Another one of our mutts. Lottie's Mum Bumble is Blottie's sister who is Mum to Teagol. Lottie and Teagol share the same Dad, Ernest. Lottie is nearly seven months old. She is a bigger chunkier girl than Teagol.  She has got a good turn of foot, and like Teagol, she is a  gentle natured and loves a lap. ​She has the most expressive eyes. 

Teagol at the riverside walk yesterday evening. Really pleased with this little bitch, now nearly 10 months old. Athletic, gentle natured small spaniel that loves a lap. 

For the naysayers. Yes, Teagol is a mutt/mongrel which ever is your poisen, she don't care. She is 5/8 Cavalier, 1/4 Brittany and 1/8 Poodle (miniature). She is from three generations of heart tested and MRI scanned dogs. If you are going to buy a pure Cavalier, it might be good to know that from worldwide MRI scanning it is estimated that 95% of Cavaliers have Chiari-like malformation, it is now considered a breed characteristic (CM on it's own can cause severe pain) and those scanned on the BVA - CM / SM scheme over 5 years old over 60 % had Syringomyelia (SM) Twelve years of chiari-like malformation and syringomyelia scanning. SM is a progressive disorder, a Cavalier scanned zero under 3, has at least 3 in 5 chance of having SM by the time it is over 5 years old.
As for the biggest killer of Cavaliers, Mitrial Valve Disease (MVD) "statistics have shown may afflict over half of all cavaliers by age 5 years and nearly all cavaliers by age 10 years, should they survive that long. MVD has been found to be 20 times more prevalent in CKCSs than in the average dog breed.  It is estimated to affect 10% of the entire dog population, but at a much older age of onset than for CKCSs." Read more about MVD here

Trying to breed out of that mess in a closed off gene pool, I consider you could make a lot more mess. ​I think I will stick with my mutts, thankyou!

Just got back from the vets and our son, Thomas caught some photos of the dogs sunbathing waiting for my return. Thanks everyone for the kind comments after I blogged yesterday. Dogs don't care whether they are pure or mutt, as the photos below show. Thankfully dogs don't suffer with the same prejudices humans have. I shall take a page out of their book. "Stick and stones we love to fetch, and nasty words just go over the top of our heads. Woof!"

And it's good to remember what ever type or breed you are breeding. "We all know that dog's are the same where ever you go . There is good and bad in all of them. We learn to live, when we learn to give . Each dog what they need to survive, together with us alive." 

Just found out over at Reddit someone asked, "[Discussion] I think I might have possibly found a reputable poodle?" and boy did they discuss. The keyboard warrior purebreed brigade dug their claws in. It is obvious from their anonymous commenting, that none of them read much of the website before offering their infinite wisdom. Apparently, I'm just "creating mutts" for a "cash grab." 
You know I was going to write a blog answering all their questions, because I won't deny that it makes me very angry that people who don't know you and have not taken the time to find out what exactly you are about, can at a drop of a hat defame you openly, but then I thought, "Why should I waste my time answering the faceless, when they were to lazy to find the answers on my website in the first place", as I've already answered them in great detail in the blogs I've been writing over the last eight years. 
I have contacted Reddit, as defaming what someone does in the manner these do (feeling safe in their anonymity) I think falls in to the defamation of character laws, and I'm interested to see where the line for defamation is for a social media website. This sadly is the nature of the world we are being pushed towards with little asking if it is where we want to go, Faceless. I suspect there are more forums out there where I get slagged off by the faceless, and maybe I should just remember something my old mother used to tell, "Don't worry about them. Just think while their mouthing off about you. The're giving some other poor bugger a rest."

Just watching husband, David at work with our son, Thomas sat upsides him for company. He's ploughing the other side of the Taw Valley to where our home lies. Pretty good zoom on that digital camera I got a little while ago.  

Teagol is finally off her first ever heat and is back in the pack

We took Teagol, Lottie, Jim and Rosie on the river walk this afternoon, and Thomas came with his camera

Jessica is Toby's sister, so that makes her Auntie to  Ernest and Lily, and Great Auntie to Ernest's two girls Teagol and Lottie

Rosie and Jim have now progressed to sleeping with the pack in the utility room over night. Jim is sorted for his new home, which will be with Charlie, Sheila and Vincent. He is with us though until next Friday. 

Following on from the blog Just being plain rude, made me think of this song.

