 of them. At open shows she had 3 where breed classes have been on offer, and then gained 2, group 2 and one group 3 places in the gundog puppy groups.
We will be continuing with her gundog training and start her agility training over the winter, so looking forward to the next year with this young lady.
Rookie's sired his first litter
Rookie - Seahaven Celtic Commander at Hartenziel is to become a sire later this month. All details are on Jess's website http://www.hartenzieldogs.com. So looking forward to seeing these puppies.
Thursday, 8 September 2016
A Bit of an Absence
Apologies for the long absence, it's been a mixed summer and it didn't feel appropriate to comment on successes when others were having a difficult time.
Sadly Megane, the much loved and cherished LM of our lovely friends died last month. She was bred by us, and we'd been fortunate to have seen her at regular intervals throughout the years along with her owners who have become good friends. We last saw her at Hall Barn, along with her new 'brother' and it was great to see her enjoying her new playmate.
Sadly she became ill after this, Megane being Megane - kept the vets on their toes presenting with a variety of symptoms that seemed to conflict with each other making a diagnosis rather difficult, even when referred to the hospital. In true munster style she charmed them all and was loved by all who met her.
Over the following few weeks her health declined and she sadly lost her battle, she was only 4 years old which has devastated us all. She was found to have a type of juvenile cancer.
There have been many tears shed, and the sense of loss is testament to how much she was loved and cared for by Hazel and David. She really couldn't have had better owners.
Sadly Megane, the much loved and cherished LM of our lovely friends died last month. She was bred by us, and we'd been fortunate to have seen her at regular intervals throughout the years along with her owners who have become good friends. We last saw her at Hall Barn, along with her new 'brother' and it was great to see her enjoying her new playmate.
Sadly she became ill after this, Megane being Megane - kept the vets on their toes presenting with a variety of symptoms that seemed to conflict with each other making a diagnosis rather difficult, even when referred to the hospital. In true munster style she charmed them all and was loved by all who met her.
Over the following few weeks her health declined and she sadly lost her battle, she was only 4 years old which has devastated us all. She was found to have a type of juvenile cancer.
There have been many tears shed, and the sense of loss is testament to how much she was loved and cared for by Hazel and David. She really couldn't have had better owners.
Wednesday, 20 July 2016
Super Weekend
What a super weekend we've just had!!
The Pembrokeshire Canine Association open show on the Saturday and the Large Munsterlander Club Champ show on the Sunday.
As we were attending the club open show en-route to the LMC show, we decided to only enter the dogs who would be being shown on the Sunday; Trio and Lyric. It was lovely to see support for the NSDTR classes, and we hope to have ours there next year.
Lyric (Seahaven Limited Edition) was 2nd in LM Open, with Trio (Seahaven Borrowed Heaven) 3rd. Lyric was awarded Best Puppy in Breed - the only one there! But she did then go on to get Group 3 in the Gundog Puppy group under judge, A Harding.
It then off to stay with friends before attending the LMC show the next day. We arrived to sweltering heat, gave the dogs a quick run to let off some steam and reacquaint themselves with each other. We then took them in to the garden and to Lyrics delight they had a doggy paddling pool; and a pond! She made herself at home in both, thankfully rinsing out the pond weed in the paddling pool.
Another sweltering day greeted us on Sunday morning, car was repacked ready for the long journey home after the show. We love the breed club shows, but haven't attended the LMC one for a few years as it is held so far away from us, we felt that we had a good excuse to attend with Lyric being a puppy. I was so glad that we did.
The show was in a lovely location, good facilities and a large and fairly level ring to show the dogs in. Lyric won her puppy class and I had had a bit of a mad moment when completing the entries and entered her in 'Graduate', an adult class. She was an absolute star and won this class too! She then went on to win Best Puppy in Show.
Trio was entered in Open bitch, and she had a 3rd place, she went the best I've seen her go in ages - clearly enjoying being in a lovely big ring. She also won the special bred by exhibitor class, and had a 2nd in the brace alongside Lyric.
A fabulous weekend, where both girls gave their very best, as usual. They are an absolute pleasure to live with and share time with.
The Pembrokeshire Canine Association open show on the Saturday and the Large Munsterlander Club Champ show on the Sunday.
