Life in the Doghouse

More strange happenings

2012-03-05T03:42:00.000-08:00

Hello bloggy friends - it's Magic back with some news again. As you can see country walks are not my thing these days. Resting on the sofa is is my main activity and eating :-) Aoife keeps me company when she can squeeze in. Anyway - after my last post when I told you about the white box arriving, even more strange things have been turning up - all a bit worrying if you ask me...

This collection of things came in a big box I was hoping was full of treats - but no...'wheping' has been mentioned again :-( As well as all the scary stuff like scissors and thermometers and latex gloves there's a flashlight in case I'm giving birth at night and need to go outside for the call of nature and accidentally a puppy comes out!! As if!! And then there's things for the puppies:

Leigh says she's hoping I'll be a good mother and be able to do all that is needed for my puppies but if she needs to help out they are going to need lots of these things. There's milk and stuff in case I can't feed the pups:

and little bottles to put it in:

and if any of the puppies are born not breathing there are drops to try and help revive them:

Then there's a heat pad for the new little ones to rest in the warm while I'm giving birth:

And scales to weigh them:

and piles of newspapers everywhere:

They're not for reading but to put in my whelping box as it can get messy with lots of babies :-( And Leigh has got this for her:

It looks like a snake to me but it's actually a sleeping bag as Leigh is going to have to sleep near me to be ready for when the puppies start to come in case I need help.

So now I've been joined by Caoimhe too! Don't they realise I need all the room I can get? Anyway I will post again next week about how things are going. This week is an exciting time for Aoife as she is going to Crufts - she will be shown in the Special Puppy Bitch class so I'm wishing her lots of good luck and told her not to bark at the judge 'cos they don't like it. Judith and Leigh will be blogging about Crufts I expect - and so will my bloggy friends George & Tess (who are going to Crufts too!) and maybe Sampson & Dante & Daisy Boo's Mum as well!

Magic's Progress

2012-02-29T04:40:00.000-08:00

Leigh: Magic is taking a rest from blogging for a bit so I'm going to give a little progress report on her behalf! As you can see from the photo she is pretty fed up at times with her growing size. She is eating plenty - no trace of morning sickness - and still goes on walks but only on-lead. Luckily with the weather being so dull it is no loss not to be going for country hikes here.

In dogs, the pregnancy lasts around 9 weeks and for the first 5 weeks there is very little sign externally. Then the nipples start to enlarge and point and the breast tissue swells:

This was Magic a week ago - she is bigger still now but doesn't want her picture taken, needless to say. The development of the puppies is very rapid. 21 days after fertilisation the embryos develop their central nervous system and within a week the brain and spinal cord are formed and all the organs of the body, limbs, head, eyes and face begin to develop. At the stage of pregnancy Magic has now reached the foetuses will have their sexual characteristics formed and their eyelids will have closed. The next couple of weeks or so there will be further development and the pups growing to their full size to be viable at birth. Puppies can be born from day 57 but it is usually between 60-63 days. We will be anxiously waiting by the weekend of Crufts - Magic should be due to give birth the following week!

Our other dogs are aware that something is going on with Magic - much sniffing of her rear end naturally - but how much they know is a mystery :-) Caoimhe has no idea of being gentle around Magic and would accidentally kick her, leap on her or just knock her flying in sheer youthful exuberance. Aoife has become very maternal herself - she stays close to Magic when she can and constantly cleans her - licking her ears inside and out and trying to clean her beard! Poor Magic ends up looking very bedraggled:

Magic may well come back to blog about her feelings on this before too long. Just thought I would give you a bit of background - apologies to the squeamish and probably the boys for too much girl talk here!

Caoimhe's Update

2012-02-27T04:26:00.000-08:00

Hello Bloggy friends - it's me Caoimhe back! I have finally managed to get Leigh to help me with the computer again. Leigh was not well last week - migraine she called it - and she was very sick and really not able to do very much at all. She wanted to say she will catch up with friends' posts soon - sorry not to have been able to read all your adventures last week. Anyway I will get you all up to date with what's been happening here. Spring has come to our garden now the snow has gone and we have little irises coming up:

They are very delicate and pretty - not like Magic haha! She is getting so-o fat and I keep wanting to use her as a pillow or a bouncy ball and getting into trouble :-( Leigh will do a post later this week about how Magic is doing 'cos I want to to tell you more exciting things. I went to a show on Sunday and was entered in the Puppy class. I was doing very well I thought but then suddenly I so needed to go to the toilet and I couldn't stand still and the judge didn't like me fidgeting when she was examining me so I only came 4th. But I did get a nice green rosette and then phew I could go outside and relax...

This is a photo of Aoife lounging on the sofa. It was her birthday on Sunday and she was 1 year old so she's not a puppy any more. That's why she wanted a black & white picture instead of colour 'cos she said it's more elegant now she's grown up. All I can say is no affenpinscher is ever going to look as elegant as a schnauzer - not with that little monkey face - even in black and white!

Anyway that's just a quick catch up on things here - more about Magic to come later in the week. See you again soon - Caoimhe x

Strange Happenings

2012-02-21T05:58:00.000-08:00

Strange happenings here. Suddenly this white box has appeared - what can it be?

I had a look through the window - is that my furry bedding in there?

Open sesame - the door lifts up - and that IS my furry bedding in there!

I checked it carefully - definitely my bedding.

Then Leigh tells me it's a Whelping Box ....which is..? 'For when you have puppies' Do I remember anyone telling me about this...mm maybe...and is that why I've been feeling decidedly seedy this past week and my waistline has been growing a bit (I thought it was because of too many treats over Christmas). Oh no - I'm not feeling like having my picture taken now!

In fact I think I might not want my picture taken for a very long time...

More detail from Leigh:

We are now 38 days from when Magic was mated and the signs are positive that she is pregnant. She definitely looks a bit stouter and we have cut the hair from her chest and tummy as her nipples have grown larger and the breast tissue is swelling. She is sleeping a lot more and she also has a clear discharge which our 'breeding Bible' The Book of the Bitch says is a fairly reliable indicator of pregnancy.. The usual length of pregnancy in dogs is around 63 days which means Magic should be due around the second week in March. We have set up the whelping box for her to become used to it before the time and are busy accumulating newspapers and an assortment of equipment in optimism! More to come on this front over the nest few weeks ..

Crufts Competition Results

2012-02-20T03:34:00.000-08:00

Today 2 lucky peeps have won tickets to Crufts from our blog competition and me and Alfie Crybbe helped to pick their names! All the names were printed out on pieces of paper and folded up in a wooden bowl and we each took a turn to pick them out:

This is me making my choice.......and the lucky winner is........Jan Bell:

Then Alfie Crybbe took a turn:

And he picked......Geraldine Staples:

So 2 lucky sets of peeps will have the chance to visit the Crufts Show and see all the wonderful dogs there and the agility competitions and the shops with doggy treats. Leigh is going to go along and take some pictures for my blog in March. But if any of you still want to go you can always get tickets by going through to the Crufts website. Just click the banner below!

Monkey Dogs

2012-02-16T04:24:00.000-08:00

Today I thought I would tell you a bit more about affenpinschers as they are not as well known as us schnauzers but they are a very old breed of dog. The breed originated in Germany and their name means monkey dog. (Affe is German for monkey) They are thought to be one of the oldest breed of toy dogs going back to the 16th century. Affenpinscher type dogs can be seen in some old paintings like this one by Van Eyck :

Affenpinschers were used as ratters but they also became much loved pets as they are very good at making people laugh with their comic antics. My brother Alfie Crybbe is a master at comedy especially in his training class doing little bows and twirls instead of obeying the commands and sitting and looking at the instructor with his head on one side.

Affenpinschers can have pricked ears like Alfie Crybbe or drop ears like my little sister Aoife. Crybbe was not born with pricked ears though. Here is a picture of him at 7 weeks old:

But when he grew older his ears gradually went up - first one then the other!

Affenpinschers are now not a common breed at all even in Germany. The highest number of dogs is probably in the USA. Affenpinschers were introduced into the UK first in the 1890s but only in ones and twos. The breed did not really begin to be established until the 1970s and even now there are only about 100 puppies registered a year with the Kennel Club. It is thought we miniature schnauzers have affenpinschers in our breeding from years ago when the standard schnauzer was cross bred to reduce its size and make a smaller dog suitable for city living and to be a companionable pet.

Affenpinschers are intelligent dogs and can be trained to work as medical alert dogs. The picture above shows Alfie Crybbe who has worked as a Pets As Therapy dog visiting nursing homes to cheer up the residents! But some dogs are trained to work as assistants to people with a medical condition that could put their life at risk and one affenpinscher is working in Exeter with his diabetic owner Eileen Reed to help keep her well. Click on the link to read their story!

Affenpinschers are uaually between 10-11" tall (24-28 cm) and weigh around 8-9lbs (4 kg) In the UK their coat is always black although it can go grey at quite a young age. They are judged in the Toy Group at dog shows.

Affenpinschers are not the dog for all people though. They may be small but they want to be top dog! They will protect their food and their toys by any means possible and are not slow to nip anyone who tries to steal them whether dog or human!

Aoife at 9 weeks old defending her toys

But they are fun to live with most of the time :-) and I wouldn't want to be without my little sister really;

We got tagged!

2012-02-14T05:26:00.001-08:00

Our good friend Haopee tagged me so here goes with my answers to the questions:

1. Describe yourself in 7 words - friendly, loving, cute, optimistic, curious, relaxed, schnauzer

2. What keeps you up at night? - My sisters snoring.

3. Who would you like to be? - Happy being Me

4. What are you wearing? - My new hoodie

5. What scares you? - Black plastic bin liners flapping about.

6. The best and worst of blogging - best is hearing about the adventures of all my bloggy friends all over the world worst is when blogger doesn't work properly and not having enough time always to keep up with the blogs.

7. The last website I visited - My Dogs Love Me (checking the questions :-)

8. What is one thing I would change about myself? Nothing really - do you think I could be improved upon?

9. Slankets - yes or no? - No I don't like sleeves in my blanket :-(

10. Tell us something about the person who tagged you - that is Haopee who has a great blog about her life with her dogs. She is a dog lover who posts about many interesting K9 topics which my peeps look forward to reading - and she makes us laugh with her 'conversations' with her dog companions.

11. Tag 8 more blogs:

Susie-Belle

Schnauzer Days

Tooki

Michelle at Hood Acres Farm

Four Miniature Schnauzer Girls and a Maltese Boy

Muffin the Shih-Tzu

Nora Bella memoir of a schnauzer

The Brown Dog

Check out my tagged blogs if you haven't visited them before - they are all worth a visit!

Yet more snow!

2012-02-10T02:46:00.000-08:00

Just when we thought it was going to melt - it snowed again! Leigh had cleared a path and it was doing well and then last night it snowed and snowed.

This is Caoimhe discovering that she can walk on water - well frozen pond water anyway :-)

Me in my new fleece hoodie.

The birds are all coming to feed from the bird feeders - this pretty robin was after the fat balls.

and the Great Tit was enjoying the peanuts.

and then the Wood Pigeon decided to sit in the water bowl :-(

It is still very cold here - we want it to warm up soon so we can start going out on walks again. But just to finish here is my cute little sister Aoife in her red jumper:

Gates..and more gates!

2012-02-07T03:31:00.000-08:00

When we first moved to this house two years ago there were hardly any gates and we could run upstairs and downstairs and up the garden and down the garden and then...a gate appeared with a fence to stop us dogs getting into the vegetable plot :-(

Then last summer another gate appeared to stop us running into the borders and digging up the plants :-(

and then suddenly at the weekend another gate appeared to stop us chasing the cats upstairs and jumping on the beds when we're wet and muddy :-(

Where will it all end?

