Gunner to Gundog... the continuing tale

Yet another fortnight gone by. And off we go for another lesson in 'How to be The BEST Gundog'. We meet Rory down at the farm where he's gone with several dogs for their training session. As we arrive he's just practising some water retrieves with a buzzy little black/grey cocker spaniel. I was impressed by the little chap's enthusiasm but, lesson finished, talking to Rory he explained that the dog was a bad example - enthusiastic, keen, fast and buzzy but only if he was doing what he wanted to do and if he couldn't do that he could be sly and stubborn.... "Not a good example".

So, talking of good examples, I signal Gunner to get out of the car and we start his session. It takes very few minutes before Rory exclaims: "This is a different dog!" We continue with various hunt, retrieve and memory tasks. Again Rory exclaims: "You said when I came over that you had three spaniels but I only met two. This must be the one you were hiding!"

The session continued in the same vein. "I can't believe it's the same dog" said Rory, yet again. "He's keen, enthusiastic and happy and doing everything you ask. I think we've turned the corner with him. Now we can move forward!".

I'm ecstatic. My dog's going to be a gundog>>>>>!!!! For once, Rory is smiling. The only mistakes we made all session were handler errors. For once, it's I who has to polish up on the homework. Gunner just has to continue onwards and upwards.... more water experience to build up his confidence and continue stretching his memory..... Easy peasy stuff.

Will this continue????

Well -- Gunner's been having a word with Mangel about it..... and Mangel thinks things can only get better.... Optimistic pig then?

Little Lily pig went to the Show

.. But Precious and Buster said "Definitely NO!".

So that was that then, wasn't it?

If a pig don't want to go, a pig don't want to go. And after trying for 30minutes to persuade them into the limousine - to no avail - we just took Lily. And what a great day she had. Centre of Attention - not a bad thing for any little miss piggy - quite wore her out. People calling her 'Woolly pig', 'Hairy pig', 'sheep-like pig' and many others just saying "Ohhhhh a curly coat - haven't seen one of them in years!" She proved a great ambassador for the cause and provoked a great deal of interest. She had 4, of a litter of 13, 10 week old Berkshire piglets alongside for company - not that she paid them a great deal of attention, but they were very popular with the visitors. The Lincoln Reds and Shire Horses didn't make her stir more than a whisker either and as for the Lancaster (0ne of only two in the world still flying) and the Spitfire - well, they literally went over the top of her head!

When we got back home and she told Precious and Buster what they'd missed they were totally unimpressed - well, they would be wouldn't they.... particularly as they'd missed breakfast through their stubborn behaviour.....

Lily left them to their tea and went and collapsed in a heap outside the ark, bent on recovering from her extremely arduous day...........

Piggy would a-wandering go

So, there we were on Wednesday afternoon - totally oblivious to Ginger's imminent delivery - delivering two of Precious's brothers to their new home. Elshom Hall, located in the north of Lincolnshire near Scunthorpe, is one of England's stately country piles which is 'open to the Public' for the summer months. Amongst its many attractions are the landscaped parkland, beautiful gardens (including a restored and artistically laid out walled one), well stocked lakes and numerous natural sculptures. Also there are animals to entertain, mostly, the children - guinea pigs, lion-headed rabbits, peacocks, guinea fowl, sheep... to name but a few. And now they also have two curly coated pigs.....

There was a fine welcoming party when we arrived - little piggies were just a tiny bit overwhelmed ; didn't want to leave the comfort of their limousine (which it had taken us just a bit of time (!) to convince them was worth stepping into in the first place). However, their new 'Boss' - Gervase - proved more than capable of persuading them to take the long trip down the ramp into their new surroundings --- which were then subjected to much scrutiny... but seemed to pass muster! We left them rootling around whilst being much admired by their new family..... They will love the adoration of the visiting public and the public will, we are sure, love them......

She's a real pig but she's our mum!

24 hours later and all the (definitely 7) little ones are alive and well. What a treasure Mum is. The little ones suckle almost continuously - with 20 minutes breaks inbetween. Ginger just rumbles the whole time

- almost contentedly.

Mangel, meanwhile, rather in the manner of elephants, rumbles away in unison in his pen - roughly three metres away from her. If that's not companionable........

HOT OFF THE PRESS!!!******BIG KISS FOR MUM!!***

Congratulations! Ginger delivers...... 7 ... We Think!

Every day for the past 3 weeks we've been saying

"tomorrow"... and every tomorrow has come and gone. Today she was 'nesting' --- carrying mouths full of straw to the big ark. Consulting the 'Pig Book' we read that this usually happens 2-3 days before the piglets are due. "AHA" we say "She's bound to have them at the weekend when we're off to The Show"...............

What do we know?

Go out for the afternoon delivering two of her previous off-spring to their new home (more of which later). Ginger's "sleeping" when we return home in the late afternoon.

Go out at usual time to feed dinner..................... The Boss returns, pregnant with news! "How can you sit there calmly supping tea when we have PIGLETS outside!!!!!"

At first I think he's kidding..... but he doesn't joke about serious matters........ Hotfoot off to the ark and there she is, proud - but worn out - mum surrounded by numerous (7? 8? 9?) squiggling, shaking, squeaking tiny, tiny piglets..........................

What a Clever Girl..... she is hot, tired and exhausted... and maybe not yet finished.

