Well we have done loads and loads of reading and after all our research we now know that the quail could hatch today…. or tomorrow…. or the next day or anywhere up to 26 days from when they went under heat!
Google can answer most questions the only problem is you get so many right answers!
This morning they still looked like this -
In just a few days we could be looking after these little guys – hatch day is less than a week away now!
Every time I have visited the BCT kennels there has been another dog that I want to help, another sad story waiting for a happy ending. Every time I have been in the trust’s office there has been at least one phone call with a plea for help. There can be as many as 10 or 15 calls for help on the phone each day.
The trust helps many, many dogs each year. They rehome 400 to 500 annually and more are helped with the Collie Care Fund which helps out with vets costs in exceptional circumstances.
There are generally between 30 and 40 dogs at the centre and there is always a waiting list of dogs that need help. The dogs come from other rescue centres who need assistance homing a border collie or from rescue sites that take in strays and in those cases the help is needed quickly as the dogs are at risk of being PTS. They also come from owners who can no longer care from them, this can be for a wide variety of reasons including ill-health and marital breakdown. Staff at the centre are given the difficult task of prioritising all these needs. When the call comes, as it says on their website, staff go into “serious think mode” as they work out which dog they can take and which will have to wait. Priority is given to any dog in stray kennels as these dogs are PTS if they are not found rescue spaces quickly enough.
A huge amount of fund-raising is done to ensure funds are available to carry out the work that is quiet literally a lifeline for the collies. This fund-raising is done in a variety of ways and includes attending events to spread the word about the work going on and to collect donations or placing collecting tins in shops, vets or anywhere else that will have people there who may pop in a few pennies. Still despite all this hard work going on the staff are still forced to choose which collie to help and when. There are still collies on the waiting list who are in desperate straights.
It is great that the trust does such amazing work. The staff and a small team of dedicated volunteers have been working hard since the 1970′s to achieve the great results they have had so far, results which have seen the trust become a national charity with purpose-built kennels set in a four and half-acre site. Yet still there is the daily need for “serious think mode” which ultimately has to decide the fate of dogs in need. People who know me call me an idealist and a dreamer, and that may be true, as I have an idealistic dream that with enough helpers we can make “serious think mode” defunct and only required to decide what type of biscuits to have with mid morning coffee! In my dream BCT would have the resources to help EVERY SINGLE TIME the phone rings.
I need helpers to make my dream come true – volunteers, lots and lots and lots of them! I don’t care where you live, or who you are, or if you can spare 8 hours a day or half an hour a month! I want you to help me make this dream come true! Help me, and the small band of people already supporting the trust, to form a fund-raising team that is big enough and strong enough to raise enough funds every year to make it so that every time the phone rings with a request for help the answer can be yes.
There are two main fund-raising roles where there are vacancies across the whole of the country, (or if you love collies perhaps even the world !) These are -
Collections Coordinator.
Installing collecting tins in shops, pubs and other public areas and visiting to collect the contents on a regular basis. This is a vital role as although the cash sums collected are low they mount up over the course of a year to become a significant contribution. This role also helps raise national awareness of the work done by the trust as info leaflets are left with the collection tin where possible and the tins themselves are branded and have web address.
Friendly outgoing people needed who can run a stand promoting the work of BCTGB at varied outlets – dog shows, fetes, country shows, pet shops etc. Full training is offered and lots of support is available.
Currently most of this work is done by small number of Trustees and Volunteers and as the demand is very high we need more people to take part. The main objective is always to promote the Trust’s work and increase the number of people who are aware of the work done with the collies. The second objective is to raise funds to pay for the work to continue. Methods of achieving these objectives vary depending on the event and the preferences of the person hosting.
I joked earlier today to a colleague that I would like to see a collection tin in every shop across the country and a stand with the trusts logo on at every event we can think of. Help me go a little way to make this joke a reality. Think of how many more collies we could save if there are enough of us helping out.
