10 March 2019

Where to begin! 

Everyone has heard of Crufts, surely?! Either you are not into dogs but you've heard of Crufts, or you are into dogs and dog showing and maybe dream about one day showing your dog at Crufts. This became a reality for us in April 2018 when we won our class at the WELKS Championship dog show and someone said "that's it, you've qualified Finlay for Crufts now", it really hadn't occurred to us until that point. We booked our hotel room almost straight away, there was no chance we were going to miss our first opportunity to show our dog at Crufts. 

Thousands of dogs and their owners head to Crufts each year, and realistically your chances of winning Best In Show are minuscule. You'll know from your results during the year whether you've got a chance of winning your class, and probably you already know the top winning dogs from the year are likely to be your competition if you get any further than winning your class, so unless you are one of those top winning dogs, then it is down to how it goes on the day. Then even if you do win Best of Breed, you're into the group and you've got another 20-30 dogs to beat....all of whom are going to be very special dogs. So we went along dizzy with excitement at just being there with Finlay, a chance for him to show off to the world and have a fun day. Finlay treated it just like any other show, a place to meet people and dogs and say hello. Even though Deb and Finlay have only been showing for a year, they found themselves in the spotlight, so to speak. Through Finlay we have met so many lovely people, and no matter what you think of dog showing, if you like dogs you are in a building with thousands of other dogs and dog loving people, it is a win-win really.

It is hard to imagine that only one year before we came to Crufts to take part on the Discover Dogs stand. As for the actual dog showing, I'm not sure how much Deb took in because she was quite nervous, but on the day they both did incredibly well.

Deb had decided to put Finlay into the Post Graduate class and there were 9 dogs present from an entry of 10. Right from the start a placing was going to be tough. Finlay did his usual performance and proved to be the happiest Tibetan Spaniel, wagging his way through the whole affair. Our judge Liz Scoates decided that Finlay was worthy of a third place in our class, which was amazing. To get a placing at Crufts at the first time of asking, an achievement we couldn't have imagined. It makes me wonder, I've said many times that we didn't intend to show Finlay, but fell into it and got hooked. How many other 'pet' Tibetan Spaniels are out there that could do well at shows? An entry for Crufts of 160-odd dogs is fantastic, but how many more would it be if we could persuade more people into the showing life which really isn't so bad after all. All of this took place on the last Sunday of Crufts, but Finlay was there on Friday as well, for a different competition.....

The Breeders Competition. I've seen this on the TV before in previous years, it never occurred to me that Deb and Finlay would ever be taking part. But Aileen asked Deb and Finlay during 2018 to be part of the Balgay team and she also asked them to take part in the final, amazing! 40 teams of 3 or 4 dogs reach the Crufts final and all (potentially) 160 dogs are in the ring at the same time. When I say ring, I mean the Best In Show main arena, it is quite a spectacle. The team along with Deb and Finlay made their way around the ring looking like they had done it 100 times before, Finlay wasn't in the least bit intimidated by the big ring (none of the dogs were). I know Aileen really wanted to get shortlisted like they did last year, and they did. But to then get Group 4 was just brilliant. It was a fantastic day, it was a long day, and it was a very special day. I really love my chosen breed, and every opportunity to get the Tibetan Spaniel noticed a little bit more is a good thing in my book.

The photo's begin with what you'd expect, the lovely rosettes!

Breeders Competition rosettes

Third at Crufts, can't be bad

I leave you with the 'effervescent' Finlay (thank you Maureen for coining this phrase), not actually taken at Crufts but taken at the South West Tibetan Spaniel Club show the week before Crufts. All the time Finlay is doing this at a dog show, we know all is well. He is always so eager to please.

The wagger

4 March 2019

Finlay is nearly 21 months old now.....

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"

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!

Gotta climb to the top

One of Finlay's favourite places in the garden is the 'rocking-bench'. It swings back and forth, and Finlay loves to lay there....it is so much better than the cold damp grass don't you know!

My chair now....

28 January 2019

Finlay is now 19 months old, he is a growing lad. Although mentally he really still is a puppy.

