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December 2010

We are really sad to pass on the news that our beloved Indi died suddenly on Christmas day after suffering a gastric torsion. We miss her terribly and are in complete shock at her sudden passing. Indi was a fantastic family dog, loving, devoted, gentle and fiercely protective of us all and at just 5 years and 3 months old was far too young to leave us. We cannot express how sad we feel.

	Rest in peace our beautiful girl.
Indi 2005 to 2010

October 2010

October was a very busy month for me, on the LCGB side I had a committee meeting to attend on the 3rd, it lasted most of the day as we had lots to discuss so I was very tired by the time I got home, but it was very worth while and very productive.

On the 17th I had the club Champ show to attend in my capacity as the Acting Secretary, it was a lovely show and I met loads of new people, some of whom I've been corresponding with for a while but never actually had the opportunity to meet, it was great that so many people took the time to come and say Hi and introduce themselves to me, I finally have some faces to go with names. It was also great to catch up with some old friends and my thanks to them for popping by the secretaries desk to say Hi. I enjoyed the show very much and most people seemed very happy with the day, but, who was it that said 'you can't please all of the people all of the time'.....enough said...!

On the 23rd of Oct I attended a Working Sub Committee meeting which was very productive, again this was a long day, with the meeting held in Cambridge it was a long journey there and back. It was nice to sit and talk through all our plans for the next year for working Leos and I am very excited about all the things we have planned.

On the 24th I attended the Leo DCM Seminar in Birmingham organised by the Health Sub Committee of the LCGB, this was an extremely interesting talk with the latest news and research on Dilated Cardio Myopathy. Whilst there I videoed the presentation to put onto DVD for the LCGB to sell via its club shop, hopefully this will help raise some funds for Leo Health or Welfare.

The LCGB AGM is just around the corner so I have lots of paperwork to prepare for that event, then hopefully things will calm down again for the next few months over christmas and the new year.

We start Leo agility in November and it will be nice to get the dogs working again.

We have also, in the midst of all the above, had our work cut out looking after Willow. We had been given a diagnosis of suspected hairline fracture to the skull which we were treating with painkillers, anti-inflamatories and rest. But instead of improving, her condition worsened drastically, we had to rush her to Davies's Specialist vets in Hertfordshire for a more in depth diagnosis. After seeing 3 specialist vets and a neurologist, they set us on the path for more diagnostics, 1 scan and 3 sets of diagnostic bloods and cell sample tests later, we were given a diagnosis of immune-mediated Myositis. This is the second immune-mediated condition that Willow has had to endure, the first being Anal Furunculosis which is currently stable and which we hope will not flare up during this set back.

As you can read from the link above Myositis can be a condition that is incredibly painful and debilitating and can develop into cancer, affecting dogs that are auto-immune compromised, like Willow is, she is now on a course of 9 steroid tablets a day and 4 antibiotics to cover any infection that may spring up, only time will tell if we have caught the condition before it is too late. Willow has already suffered enough from her other hereditary conditions and I was so desperately hoping that she could enter her twilight years with no more problems, but it seems that this is not to be.

I can at least report that initial signs are promising, the steroids have reduced the swellings, allowed the eyes to come back into their original position improving her vision once again and also has removed the majority of the pain she was suffering. There are side effects of course to steroids but these are outweighed by her reduction in pain. She will be on this high dose of steroid for another two months before we dare start to slowly reduce the dose down by one to two tablets a week and then hopefully to a maintenance dose to keep the symptoms at bay, it is very unlikely that she will ever come off them all together but hopefully we can reduce any inflammation enough to keep her well for the rest of her life.

I was also very sad to hear recently that Indi's father Herbert von Mathiasberg had to have a LP tie-back performed, luckily he is doing well and long may this continue to be the case. I have lots of doubts surrounding so called 'age related' or 'late onset' LP and its potential hereditary history, I feel very happy that we decided not to breed on from Indi, having already produced one litter with LP/PN affected puppies it would have been devastating to me to have produced another litter with potential health problems.

Well, thankfully all the other furies are well and hopefully we shall make it past Christmas without anymore trips to the vets for anything new, fingers crossed.

Until next time.

Becki

September 2010

We have had a fairly quiet September with no agility shows to attend with Rudi and me not being able to attend Wet Leo's with Ti due to a bad virus and then my son's 13th Birthday.

