24 October 2020

The headline is, we went to a dog show!

The real stars are Southampton and District Canine Society, the masses of planning that must have gone into this and what hoops they must have had to jump through to make this dog show happen. Firstly, a fantastic well done to them because it has shown that a dog show can happen, even in these Covid times. It wasn’t easy though, and it wasn’t quite the same dog show as before.

How was it different? Well, to start with this was a Limited show with limited numbers attending in order to satisfy Covid rules. It was judged under the group system, just 4 classes in the Utility group, Puppy, Special Yearling, Post Graduate and Open. The venue, an equestrian centre, only had 2 rings. A collecting ring and the main ring and one judge for the day apart from a few stakes classes. Very limited spectating, no cages in the venue to allow social distancing, so your base was your car.

The part that let the day down was the weather, but dog showing in late October is always going to be tricky and that is no-ones fault. But it did mean the venue was wet and muddy, getting to the car and back got you soaked.

You really miss not having cages inside the venue, a ‘base of operations’ if you will. It means that while Deb was in the ring with the boys, I was left holding her raincoat, dog brush, towel and other paraphernalia. So that element I did struggle with, but it did mean the venue had plenty of space for social distancing. Everyone was wearing a mask, no gatherings of more than 6 people.

The actual dog showing part was pretty much as normal, the table was wiped down after every dog and hand sanitiser for the judge, but showing the dogs was just like it always was. At least how it always was on a wet day in October in an equestrian centre on a sandy/muddy floor!!

By far the most relaxed one on the day was Finlay and boy did it show!! We were both a bit stressed by it being the first show in 7 months and of course little Cooper was at his first ever show. Cooper was fine, but he wanted to say hello and play with every dog, just as a young dog should want to. He did get his way to an extent.

First in the ring was Cooper in his Special Yearling class. He did very well, but did not show his best because of the surface and because it was his first time. By now he could have been showing for 6 months or more and a lot of puppies are in that same position. He did his first walk around ok and was fine on the table….his second walk around was not so good. But for a first outing he did good. He came 3rd in his class so has won himself his very first rosette.

Then came Finlay. It was like Finlay was in the ring just yesterday, I am of course very biased, but he was majestic. He just wafted around the ring “this way mum, down this way….on the table next mum”, he knew exactly what he was doing. Did the judge get a wag, or course he did. Finlay only then went and won his Open class, which was no mean feat against some stiff competition and against some dogs who have definitely beaten him before. He went through to the Group judging but did not get placed, but winning the Open class was brilliant, Finlay thought so too.

There will however be no photos of the day. I’m not entirely sure why, but photography was not allowed at this venue. I’m not sure whether it was the venue stipulating or whether it was to discourage people from gathering at ringside and maintaining social distancing. It was a shame because I always take a few photos and it was Cooper’s first show. Never mind, there will be another show.

After all that excitement we went out to the car and had a coffee and our rolls. It seemed a bit daft really because we were only 30 minutes from home, but having done the show it seemed only right we should have a picnic to finish off. Sitting in a steamed-up car in the pouring rain, is so very ‘British’.

But was it all worth it? Yes it was!

Soton &DCS have shown that it can be done. It felt very safe, everyone wore masks, there wasn’t any point where I felt crowded or not socially distanced and I don’t think the team could have done any more than they did. Brilliant.

Was it a different experience from normal, well yes it was and it had to be. There were still people meeting people and socialising, either outside in the rain or in groups of 2 or 3 inside. So people did get to have a yarn about dogs and meet old friends, people did the dog showing part and that hasn’t changed one bit (not really bar the sanitiser). But not having your cage and your ‘stuff’ inside with you is a bit of a pain, but there it is. If it was like that forever we’d adapt and just carry less stuff around with us!

I’m glad we were lucky enough to go, today was mainly about getting Cooper to his first show and much less about any results. Yes I know I would say that with Deb and Finlay winning Open, that was truly unexpected up against Dalmations, a lovely Poodle, Tibetan Terriers….all dogs that are very difficult to beat in our Group.

My hat is doffed to you Soton & DCS, very well done!

A third for Cooper and a red one for Finlay!

This was a pic from first thing this morning, Finlay was not letting us leave without him, he knew what the red show-bag meant!

3 April 2020

I have to say I am right royally fed up with hearing nothing but Coronavirus-Coronavirus-Coronavirus in every conversation and on every news bulletin. Therefore I wondered what I could write about that would take my mind off it all, and possibly yours.

Well I suppose the answer is “dogs”. Depending on your individual circumstance, this ‘lockdown’ may affect your life in different ways, some people will be a lot worse off than others. For us, it isn’t terrible, I am able to work from home and we both work part-time. But what it has meant is that we have more time on our hands because we aren’t ‘nipping out to the shop’ or driving the dogs to a walk further away, and life becomes simpler in a way.