Is your church about to have an autumn fayre, your school holding a Christmas market, is there a local pet shop that would allow you to set up a small table one Saturday and raise some funds? Could you hold a dress down for work day, or dress up, or non uniform if you are at school and collect donations? Whatever your idea if it could raise funds we are keen to hear about it and want you on our volunteer team – visit the web site and fill in a volunteer application form TODAY – the Collies need YOU. Once your form is filled in and sent into the BCT office we will be in touch and you will be well on the way to helping us rescue more collies.
Tommy working as a volunteer event host running a tombola at Just for Pets – all puppies need to have a human helper when they volunteer
Hire Station are supporting Border Collie Trust with a great deal, which not only will raise vital funds for Border Collie Trust, allowing them to continue their work rescuing and rehoming border collies and border collie crosses across the UK, but will also save money for their supporters every time they hire anything from Hire Station, either from the on-line shop or from one of Hire Station’s branches.
Hire station has branches spread across the UK and you can arrange to have hired products delivered direct to your door or you can collect from a branch. You can hire anything from a carpet cleaner to a rotavator, a cement mixer to a wall paper stripper. Whatever your project, big or small, they can help you out with the right tools for the job. To see what is available to hire look here – hire station.
Border Collie Trust supporters will receive a discount of at least 25% off all Hire Station catalogue prices, across their full range of equipment. In addition to this great discount Hire Station will give Border Collie Trust a donation every time one of the BCT supporters hires anything using this account code -
Border Collie Trust Account Number – Z746921
The more you hire, the more you save and the bigger the donation to Border Collie Trust – a real win for everyone
Special deal on carpet cleaners for Border Collie Trust supporters!
Even better – as Hire Station know dog lovers need help keeping carpets spick and span they have arranged an even better price for when hiring carpet cleaners! I have tried these machines myself in the past and even though I have a house full of pets and teenagers they can make it look like I have new carpets! They are quick and easy to use – not much more effort than vacuuming and the results are excellent. For more info have a look here – Hire station carpet cleaner
Visit any Hire Station branch and quote the Border Collie Trust Account number and you will receive the discount, to find your nearest Hire Station branch look here – Hire Station branch locator.
Alternatively phone 0845 604 5337 and quote the Border Collie Trust Account number to arrange delivery of your hired items to your door when you need them.
To make it easy for you to remember the Border Collie Trust Account number there will soon be printed leaflets available from Kennels in Rugeley or for you to print off from the website. Feel free to hand these around your friends as the more people use the service the more funds the trust will raise.
Thank you Hire Station for this very generous offer which will help both the supporters and Border Collie Trust.
If you have any questions about this great deal or if you experience any problems please let me know by email – border.collie@vpplc.com
Life as a puppy for our new family member Tom is great fun and involves lots of play with toys, with people, with Stan or with the edges of the carpet he does not care really. As I prefer him not to chew the edges of carpets I give him lots of toys and encourage playing with these – not that he needs much encouragement!
Of course all this playing makes him tired and he needs to catch 40 winks fairly frequently -
He sleeps curled up in bed – that’s not his bed, it’s Stan’s, so he curls up right at one end in the hope Stan won’t notice. Stan always takes look at him when he decides to sleep here but will then move on to the sofa for his own nap. Stan has got into the bed with the sleeping pup a few times and stood there looking at him so perhaps one day he will lie down and snuggle him!
Sometimes he gets tired all of a sudden when he is playing, then he just flops over on the carpet where he is and has a quick snooze.
Snuggled with teddy – Tom loves a good snuggle, don’t we all? Here he is spooning with Stan’s teddy. Stan didn’t mind! He was busy chasing his kong ball!
Stan seems to think Tom is his new dog toy so it makes sense that Tom took 40 winks in the toy basket!
Stan stands guard to be sure his new friend gets the sleep he needs …. ahhh!
Since I began to help promote the great work done by The Border Collie Trust I have heard lots of people say words to the effect of, “I would love to help but can’t give a dog a home at the moment.” Staff at the Trust would rather you don’t offer a home to a dog if that is not something you really want to do. You should only be offering a home to one of their lovely dogs if the time is right for you to do that – you will need time, space, cash and a willingness to give up huge chunks of all of these in some cases! If now is not that time for you, perhaps you already have a dog, (Or several!) perhaps you have just had a new baby, or you work very long hours, then perhaps you should not be offering to give a dog a new home, but your help is still very much needed.
