News
Autumn 2002
A fond farewell from Horsham Newfs
Christine Reeve sadly lost her long battle with cancer on September 12th 2002. She will be greatly missed and fondly remembered by all who knew her. Christine’s kindness touched all members in the group, both human and canine.
Her most memorable trait was the constant supply of cooked sausages prepared
with love for our dogs. Every Saturday Chris would arrive with her tupperware
full of treats and diligently work her way round the dogs. They knew she
was coming and some would spend all day sat by her side patiently waiting.
Her reputation as the sausage lady will be forever etched in the hearts
and minds of most Horsham Newfs members.
A Memorial Fund has been set up, with the agreement of John and the family, with a view to buying a new boat for the group which will be named in Christine's memory. Anyone wishing to make a donation to the fund please send it to Elaine Mallett (cheques payable to Horsham Area Newfoundland Group).
Cart rides Shoreham 6th July 2002 - St. Mary’s School
Ahh I hear you say – Did she manage to organise the correct day and
the right time!!!! The answer YES hurrah!!! It was great to see so many
Newf and their owners. The event was a great success with the most money
raised and rides being given at any such previous event. In total ten Newf
with three carts gave 142 rides @ .50p a rides with the money being split
between the school and welfare. We also sold 33 picture key rings, which
will go to club funds, and it has to be said that most of the pictures were
taken of children with puppy Merlin.
In fact I thought we might run out of film. During the day we were well looked after with a continuous supply of tea, coffee and cakes. Well done to all those owners who walked many miles with the children, dogs and carts. The weather was good for carting; overcast but dry. However we were blessed with sunshine for a well-earned swim in the sea to finish a perfect day. Don’t forget our next date in Shoreham on December 7th—the more the merrier!
Water Tests Level ‘A’ to ‘E’ at Southwater Country Park - 14/09/02
Passes for Horsham Newfs as follows:
| Level ‘A’ |
Level ‘B’ Level ‘C’ |
Particular congratulations to:
- Mica who is the first Horsham Newfs dog to pass level ‘C’ since Maisie in 1994;
- Charna for passing level ’A’ at such a young age and;
- Louis for not only passing level ’A’ but achieving level ’B’ on the same day!
A BIG thank you from Kevin Mercer, Test Manager, for all those who helped on the day, particularly the stewards who endured long periods of standing in the water on a not particularly warm day.
Results from around the country
- At Bournemouth Championship Show on August 11th Dylan Lucas came 3rd in Puppy Dog.
- At the Welsh Kennel Club Championship Show on August 17th Dylan Lucas came 1st in Minor Puppy Dog; 1st in Puppy Dog; and then went on to become Best Puppy in Breed.
- At City of Birmingham Championship Show on August 31st Charna Cundy came 4th in Minor Puppy Bitch.
- At Richmond Championship Show on September 8th Charna Cundy came 2nd in Puppy Bitch.
- At the carting tests on July 13th in Wales Izzy Mercer proved that she has still got what it takes and passed level 3 again at the grand age of 8 years and 11 days while Dexter Mercer showed that 'nuts aren't necessary' and passed level 2 at his third attempt.
News and views
- Colin and Wendy Chrismas are proud to introduce Sydney (Hudson’s 1/2 brother) to the group. Hudson has welcomed his new friend to the family with open arms and the two are getting on marvellously. Both attended the BBQ on September 22nd and enjoyed a romp in the woods with their girlfriends, Millie and Tallie Leybourne;
- Three of our newer members introduced their dogs Kodi, Louis and Freya to carting recently and will no doubt prove popular additions for our future carting events;
- Ben Mercer enjoyed a Newfie Birthday Party at the weekend and we would all like to wish him an extended HAPPY BIRTHDAY. We’ll give you the bumps next time Ben;
- Winter Walks have been scheduled from November to February, do come and join us, the more the merrier, and they normally end in the pub!
