This is the news from 2008.

30th November 2008 - I've been very busy this month with Agility practice and helping to get things ready for my local Agility Clubs Show, as a member of my Agility Club's Committee we each take tasks to complete so that the show will run smoothly and spread the load of work as best we can. Our club show went well and I managed to enter my first competition and run my first course.

Sadly I couldn't run Willow as I had planned, and so looked forward to, as she was poorly with an upset tummy and sickness so she wasn't well enough to run around a course. Her time will come though and I have already found two more shows locally for the beginning of next year for her to do if she is well and fit to do so.

Rudi however was well and fit to take part, and at the end of a very long day helping with lead and ring side duties I approached the ring for the first time to enter the competition, as one of the last dogs to run on the day, he did very well considering he has never done a show before. He took part in the Jumping level 1-3 for medium dogs and although he was unplaced he did as he was asked and completed the course. He made a few mistakes, probably due to my nerves, but all in all I think we did ok for our first time and I enjoyed my time in the ring. I certainly know what we need to work on and will hopefully not suffer again from nerves.

Ti finally finished his 12 month course of treatments for his allergy against dust and food mites. On advice from our vet we have decided to continue with the treatment for the next 9 months until we have used all the treatment left from the last batch and shall probably continue for another 12 months after that to make sure he never suffers again. So far the treatment has worked wonderfully, Ti has not suffered at all this year with his skin problems and this is undoubtedly due to the treatment he has been undergoing. It hasn't come cheap and with the insurance company letting us down badly we have funded his treatment ourselves, which has so far run up a bill of nearly £1,500 and probably finish costing about £2k by the time we are done. But we love our dogs too much to let them suffer and I would have paid twice this to make him better.

As we have no wet leos during the winter, Ti will be having his first hydro-therapy treat next month, he is not poorly or in need of treatment, but he enjoys his swimming so much and with the water being so cold at the moment I am taking him for a nice warm water swim for 30 minutes so he can swim around a specially built pool at our local hydrotherapy center. I know he will love it and I can't wait to see his face when he gets to swim in-doors!

With Indi showing no signs of pups from the 'very quick' mating last month I shall also be taking Indi to the hydro pool so she can have a splash about for 30 minutes too, this is to get her used to the water and build her confidence before she starts.

I also attended the LCGB AGM in Warwick in November, it was at times a heated meeting but was very worthwhile going. I have to say a massive thank you to everyone who took the time to consider my application for election to the working and main committees of our club and for placing their trust in me by using their vote to place me on to the main committee. I was thrilled to be elected to both and hope that I can make a difference for members and dogs alike. I was also thrilled to receive, and part share, this years Water Shield Trophy for successfully passing an A and B water test this year with Ti.

The Wiltshire Wet Leo's group did really well in this respect, cleaning up most of the trophies on offer this year, so check out their latest news for the other recipients of awards on the day.

As a member of the LCGB committee, I made a promise to try to get a Leo Specific Agility Group going. Well I have managed to make some progress in this area and now have a venue for this event I will be donating my time and experience again free of charge to help other Leo's owners learn this wonderful sport. The group will be held bi weekly throughout the year at a location not far from me called Wootton Bassett, off Junction 16 of the M4 near Swindon. Anyone interested in joining our new group please contact me at becki@leonius.net for more details and so I can add you to the list, spaces may be limited depending on the response so act now before the list is full.

Well that's it for now, until next time, Becki and the Lions.

October 30th 2008 - well I was expecting a quiet month after the end of the Water training season but it has been anything but.

I attended the last day of training at Wiltshire Wet Leo's on the 11th and as a group we finished off our season with fun in the water day for the dogs and a wonderful American Style Lunch. We now have a 5 month wait before we can go into the water again. Ti, I know, will miss this activity so we shall be visiting the local hydrotherapy pool so he can get a monthly swim and keep up his skills. I hope to start Willow and Indi at water work next year too, so I will have my hands full. There will still be news to report for the WWL so check out the site for their latest news. The group has a new website address and name you can now find them at www.wiltshirewetleos.co.uk. The new dates for next years wet leo's training sessions are now listed on the site so go make a note of them if you wish to come and join us.

Willow is to attend her first ever agility competition in November so we have been busy practicing, she will enter the jumping section at full height, I shall let you know how she gets on and hopefully get some images of her doing her favorite activity.

Rudi will also be taking part in the same competition so I will let you know how we do and try to get some pictures of him too.

