Postings by Somerwynd Tell Tail's Family

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Edward Edward - Sweet to the- core     Barked: Fri May 17, '13 6:00pm PST  Actually Tiller you can use AI with TB's in some limited measure - the jockey club allows it when both horses are on the same property. Technically it is to "back up" regular breeding but it is being done more and more. The reasons the Jockey Club don't allow AI are largely rooted in the money stud farms make in foaling out and hand breeding. Mares foal out at the farm where the sire stands so that is a big money maker in terms of breeding/foaling fees. Therefore by making the mare be on the property the stud farms still get the big breeding fees. The really interesting thing with horses is the use of clones for breeding. I have a number of clients that I do equine photography for that have cloned stallions. Some of the studbooks are allowing clones for breeding, some aren't, some have separate clone books. So far I don't know of any studbooks with dogs that allow cloning - but I bet the Eastern European countries will be the first as they are leading the pack in terms of clone breeding with horses. Also with horses there frozen embryos and embryo transfer are not unusual and many studbooks allow it. I don't think I've heard of this being done with dogs, but why not with a good bitch. And I know AKC doesn't allow it, not sure of other studbooks. my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Edward Edward - Sweet to the- core     Barked: Sat Mar 9, '13 4:39pm PST  A friend of mine has a lovely Clumbador (Clumber Spaniel/Labrador mix). He is a very sweet dog - looks basically like a lab who is a bit heavier with a white chest and paws. A bit jowly perhaps (like a clumber). This was not a purpose made cross - the vet school accidently used the wrong frozen semen and the breeders had a shocking surprise when their clumber female had a litter of black/chocolate/yellow puppies. All were given away to great homes and turned out to be nice dogs. my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Choosing the Right Dog > Loving a breeder, but not necessarily their breed?

Edward Edward - Sweet to the- core     Barked: Sat Jan 26, '13 5:04pm PST  There was a breeder with another breed whom I admired quite a bit who became an important mentor to me. For me it didn't matter that she had another breed - I learned so much from her. We went to shows and shared a tent, she handled my first clumber for me, and I took handling and general training lessons from her. It probably actually worked better as a mentorship because she had a different breed (another sporting breed). She would put a conformation title on her dogs and then put them through all their hunt titles, and then go on to do obedience and agility with her dogs. And she was so inspiring in her health testing and awareness. She not only did OFA and other testing on her breeding stock, she had all her puppies tested (even the ones who were "just pets"). She wanted all the health information she could get and felt you needed it on all available data points so to speak. She wanted sound, good tempered, working dogs with great conformation. She is everything I look up to in a breeder and trainer and I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to learn from her. my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Choosing the Right Dog > Large Breed Suggestions

Edward Edward - Sweet to the- core     Barked: Sat Jan 26, '13 3:22pm PST  Well Clumbers are pretty special - you should try to meet one in person if you can. They also love to swim (they are bred for water retrieving) - mine swim every day in the summer. And if you have a clumber you will never be alone again - they are complete velcro dogs. But the shedding isn't for the faint of heart - they shed a lot 24/7 365 days a yeear. Plus the drool - picture having to regularly scrub down your walls from slung drool throughout the house (our hallways are always particularly drool adorned). And you will never look at black clothes the same way again (from the white hair . You learn to have lint brushes everywhere and to always do a last roll if going anywhere in public. I always say they are definitely not the dog for a neatfreak. But they are such clowns they will keep you endlessly entertained. And they are very soft dogs - a harsh word and they crumble. my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Choosing the Right Dog > Large Breed Suggestions

Edward Edward - Sweet to the- core     Barked: Fri Jan 25, '13 5:35pm PST  I hardly every really suggest my own breed, but take a look at a Clumber Spaniel. They are big teddy bears and total clowns. I travel and spend time at people's homes as part of my job (I'm an equestrian photographer) and my clumbers have gone everywhere and get along with all other dogs at barns, homes, etc. The males are in the 85 lb range, females a bit smaller. They do shed a lot and drool so you have to be prepared for that. They are great for trails and mine have all been great off lead. We have cats and parrots and mine are great with other animals. They were developed as an elder gentleman's hunting dog so they have a lot of stamina and can go all day - just not at high speeds. Some are a bit aloof with strangers, but none of mine have been. Health issues are a concern but checking out your breeder helps a lot. I live in Florida and mine have handled the heat and humidity here with no problem (on the panhandle - we have extreme humidity). At any rate it might be worth taking a look at Clumbers and see if they might work for you my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Edward Edward - Sweet to the- core     Barked: Fri Jan 18, '13 6:16pm PST  I'm a big believer in dogs teaching themselves bit inhibition. I have two puppies right now (about 8 months old). I brought the first one home at 8 weeks and he was a big time biter. And he bit hard - drawing blood many times. I tried everything and nothing worked to get him to stop. Two weeks later I brought second puppy home two weeks later. The second puppy was about 4.5 months old and had stayed with a large litter (8) up until then. He didn't bite at all. When they first played together puppy #1 would get too rough with the biting and puppy #2 quickly taught him this was not acceptable. Within 24 hours puppy #1 stopped biting almost 100% and when he did bite it was a very soft grab, no biting down. Puppy #1 was by far the largest puppy in his litter and left too soon IMHO and just hadn't learned from his peers how to play nicely as puppy #2 had. So if you can take the puppy for playdates or daycare to learn socialized (important for a service dog anyway) it might help this a lot. Probably quicker than you could do it using other methods. Good luck! my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Rescue, Adoption & Happy Endings > The No-Kill Movement