A Winter Wonderland

2012-02-05T03:16:00.000-08:00

We have snow! It started coming down yesterday afternoon and then didn't stop. I've seen snow before but Aoife and Caoimhe had a bit of a shock :-)

Caoimhe trying to work out where the white stuff came from.

Aoife seeing if it's good to eat.

Our own Christmas tree!

The silver birch tree all laden with snow.

The schnauzer plant pots filled with snow :-)

Caoimhe in her winter jacket.

Alfie Crybbe was very cross that he had to wear his jacket.

And here I am calling everybody back indoors.

Time for a snooze in the beds by the radiator!

Crufts Competition

2012-02-02T03:57:00.000-08:00

Today is the launch of our competition to win tickets for Crufts. We have 2 pairs of tickets to give away!

Tailwagging fun for all the family! Don't miss out on wet noses and waggy tails. Crufts is where the world of dogs comes together to celebrate everything we love about man's best friend.

Shopping Heaven - over 400 stands with special treats and offers.

Fun in the Arena - this year's programme is jam-packed with agility, flyball, displays, activities and competitions.

Discover Dogs - come and meet, greet and discover over 200 breeds.

Don't miss out, enter this competition and come along to the world's largest dog show!

The Kennel Club have kindly donated 2 pairs of tickets valid for any one day of Crufts 2012. For your chance to win one of these pairs of tickets just answer the following 3 questions.:

1. In what year was the very first Cruft's dog show held under that name?

2. In what Group are the Miniature Schnauzer breed judged at Crufts?

3. What was the breed of dog who won Best in Show at Crufts 2011?

and e.mail your answers together with your name to crybbe14@gmail.com by Friday 17th February 2012.
2 lucky winners will be picked at random from the correct entries received and the winners names will be announced on the blog on Monday 19th February. The winners will be contacted direct by e.mail.

Crufts takes place from Thursday 8th March - Sunday 11th March 2012* and if you are interested in watching the judging of particular breeds these are the groups being judged on the following days
Thursday 8th: Toy and Utility
Friday 9th: Gundogs
Saturday 10th: Working and Pastoral
Sunday 11th: Terrier and Hound

* Please note that the complimentary tickets are not valid for the Arena from 3 pm on Sunday (Best in Show Day)

For full information and to book tickets you can go through to the Crufts website by clicking on the link below:

Thanks to the Kennel Club for allowing me to use the above pictures from their Picture Library.

The Seven Wonderful Dog Groups

2012-02-01T06:34:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow will be the big day of the competition for tickets to Crufts but today I will tell you a bit more about how this show and many other dog shows are judged and give a mention to some of my many blog friends at the same time. Check out their pages if you haven't seen some of these breeds before.

Above you can see a photo of me in my show pose. At Crufts and many other dog shows in Britain the dogs are judged first in their breed and then the best of breed winners go on to compete against others in their Group. The Group winners will then go on to compete against each other for the title Best in Show. There are 7 groups: Gundogs, Hounds, Pastoral, Working, Utility, Terriers and Toy.

As a miniature schnauzer in the UK I am classed as a Utility dog. A lot of different dogs are in this group from Dalmatians to Poodles and Bulldogs to Shih-Tzus like Muffin. Some Utility dogs are breeds that used to work in some way in the past but nowadays they are generally just pets - mind you that can be a full-time job if you ask me making sure the house and garden are not invaded, clearing up dropped food scraps, checking if all the bin lids are secure, blogging...the list is endless really :-) Anyway, back to business:

The Hound group are mostly dog breeds that would have been used for hunting in the past - there are sight hounds (like Leigh's Mum's whippets above) that used their good eyesight to seek out their prey and scent hounds (like Fred & Gloria, the basset hounds) that use their excellent noses to follow the scent of their prey.

The Working group are dogs that are still often used to do work of some kind such as guarding property or protecting people. Breeds like the Giant Schnauzer (above), Rottweilers like Bart & Ruby and Great Danes like Samson.

The Pastoral Group has dogs that work with 'cloven-footed' animals - herding sheep, cattle, reindeer etc. with breeds such as the Border Collie (above) and Corgis like Stewey the Welsh Pembroke Corgi.

The Gundog Group are dogs that are often used to go out with people who hunt birds and ducks to either chase the birds to fly up or to retrieve the birds that have been killed. Flat coated retrievers like Jet, the Best in Show winner from last year's Crufts (above) as well as bloggy friends Finn, Roy & Cody the Golden Retrievers, and Hawk, the Chesapeake Bay retriever are all dogs that would be in this group.

The Terrier Group has the terriers (of course!) like the Bedlington (above) and also Welsh Terriers like George & Tess, Airedales like Wyatt & Stanzie and Scottish Terriers like Daisy and Bella.

And last but not least - how could it be? - the Toy group which has the Affenpinschers like Alfie Crybbe (above) & Aoife and Cavalier King Charles Spaniels like Momo and Pinot. The Toy dogs are all small dogs who may have been bred down in size from a larger dog or who were companion or lap dogs (who may also have been useful in catching small vermin such as mice in years gone by).

So I hope you enjoyed that run down the list of dog groups. Thank you to the Kennel Club for letting me use their picture of Jet, the Best in Show winner and the Border Collie photo. Don't forget to check in tomorrow for the competition to win those tickets to Crufts!

Aoife & the Water Bowl

2012-01-31T08:25:00.000-08:00

We have been looking through some old photos & videos and found this one of Aoife when she was a little puppy. Just to make you smile - she was trying to get the reflection of the light out of the water bowl!

Not something a schnauzer would do - we'd be too busy drinking the water. She tries to scrape the patterns off the food bowls too :-)

This is her now - she's not impressed with us finding her baby pictures.

More Crufts info coming soon - and the competition.

The World's Largest Dog Show

2012-01-29T07:09:00.000-08:00

As some of my blog followers are not in the UK and haven't heard much about Crufts, I've got Leigh to help me put some facts about it here. It is the largest dog show in the WORLD!! It started many years ago in Victorian times (1891) when a man called Charles Cruft who had managed a Terrier Club Show decided to hold a large show in London for many different breeds. There were 36 breeds shown and 2,437 entries. Over the years it became more and more popular and moved from a small hall in Islington, London to Olympia in 1948, then as it got bigger still to Earls Court in 1979 and then out of London to the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham in 1991.Today there are nearly 28,000 dogs entered from all over the world and over 200 different breeds to see!

This handsome canine (photo courtesy of the Kennel Club Picture Library) is ShCh VBOS The Kentuckian, the Flat Coated Retriever who won Best in Show at last year's Crufts.

A lot of other changes have taken place since that Victorian show. In 1994 Discover Dogs started where many different breeds could be seen with their owners. Peeps who were thinking of getting that breed could talk to the owners about what they needed to know before they introduced this new member of the family into their lives. Wyatt (the Airedale) and George the Lad (Welsh Terrier) have both been ambassadors for their breeds at events like this.

In 2004 the Good Citizen Dog class was introduced for show dogs at Crufts. The Good Citizen Dog Scheme is a training scheme for dogs and their owners to encourage peeps to have well behaved dogs and to look after their dogs properly and responsibly. My brother Kaska became the first miniature schnauzer dog to win this class at Crufts in 2004. Here he is receiving his rosette:

By 2009 there were a lot of worries about some dogs being bred so they looked a certain way but were really quite ill because of it and hereditary ailments were being noticed in some breeds too. That was when vet checks were started on dogs the show judges were concerned about. Breed standards have been changed to try and make sure dogs are not bred for looks that make them ill and this year even more vet checks will take place on dogs that win the top prizes to make sure they really are healthy.

And it's not just about showing dogs- there are obedience events (not many miniature schnauzers or affenpinschers there :-) and agility:

This border collie's enjoying himself on the weave poles - you should hear them bark when they get a go on the fly-ball! There are police dog displays and doggy dancing (they call it heelwork to music) as well and these action events are open to all dogs not just pedigrees. AND for peeps and their canines who like to shop till they drop there are over 400 stands selling all sorts of doggy goodies.

So that's a little bit about Crufts - more to come over the next few weeks - although I might put in some other news too so you don't forget about me and my brother and sisters.

Thanks to the Kennel Club Picture Library for letting us use their photos and if you want to know more about Crufts - or book tickets click on the banner below:

Countdown to Crufts

2012-01-28T06:29:00.000-08:00

2012 is going to be an important year in the UK because the Olympics is being held in London this year and all the sporting peeps are counting down to the opening ceremony on 27th July but we dogs and our peeps are counting down to 8th March when Crufts begins!

As you may know we are all waiting here to find out if I am going to be having puppies this Spring - and I'm taking it easy and resting up just in case :-) so while I'm not having too many adventures Leigh will take over some of my blog to tell you more about Crufts AND we are going to have a special competition to win tickets to go to Crufts this March! So watch this space as the competition details will be announced very soon. And because I know there are bloggy friends all over the world who probably couldn't get to Crufts even if they did win free tickets we'll have another competition a bit later on to win Crufts goodies which everyone can enter :-)

Versatile Blogger Award

2012-01-26T02:59:00.000-08:00

Oh we have another award from our friend Haopee at My Dogs Love Me! Thank you so much for that. To accept the award we thank Haopee and we must pass the award to up to 15 other blogs and share 7 facts about ourselves.

I will make a start with 7 facts to share:

1. My peeps, Judith & Leigh, have had miniature schnauzers for 15 years now since getting their very first in January 1997. Her name was Maisie and her sister Match was our Kaska's mother! This is Maisie in her later years:

2. We are all fed on a raw food diet. We have a yummy prepared food from Natural Instinct made with raw minced meat & bone with added salmon oil, kelp and vegetables/fruit.

3. In 2007 Judith & Leigh decided to get an affenpinscher to join their family. That was Alfie Crybbe.

4. The affenpinscher is a German breed like the schnauzer and it is believed that many years ago the affenpinscher was crossed with the Standard Schnauzer to make the Miniature Schnauzer. Affenpinschers can have prick ears like Alfie Crybbe or drop ears like Aoife. The name means monkey terrier and the affenpinschers have little monkey faces :-)

5. Caoimhe is my real younger sister. My mother & father had another litter of pups just over a year after I was born and Caoimhe was one of those pups.

6. We all live in Yorkshire which is the largest county in England and is divided into 4 separate areas: East, West, South and North Yorkshire. We live in North Yorkshire about half way between the cities of York and Leeds. There are lots of green places for dogs and peeps to visit with the Moors, the Dales and lots of historic houses and gardens - this is Fountains Abbey where dogs are welcome :-)

7. As well as 4 dogs, we have 3 hens and 2 cats in our family. The cats are sisters and are called Satin & Lace. The hens are named after dancers and are called Isadora Duncan, Ninette de Valois and Darcey Bussell. They are a bit wet in this picture as it was pouring with rain - they like to shelter under the large spruce tree in the garden.

I would like to pass this award on to 2 blogs to start with - which are:

Nora Bella -a sweet little pepper & salt schnauzer who lives with her black mini schnauzer brother Theo. Both are gorgeous little schnauzers - check them out!

and Zeus FM - another mini schnauzer with attitude - he is a bit of a wild child but lovely with it!

Photo Scavenger Hunt - January

2012-01-20T06:23:00.000-08:00

Here are our pictures for January - and we do appear in nearly all of them - not bad!

2 schnauzers ( Caoimhe & Me)

BLUR of wings on crested grebe at Fairburn Ings

Two's COMPANY - Me and Caoimhe sharing a pillow

Alfie Crybbe considering the new ENTRANCE to the garden (a gate to stop us running down to the newly planted borders)

Caoimhe likes the shower better than the bath in OUR BATHROOM (peeps & dogs have to share here.)

