WSSCSW Summer Rally 2012

We had a great day at the WSSCSW Summer Rally last weekend and were very pleased when six of our puppies turned up. It was the first time they'd met up since leaving us a couple of months ago - they're now 5 months old and they all still recognised each other and they had a great time rolling and tumbling with each other.

I think Megan was a bit worried that they were all here to stay and I'm sure I heard her breathe a sigh of relief when they went. Owain had a different outlook - they might be his daughters but he only sees some new "bits of totty".

All the puppies performed brilliantly - particularly in the Scurry - something I don't think any of them has done before but they all successfully brought back the dummy, and in fact Cherry Owen went on to win the puppy class with the fastest time.

They all did very well in the races with little Rosie showing a great turn of speed - our own Lily did well but was mostly interested in scrapping with all her sisters.

Nessa (Bessie) came all the way from Reading has grown into a beautiful puppy - and it was fabulous to see owner Lulu totally fearless amongst all these dogs - she wouldn't have been able to do that 6 months ago, now they're apparently inseparable.

On a personal note - many thanks to all the families who have taken on our puppies, you have done a fabulous job with them and hope you continue to keep in touch and possibly come to more club events.

Gwyneira - last but not least

 This is Gwyneira Fach - she's the last of the litter looking for a loving new home. If there's a scrap going on in the puppy room you can bet she's at the bottom of it - but when you go in she's gives that one sided wink that says "It wasn't me mum, honest".

Great little character who'll make the ideal family pet and if she's like her mother a good working dog.

Sunday 7.30am, bright and clear again. We are down to 4 girlies now, three have gone to their new homes, and it is a bit quieter, but not much.

Interesting choices for breakfast,
Carrot cake - maybe,
Rose cupcake - possibly for 11’ses,
Quiche Lorraine - no, can’t be bothered to warm it up,
how about - mini muffins and a cup of tea.

Will have some leftover sausages too later on, with French stick!
and some Trifle!!

These enticing left-overs are here because we had a couple of dozen friends and family here yesterday, and they brought lovely additions to the buffet.

They came to see some relatives from afar, everyone talking at the same time - catching up with old times and old friends, and loads of youngsters racing round the garden playing with the dogs.

The puppies loved having so many playmates, they were (almost) tired by teatime, also Megan & Owain, who love an audience, were glad to retreat to their beds when everyone had gone.

Off to the Vet’s

We have taken the ladies to their pre-flight check up at the vets, four yesterday, and three today. They were weighed and given the once over, all passed with flying colours, we had difficulty getting out today as the other ‘patients’ wanted to know all about the cute Welshies.

All the puppies are over 4kg, the heaviest is 4.7kg, more than 10 times their birth weight. No wonder it feels like a workout at the gym to chase and catch 7 of them to put them away in their room, especially as they never want to go to bed any more.


Rosie is off to her new family tonight, then Mati tomorrow, and Polly on Saturday. Mati and Polly are now heavier than Bessie, so she’s not Bessie Mawr any more!


I’m also packing take-home bags for each of them, with an information folder, puppy food, a vetbed blanket, all sorts, even some Risca water for the puppies going a long way, to help avoid upset tums.

Heads Up

The first lot from this weeks set of photos....

Sorry for not keeping you all up to date, we’ve had a Championship Dog Show to organise, and assorted other projects calling.

Some of the girlies will be leaving soon for their new homes, they are so big and boisterous now that they are all growling and bickering and vying for our attention. Owain the dad is very good, playing and they chase him around, but tug of war games and chase end in squeals of pain from sharp little teeth, and they really do need the individual attention they will soon be getting which will channel their energies to less aggressive play hopefully.

A great new Monster was vanquished this morning, they were rooting around in the porch where we keep the logs for the fire, and came across a small bit of crinkly crackley material peeking out from behind the basket, the three bravest took turns to attack it, and gradually pulled it out of it’s lair. When the Monster was dragged outside the rest of the pack dived on it and pulled it about, yapping and growling. Very funny to watch and photograph, but a reminder too that the pack instinct is still strong, and if they were fending for themselves that may have been a rabbit, or bird, and would not have lasted long. Especially if the mother had helped, and that’s why we’re keeping a close watch on our chickens!

