NORWEGIAN BUHUNDS
In this week notes I have three competitions to tell you about, all from different canine disciplines. ‘Our Dogs’ have been running another on line show.BOB in Buhunds was Jenny Shorer Wheeler’s Ch MaidofCopper for Kormandel(Imp Fin) by Nor Ch Gnipagrottensqu x Swe/Fin Ch Cipacan Mila Magia. BP was my and daughter Debbie’s Rikarlo Gable JW by Ch Koromandel Best Served Cold At Knytshall x Kimura Vera with Tapui (Imp Nor).
In last week’s notes I promised you the results of the latest on line Obreedience competition, this was again run by the very hard working Julia Bodsworth, and judged by Kath Hardman heelwork and Claire Coughlan-Khan the individual exercises. The idea of the competitions was to get people doing things with their dogs and having some fun, which I certainly think has been achieved. There will be another competition in September. In the recent competition there were 44 teams, which could be of mix of breeds; there were 176 dogs from 43 breeds including 30 crossbreeds, and for the first time a Bavarian Mountain Hound. As usual we entered a team of four Buhunds with our name of Quatre Bu.
The team was 39th but as before the marks were very close, the winning team had 35.4 points out of 40 for heel work with 39.3 out of 40 for the individual exercises, giving a total of 74.7. Our marks were 24.8 for heel work and 38.2 for individual exercises giving a total of 63, so only a difference of 11.7 marks. Our nemesis has always been our heelwork, but when we competed live the marks were only out of 10, and as with here our individual exercises gained good marks, so we could overcome the lower heel work marks. The heel work pattern and individual exercises have varied slightly for each competition. On this occasion in the heel work there was a full circle and an about turn, but no weaving through cones. It all has to be timed and the same size area used, with the idea that each dog performs the heelwork in the same time. Our team captain and organiser was Lisa Strong, she worked her Leggatts Dancing Queen At Draccus(Eris),for their exercise they did a change of position from a down to stand. Jacqui Cobb with Knytshall Eloise did retrieve an article hidden in one of five distractions, (it was hidden in a cone), the dog must not see where it is placed. Alysha Branchflower with Knytshall Josephine did send to a marker from an angle. Jenny Shorer -Wheeler with Ch Arnscroft Di Na Mo Farrah Of Koromandel JW ShCM did go around the poles, which was a figure of eight round two poles and then around another pole and finish at heel. It will be interesting when we start live competitions, which hopefully will be next year, as to whether some of the new exercises and heel work patterns will be used, as in the past one of three heel work patterns and the same exercises were always used. The teams have 2weeks from being giving the heel work pattern and exercises to film them and send them in to the team captain, who checks them and then sends them to the Julia. The weather certainly plays a part in the filming particularly when it is very stormy, as it was for the last competition meaning that filming days were cut down. They may not have been placed but to have a team of 4 Buhunds enter every competition is really great and something to be proud of.
The next competition is a scent one, in which Sarah Stonton competed with Trelowen Andrea (Loxy) & Ch Arnscroft In Di Ana Jack (RL1 ). The dogs searched for small pieces of cloth scented with cloves. The dogs were given 5 minutes to search each area. There were three areas; the first was an ‘outside’ which could include the outside of a car and other items. There were 2 or 3 hides to find, but the handler was not told which, when the handler decided the dog had found all the items, they called ‘clear’, if they were correct they earned an extra 5 bonus points. Then there was a 24ft wall to search again with 2 or 3 hides, and finally inside a shed, where on this occasion there were 3 hides, one on a tractor, one on a hosepipe and one on a motorised buggy. With Sarah having two dogs the hides were moved so she did not know where they were, for the second dog. There were 5 competitors in each section and Loxy was second and Jack third in their section, a fantastic result for their first ever scent trial.
We all know that the cost of insuring a dog has increased over the years, due mainly to the fact that there are now so many expensive treatments available, such as scans, cancer treatment etc, in fact most of the treatments available to us are available to dogs. I was however quite surprised to hear of a dog having stem cell treatment, which is relatively new for people. The dog had been lame for a while and although this had been helped with painkillers, if the dog has them for prolonged periods they can cause kidney and or liver damage. He had an MRI scan and was referred to the Royal Veterinary College at Potters Bar for a further assessment. The scan showed that he was suffering from a problem with his elbow including arthritis. Stem cell treatment was suggested, once accepted for treatment, he was taken back and had a general anaesthetic and fat cells were taken from his body, these were then processed to remove the stem cells which were then injected back into the damaged area under sedation, in the hope that they will transform into the type of tissue to help in the repair of the diseased cells. The hope is that after a few weeks the dog can returnto a normal pain-free life.
Margaret Deuchar margaretdeuchar@gmail.com
The views expressed in Margaret’s Breed Notes are hers and hers alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Norwegian Buhund Club of the UK.