There are so many ways that you can support the work done by The Border Collie Trust that I am not going to even try to cover all of them in one feature or you would be reading for a very long time and probably thoroughly fed up with me! I will write other features about the many ways you can support the Trust over the next few weeks. In this feature I am going to focus on just a couple of ways you can support the Trust –
The Border Collie Support Scheme – a vital source of regular income
Ride4care – a sponsored event where one of the trustees will be riding a motorcycle from John O’Groats to Lands End
The Border Collie Support Scheme
The support scheme is the most important source of funding for the trust as this is a source of regular monthly income. One off donations and rehoming fees are critical to the running of the centre but the support scheme provides a regular income which allows budgeting of payments for regular outgoings.
Funds are needed to pay for electricity, food, vets bills, wages, transport costs and more. The funds raised via the support scheme mean the trust has the means to meet these obligations and continue their vital work.
Every month cash needs to be raised to pay for….
£1000 in vet’s bills
£400 – £500 transport costs
£200 – £300 electricity costs
A £15 donation means 6 dogs can be micro chipped
A £5 donation can provide flea treatment and worming for one dog
All cost are carefully monitored but there are inevitable ongoing expenses to care for the collies and members of the Border Collie Support Scheme help provide that care each and every month.
Members of the scheme receive a thank you letter and certificate. Members also automatically are sent a quarterly copy of Border Collie World the Trusts own magazine. They also have the gratitude of all trustees, staff and the lovely girls and boys we are all working to help – the collies.
You can join the Support Scheme by setting up a direct debit or standing order – full info and a link for this is on the website.
If you need more details of this scheme please look on the website or phone the Trust’s office Monday to Friday on 0845 430 2882 (local rate call)
Ride 4 Care
The Border Collie Trust has been at the site in Staffordshire for 15 years in 2012 and to celebrate this landmark anniversary Ben Wilkes, trustee, will be undertaking a sponsored motorcycle ride from John O’Groats to Lands End on 22nd and 23rd July 2012.
This is Ben with his bike which is being “ridden” by the exceptionally good-looking Reilly, Ben’s dog, who I know just loves biscuits
You can follow him around as he does the ride using the GPS signal from the bike. Follow this link and have a look at the map to see if they are out and about today
The bike is a Honda Pan European ST1300. Ben, who is an ex policeman says, “The bike is an ex Greater Manchester Police Bike so I feel quite at home on it.”
Border Collie Trust is a member of The Association of Dogs and Cats Homes (ADCH) and the plan is to visit other member’s sites along the route which can be viewed on the map here – THE ROUTE.
Ben hopes to raise funds and awareness of the work down by BCT and other ADCH members. ADCH is committed to developing good practice and maintaining high standards for dogs and cats in rescue centres. Many rescue centres including the Border Collie Trust do a lot of work on ideas to enrich the time animals spend in rescue centres and the intention is to raise funds specifically to continue this valuable work.
Any donation to help Ben collect as much cash as he can from his ride is very welcome, no matter how small the amount– obviously very large donations are also welcome!
You can donate on-line via the Trust web site – remember every pound counts so please give what you can today.
You can also donate by text just text RIDE46 followed by the amount you wish to donate (e.g. RIDE46 £5)to 70070 – it’s quick and simple and will help make a difference to the lives of dogs.
For more info on the ride be sure to check the Border Collie Trust website.
During Ben’s ride there will be regular updates via twitter – follow now so you will be able to see how he is getting on – twitter@Ride4Care.
TOTAL RAISED SO FAR – £2346
Help Ben to make this total go through the roof to help the collies
There will be more features on my blog to let you know about the ways you can support the Border Collie Trust in their work over the next few weeks and next Wednesday I will be featuring another dog looking for a home. I hope you can support by donating to Ben’s ride or that you can become a member of the support scheme. If you are not able to afford to do either of these there are ways you can help without it costing you anything.