Indi decided to come into season a full month early and we have played a game of chess with her and Ti around the house for nearly 3 weeks. Whilst we managed the briefest of mating's with them, I am not hopeful of a litter from this mating, but we shall wait and see. This is however a major step forward as before Indi would not entertain or let him anywhere near her so if we are not lucky this time I am hoping that it will be 3rd time lucky. I learnt a lot from the experience and 'timing' is everything so I shall be even more watchful and better prepared next time.

I also helped John and Maureen Tyler out on the Discover Dogs stand at the club show on 19th October and met some lovely people new to the breed, many want to join either carting or wet leo groups in their areas with some only weeks away from bringing home their new puppies, I wish them all luck with their new arrivals.

This year I managed to stay to the end of the LCGB Champ show and it was lovely to meet up with so many old friends and catch up with all their news. I also saw John and Yvonne Lance there with their dogs, Boden, Kara and new baby Alfie, who is just gorgeous. Yvonne and Boden did very well in the ring getting an excellent 3rd place in Graduate dog and Kara was placed 4th in Novice bitch, so well done Valeguard. It was great to see you guys and catch up and lovely to sneak in some Boden Cuddles.

Next month sees the LCGB AGM I shall be able to attend this year (some of you may remember last year I was unable to attend as my father was seriously ill in hospital) but so far all is well and I have put myself forward for re-election to the working sub committee, i have enjoyed being a member of the committee and have benefited from the advice and support of the group to help achieve the goals I set out in the first year by getting Wiltshire Wet Leo's off the ground. I have also found that the number of e-mail queries about working Leo's has trebled which has been great to be able to help advise others on how to go about setting up a group or any other questions about our lovely breed. I have more plans to set up other fun groups such as a Leo specific agility group, and so hope that I will be re-elected to the working committee again so I can try to achieve this. I am also going to try for the main committee (yes I must be mad), so if you read this and are a member of the LCGB - please support me and vote for me so I can continue the work I have set out to do with the working groups and get more working leos events sponsored by our breed club.

I was completely delighted to recently receive some photo's of Jess, Freya, Bailey and Bones of our first Leonius litter from their owners. Gill says that Jess is doing very well and has developed into a beautiful young Lady, her pictures show this to be very true. Jenny and Patrick called me to tell me how Freya is doing and letting me know what a friendly and loving dog she is, we have some lovely pictures of her so take a peek she is a real beauty. Lee and Claudia emailed to tell me all Baileys news, he is also doing very well and is turning out to be a very handsome chap indeed with a lovely friendly attitude. Finally, Jo and Ian also sent a lovely picture of Bones enjoying a walk with a new friend Benn the Boxer puppy, Bones is a handsome chap who has grown into a very friendly Leo. I have added all the picture to their pages, and want to say a massive thank you to all the owners who have sent photo's and news and stayed in touch, I love to receive the news you send me on your Leo's its very much appreciated that we know how they are doing and all is well.

Well that's all our news for now, until next month Becki and the Lions.

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October 4th 2008 - As promised a quick update, Ti and I took part in the first Wiltshire Wet Leo's LCGB Water Test day and Ti did me proud. The weather was terrible, very cold, very windy and wet, but we didn't let this put us off. We took the A Test first and were 6th into the water for the day, I am very happy to report that we passed with flying colours. We were then invited to take the B Test by our two judges for the day, John Tyler and Midge Clayton, who also passed us at Level B, and we thank them for being so positive and encouraging during the tests. I am so thrilled by how well Ti has done and for the Judges comments, for his test results and the critique please see his Water Test Certificates Results page.

Thats all for now, we shall report in again at the end of October, but for the rest of the news regarding the test day and the other Wiltshire Wet Leo's who did so well and passed, please see the WWL website.

Bye for now, Becki and the Leonius Lions

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September 28th 2008 - Well, we have just 1 week left before Ti and I make our first attempt at the 'A Test' (and hopefully B Test too) in Water Rescue Work, I'm very nervous but am hoping for the best. Even if we are not lucky enough to pass this time our hard work through the first season will not have been wasted as we have had so much fun on the way and met such lovely people too. I'll post a quick note after the 4th October to let everyone know how we did. For more information on our group and Water Rescue Work check out the Wiltshire Wet Leo's website.

I attended my first agility show this weekend with Willow and Rudi in preparation for the first competition in November at our local Agility Club show. Willow and Rudi were officially measured and have the documents they now need to attend Kennel Club affiliated shows in Agility. Willow is, no surprise, in the large category and Rudi has come in as Medium size. While at the show I saw how things were run and the rules and regs that apply to a competition scenario. It was lovely to see so many different types of dogs running and was interesting to see the different styles of handling in the ring. I also met up with some of my friends and trainers there and watched some of our agility club dogs do their stuff, they did very well and it was lovely to see how friendly everyone was who attended.