The showing
We have done two dog shows this year, he has been placed in both, nothing outstanding so far, but he is still maturing. Visually he is coming along, his coat is starting to look more adult, he is getting a nice shawl and starting to get ear-feathering. His movement is very nice and most often gets picked up in critiques from judges. Deb still has her hands full with him when getting him to present calmly. Quite a few other exhibitors have told us we have the ideal problem, a show dog that is over-exuberant and loves to show, rather than a plodder who really doesn't want to be shown. For Deb that can mean reining in the little devil as he is set to sprint across the ring, or wag furiously and kiss the judge. We wouldn't have him any other way though, maybe he will suddenly mature one day, or maybe he won't!

The close friends
Every Wednesday he meets with a Border Terrier called Dream, he has known her since he was a puppy. My wife walks Dream for the Cinnamon Trust. Dream can be a bit reactive with other dogs, but has always been fine with Finlay only giving him a reasonable telling off if he gets a bit personal (and who wouldn't!). Dream spent the day with us recently, and the two of them got on like a house on fire, it was lovely to see them together.

Even more than Dream though, he has his number 1 bestest pal Jinpa the Tibetan Spaniel. When these two boys meet there are fireworks. It sounds daft to say the word "love", but I truly think these two dogs are in love, they adore one another. So much so that we cannot now say "Jinpa" to Finlay casually because he immediately knows the word and its context, and starts searching for him. Now Jinpa is simply known as "he who must not be named". These boys were meant to be together I think, and they enjoy every second they spend with one another.

Day to day
Finlay is a morning dog. He loves it when we are up early, so he can get out and patrol his patch. Having a lie in does not suit Finlay. He loves the cold, harsh frosty mornings, biting winds, all taken in his stride. He is starting to be a bit more of a loving dog, he will join us on the sofa from time to time, but is equally happy in the hallway on his own. But he is spending more time with us now. 

He is a constant source of entertainment, always managing to raise a smile. When he wants attention, he brings you a toy and dumps it on your feet, then another toy.....until you get the message. He loves chasing balls unlike any of our previous Tibbies. 

As for meeting people and other dogs, Finlay insists on it. He has this knack of fixating on someone when he wants to say hello. From some distance he stares, then freezes staring at them until they look at him. Then the tail wags, the goofy look appears on his face.....and then the other person is hooked and reeled in. The amount of people we end up saying hello to is staggering.....if they also have a dog this is a bonus. Finlay isn't always 100% friends with every dog he meets, he seems to think young dogs need to be brought in line for some reason. Although this is not the case with young Tibbies, who like every other living being, must be loved and wagged at, and kissed.

He loves his limited time spent upstairs and on our bed. We have a stair gate to restrict his movements upstairs, so when he gets the all clear, he bounds around exploring what has happened since his last visit. He would without a doubt spend the night with us, but he has always been more than happy downstairs in his own space. So we are all happy!

Some photos as usual

Here Finlay is at the Chichester Open dog show, doing a proper show dog stand

At the same show, here is is trying to seduce a Chihuahua.....I mean really, what chance did he stand, a Chihuahua!!

Unusually for Finlay, he posed for this photo, he loves our bed and I think he was sending us a message

This is MY bed now

December 2018

Saturday 6th January 2018, we took a rough and ready (and extremely cute) nearly 7 month old Tibetan Spaniel puppy to the Taunton Open show. We had decided that it might be nice to take him to a few shows during the year. He pranced around the ring and didn't do very well at all. A couple of months before that I had started this blog, wondering what news I would have to fill it, thinking it may get a bit boring. Well I needn't have worried, as many of you will know, there was in fact quite a lot to fill the blog with over the coming months. 

In the end we went to 13 Championship shows and 27 Open shows with Finlay during 2018, a total of 40 shows!! As I've said before, we only intended to go to a few shows.....it reminds me of the Michael Caine quote "you were only supposed to blow the bloody doors off".
Finlay won a total of 58 Rosettes, as shown on the new 'Finlay wall' in our dining room. Of course as well as many different coloured Rosettes quite a few of them were red and one very special award was his RCC at Richmond Champ show, a very special day. He and Deb also won a few Special Beginners classes and awards too. He now has his stud book number and is qualified for Crufts for life.

