Visit from Owain

Lille and Gracie met up with Owain , Jasper and Ross on the Kent coast. Lille had (fortunately) just come out of season so was not quite her sociable self but Gracie LOVED her brother!

Who is who?

Gracie on the left 

Owain on the left, Gracie on the right

Hip scores

Grace had her eye test (all clear) AND hip/elbow scores through: elbows 0/0, hips 5/5. PHEW!
(Lille's eyes clear 2012, elbows 0/0, hips 4/5; Boycie's eyes clear, hips 7/13.)

A visit from Monty

Right to left - Lille, Grace and Monty. Definitely all part of the same family but Monty is very dark and very hairy

Monty (left) and Gracie (right)

Gracie (left) and Monty (right)

Lille (left) with Monty (they had a good, long sniff of each other!)

Lovely to meet up with Monty (left) a couple of weeks ago. What a handsome, well-balanced, friendly dog he is too. Come on Gracie (right)- get that fur growing!!!

Working Tests - July

Grace  won 3rd prize in special puppy category at her first ever working test (Goldies only and actually there were only 5 entries but...) so she has her first rosette on the wall. Did better than her mum who got 4th place in novice dog/novice handler category and was actually a bit of a minx. Well done both girls but especially little Grace - a good start. Not sure I'll have the energy to run both dogs in one day again!

Grace had actually gone home before I realised she was a winner so here she is (on right) cleverly photo-shopped back in!

Lille looking ill-at-ease second from right. Crumble on her left and Mungo on her right.

You don't seriously expect me to empty the chemical toilet? Really?!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY PUPPIES!!

Daisy swimming

 Latest pix around 1 year old of Daisy, Juno and Owain. One of Tess on a previous post below - some of Grace to come as soon as I work the camera out.
Happy Birthday everyone - here's to many more....

Daisy resting - she and Grace are identical twins!!!

Juno is VERY enthusiastic

she has her mother's face....

Owain - it's not fair that the dogs have the best fur!!!!

Owain won 1st prize in a junior working test this month!

Very fast - just like his mother!

And here's Monty looking like his brothers and sisters!!

Gracie

Working Test

Almost in Southampton for a test on June 10th. Lille won a C O M (joint 5th place).

9 months old

Grace came into season 3 days after she was 9 months old - turning into a grown up at last! Her mum, Lillevenn, has been working hard in 4 working tests with another one due on Saturday on an estate near Beaconsfield. Best place so far was joint 6th in a Southern Goldern Retriever Society Novice test. We had a baptism by fire in a test run by the Utility Gun Dog Club where she scored 4 zeros - ouch! She just needs more confidence with longer retrieves in water....there is always something to work on. Gracie SHOULD have taken part in a mini-training + test day last Sunday with our local SGRS but nature took its course ..... (that's the trouble with bitches)

Am a liitle late in publishing pictures of Juno (thank you Jane!) and delighted to have very up-to-date pictures of Tess (thank you Jane!). It is LOVELY to see how they are growing up.

Tess (April 2012)



















                                                                    Juno (March 2012)

And Gracie swimming her first few strokes (April 2012). She has such long legs she can spring up and down on them until the water gets really deep.

Crufts 2012

First visit ever to Crufts on Gundog Day especially to see Phillippa Williams (Peter Bates' partner) and her Gun Dog display. Was absolutely thrilled to see Boycie (pups' dad) taking part. Tracked him down later in the hall with Philippa (yes, that is indeed where Gracie gets her huge paws from). See him yourself on the video! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xT7MMgqUldo

7 months old

Grace (top) on a sunny day watching birds flying overhead and big brother Owain (below) practising being steady. These pups are growing up ........ Grace developing into a rather confident young girl! Got both her bronze and silver 'Good Behaviour' awards this month - no doubt thanks to her mother's watchful eye (!!!????) who was almost a year old when she got her silver (100% handler's fault). Well done Gracie - what a good girl.  

This is Lillevenn, mother Biba (aka Scherzando Libra) and siblings soon after birth in May 2009.  LV's pups  look quite a bit porkier but they are two or three days old. Just found this picture of LV's first pup (either Monty or Owain who was born in the car) before his fur had dried. He looked like a tiny chocolate lab! Many thanks to Ash (just in the photo) who delivered all seven safely. Lillevenn's expression says it all!

               Handsome Owain in January 2012 -  thank you Edward!