Crufts - there is a really big deal coming up for team Finlay, the biggest dog show we've ever been to, the biggest dog show in the world. Deb and I have been going to Crufts since the mid-1990's as spectators and last year we went with Finlay to the Discover Dogs stand. But this year Finlay will be in the ring, qualified for Crufts and his first time in the Crufts ring (and for Deb). We cannot wait. I think probably for many exhibitors of Tibetan Spaniels it is something fairly routine, something they've done many times before....can you remember your first time?
This year it isn't like we're only doing Crufts once, we're going twice. We are in the Team Balgay Tibetan Spaniel Breeders competition. I know Deb is really proud to represent Finlay's breeder Aileen in this special event. We are going on Friday for the judging, and all 40 teams that qualified will get their moment in the main arena, how special is that. No pressure whatsoever.....
Day to day life - although at dog shows mostly people will just see the happiest Tibbie with the biggest wag, inevitably when you are with a dog 24/7 you get to see their whole character. Finlay is a young adolescent dog, and he is also pretty headstrong and likes to be in charge. Although most dogs he meets with he is instantly friends with, he is a bit stand-offish with larger dogs who stare at him and at the moment young puppies seem to need to be brought in line with a stiff talking to. He forgets that it wasn't that long ago he was the mad puppy in everyone's faces. He is very different at a Tibbie show though, much more tolerant.....I know other Tibbie owners have said this, but they really DO know their own kind.
Finlay also gets a bit freaked out by the silliest things, he doesn't like his walking harness despite being trained on it from a young puppy. He makes a right fuss about getting it put on and then once it is on he couldn't care less about it, the same with his dog raincoat. It is almost a fear reaction, but we're working on it.
Also he is a noisy little devil. He does like to woof a lot in the garden, particularly at night. Sometimes it is woofing because another dog is woofing, but other times it just seems to be because he enjoys woofing. I don't think there is anything he is trying to warn us about. We haven't had any neighbours knocking at our door yet, so it can't be too bad.
Weave! I published a video a while back showing Finlay doing some weaving between Deb's legs, he can still do this and he has progressed to weaving as Deb walks forwards. If we could be bothered I'm convinced that he could learn a lot more. Our other 2 Tibbies were both very intelligent (one intelligent and up for the challenge, the other intelligent but far too lazy) but neither were as clever as Finlay.....we're yet to figure out if this is entirely a good thing!! He learns new things VERY quickly, sometimes even before we realise we've taught him something. We will do more with him, next on the list is the Good Citizen dog scheme I think.
Kennels. He has had a single night trials in some local-ish kennels and he did ok. The plan was he was going to be in a 'social kennel' because he is a generally social dog. However, he was a bit to 'social' and ended up trying to hump every dog he met. So the kennel decided that it was best if Finlay was in a kennel on his own. Oh well. So he is booked for a 2 night stay later this month and then maybe a full week so we can go away somewhere abroad on holiday. I'm sure he will be fine, he didn't seem at all distressed by his first night away. We'll see how it works out.
A few photo's as usual
How many Tibbie owners get this view, quite a few I'd wager. This is Finlay's relaxed position, sometimes referred to as a "sploot"
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| What a view..... |
Something I know applies to many Tibetan Spaniels, a love of climbing. Why walk around a pile of logs when you can climb to the top of them. Finlay does get a lot of long walks and walks around lots of interesting places. One of the many things I love about him is his agility, he just bounces up obstacles and back down so easily. It will get him into trouble one day!
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| Gotta climb to the top |
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| My chair now.... |
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