Snowdrops IN SEASON (this winter they seem to be the only flowers that are)

Bales of hay stretching off IN THE DISTANCE in the field behind our house.

Caoimhe getting more INFORMATION about miniature schnauzers (or is she just eating the book?)

A MESS of toys and schnauzers on the dog mat

My meeting with this ODD lady who was sitting on a grass verge in Cawood village

Aoife as a puppy enjoying a snooze on the SOFT toy schnauzer.

Oh dear - that was me when I was a puppy getting a WARNING from Alfie Crybbe :-(

Well I hope you liked those pictures - at least there were quite a few with us on. And just to say that we are having real trouble at the moment with Blogger comments - some of the Blogs we follow and enjoy we are not able to leave any comments as it all just freezes up on the computer when we try so I will keep trying but Wyatt and Daisy, Bella & Roxy and some others - I am enjoying your posts but can't comment - sorry!

Frosty Days & My Schnauzer Date

2012-01-16T03:21:00.000-08:00

Suddenly all the warm weather disappeared and our garden looks as if it's been crystallised! The plants are all frosted and the pond has ice patterns:

and Mr Frog is trying to put a brave face on it but that is a very cold spot to sun yourself!

But enough about the weather - I wanted to tell you about my schnauzer date with Luke. Well sadly no bling or dinner for 2 - oh Wyatt I think you may be more of a romantic than Luke :-) ...but we did get on very well together. I wanted to wear my fine red fluffy boa for the date:

But Leigh & Judith thought there was no need for dressing up - I was pretty enough without :-(
We travelled in the car to visit Luke in his country home - he was so pleased to see me and he snuffled my ears and I thought he looked quite a fine boy. So after my peeps talked with his peeps we arranged to come back again in a few days and since then I have seen him 2 more times and we got on better and better. Luke originally came from the US where he became a champion and then he travelled to South Africa and now to the UK - he has really seen the world! If you would like to see pictures of him he has his photo on this web-page:
www.nujaxshowdogs.co.uk/luke.html

Anyway my peeps are now hoping that we might have puppies together but we'll just have to wait and see. The good thing is that because they won't know for several weeks - at least 5 in fact I am going to be treated like a princess as they want me to be happy and not stressed about anything. So I reckon that could mean plenty of treats and the best beds ...and if it doesn't work out Judith has said she will take me to Crufts 'cos I qualified to go in the end last year so there's always something to look forward to.

Couldn't resist one more pic in my red fluffy scarf :-)

Pawsome Blogger Award

2012-01-13T04:49:00.000-08:00

Thank you to Haopee at www.mydogslove.me/ for this lovely award!

I am honoured to accept it and to nominate 8 other furry friend blogs that I enjoy following. There are so many wonderful dogblogs it's hard to pick just a few but here are some of my favourites:

1. Rubie the schnauzer girl in Australia who always makes me smile.

http://www.rubieadventures.blogspot.com/

2.Wyatt and his sister Stanzie 2 Airedales enjoying life in Oregon - gardening tips included.

http://www.wyattgardens.blogspot.com/

3. Dante and Daisy-Boo (Labradoodles) and their giant 'brother' Sampson the great Dane - fun and games in Cumbria UK

http://www.smilewithyourtail.blogspot.com/

4. Tessa the cute Maltese pup living in Oregon with her disabled Mom - she loves her stuffies and has some great outfits for special occasions.
http://www.tessathemaltese.blogspot.com/

5. Tooki and her miniature schnauzer Coco and her 'brother' Wawa - always informative and interesting blog with great photos of the dogs, people & customs in Sabah, Malaysia

http://www.tooki-mimopakl.blogspot.com/

6. Daisy and Bella 2 scotties in Australia with their 'sister' Roxy - another blog to make you smile!

http://www.scotsmad.blogspot.com/

7. Matilda the wirehaired dachshund who enjoys life in Japan and blogs about her days out and local customs.

http://www.iammatilda.blogspot.com/

8. Muffin - a very cute little ShihTzu who lives in Singapore - she is very sweet :-)

http://www.muffinlim.blogspot.com/

Check them out if you do not follow them already!

And more details of my schnauzer date to follow....

More Bitey Face games

2012-01-09T07:14:00.000-08:00

I heard from Caoimhe that she has told my secret - so you all know now that I may be going to have pups this year. This week I am going to see a fine mini schnauzer boy and I'll let you know how we get on but I've been told that if I do start with pups I have to rest more and no running and jumping and play fights. So I thought I'd better get some bitey face games in now just in case!

We had a good roll around and then Aoife checked me over to see if I'm still OK for meeting Luke:

Yes ears are fine.. so it's all go for the meeting and paws crossed we like each other. I'll keep you posted:

The Mystery Revealed

2012-01-04T03:36:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone - Caoimhe here again. Well you may remember that Magic whispered to me in her last post about that strange message on the chocolate Santa. The chocolate Santa is no more as Leigh has eaten him! And she said human chocolate is very bad for dogs so we got none of it :-( ....but I do know what the message meant and I'm going to let you in on the secret while Magic is out of the way.

If you could read the Santa's message OK it said DARKSPRITE and that is the name which the Kennel Club have said Leigh & Judith can use as their 'breeder's signature' or 'affix'. They are going to breed miniature schnauzer puppies now and again so they can have their own to show and good healthy puppies for other peeps to have as pets. Here in the UK if you are a good breeder you will register the puppies with the Kennel Club and they ask you to choose an 'affix' which will be part of your dog's Kennel name. You have to offer 6 choices and Leigh & Judith got their 5th choice just before Christmas. Me and Magic are 'Silversocks' girls at the moment because that was our breeder's affix.

Oh just checking that Magic isn't on her way back - 'cos there's more to tell! Magic was too shy to say but she's the one who may be the mother of the first litter of pups. Judith & Leigh have found a smart stud dog for her to meet and hope he may be the one for her :-) Oops I think I hear her coming in and I wouldn't want her to know I've told everyone her secret. She may not mind and perhaps she will tell you more another day - otherwise I'll have to just sneak on the computer and let you know myself!
And just so Magic doesn't catch on what I've been telling you, here's a picture of another bird that visited our garden over Christmas:

It's a greater spotted woodpecker and it really loved the peanuts! Will keep you posted on other news...!

Review of 2011

2012-01-01T07:54:00.000-08:00

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL BLOG FRIENDS

I have so enjoyed reading other reviews of last year I thought I would post some of my memorable moments so here goes:

January - the snow had gone but it was still cold so me and Lace looked out the best spot in the sun.

February - I came second in the puppy class at Northern Schnauzer Club Show.

March - our new conservatory was built.

April - a little affenpinscher came to live with us - my sister Aoife.

May - Leigh's nephew came to visit and we got on very well together.

June - the family all went to Bramham Horse Trials and had a little picnic together.

July - Another sister arrived! My own little sister Caoimhe.

August - my brother Kaska celebrated his 11th birthday

September - I went to York with my sister Caoimhe and we had a boat trip along the river.

October - Caoimhe decides she would like to be a wine-taster when she grows up!

November - the saddest month - my brother Kaska passed over the Rainbow Bridge,

December - Christmas and New Year celebrations and lots of candlelights!

And just to finish a few more pictures from Christmas. The first one is Molly who lives with Leigh's brother in Northumberland sporting her Christmas present from Leigh. One of the bandanas made by Dex & Lou's Mum!

And here is a chocolate Santa with a mysterious message - more will be revealed soon!

You will have to wait to hear the news but I've whispered it to Caoimhe cos she couldn't wait!

Christmas Pheasants and Christmas Presents

2011-12-27T09:07:00.000-08:00

We are just getting over all the eating..and excitement of Christmas now so I thought I would let you see some of our Christmas Day pictures. It has been one of the warmest Christmas Days in the UK for many years and so no snow - and when we looked out of the window we had an unexpected visitor:

This pheasant spent a happy time looking for food in our garden:

Or maybe he had an eye on our presents! Aoife and I waited patiently in the kitchen:

while Alfie Crybbe (as the little man of the house) had first look at the Christmas stocking:

He knew which rawhide treat he was after: the one and only Christmas tree:

But once he was happy, we could sort through the other treats:

Rawhide bones and lollipops

Squeaky turkey and reindeer stuffie

Caoimhe got a tasty lollipop and I tackled the rawhide stocking:

Very tasty!

Aoife did get a treat too but 'cos she's the smallest and her teeth aren't big and strong yet she always eats hers in a crate with the door shut to keep us out (as if we would take it from her - haha) and so we couldn't get any photos!

Hope you all had a very happy Christmas too!

Some Festive Photos

2011-12-22T06:11:00.000-08:00

Oh my bloggy friends - we were all caught by the tinsel monster today! Me.....

....Aoife.....

....even Alfie Crybbe...

...but not Caoimhe who decided to be the one to wear the Christmas jumper!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO ALL OUR BLOGGY FRIENDS !

Christmas Tree and Presents

2011-12-16T07:44:00.000-08:00

Magic here again - Caoimhe said we had not been blogging for ages and ought to put up some more pictures of our Christmas preparations so she woke me up for that! Anyway - here is our tree now it's all decorated:

and it has an owl on the top because the fairy has seen better days - at least that what Judith & Leigh said:

Alfie Crybbe is not impressed because he told us that owl has it in for him and jumped on him when he was trying to snooze and he had to go and hide in the crate while Leigh tied it on the tree a bit tighter. We have more decorations round the fireplace as well:

and then the best bit is the presents which are going under the tree- we keep checking them to see if they might be for us:

Sadly none of them are - yet. Can you see the lovely labels which Louis and Dexter's Mum made for her little online store?

Caoimhe is sure she can smell sea jerky but Leigh says no dog presents are coming out until Christmas Day - that's a whole week away. Does she not realise how long that is in dog-time? We have visitors again this weekend so probably no time for blogging again but I'll try and get Leigh to help me post again before Christmas. Thank you to all the bloggy friends who have sent cards and Christmas emails. We have been enjoying it very much :-)

Christmas is Coming!

2011-12-06T05:28:00.000-08:00

Hello Blogging Friends - this is Caoimhe (I'm the one on the right). As you can see I've grown bigger than Magic now :-)) Here we are posing with our Christmas cards from Minnie and Mack, Frankie and Ernie and our dear friend Rubie - in the middle. Magic's got one ear out listening in case she can hear our dinner being prepared. Now that the cards are coming in our peeps thought it was time to get some Christmas decorations up and as Magic was snoozing I thought I would help out:

Me and Aoife trying to see if there are any treats in this Christmas bag.

This looks like a good tug toy!

Oh no it's got a bit tangled up with me and my teddy!

I'll soon get that out.

Aoife got a bit tangled in tinsel too!

In fact we had such fun with it I fell asleep before we finished and Magic never even woke up!!

More Christmas pictures to come when Magic wakes up and can get to blog again...and thank you to our bloggy friends for our cards and e.mails - us dogs are keeping our noses in front with the holiday greetings!

Photo Scavenger Hunt - November

2011-11-29T04:38:00.000-08:00

Leigh thought she might just make it for this month's photo scavenger hunt. She has been looking through old photos and thought some of them might just do for this one. Sadly I only feature in a few but we will have to make up for that another time!

This is a LUCKY CHARM keyring with lots of doggy features!

A POPPY growing in a crevice by the sea in Scotland - guarded by a young seagull!

SELF PORTRAIT - had to be me really as I'm the most photogenic :-)

COMFORT FOOD - Leigh's favourite chocolate!

Our garden MEMORIAL to family members who have crossed the Rainbow Bridge: Sheba (Leigh's cat); Maisie & Zeta (2 mini schnauzer sisters who passed over the Bridge before I came to live here). The lady who carves the memorial stones is working on one for my brother Kaska.

