Millie's Story

Millie was my first ever dog. We've always had dogs in our family (Mindy and Mitzi the Yorkshire terriers, Tandy the collie cross, Nettle the springer x lab, Brook the springer, Rex the terrier & Emma the Yorkshire terrier) but non of them had been 'mine'.

In December 2001 when I was 19, I started work at a veterinary practice in Consett as an auxiliary nurse. It was my first official animal job and I was keen. However it didn't turn out to be my dream job. Management were awful, the hours were ridiculous and the pay measly! On the 11th February of 2002 the dog warden walked into our practice with a tiny black and white puppy in his arms. She'd been taken off some children whom had been using her as a football and suffered a leg injury :-(

We took her in and x-rayed her. She looked about 3 months old, was thin and a little nervous. The x-ray showed a floating patella, causing her to limp and be in a bit of pain. I asked the head nurse what would happen to her, and to my shock and horror, she said the puppy will probably be put to sleep as she was a stray and needed treatment that wasn't free! In hindsight I feel this may have been a joke, but at the time the nurse looked serious! I said that no way was that going to happen and I decided that she was coming home with me. It was a rash decision and at the time I was still living at home, so my parents were a bit shocked when I walked in with a puppy that night! We already had Rex and Emma and my parents weren't sure about taking in another dog. I pleaded with them to let her stay as I had already grown attached to her. They yielded eventually!

Millie playing in the sea near Whitby

So the then un-named puppy stayed. She had no training and the first thing she did was wee on the carpet! I struggled to find a name for her and went through several before I settled on one. My mam wanted to call her Mitzi after her old Yorkshire terrier but it just didn't suit her!
At the time, my sister had a black and white mongrel called Roxy and the little puppy looked a bit like her. One day my sister said "she's a mini Roxy!" and I thought Minnie might suit her! However it still didn't suit her and from Minnie I got Millie, which felt right!

Millie was a handful from day one. Her house training took months and she would chew everything in sight! She chewed my mam's shoes, the chair legs, the table legs, the plants outside and my clothes! She dug huge holes in the flower beds and tried to eat poisonous bulbs! Having a bad start in life really effected her and she over bonded with me. I didn't help the situation by taking her every where with me and letting her sleep on the bed. She developed severe separation anxiety and I couldn't leave her with anyone but my parents. I'd take her to shops and she'd wait outside with a friend or relative while I went in, and she would scream, whimper and howl until I came back out!

This was obviously a problem that I had to deal with. I was only 20 when I got her and I'd never trained my own dog before so I made lots of mistakes with her. As the years went by she did improve, and by the time I started working at the PDSA as a student veterinary care assistant in 2006, she was 70% better. As I studied I became more involved in canine behaviour and training and I started applying what I knew to Millie. In 2007 I met my other half, Graeme. I started taking Millie with me when I went to stay at Graeme's in Barnard Castle, and Millie wasn't allowed to stay in the bedroom with me! Graeme flatly refused to let the dog in the bedroom and wasn't keen on her even being upstairs! She'd always slept either on my bed or under it so she didn't much like being relegated to the landing (this was the compromise!)

On a rock in the Lake District

Millie and I spent our time living half with my dad and half with Graeme. Sadly my mam passed away in December 2007 just as I had met Graeme, so it was difficult not being with my dad all the time but I loved spending time with Graeme and walking around Barnard Castle. It wouldn't have been so bad if home hadn't been an hour's drive from Graeme's! Millie still had problems with separation and she was very highly strung. If I left Millie with Graeme in a public place for any reason, like if I went into a shop or to the toilets, she would still cry and whimper until I came back. People would look at Graeme as if he was hurting her in some way!

I was still working at the PDSA Pet Aid hospital in Newcastle and this was the reason I hadn't moved in full time with Graeme. The commute was a nightmare and I didn't like the idea of having 3 hours traveling every day. So we were still with my dad 4 days a week. At the end of 2008, the two other dogs that lived at home had to be put to sleep a week apart from each other. They both had kidney failure and it was awful losing both of them. Rex was roughly 17 or 18 years old but Emma was only 12 years old :-(
Millie suddenly went from living with 2 doggy friends to living with none. She didn't see them after they were put to sleep so had no comprehension of where they went. She'd known them most of her life and it was all she knew. She took it badly, pacing the house and being very subdued and quiet.

 

Millie starting to look old and grey!

 For the rest of Millie's story and the story of Brenna, please wait for my next blog!

A week of labradors, stress and fantastic agility training!

It's been a long and stressful week at Born 2 Run HQ! The week started with the usual chocolate labs in the house, Charlie and Meg. Meg is 9 months old and in season (on her second week, so at the most fertile!) and Charlie is 2 years old and entire! They come from different families but I have them both on a Monday and a Tuesday. Obviously I had to keep them separate which wasn't as easy as it sounds! Charlie thought his luck was in and a little thing like Meg being in another room wasn't deterring him!  Meg had been booked in for her spay but came into season the day before the op! Typical!

Big boy Charlie! I think he weighs more than me!

This is Meg giving Brae a cuddle

My friend Maureen from Trophy Pet Foods helped out with Meg by having her for a few hours until Charlie went home. then, another lab joined the pack in the afternoon! Taz the black lab was coming to stay for a few days. Taz is 8 months old and absolutely gorgeous! Of course he hasn't been for the old snip yet either so this caused tension! Charlie thought he had absolute rights to Meg's remaining smell and told Taz all about it! They did settle down and started playing after Charlie realised how submissive Taz was.

Taz

Then, Brae decides to show Taz how to obsess over the rabbits. She shows him how to stare at them until they move and then how to try and nip them through the bars! Taz thinks this is a great game, the rabbits, Boy Florence (he was named before I was sure he was a boy. He was pretty so I thought he looked like a Florence!) and Poppy thought otherwise!

