Puppies Due at Smoketrail!

I am so excited to say that little princess Hoax is expecting! She has been scanned by the wonderful Sam Wilkinson for four puppies which is the same as her previous litter- perfect size. Could have done with one or two more as we have such fab homes lined up!

She is definately bigger than last time but guess this is probably because her body already knows whats going on. She is also a bit saner (not much) but a bit. She just knows this time I am sure of it.

I have started buying all the things we will need and have just ordered the new vetbed (I like to have new bedding for each litter). In a few weeks time I will setup her whelping box area and den so she can get used to it. I think I will keep in in the same place I did last time as it worked really well and she was more than happy to have her puppies in there.

I love my little merlie and am missing working her but the others are keeping me busy. Happy Days :-)

Here is Linda Smiths Brooke: one of my fav Reef puppies x

Puppy Homes and poor Detour

So lets start with the positives. We have some fantastic homes lined up for these (maybe) pups, it lifts so much stress and worry associated with breeding to have such wonderful people intrested in a Smoketrail puppy. My previous litter each ended up with the most fab and dedicated owners and homes, they are worked, walked and loved and I couldnt be happier with Yvette, Tracy and Kim & Dan- you guys are awesome! From the looks of things this litter should be very lucky little babies too. I ask my prospective puppy owners to fill out a questionnaire so that I can really make sure i understand what kind of home it will be and what kind of puppy will best be suited for them. Everyone takes so much time to complete them and put thought and care into what they write I cant even say how much that it is appreciated.

Hoax however is as mad as ever... she surely is showing no signs!

Onto Detour, well it was all going so well. No bad experiences with other dogs and although we still had a long way to go before he was relaxed around other dogs at agility I think he was improving. Tues nights training and we were working a speed circle using jumps and tunnels, D comes out the tunnel- as he takes off for the jump- big black dog hits him side on, biting at his shoulder and knocking him out of the air and into the jump wing. The dog called straight back and D thankfully didnt react back, I went over to D but didnt fuss. I was so annoyed at the time that even though the owner was apologising profusely I couldnt just say it was ok. Once the dog was back under control I repeated the excersise with D throwing the toy over the jump that the incident happened on. Thank god that he was fine and wasn't even worried the second attempt- so proud of him! The next day and no obvious mental or physical scars although I think his fear of dogs at agility is going to be an ongoing battle. I have also asked one of our trainers to let the other owner know that D was ok.

I am so happy with my little black and white, he is a star and a sweet dog, I cant protect him from everything but I can help him move on from bad experiences and keep him loving working with me. I appreciate each of my dogs for everything they do for me. I have recieved so much joy and pleasure from my dogs, I so hope Hoax and Boos progeny, give their owners the that much too. That is what makes me a proud breeder :)

So again, a quick thanks to my current and prospective Smoketrail owners. Not forgetting everyone out there with a Boo baby- I have met a lot of you, and you are all fantastic!

xxx



Happy D driving back with his toy :-)



Hoax is home, Bowerlands & Life Lessons

Well Hoax is back from visiting Reef, Lauren, Matt and family in Devon. She looks so well and has obviously had a lovely time. Bowerlands (Laurens home) is so beautiful that I wish I was closer, but I don't think I would ever leave!!! I have booked a weekend away in February at Bowerlands (Hayloft) which I am so looking forward to, two of my lovely friends are coming along and we are planning on chatting, training our dogs and sampling the local pubs!

I love Laurens dogs and puppies and to have a chance to see and cuddle Reef and his newest offspring was amazing, it makes me even more excited than ever for puppies and I know how fantastic they are going to be. The socialisation that Laurens pups get is brilliant: with different people and dogs through the door all the time they can't help but be outgoing little things.

Mark Lakers Sports Psychology seminar was brilliant. It was about how to cope with the mental aspect of training and competition and rings so true to me. We also talked about negative influences and comments and how they affect you and your performance. 'Joe Bloggs' comment last year of how your dog doesn't jump well through a tight line (for example) sticks with you in your subconscious and pops up at the most inconvenient times and affects your performance. Things like that can also affect your life and decision making. My New Years Resolution is to try to surround myself with those wonderful friends who offer support and 'constructive critisism' and point out the positives. And try to build a little resistance to those who make negative comments either directly to myself or 'on the grapevine'. Also to be more aware of how my comments can affect a life or a handler for a long time to come. Labels truly build labels; if I tell everyone my dog is a pole knocker, everyone will believe my dog is a pole knocker... the next time I see that person and they ask how my 'clumsy' dog is: that reinforces my negative belief that my dog is a poor jumper. Mark has wonderful methods on how to change and improve your mental state and this in turn along with well written training plans, short term and long term goals will improve your performance in training and in the ring. If you havent attended one: do! It could well change your entire agility career!

Sports Psychology Seminar

The MOST exciting news!!!

We have decided to breed from my beautiful, fantastic little Hoax again. This time for a bit of a change I decided to use a different stud dog. I had no idea if she would accept something outside her 'pack' however it appears that she absolutely fell for the handsome man from Devon, and we are hopefully expecting puppies around the end of January 2011!

Introducing Hoax' new love... Reef (Darleyfalls No Feer)

Reef

I think this could be an awesome combination, Hoax is compact and nippy (if she was a car she would be a little sports coupe) she is  real highly strung lady (unless she is cuddling on the sofa). Reef is tall and lean and very powerful and is pretty much a big softie. Both dogs are very driven and bright. Myself and lovely Lauren really think there will be some extremely special puppies from these guys.

Have a peek at my site http://www.ourcollies.co.uk/ all my photos etc are all on there :-)

Hoax

Videos

Couple of vids of Detour at this weekends training day- he is just the most fantastic puppy :) Love you BabyD

Thanks Toni Dawkins for the training- fab as expected. Thanks Don for the videoing and thanks Yvette for taking the time to upload x