Indi has learned a new trick and has taken to helping herself to the apples and the pears on the lower branches of our fruit trees in the garden. I did wonder why there were none on the ground for these two tree's now I have my answer.

Well, we will report in again once the Test day is over, wish us luck.

Bye for now, Becki and the muts.

June & July & August 2008: A very late update I'm afraid, with summer being so wet and the kids off school there has been lots to organise and I entertaining them has taken up a lot of my time. As a result I haven't had time to update the website. Added to this my site has been out of action for the last two weeks as we sort out server problems, but thankfully we are now back up and running.

With Ti calmed down after Indi's last season we went back to Wet Leo's with him in July, he is doing really well making steady improvements each session. We are preparing for Ti for the test day in October when I hope to get him passed his 'Test A' and perhaps give 'Test B' a go too. He is doing really well and I'm really thrilled with his progress, he is really enjoying it and this has proved to be an activity that suits him perfectly. Our time with the Wet Leo group has been really fun and I'm really enjoying teaching and helping others to learn the skills of Water Rescue Work. For more details on how things are going with the Wiltshire Wet Leo's check out the site for some wonderful pictures of our antics and our groups latest news.

Willow stepped in for a week to try Water Rescue Work, she enjoys water but has never been keen to actually swim in deeper water, but she gave this activity a go and she tried really hard, she seemed to enjoy herself, but was not a natural swimmer and would need a bit more practice to find a more relaxed style in the water for her. I will hopefully get a chance to bring her to the next season of Wet Leo's along with Indi. Willow is also continuing to do very well at agility and we are having lots of fun with this activity too. We have set of some of the equipment at home now and have managed to take some pictures of her practicing in the garden with me, so take a look at how clever she is.

Indi continues to enjoy doing her Obedience but we have taken to doing this at home in the garden and during our walks as the class we were attending was so full we found we were sitting for more time than we were practicing. I hope to start something different with Indi as she shows a keen sense for scent tracking and I would like to try some rescue tracking work with her. I am trying to locate a group in our area that does such a thing and will let you know how I get on. Indi is a very clever dog so we are trying to find an activity that will exercise her mind as well as her body, I may even try agility with her at some point to see how she takes to it.

Rudi is almost ready for competitive agility shows and when we do finally enter it will be at Nursery level, this means he won't have to use two of the more difficult pieces of equipment, the weaves and seesaw. He still needs to master these two pieces but is doing well considering he has only been doing Agility for about 11 months. As well as practice with our local agility group, we have also had practice on the equipment in our garden and in a field near our house with a full set of equipment where we meet with our trainer from our agility club and friend, Jillian, she has been advising us on our training and the extra practice is starting to pay off. Matty my eldest son, has also taken up this activity and takes Rudi through his paces at Agility club with me in the evening and Josh my youngest son, has also taken an keen interest in Agility and now both attend training with me, they have been learning to handle the dogs around an agility ring, they are doing really well too and I am very proud of how they and the dogs are doing. They both want to do competitions with him so it will be a real family outing when we do start competitions.

I have also added some pictures of more wildlife that has visited our garden, this time it was a Green Woodpecker, it was hard to get a decent picture as they are a nervous bird. Take a peek at the wildlife at home page to see him.

The next update will probably be at the end of September now, but if I have any news, I will of course post it straight away.

Well, that's all of our news for now, take care everyone, until next time. Good bye.

May 31st 2008: Well I am sorry to say that we had no luck this time with the planned mating between Ti and Indi, when Indi was finally ready Ti had lost interest. After many days of attentive behaviour from him he finally got fed up of waiting and decided that one more telling off from Indi just wasn't worth it, and playing with Rudi was far more fun. Flirt as Indi did, he wasn't having any of it. So we shall try again in 6 months time and hope that the timing is better then. I do not believe in assisted mating's and as nature did not happen on its own I was not going to interfere.

Willow also celebrated her 6th Birthday on the 12th May so we gave her a special dinner of cooked roast chicken with a bit of gravy, one of her favourites. HAPPY BIRTHDAY BABY GIRL - we love you.

As Ti was a little too excited to do his water rescue training on the 11th May, I decided to take Willow along for a dip instead, she had lots of fun, it was her first proper swim as she has never really been too keen to go deeper than her chest. Once she saw me go in instinct took over and with a little encouragement she came in with me and then swam back together to shore, I'm hoping that she will get another few opportunities this season but for now I shall probably concentrate on Ti to get him passed his first few test certificates. I have some pictures of Willow enjoying her water day so take a peek.