As we were attending the club open show en-route to the LMC show, we decided to only enter the dogs who would be being shown on the Sunday; Trio and Lyric. It was lovely to see support for the NSDTR classes, and we hope to have ours there next year.
Lyric (Seahaven Limited Edition) was 2nd in LM Open, with Trio (Seahaven Borrowed Heaven) 3rd. Lyric was awarded Best Puppy in Breed - the only one there! But she did then go on to get Group 3 in the Gundog Puppy group under judge, A Harding.
It then off to stay with friends before attending the LMC show the next day. We arrived to sweltering heat, gave the dogs a quick run to let off some steam and reacquaint themselves with each other. We then took them in to the garden and to Lyrics delight they had a doggy paddling pool; and a pond! She made herself at home in both, thankfully rinsing out the pond weed in the paddling pool.
Another sweltering day greeted us on Sunday morning, car was repacked ready for the long journey home after the show. We love the breed club shows, but haven't attended the LMC one for a few years as it is held so far away from us, we felt that we had a good excuse to attend with Lyric being a puppy. I was so glad that we did.
The show was in a lovely location, good facilities and a large and fairly level ring to show the dogs in. Lyric won her puppy class and I had had a bit of a mad moment when completing the entries and entered her in 'Graduate', an adult class. She was an absolute star and won this class too! She then went on to win Best Puppy in Show.
Trio was entered in Open bitch, and she had a 3rd place, she went the best I've seen her go in ages - clearly enjoying being in a lovely big ring. She also won the special bred by exhibitor class, and had a 2nd in the brace alongside Lyric.
A fabulous weekend, where both girls gave their very best, as usual. They are an absolute pleasure to live with and share time with.
Thursday, 7 July 2016
Windsor & Hall Barn Working Test
Last week saw us travelling to Berks to show at Windor Champ Show and take part in the LMC working test.
Travelling up on Thursday gave us a more leisurely start for Windsor show, though it still took us an hour to travel in to the showground from just 15 miles away. We're certainly not used to the commuter traffic!
The day was forecast to be dry and cloudy, a little different form the blistering heat of the previous year and much more comfortable for the dogs. It ended up being rather wet though, but not too bad the the in/out rings being put to good use.
NSDTRs were first to be shown out of our two breeds, we had only brought Eve with us. Tasha handled Cooper to a 3rd in a good open dog class, he really moved in the big ring and looked fantastic. Eve was unplaced in a big limit bitch class, though she went well for Eleanor which is the main thing.
LMs started during the judging of the toller bitch classes, so we (Tasha & I) had to dash over the the other ring to organise ourselves. Tasha was moving Alfie (Ch Raycris Quite the Charmer) in open dog and needed to get a bit of practice in. He really is a big moving boy and needs to go at just the right pace to get the best out of him. We were delighted when he won the open dog class and the dog CC, especially as he's Lyric's dad.
Lyric was next in, and I had been watching Tasha and Alfie in the ring so hadn't had much of a practice with Lyric. She wasn't the easiest to set up as she was rather fidgety but moved nicely. She managed a 2nd place to her lovely friend Lilly. Trio then had a 3rd in the open bitch class.
As we were staying over at Hall Barn we were in no rush to get home, so were able to stay and watch the group judging. It's so nice to be able to support your breeds in the group rings, and it was a joy to see the LM BOB, Freya being shortlisted in the group.
Saturday gave us a relaxing day, a sunny day with a few showers but plenty of opportunity to have some practice with Lyric for the working test on the next day.
Sunday then saw us competing with Lyric in the working test, the 2nd one for both of us. Again there was support from fellow LMs and their handlers which made it so much more pleasurable.
Again the day was broken down into the four parts, and again we started with the hunting. Once again I was full of apprehension about this, and also worried about everyone seeing out poor attempts at it. I was so relieved to find that we had a piece of ground to hunt that appeared to be just out of sight of the other handlers!
I started off by telling the judge that this wasn't our forte in life! Poor Lyric then went off to really have a go at it, I let her down by being a bit slow and not pushing her out into the hedgerows. We scored a 30 /40 for this, such an improvement from the 8/40 in the previous test.
The water was the next test and again Lyric failed to pick up the dummy on the first attempt! This is something that she has no problem with at home and really don't know how to go about remedying the situations. Just more water work I think for now!