We give her fresh water. She comes out for a drink. Returns to her piglets..... fraught few minutes whilst she settles - trying to avoid 'on top' of them. We decide we're superfluous for the moment and, nervously, retreat to leave her to it. We'll check in an hour or so...... Wishing her well we try to occupy our time till we go out to check her at dusk.....

What? You? Here too?

It was lesson time again today. With Rory coming over to our territory to see how the would-be-bestest-Gundog behaves on his own ground.

Gunner's always keen and excited about his lessons. He knows the signs. Other dogs told to 'stay indoors' but 'Gunner out'. And he sits quivering in the porch while I don the gear and collect the (now quite heavy) dummy rucksack. And then he's all agog with that "What are we going to do now?" questioning bounce about him.

Likewise today.

Except when we got out the door and went up to the car parked outside with Rory standing next to it, he did a double-take. First he went up sniffing and wagging quite confidently... then he literally stood back, looked up and his little face clearly said "What? You... here....?"

But then he seemed to shrug it off and we went down the field to run through his paces. We ran through the library of retrieves: memory, hidden, left & right, back, drop-come here-fetch back..... everything except somersault-and-return really. The w-b-b-G didn't falter once. Eager, attentive and tail wagging merrily, he did it all. And it was a very hot day so he had every excuse to play the lazy card if he'd wanted to.

We went 'hunting' and he was keen, attentive to the whistle when it was needed and happy in his work. We tried a 'retrieve' in the midst of his hunting. It's fair to say he wasn't quite so keen on the idea; went towards it then kind of gave up and started to come back in; so I instructed him to 'sit' then 'Fetch back' and back he duly went, collected the dummy quite happily and brought it back to me.

"That's when the homework really begins to pay off" said Rory. "Two weeks ago he didn't know that command and you'd have been stuck. But he's learned his lesson and today he could use it in a practical way."

Well.... that's better than a red rosette I'd say!

Returning home we ended the session with a totally new skill.......... retrieving from water. The pond level is quite high still after all the rain we had last month but the sunshine has brought out all the algae. So it's nice and cool and green! Gunner has never been in it. He's been happy enough running through ditches and quite deep bog.... but never been in a real pond. So we sat him at the edge, threw the dummy a couple of metres in and sent him off to 'fetch'. And off he went ---- very, very gingerly; slow step by slow step, one paw at a time until he reached the dummy: which he then picked up - ugh, nasty, wet and green covered thing - equally gingerly and, almost distastfully, dragged back to shore! Full marks. Big Praise. Another red roset

te moment. Exercise repeated and carried out just a teensy bit less gingerly! "You really want me to bring you this nasty, smelly, soggy thing?" What a good dog.

Trainer much impressed. Owner thrilled and relieved. Dog..... tired!

Homework is to increase the difficulty of the retrieves by doing less and less at home and more and more in rough ground. And if the weather holds, we take the w-b-b-G to a nice clean lake to practice swimming for his next lesson. He'll like that! Of course he will.......

News - yet No News!

It's a Bank Holiday and the phone rings very early in the morning ...visitors wish to come to see the Curly Coats.... May they? Of course they may. He writes 'pieces' for the local papers and journals; she is passionate about animals; both are passionate about pigs: being from Lincolnshire they are enamoured of the Curly Coat story. They come, they admire and they enthuse. The Curlies are more than happy to comply with the desire to be stroked, petted and patted. They almost fall over themselves. It's all great fun. Our visitors go away promising to write 'pieces' and musing over whether or not they can accomodate a curly coat of their own.....

Last week it was a prominent local artist who turned up 'on spec.' to see the curly coats. This particular gentleman has, all his life, harboured an ambition to paint the 'Lincolnsire Trio' (Red cattle, Longwool sheep and Curly Coat pig) but never thought he would be able to fulfil it..... He was totally ecstatic about the pigs. His 80 year old companion was more interested in getting hold of some serious fat bacon. We told him where to find it. He rang first thing the following morning to check there would still be some by the time he could get someone to drive him (having recently had a hip op.he was unable to ferry himself....) ...... and reserved his order. The butcher's never had that happen before.....

Meanwhile, still no news on Ginger: she was wallowing today, it being seriously warm.

Mangel continues to watch on.... he too is feeling the change in the weather, but it does not put him off his food.

News from the Poultry Palace is that we have six ducks seriously sitting on nests..... due to hatch in a fortnight or so... They've hidden themselves in various 'safe' places in and out of the Poultry Palace. Twice a day they rush off their nests amidst a furore of quacking and flapping of wings - dashing off to wash and eat and drink and within 10 minutes or so are back on their eggs again. During this time the drakes rush up and down in panic, doubtless worried that the females will stay away from the nests too long!

Meanwhile, Daffodil's chicks are becoming bolder and bigger every day.... Conchita has returned to Merlin and is much happier - she stubbornly refused to settle in the Poultry Palace and spent every night alone in her solitary boudouir. No contest then, I decided. Back she goes. He fussed and pranced around her all day. So -He's happy too. Also yesterday we heard the cuckoo for the first time this year..... very late; usually we reckon to hear him around the 21st April.... But April was too wet and cold....yet only today we read in the paper that the forecast is for the warmest summer for many a year --- the ducklings will certainly hatch; Ginger will definitely give birth - when she's ready.... The weather? Well, who knows...... Never a dull moment in the country!....