The Wet Leo season is now finished for the year, so I have been busy cleaning and drying all the kit ready to store away for the winter, we now settle into the autumn and winter months of the Leo Agility which will start again in November.

I have taken some of the spare time I have had to re-design our website, hopefully it will be easier to read and navigate. I have removed some of the pages that are no longer relevant and some of the pictures but most of the stuff people have said the have found interesting or informative I have left. I hope you like the new look.

I'm busy doing many other things for the LCGB, we have our club Champ show coming up in October and our AGM in November so I will have lots of paper work to do and things to prepare.

I have spent today (26th sept) in the garden, its been lovely and sunny, grooming the dogs, blowing out their coats and brushing out any knots that have sneaked in. It was lovely to be in the sunshine with the dogs just lying around me while I groomed them, I find it very therapeutic. Ti and Indi just love the attention and can lie down for hours while I tend to them.

Willow on the other hand hates being groomed she doesn't mind the blaster but hates to be brushed, I think its an age thing with her as she used to love it. We are taking it very easy with her at the moment as she is currently recovering from a hair line fracture to her skull, she was playing in the garden with the other two Leo's and has taken a fair knock from one of them to her head, just above her right eye, this has resulted in her eye sinking slightly backwards into the socket due to the nerve being damaged. She has been prescribed painkillers and anti-inflamatories to help with any pain and she is being thoroughly spoiled by me and getting away with murder right now. I will have to keep her separate from the others and quiet for the next 6 weeks or so and when they play in the garden she will have to stay in doors and have separate time to go outside so she doesn't take any more knocks, she also spends most of her time coming with me where ever I go so that I can keep an eye on her.

Whilst discussing dog stuff on the phone to another Leo fan, I was recently asked if we had any other pets as our life does tend to only revolve around just 'dog' stuff and the answer is Yes, we have several other pets, my son Josh is the proud owner of his own 4 footed tailed friend, he is a Bearded Dragon called Treco, he is cute for a lizard and very friendly, Josh researched all the different types of Lizards before being guided by me to go for this type. Treco spends most of the time in a special house called a Vivarium where the temperature is set high enough for him to enjoy a very lazy and comfortable day, he is fed many kinds of fresh veggies, fruits and critters like crickets, locusts, meal worms and wax worms. He is a fairly easy pet to look after but like all creatures you have to take great care or they can become poorly if not looked after properly. Here is a picture of him. He also enjoys running around the house and conservatory and loves sitting on one of us, usually on our shoulders.

We also have 4 Guinea Pigs, these are my daughters pets, they are a variety of abyssinian and smooth coats, the Abyssinians are the ones with the rosette type coats and the smooth are close short straight coats. They are great pets, easy to care for and a lot of fun for younger children like my daughter. She thinks they are great and we have some photo's you may like to look at. Emily named them after characters from her favorite films, so they are called, Nevil, Hurley, Nathaniel and Carlos.

I've also added two new photo's to the Wildlife at our home page, one of a great crested news I caught on camera in the pond earlier this year and some of the Oxeye Daisy's that grow in the garden.

Well I'm signing off for now. Until next time.

Becki

August 2010 - Further update to Augusts news, we have just got back from an amazing four days at Staverton UK Agility show, I couldn't wait to update everyone so here is our news: My son Matthew ran his dog Rudi at Staverton UKA show and over 4 days and gained, a 1st place in Jumping (27th Aug) + Clear Round, a 1st place in steeplechase (27th Aug) + Clear Round and a 1st place in steeplechase (30th Aug) + Clear Round. Joshua also ran Rudi gaining a 3rd place in steeplechase (27th Aug). I was so proud of them both, they did so well.

I also took the chance to run Rudi at Staverton show and gained a 1st place in Steeplechase (27th aug) + clear round, 1st place in agility (27th aug), 1st place in agility (28th aug), 1st place in agility (29th aug) + clear round, 1st place in Jumping (30th aug) + clear round, 1st place in steeplechase (30th aug) + clear round and a 2nd place in Agility (30th Aug). We also managed to bring home 4 trophies on the way. All these placings with some clear rounds qualified Rudi out of beginners to Novice level. We have another show in a few weeks time so will have to see how we do at Novice level. I have posted some new photos in Rudi's gallery and updated his results page.