The obedience was a bit of mystery, we weren't allowed to observe this until we had completed it,though the handler who was first came to tell us how difficult it was. So we approached this a little apprehensively, thogu she was a little star only losing marks for not giving me the dummy to hand, and circling me rather than coming directly to me. Little monkey!
The last test was the retrieve, and this really was our undoing as it was a seen and blind retrieve. Poor girl hasn't done any blind retrieve work, so I was incredibly nervous going into this. She marked the seen dummy well, but it had bounced off the spot and then she paniced when she couldn't find it where she expected and I had to help her. As expected she didn't really know what I wanted from the blind, but with a bit of help did find it. So proud of my 9 month old competing with others who were at the upper limit of 18 months. The score climbed from the bottom to around the middle of the scores this time, such good progress.
Rather late leaving, we didn't leave until after 6.00pm and arrived home just after 1A1.00pm. A long and tiring weekend, but such good fun.
Travelling up on Thursday gave us a more leisurely start for Windsor show, though it still took us an hour to travel in to the showground from just 15 miles away. We're certainly not used to the commuter traffic!
The day was forecast to be dry and cloudy, a little different form the blistering heat of the previous year and much more comfortable for the dogs. It ended up being rather wet though, but not too bad the the in/out rings being put to good use.
NSDTRs were first to be shown out of our two breeds, we had only brought Eve with us. Tasha handled Cooper to a 3rd in a good open dog class, he really moved in the big ring and looked fantastic. Eve was unplaced in a big limit bitch class, though she went well for Eleanor which is the main thing.
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| Eve in the ring at Windsor |
LMs started during the judging of the toller bitch classes, so we (Tasha & I) had to dash over the the other ring to organise ourselves. Tasha was moving Alfie (Ch Raycris Quite the Charmer) in open dog and needed to get a bit of practice in. He really is a big moving boy and needs to go at just the right pace to get the best out of him. We were delighted when he won the open dog class and the dog CC, especially as he's Lyric's dad.
Lyric was next in, and I had been watching Tasha and Alfie in the ring so hadn't had much of a practice with Lyric. She wasn't the easiest to set up as she was rather fidgety but moved nicely. She managed a 2nd place to her lovely friend Lilly. Trio then had a 3rd in the open bitch class.
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| Lyric in the ring |
As we were staying over at Hall Barn we were in no rush to get home, so were able to stay and watch the group judging. It's so nice to be able to support your breeds in the group rings, and it was a joy to see the LM BOB, Freya being shortlisted in the group.
Saturday gave us a relaxing day, a sunny day with a few showers but plenty of opportunity to have some practice with Lyric for the working test on the next day.
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| Some play time on Saturday |
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| And a spot of tree climbing |
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| So lucky to have the beautiful estate to enjoy for the weekend. |
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| Some lovely daddy & daughter time for Alfie & Lyric |
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| Tasha and Trio having a go at the one of the novice retrieve tests from last years test. Neither were competing just having a go. |
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| Lyric - the lady in the lake - showing that she does pick up in water! |
Sunday then saw us competing with Lyric in the working test, the 2nd one for both of us. Again there was support from fellow LMs and their handlers which made it so much more pleasurable.
Again the day was broken down into the four parts, and again we started with the hunting. Once again I was full of apprehension about this, and also worried about everyone seeing out poor attempts at it. I was so relieved to find that we had a piece of ground to hunt that appeared to be just out of sight of the other handlers!
I started off by telling the judge that this wasn't our forte in life! Poor Lyric then went off to really have a go at it, I let her down by being a bit slow and not pushing her out into the hedgerows. We scored a 30 /40 for this, such an improvement from the 8/40 in the previous test.
The water was the next test and again Lyric failed to pick up the dummy on the first attempt! This is something that she has no problem with at home and really don't know how to go about remedying the situations. Just more water work I think for now!
The obedience was a bit of mystery, we weren't allowed to observe this until we had completed it,though the handler who was first came to tell us how difficult it was. So we approached this a little apprehensively, thogu she was a little star only losing marks for not giving me the dummy to hand, and circling me rather than coming directly to me. Little monkey!