We were ably supported by many of our fellow Tibetan Spaniel dog showing friends. Having read much in the dog press about falling numbers of exhibitors at dog shows, it makes sense that we were encouraged to show Finlay and help to stem the dwindling numbers. We'd like to thank everyone for their support and practical help during the year that helped us whip our little devil into shape.....well, kind of. He still has a wonderful character which is just what you'd want in a pet dog, not always what you want in a show dog, but we wouldn't have him any other way. In a room full of still and posing dogs, there will always be one who wags his little bum off and doing his best to get the judges attention, well anyone's attention. He just screams "me, me, ME!". 

Of course, as well as the exhibitors, Finlay made 'friends' with quite a few dogs during the course of the year. Jinpa, Darcy, Willow, Heidi, Rio, Angie, Deva and many more (maybe even Taggart!) Whether a dog wants to be friends or not, Finlay will give it his best shot whether inside the ring or out. Oh and judges, many a judge has got a kiss and a wag. 

So we finish 2018 very much on a high, so much fun was had although sometimes it can be a bit stressful getting to a venue on time, working out where you are supposed to go, where your ring is, what ring you're supposed to be in when.....and sometimes that long drive home in the dark at the end of a long day. I'm sure we are always much more tired than Finlay.

In 2019 we will not be doing as many shows, and no doubt you will be quoting me on that in the months to come, but we will continue to show Finlay that's for sure. I mean really, who wouldn't!!

For sure, there will be more Finlay 'dog blog' this coming year and maybe 2019 will bring some more 'something in my eye' moments.

The Finlay wall of fame

So many rosettes, and a Reserve CC

Merry Christmas from Finlay

This video from his greatest triumph (so far) at Richmond. You can see he was doing his best trying to woo judge Evelyn Moore Hurley.

This taken at his first show in Taunton

Standing a bit close Mum, but I'm still learning!

This sums up Finlay's year really....and long may it continue

Waggin'

26 November 2018

Finlay is nearly 18 months old!

Tick-tock
Owning a Tibetan Spaniel, in fact probably any dog or any pet, means you own a canine clock. Somehow you train them in the rigours of time management and then they remorselessly hold you to that as time goes by.

Hooman - it is time you fed my breakfast
Hooman - it is time for my walk
Hooman - it is time for your lunch, at which point you will feed me a small piece
Hooman.......etc.

How does this all start, well it is a good point, you don't really notice. Then one day it happens, the dog has come to fetch you....."what do you want" is the polite question. The reply comes in many forms, quite often ‘The Stare™’. You've had that 'stare', I know you have. Initially you pretend you don't know what the stare means, but it always comes at a relevant time, the time for one of the above items. This stare is very hard to ignore but if you manage to ignore it, there will come a time for your Tibbie to ramp up from the stare. It might involve standing up at you, bringing you a toy, maybe even a little nagging noise of some sort, a whine or a woof.....but not the usual "there is someone at the door" woof, oh no, this is a very different woof entirely.

It is safe to say that Finlay has reached the advanced level of time management. He knows when he is 'due' to receive all his daily allotment of items, and he knows how to keep us on our toes and provide what he feels he needs. 

The nose
Of course canine noses are way better than a human nose, we know that. But our previous Tibbies haven't had such a good nose as Finlay. If you dare to leave something on the kitchen side that he thinks is either his, or should be his, then he finds it and stand or jumps up at the side. Currently he can't get onto the kitchen worktop, but he does give it a good go. Turning the nose to good use, to keep him occupied we hide treats in the living room and tell him to "find it", off he will go sniffing out the treats pretty much without fail. Of course this training does loop back on us too, I refer you to the first paragraph 'tick tock'. This nose would also lead him into mischief, so it is imperative we don't leave anything his nose would find, that he shouldn't have, that he CAN get to.