If you are local to the centre you can donate bagged clothing and shoes you no longer want as they are able to use these to raise funds – if you live within 20 miles of Swadlincote I can arrange for bags to be collected from your home – just send an email to info@bordercollietrustgb.org.uk giving your contact details and I will get in touch to arrange collection so you can help the collies without even leaving your home
If you can’t offer a collie a home but know someone who can then you can be a massive help by telling them about the centre and letting them know about the lovely dogs there – if they offer a forever home to a dog then your help will have been massive!
I will end by leaving you with a couple of lovely pictures of the collies – more next Wednesday.
This is Conner, who is looking for a home, out walking with my daughter Cathy.
I took this lovely dog out for a walk at the Trust on Sunday with my daughter, his name is Connor, and you can view video footage of him here.
He was such a joy to be with that I suspect I may have to let you all know a bit more about him before next Wednesday, if you watch the video you will see he loves to run!
Tom is the newest member of my family – a rescue collie cross puppy from the Trust who has some rather odd sleep positions – this is not even his bed, it’s Stans!
Misty – looking for a new dad as her’s passed away.
Right now the rain is pouring down outside as it has done for most of the week so I am slightly very worried as today is going to be the first time that Stan goes on a camping trip with us!
There is a massive pile of kit in the conservatory which we got out last night and it is sitting there waiting for me to sort it out and pile it into the two cars that we are taking along with us. We will also be taking four teenagers. I don’t know if I am excited or terrified! I will update you later!!!
Now to get on with the job in hand…. what does a well-travelled dog need to take on camp – I’ll write a list -
Bed with soft throws (x2 in case one gets wet) and cushions (x2 – see throws!)
Crate for car travel and in case he needs to hide
Food bowls – x2 in case it gets broken – we are taking teenage boys
Water bowls – x2 – see above!
Long lead and stake so he can roam close to tent without getting into trouble
Toys for inside tent due to heavy rain expected – teddy, meer cat and rope thing
Toys for outside tent – it will brighten up! (PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE!!!!) – varied balls and throwers
Leather lead we use for road walking although I hope there won’t be any of this – hoping to get away from it all!
Extender lead for tramping through fields and intrepid exploring (in rain!)
Towels – for after intrepid exploring!
Food for three days
Treat pouch full of treats for rewards
Gravy bones for big treats (!)
Poo bags – lots of them!
Brush for removing dried mud – back to the intrepid exploring
Flannel for removing wetter mud – more exploring and returning to tent in rain (!)
Travel water bottle and bowl – essential for long walks in hot sun as it is easy to carry around and the optimist in me hopes that rain will change into a mini heat wave!!
Dog training bag with “mattie” and “search cloth” and other bits for if we need to play games around the tent when the heat wave starts!
Ok Stan fans I am off to prepare for the trip – watch this space for updates, photos and news of my nervous breakdown! Oh – did I tell you -
I love collies and we had one as a much-loved family pet when I was growing up and my first dog when I left home was a border collie cross. When I got out of the rat race and left my job to work from home as a writer I decided that I would get a dog and I knew that dog must come from a rescue centre for a wide variety of reasons which I will explore in a future article. Of course that dog was going to be a collie and that is where Stan comes in…..
“What do you mean I’m not a cuddly and loveable border collie?” says Stan looking confused.
I fell in love with Stan at the RSPCA in Stretton, when he rushed up to the front of the kennel to get a good look at me, and that was that, he was the dog for me. I still hope to have a collie one day, hopefully as a friend for Stan but for now Stan is my Collie in disguise!
When I do add a second dog to our family that dog will come from The Border Collie Trust in Staffordshire where they rescue and rehome around 400 collies a year across the UK. They really do some brilliant work and need all the help they can get, especially as they receive no local or central government funding, they rely very much on the support of caring members of the public. There are many ways you can help them, visit their website to for more information.
Today I want to share Misty’s story to show that not all rescue dogs come with issues…. In fact she is a well trained, happy and loving dog.