Another mad weekend, 

lots of visitors for the girls to play with,

Happy Mother's day to Megan the Welsh Springer Spaniel love from her Magnificent Seven 

and now, at 11.15 at night they are fighting and causing chaos downstairs, and I'm off to bed 'cos they will be awake at sunrise expecting breakfast - look out you new owners, it will be hell!

What a busy day!

lots of visitors today, two friends from the Welsh Springer Spaniel Club came over to see the puppies, the two Jan’s - one is Owain’s breeder Mum, and the other is Megan’s Dam’s Mum(!) so they had great fun looking and assessing.
Basically, they think they’re Fab too!

and then another family came ‘just to see’ if they might have a puppy, of course, they were totally won over by them, and gave up without a fight - knew they would, ‘Resistance is Futile’

All was quiet while we discussed the merits of Welshies against the English Springers etc. how quiet and well behaved they were - and then we opened the kitchen door to a scene of destruction, Owain had nicked the empty egg boxes fron the counter, and they all assisted in shredding the lot, 

good game, good game.

Early birds


The girls are 6 weeks old now, very vocal,  very mobile, very hungry,  and very much awake.
The morning routine has settled down to be-
06.40 approx - Alarm bark  from Owain at early dog walkers sets off the puppy alarm chorus, which cannot be ignored even from upstairs in our bedroom,
06.42 - so we sleepwalk down to open the front door and the puppy gate, stand aside as they rush outside like a flood, for the first wee of the day, and associated ablutions.
06.44 - Breakfast is served, in three huge bowls, not so messy now, they’ve learned to stand outside the dish most of the time, and a cup of tea each for us
06.50 - I then have a bit of time to clean up the overnight mess of shredded newspaper, clean up any poo, put down clean and change the fleecy bedding,
07.00 - back outside to help supervise playtime, we are constantly counting 1-2-3-4-5-6-7- where’s No7?? not the same one, but they are so quick now, even chasing the chickens this afternoon, and squeezing under the shed

Crufts 2012

Owain was second in his class last year as a puppy, and he had gained several wins in Championship Shows during the year, BUT, so had all the other dogs competing, so it was quite a surprise to be picked as the winner in the ‘Junior Class’, I am always so grateful to Jan, his breeder, for getting the best out of him in the ring, we had a great day out, even though the 5am start is a bit of a shock.

Owain’s sister Tegwen and auntie Carys had good results too, so it was a very tired but happy car on the journey home. 

Megan's Puppies - 5 weeks old

The puppies are now 5 weeks old and are starting to establish their own characters.
They now have their names, yet to be ratified by the Kennel Club, - and we also have our official kennel name which is "YBerfa" - Welsh for WheelBarrow.
These are the cutest photos yet - go and have a look.

 

Daffy time
They are not giant dogs, just tiny Daffodils!

A couple of the bravest have even gone outside to look at the bigger world, in the front garden, with a chicken or two as audience,
Once they had been out, the others followed, and if the weather stays warmer, I hope we can start having Lunch on the Lawn, which will help with toilet training, as they poo immediately after eating, and are then in the right place to do it, with a lot of ‘there’s a good puppy!!’

Weekend 3/4 March


All have sharp little teeth, barking and growling, play fighting, and they escape through the gate to their room like quicksilver, tumbling over each other to get into the hall and the kitchen. This is a much more interesting play area. Shiny fridge door, dishwasher, also the corners of the mats, which was Dad’s favourite ‘chew’.

 Mum was known affectionately for many years as ‘Megan the Destroyer’ due to her penchant for chewing the buttons or zips from her soft beds and toys, then carefully teasing out the stuffing bit by bit, until she was surrounded by white fluff, like a snowstorm.
Changing to a hard plastic bed with the vetbet liners solved the problem, as well as her growing up a bit, but there’s still an occasional tuft appears

Puppies_ 1st time outside

Megan's puppies' first excursion to the great outdoors - and being Welsh Springers they head straight for the daffodils

Megan and Owain

Everyone coos over the puppies - but look at mam and dad - handsome couple I think...

