Spring is Sprung!

Spring is here
The grass is starting to turn green, the frogs are starting to sing at night, the mud is back LOL oh lord is the mud back

We’ve had some massive rains lately, with flooding happening. The puppy yard was so flooded I couldn’t’ see Tipperary’s tunnels to China, had to step where the puppies went to insure I didn’t’ disappear up to my knees in her holes.

Work is a bear, so between that and trying to make sure I can show some of my own dogs this year and rehabbing that knee, been very busy. After a bout of neck pains and then slicing his toe open, Mr Grins is bouncing off of walls as is poor Dei who started suffering neck pain from a neck injury as a young bitch. I'dmanaged to wean her off her previcox to 113.50mg previcox every 2-2.5 days,and now down to nothing after a month on it, and she's not yipped in two weeks. Granted she's been mostly housebound, so we shall see what happens after she goes out to play, tho preliminary 'tests' of playtime seems to be promising.

Grins & Secret & I have been doing some powerwalk/jogs, Secret particularily enjoys it, as she hunts the entire time, ears up in the air, eyes scanning the horizon. It debounces Grins, exhausts Secret & I, and all and all, we are enjoying ourselves. Taking it easy right now as I managed to rehurt the knee either doing those walks or when I slammed my knee into the ground boxing a silken windhound, but can't wait to start up again I'm missing having an agility dog and/or a rally dog, so am starting to work with the younger generations. . Gibbs & Jenny have a lot of food drive and want to please me soooo bad, Secret's food oriented, but not so eager to please LOL Worked her a bit on the agility equipment, but she is too focused on the food and not paying attention to what she's doing, and when she quits, she does it in an interesting way, just lets her body go loose and falls off of the dog walk LOL We'll keep working, hoping one of the bobsy twins will be a triathalon dog for 2014. . They are both co owned with Bonnie, so we will each be working one of them in obedience, I think we're going to have a lot of fun.

Otherwise we've been getting out, enjoying the spring air and enjoying the dogs. March has been a busy month.

First weekend was our first racemeet of the year, and the Holiday youngsters did me proud, running clean, learning how to box without a problem, handled everything including the high winds that made the barn and box rattle horribly. Nacht was FTE on Saturday and although the box door slamming shut scared her, she ran well, turtle for the day, but that's ok, it's a learning experience. Bella was FTE on Sunday, and again, ran well, started boxing like a pro, and was the turtle for the day Secret pleased me immensely. She was Nacht's test dog on Saturday and then i ran her alone for two practices, and she's learning to use her body, don't expect much from her at racing, due to her age, but as long as she's enjoying herself she can run.

I entered her Sunday as she'd had so much fun Saturday, she is starting to break better, tho she almost lost her first race to Reba, pulling a mirror of her sister at the very end of putting on the after burners and bolted by her at the very last minute. She also for the first time ever, lunged at the squawker, and yes, she got A LOT OF PRAISE for it! The last race of the day, she tried to bolt into Bella's box, which just made me SOOO VERY EXCITED!! to see her willing to box. LOL She ended up coming in 2nd in the meet for a point:) I was very pleased. Ms Nacht picked up a .5 point. I was very happy with how the girls first weekend went.

Sunday was a fun day, low in people, I'd pull the neon up to the box, we'd box the dogs, and I'd run the neon to the finish line to pick them up LOL whatever works. . .it helped get us done before the torrential downpour really hit, which it did thankfully after we'd packed up and headed home.

Now that I have dogs to course again(FOUR of them!), I've been also hitting the coursing field. First saturday,it was horrid, horrid mud, cold wind, was supposed to be in mid 50's, but sure the heck didn't feel like it. My friend's girl came up owie after her runs, and Ziva did not push herself like she's done before and was owie a day later :( Nacht ran like gangbusters. She picked up a 2nd out of 7 on Saturday running against her distant cousin(their father’s are halfbrothers by stardust), and 3rd out of 5 on Sunday, (she and the NBQ were the only two who'd ran both days), which included an awesome show of agility when she launched herself over a dog who fell in front of her. Ms Jenny wowed people at her cert run on Saturday and again for her runs on Sunday, she was gorgeous, reminding me a lot of daddy and her uncles Obie & Wings. She took 1st in her stake, than BOB, and then on to BIF with a nice run with a nice azawak and a RR. Her mama is appreciating the BIF bed she won very much LOL

She promptly came into season LOl

Next time out, Ms Nacht surprised the heck out of me, picked up both her firsts, 32 points, and is now sitting at 66 points and both 1sts. Edith's gotten some help on how to get her started in Austria, and I know she's going to have a blast when Ms Nacht gets over there. Nothing easier than a pretrained dog :)

It’s so nice to be back on the coursing field, even if it’s more boring than racing because there’s a lot of waiting around. .racing keeps you busy all day long, and has a lot less equipment malfunctions! We're taking it easy this weekend, going to do a practice if it's not too yucky, and get ready for coursing next weekend then a few weeks of specialties. Jenny is on her way to Kansas with Kari and last text I got, she was being a perfect little angel. SUcks she's in season, but she still gets to play good little show dog :) Hopefully she'll behave better in the ring than her dork brother last year. First time I've sent a dog to the Nationals without me myself going. .. it stinks :P

Yippee! Health testing

I've got a longer blog post coming up, but had to post a quick happy post

In the last two months, I've received two DM clear results

FC Silkenswift Rider of the Storm SC, FCh, ORC, GRC "Grins"
Mielikki-Mandolin's WikiWiki Makani "Kani"

With Grins results, that means the NCIS litter is all clear of DM by parentage(Since mama Dei is the same!)

Kani I was worried about, as her two brothers are carriers, but now I know at the worst her pups are carriers.

Kani also is thyroid normal, got that paperwork yesterday! Need to get her OFA Heart paperwork in, and look for cerf clinics, her new mama is willing to take her to one for me! (I didn't turn in her paperwork last time!)

Feel like I need to go buy a lottery ticket since my luck seems to be on the good side right now LOL