Until next time.....

August 2010 - It's been a busy August, as well as running two more Wet Leo training sessions one of which was a trainers only session, I have been all over the place to various different agility shows with the children during their school holidays. We attended Chippenham Agility show in Bath on the 7th August where Matty gained a 5th place in grade 1-3 Young Kennel Club Dog of the Year Agility Class, he gained his first clear round at an Agility competition so he was thrilled and to gain a 5th place out of so many more experienced entrants was a wonderful achievment for him. He then went on to gain another clear round in the team event, the team were placed 13th which is still very good considering the level of competition at the show. I also had a good day and gained a 3rd place with a clear round in grade 1-3 agility. Rudi out-did himself on this day making all his contacts and completing all his weaves without missing one, so we were all thrilled.

We also attended Oswestry Agility show in Mid Wales, it took some 4 hours to get there on the Friday after getting stuck in terrible traffic at Birmingham, this show was over 2 days and we camped from the Friday night in what can only be described as torrential rain and wind, the tent stayed put though and thankfully we stayed dry! The kids really enjoyed their time there and Matty was awarded a Judges Special Rosette for a great round that he completed on the Sunday before we left.

The last show of the month was over the bank holiday weekend at Staverton Agility Show in Hawbridge, Gloucester. We stayed for the 4 day show and the kids have a great time, this time Jamie was able to come with us too which was great as he has not had the opporunity to see the kids run in competition for a while, we all had lots of fun and met up with loads of our friends.

All the Leo's are well having had a recent wash and brush up to keep them fresh and clean, Indi's coat finally gave it up and let me brush it out she is now looking a pretty picture. Willow has always hated being bathed but she seem to really enjoy it this time as its been so hot in the last few days, Ti gets a regular dip in the lake which seems to keep his coat nice and clean and he shall have his dip in the bath at the end of the Wet Leo's season so he will be nice and clean for the winter period. They continue to enjoying the peace that the summer brings and also the joys of the Apples and Pears on the orchard Trees, they have all learned that if the stand on their back legs they can reach the lower branches where the apples and pear are just wainting to be picked, I have some pictures that I have added of them taking the fruit of the trees. I hope you like them.

We like many people in the UK and Europe submitted samples of blood from our Leo's for LPN testing and research. We were happy to receive these results for Willow and for Ti this month. It showed that they, as individuals, were clear of the LPN1 gene which means that they did not carry the gene that could trigger early onset LPN (early onset being before the age of 18 months). This however does not mean that they are clear of LP as a disease, we already know of relatives that have had this disorder in their past and of course one of our litter has LP currently and Ti also shows signs of breathing issues related to LP/PN, but it is a step for the breed in the right direction. We can now at least help to prevent the more devastating early onset version of this genetically inherited disorder by doing this test. Lets hope that anyone now considering breeding will submitt blood from potential parent dogs to rule this disease out before considering a mating.

Well thats all our news for now, we have another busy month ahead of us with lots of fun things to do and attend. Until next time take care. Becki

May/June/July 2010 - We have been very busy in the last three months, our news in June was that Rudi, our border terrier, took part in his first set of agility competitions. I ran him for my son Matthew at the HJ Show in Witney back in May on his first time in a competition and we gained a 1st place in beginners snooker agility (midi), I was thrilled because for Matty as he had been so nervous about us taking part. Joshua also ran Rudi on Matty's behalf at the same show and gained a 2nd in beginners steeplechase (midi), not bad for his first time out.

I was also thrilled to see Matty run Rudi himself for the first time in a competition, this was in late June at Lansdown Agility Show, this was a great achievement for him and he was given a Judges Special Award for his efforts which he was thrilled with.

Then at the end of July we went to Tewkesbury UK Agility Show where Matty gained a 1st place in beginners Junior Agility (midi), I could not have been more proud of him and he was just over the moon. Josh also ran Rudi in two beginners Steeplechase classes and gained two separate 2nd places against adult handlers which was a fantastic achievement for him and he is rightly pleased and again I am very proud of him. Josh then went on to gain a further clear round in a third class of steeplechase but was just out of the positions on time. We had a great week away and met loads of lovely like minded people. There is nothing nicer than working your dogs and having loads of fun whilst your at it. I'm only sorry that Willow is not well enough to run in competitions as she so loved to do her agility.