I'm just checking if there's anything left in Caoimhe's POLKA DOT bowl - no chance!

A SILHOUETTE of a horse made of crystals from an exhibition in Belsay Castle in Northumberland.

The PURPLE Man in York who rides his PURPLE Bike with a PURPLE Dog in the basket!

Back in York at the Food Market where the stalls all LIGHT UP to show off the food - yummy!

This is a joint work of art really by me and Caoimhe - a shoe sculpture MADE BY US !

This is an old photo of the STAIRCASE with Kaska at the top - me in the middle - and Alfie Crybbe at the bottom

And a photo of me and Aoife when she was a little pup snuggling up on the rug by the cooker for WARMTH!

A Mist-erious Place

2011-11-24T03:25:00.000-08:00

Last Sunday Leigh and Judith took me and Kaska on a trip to a new place - it is an arboretum at Castle Howard and they welcome dogs even off lead as long as they are well-behaved which of course we always are :-))
But when we arrived a thick mist came down and we could not see very far ahead - not that we dogs need to see when we can smell - it was a good excuse for furtling!

As you can see I did get very wet and muddy but Leigh did manage to get some pictures of things we could see - just:

A ruined castle wall.

A sculpture of a bird in the lake.

Some strange trees.

Toadstools.

Branches with webs.

Spooky sculptured faces.

Sculptured tree trunks

Can you see me under this strange building?

These were what were hanging from the roof - you can tell the age of the trees by their rings.

And Kaska had a chance to have a bit of furtling too - he really enjoyed himself there!

Maybe another day we can go when it's not so misty!

Postscript from Leigh

Just to say thank you to all the blogging friends who have sent kind messages regarding Kaska. For those who did not know he had been living with spinal cord damage for 18 months which was gradually cutting off messages from his brain to his hindquarters. We were so lucky to have him with us for much longer than the original diagnosis. When he was diagnosed in June 2010 we were told he might only manage another 3 months. His determination and courage to continue to try and walk together with the support of his wheels kept him going until this week. Until a few months ago Kaska had been pain free but this began to change and he started a course of pain relief a few months ago. Two weeks back it was evident that things were suddenly getting a lot worse. Kaska could not move his back legs very well - they did support him standing just about but he fell if not in his wheels. He could not raise or turn himself unaided if he was lying down and internally things were slowing down (his bowels etc). The vet prescribed a strong steroid pain killer which was becoming necessary by this time and it was clear we had to make the awful decision to let our boy go peacefully and with some dignity. The vet came out to our house and Kaska was sleeping in his special spot on the sofa so there was no stress for him and afterwards the other dogs came to say goodbye. When he was a tiny puppy we had taken him to Westonbirt Arboretum for one of his very first outings. He had been so excited at the smells he had rushed around snorting away at everything and we decided for his last day to take him to another arboretum. As luck would have it a heavy mist came down and everything was damp there but nevertheless Kaska enjoyed himself. He rode in the pet stroller for part of the way round, and used his wheels for a bit and then we let him have a little furtle around without the wheels. He could not go very far but his snorting was just as loud as when he was a pup. Kaska always lived every moment to the full and he did that Sunday too!

Somewhere Over the Rainbow

2011-11-22T04:06:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was a very sad day for us all. My brother Kaska crossed over the Rainbow Bridge and we are missing him very much. I will get back to blogging again soon about my adventures but today Leigh is putting up a kind of memory tree of pictures of Kaska from when he first came to live with the family eleven years ago.

Here is Kaska the day he arrived as a little ball of fluff being inspected by Maisie who was head of the canine household back then.

Kaska investigating the guinea pigs' run.

Kaska needing a hair cut!

Kaska in his show cut. He won many prizes at dog shows and became the very first miniature schnauzer dog to gain 1st place in the Good Citizen Dog class at Crufts in 2004 the year it was first introduced.

Kaska (centre) on the Norfolk Broads with his sisters Maisie (L) and Zeta (R).

On holiday in Wales with Maisie (R) and Zeta (L)

Kaska on his 11th birthday this August.

Kaska with his Dog of Courage Awards from DBARC in recognition of his struggle with disability after his spinal cord trauma.

Kaska on an outing the day before he died.

"Goodnight sweet prince and flights of angels sing thee to thy rest"

A Tiring Week

2011-11-16T03:56:00.000-08:00

Hi this is me - Caoimhe taking over Magic's blog for a day. I thought I would show you a picture of me modelling a lovely Christmas bandana made by Dex & Lou's Mum for the Northern Schnauzer Club shop. I wanted to wear it all day but I was entered for a show and had to take it off. Leigh said it would be safer on a Steiff schnauzer whatever that is! Here is my rival for the bandana with Alfie Crybbe posing beside it:

Our whole canine family went to the Northern Schnauzer Club Championship show on Saturday as Leigh & Judith are running the shop to raise funds for the club. They have lots of schnauzery things and people came to buy their Christmas cards and stocking fillers.

There were so many schnauzers at the show from minis of different colours to standards and Giants! I was just old enough to enter as a minor puppy and there were eleven other puppies in the ring with me. I wasn't too sure about those others especially one who kept making faces at me. Anyway I didn't win anything but I did get chicken treats just the same and met lots of people who thought I was very smart even if I didn't get a prize. I have another show next month in Birmingham so I will let you know how I get on there.

Anyway when we got home I wanted to play with my toys but after a little while I was so tired I just fell asleep with my Teddy. We had been up at 5 am and even we dogs don't usually get up that early!

Bark and Read

2011-11-08T03:26:00.000-08:00

This is Aoife posing with one of her favourite books to help me tell you about a new scheme being launched in the UK this weekend. It's called Bark and Read! Sadly there are lots of children who don't know how to read even though they are going to school. They get scared about making mistakes and being laughed at if they say the wrong word so they just don't look at books. Of course if they were like Caoimhe they would probably be eating them!

But as you know we dogs are not so mean as to laugh if someone makes a mistake and we are quite happy to lie down and snooze if little peeps want to read us a story - we won't mind if they don't know a word or stumble when they read. This kind of scheme has been successful in the United States and now the Kennel Club in England are launching a foundation to support schemes like Pets as Therapy and Reading Education Assistance Dogs that take dogs into classrooms so that children can read to them and become more confident about reading books.

It is being launched at Discover Dogs which is a big event where people can go and meet dogs and find out about different breeds - and about this new scheme. It is on at the weekend 12-13 November at Earls Court in London. Children under 12 go free and can go and read to dogs in a special area set aside for them.

If you want to know more about it you can find it on the Kennel Club website:
www.thekennelclub.org.uk/barkandread

We think it is a very good idea because if the little peeps grow up not knowing how to read how are they going to read about our blogging adventures or the books that tell them about how to look after us? You have to plan for the future and little peeps are our future owners!

I also wanted to tell you about a great day I had yesterday at York Racecourse but it was so dark and misty the pictures did not come out very well! That was Leigh's excuse anyway but we met a lovely mini schnauzer puppy called Daisy with her owner and had a good time chasing seagulls:

This is Daisy in her lovely bandana and here she is with me. I'm looking a bit cross because I thought Daisy might have been going to get a treat for her lovely pose!

I did so much running on that racecourse that when I got home I just had to snooze for the rest of the evening - and my sister lay down to keep me company even though she hadn't been running at all!

Do they know it's nearly Christmas?

2011-11-04T10:06:00.000-07:00

Here's a picture of me and Aoife enjoying the sunshine in...November! Leigh is busy making the Christmas cake and buying Christmas presents and in the garden it is warm and sunny and the flowers are still blooming:

This lovely rose is called Gertrude Jekyll after a famous English garden designer and writer. It hasn't bloomed until now! And the borders are still bright:

Oh well if the flowers don't know it's nearly Christmas maybe we shouldn't worry either. My little sister Aoife has never seen a winter yet - I won't tell her about the snow and ice and frost and -15C last year. Just let her enjoy the sunshine:

K9 Life Rules

2011-11-01T03:59:00.000-07:00

There seems to have been so much unhappy news on the TV that when Leigh found a little piece in the dog magazine about canine life rules she thought maybe if more peeps took notice of dogs there might not be so much bad news. So she's put a few of the comments here and added some of her own:

Always be happy to greet loved ones when they come home - or even just visiting!

Never pass up an opportunity to go out for a ride in the fresh air with the wind in your face.

Run, romp and play daily.

Just because someone doesn't look like you doesn't mean you don't share the same interests.

No matter how often you get in trouble don't bear a grudge and don't buy into the guilt thing - run back and make friends.

Take plenty of naps and stretch before rising.

If what you want is buried, dig until you find it.

Delight in the simple joy of a long walk.

On warm days relax, lie down on the grass and enjoy the sun.

When someone is having a bad day, be silent, sit close by and nuzzle them gently.... And remember if all else fails a cup of tea can do wonders to cheer you up:

Wishing all our K9 friends and their peeps and other furry companions a great day!

What a difference 4 months make!

2011-10-25T06:58:00.000-07:00

This was my little sister Caoimhe when she came to live with us on 1 July 2011 - a sweet little bundle of schnauzer furryness.

Her puppy toys were all she needed to keep her happy - such an innocent little pup!

4 months later - she's not such a sweet pup - with her eye on the wine and puppy toys long forgotten!

She's trying to let on she's a wine taster - just a little drop and she'll spit it out - oh no!
Of course we dogs would never really be allowed to drink wine. Water is our only tipple although Leigh is adding some apple cider vinegar to the water now to try and keep our beards whiter - I'll let you know if it works. We're having visitors this week so I may not be able to blog for a little while but I'll keep following my blog-friends when I can.

Convalescence and Calming Bands

2011-10-17T07:33:00.000-07:00

I had a little message from our schnauzer pals Dex & Lou wondering if all is well here so I thought I would do a little post to let you know we're all still OK. Here's me and Caoimhe lying on the rug by the cooker to keep warm - it is getting very cold here now at night. Judith & Leigh have both been quite poorly with colds and coughs and sore throats that made their voices all squeaky but they're getting better now so I've been able to get going on the computer again :-)

Caoimhe is taking no chances on getting a cold and has a little jumper on to keep her warm. I have one too but I try not to wear it for photographs. Actually Caoimhe has been in disgrace a bit here too because she is so-o barky with dogs and people she meets. Sweet as anything at home and then as soon as she goes out and sees a dog or some person decides to try and talk to her she goes WILD! So Judith & Leigh are trying all sorts of remedies to try and calm her down. She's had her food changed for some new crunchy kibble, she has some herbal calming tablets...and this strange thing called a 'calming band':

It looks a bit scary to me but it's just a soft piece of elasticated fabric that fits over her nose and lets her know when she's barking - well I think unless she's deaf she ought to know! But it does seem to be working so she will wear it at her training class tonight and see if she can manage not to bark at all the other dogs there like she usually does.

She's giving me a cross look now for telling everyone what she's like :-)
Anyway as there haven't been any exciting outings or visits to blog about recently I thought I would make you smile with this picture of some very quiet schnauzers.... just a small part of Judith & Leigh's schnauzer toy collection:

Dog of Courage 2011

2011-10-06T05:36:00.000-07:00

This is a photo of my brother Kaska which some of you may have seen on an earlier blog of mine. This picture was taken when Kaska got his wheels to help him walk after a spinal injury. It was entered in a competition run on-line by the Diana Brimblecombe Animal Rescue Centre as a 'Virtual Dog Show' with many different categories. Kaska's picture and the story of how he has coped with his disability won him the Dog of Courage award and a rosette and shield:

His awards arrived in the post today!

