December - T'is the Season....
...to not take anything for granted!
With covid cases soaring in Kingston, Christmas plans are very much in jeopardy.
It will not make sense for Jenny to drive up but hopefully we can get together in the New Year in Vermont.
Birthdays in December:
Casey turned 14 on December 4th, never forgetting Bridge Brother Rollie.
Amanda and Marg's Avery turned seven on December 7th.
Colin celebrated his 18th Birthdays on December 11th with heartache for bridge sibs, Teddy, Hazel and Bindi.
Bertie, all grown up turned four on December 16th.
And last but not least, Jane's Schemer turned 16 on December 22nd.
November - Another Covid winter is coming
Chris underwent hernia surgery at Shouldice in Toronto on November 11th. Although it should have been routine there were complication from bleeding that resulted in an emergency trip to North Your Regional hospital where a second surgery was performed. He was released on schedule on November 14th but the bleeding continued resulting in three visists to Kingston Emergency over the next two weeks.
At month's end we were still going to CBI for daily dressing changes.
Birthdays in November: Finlay hit double digits on November 16th turning 10, Saluki Cotton turned three on November 12th and the Felek - Lola pups; Peanut, Iza, Nimbus and Pickles celebrated their first birthday on November 29th, never forgetting bridge brother Tucker.
October - A mixed (and busy) month indeed
Rob, Sage and Winnie (the French Bulldog pup) came for a visit at the start of October and enjoyed some fishing with Chris.
We took advantage of several of the bautiful fall days to get the dogs out on some of the great walking trails we have in the area.
Pickles made her show ring debut in October, no points but she handled the whole scene much better than I anticipated.
The third weekend in October was the WHWTCC/BTC/BTCO weekend and what a weekend it was. We could not have asked for nicer weather. It was truly the highnote of the 2021 abbreviated Earthdog Season.
Nimbus celebrated Halloween weekend earning her first Open Barn Hunt leg while Digger made a successful - albeit creative - debut in AAC Starter Gamblers.
As with September, the month ended on a sad note with the sudden loss of Donna M-L's constant companion, Fiona
Birthdays in October were celebrated by Ruby, Emma and Lola who turned 4 on October 3rd, and Fells who somehow made it to 11 on October 12th despite his proensity for eating things he shouldn't!
September - The end of summer
Nimbus and Pickles demonstrated that their July Barn Hunt debut was no fluke by earning their BHA Barn Hunt Novice titles.
Digger made a successful debut in AAC Snooker despite his handler!
Abbey and Olive had a great time running FastCAT with Olive knocking off two Q rus and Abbey adding a third to her total.
We rounded out our Barn Hunt trip with a lovely visit with Fred, Marnie and Teazle, the first social visit in far too long.
For us, the highlight of the month had to be a visit from Mark and Michele, it was great beyond words to be together again. It has been far too long.
The month ended on a sad note with Mel releasing Hermit from his troublesome "Earthsuit", gone much too soon.
The only birthdays in September were claimed by Abbey, Digger, Keltic and Loki who turned eight on September 1st. And Shari's Merlin who turned 9 on the same day.
August - The dog days of summer
KDKC Agility trials, earthdog practice. Border Terrier Club of Ontario fun day and DCGO Earthdog Tests - Oh My!
And that was just in Ontario, it truly was a busy month.
Digger competed successfully (and unsuccessfully) in Agility, Keltic, Nimbus and Pickles were all successful in Earthdog and Felek and Pickles had a good time at the well attended Fun Day
Elsewhere, Jessie joined her peeps, David and Lisa, on several camping trips in Maine while on the opposite side of Canada, Loki accompanied Tony and Beth on their excursions.
On August 9th, the US/Canada border opened....one way!! Fully vaccinated US Citizens (and permanent residents) became eligible to travel to Canada for non-essential travel without being required to quarantine!