I’m not one for the whole ‘mindfulness’ movement, but I think unconsciously I have been practising it a bit more. I am noticing my surroundings a bit more, paying a bit more attention to things than I otherwise would. I had to visit my doctors surgery this morning and I found myself sitting in the car in the car park (waiting until I was called, as I was instructed to do) and heard the bird-song as the loudest thing, where normally it would be cars on the busy road that goes past the surgery. (visit to doctors surgery routine, nothing worrying!)

Gardening, I’m not a huge fan, but I do get some enjoyment from weeding and tidying….and when you are doing that, you’re not thinking about anything else. I think the brain needs a break from all this madness, so concentrating on something and therefore blocking everything else out, is a useful coping technique.

Life can assume an air of calmness about it, or least it can if you tune out the general stress that this time has brought us. As I said, focusing on the simpler life, which leads me onto dogs.

We have Finlay of course who is not that far off 3 years old now, and Cooper who is nearly 7 months old. Even though it wasn’t that long ago that Finlay was a puppy, Cooper has been a wake-up call of hard work and frustration but of course love and cuteness. He seems to love taunting his brother SO very much, it is his hobby. They sleep in adjacent rooms, separated but they can see one another, they seem to like it that way so far. But they are mad keen on seeing one another in the morning. The furious wagging until they can get to one another and then an explosion of energy that is unsettling for a 50-something year old man who really isn’t THAT good first thing in the morning. They get let out into the garden as quickly as possible so they can rampage around, whilst I get some coffee down me!

The best way I’ve found is to let them burn off their energy before letting them back into the house, otherwise they just bounce off every wall and the kitchen cupboards until they’ve had their breakfast. Cooper is very-very rough with Finlay, who just seems to put up with it. We assume he will at some point reach his limit and inform Cooper that this is the case. But he hasn’t reached his limit yet. Being just over 6 months old, Cooper is at his most hooligan age probably…..now and for the next couple of years haha! He still cannot be trusted to be left alone, given the chance he chews cables, pulls towels off the rails and drags them across the floor, chews rugs….pretty much anything he ISN’T supposed to do, he does. Which means so far in his life, we’re either with him, or he is imprisoned in his puppy pen….and he is now clearly indicating that being imprisoned is not the done thing. Crash and bang the puppy pen goes as he pulls it from its supposed square shape into a very thin diamond shape, taking the surrounding furniture with it.

You know when you look him square in the eye sometimes (or any puppy probably), and what looks back at you is pure puppy devilment…..Tibetan Spaniel owners, you’ve seen it, haven’t you!!

So, having this extra time to observe a puppy what do you see. Just how individual every dog is, not just the Tibetan Spaniel….but any dog I imagine. Cooper does some very cat-like movements with his front paws, Finlay of course wags a lot. Cooper has the best goading technique I’ve ever seen in getting Finlay to engage. The interplay between the two of them is fascinating, we eventually give way and pull Cooper off Finlay to give him a break, and then Finlay will purposefully get straight back in and begin playing again – even though we thought he’d had enough he clearly hasn’t. We try not to interfere where we can and just leave them too it. We are not keen on the “bitey faces” game, they absolutely love doing it, but we do worry about their eyes. They seem to know what they are doing. Then just when you think they are two independent boys marking out their territory, they’ll have the most tremendous love-in and end up sleeping together in the corner of the room.

Finlay has always been fairly independent, he will come and lay next to you on the couch but not for long – “human, I am gracing you my presence, you may stroke me”. So of course you take him up on his kind offer, but woe betide you if you overstep the mark…..stroke him by all means, but try and cuddle him and he’s off with a disdainful loud “sigh” and possibly a dirty look over his shoulder as he stalks off out into the hallway for a bit of peace and quiet. Again, Tibetan Spaniel owners, you’ve had the “sigh” too haven’t you?!

One thing to note, is that now we have two Tibetan Spaniels, when we go out for a walk we get less comments about what mix of breeds is he….because to the untrained eye they look very similar, so people figure they are perhaps the same breed. They certainly make a great team, because any human walking down the road towards them will be halted by Finlay’s wagging, then notice the cute puppy, and another set of fans are drawn in (well, they were until the last couple of weeks since social distancing came in, which the dogs most certainly do not approve of).

Walks are also a different thing. Finlay has always loved going out for walks and now he is a mature dog, he could walk for miles and would do given half the chance. I’ve no doubt he could walk further than I could before I needed a sit down. Cooper of course is only young so has enforced shorter walks, in fact much shorter than people seem to realise, even other dog owners. A local dog owner was very surprised to see me carrying Cooper whilst out with Deb and Finlay. “Is he alright” he asked, yes I said….but he only gets to walk for short distances, for the rest he is carried. Then ensued a long conversation about protecting young puppy bones and joints, it was news to the dog owner I was chatting to, sigh. We’re happy to educate, but surprised it is necessary.