There were many lovely photos of dogs in the competition and other heart-tugging tales of dogs of courage. If you would like to read Kaska's story - and see the others too they are on the website at:

http://www.dbarc.org.uk/dogshow.html

He won category M. .and I did actually win a little rosette myself for coming second in the most appealing eyes category (K)...and there was a cute little schnauzer pup in the first category too. Schnauzers did well in this competition!

Here I am with my rosette. I did try to see if I could eat it but unfortunately not - that's why Leigh moved it out of the way of my mouth for the picture! An edible prize would have been welcome in my view. P.S. I have managed to qualify for Crufts after all at a Championship Show in Wetherby but there's talk of me having puppies next year - whispers going round that I'm not supposed to hear so I will have to wait and let you know when I find out if the rumours are true! Here's one more picture of my brother with his awards as today's blog is really for him:

My Favourite Blogs

2011-10-04T10:15:00.000-07:00

I have been honoured by my blog friend Tooki with 3 lovely awards and although I haven't been able to fulfil all the demands that go with these I thought I would just make a mention here in thanks to Tooki and all the other blogs I follow for their inspiration and entertainment. They all make me smile and brighten the day whatever else has happened. Until I started blogging I did not realise just how many four legged friends and their humans were out there sharing their adventures and the ups and downs of their lives all over the world. So here are the ones I follow whenever I can:

Tooki - your blogs are so informative about life in Sabah and I love to read about your celebrations as well as your many furry friends!
http://www.tooki-mimopakl.blogspot.com/

Rubie - my mini schnauzer Australian friend - you always make me laugh over your adventures with your cousins and your comments on my blog! You cheer me up whatever has happened in the day - thank you!
http://www.rubieadventures.blogspot.com/

George the lad - my Welsh Terrier blog friend has such interesting visits to steps throughout Britain ( and his flat brother has been right round the world!) He loves historic places as we do.
http://www.georgethelad.blogspot.com/

Momo and Pinot - the cutest cavaliers I have ever seen with their lovely family and sweet little brother. They always make me smile with their lovely photos.
http://momo-cavalier.blogspot.com/

Matilda the smart wirehaired dachshund in Japan who visits beautiful places with her family. Another interesting blog to follow.
http://www.iammatilda.blogspot.com/

Dex and Louis - my other schnauzer friends from the UK who have a good life in the West Country furtling in the woods and fields near their home. I enjoy their adventures at home and out and about!
http://www.schnauzerdays.blogspot.com/

Wyatt and his sister Stanzie in the US are 2 lovely Airedales with a blog that has recipes and information as well as the interesting exploits of the canine pair and their family. I always enjoy reading what they are up to.
http://www.wyattgardens.blogspot.com/

Yuki and Rocket - such beautiful young schnauzers who have a blog with stunning photos of these 2 sweet dogs. Really cute!
http://yukithedog.com/

Isaac - another schnauzer - well they are my favourite canine - blogs about his adventures in Ireland and has many profound comments on life in his blog from a schnauzer's point of view!
http://isaacthewonderschnauzer.blogspot.com/

And 2 new friends I have found recently are:
Stewey - an amazing Pembroke corgi with a wardrobe that is AMAZING - a really cool dog with a wicked sense of humour :-)
http://www.steweyunscene.com/

Finn - a beautiful Golden Retriever in the US with an informative blog about her life and the challenges she sets her owners!
http://www.finnhoward.blogspot.com/

Harvest Festival Time

2011-09-30T09:16:00.000-07:00

Here are some of the tomatoes Leigh & Judith have grown this year. Some are huge and some really tiny and it's the tiny ones we like to pick off the vine!

Caoimhe trying her first!

Aoife getting into her second!

Licking the juicy bits out of the middle...and then a bit of sweetcorn for afters:

Tastes good:

Sadly while they were all tucking in I was so tired I had taken a nap in the house...and fallen out of the bed..and had my picture snapped when I didn't know anything about it!

Can't a girl have any privacy?

Thorp Perrow Arboretum

2011-09-27T09:38:00.000-07:00

Today the weather has become very sunny again and we all went out for a family outing to Thorp Perrow Arboretum. Dogs are allowed in on leads so we were very excited to look round. But first we had to pose for a photo opportunity by one of the wooden carvings:

From left to right that's Alfie Crybbe, Kaska, Aoife, Caoimhe and me!
The arboretum is huge and there are lots of paths to explore and smells to investigate. There are pretty views:

With topiary gardens:

And bright maples:

As it is autumn here there are also fungi appearing everywhere like this collection on a tree trunk:

But also pretty autumn woodland plants like this cyclamen:

As well as the plants there were statues all through the woods - just when we were busy sniffing rabbits - whoah - there's a stone king!

And in the stream there was a carved heron:

We walked and walked and even Kaska climbed out of his stroller to have a wander. I tried to keep a look-out for likely furtling areas:

And then when we sat down for a rest I found a tasty chewing stick to share with Caoimhe:

All in all a good day out. We would be happy to visit Thorp Perrow again one day.

To show or not to show?

2011-09-21T08:52:00.000-07:00

Well I thought I'd better come clean about my last show. Bad news all round - I came 6th out of 6. It couldn't have been any worse. I was so ashamed of my scrappy little beard I hated everyone looking at me when I had all these smart schnauzers with their long beards showing off and ..well that was it really.

Worse still was that my little sister Aoife the affenpinscher has been sweeping the board at the shows she's gone too even though she's only a baby. In her first show at the Scottish Kennel Club in Edinburgh she got Best Puppy in breed:

Then she came second in the puppy class at Darlington show and she qualified for Crufts at the Birmingham Championship show - all when she's only just over 6 months old.

She just has that kind of face that people love and she does strut her stuff in the show ring better than me. There's been talk of me not going to shows any more. My sister Caoimhe thinks she'll make a better show girl than me and says I can just blog about her when she starts winning prizes like Aoife. So maybe I will just become a social networking kind of schnauzer and write about things that we do here at the doghouse. Leigh says I don't need to win rosettes to be special and I should just enjoy life and not worry about that scene any more. So to show there's no hard feelings - I do love them both really - here's a picture of my two little sisters sharing a seat in the conservatory:

Visit to Fountains Abbey

2011-09-20T08:18:00.000-07:00

Today I went to visit Fountains Abbey with Alfie Crybbe as Judith was on holiday from work. Sadly as you will see from our pictures it was pouring with rain - but it was still a good day out - there aren't many good places like this that will let us dogs come in. Plenty of furtling opportunities here as there had been rabbits and pheasants about for sure.

Fountains Abbey was founded in 1132 and these are the largest monastic ruins in Britain. They are huge!

Here we are exploring inside - there are lots of passageways and huge windows and cloisters and altars all broken down but great to explore.

After we had walked round the abbey we set off to Studley Royal Park which is alongside the abbey. We had to go over this narrow little bridge as there are lots of man-made lakes in the Park and it is very beautiful with statues and lots of water birds - Canada geese and swans and ducks:

We had a stop for lunch and had to sit out in the rain as dogs weren't allowed in the cafe - but Judith & Leigh sat out with us and we got little snacks of cheese and ham to keep us going. On the way back Leigh took some pictures of 2 swans on one of the lakes:

and a view of the lake up to the bridge with little waterfalls:

We were out for 3 hours and this is me when we got back to the car - just to make it worse they had been cutting the grass so I got lovely green socks too!

I had to travel back in the crate with Alfie Crybbe so I didn't get the car seat to dirty. We had already decorated Judth & Leigh's trousers with lovely pawprints in mud. Happy days!

More scarecrows!

2011-09-12T03:45:00.000-07:00

Hello fellow bloggers - this blog is by me Caoimhe (Magic's younger sister). Magic is being groomed ready for a big show on Friday so she let me put some pictures up today. This is another scarecrow blog as I had a trip out to Monk Fryston village yesterday with Judith & Leigh and we checked out their scarecrow festival.

They said it was to try and socialise me too - I still like barking at other dogs and sometimes at people if I don't like the look of them! Anyway my treats for being good had been left at home by mistake so Leigh tried to get some at the local shop but no luck - except when they knew what was needed they said 'Have a bag of off-cuts'. Well 'off-cuts' means bits of lovely meat left over from when they were slicing it for sandwiches so I was kind of glad my other treats got left behind. See the size of the bag:

Well the sight of all that yummy meat kept me pretty quiet even when I was threatened by Darth Vader:

and watched by a scary sheep:

A pilot from Thunderbirds dropped by:

And in one street there were scarecrow Olympics!

Hurdlers and cyclists:

and even swimmers!

Well I hope you enjoyed the scarecrow pictures. I expect Magic will be back to blog after her trip to the big show. Magic doesn't think she'll do very well 'cos I've pulled all her beard out but she does have a tasty beard - even if there's not much left of it now. I can see I'm going to be in trouble again if she does badly!

Girls just wanna have fun

2011-09-08T06:20:00.000-07:00

A little while ago I mentioned that Leigh & Judith had taken over running the Northern Schnauzer Club shop and that has been taken up more of Leigh's time this week. I have had a few walks up to Hambleton Hough which is a woodland near our home but nothing very exciting. So us girls decided to have a bit of fun among ourselves:

Me and Caoimhe had a tug of war with a flowerpot and guess who won..not me! Then Caoimhe had a good roll in the grass and a game of bitey face with Aoife:

And when Leigh gave us some rawhide chews to keep us quiet, Caoimhe decided after a good chew she would bury the rest in the patio sweetcorn bag:

Just as well the sweetcorn didn't really grow this year after the drought we had here. So then we all went indoors and thought we would try and help with the housework. No need to be wasting energy putting on the dishwasher, we can get those plates sparkling clean. In fact are those our dinner bowls in there when we could have been licking them some more!

And after all that we upturned the toy box and had another play before falling asleep:

Not a bad day really - and if you want to see Leigh & Judith's shop they've got it online now too and on Facebook. The website address is:
http://www.freewebstore.org/Northern-Schnauzer-Club-Shop

Morris Dancers and Riverboats

2011-09-04T09:35:00.000-07:00

Today I took Caoimhe with me to show her the sights of York City and what sights there were! We saw Morris dancers from all over :

There were these ladies in green and these wild men, women and children with strange costumes:

This scary looking man:

and these happy dancers.Can you see the man with flowers in his hat at the back?

They were all making such a noise. After we watched them for a while Judith & Leigh decided it was time for a river boat trip so we set off down to the boat landing but - we had just missed one so we had to sit on the river bank for a while and have some lunch. There is a riverboat cafe there:

And we could keep an eye out for the boat coming. Caoimhe even thought she might get a better view from my back!

And then - there it was coming towards us:

The boat was called the Captain James Cook and the Captain himself came to welcome us aboard. I had to check out the best seats:

And decided we should sit right in the front at the top so we could get the best views. Here is a picture of Caoimhe on Judith's lap and me by the rail:

Once we got started I checked out what was going on along the river:

We travelled up the river and then back down the other side under big bridges and past lots of old buildings. On one of the bridges there is an angel:

She looks down on you as you pass under the old bridge:

All in all it was a good day out and Caoimhe and me fell asleep in the car on the way home!

I thought I would finish with a last shot of me on the boat sniffing the breeze for ducks and dogs along the riverbank.

Cawood Village Craft Festival

2011-08-30T03:40:00.000-07:00

This is a photo of Alfie who is a lovely miniature schnauzer I first met when I was a puppy last year. He lives in the vicarage at Cawood not far from our village and he has huge responsibilities as he not only has a big house to guard but an enormous garden ...and a church! He has been quite stressed with it all this weekend as because it was a bank holiday there was the Craft & Scarecrow Festival with lots going on. Many people and dogs from all over have been coming and stalls have been set up in Alfie's garden with bands playing music and people on bikes and old cars and..well all sorts. Anyway me and Caoimhe went to Cawood and here are some of the sights:

Cawood's X Factor with Humpty Dumpty giving it his best shot. (The people here say that Humpty Dumpty comes from Cawood as it was a rhyme made up about Cardinal Wolsey in the 16th century who lived for a while at Cawood Castle where he enjoyed walking along the high walls before he fell out of favour with the king was arrested and then died!)