The very pretty Boy Florence!

So after dogs in season, dogs scrapping and dogs running wild in the garden after the waskerley wabbits, I see my cat, Sullivan in the garden spraying up against the compost bin. I go over to wash it off and notice that it has a red tinge to it. He has had cystitis before so I whipped him indoors and rang the vet for an appointment. He also has an upper respiratory infection that keeps recurring and it makes him sneeze and wheeze!
When the time came to get him into the carrier to go to the vets, he was no where to be found! I called him, I rattled his biscuits, his tin of food, nothing. I went outside and did the same, nothing. So after 20 minutes of looking in every room and calling him I finally gave up. I called the vets and canceled his much needed appointment. By this point I was thoroughly fed up and worried about the cat.

After walking Millie, Brenna, Brae and Taz I went and had a much needed relaxing bath. It was while I was in the bath reading my book that I heard a familiar wheeze! Sullivan was only under the bath! There's a missing panel at the end and he'd somehow managed to squeeze himself in! He then went very quiet and I couldn't hear the wheezing. I panicked that he was really ill under there and asked my other half Graeme to pull the rest of the panels off so I could get him out!
We started pulling the panels off and when there was a big enough space I poked my head in with the torch, expecting to see a very ill cat. Instead, I saw a very relaxed Sullivan staring back at me! He then sloped out and went to his food bowl to stuff his face!

Sullivan is so laid back he's horizontal!

After all that I finally got Sullivan to the vets on Tuesday. He's on a course of antibiotics and metacam and I'm still trying to get a urine sample off him! Trying to keep him in the house is a nightmare, he dives out at every opportunity!
Meg came to stay Tuesday and Wednesday and with help from Maureen I managed to keep her away from the boys. Meg is actually getting a big brother, her owners are acquiring a 14 month old black lab called Xander to keep Meg company. He's entire so can't move in with his new family until Meg's season is finished. That's one more labrador to add to my books, making 6 labs in total!
Charlie went in for the snip yesterday and I'm just waiting to hear how he is. Two stones lighter I can imagine!

Wednesday was a much better day, stress wise. I was still busy but it was a productive day! I took Brenna and Brae to agility training at 5.45pm. It was Brenna's class first, she's in the improver class, with Brae being in the beginners class.
Both dogs did so well considering we've missed a lot of training recently. Brenna was measured into large so has to jump the large jumps. This was a struggle for her at first as we'd spent a whole year jumping medium height, but she is improving every week on the large jumps. We've already had our first competition but we only did one run in the 'any size jumping' class. Brenna did very well and came second in her class of 17!!

Brenna at our first competition, 02/04/11

Our first rosette!

We have our second show on the 28th May. It's any size jumping again but I'm still looking forward to it.
Brae will be old enough to be measured in July but I already know she'll be measured into large. She was a little superstar at agility practice, she jumped full height, she turned left when I told her and watched me closely for changes in body language. Considering we've missed a month of training classes she did very very well! I even got a compliment from the trainer Shaun, which made my day!

Brae practicing her contacts

Then the weaves!

So after a mad week with lots of labradors and stress, it's ending quite well with me being so proud of my agility girls! They did however, get a baby rabbit at the agility field today :-(
It died as I was taking it home to see to. Dogs will be dogs and unfortunately baby rabbits just aren't fast enough to out maneuver Brenna and Brae.
Tomorrow I have Kito the bearded collie and Benji the collie cross coming at 8am for the day. Both are lovely dogs and I think it will end my week nicely!

It's a hard life being a dog

Hello all you human folk, my name is Brae and I'm a happy collie.

                                 My mam, Lynwood Speck

                                         My dad, Scott


I started life in Doncaster on a farm with my mam and dad. At 11 weeks old I met Tamara and Graeme who had come all the way down from Barnard Castle just to meet me. They instantly fell in love with me (who wouldn't?!) and took me home that same day.
I didn't like the car journey at all and drooled all over Tamara! Once I arrived at my new home I met Millie and Brenna, who weren't that impressed with me to begin with! Soon we all got on and played together.

I was a bit naughty at first, but I think all puppies are supposed to be! I chewed the sofa a bit and my bed, then the wellies and a bit of a trainer. I don't think they minded!
I soon settled in and enjoyed having loads of new doggy friends to play with! Most days there's extra dogs in the house to play with.
I started my agility training in January and I hope to start competing in October! If my day involves running, playing, eating and sleeping then I'm happy :-)

A bit about me and the hounds!

This was Brae at 11 weeks and 3 days old, and it was the day we brought her home! That was June 15th 2010. Since then she's grown up into a beautiful girl who entertains me everyday!

I love training and agility and so does Brae. She loves all other dogs which is great for her when I have dogs coming to stay! Her best friends are Brenna the rescue collie cross (also her sister!), Holly the german shepherd, Charlie and Meg the chocolate labradors and Beck the springer spaniel.

Most days begin with Brae rushing into the garden to check what the rabbits are up to. This is her favorite garden obession and would stare at them all day if I let her!

This is Brae with Brenna on Hadrians Wall last month. Brenna was a rescue from Dogs Trust in June 2009. She is also an agility dog but lacks the confidence of Brae. I also have another dog called Millie who is a terrier cross who I have owned since she was an abandoned puppy in 2002.

I've always had dogs, cats, ferrets, hamsters, mice and rats and I've worked with animals for many years. Dogs have always been my favorite and I just love learning about training and behaviour.
Wouldn't live without them!

Welcome!

Hello and welcome to my blog! I hope to tell you all about my days as a dog walker with input from my collie Brae. She's an agility dog and Born 2 Run Pet Care mascot with a full life and lots to talk about!