Just now I got rung by someone. The conversation went pretty much as so. Person calling "I wonder if you could help me? I said, "What do you want to know?" Person calling replied, "I have a cavapoo, and she's big. She's out of a Miniature Poodle." I was thinking at this point, that they just wanted to know how big their dog could get. I said, "So the Poodle is the mother?" (When you say "out of" in breeding terms, that infers mother, and "by" infers father). They replied with a slight air of irritation in their voice , "No, her Dad is the Poodle, and I was wondering what would be best to breed her too?" I replied, "You are going to do all the health tests before breeding, MRI scanning etc? They replied, "Of course, I'm going to do everything." So I replied without censorship of my thoughts (Sometimes, I just can't help myself), "I doubt so, but go on. What are you breeding for then?" She then gave a short reply, "Sorry, you are so rude", and put the phone down. 
Firstly, I'm not a dog breeding agony aunt. I get regular contacted about breeding, often asking to use our males, even though in bold print at the top of The Boys page ​it says,​ "We do not stud our boys out." I don't mind genuine people contacting me, but the majority are just breeding to make a fast buck out of their dog. As we see puppy prices rocketing.
And secondly, I pretty much guarantee that when I'm told health tests (especially all the health tests) are going to be done. It is bullshit the majority of the time. You only have to look through the cavapoo litters advertised to see how little health testing is being done. You might think though that you see the buzz words health tested on a lot of adverts for them, but if done it is rarely for the real big problems that the Cavalier suffer with as I write about in the blog The fallacy of health tests in the Cavalier. Maybe I judged the person to quickly and harshly, maybe they are not the majority, and I'm sorry if that is the case and they can show me all the health certificates for their bitch's parents, bitch and stud they use to prove me wrong. I doubt so!

Jim had the last of his primary course of vaccinations yesterday, along with his Kennel Cough drops up his nose, and all okay. Hopefully, all going well, he also has a home to go too. 

Following on from the blog Just thinking about 2019 Sasha will be MRI scanned in December along with Teagol. Lottie is not one until March, and they can't be scanned until one years old. If we wait for a scan back off Lottie, it will be to late to breed from Sasha in 2019, as her heat after the next one in around February time 2019, would not be until September 2019. From experience, I try to stir clear of breeding going in to the colder months, as not such a good time to rear on pups. Sasha will be three years old in 2019, and it will be her first ever litter.
Good results then from Teagol and Sasha's scans, we will hope to see a litter born from the pairing of Ernest and Sasha sometime in the Spring of 2019. From our two previous litters of Blottie and Bumble with Ernest using the same mix of 5/8 Cavalier, 1/4 Brittany and 1/8 poodle (miniature). I would expect some very nice looking spaniel types that will make lovely gentle natured, healthy and active family dogs. 

Belle at nearly seven years old

Charlie met Sheila & Vincent back in 2011 and they have been coming back each year Charlie's 2017 visit  to keep us updated on Charlie and of course themselves. Charlie is well for nearly thirteen and we had a good chat and catch up over a home cooked roast chicken supper.

With a home made white chocolate cheesecake topped with plain chocolate with homemade blackberry sauce to drizzle on it for dessert. They liked the sauce so much, they took what was left over with them, along with some of our chicken's eggs, and some homemade shortbread, I had made, and they rather took a shine too. 

At the moment we have three bitches dead on heat, Teagol, Bumble and Bertha. So the boys are a little frustrated, and practice their love dances with each other. I caught this bit of video last night whilst watching the Antiques Roadshow of Toby and his son, Ernest having a little dance together. 

Pugs are extreme brachycephalic's and suffer with many of the conditions that Cavaliers suffer with, to an even greater extent, due to their even more reduced muzzle length than the Cavalier. So it is brilliant news from the Netherlands for pugs, to hear that the Pug breed club there has this week voted for real reform for the breed. Which includes opening the stud books, introduction of a minimum craniofacial ratio (muzzle length), and a limit on the number of litters an individual dog can sire.
It has not come without protest. The Club though is faced with no choice in the face of new legislation, persistent lobbying by Dutch animal rights group Dier&Recht, bad publicity and the threat of fines and sanctions.
You can read about it here and the English translation here

We put a picket fence along the wall of our sunken patio this year for two reasons. Safer for puppies bombing around the lawn and to stop the dogs using it as a short cut, but as the video shows. It does not stop the later. 
The wall is just over 3 ft and the picket fence is just under 2 ft, so around 5 ft together. The ledge that Henry jumps up to to pop over the picket fence is only 3 inches wide, so takes some doing to get the jump up on top of the wall just right and get enough purchase and momentum to make the picket fence. Although you would not think it, the dexterity he does it with.