This is me hoping to hear about my good fortune to come from Gypsy Rose Lea.

Another good shot of me in front of one of the classic cars. And if anyone is more interested in the car (not very likely!) here is the car:

We went to look at all the stalls in the vicarage garden and there was a band playing rock music from the past and lots of places selling food - cooking burgers and sausages and so-o many lovely smells! Then Judith & Leigh bought an ice cream and at last I was allowed a little treat although I did have to get up on my hind paws for a smidgen of strawberry ice cream:

Caoimhe didn't have her eye on the food that time and missed out! Then we were on our way again.
As we are in a farming area of the UK there are always lots of tractors about and some very old ones:

And some with scarecrows driving them:

Caoimhe thought that little stuffed toy was a real dog and barked at it! But then when we were on our way back we met my friend Alfie :

Caoimhe started to bark at him too as she's not learned many social skills yet but after a bit she was OK as Alfie is very sweet as you can see. Then we found some more scarecrows hiding away in the bushes:

and menacing passers-by:

Well it was a lovely afternoon at Cawood and a special thank you to Alfie and his family for letting us come into his garden especially as he's not been very well lately and we hope he'll soon be fully fit.

Northern Schnauzer Club Shop

2011-08-27T05:29:00.000-07:00

It has been ages since I was able to get my humans to let me blog again. They have been very busy trying to manage Caoimhe my unruly little sister! She has the nickname Monster now as she has done so many bad things - chewed the edges off the Ardennes dresser, broken Leigh's new glasses, chewed through the computer cable, eaten some cookery books...well you get the idea! And she is really growing big now too:

She can hardly fit in her own bed... and then she thinks she can come and share mine!

Anyway as well as Caoimhe taking up their time Judith & Leigh have now taken over running the Northern Schnauzer Club Shop. I thought this was going to be a wonderful shop full of toys and treats for schnauzers but it seems not :-( as all the things I have seen are for humans. They have tote bags :

and T shirts:

and soft schnauzer pillows to send you to sleep:

It certainly worked on me! Anyway today Aoife and Alfie Crybbe are off to a big show in Edinburgh with Judith so it's all schnauzers here now (and Leigh) for a couple of days. I'm hoping we'll get something exciting to blog about before the weekend's over...if the rain stays away!

Sunday Fun Day

2011-08-15T03:55:00.000-07:00

This Sunday all 5 of us dogs went off to a Fun Day for charity at a Canine Centre near Harrogate. The Tailwagger Club were doing a lot of events there to raise money for dog rescue. I used to go to Tailwagger Club training classes but after I got my Bronze Good Citizen I got a bit fed up with it. Furtling and snoozing are my favourite activities really! Alfie Crybbe and Aoife go now and Caoimhe will be starting in a weeks time. Anyway here are some pictures of the day:

These dogs were doing a down stay - I think the 2 on the left were just having a chat! But these ones were really concentrating:

There were lots of different kinds of dog there - and even a dalmation with wheels like our Kaska! Leigh didn't like to take a picture of it in case it's owners got upset. But she did get some photos of some of the others. There were Weimeraners:

and bulldogs:

and these cute Jack Russells from the rescue centre:

Some of the poor dogs there were looking for someone to love them and give them a new home.
As well as the displays there was a fun dog show and Aoife took part as she is rehearsing for going to her first big dog show later this month when she is 6 months old. Anyway she won 3rd for dog with the most appealing eyes and 6th for best condition. They were very big classes with lots of dogs so she did quite well - and she won us lots of doggie treats which was even better!

Me and Alfie took part in the Agility course through tunnels and over jumps and steps and all sorts - and no-one took our picture 'cos Leigh was taking us round! So here's a photo of me and my little sister Caoimhe at home. She is growing very fast:

Kaska's 11th Birthday

2011-08-06T03:58:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was my big brother Kaska's 11th birthday so I am going to put some pictures just of him on today. He can be grumpy at times but he is my brother and will come to try and help if he thinks I need protecting in the garden even if his back legs don't work very well and he does fall over sometimes.

This is Kaska on the bed upstairs - he's allowed to sleep there during the day. He knows something's up because he's had his bandanna put on!

Out in the garden for a stroll and some fresh air and then indoors for a present. A long-legged squeaky elephant toy!

Caoimhe thinks she'll help him enjoy a tug of war:

And then - the best part - edible crocodiles!!

We all get to share these which is the best thing about Kaska's birthday really! But back to his happy day:

Kaska gives it a good sniff to check it out first.

Then a good lick...mmm seems pretty tasty.

Oh yes!

And after a good day of fresh air, playing and munching...a well-earned snooze:

Happy Birthday Kaska!

Bitey Face Pics and more!

2011-08-05T04:38:00.000-07:00

Hi - it's Caoimhe here again. After reading Rubie's comment I thought I'd sneak a few bitey face pics in as well as a couple more before Magic gets back to blogging. Bitey face is of course my favourite game to play but Alfie & Kaska won't let me get near them being kind of old grumpy boys. I do like to hang off Magic's beard when I get the chance but I keep getting into trouble for that so Aoife and I are the ones who play most:

I think I got Aoife's ear there!

Anyway just to round off quick, here's a calmer picture of Aoife and me with Satin the cat making a mystic circle on the patio:

And me trying to copy Magic's favourite pose:

Hope to catch up with you all again soon - Caoimhe.

Caoimhe's First Day Out

2011-08-03T02:52:00.000-07:00

This is Caoimhe my baby sister who is 12 weeks old today. She is a bit of a nightmare if you ask me - nothing like me even though she's my sister but she is part of the family now and I thought I would let her have a go at blogging about her first day out last weekend. She came back with tales of leprechauns on bicycles and Spiderman and Batwoman and I thought she was kidding me but ..well I'll let her tell it.

Hallo to Magic's blogging friends - I'm Caoimhe (pronounced Kee-va) and I have some pictures to show you of my first day out when I went to Selby with Aoife my affenpinscher sister. Here we are setting off to look round the town:

And then what did we see but a leprechaun on a bicycle!

And Spiderman:

And outside the pub there was Superwoman and friends all on bicycles too!

I thought Selby must be quite a special town with so many cycling super-heroes but Judith & Leigh seemed as surprised to see them as I was so maybe they are not always there. We enjoyed watching though and after all that excitement it was time for a sit down and a coffee break at Hope Yard Cafe.

The people at the cafe are very friendly and they are happy for dogs to visit if you are sitting at the outside tables and they will bring a bowl of water if you're thirsty. There were other customers there too who were very interested to meet me (of course) and Aoife so I got quite a bit of socialising done.
I hope you have enjoyed the pictures of my first day out. Magic may let me blog again one day if I don't pull her beard too much!

York Canine Society Show

2011-08-01T06:50:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was a very tiring day for me as it was one of those Show Days - bad news on the grooming front! First there was all the shampooing and brushing and stripping of my coat at home:

Then when we got there it was such a lovely day under the trees but - more grooming still!

The show was the 120th anniversary show for York Canine Society and there were lots of dogs and people there:

I had to wait until all the terriers were judged as the show people count us miniature schnauzers as 'Utility' dogs (?!) and the utility dogs were second in the ring. Anyway it gave me a chance to socialise a bit:

and to watch some of the terriers showing their stuff:

An Airedale pup who won a first prize..and then a Bedlington that looks a bit sheep-ish to me:

And I said hello to a little wire-haired fox terrier:

But I think the heat was getting too much - or maybe she was fed up with the showing because the next minute...

she was fast asleep! No chance of that for me though as I was soon in the ring and being examined by the judge:

and then I had to walk up and down and round and stand...and then I did get a rosette:

A nice red one for 1st with a little certificate which would have been OK but when we got home I had to pose with them:

Is that enough - or can I go and snooze now?

Anyway later this week I am going to let my little sister Caoimhe do a blog and tell you about her first day out. When she told me what she had seen I didn't believe a word of it but then she did bring pictures to prove it..coming in a few days time.

Selby Canal Walk

2011-07-30T07:53:00.000-07:00

The other day when it was really sunny and warm (well warm for England - about 25C) me and Alfie went on a canal walk from Selby through to Brayton (another village nearby) and on a bit further. Here are some of the views on our walk:

This is a sculpture at the start of our walk with pictures from the history of Selby canal and here we are setting off along the path:

When we set out we hardly met anyone and the path was clear ahead:

Time for a bit of furtling:

But then we found some more sculptures and Alfie Crybbe wanted to show off his jumping skills:

One of the sculptures had writing on it:

We understood about strolling and exercise but we didn't see any fishes and we didn't reach a pub! But we did see some sheep on the other bank:

And some geese:

Then we went under a bridge where the path was very narrow and we had to go single file so as not to fall in:

By this time it was getting very hot and we thought it was time for a rest and just then - there was a lovely wooden bench!

with a little plaque dedicated to another human stroller and his dog:

We had to move on after this as Judith & Leigh were getting a bit tearful! As we walked by the hedges you could see through the gaps across the fields. Here is a picture through the hedge with Brayton church steeple in the distance:

And we saw lots of birds and butterflies too. Here is a lovely peacock butterfly:

Then it was time to turn back as we were all getting very hot and no pub in sight for refreshments! But we did see some boats heading off down the canal on our way back:

And here we are almost back at the start. It was a good walk but next time I think we need to plan a route with some refreshments!

Northern Schnauzer Club Fun Day

2011-07-24T12:10:00.000-07:00

Well it has been such a long time since I could blog because our computer has been stored under the stairs while Judith re-decorated the front room but at last we are back to normal - well just about - and I can show some pictures of our great day out last Sunday at the Northern Schnauzer Club Fun Day. It was a bit windy and rainy at times but we all had a good time.

This is a picture of the humans with their dogs - we dogs of course are less interested in pictures. We prefer to check each other out the canine way:

There were so many schnauzers of all sizes and colours. There were giants:

and black & silver minis:

And even minis with their own umbrella:

And there were lots of games like the sausage race:

I wanted to take part but Judith & Leigh say I have to watch my weight so I just had to look on - I could so smell those sausages:

But then Aoife came second in the best trick competition for dancing on her back legs and she won us some fishy treats and I was able to share those - yummy!

Here she is among all the schnauzers waiting for her prize.Then they announced the fancy dress competition but I wasn't unhappy about missing out on that!! Here are are some of the entrants:

Super Schnauzer who won first prize.

My favourite - the German Schnauzer in his lederhosen!

Some girls in gymslips!!!

And this lumberschnauzer?

Well I hope you enjoyed the photos. I'll be back blogging regularly now we're back on the computer and will catch up on my blog friends news too!

Brayton Barff

2011-07-10T03:27:00.000-07:00

Today me and Alfie Crybbe had a trip to Brayton Barff which is a woodland not far from our village. There are lots of paths to follow and good places for furtling!

This is the view across the fields from the wood and this is Alfie and me setting off:

Just checking that Judith and Leigh are coming - they walk so slowly sometimes!

There are lots of ancient trees in this wood and strange knobbly trunks:

as well as ferns and flowers. These are some rosebay willow herb:

And now on to some furtling:

Then Alfie Crybbe came to investigate:

There were so many good smells that needed investigating:

But then I thought I heard something moving so I set off to see what was going on:

and suddenly right by the wood was a field and in the field there were horses:

They saw me and started coming over to investigate:

So I decided to go back and find the others quickly! I thought they might try to get into the wood so Alfie and me stood guard for a bit in case Judith & Leigh needed protecting:

But they didn't get out of the field so we were alright after all and headed off home for a rest. We were going to tell Aoife and Caoimhe all about it but when we got home they were fast asleep!