Misty getting to know Ged while Stan looks on.
Misty is six and a half years old and until recently she had a very happy home where she was the much-loved and loyal pet of a wonderful man who I am sure she misses very much. Sadly her owner passed away suddenly and his family were not able to give Misty a home so she came to Border Collie Trust where she is being given lots of cuddles, walks and treats to reassure her but she really just wants a new Dad.
It was poignant that we came to the centre to take Misty out for the afternoon on Father’s Day as what Misty wants most of all is a new Dad. She lived alone with her Dad and while she is very friendly to all humans and although she was very affectionate to me it is clear that she really is a man’s dog. When we took her out walking she was constantly looking to see where my husband Ged was and even when I was the one holding the lead she walked alongside him most of the time.
We picked her up at the centre and went straight to the car where Stan travelled in his crate in the boot while Misty wore a dog seat belt and was put on the back seat. I say she was put on the back seat but it would be fair to say that she put herself on the back seat. Misty is clearly no stranger to car travel and she is used to being on the back seat. We had put the harness that fits to the seat belt on her before going to the car and it was just as well, as, as soon as I opened the car door, she jumped on to the seat immediately and was clearly not prepared to move again! She laid down and relaxed so much that by the time we had got ourselves sorted out, settled in the car and backed out of the parking space she was fast asleep. Despite being only inches away from Stan, who was quiet but excited, she slept until we arrived and parked the car.
Misty loves the car and is a VERY relaxed passenger.
Once we got to Shugborough Hall we put both dogs on a lead and began to explore the estate. This is a great place for dog walking so many new sights, sounds and smells and Stan loves it when we visit.
Misty was nose down investigating the smells in the long grass seconds after getting out of the car while Stan looked on in approval.
As we walked we were pleased to see how well she walked on a lead – we used a 4m extender to give her some freedom and she did go to the full length of the lead most of the time but she seldom pulled. When we walked around busy areas she was happy to be called to heel and stayed there with little encouragement, which made her a pleasure to walk with.
When walking in open fields she tends to prefer walking along the hedges and seems a bit nervous in open areas unless she is close by you.
We met lots of other dog walkers and she was very well-behaved and confident when we passed by, seeming to prefer to walk with us and ignore the other dogs. She did greet a couple and the greetings were friendly.
Misty and Stan were unconcerned – even uninterested – when we passed a field of rare breed cattle with impressive horns. The dogs just wanted to get to the next bit of long grass!
There are lots of farm animals on the estate and she was unconcerned by these.
We also met up with lots of people, she was very friendly and wanted to say hello to adult passers by. She was happy to come away from people as soon as she was asked but she did have a tendency to jump up if you were not ready with a calm word of command. We passed several children and she ignored all of them.
Both dogs stopped, briefly, to take a look at the sheep but neither of them tried to go through the fence and they passed by with no fuss.
Misty is a very loving dog and wants to please – she especially likes to please the men around her.
Misty really loves long grass and happily sniffed around in it for ages.
She loves rolling on her back in grass – just for fun or for a belly rub – she does not seem to mind which but she does REALLY love to do it. She rolled in long grass, in short grass, in grass with flowers… anywhere really
She loved running through the long grass with Stan in hot pursuit – as they remained on leads this meant we had to run as well!
Could you offer Misty a place in your family? Do you know someone who can become her new Dad? I like to think that next Father’s Day she will be running in the long grass with her new Dad….
The only negative I could find about this loving and loyal dog is that in the kennels she can be a little defensive of her food. She is already micro chipped, loves people, is not aggressive at all, gets on well with other dogs and could be homed where there is already a dog or where there are children. She is already neutered. She likes to be clean and rolled in the grass to give her coat a shine. I have brushed her and she loved it, seeming to think it was really a good game with lots of stroking! She is a confident girl who is a pleasure to walk and fun to be with.
To adopt Misty or one of the other lovely collies and collie crosses at The Border Collie Trust you will need to visit the centre in Staffordshire -
Note – the lane is very narrow near the top but please don’t let this put you off – it opens out with parking spaces at the end.