As for the Leo's they are all doing well, Ti continues with his waterwork and we will be trying for his C test later this year, sadly his first attempt didn't quite work out and he will need to try again in a few months time.

Willow is ok, she still has her moments and I have to watch her like a hawk if there is any food about at all or she will have it and pay the price later on. Indi is taking the summer very quietly, I have spent hours grooming out Indi's profuse coat to try to help keep her cool and it still doesn't look like I've been near her with a brush....! I think a trip to the poodle-parlor is in order if I don't crack the back of it soon.....!

There has been some recent and Fantastic news on the Leonberger Polyneuropathy front. There is now a test for LPN1 which can identify those dogs that carry the early onset 'extreme' version of this disorder. This will now help rid our breed of this variety of this disease and for all the details check out the LCGB website where the latest news is now available.

As for me, as well as attending 2 more LCGB committee meetings, holding WWL's first water test of the year (which was very successful) I have also re-developed and re-launched the LCGB website, it took about 5 days of constant work (sometimes until 2am in the morning) but finally it is up and running. Its been a labour of love but it had to be done to make it more compatible with users systems. On top of all this I ran a LCGB temperament assessment day at the end of July, I took one day out of my holiday to pop across from Tewkesbury to Coventry to do the test for the 5 dogs who came along. It was a busy but very successful day the weather held and the rain stayed away. Bill Crawley and I enjoyed meeting such lovely Leo's who did their breed very proud on the day. I must thank Fiona Parry who drove me there and back and provided me with a lovely lunch as well.

My Sons have more agility competitions coming up with Rudi and I will report back on how he does soon. If they can bear to let me I hope to run him myself again at the weekend so we shall wait and see how we all do. I have put up a photo of Matty, Josh and Rudi with all their rosettes in the gallery I hope you like it and have updated his results page too.

Well that is all our news for now, until next month. Becki

April & May 2010 - We have had a very sad month this month, we have lost two more of our boys from our first and only litter, at the age of just over 5 years they were still so very young. A lot of breeders would shy away from publishing such information considering it to be too sensitive or to be kept secret but as always I feel that openness is the only way forward for the health of our breed. So it is with much sadness that I tell you of Ziggy who died peacefully in May. He had been suffering from Osteosarcoma, Bone Cancer, and his dedicated owners Jess, Zeni and family, took the greatest of care with him in his last few months, ensuring only the best of palliative care to help him suffer no pain in his last months. They bravely made the only decision they could when he at last started to show signs of discomfort and had him put to sleep. Our thoughts go out to them all during this sad time.

Also very sadly and just a few days after Ziggy we heard that Max also passed away, he was put to sleep after his owners discovered he had a large and aggressive secondary tumor in his throat. With the prospect of long painful surgery and chemotherapy as the only chance of extending his life, but at the cost of much discomfort to him, his owners Angie and Steve decided that Max should not suffer any more discomfort and made the decision to have him put to sleep. We also feel desperately for them as a family and know that, like Ziggy, Max will be very much missed by his family. Our thoughts are with you all.

Cancer is the biggest killer of the Leonberger and it is crucial to help identify lines of dogs where such conditions lie, some cancers are not genetic just a sad and unfair fact of life but osteosarcoma has a strong familial connection and could possibly be hereditary, triggered by some environment factors yet to be discovered, certainly appearing in lines from generation to generation and with primary and secondary family relations being affected. There are studies being conducted in France and the USA and when I have more details will publish the information where you can submit samples for marker testing.

I don't normally make political statements on my own website, but it is fair to say that while our first an only litter looked wonderful and all the dogs were graced with exceptional temperaments, others now pay the price for historically poor breeding practices through past generations, this is something that unless curbed dramatically by those responsible, will reduce our lovely Leo's to an even shorter life span. Such breeders will never change their attitudes to health and the only way to stop them is to put them out of business by doing your research before you endeavour to buy a puppy and making sure that you research health first and foremost. Then only can you help to minimise the damage being done. I have had a crash course in reality and breeding and did what I thought best by removing all my lines from breeding once I knew there were problems in our dogs. There are a few others known to me who have done the same but not enough prepared to make that sacrifice, the '£', the 'Champion Certificate' or worse complacency, being in place rather than concern for health and longevity. Puppy buyers beware do your research months if not years before you buy a Leo (or any other pedigree dog for that matter) or you will pay the price by having a sick and unhealthy dog that will suffer or lose the pet you love too early in its life.