Birthdays in August: Freddie, Hermit, Tumnus and Maisie (NB) became teenagers, turning 13 on August 4th, and we gained another veteran with Deenie's Pippa celebrating birthday number 7 on August 11th.
A dog on a mission!
July - A very Busy Month
We really thought we migght be losing Robyn when she went into Timberlea for a rhinoscopy and nasal flush. Her right sinus cavity was severely eroded and what they flushed out was disgusting in the extreme. She was still pretty much out of it as we drove home but a sever thunderstorm enroute did a lot to wake her up. Thanks to mirtazapine, her appetite picked up and by month's end she was back to the Robyn we know and love. The underlying IBD and kidney issues are still there but for now she is enjoying quality food (lots of it) and quality time.
July saw 4 JJ dogs: Felek, Lola, Pickles and Nimbus all competing successfully in Barn Hunt. Digger also refound his form in Agility.
Michele shared the story and photos of a 3/4 size replica of the Vietnam Memorial wall in Washington DC that visited Nahant as part of its cross country travels.
The month ended on a sad note with Marg having to say "good-bye" to her beloved companion and service dog, Devlin. He will be sorely missed but what a grand life he lead.
Birthdays in July: Felek pups - Scout and Ivy turned 6 on July 11th and Pippa's Rupert officially became a [very young] veteran turning 7 on July 17th
Preferably without any fireworks!!!
June - Border Terrier Club of America National Specialty...for some
With the Canada/US Border still closd to non-essential travel (though some of us would classify the National Specialty as pretty essential], it was up to the JJ folk south of the border to carry the flag. And carry it they did with Rupert, Rosie and Iza coming home with "loot"!
Robyn's health concerns were further complicated by a nasal issue that really pulled her down.
Sadly in June we heard of the passing of Tripper daughter, Phoebe, at the grand age of 18 plus years. Our hearts go out to Debra Coleman and Bruce Graham. On the same day as Phoebe left on her "Big Adventure", Karen Green's beloved Airdale, Roman, also took his leave.
On a brighter note, Anna made the decision to breed Lola on her next season rather than wait unti 2022. If the starts aligne, she will be bred to Kathy Henning's "Quinn" more formally known as AM.CH Faireview Soul Man AM.CD BN AM.RN AM.ME BCAT CGC TKN (CHIC #116708) and more familiarly known as Rupert's brother!!!
Birthdays in June were Jane Kroll's Felek grandpup Didi who turned 3 on June 6th And Amanda's Reen who became a preteen celebrating birthday 12 on June 17th.
May - It all depends on where you live...
And we are not just talking about the weather. With restrictions easing south of the border their is a sense of optomism and glimpses of normality pervading the dog world and everyday life. Meanwhile, north of the border we are in and out of lockdown depending on the area, and the flavour of the month.
Thankfully, training has continued here in Kingston and we are making progress with Pickles.
David and Lisa have joined the "home on wheels" with the purchase of a neat camper van that is already Jessie approved!
Birthdays in May included Fiona turning 11 on May 5th and Robyn who became a teenager turning 13 on May 6th. Jack's Declan is one year ahead of her celebrating his 14th birthday on May 8th and Amanda's Cole somehow became 6 on May 18th...where did those years go?
Sadly, we learned that Ines and family's beloved Teddy passed away at home on May 17th at the grand age of 17 years 5 months, our heartfelt sympathy to all who knew and loved him.
We also discovered that Robyn's apparent dementia was actually a pain response to some serious health issues that were long masked by her stoicism!
Here's to many more.
April - Sunny days and April showers...snow shower included
Mother nature was not quite done with winter, a brief but annoying snow shower challenged the spring blooms and budding blossom.
Pickles and Peanut graduated their Puppy Manners class and Iza headed off to Ohio and and new adventures with Susan and Sam Kane
Two amazing couples celebrated their 50th Wdding anniversaries just one day apart. Fred and Marnie Fielding on April 23rd and Chris and Jeff Morett on April 24th
Pipit's 10th on April 17th was again the only birthday celebration in April
March - Is spring around the corner?