Training Tip
Many of you may well be aware that I am often seeking advice from more experienced
members of the group with regards to dog behaviour and training methods.
Imagine my surprise recently when I was witness to a normally exceptionally
well behaved dog being terribly naughty in the pub garden.
He would not
settle and was merrily wandering round sniffing people’s lunches.
Eventually his owner got a bit cross and put him in the down position with a sinister raising of the eyebrows. When he finally obeyed, despite his naughtiness, he was rewarded with half a cheeseburger! Needless to say I decided not to add this one to my list of training tips, but thought you may find it amusing!
How many dogs does it take to change a light bulb?
| Border Collie | Just one. And I'll replace any wiring that's not up to code. |
| Golden Retriever | The sun is shining, the day is young. We've got our whole lives ahead of us, and you're inside worrying about a stupid burned-out light bulb? |
| German Shepherd | I'll guard the light bulb while you decide. Back off! |
| Dachshund | I can't reach the stupid light! |
| Toy Poodle | I'll just blow in the Border Collie's ear and he'll do it. By the time he finishes rewiring the house, my nails will be dry. |
| Rottweiler | Go ahead--make me! |
| Shi-tzu | Puh-leeze, dah-ling. Leave it for the servants. |
| Lab | Oh, me, ME! Pleeeeeeze let ME change the bulb! Can I? Can I? Huh? Huh? Can I? |
| Malamute | Let the Border Collie do it. You can feed me while he's busy. |
| Chow Chow | I'm with the Malamute. After I take my nap, that is! |
| Akita | I'm with the Chow and Malamute! What's for dinner? |
| Jack Russell | I can reach it! I just KNOW I can reach it! Another twenty jumps, and it's mine, ALL mine! |
| Cocker Spaniel | Why change it? I can still pee on the carpet in the dark. |
| Mastiff | Mastiffs are NOT afraid of the dark. |
| Chihuahua | Yo quiero Taco Bulb. |
| Greyhound | It isn't moving. Who cares? |
| Pointer | I see it, there it is, rrrrriiiiiiight there. |
| Newfie | Hang on, there’s a dog hair in there ….. oops, I broke it! Have you another one? |
Aldermaston Display - September 7th 2002 - The Old Mill
We practiced and practiced
for Aldermaston this year. For three weeks prior to the event at Southwater
we were put through our paces by Wendy. We scripted it, we timed it, we
re-thought it, we tried it again and we kept getting it wrong over and
over. Our dress rehearsal on the day was a disaster! We were starting
to despair when we realised it was time to start, the demonstration had
started!
The Water Display
As planned some children fell off the wall whilst playing ball, Izzy and
Bruno leapt of the wall beautifully to rescue them. The first scene had
gone well. Next we had Mica rescuing Niblet and Charlie. It went brilliantly
and the crowd roared. The relay race came and went without a problem.
The standard people retrieve with the younger dogs and children went without
a hitch. Even the triangular retrieve went according to plan. Steve was
successfully rescued from under a capsized boat. And apart from Georgia
almost getting drowned the double multi-tow looked great. Keith’s
commentary went down a storm and Angie’s organisation on the day
was tremendous. We all felt rather proud and quite chuffed that we had
done so well.
The Carting Display
The carting demonstration followed and the synchronised sequence of moves
went off with pretty much no error. We did circles, figures of eights,
diagonals, rectangles (not technical terminology but descriptive enough).
We had a couple of un-scheduled pooh breaks from Bruno and Izzy but at
least we were able to prove that Newfie owners ALWAYS clear up after their
dogs. We came together at the end and were joined by all other dogs in
a general pat session. Again the crowd were delighted and seemed well
entertained with our display.
All in all the day was a huge success, we all enjoyed ourselves thoroughly
and as a group would like to thank Wendy Adcock for the overall organisation,
planning and execution of the day.
Let’s do it again next year!
© Horsham Working Newfoundlands