Edward Edward - Sweet to the- core     Barked: Sat Jan 5, '13 7:18pm PST  I am in the deep South and there are just so many dogs and cats. It is really discouraging. I volunteered at the shelter for a while but I just couldn't deal with how many animals were coming through and being put down. One day I was there over 40 dogs were put down. People in the South just don't get responsible pet ownership - sorry to say that but it is true. I lived in the NE most of my life and the attitudes are just so different. But at the same time I can't totally agree with an absolute hardline no-kill stance. While I was in college I volunteered at a large no kill shelter in the Midwest. They never put anything down for any reason. As a result the shelter was filling up with non adoptable animals (feral cats, aggressive dogs, severe behavioral issues). The shelter was completely full and turning down potentially adoptable animals to literally warehouse all of the unadoptables. Personally I don't feel that living in a cage or kennel for years with no end in sight is a good quality of life for an animal. Even in the cageless rooms it really wasn't IMHO any kind of life for an animal long term. I don't think keeping an animal alive strictly for life's sake is the answer. I really felt bad for some of the cats and dogs that had been there for 10+ years. But where do you draw the line - it is a really tough question. my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Puppy Place > 4 month old Newfoundland puppy..... when to get him neutered?

Edward Edward - Sweet to the- core     Barked: Sat Jan 5, '13 6:52pm PST  I agree with the others and would wait until he is about two years old. What does your breeder say? Your breeder should definitely have input on this and know what works with their lines in addition to being the ideal mentor for you. Good luck! my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Choosing the Right Dog > Spaniel Specialists -- Speak Up!

Somerwynd- Tell Tail Mr. Personality     Barked: Thu Jan 3, '13 6:42pm PST  Well I had a golden (13 years) and have numerous close friends with goldens and I have to say that spaniels (clumber and sussex at least) are a whole level up in the velcro/neediness level. Sussex in particular are incredibly attached to their owners. None of my spaniels have been aloof, but some can be with strangers. But all of my spaniels have been very one person oriented. I.E. their world rises and sets on their chosen human. Sussex in particular tend to have issues with SA. And a note on Sussex - they might be too large for what you want. Adult Sussex tend to be in the forty to sixty pound range. One of my Sussex boys was only 40 lbs but he was the smallest Sussex I have ever seen (dog or bitch). They aren't tall, but they are heavy boned. Sussex surprising are a very healthy breed despite the small breed pool. They are very difficult to breed, but once they are a couple of months old they are hardy and have a good lifespan. I know when I went to insure my dogs the rate for Sussex is very low (while clumbers have the highest rate - they do tend to have more health issues). You might want to check insurance rates for Boykins or other breeds you are interested in - that will give you a good idea of what insurance experience is with vet bills for the different breeds. If you like Boykins, I would say definitely try to meet some in person. We have a lot end up in rescue in this area so that might be an option for you if you want to go that way (maybe try fostering one first?). But having watched and photographed field trials for both goldens and boykins I have to say Boykins are a lot more dog. They are like little bees whizzing around nonstop. Incredibly fun to watch, but you have to live with that. my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Somerwynd- Tell Tail Mr. Personality     Barked: Tue Jan 1, '13 7:01pm PST  I have two Sussex spaniels and a Clumber Spaniel. This is my third Clumber and I am active in the breed so have a fair amount of clumber experience. Don't be fooled that Clumbers are laid back and low key - they are really high energy clowns. But they do have an off switch in the house which is nice. But they are large (many bitches even weigh in 70-80 lb range, males are larger and heavier). They have a lot of stamina and can just go all day, just not at a frantic speed. They drool and shed (24/7, 365 days a year). Really they shed a lot - it boggles the mind how much they shed. They are great with other dogs. They are very soft dogs personality wise - they crumble if you even raise your voice at them. They are quiet dogs and don't bark a lot (though they do grunt and woo). In fact if mine barked three or four times a year that is a lot. There is no breed split between field/show. Many top show dogs also hunt. At the last National they had eight dogs who were either CH or GCH who had MH titles. They do really well in tracking, though they don't typically excel in obedience I adore these big clowns and can't imagine my life without them. I also adore my Sussex. They are a lot spicier in personality than the Clumbers. They are also very vocal - they bark a lot (and bay, and woo, and grunt). My Sussex have been a lot more dominant dogs than my Clumbers (who have all been laid back wooses). They are also high energy clowns with an off button. This is also a breed with no field/conformation split. They also do well in tracking and there are a number of search and rescue sussex out there. They also drool and shed (a lot!) so not a dog for a neat freak. They are soft personality wise, but not quite as much so as the Clumber. My Sussex are quick to learn but get bored easily with any repetition and then will "turn off". I hope to always have a sussex in my life. They can be very hard to find - you might need that long to get a puppy. As for Boykins, we have quite a few in this area and I have seen them at hunt tests. I get calls from the local rescues because they know I have "rare" spaniels. IME, these can be very, very high energy spaniels, bordering on the neurotic. If you focus this energy they can be good dogs. But I have never met anybody who keeps one as a house dog. Rather they are hunting dogs and kept in kennels outside. The breeders I spoke to at hunt tests said they are just not placed as "pets". They really, really need a job. And a note on English Cockers and English Springers. The dogs I have met at hunt tests are very, very different from conformation dogs of those breeds. They are very high energy and have little physical resemblance to what you see in the conformation ring. I wouldn't have even known the breed if I hadn't checked the program in many cases. And again a lot of the extreme field types are not suited as "house" pets. The breeders/handlers I talked to said they are really kennel dogs. That said there are some very nice ESS and EC of conformation type that still hunt and do dog sports. You just have to look to the right breeder. I don't have as much experience with Field Spaniels, but I have been seeing a lot of nice ones lately. I am a total spaniel lover - they are what makes my heart pitter patter. But I like velcro dogs who are very dog friendly, who I can do outdoor activities with, but have an off button. I also am not overly obsessed with neatness. They are great dogs if they fit your lifestyle. my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

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