Spring may well be just around the corner but March treated us to some of the white stuff, but I have to say the month just flew by.
Covid postponed an agility trials I was entered in but training continued for... the most part.
Pickles Peanut and Iza all started puppy manners class.
There was a very sweet incidence of Kismet when Jane and Bill Rail adopted Barbara Gunyon's Pippin when Barbara moved into assisted living. Barbara and the Rails adopted housemates Digger and Suki back in 2013. Sadly, Digger passed away due to kidney failure and Barbara adopted Pippin the following year.
March birthdays were again tainted with sadness:
Geordie, Touzie and Bramble all turned 12 on March 4th making the loss of Tank seem even more unfair.
Gryzia and Salem celebrated birthdays nine and ten respectively on March 7th.
Gator and Ida were the senior celebrations of the month with Gator turning 16 on March 9th and Ida turning 15 on March 12th.
Gator wasn't the only blue and tan CBTW dog to have a birthday this month as Rosie somehow became 5 years old on March 15th.
On the other end of the scale from Gator and Ida, Olive celebrated her first birthday on March 21st
Sorry I missed your puppyhood
February - A short month but another tough one.
Isobel had to say goodbye to her amazing and beloved girl Maisie just 4 days before her 15th birthday. Those of us who helped raise Jenny's 2006 litter knew that Maisie was the pup that Isobel would pick and sure enough she did. Isobel and Maisie were an incredible team in and out of the ring.
The Felek/Lola pups turned 9 weeks at the start of the month and decisions were made as to who would go where...or not. A week later Pesto (now Nimbus) moved to Stittsville to join the Steynor family and Peanut crossed the river to the east side of Kingston to join the Finlaysons, their veteran Border, Gus, and two cats. Pumkin (now Iza) will remain with Anna until she can travel to the US. Pickle will continue "Boot Camp" chez Dyer for the foreseeable future.
The birthdays in February were very poignant:
Teazle and Dundee turned fifteen on February 9th but tears were shed for Maisie and Pip.
Jinx and Karma somehow became 12, never forgetting sister Mimi.
January - A heartbreaking start to a "New Year"
On January 5th at 3:00pm I gave up the fight to keep Tucker in a world that he was never meant to inhabit. Anna would be the first to tell you I was not a big fan of using Felek for Lola's first litter but it was for personal [to me] reasons not the expectation that my heart would again be shattered.
However, Covid, other concerns, timing and circumstances dictated the breeding to be the one that made sense and I am glad that four homes will benefit from the decision.
If there is anything positive to come out of this it is that I would not hesitate to save a cleft palate puppy as long as there were no other life limiting issues. Sadly, Tucker's issues extended beyond the visible.
At least now we know why Tankie was bound and determined to leave the best home ever and head off on her "Big Adventure" last December.
She must be done partying with the girls (she and Boomer made their peace in December 2019) and ready to do what she did best.
Tankie was a great little dog on so many levels but she was the best momma dog ever.
I won't forget you Tucker or the lessons learned.
January was not done with the heartache. Zeke left to start new adventures in "Big Adventure Land" on January 23rd. Zeke was very special to me and Mel and Marion gave him the home and the life he truly deserved. I know that he and Boomer will be sharing the most amazing tales as they run free together once more.
Birthdays in January:
Sarah Mouri's young chap, Neville turned a year-old on January 12th.
A week later on the 19th, David & Lisa's Jessie celebrated birthday number six.
And a week after that on January 26th, Marg and Amanda's Devlin became a Venerable Veteran at 15
And we mustn't forget, Anna's Felek who turned 8 on January 24th
The month ended on a bright note with Sara Jones welcoming Foxrun Winter Bramble, a.k.a. Beatrice Grace a.k.a. Bea into her home.