Summer Days

2011-07-04T02:22:00.000-07:00

It has been very hot this weekend - too hot to do very much except lounge on the swing sun bed:

This is us girls: me on the right with Caoimhe on the left and Aoife in the middle. But it is quite a big sun lounger so Alfie Crybbe and Kaska decided to join us:

As we were being so lazy Leigh took some pictures of some of our pretty garden flowers too:

This rose is called Hyde Hall which is a garden in Essex run by the Royal Horticultural Society. The bush is covered in these beautiful pink roses just now.

This is a foxglove - it looks as if there are paw prints in the flowers!

These are called osteospermums - but their prettier name is Cape Daisy or African Daisy..... and for all my doggy friends out there who like me are more interested in us canines than flowers - here are a couple more pictures of our new pup:

Caoimhe looking out of the patio doorway and - here she is sharing the doughnut bed with Aoife:

My new sister Caoimhe

2011-07-01T01:13:00.000-07:00

Oh no - another schnauzer has joined our family! My Mum & Dad had another litter of pups seven weeks ago and now one of my new sisters has come to live here. She is called Caoimhe (which is pronounced Kee-va) and she is trying to sort out who's who here at the moment:

Here is Aoife checking her out and then she went outside on the patio:

..and thought she could get back in through the window!

But she's settling in sorting out her toys - although I think Aoife is being kind and letting her share hers:

Caoimhe woke us all up at midnight but then went back to sleep but she decided 5.30 am was a lie-in so we all got up at 4.45 am this morning. I think Judith & Leigh are wishing it was me setting the rising time now! But she looks so sweet you can't be cross with her:

Paws in the Park

2011-06-27T03:28:00.000-07:00

The season is over!! Now I can go out socialising again - so on Sunday we all set off to Nostell Priory which is a big National Trust property about 20 miles from our home:

There was a Paws in the Park event there raising money for Hearing Dogs for the Deaf - that's a charity that trains dogs to assist deaf people around the home and when they go out shopping and things like that

There was a little display for everyone to see how the dogs work at their tasks:

This dog was showing how to wake his owner up when the alarm goes off in the morning. Haha - we're a lot cleverer than that - we can wake our humans up even before the alarm goes off!
Anyway - Judith & Leigh bought some tombola tickets and they both won a soft toy dog - which was good news for us:

The only trouble was - 2 toys and 4 dogs! As you can see I didn't get a look in once Kaska and Aoife had claimed theirs! Kaska really liked the St Bernard dog toy and he lay down on the grass guarding it:

It was VERY HOT and we had to keep having a rest in the shade of the trees with our bowl of water:

And Judith & Leigh had ice creams to keep cool - we all had a taste of the ice cream too before we got in the car to come home - it was lovely and cold! A good first day out even if it was hot.

Photo Scavenger Hunt - June

2011-06-25T09:52:00.000-07:00

As I have not been able to go out and about as usual this week I decided to send Leigh and Judith off to do some scavenging for the Photo Scavenger Hunt and here is what they came up with :

Childhood Memory - this book was a present for Leigh on her 6th birthday a long long time ago but it has been her favourite book ever since. She especially liked the wise fox (not a schnauzer?) who tells the little prince 'You become responsible forever for what you have tamed' and 'It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is is invisible to the eye.'

Something with your town's name on it. We don't live in a town but here is a local sign with our village name. There are quite a lot of owls round here - we hear them hooting at night outside the window.

An elephant - or 4 wooden elephants which Judith brought back from a holiday in India.

Wheel Trim - on Leigh's Corsa.

Architectural detail - this is the emblem of Selby Abbey and is set in one of the walls. Selby is about 5 miles from our village - it is a very ancient town and the abbey was founded in 1069 by Benedict of Auxerre after he saw 3 swans on Selby Lake and thought they represented the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost.

Cheese - some of Judith's favourite cheeses.

Cutlery - the 'best silver cutlery' for special occasions!

A Night Shot - taken in the back garden last night. A scary stone owl by the solar lamp in the lavender.

Something beginning with Z - it had to be Zeta ( also called Little Z) - she crossed the Rainbow Bridge two years ago this week but is always remembered with love.

Tree branches - these are in one of our silver birch trees in the back garden.

A farm animal - a sheep in the field by Castle Howard, Yorkshire.

View from outside the door - at the back of our house. This is probably the best picture because you can see me and Aoife (well just about).

Here's one last picture of me too - I hope to blogging about more of my adventures soon!

Garden Bugs and Tadpoles

2011-06-21T05:48:00.000-07:00

I'm still not over this season thing but the weather's been good and I can go out and explore the garden every so often. There are so many little creatures visiting the flowers now - like the bees:

and a Gatekeeper butterfly:

and this red and black froghopper on the lavender:

I think he may be too early to hop over any frogs though because when I looked in the pond I could only see tadpoles!

and this one looks as if he's looking out for the frog hopper:

When I was little and the pond was very new Alfie Crybbe persuaded me to try and walk on water - well that was a mean thing to do but luckily Leigh was on hand to fish me out quick and give me lots of cuddles and sympathy. Affenpinschers have a wicked sense of humour. Here's Aoife looking sweet but thinking up another little scheme I'm sure:

Still counting the days for my season to finish...

'Tis the Season..not so jolly!

2011-06-19T05:36:00.000-07:00

Sad to say there are no great adventures this weekend as I've been told it is my season. I don't really know what that means but they tell me it's a girl thing - I don't feel very wonderful and I can't play with Alfie Crybbe even though he really really wants to. In fact, worse than that even, me and Alfie have to take turns being shut in the show crate. When Alfie's in I can run about and play but when I'm in it Alfie sits outside the crate and guards me so no other animals - dogs or cats - can come near. Last time I had to go in Aoife thought she would come and join me - I think she reckons it's a bit of a game!

Do we look like sad abandoned creatures - I'm doing my best to look as if nobody loves me - although they do give me titbits sometimes when I'm in here and extra cuddles when I'm out.
Anyway to make this more interesting I thought I could show you some pictures of the garden - the vegetables are coming up now and the flowers round the pond are blooming:

The potatoes are getting nearly ready to take up - they are growing in big black bags on the patio:

And down in the vegetable plot there are raspberries:

And peas and beans and carrots coming up in the raised bed:

The vegetable plot is the favourite place for Lace, one of our cats, to spend the day. I think she likes it because we dogs can't get in there and she can have the garden bench to lie on in the sun. Here she is guarding the onions:

The hens are enjoying themselves too in their run - they like digging everything up - as much as us dogs so they are locked out of the vegetable plot too. Here they are looking for seeds that have fallen from the bird feeder:

And here is a couple of the eggs they left for us in their nest box:

We dogs all get a morsel of scrambled egg and a bit of bacon after Judith & Leigh have had their breakfast and I can say the eggs are very tasty. Well I'm hoping this season thing doesn't last much longer and I can start having days out and about again..maybe next weekend.

Girls' Day out in York

2011-06-13T04:00:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Judith & Leigh took me and Aoife on a girls' day out in the city of York which is about 14 miles from the village where we live. It was part of Aoife's socialisation programme to meet more new sights and sounds and things and turned out to be a bit of a 'school trip' as York has many historic sites.

This is Judith holding me and Aoife just as we started our tour of the city. You can see the river behind us so Judith had to hold us tight so we didn't fall over the battlements. We were on the city walls and people are allowed to walk all round them but not dogs! - the path is very narrow and they think we would fall off. The river is the River Ouse and when I was a little puppy I was taken on a boat trip on it which was great fun.

This is the river from the bridge. You can see some of the boats along the bank. Last winter it froze over and the ducks and swans had to walk on the ice.

This is a picture of York Minster which is the largest gothic cathedral in northern Europe - they started building it in the 1220s and it took 250 years to finish! It is huge - and they don't let dogs in there either so we had to just look at it from outside. We did get to walk round the food market though which was really much more interesting anyway. There were stalls from all over the world there cooking and selling food - curries and paella and meat and cakes and ...just every yummy thing you could think of. The best stall of all was the sausage stall - it had so-o many different kinds and huge great big sausages hanging up:

I thought we could have bought a large goody bag from there but sadly the only thing we came back with was some cakes for Judith & Leigh and some flowers for the garden. I think on the next girls' day out I should do the buying! After we toured the market and stopped and talked to many people on the way, we went to see Clifford's Tower which is a stone castle keep on a high hill which was built in the 13th century after the old wooden one which William the Conqueror built 200 years before was burned down.

It also seemed to be a place where geese lived with their babies:

The geese kept wandering into the road and the cars had to stop for them. They seemed quite at home there:

We were getting really tired by this time and so we headed back home on the bus. It was the first time on a bus for me too this visit as last time I went to York with Judith & Leigh we went on the train:

Hope you liked our little historical tour of York - it was fun and we did get a lovely special lunch when we got home so we didn't really miss out on the goodies.

Visit to Hartlepool

2011-06-12T07:07:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we all travelled north to Hartlepool to visit Pat's house. This was where Kaska was born and his younger sister Teasel still lives there with Tulle and Harris (all mini schnauzers). They didn't know what to make of Aoife leaping about like a black furry jumping bean. Alfie Crybbe was very happy to go though because when he first visited he fell in love with Teasel and he loves to go and see her. She's not bothered with him at all though - poor Alfie:

Here she is pretending not to know he's there.
Here are some other pictures of the Hartlepool schnauzers:

Another picture of Teasel. Can you see she looks a bit like our Kaska. Here's Kaska at the back door - he couldn't get up the step with his weak legs:

This is Tulle - she's looking a bit grumpy. I don't think she was too happy when we all turned up to play in their back garden:

And this is Harris who is a handsome boy and was very interested in meeting me - I had to climb on Leigh's lap when he got too friendly!

And this is me trying to stop everyone from coming in the patio door:

We had a fun day in Hartlepool and were very tired when we got back but we enjoyed meeting our schnauzer friends there - and playing with their toys!

Friends and Visitors

2011-06-10T07:21:00.000-07:00

As well as going out and about, we have had quite a lot of people visiting us recently - friends and fanily:

This is one of my human friends called Euan - he likes to play with me in the garden when he comes to visit and his favourite game is to do high fives with Kaska. Kaska could do that all day but I'm not a high five sort of dog. I prefer running around on the lawn and playing chasing games.Tomorrow we are going to visit our human and doggy friends in Hartlepool when we go back to where Kaska was born. We go quite often to see the lady who had Kaska's mother, Match ( and her sister Maisie) and we get to play with her mini schnauzers. I will put some pictures of them in my next blog.
Also I wanted to say a special thank you to Oscar and Rubie for your messages because I've not been able to leave any comments back ! I do follow your blog and love to hear all your adventures but something doesn't work when I try to leave a comment. So until we can get it sorted - just know I am following your blog and I'm glad to know you're enjoying mine.

Hi to Dexter & Louis, Momo & Pinot and Santa's little gang too - I love all your tales too and luckily I can leave you some comments! And hello Jana - my schnauzer friend from Newcastle who doesn't have a blog yet but does follow mine. Wow I feel like I've just won an Oscar with this little speech! Happy blogging :-)

Bramham Horse Trials

2011-06-05T01:40:00.000-07:00

We had another fun packed Saturday here in Yorkshire at the Bramham Horse Trials. There are 4 days of horse events - things called dressage and show jumping and cross country. People with horses come from all over Britain and some from France and Germany and Canada and New Zealand ...and well all over really. It was even busier than the Yorkshire Show and many more horses but these were lovely ones all made smart and boy could they jump!