Anyway, Cooper’s walk length is gradually increasing, but he is a nightmare at times whilst out walking. He loves to ambush Finlay half way across a road and chase him around….not ideal! He is also a bit skittish when he is out on his own walking with one of us, he prefers to be with Finlay. He constantly looks back behind him to see if his brother is coming. Finlay does nothing of the sort, it is much more like “I’m off and I don’t care if HE comes or not”.

Essentially dog watching could become almost a full-time hobby. They are very different characters but they do seem to get on well with one another. Certainly in these uncertain times, dogs provide a comfort and they have their demands which focus the mind on the present. The dogs will always need feeding, walking and playing with. They have an innocence through all this that you could get quite jealous of, they know nothing of what is going on in the world. If they sense you are a bit uneasy, then the come and give you a smile and a wag. Who could ask for more?

Here is a recent picture of Finlay, basking in the sunshine on his favourite bench:

Humans, you may adore me now

On the same day, here is Cooper. He loves the garden, and he loves trying to consume the garden:

Nom, nom, nom, lovely stick

Here we see Cooper's best goading technique. Even when Finlay gives him what seems to be a clear 'bugger off' sign, they still go back for more.

8 March 2020

Fitting that I should write this update having just watched the Crufts Best In Show result.

I was reminded recently that I still have a blog that is just for Finlay rather than the Facebook blog that is about both Finlay and Cooper. I need to update this blog as it seems I haven't since last August. A lot has happened in Finlay's life in the last 7 months.

Finlay has been slow to mature. He is such a bubbly character and has been since day one, but this has also meant that he hasn't shown his best, until the last few months. As well as physically maturing he has started to calm down enough that he can still be that goofy Finlay we know and love, but also bring out some of the breed characteristics of our beloved Tibetan Spaniel. Well, except maybe the 'aloof' part.....

Finlay gained a Reserve Dog Challenge Certificate in 2018 and it was a complete surprise and an absolute honour. But since then  although he has had very good success in Open shows, Championship show honours have been thin on the ground. Then came last week at the South West Tibetan Spaniel Club Champ show where he won his Mid-Limit class, again totally unexpected......... and then came Crufts 2020.

Finlay took part at Crufts 2019 and gained a 4th place in his class, which was amazing. We had never considered ever showing a dog at Crufts before, so this was a dream come true. But then in 2020 Finlay came along and won his Limit Dog class. A red rosette at Crufts, astounding. But then he went and won the Reserve Dog Challenge Certificate (like at Richmond), but this time at Crufts. CRUFTS!! The day was a blur and even driving back home in the car it really hadn't sunk in. Next day I watched back lots of the video I had recorded on the day and it seemed a bit like a dream, but it was real alright.

Then Deb and Finlay took part in the Breeders Competition and the team came 4th out of 36 teams. After a full year of qualification in 2019 and then to put a team up against the cream of the best dog breeders at Crufts and to come 4th for the 2nd year in a row is such an achievement for Aileen McDonald. Such an honour for such a novice pairing to be 'allowed' to take part.

At home Finlay (and Cooper) are pet dogs. When you get up in the morning there they are. They happily go out for walks in all weathers, they are there on the sofa, playing with toys and spreading them all over the house. They are both very naughty at times. They are forever deep within our hearts. Only for a few hours a month are they show Tibetan Spaniels. Those same dogs that look so composed around a show ring (whether Crufts or not) are equally at home covered in mud or rolling in fox poo. I'm not sure this is very well understood by non-dog showing people. Yes these are carefully bred pedigree dogs, but these 'posh' dogs are really nothing of the sort, just ordinary happy dogs who have been so well trained and socialised that they are happy attending dog shows without being stressed by the whole experience. They take it in their stride, more so than the humans I suspect.

I don't know where Finlay's show career will go from here (or Cooper's), but if this last week turned out to be the pinnacle (and I do hope it's not) then it would have been pretty damn good. Deb and I are still bursting with pride at being able to get as far as we have with Finlay, many of you have given us support along the way, we couldn't have done it without you.

I take literally hundred of photos at dog shows, but I've rarely caught such a good one of Finlay.

Finlay in his Limit class at Crufts

Deb, Finlay and Aileen our breeder. When we picked up that fluffy pup in August 2017, we couldn't possibly have known what a star he would turn out to be.

Proud breeder moment

....and I certainly never envisaged ever taking a photo like this, winning anything at Crufts let alone a RDCC.

Finlay and Deb with Linda Morton our judge