Obedience
Despite his waggy and puppy-like behaviour, Finlay is very quick on the uptake when it comes to training. As well as ringcraft and all that is required of him there, Finlay has been gradually learning the other staples of fun dog obedience, such as "paw". We want to go through Bronze Good Citizen dog with Finlay and we think that it should be fairly easy. Well, I say fairly easy......when Finlay is in the mood he is very obedient, but of course when distracted this is not necessarily the case. 

When out of walks he is becoming more reliable, as I have said before, 'more reliable' is not at all a guarantee of him coming when called, so we are still very careful about where we let him off. Of late, he has come away from other dogs when called and been good from a distance particularly to a whistle. It is great to be able to let him off-lead because he loves to run. At only 18 months old he is in peak physical condition to being able to run and he would walk for miles too.

The challenge
Finlay is an absolute joy to own, but his desire to get his own way is never far from the surface. The opportunity to get away with just that little bit more than you were prepared to allow is constant. He can be a little devil at times and will try your patience if it means he gets his own way. Make no mistake about it, the humans do have to assert their dominance on a frequent basis, but the ease with which Finlay shrugs this off is alarming. This is of course a Tibbie trait, they love to be in charge. 

Despite our protestations to the contrary, is any human really in charge of a Tibbie I wonder.......

Some recent pictures/videos

The boy likes to make himself comfortable, what self-respecting Tibbie doesn't!

Mum's chair, she's gone so I must keep it warm

Finlay met a puppy. He is so outgoing and exuberant normally you'd worry that he would overpower a puppy. But he totally changed, and was ever so gentle with this little one. I love this picture, not one I took myself though.

I posted this video on Facebook. You would have thought it was a setup but it really wasn't. Finlay has discovered toilet rolls in true 'Andrex puppy' style. What a devil.

29 October 2018

Finlay is 16 months old, not far from being 17 months old, how the time has flown.

The showing - two championship dog shows in two weeks. The TSA Champ show last week where he got 3rd in Junior and 3rd in Post Graduate and then Midland Counties Champ show this weekend where again he got 3rd in both Junior and Post Grad - very consistent.

Finlay got to see lots of his Scottish family on Sunday at the show and I think he enjoyed that. We are constantly told by everyone we meet what a lovely friendly boy he is, he is a cheeky little dog who charms everyone he meets. He's even befriended a dog behaviourist who adores him, so that must be saying something. The video below shows him trying to win over Liz Cartledge at Midland Counties on Sunday, which appeared to be working, but not enough to make her shortlist unfortunately.

The friends - I think Jinpa (another Tibetan Spaniel) is Finlay's absolute number one best friend. But it has to be said Finlay makes canine friends quite easily. He loves to play and is very good at doggy-language and seems to know when it is appropriate to go in for a play and when perhaps being more submissive and rolling over would be a better idea. This mostly works. He does seem to be a big hit with the ladies though, lots of kisses and smiles.....although his mind does inevitably turn to more serious pastimes, which of course we discourage. But boys will (try to) be boys. As for making human friends, well that isn't difficult for a wagger like Finlay.

The hotels - if a show is over a certain travelling distance or it is both distant and early judging we stay away in a hotel. Makes a nice weekend of it. The first couple of times Finlay took this in his stride, but the last couple of visits have not been so good. Last weekend he did a lot of woofing, as it was pointed out to me he is in fact doing exactly what he was bred to do, alert his owners of strange noises. Which in this case was people thumping down the hotel corridors and banging doors. But he did somewhat overdo the alerting and we didn't want to wake the entire hotel! Then this weekend, he was at it again. More woofing, but he was very unsettled, licking a lot and being restless. To be fair, the hotel was VERY noisy, people banging and shouting at 2am and 3am, so we would have had a disturbed night dog or no dog. More practice is required I think!