Opening Times
The centre is open to visitors 6 days a week
1st April – 30th September 10am to 5pm
1st October – 31st March 10am to 4pm
The centre is closed on Tuesday for rehoming expect by prior appointment
Full info on rehoming process is on the website and should you wish to offer a place in your home to one of the dogs I strongly recommend that you read all the information on there which covers the full process and also includes frequently asked questions. Should you then have any further questions please phone the centre on 0871 560 2282 (Calls can be taken Monday to Friday 9am to 4.30pm but please be aware the staff may be busy and not able to answer the phone quickly.)
If you are travelling a long distance to see a specific dog that you have read about in my blog or seen on The Border Collie Trust website then, if you phone the centre, they may be able to reserve that dog for up to 24 hours. Please note that a dog featured on the blog, or anywhere else, may not be available when you phone as the dogs they have can change quickly, often on a daily basis.
To ensure they can continue their vital work Border Collie Trust does charge a rehoming fee. The fees vary according to the age of the dog as follows –
Puppy less than 6 months £150
Young dog more than 6 months and less than 12 months
Not neutered £120
Neutered £150
Adult dog from 12 months less than 6 years
Not neutered £100
Neutered £150
Adult dog 6 years plus
Not neutered £80
Neutered £100
I really hope she enjoys next Father’s Day with her new Dad.
Misty just wants to make her person happy – so she needs a person.
Stan I visit our local park most days during our first walk of the day – we tend to have at least three walks a day of varying lengths. As part of this morning walk we usually meet up with Helen and her two dogs. Both dogs are full of character and make me laugh most days.
Stan’s best friend is a hyper active Jack Russel called Jack
First we have Jack who is (not surprisingly) a Jack Russel Terrier.
Jack is great fun to be with and loves his ball very much. He is very fussy who throws the ball and will only usually run after it if it has been thrown by Helen. He will do almost anything for a gravy bone!
Then we have the Lady of the house. This is Tess who is a very refined retired grey hound.
Tess is an old lady really but Jack and Stan know better than to say so! She keeps the naughty boys in order.
Most of the time Jack and Tess get on very well and they love to run around the park with each other. Stan often joins in with this and it is funny to watch as both terriers seem to think they can keep up with the lady – she lets them for a while and then she changes gear and is gone in a flash.
We had a very busy but great fun weekend which has resulted in me spending most of today catching up with writing stuff, doing piles and piles of washing, ironing and house work – I want to know how can it be possible for there to be so many dog hairs in the house when the dog is short-haired and we were out all weekend just how does that happen?
Anyway the result of all today’s rushing around has meant that I have not had time to spend on our blog so here is a slightly rushed version of what we did over the weekend…..
On Saturday we went to Holt Dolls House Show where we had a very successful day selling miniatures and we took orders for some very special dolls houses which I will no doubt be showing pics of on here when they are done.
A very good day selling wise
The show closed at 3.30pm and as Midlanders we were then desperate to go the seaside as soon as we could, with it being just down the road. Usually when a show ends we just want to head home as quickly as possible but when you are that close to the coast you just have to go to the beach – it would be rude not to!
The view from the car park was better than the views we are used to when parking at the supermarket!
We were very lucky as the weather forecast had not sounded good but the day was sunny and hot – just right for our stroll down the seafront…
Bob and Ged were heading back to the car after a great fish and chip tea eaten on a bench looking out to sea. Bob carried the bag with our Cromer crabs and Stan kept checking to see if I was keeping up!
On Sunday we had a bit of a lie in, we needed it after the 4am start the day before! Ged was treated to Father’s day gifts by the youngest two kids and then we headed off to The Border Collie Trust to take some photos for the article I will be writing for this week’s Woof Wednesday Blog. We took one of their lovely dogs Misty out for a walk which you will hear all about on Wednesday. Misty was a pleasure to be with and we had a great time – she is in the centre following the death of her owner so it felt good to be able to give her a fun afternoon… more on Wednesday.
