Obedience results

Stina and Idefix participated in one obedience test last Friday evening and another one on Sunday. Unfortunately they managed to get 0 points for one action both days, so they got 2nd prize both days. Now they'll just have to practise more, they're getting closer and closer to that magic 1st prize.

Tutan isn't well. I've visited the vet with her again and they've taken blood samples and some other tests. I'm not too optimistic about it but naturally I hope for the best. I love that dog (as I love all the rest) but I want her to have a full life and not a life with lots and lots of medicins and restrictions. Keep your fingers crossed for her!

Visa is looking really good at the moment and I haven't registered her to one single dog show this summer... :( But I'll change that! I've decided that we'll go to Rovaniemi in August and hopefully the Finnish judge will find her good-looking too.

Tonight there'll be agility training for the small dogs and tomorrow I'll have an open tracking training for those who like to try this. You'll find more information about this on my Swedish website in case you're interested.

Multipurpose Cavaliers!

Our Cavaliers aren't just increadibly cute, they have brains too. Today Stina's been training agility with both of them. They're very different in temperament, Idefix is a bit scared of hights so he doesn't like some of the balance obstacles, while as Maya doesn't seem to think at all, she just runs as fast as she can! Stina has to be very fast and handle her carefully, otherwise she makes her own decisions. But I believe that she can be a real star with some more practise. Idefix, on the other hand, prefers obedience training and can perform very well. We hope for that this weekend, as they're going to compete both on Friday and on Sunday. Keep your fingers crossed for them!

Tonight I've been out tracking with Melvin and Visa. They both did really well. Melvin nearly made me fall, I had put some meatballs in his track to make him work more carefully. He got very excited when he found the first one and ran in two circles around me before he continued. As he was in a 10 m rope, this could have ended in a small catastrophe. But - I'm still alive! ;)

Sad news

I have sad news. Due to different reasons, Visa hasn't been mated and thus, there'll be no puppies from her this time. Naturally, I'm a bit disappointed. Even though this means that we can work and compete for another 6 months or so, I was looking forward to have puppies in the house again. And the kids are really disappointed, especially the two youngest ones. But I have some other puppy plans, I'll let you know as soon as I've figured it all out.

To stop thinking about puppies, we did some obedience training today and Visa just loved it. So I hope to be able to start in class 2 again within a couple of weeks. Melvin had some training too and found it great fun. Though we need a lot of practice before it's time for a competition. A lot!

Tutan isn't quite well and, as always, I'm a bit worried. But I hope she may be cured with just some antibiotics this time.

Changed plans!

I've spent the last two days looking for a new male for Visa. Due to health issues, there'll be no litter with the chocolate male as I've written on my puppy page. I'll give you more information about my plans later. Right now I'm just very tired...

Puppy plans

So, Visa has started bleeding and that means that I have to start making plans. I've now been in contact with Gunnar's owner to settle a date and I've found a place to sleep not far from where they live, thanks to Heidi. So, next Sunday Visa and I will be on our way! And hopefully we'll get labrador puppies in the house in the middle of August. :)

It's not always easy...

Today I've gained a new experience and I've done it the hard way. I've realized that Finland's one hour ahead of us. I've also learned how to drive to Pello in Finland, because that's the location of the dog show where we were going to show the Cavaliers today. But due to my bad driving, or at least my bad habit of not reading the traffic signs careful enough, we didn't get there in due time. We managed to show Maya in her class and she got a 1st prize (EH) and won her class (she was the only one). But the males were finished when we got there. I entered the ring with Idefix when the breed was finished and he too got a 1st prize (EH). He would have got excellent (ERI) had he been happier. But he doesn't like heights and has decided that it includes the table :( He also had to keep an eye on his beloved Stina all the time, so he probably looked a bit more frightened than he actually was, as he kept looking out of the ring.

Many lessons learned today. We also learned that Stina will show Idefix nest time, because then he won't have to look for her all the time. I'll go back to being a labrador handler :)

New pics of Idefix in my website. I'll add one here in case you've missed them.

Show result

Yesterday I was on a dog show with our little Cavalier lady - Maya. Her usual handler, Stina, was at the same time participating in an agility course with Idefix. In some weak moment, I promised to show Maya. I can say that I regretted that yesterday, when all my nerves seemed to be outside my body! Suddenly I remembered last time Maya participated in a dog show in the very same place. That was last year and she did nothing but ran around in little circles, the short time she was in the ring. She had to leave pretty soon, as the judge didnät appreciate her "performance"...

I wasn't in a better mood when I first followed Stina to the agility training and Maya started screaming and shivering as soon as she saw the obstacles. How would this day end?

But of course, I didn't have to worry. Maya is a princess and she acted like one yesterday. She showed herself perfectly well, dispite my bad nerve condition, and let the judge look at her from every angle possible while standing on the table. She got a first prize in Open class but nothing more. There were over 20 bitches in the class so we're satisfied, especially as the judge's opinion of Maya was really nice to read. :)

I end by giving you a photo of the little princess at a very young age, when she wasn't quite that ladylike... ;)