Ouch!
4 weeks old and there's teeth!
no wonder Mum is getting reluctant to have them suckling - they're sharp as needles

been out exploring the bigger room today, all very brave, though sense of direction needs a bit of work

Owain goes to a show
Saturday 25th February saw Owain (Typica Kingfisher) competing at The Royal Welsh Showground, Builth Wells, in a competition called ‘Welsh Junior of the Year’. This is an invitation event for young dogs owned and living in Wales, that had won at least one Championship Show during the year.

64 dogs are drawn to compete in two groups, and are matched against each other in pairs, so 16 get knocked out in the first round, 8 in the second etc. until there is a group winner, who then ‘challenges’ the winner of the second group for the overall title  ‘Welsh Junior of the Year’
It was great fun, we didn’t win, but we did make it to the 4th round, or semi’s, a sort of joint 4th!
The eventual winner was a Japanese Chin - Ch. Sleepyhollow Caruso with Gwynsias JW, with a miniature daxi runner up,  I have never seen so many different breeds together in one place - most shows we go to are only for gundogs, or breed shows, so seeing an Irish Wolfhound ‘matched’ against a Corgi was most amusing,

Playing

There is a definite awakening of the playing, several are trying out the new teeth, chewing each other, and pulling at the newspaper, and fleece bed. Another new game is to climb over Mum or Dad as they are trying to wash them, and escape down the hall.

Puppy lapping practise
They are really diving on the porridge now, just the tinkle of the metal dishes gets a round of wake up calls and woofs and squeaks, I have started putting down a large white tray as well, to catch more of the spills, as they just stand in the food or walk straight through the dishes

By Sunday they are all looking round and fat, and have doubled in weight.
Their noses are darkening, and their faces are lengthening, starting to look round puppy , although they are still blind and deaf, they have no difficulty finding Mum, or each other, and they shuffle and climb over each other, to sleep in a heap, I have been sleeping(?) next to the box to keep an eye and ear open during the night, especially as we've had some of the coldest weather of the Winter so far, there is an Infra-red lamp over one end of the box, to keep them warm when not with Mum, but they seem to need it a bit less each day.

I think their hearing is improving, if they are fast asleep in a heap, I can call them and get a 'Whiff whiff' little bark in reply, then they are stretching and standing up to see/hear what's going on, They recognise Owain, their Daddy, as well as Terry and me, and get very excited.

Lapping lessons are going well, most of them get it now, but cheat a bit by having some extra from the bottle, they all get covered in the milk, and so licking the milk off each other is the best game, and Megan finishes it off

Megan's Puppies - 2 weeks

Megan's Puppies - 2 weeks old 

Here's those puppies again at two weeks old - their eyes are starting to open - and they are all doing extremely well - most have tripled their birth weight

The Name Game

We will have to think of 7 fine Welsh girls names.
There are a lot more interesting boys names coming to mind

Trawling the cast list from Under Milk Wood is usually quite fruitful, several of the pets have been named from this source already, namely 'Captain Cat',  as well as 'Dylan' and 'Caitlin'
Any suggestions?

Owain meets his Daddy

Monday 13th February, and we are waiting for their eyes to open, a couple are squinting at the world, and holding their heads up a bit higher to the light, but they are not quite there yet.

Yesterday we had the Welsh Springer Spaniel Club of South Wales Open Show, where we met Owain's dad, Menstonia King and Country of Cashmere, or Tyler as he's known at home (that's him in the middle of the photo). What a fine chap he was too, and we were able to photograph a line-up of his sons and daughters and some grandchildren too, all doing well in the showring and the field.

Megan's first litter

This is the event that prompted the start of this blog and I will endeavour to keep you up-to-date with developments.

So here we go - let me introduce you to our SEVEN new litle girls.

Born on Wednesday 1st February 2012. The first one arrived just before 5am and the last one at 10.30.

Megan was very good for a first time mother - we hardly had to intervene at all. She got very tired half way through, and there was a long gap from number 4 to number 5 - but it turns out that number 5 is probably the biggest.

Owain - the daddy - was also very well behaved - showing very concerned interest in what was going on.

Click here to go see all photos of their first day