Stan and Misty had a great time… more on Wednesday
If you want to see a bit more of their fun before Wednesday have a look at them playing on you tube -
Then it was off to Ged’s Dads to deliver Father’s day gift and card – I made him a miniature which was the corner of a bowling green with a narrow garden border and a bird table complete with bird and bird food. I think he liked it… let me know what you think of it – it is about 5″ wide by 4″ deep.
This was the hand-made Father’s Day gift we gave to Ged’s dad.
We didn’t get chance to relax and stay long at the in-laws as it was time to go home as “the boys” would be coming round A fun evening/late afternoon came next as we returned home and were joined by our two elder children and their girl friends. I think Ged had a good Father’s day but once we were on our own I was a bit too sleepy to ask him!
Today has flown by as I try to catch up and tomorrow I will be off to the shop to spend a productive and fun day with Bob while Stan snoozes on the floor between us….. Time for walkies now!
Stan and I have a very busy day planned today. First of all we need to tidy up as we were at dog training last night and were very tired when we got home which resulted in not having our usual pre bedtime tidy round – now we are up and the sun is shining but the house is fairly messy. After the tidy up it will be the usual rush around associated with getting everyone fed and sorted out to start their day. Basically all us humans have breakfast then Stan has his breakfast which sounds simple but seems to create chaos! Dog training note here – no mater how crazy the morning gets Stan always eats after me as this reinforces his impression of me as his boss or pack leader.
Once the kids leave it will be time for a nice walkies – this is the high point of our morning. Stan and I set off no matter what the weather and go for a walk. Unless it is very heavy rain this walk will start with some heel walking along the roadside and then will include a good game of kong chase which is a fast paced game of fetch played with two kong balls – you can see Stan playing with his kong balls on you tube for an idea of how this goes. We will also visit the local park and go through some of Stan’s dog training exercises practicing sit-stay, down-stay and recall. Most of the walk is on lead but there is usually a period where he gets to run around. When he is on lead we have fun by varying the pace we walk at and he has to match his pace to mine. He loves this when I run but is not so happy when I go very slowly.
By 10am we will be picking Bob up in the car and heading to the workshop where Stan has to be a good boy while I work on making miniatures. We always stop at around 1pm for a good play session and some lunch and I also try to include brief period of play every so often so he does not get bored. We are also practicing leaving him alone in the workshop while I go out into the shop area for brief periods. Stan does not like it when I leave the workshop and tends to try and follow me and he barks when I am gone so we are working on making him wait patiently for my return after letting me leave calmly – it is very much a work in progress.
We will be home around 5pm and will go for a long walk soon after we get in as I like to ensure we have both had plenty of exercise and days when I visit the shop we don’t get to walk at lunchtime so our tea time walk becomes much more important. If we have less exercise Stan get hyper and I get fat – both of these are not good!
Then it will be time to try and get a bit of house work done while making our evening meanwhile Stan naps or plays with Ged, Cathy or Steven. Towards the end of the day I will probably lie and relax on the sofa to watch TV and snooze and my boy will be invited to join me for a nice snuggle before we go off to bed. At bedtime Stan sleeps in a dog bed beside my bed – he does like to snuggle in the big bed but this is meant to be by invite only. Most nights he does sleep in his own bed but occasionally he sneaks in with us in the early hours and we find a furry hot water bottle hiding under the covers when we wake! Tomorrow we will be at home and I will be able to get more writing done and Stan will get more walkies….. much better and less rushing
RT @BCTGBVolunteers: Getting ready to visit the new Aquatic and Pet Warehouse in Loughborough to raise funds at the weekend. Made a fun gam… 2 days ago
Can someone arrange for it to stop raining - I want a walk but am not prepared to get damp paws! 1 week ago
mun lyin on sofa feelin sad so i am lyin on er chest wif me head on er shoulder t show i care. i luf me mum. 1 week ago
Mum is selling the eggs laid by our chickens - let me know if you want some they cost £1 for half dozen and if I sell em I get dog biscuits! 2 weeks ago
one of the chickens is sick. when i am sick mum cuddles me on the sofa but it seems chickens dont like that! 2 weeks ago
