Grass snake
Health

Snake Alert!

A Snake warning with the sunny weather – Pickle would not come in and was barking furiously in the garden.  Stephen found her trying to attack this beautiful 3′ long grass snake which was about to squirt her with foul smelling liquid.  Luckily it was harmless, but she has been known to find an adder and try to attack it as well.  I always thought a dog would be sensible, like us, and run a mile from a snake but unfortunately our two girls gang up and are fearless!  Must be the terrier instincts within them.

We live on an area that used to be heathland with woods behind us.  We also have compost heaps in the garden which snakes like, either to lay eggs in or bask on.

So be aware of the snakes who are basking in the sunshine and generally harmless, but be able to recognise an adder which has the distinctive diamond pattern along its back.

Useful tip: keep a piriton tablet in a pocket when you go for a walk as its antihistamine properties could help your dog if it does happen to get bitten.

Dora got stung on the nose by a wasp once and in the five minutes it took us to walk home her face had swelled so much she looked like a Bull Terrier.  Ringing the vet in a panic, I was told to give her a piriton and thankfully by the end of the evening her face had returned to normal!

 

Puppy on heat mat
Puppies

Dora’s Diary – Four weeks’ old!

Puppies are now just over four weeks’ old and getting more independent.  Dora is enjoying more time away and going for longer walks, they also have beautiful little teeth which is another reason she is reluctant to feed them for so long!

The pups and Dora come upstairs and sleep in the bedroom overnight and then their slave (ie me!) carries them back down to the puppy pen in the sitting room.  An extension has been added and they are now tumbling out of the pen to explore.  Newspaper is a bit slippy for them so they have a mixture of surfaces to run around on – on top of a tarpaulin.  I am trying puppy pads to see if they can learn to use these as they appear more absorbent than newspaper but so far it is something else to chew and play tug with!

As a treat, I had some eggs from our Call Ducks so decided pups could have a couple scrambled for their early morning breakfast in bed – it was definitely a hit and got everywhere. Afraid the video below is a little dark but they are having fun with food:

As

Weaning puppies
Puppies

Dora’s Diary – Weaning begins!

The puppies are now three weeks’ old so weaning begins!  Dora is starting to spend more time away from her pups and enjoys going for short walks, although as soon as she sees another dog in the distance she wants to turn around and head for home.  It’s as if she suddenly remembers she has puppies to look after and protect!

We start off with some warm puppy milk which they seem to enjoy but as soon as they get fed up Dora steps in and polishes everything off.  Scrambled egg is certainly a favourite and something that can be bathed and paddled in – see the video below.  Consequently the puppies are smeared with food but Dora enjoys cleaning even more!  

 

Pile of Puppies
Puppies

Dora’s Diary – Day 23 Naughty pups!

Pups are finding their feet and getting more noisy and naughty – there is always one who wants to rule the roost and boss the others about.  However, when things start getting out of hand mum Dora wades in to sort them out!

See the video below, can’t believe how the pups are growing compared to a week or so ago.   

For more info, please go to the Puppies page and look at our other blog pages.

Dora watching her sleeping puppies
Puppies

Dora’s Diary – Day 20 pups on their feet!

The puppies are planning a break out in the video below and are starting to find their feet although a bit wobbly on their little legs!

They are certainly more vocal and the bolder pups are trying to lick Dora’s bowl of puppy milk so this weekend they will be relocated to the larger puppy pen in the living room.

They have already had a few visitors, mainly close family and friends, who Dora vets very carefully.  She is quite happy for the pups to be picked up and held but does get concerned when they start squeaking or making “oofing” noises!

For more info go to our Puppies page



Dora and her puppies
Puppies

Dora’s Diary – Day 16

Scroll down for the latest video!

So the puppies are 16 days’ old now, their eyes are open and they are certainly getting more mobile though there is a lot of rolling over rather than walking!   The puppies have all tripled their birth weight and eyes opened around day 12.  They are kept in our study in the quiet until they are more mobile when they will be brought out into the sitting room and the fun begins!

They are starting to become more noisy and we’ve even heard a little bark.  It is quite natural for the puppies to twitch whilst sleeping and shows normal development.  Their little claws grow quite quickly and they have had a manicure twice now to keep the sharp claws from digging into Mum as they paddle when feeding!

For more info go to our Puppies page

Dora and Pickle at the Game Fair
Game Fair

Game Fairs 2019

The year is passing so quickly and once again the Game Fairs are upon us with the May Bank Holidays approaching fast!  We had a wonderful time last year going around the country attending all the Living Heritage Game Fairs.  However this year Netley and Essex Game Fairs have been dropped mainly due to the weather last year which was too hot at Netley and too wet and cold at Essex.  So hoping this year will be better!

Calling any interested Heeler owners?

We are always looking out for Lancashire Heeler owners who would like to come and give a couple of hours or more of their time to talk to the public about our breed.  It is surprising how many people have never heard of them – they are fascinated to meet the dogs, enjoy petting them and having a face washed at the same time!  It is a surprise to many that they are not better known as a breed since they make small, attractive and lively companions.

If anyone is interested in coming along then please get in touch with us – see contact details below.  We can organise free entry to the show and can offer refreshments throughout the day!  We have a large pen for the dogs and we swap them around so they do not get too tired entertaining the public all day.  There is usually a minor breeds parade during the day when the various dog breeds are taken into the arena and we introduce them to the audience, as well as lots of other doggie activities to take part in or watch.  Chase the Bunny is the one our Heelers love and go beserk at – in fact Spot became a Chase the Bunny Champion at Netley last year!

Dates and locations of the Game Fairs for 2019 are:

5-6 May – Thame Country Fair

26-27 May – Burghley Game & Country Fair

24-26 August – Cheshire Game & Country Fair

7-8 September – Sandringham Game & Country Fair

28-29 September – Wiltshire Game & Country Fair

Dora in kissing mode!

Heeler herding sheep
Dog activities, Fun with dogs

Training a Lancashire Heeler to herd sheep

Ann Jordan has kindly sent me a piece about her gorgeous liver and tan Heeler, Flora, and how she started to train her for herding.  We meet her each year at Discover Dogs so she is a multi-talented little dog!

Wanting to “downsize” from Collies and Kelpies, I chose a Lancashire Heeler to help with sheep control in the future.  Not really knowing anything about how a Heeler may work, I was taking a risk but having met one or two, I decided it was worth it. 

Basic training was easy as Flora was very bright and eager to learn but there was a hilarious aspect to the ‘heeling’ instinct…. which made ‘herding’ more challenging!  It had to be done at 200 mph!  Flora definitely had the “gather” to a ‘T’ because the flock gathered themselves as soon as she entered the field.  Then it was a red bullet shooting across in a dead straight line to the ‘heel’ position which obviously changed as the rear sheep galloped away!  Gradually, with the help of a collie, which distracted Flora occasionally and helped gain control, she realised that I wanted the sheep near me rather than 25 miles away as the crow flies! 

Since those early days, Flora has become quite useful for fetching the sheep and bringing them to me.  And the brakes are better, too, with addition of a ‘stop’ command we can also put them into a pen, so job done!