The last test was the retrieve, and this really was our undoing as it was a seen and blind retrieve. Poor girl hasn't done any blind retrieve work, so I was incredibly nervous going into this. She marked the seen dummy well, but it had bounced off the spot and then she paniced when she couldn't find it where she expected and I had to help her. As expected she didn't really know what I wanted from the blind, but with a bit of help did find it. So proud of my 9 month old competing with others who were at the upper limit of 18 months. The score climbed from the bottom to around the middle of the scores this time, such good progress.
Rather late leaving, we didn't leave until after 6.00pm and arrived home just after 1A1.00pm. A long and tiring weekend, but such good fun.
Thursday, 16 June 2016
An Introduction to Gundog Working Tests
Recently we took a small step in to the unknown - Working Tests!
After helping out at the Hall Barn Working Test, which was run by the Large Munsterlander Club we were keen to have a go with Lyric (even before she was a reality!). The main difficulty that we've encountered was that there is no HPR training in our area. Thanks to the input of many friends we have been able to undertake some training, though lacking the confidence of knowing whether we were really getting it correct.
We were informed that the LHPA were holding a WT near Malmesbury in Wilts in June, so took the plunge and entered. No one knew that we were attending, it was much easier with no questions or feeling of pressure that way. So we arrived last Sunday to a rather wet field on an estate in Wilts, with the intention of having a bit of fun and learning lots.
Lyric was entered in the puppy WT, this is classified as for pups between 6 -18 months of age, and a huge class of 18 puppies.
A puppy WT is broken down in to 4 parts; hunting;obedience;seen retrieve & water retrieve. The hunting is scored out of 40 and the other parts worth 20 each.
Hunting has been our nemesis, an area that I have no experience in even though we've had a HPR breed for a number of years. Lyric is also quite a mummy's girl and needs to take herself further away from me, this is coming as she gets more confident, but is taking some time. The other parts I thought might be ok. She is very keen to retrieve, so thought that she might not do so well in the obedience, depending on how distracted she became. I thought that the seen and water retrieve would be her more confident elements.
Hunting - well she did hunt, she worked away from me for some of this but struggled at times to find any scent on the very light breeze. She stopped on the stop whistle, something we haven't done much with and then recalled quickly to me. I was so pleased with how she had gone for me, not a high score, but not a 0 as I thought she might have got on this element.
Seen retrieve - The puppy's were expected to to sit quietly off lead whilst a dummy was thrown about 20 metres ahead of us. The dummy thrower was hidden in a fir tree and the dummy was thrown out to the side of but under the canopy of a large tree opposite. The dummy was in a slight dip and in shadow, this caused a lot of confusion for a number of the pups as they couldn't 'mark' where it had dropped. Lyric's problem was that she didn't see it being thrown at all, there was a pile of dummy's to the side of her which she was so focused on that she didn't see the dummy thrown or land. We haven't worked on any 'blind' retrieves yet with her, and so it was almost impossible to send her out to it. With a lot of assistance she managed to find it, but were heavily penalised as a result.
Obedience - The pups were asked to heel alongside their handler from one flag to the next. At the second flag they had to sit whilst the handler carried on to the third flag where a dummy as thrown out, the flags being about 15-20 metres apart. The handler then returned to the dog, and carried on past it to the starting position where the dog was recalled. When the dog had settled they were then sent out to retrieve the dummy and return to the handler. Lyric tried so hard on this test, and was a bit let down by me and my lack of knowledge on how this was to be marked. Lyric broke the sit when I first left her on the second flag, I had only given one command expecting to be penalised for additional commands if I used them. I knew when she broke the sit that she wasn't feeling confident so from that point on I used lots of additional commands and praise. She then completed the rest of the test really well,
Water retrieve - The dogs were sat on the bank of a small lake with a shallow entry, a dummy was thrown and when instructed were then sent out to retrieve and bring back. This I thought would be Lyric in her element, she loves water and is confident - the only issue that might pose a problem would be her keenness and she would go before instructed. Bless her, she went when asked, confidently entered the water and swam out to the dummy. She then nudged it with her nose and turned to come back, after a bit of time on the bank where she tried to bring back some sticks I managed to send her back out to the dummy which was now much further away as it drifted. She did exactly the same again! The judge was as dumbfounded as I was and suggested that I threw in my own dummy, She retrieved her own dummy perfectly! Really don't know why she had any issue with this, she had previously retrieved a mix of other dummy's in the other parts of the test.