I did have other happier news to share with you this month but have decided that this can wait until next month. I have dedicated our front page this month to Ziggy and Max, may they rest in peace.

Becki

February & March 2010 - Well as suspected its been a busy couple of months.

I held four more Leo Agility session which was great and takes us to the end of the agility season for the Leo's, with two sets of visitors who came to join us for the afternoon to learn more about Leo's before taking them on, which is fantastic to see.

We also had two sets of visitors to our home to see our dogs and learn about Leo's in the home, again doing their research the right way round. I hope very much that their visit to see what Leo's can do to your home will help them make the right decisions.

I also did a home visit in February, my very first for Leo Welfare, I was helped by Racquel Walker a seasoned assessor, who showed me the ropes of what to look out for and how to approach the potential rehome family. This is something I hope to do again in the future for Leo Welfare and help the very dedicated group who already support rehoming Leo's through the LCGB.

I also managed to fit in attending two more LCGB meetings, which were two whole days of talking Leo with long journeys either side, so I was very tired by the end of both days.

In the midst of all the above I'd also been helping John Tyler to get all the Crufts info ready for the Discover Dogs Stand, I was responsible for getting the Information leaflets and stickers printed to put on the display stands, I didn't manage to get to Crufts this year but was told it was the usual wonderful spectacle that we have come to expect. I understand that the new Leo stand was spectacular and that everyone worked very hard over the 4 days. Well done to all who took part.

Willow still has 'moments' with her AF but in general is quite stable at the moment, in part this may be due to a change in diet we have been researching new diets for her to try, keeping all the fat out of her diet is difficult but we have found something that seems to work and has kept her fairly stable in the last few weeks, long may this last. She will hopefully return to agility if her condition remains as stable as it has over the last 4 weeks.

Ti suddenly looking a bit 'fluffy' the other day and it seemed to happen overnight too so I took the blaster to him in his weekly grooming session, lets just say that the birds will definitely have a lot of nice fur to line their nests with this season as most of his coat came out in one go, it normally comes out over a period of a week or two so it was quite different. He is looking forward to April and the start of wet leos, although I have a feeling that with the predicted drop in temperature and possible snow fall we may well have to postpone the start of the wet leo season. I have to admit that I've had my wetsuit out for the last 2 months ready to go, I can't wait to get in the water again.

Indi has also dropped her coat ready for the summer and she really enjoyed having the blaster blow all the old coat out, she promptly ran around the garden like a spring puppy. Indi will soon be helping my mum in a very important way, she has a special bond with my mum and has always been very protective of her, she will be going to stay with my mum at her new house for the first few weeks while mum settles in, she will only be just round the corner from me and the added security of such a large and protective dog should make the settling in period easier for my mum. I know that Indi will love the one to one attention she will get while she is there and I have no doubt that Mum will spoil her rotten.

Rudi is fine and training hard with the boys, he has another agility competition coming up in April so we shall see how he does, my sons will be running him in a junior team competition so lets hope he behaves himself.

Well, that's all my news at the moment so, until next time, bye for now. Becki

January 2010 - Firstly I must wish you a somewhat belated Happy New Year and hope that you have all had a quiet christmas time.

I had a lovely long, and somewhat extended, break over christmas which I really needed, we had a few extra Saturdays off due to the heavy snow that covered the entire country. The dogs of course just loved it and it was great to see them all playing in the snow in the Garden.

I am now back to doing the Leo Agility classes and starting to organise things for next years Wiltshire Wet Leos, the dates are already sorted out but there is still much to do to get ready for the next season.

Preparations are underway to get all the necessary paperwork and leaflets ready for Crufts so I will be busy helping the LCGB Working Section getting discover dogs ready. Don't know if I will be at Crufts myself this year but if I am it will be helping out at discover dogs stand.

That's all my news at the moment as things have been rather quite in the last month but no doubt I will be busy, busy, busy again very soon.

Until next time. Becki

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