Training - although Tibbies aren't known for their unflinching obedience, Finlay is learning. He does a good 'heel' now, his waiting is almost faultless and he learns really quickly. This is of course mixed in with typical adorable Tibbie traits of ignoring his owners just when you think he has it sussed. We really want to get his bronze Good Citizen dog award, so are working towards that in due course. He went on a massive romp in a big field with his best friend Jinpa recently, and they were both in a the far distance, a loud whistle from me stopped him in his tracks and with a brief pause of "did you want something dad", he dutifully ran the 200 metres or so back to us. What a star, this is real progress. Not progress enough to just start letting him off the lead everywhere you understand!!

Upstairs - for quite a while after we got him Finlay was not allowed upstairs, mainly because we didn't want his young bones to be stressed too much crashing up and down the stairs. But no such worries now, although a stairgate is in place to stop him going up there when he pleases. He is occasionally allowed upstairs now though and boy does he love it. Here he is with that cheeky look on, you've seen this look before right?

The pictures/video - I really love this video. Obviously Finlay doesn't know he is being seen by a top judge like Liz Cartledge, so he takes it in his stride. Basically, if a judge looks like they are requesting a kiss, they are going to get one. If the judge gets within a certain distance, that 'kissing distance', they are going to get one. It is lovely to see a dog that loves being handled like this. I had an unusual video angle here, as I was above in the upstairs part of the Champ show.

Here is Finlay and Jinpa, who are the bestest of mates. They first met when Finlay was very young and I think they bonded from the start. They both bark furiously when they first sense the other is near and are sad to depart at the end of their walks. It really melts my heart seeing them both together having such obvious fun.

14 October 2018

We went to a dog show, we didn't win any classes, and that's ok.

Since January 2018, we have done 27 dog shows of all kinds - small open shows, larger open shows, breed shows and full on multi-day championship shows. We haven't won classes at all of them, which when you are only just starting out is exactly what you'd expect. Deb and Finlay have learned so much this year and every time we go to a show we learn a little bit more.

What I don't want to do is end up only posting on Facebook for those times we win a class, a fancy rosette or generally do well because that isn't realistic. There are those days when for whatever reason you don't do so well purely in terms of 'scores on the board'. But that doesn't mean it was a wasted day, or a total write-off, it just means today it wasn't our day. If a judge has (say) 4 dogs in front of them, they haven't got any massive faults, they are all within the breed standard on most things then it is going to come down to what that judge believes is the best Tibetan Spaniel in that particular class on that day. Depending on what the judge likes in a dog, that decision may not always fall the same way, we are all human beings - if you worried about it too much you wouldn't go to any dog shows.

You still get to meet up with loads of people that love dogs, be in a venue full of dogs, meet our favourite breed in the whole world, Tibetan Spaniels, have a yarn about the terrible weather (today at least) and drink some slightly dodgy tasting beverage from the on-site facilities. In that respect, totally not a waste of a day, great fun. And on top of that we even got to see a Tibetan Spaniel win 'Best In Show', how awesome is that!

Ok-ok, yes saying all that it doesn't mean we don't think our fido is the best ever, no matter what anyone says, we all love our dogs and they mean the world to us. But as I think I have said before, this is a competition and there will be winners and losers. You can celebrate losing, that's not a crime - I defy anyone who met Finlay today not to have smiled, people gave him their treats and in return he gave them sloppy wet kisses, what's not to like! Our appreciation for Finlay is pretty partisan, but I've smiled and ahhh'd at quite a few other dogs today.....and I wouldn't have done that if I concentrated on the fact that we "lost" in our classes.

Quite a few of you reading this blog have been showing dogs for years, so you'll already know all of this.....for everyone else, perhaps this helps you understand why we've done so many dog shows this year. Yes, we're a bit mad and we've joined a crowd of mad dog showing people!!

Just to clarify, here is what we got:
- Second in Tibetan Spaniel Junior (out of 2 entries)
- VHC (or 5th) in Tibetan Spaniel Post Graduate (out of 5 entries)
- Unplaced in a large class of 16 in Special Beginners Stakes
- Unplaced (although got through to the shortlist of 6) in a class of 11 in Junior Stakes

Finlay doing his thing, he didn't put a paw wrong today, at least not in a big way.