For the rest of the Wiltshire Wet Leo's news check out the WWL Website.

Rudi and Willow are continuing to do well at their Agility and we are planning to get them into a show in June, this will be a UKA Agility show where both Willow and Rudi will be entered into a Nursery group for beginners. Will bring you the news of their first show when it happens.

For those of you who have visited the 'Wildlife at our Home' page, we have two new images to share with you. Last year we had a Great Spotted Woodpecker visit our garden, we didn't manage to get his picture then, but this year I managed to have the camera ready, take a peek, he's beautiful...enjoy.

Well, thats all our news for now until next month. Bye for now.

April 30th 2008: Ti and Indi both had their eyes tested this month, they came back all clear which we are thrilled about. Along with good hip and elbow tests, this means that we can now proceed with the planned mating between them. Indi is in season as we speak so its just a matter of time, patience and letting nature do its thing. We are really excited about the prospect of our 2nd litter and can't wait to hear the patter of many tiny paws. I think Indi will make a wonderful mum as she is so gentle. Anyone who may be interested in one of our puppies should contact us as soon as possible so that you can begin the process of selection and be added to our list.

Ti, Jamie and I attended our 2nd Water Rescue Training day on 27th April, it was great fun and loads of people turned up. Check out the Wiltshire Wet Leo's website for the latest pictures of our days events. I have also added some pictures to my own water rescue page of Ti doing his thing.

Indi has had to stop attending obedience at the moment due to her seasons but we are only one item short of her Silver award so hope to start this again once her season is over.

Willow, and Rudi continue to attend Agility and we hope to get them both measured soon so that they can enter competitions in the local area.

Ti, Indi, Willow and Rudi are all enjoying the lovely sunny weather that we have been having at the moment, they love to spend most of the day outside when its nice and warm. I've been busy gardening and the dogs just love to 'help', if I need a hole dug they oblige, even if its not where I want it and after I have planted the flowers! Rudi in particular loves to help and here is a picture of him helping me to cut the grass!

So that's all our news for now, we shall update again as soon as we know how the mating goes with Ti and Indi. Take care until next time.

March & April 2008: Sorry its been a while since my last update, there's been so much to organise that time has passed me by so without more delay.....

March saw a milestone for our website, with over 20,000 hits/visitors.

March also saw Crufts come and go like the whirlwind it is. For the first time I didn't have an entry of my own, with Ti taking a year out so he can have his immunotherapy (which is going very well) it will be a few months yet before we will be back in the ring. I did however have the pleasure of watching Yvonne & Boden strut their stuff in the ring. It was nice to be there to see them after my being away from the ring for so long. Boden looked fab and he did a terrific job of representing the breed. Sadly, in a large group of 16 dogs, it wasn't to be his day, the competition was extremely tough and he did Yvonne and John proud by behaving himself impeccably and looking in wonderful condition. It was great to see so many friends while we were ringside and was good to catch up with everyone on the day.

In March I also attended my first Agility Club AGM and was voted onto the Committee as a member. As part of my role I have volunteered to put together and run a website for the Club as they don't have one yet. This has now been launched so take a look at some of the things we get up to Cortonagility.co.uk.

Willow and Rudi continue as usual to do very well at Agility training and we are making real progress with them both. Willow managed to do a small circuit of 7 jumps at full height for her size, I'm thrilled as I didn't think we would get there so soon, this means that I can enter her for competitions and it will count towards awards she may have the chance to gain. I hope to start a few competitions soon with both Willow and Rudi so will let you know how we get along (one of these days I might get some photo's to share with you too!)

Indi resumed her Obedience classes and we shall try to finish the two items needed for her Silver award over the next few weeks, she still completes all the task without fault and I'm very pleased as we've been away from training for several months.

Ti is being his usual self, happy and bouncy, his immunotherapy treatment is going well and he experiences only very slight reactions now so all is going well. He seems to be enjoying his sedate pace of life, walking the fields and hills added to this we have now begun to do the Water Rescue Training days which he just loves. I swear he would spend all day in the lake if he could.

Ti and I had our first Wiltshire Wet Leo's training day on 13th April and it was brilliant, check out the Wiltshire Wet Leo's site for how our day went and for some smashing pictures of all the fun we had. Wiltshire Wet Leo's.

Our many congratulation must go to Yvonne and John Lance who saw Boden receive 1st place at the LCGB Open Show in the Post Grad group. Well done guys you so deserve this. We are all very proud of you.

