Neal
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Everything posted by Neal
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Sorry for going slightly off topic Jigsaw but I thought a reply to this would sit better here than as a P.M. Thanks for the compliment Silversnake. I definitely know what you mean about their attitude e.g. the fence jumping in that they certainly can't see the point in bothering with some things. My first lurcher was a beardie x greyhound and her attitude was similar. I thought she couldn't jump for months but she was simply saying, "why bother when there's a hole in the fence three yards away or a slightly shorter section of dry stone wall over there." I've found it is possible to make a
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That's the problem with some kelpies: "No!" sometimes doesn't work and you have to resort to "I said NO you prick-eared, belligerent, antipodean b*st*rd!"
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That's similar to how I felt about my first kelpie. He tried so hard to please me and whenever he didn't understand what I wanted him to do he'd keep trying until he got it right. Ironically, the older he got the more the roles reversed i.e. I realized he was invariably right so I tended to follow his lead, he soon cottoned on to this so just did his own thing...seems a waste to have a dog with natural talents and a brain to match to then keep telling it, "No! Do what I say!" I've never bred a litter of pups in my life but I really regret not getting something out of him. To quote somebod
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Agree there! I've found that with most of mine. A lot of people who've only met kelpies from certain lines think they're all go and no off button but mine have largely been a bit on the Bob Marley side. When I moved into the house I'm currently in, I moved in with my first two kelpies (fourteen years ago). I was teaching full time at the time so all my dog walking was either five in the morning or late in the evening. When it got to the Easter fortnight and I took them out in the day one of my neighbours was shocked to see I had any dogs as she'd not heard a peep out of them. Similarly with th
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When I bought my first kelpie cross back in (I think) '97 (!/4 kelpie 1/4 collie 1/2 greyhound) another guy (called Phil I think and from North Wales) was picking one up too and he described a pure kelpie as "Too much of a real dog for most people." Eighteen months later I bought a pure one as I loved the differences I noticed in the lurcher compared to previous collie cross lurchers I'd either owned or met and while I can see what he meant I think it's more a case of accepting a dog who wants to do it his way (and is usually right) whereas the British mentality tends to prefer a biddable
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Thanks, that makes more sense now re me thinking it was 21st.
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I was brought up to believe that the Winter Solstice was 21st December and the summer solstice was 21st June but I've noticed, for the last few years, that my calendars always record it as the 22nd so I'm a tad confused by this too. Is it because it's the longest night rather than the shortest day maybe and therefore falls between the two...but that would therefore mean the opposite for the summer one. I remember being taught at school that the winter solstice was previously on the 25th (before they added the extra days re Gregorian calendar and all that jazz) and that's how Christia
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Don't start Phil: they induce dopamine so now I'm always thinking 'just one more.'
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No, sorry for the mix up. Although most kelpie studs have typically Australian sounding names (Karrawarra, Boanong, Karana etc) same are named after places where their ancestors came from hence Abernant. Having said that, I've often thought the Welsh Sheepdog character is more akin to a kelpie than a Border Collie...but then again you could say the same about a curly coated retriever and I'd be very surprised if they were related!
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It's definitely arrived because Ella ( my lovely wife) just showed me the back cover before wrapping it as she thought you'd borrowed one of my two for the photo! Is it Taz? Then again she still can't tell Noggin and Ned apart even though Nog's now getting on for six and Ned's been with me for a year and a half. I've tried to explain the main difference: Noggin keeps himself to himself and curls up in a ball on the dog sofa whereas Ned is the one who's so in your face that I'd swear she and the kids have rechristened him with a Welsh name: Gowaway!
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Great video Socks and a very good point well made. Although there is a show breed called the Australian Kelpie it's a completely different animal to the Working Kelpie and, as such (apart from those aspects which help it perform its job in a variety of situations and climates) they're pretty varied in appearance. My first looked like a cross between a collie/husky and whippet but not an even spread: the front half was the collie/husky and the back end was a whippet. My second looked like litter wastage from a collie/greyhound x collie/greyhound mating and I was often asked by lurcher owne
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I believe it's an abbreviation of Tasmanian Pye which was an almost legendary brindled herding dog from Tasmania which was a cross between the native Thylacine and a Shetland Sheepdog. Honest!
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I think mine arrived a couple of days back but it's been put away until Christmas. Thanks Phil.
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Think yourself lucky Jigsaw: mine's over eighteen months old now and still rips up every piece of bedding we give the little b*gg*r! We even bought a supposedly bullet proof one but he managed to get the zip off, pulled out the lining and reduced it to confetti.
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Couldn't have picked better!
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Got back from walking Ned around the local wood to find my lovely wife has ordered me a copy via Santa.
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I'd agree with Jigsaw. I've heard of a few shifty ones but mainly crosses. One of mine didn't trust strangers at all but most of mine would happily walk off with anybody if they carried a crook and smelled of sheep dung! My current youngest is a complete tart.
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Good point. I've often thought it odd that the majority of heeler or kelpie cross lurchers I've seen have been tawny/stereotypical dingo coloured...although dingoes come in a much wider variety of colours.
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I'd love a copy please Phil. I don't use PayPal (too much in the Dark Ages) but I think my better half does so I'll ask her to get me it for Christmas!
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I work as a teacher in a Foundation class (four to five year olds) the majority are just being introduced to using mark making as a form of communication...and I give up half way through Bill's posts...sorry Bill, I'm sure your talents lie elsewhere.
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Genetic research a few years ago on Australia's top kelpie studs discovered that the average kelpie has c. 4% dingo in it's background. I've heard of one "pet" dingo kept in the U.K. (which I believe was bought from a zoo) which was used as a ferreting dog...but it had a mild penchant for sheep!
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Maybe 7/8 kelpie 1/8 greyhound...I don't want to risk too much sighthound...on second thoughts, maybe 3/4 kelpie 1/4 huntaway then I'll get the longer legs!?
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I'm really interested in seeing how they all turn out. I've been perfectly happy with my five pure-breds for the last nineteen years but I've been working them in the small fields and dense, bramble strewn woodlands of south 'am'shire where rabbits rarely run more than a few yards. However, we're hoping to move to Devon within the next few years so maybe I'll need something with longer legs. Not sure I can get on with that sneaky lurcher temperament though!?
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As others have said Jigsaw, everyone who's got one likes them and that's part way to a successful future. I personally didn't pick mine because they could "slay" fifty but for two main reasons: a) they can keep going all day while looking for just one and b) I can not only put up with them all day but actively enjoy their company. Also, as you've previously stated, having a dog which can go all day doesn't necessarily mean they don't let up 24/7. The best kelpies I've met sound just like the sire you used in that they give their all when they need to but are perfectly happy to sleep
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I started a similar topic earlier this year as my kelpie has a retained testicle. Despite the advice that it's hereditary I couldn't find anything online that stated this as a 100% fact other than hearsay. I'm fine with having one removed due to the cancer risk but couldn't find anything to say unequivocally that it's definitely going to be passed on. The breeder (and my vet) have advised waiting until he's at least two years old as some drop later. Hope this helps.
