Merlin's Magicians September 2011 Newsletter

Ferryside

Goodness this month has flown by, I am back at Sunday sessions. We have put new posters around the Swansea/Llanelli areas and handed out quite a few flyers at the Burns Dogs Day Out. As a result of this we have some new people starting, this is really good news. Alfie and his Mum are still with us as are Holly & Lucy with their keen owners. For dogs that have only done a few sessions they are doing very well and show great promise, and seem to enjoy. Let’s hope the three expected this weekend like it as much.

We went along to the Dogs Day Out but, to be honest the Disabled Parking was abysmal, I only managed to walk around the entire venue once and was then in pain and exhausted....Poor old thing that I have become. I met so many people that I know, which was lovely, including John Burns himself who was surprised to hear I’m still in Flyball, he couldn’t remember who had told him, but he’d heard I was no longer involved!!! Presume my enforced absence due to the operation had become more via ‘Chinese whispers’.

A lot of our members were there. Including Dwysli with George, George is now easy to distinguish from Roxy as he has had to have half of one ear removed! Freddie managed to get, I think a second, in the fastest recall, and Megan had the greatest fun in the huge bouncy castle!!

I fell in love! The Friends of Animals Rescue had a brother sister pair of Pyrenean Mountain Dogs, put into rescue at 10 years old due to family break up. I have owned one of these magnificent dogs in the past, and these two really tugged at my heart strings. Gentle Giants submitted to being cuddled by me, a complete stranger, I would have brought them home in a flash if I’d allowed my heart to rule my head. Sadly I have to be sensible; a pensioner with 7 dogs isn’t what they need. These dogs have a lifespan of 12-15 years so if anyone out there can give them the love and comfort they deserve please get in touch with foawales@aol.com they must obviously, go together but don’t be put off by that, they don’t have large appetites for their size and don’t need a tremendous amount of exercise.

I am in the process of putting Debbie’s photographs into folders and hope to get a couple added to the site this month. With many more to follow. I have managed to send/give everyone the pictures of their dogs on disc or flash drive. Debbie has been so busy I had something like 500 pictures to sort!!
The ‘Fun Day’ at Beulah was most enjoyable, if somewhat wet and muddy, thank you Brenda for hosting and Andrew for the, as always, great Barbecue. We all had a good laugh when Brenda came out with a birthday cake, Debbie whispered ‘Who’s birthday is it?’ To which Brenda replied ‘Your 40th’ Ooops.....We got it wrong, we were two months early. Cake was delicious!

We are having a pre Christmas meeting/dinner at the Bluebell Inn, Cynwyl Elfed 27th November, Debbie is going to bring a birthday cake: - ) Please everyone, book this date, the food is fantastic, company brilliant, venue unbeatable. Let me know as our lovely Landlord/Chef Mark gets booked up very early and needs numbers.
Another fun day was discussed, this may be Ferryside end of October, please watch our facebook page.

Mike was down for Burns and the Fun Day, has gone home now but will be back in November and, when we were at the pub (Bluebell of course) having a meal, booked us in for Meal etc. New Years Eve!! Anyone else want to come? If yes tell me NOW seats are going like the proverbial ‘Hot Cakes’!
My rat family are settled in fine, they enjoyed Paella and Roast Pork Dinner whilst Mike was here, you should have seen them sorting out the prawns in the former: - ) now they are back to sausage & mash!!Must say here that the main diet is Rat Nuts but I do love spoiling them with bits of my meals. Still not able to handle any but my lovely Hattie, but they are so much braver and they enjoy life.

I am going to have my very overgrown hedge grubbed out and replaced with a 6 foot fence courtesy of the council! It seems that a footpath is being put through the village and my hedge is in the way, well I couldn’t afford to cut it so......Great. My problem now is keeping 7 dogs off a very busy road whilst the work is done, I am hoping that the netting we use at tournaments will do the job and that the workmen don’t take too long, I shall have to supervise every time the dogs go out!

Think that is it for this month folks,

Be happy.
June

Ceredigion - Beulah

Another disappointing month for practise, numbers are still very low. We have a couple of new people but desperately need more.
Due to the nights closing in practise has now moved to Sunday mornings at 10.30. Brenda and I made the decision as we both have other commitments on a Saturday. The only other people at the practise where we made the decision were new and happy to go along with whatever we suggested. Sadly it means some cannot make it but then it is better for the regulars to pick a day they can make than for them to cancel other events and then find they are still the only ones there. When the evenings get lighter next year we can go back to Friday evenings.

Fun day - well - the word "wet" comes to mind! Some of the time it was dry but cloudy (luckily mainly while we were eating!), mostly it was rain or drizzle. All had a great time, though Bo is currently feeling rather sick after breaking through the dog guard from the boot of the car to get to the passenger seat where appx 1.5 lbs of fudge was then consumed! Luckily the humans had all had a piece before I put it there for safekeeping! Thanks to Brenda for the hospitality and Andrew for the superb barbeque.

This is the pre flyball warm up – participants (names below) are flyball and non flyball dogs together.

http://s224.photobucket.com/albums/dd32/Budalice/Dogs/?action=view¤t=flyball004.mp4

Jed - flyball, boxer x pointer
Bo - can do flyball when he concentrates but today was a pest, staffie x
China - non flyball boxer
Cassie - non flyball Cavvie
Reggie - non flyball (but can go over a jump to fetch a ball if not too many people around) JR x Chi
Trumps - flyball, labrador
Deese - flyball, collie
Freddie - flyball, dark x breed
Ishka - flyball when she feels like it, Great Dane
Pod - non flyball, brain damaged Mastiff

Billie - flyball, white x breed
Alfie - flyball, lab x collie
Diesel - non flyball, lab x collie
Sadie - flyball, collie
Ziggy - non flyball, collie
Thistle - flyball (if her braincell is working), English Bull Terrier
Meg - non flyball, collie
Alex - just starting flyball, Standard Poodle
Pebbles - just starting flyball, Standard Poodle,
Roxy - flyball, lab x collie