We didn't score 0 in any part, which was fantastic and we weren't last either! Lots of things to work on, but what a fun day we had. Such a great introduction to the world of WTs, all helped by our fabulous judge who was so encouraging and the others competitors especially the other LM who were present.
After helping out at the Hall Barn Working Test, which was run by the Large Munsterlander Club we were keen to have a go with Lyric (even before she was a reality!). The main difficulty that we've encountered was that there is no HPR training in our area. Thanks to the input of many friends we have been able to undertake some training, though lacking the confidence of knowing whether we were really getting it correct.
We were informed that the LHPA were holding a WT near Malmesbury in Wilts in June, so took the plunge and entered. No one knew that we were attending, it was much easier with no questions or feeling of pressure that way. So we arrived last Sunday to a rather wet field on an estate in Wilts, with the intention of having a bit of fun and learning lots.
Lyric was entered in the puppy WT, this is classified as for pups between 6 -18 months of age, and a huge class of 18 puppies.
A puppy WT is broken down in to 4 parts; hunting;obedience;seen retrieve & water retrieve. The hunting is scored out of 40 and the other parts worth 20 each.
Hunting has been our nemesis, an area that I have no experience in even though we've had a HPR breed for a number of years. Lyric is also quite a mummy's girl and needs to take herself further away from me, this is coming as she gets more confident, but is taking some time. The other parts I thought might be ok. She is very keen to retrieve, so thought that she might not do so well in the obedience, depending on how distracted she became. I thought that the seen and water retrieve would be her more confident elements.
Hunting - well she did hunt, she worked away from me for some of this but struggled at times to find any scent on the very light breeze. She stopped on the stop whistle, something we haven't done much with and then recalled quickly to me. I was so pleased with how she had gone for me, not a high score, but not a 0 as I thought she might have got on this element.
Seen retrieve - The puppy's were expected to to sit quietly off lead whilst a dummy was thrown about 20 metres ahead of us. The dummy thrower was hidden in a fir tree and the dummy was thrown out to the side of but under the canopy of a large tree opposite. The dummy was in a slight dip and in shadow, this caused a lot of confusion for a number of the pups as they couldn't 'mark' where it had dropped. Lyric's problem was that she didn't see it being thrown at all, there was a pile of dummy's to the side of her which she was so focused on that she didn't see the dummy thrown or land. We haven't worked on any 'blind' retrieves yet with her, and so it was almost impossible to send her out to it. With a lot of assistance she managed to find it, but were heavily penalised as a result.
Obedience - The pups were asked to heel alongside their handler from one flag to the next. At the second flag they had to sit whilst the handler carried on to the third flag where a dummy as thrown out, the flags being about 15-20 metres apart. The handler then returned to the dog, and carried on past it to the starting position where the dog was recalled. When the dog had settled they were then sent out to retrieve the dummy and return to the handler. Lyric tried so hard on this test, and was a bit let down by me and my lack of knowledge on how this was to be marked. Lyric broke the sit when I first left her on the second flag, I had only given one command expecting to be penalised for additional commands if I used them. I knew when she broke the sit that she wasn't feeling confident so from that point on I used lots of additional commands and praise. She then completed the rest of the test really well,
Water retrieve - The dogs were sat on the bank of a small lake with a shallow entry, a dummy was thrown and when instructed were then sent out to retrieve and bring back. This I thought would be Lyric in her element, she loves water and is confident - the only issue that might pose a problem would be her keenness and she would go before instructed. Bless her, she went when asked, confidently entered the water and swam out to the dummy. She then nudged it with her nose and turned to come back, after a bit of time on the bank where she tried to bring back some sticks I managed to send her back out to the dummy which was now much further away as it drifted. She did exactly the same again! The judge was as dumbfounded as I was and suggested that I threw in my own dummy, She retrieved her own dummy perfectly! Really don't know why she had any issue with this, she had previously retrieved a mix of other dummy's in the other parts of the test.
We didn't score 0 in any part, which was fantastic and we weren't last either! Lots of things to work on, but what a fun day we had. Such a great introduction to the world of WTs, all helped by our fabulous judge who was so encouraging and the others competitors especially the other LM who were present.
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