Tugging with Mindy!

"From Time to Time"

I pinched the below statement/poem what ever you want to call it, from Dawns face book page, it was just so apt for me for this past week, as I met a chap who used to work with dogs in the RAF (many years ago) and his words to me where, when I was telling him about Mindy ...."it's just a dog"

“From time to time, people tell me, “lighten up, it’s just a dog”, or, “that’s a lot of money for just a dog”. They don’t understand the distance traveled, the time spent, or the costs involved for “just a dog”. Some of my proudest moments have come about with “just a dog”. Many hours have passed and my only company was “just a dog”, but I did not once feel slighted. Some of my saddest moments have been brought about by “just a dog” and in those days of darkness, the gentle touch of “just a dog” gave me comfort and reason to overcome the day. If you, too, think it’s “just a dog”, then you will probably understand phases like “just a friend”, “just a sunrise”, or “just a promise”. “Just a dog” brings into my life the very essence of friendship, trust, and pure unbridled joy. “Just a dog” brings out the compassion and patience that makes me a better person. Because of “just a dog” I will rise early, take long walks and look longingly to the future. So for me and folks like me, it’s not “just a dog” but an embodiment of all the hopes and dreams of the future, the fond memories of the past, and the pure joy of the moment. “Just a dog” brings out what’s good in me and diverts my thoughts away from myself and the worries of the day. I hope that someday they can understand that it’s not “just a dog” but the thing that gives me humanity and keeps me from being “just a human.” So the next time you hear the phrase “just a dog”, just smile, because they “just don’t understand."

So Thanks Dawn xx

"Hawkers Cove"

11 weeks on from her operation and here's Mindy having fun on the beach at Hawkers Cove, just thought I'd lighten the tone after my last little post!!!
Playing ball with her is not so scary but chasing the birds across the beach and into the sea still is...

"Harry" running part of Barrie James course

Well I'm slowly getting back into training Harry, taken a while to want too, let alone think of a course to put up, so I cheated and used the course (well part off) that Barrie James used for a Crufts Q at Lansdown back in June that I couldn't go too, so thanks Barrie in pushing me to try it out!
Also thanks to Dawn Weaver and her monthly video tuition (which you can find down the right hand side links)which has been great fun to also push me forward with my training, I am starting to enjoy it now and although I have only been to a few shows since Mindy's accident, I am SLOWLY starting to enjoy them too, but give me an excuse to leave and I'm gone! I seem to still feel, "well what I got to aim for, Harry G7?"
I used to be really obsessed with winning this and that, but it just doesn't float my boat any more, been there and done it....

I do get fed up with people saying they were .01 second in front or behind Harry and if they had have got that contact they would have beaten Harry or Joe Bloggs....well you didn't and you didn't so get a life!
I felt really sad hearing another agility competitor last weekend (or was the weekend before) get them self right upset, they had won the class fair and square, beautifully handled, better than I handled it! but said after we all cheered at prize giving, that if such and such had been there, that they would have said they would have beaten them...as I promptly told them well they weren't there, so enjoy that win and anyway you were foot perfect, so I doubt they would have beaten you anyway....Some people really don't know when it's just best to shut their mouths....

Now will I press the publish post button or scrap everything I have just written as I felt I needed to vent that!
Oh well here goes nothing....

The biggest one yet!

The veggy's patch is still producing!

We didn't have a great crop this year, mainly our fault in not getting better organised (we are new at it!) we still have carrots as you can see, some Spinach, Lettuce (cut and come again) beans, the tomatoes have yet to turn red, so no doubt we did something wrong! we had one plum but loads off small apples, which I have to admit the dogs ate!

I have grown on some cheap heathers from the supermarkets, which are now 3 x the size they were when I bought them, haven't planted them out yet and maybe I'll let them grow some more and put them out next year, we bought some more laurel hedging plants at the auctions and these too I have re potted and are now strong and healthy 3ft ers! ready to go into place...

I do enjoy re potting bits and taking cutting to see if anything grows, makes so much financial sense...Think we did our last cut down in the agility area, I do try and leave 3-4 inches and then hopefully will help to keep it all together over the winter, but with Sennen she'll going to be one of those dogs that will enjoy skidding around in the mud, doing handbrake turns...

Talking of Sennen she came into season on Saturday, well at 11 months I suppose it had to happen sooner or later! but I suppose that will give me time to decide when to spay her...December time maybe...Harry thinks all his Christmas have come at once, was wondering whether this would bring Mindy in too...have to wait and see.

Mindy had her last Treadmill session yesterday, she is so fit now and has muscled up nicely, free running she looks great especially in the woods, jumping ravines, ditches, logs bigger than small height and staying upright whilst playing chase with Sennen and Harry through the undergrowth, stretching right out as she jumps brambles etc, lovely to watch now rather than being very scary..I have not stopped the ground work but trying not to make it a chore as by the end of 8 weeks I was exhausted and running out of ideas of what else to do with her...so now maybe once a week we get all the balance stuff out the shed and line it all up big balls, small balls, peanut ball, wooden balance board, plastic one and the blow up one and she walks from one to the other etc. I have started playing with her agility toys, throwing them letting her retrieve them from a stand still and now on the move, mainly for me to not to panic as she skids and slides and somersaults over the top of them, well if I cant play with her toys she isn't going to be able to do the next stage agility IMO...she couldn't care less, it's just my nerves but one step at a time...for me! Mindy would rather just get on with it...and I have witnessed her chase after a bird jumping the jumps along the way, which is why I have put the poles back down on their lowest height on the jumps (for my sanity!) out in the agility garden...

So maybe she can do some agility in time...Peter the vet, seems to think so and he also said to hang fire spaying her, especially as it was an accident. Still not sure about that, but I'm not sure whether I'll do agility with her either...we will just have to wait and see...

ONE STEP AT A TIME!

Pictures to help catch up!

Still don't seem to have much time!
fancy that! so Pictures will help catch me up...Here's Mindy still going to physio and tread mill at Hawksland, Wadebridge, Ross gets in with her after she has been in the spa and had some massage/physio...she is up to 16 mins and seems to cope really well with the water draining now and walks in a straight line...

Mindy - The above award arrived in the post for 2010, Harry won this in his first year of competing and so did Red in her first year, except Red was for Starters....

Sennen ate it!

John caught playing with his toy at Pembrokeshire!

"Red's" final anysize jumping classes

A bit out of order, but back to Pembrokeshire and Red's Last AnySize Jumping.....She really enjoyed then and I felt I wanted to retire her before she hurt herself, she never has done anything with any care about her body, so with anycourse like this last one, I didnt want to push her.....so I can still run her at home with straight lines and her toy waiting for her at the end etc.......