Our congratulations must also go to Gary and Rachel Pitchford at the Arcanine Kennel who saw the safe arrival, of their very longed for, first Arcanine Litter of Leo Pups, 6 boys and 5 girls all doing well, Dilly (mum) is doing well and Grisson (dad) is very proud of his brood. Congratulations guys I know how long you have waited for your first litter. Anyone interested on how the pups are doing should check out Gary's website for details at Arcanine Leo's.

Well, that's it for now, everyone take care, until next month.

29th February 2008: Firstly we start by sending Many Happy Returns to all the Leonius - Age of Mythology Litter - who all celebrated their 3rd Birthdays this month. Big Hugs from Mum Willow and all of us here to, Bailey, Boden, Bones, Freya, Jess, Max, Nana, Tia, Tucker, Ziggy, and of course our Ti, hope you all had a lovely day. We had some lovely pictures of Bailey and Tucker to share with you so please check them out now they are 3 years old. Thanks to the Gibson and Barker families for sharing their family photos with us.

This month has been quiet dog wise, I attended Agility with Willow and Rudi, they continue to do really well, the competition we planned to attend we had to miss, I had double booked myself with a LCGB Working Committee meeting, but we shall have plenty of opporunities to do some competitions later in the year.

I attended my first LCGB Working Sub-Committee Meeting as a new member, I enjoyed it very much and am looking forward to many more, also being able to help the working committee with its aims to help promote the working side of the Leonberger.

I have not been able to get to Obedience with Indi as planned this month, family committements have been overwhelming and it was just impossible to fit it in. I have however signed up to start again this week. Instead I've been enjoying some extra 'dry' walks with all the dogs to make up for not going, it makes a change as the weather has been so wet lately. So we have crammed as many in as we can while the sun's been out.

Both Indi and Ti are due to have their eyes tested this month ready for our planned mating in May, will let you know the results at the end of March.

After launching the Wiltshire Wet Leo's site we have had a good responce for the first month, over 200 new visitors to-date, check out the site for the latest news and updated information.

I'm looking forward to attending Crufts in March, and have been busy helping to prepare the leafets (lots of folding and stapeling) that will be handed out at the Discover Dogs stand, don't forget to call in and see the volunteers who man the stand tirelessly over the four days, they will appreciate your support. Jamie and I will be there as spectators only this year, we are looking forward to being there to support Yvonne and John of Valeguard Leo's with their handsom boy Boden (Leonius Leviathan at Valeguard) - Good Luck Guys, we are rooting for you. Not much news for you at the moment so until next month take care.

31st January 2008: January has been a busy after the hustle and bustle of christmas this seems to have spilled into the new year. We hope you all had a peaceful Christmas and a Happy New Year.

We have resumed our Agility classes with Willow and Rudi, they will both have their first competitions this year so we shall be practicing very hard for that. Willow will have to be entered as 'not for competition' as she is currently not able to jump the regulation height for a dog of her size, it takes time to learn the skills and gain the fitness level to jump at least 15 sets of jumps at full height as well as all the other peices of equiptment. We shall continue to practice this to see if she can get to full high but I am not worried if she doesn't make it, we only ever set out to have fun doing agility and as long as she continues to have fun, that is fine by me.

Rudi on the other hand is almost ready for competion and is already jumping his full regulation height. He is fast and accurate and I have high hopes as he is such a young dog he can also take the punishment of a full course and still has energy left to do it again and he just loves it. Not so sure I will have the energy myself though!

Indi will start Obedience classes again in Febuary and as she enjoyed them very much last year we have decided to continue, we are only two tasks short of her Silver award and then we shall start on her gold. We have had a long break from Obedience, some 3 months, as she came into season early and had to go down to Wales and stay with my mum while she had her time. She also stayed on after to help keep my mum company while my dad had his stay in hosptial during his recent illness.

Ti is having a well earned rest from everything at the moment and apart from his walks in the countryside he is leading a very sedate life right now. He is coping very well with his immunotherapy treatment for his allergies and is now in week 13. We have seen only slight reactions but this is good as we know it is working. We hope to get Ti back into the show ring in the middle of the year but until then he shall be learning the art of Water Rescue work along with Willow and Indi which we start in April this year.

I've been busy finalising the dates for the Wiltshire Wet Leos Water Rescue Training Group due to start in April this year. Further information on this and the dates can be viewed on the new Website I have developed for our group and can be accessed via the above link. There is only baisc information on this site at the moment but of course when we set off in April we shall have lots of news to report. Anyone still wishing to join our group just send me an email and I shall pass you the information you need to join up.

We were delighted to recently receive some new pictures of Leo's from our first litter and I hope to post these next month.

Well thats all for now until next time. Take Care.