We all went along - me and Alfie Crybbe walking and Kaska in his pet stroller and Aoife in her pet bag. Actually Aoife has got more into walking but she couldn't manage the whole 4 miles as we walked round the whole cross country course following the horses. All the jumps had wooden carvings and things round them and some had them underneath:

While we were walking round we saw this great big creature jump from behind a van - or so we thought - I was sure a cow had escaped but then it was OK as it was only a model:

It was by an ice cream van so we decided to have a rest and a snack:

The horses were galloping past all the time to go over the jumps, all through the fields and the woods:

The security people had to blow whistles to warn us that the horses were coming but I think we would have known from the thundering of those hooves- they were very heavy!

Lots of other people were following the horses too but there were some who were interested in us and came up to talk to us and one lady said we were the best behaved dogs she's ever seen! I thought we should have that in writing - I'm not sure Judith & Leigh appreciate what fine dogs we are - or maybe that lady hasn't seen us on other days :-) !

You can see me smiling here - Judith & Leigh think I'm scary when I smile I don't know why.
Anyway here's one more picture of those brave horses and riders that we watched. I wanted to warn him that he was going to jump in the water but he didn't seem to mind!

The Yorkshire Show at Harewood House

2011-05-29T09:56:00.000-07:00

Today was the first day of the Yorkshire Show and we all had a day out at Harewood House.

It was very windy and once it poured with rain but then it came out sunny again and we had a good time. Kaska was going to stay home as it's hard on his legs to go to big events with lots of walking but in the end he wanted to come so he got to ride in the pet stroller:

And Aoife said it was too much for her little legs so she got to ride in the pet shoulder bag!

Alfie Crybbe and me were the only dogs using their legs! Anyway we did get a chance to sit down when Judith & Leigh stopped for a snack:

There was lots to see at the show: ferret racing; gundogs; lots of stalls selling clothes and equipment and food and there were birds of prey doing flying displays:

...and men in tartan costumes playing bagpipes and banging on drums:

Judith said they were Highland pipers from Scotland and Kaska said he remembered seeing them when they used to go to Scotland for holidays before I was born. Alfie Crybbe should have known all about them as he comes from Scotland but he pretended not to know anything about it. There were even huge dogs pulling carts:

I think we should have hitched a ride in that one. Anyway we all had a great day and got to meet lots of people and of course everyone wanted to see Aoife because they think she's so cute:

I don't think they would think that if they saw what mischief she gets up to at home!

Tea at Monk Fryston Hall

2011-05-27T09:19:00.000-07:00

Thank you to everyone who sent messages to me - I am feeling much better now. Judith had a day off work for the Queen's birthday - it was nice of the Queen to give her a day off - so we went out to have tea at a lovely old hotel in the next village to ours. The village is called Monk Fryston and the hotel has grounds you can walk round and lots of ducks and geese on the little lake and near the river. They are very welcoming to dogs there and I first went when I was a puppy.

This is one of the fountains there on the way down to the ducks.

These were the ducks near where we had tea.

This is another view of the fountain and the gardens. Leigh wanted me to pose by the fountain but I was too busy sniffing. There were so many new smells - I'm sure I smelled rabbits and squirrels! Anyway I was more interested in the tea. Judith had some beef sandwiches which was promising and eventually me and Aoife did get to sample the beef. Delicious!

This is me waiting patiently for a morsel.

Here is Aoife between the paws of one of the stone lions. We did have a good afternoon even if Aoife is looking a bit grumpy.

Here we are after our titbits looking a bit more cheerful. We might go back to Monk Fryston Hall again soon.

Visit to the Vet

2011-05-26T09:01:00.000-07:00

Things haven't been too good here since Sunday - I got a bit sick and kept throwing up my food. I tried to run and hide when I felt sick but it just kept coming -ugh -everywhere and Leigh was washing and washing all the rugs and blankets and mats..I was still hungry but then I wasn't getting any dinner in case I was sick again. It was NOT good - food is my favourite thing really..even when I'm sick.
Anyway then I had to go to the vet and she was very friendly and kind to me at first but then she said I must have eaten something bad and she was going to have to give me a jab - or actually 2 jabs!! And I have to have tablets & powder ..and special food. Well - the special food is alright but I don't think I'm getting enough of it. The vet said 'little and often is good' but I think a bit more and often would be better. I'm not being sick now and I can play with Aoife again but I think it's about time I was getting back to my proper food now.

There is a place set for someone - I wish it was me.

Can you believe it - all the food has gone and I jumped all this way for nothing!

Visiting friends in Newcastle

2011-05-23T04:42:00.000-07:00

We have all been away up to Newcastle where Judith & Leigh used to live and we went visiting lots of people. Leigh's Mum was having a birthday tea out at a country restaurant so we called there first and met their two whippets, Millie & Becky:

They have been re-homed with Leigh's Mum and her friend as their owners could not manage their dogs any more. Poor Millie has not been very well but she is enjoying her new life near Whitley Bay.
Then when Leigh went off with her Mum for their birthday tea, Judith took us dogs to visit other friends. We had a good afternoon at one house where there is another miniature schnauzer called Jana. She is a lovely black mini:

We played some great games together in their garden. Kaska really cheered up because he remembered Jana from when he lived in Newcastle and her owners took their dogs to the same training classes he used to go to. Aoife thought it was good fun too as there were lots of bushes to hide under and then when she was tired there were feet to rest between:

Still the smallest kid on the block!

Maisie & Zeta - Remembered with love

2011-05-20T05:34:00.000-07:00

Well I am now registered on the Schnauzer Forum UK - becoming quite a cyber schnauzer! But when Leigh went to look at posts she ended up looking at Rainbow Bridge which was a BAD idea - she gets so upset thinking about those dogs and cats who have crossed over. It made her think about the 2 schnauzer sisters I didn't meet because they went to Rainbow Bridge before I came here. They were called Maisie & Zeta and here are some pictures:

This is Maisie - she was the very first dog Judith & Leigh had and she persuaded them that schnauzers were the best dogs anyone could have! She was a 'bit of a character' they said and could be very grumpy at times but she loved training classes and did very well at her Good Citizen tests too. She went over the Rainbow Bridge the very day I was born. Maisie was Kaska's aunt - it was her older sister who was Kaska's mother.

This is Zeta looking very suspicious - she was older than Maisie but she came to live with Judith & Leigh when she was 2 years old as she was rehomed with them. She was always very anxious about meeting new people and a bit of a barker! Leigh said she was a sweet natured schnauzer like me at heart and she loved nothing better than a warm lap to sit on and to be cuddled.

This is Zeta on the left with Kaska - they got on very well together and Kaska was very upset when Zeta passed away just before her 14th birthday.

Here is one more picture which is to make everyone smile and not be too sad. It was taken at the Northern Schnauzer Club Fun Day and is Maisie, Zeta and Kaska in their Fancy Dress as characters from the Wizard of Oz. Alfie Crybbe was Toto (so he didn't have to wear funny clothes)and Judith was Dorothy. I'm not sure they look as though they thought it was much of a Fun Day after all!!

Zeta - the Tin Dog, Kaska - the Lion, and Maisie - the Scarecrow.

Alfie gets his Silver GCD

2011-05-19T03:34:00.000-07:00

Alfie Crybbe showing off his Silver Good Citizen Dog rosette. He had to go to Harrogate to take his test and he said it was very hard and not all the dogs got through. They had to get in and out of the car calmly and walk round busy streets and do sitting still for ages..and all sorts. I think he's trying to let me know that I won't be able to do it..but I might just surprise him!
The garden is getting very pretty now with lots of different flowers. Judith & Leigh keep getting more to put in. They bought lots at Lotherton Garden festival and I went along with them - it was Aoife's first day out but she was too little to walk in the crowds and had to be carried but lots of people stopped to stroke and talk to her. I thought they wouldn't notice me but then some people did see me and I got some attention too - it's hard when you go out with a puppy and everyone just wants to see them. When we got back I had a good run round the garden and checked the mirror - to see if I was still looking good:

Yes not bad.. I think I still look like a schnauzer even if Aoife thinks I'm a horse!

What a life with an affenpinscher pup!

Days Out

2011-05-09T08:53:00.000-07:00

Just as I started talking about days out - it's started hailstones here - oh no! It was so sunny a moment ago. I was planning where I can go out and about with Aoife now she's had her jabs and needs to be 'socialised'. I remember last year when I was being 'socialised' - it meant meeting lots of different people and being taken to all sorts of fun places. I went to York and sat outside a cafe with Judith & Leigh while they had coffee and people came up and fussed over me. Then we went on a river boat trip - that was very exciting - we saw swans and ducks and met some people on a houseboat who had a schnauzer. He was a bit aloof being a sea-dog of sorts and I was still a little pup. And we went on long walks in the Yorkshire Sculpture Park where they have huge sculptures :

We went to some of the RSPB reserves too as they let dogs go if they are well-behaved - and there were lots of ducks and geese as well as the birds we have coming to our garden. I'm looking forward to Aoife being 'socialised' and hope I can go and be 'socialised ' with her all over again - it's great fun!

Well, the hail has stopped now and the sun is out - there is a rainbow over our garage. I might be able to go back out and have a run round before the storm starts again.

The BARF diet

2011-05-04T02:34:00.000-07:00

Holiday time and we have had lots of visitors and what with that and trying to keep little Aoife amused I've had no time for blogging. Me and Aoife are getting on pretty well though - she can be fun to play with even though she does forget I can feel pain when she bites me!

Anyway with all the visitors there were lots of cakes and other yummy things on offer but not enough coming our way. Thinking about food I thought Iwould tell you a bit about our food. We are on the BARF diet - not for losing weight as we are all very trim - but it stands for Biologically Appropriate Raw Food -or that's what they tell me. It's supposed to be better for dogs especially if they have any allergies etc as it's more natural than kibble and easier for dogs to digest. It all started here with Alfie Crybbe - of course. As you know schnauzers are good eaters - "if it's edible eat it" that's my motto. And if it doesn't seem to be edible give it go as it just might be. But not Alfie Crybbe - the Prince of Fussyness. When he came to live here he kept turning up his nose at every food there was. He would have one kind of kibble for a day or two and then not like it. Judith & Leigh were trying all sorts of good stuff and it was no good. Then he decided the only thing he liked was raw chicken wings - he loved them. But they weren't going to be enough for him to grow strong - then Leigh found an advert in the Dog World paper for a company that made raw meat and bone dinners mixed with vegetables & fish oil and stuff to make it really nutritious so they tried it ..and phew - Alfie decided he liked it. It was just like him to want the upmarket food. Anyway now we all eat it - even little Aoife has her Puppy Country Banquet and loves it. So I suppose we should thank Alfie for getting us some tasty food - even though I like kibble too.

Aoife making a face at the camera - so many pictures being taken of her she thinks she's being hounded by paparazzi!

Puppy Tales

2011-04-28T03:32:00.000-07:00

Everyone has been so impressed with Aoife's puppy pictures that I thought maybe I should let them see I was pretty cute too not that long ago. I came to live here last summer from Essex. We are all from different parts of the UK: Alfie Crybbe is from Renfrew in Scotland; Kaska is from Hartlepool and Aoife is from Hertfordshire. Anyway back to my puppy pics:

This was taken on the day I arrived here.

This is me in my favourite bed.

And this is me helping Kaska guard the back door. I have grown up quite a bit since then!

And this one was when I was nearly old enough to be schnauzer groomed for the first time - my hair is a bit long I suppose. Can you see Isadora the hen in the background. She keeps escaping from the hen run and digging out the plants in the borders - Leigh & Judith have to catch her and put her back. I keep well out of the way though those hens are pretty scary if you get too close - all beaks and claws. Anyway I will try and get Leigh to take some pictures of where we live for next time.