Month: August 2008

Beagle Pool Party

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Beanie had an extra special swimming lesson today – her buddy Sophie was there!

We met up with Sophie in the park this morning and it turned out that their lessons were about the same time so we decided to all go together.

Sophie went first, and was swimming just great. Without a life jacket too!!

Beanie’s turn came next and she was quite miffed when they made her wear a lifejacket – with Sophie watching too!!

She needn’t have worried – Sophie was more interested in raiding the toy box.

Sophie did 24 laps without a life jacket and with the water jets to make her work harder.  But little Beanie wasn’t going to be upstaged – she did 25 laps :)

The peer pressure seemed to result in a better performance from both Beanie and Sophie, so we’re booked in for a double session again next week.

Puppy Power!

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Racing day again, and Beanie did very well! Due to bad weather, illness and a clash with a dog show only three Beagles turned up today. Sam, Murphy and Beanie. Still, we were pleased because Sam and Murphy are two of the best dogs and it meant that Beanie would get plenty of chance to gain experience running against them.

Today’s race was a handicap. All of the dogs were weighed and were given a starting position according to weight. I think everyone would have been suprised if Beanie hadn’t won this one as the dogs weighed in as follows:

Murphy : 42 lbs
Sam : 38 lbs
Beanie : 22 lbs

Sam got a 2 foot head start over Murhpy, and Beanie got a whopping 10 foot head start over Sam. The boys did well and very nearly made up the distance. But Beanie hung on to her lead and that made her the official winner of todays racing. But things got better and better for Beanie….

In the next race the starting order was reversed, so Beanie started last, Sam 10 feet in front of her and Murhpy 1 foot in front of Sam. Sam came first followed by Murphy then Beanie. However, Beanie actually ran much faster in this race as she lost very little ground.

Then the handicap was reduced, with only one yard between each dog’s starting position. Beanie won!

Finally we did a couple of scratch races in which Beanie came a very close third in the first one (I can’t remember who won), and second in the next one (behind Murphy).

Derby day is only two weeks away, but it’s beginning to look like our little super-pup could be in with a fighting chance! OK, so maybe the boys were having an off day, but she’s still maturing and getting significantly faster every week. But then again, a couple of the Mochuisle Beagles did extremely well last week and it was their first time. So it’s hard to guess who the winner will be. It should be great fun!

Paul didn’t have the camera with him today as it was so wet, but here’s a snap that Beanie’s proud mummy just took of her with all of her medals and rosettes from the racing.

These are mostly for racing, but there’s also a couple of “Best Beagle” and “Best Dog” show wins and her 5k road race medal.

The Derby on the 17th is by all accounts a really fun day. It’s open to all breeds of dog, and anyone can take their dog to have a go at chasing the lure. I highly recommend it.

Click her to download the Fun Day Flyer in PDF format.

Beagle mobsters take over park, eat boy

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One of Beanie’s sisters – Bella – came along to the park this morning for an off-lead romp, but what started out as a little family reunion quickly turned into a full-scale meeting of the local hound Mafia.

Sophie aka “Scissors” was there first, looking much fitter now that her galastop medication is easing her out of her phantom pregnancy. She quickly got down to some full on mobster-style play with Beanie (“Runner Bean”), and earned an extra item on her already lengthy rap sheet: Assault with intent to consume an ear. In this case Beanie’s left lug. Being such a tough gangster Beanie didn’t press charges though (code of silence and all that).

When Bella “The Belle” joined the group she looked a little uneasy – this was probably the first time she’d seen such a gathering of canine miscreants.

But she soon learned to throw her weight around and earn her position in the pack.

Before long Tess “Big Momma” arrived, bringing the Beagle count to four, but Beagles weren’t the only hounds in this joint.

Polly “The Stare”

With so many mobsters around, you might think the human types would be smart enough to empty their pockets and surrender their treats immediately. Unfortunately that was not the case. One young man needed a little “persuasion”..

..and that was the last we saw of him.

Once the important business had concluded, Beanie and Bella had some quiet time together.

Bella’s certainly well named – she’s a really beautiful Beagle. But she’s not half as fast as our little sprinter!