first terrier

[sidney567 0]

I wrote this this some time ago and was reading it, thought some of you may appreciate it.

Dave

 

 

I acquired Dave off a very close friend. A two year old black fell terrier. One of the best looking dogs you’ll see, he has a thick head and neck, with a good athletic body, he stands about 13†at the shoulder and really does look ‘the part’ If I had a pound for every compliment that he had received I’d be rich man. Dave comes from very good breeding so I was told. Park’s blood lines. Gamekeeper bred by a man who had the father, grandfather and great grandfather. His forefathers’ all good, solid and reliable working dogs. Dave’s litter brother showed massive potential from a very young age. He quickly became a good working terrier and a firm favourite in his Kennels. So when my friend got the chance of Dave he jumped at it. Dave’s storey was a bit different.

 

By the time I gave Dave a home, he had already been through the hands of three very good dog men, two gamekeepers and a hunt terrier man. Dave quickly settled in to my home and showed his appreciation of affection from the first second he was there. I had been told that he refused to travel and would never make it, but would make a ‘canny’ pet.

 

Dave is not a confident little dog by anyone’s standards. He backed away from everyone and everything. He has been in (and often still gets into) situations where he gets confused and panicked by none threatening circumstances. I must point out that although this is an article about a working terrier and these are not qualities that I or anyone who keeps working terriers appreciates, I’m not a hard and fast terrier man by any stretch of the imagination. In fact I’m not a terrier man and Dave is the first small dog I’ve ever owned. I’m not sure why I offered to give him a home, but I’m thankful I did now.

 

Six months on from Dave’s arrival and I now feel like I can put the imaginary pen to paper about this little character. After giving Dave hours of walking with my two lurchers and plenty of new situations for him to work out and enjoy, he started to show some of the characters that must have been buried deep down inside of him. He started to hunt of his own accord, he started to ‘go to ground’ in the summer months in old sets that had seen little life for some time. However I didn’t discourage this and just allowed him to plod along and do his ‘own’ thing.

 

I took Dave on a couple of digs with friends and kept him tethered up outside the hole. After the initial flurry he showed little interest!

 

Then I was visiting a friend of mine for an evening’s lamping with the lurchers. I arrived there early in the day and he suggested we check a few holes. The first set we visited had 4 – 5 eyes and I walked Dave up to it. Without asking or persuading he disappeared down a hole. He started to bay! After twenty minutes of following him around this set he eventually settled down and we got a positive fix on him. I was overjoyed, especially as I could hear him giving tongue deep underground.

 

I set off with the spade, (isn’t it amazing how much more pleasure you get when digging your own dog). After removing the initial green and grey surface vegetation we started to dig to him through layers of cold, wet, sticky clay. After an hour and a half, the baying stopped and I presumed he was taking a rest. I stood up and reached backwards arching like a yoga dancer. A movement caught my peripheral vision. Dave was out. He had popped out of the hole he had entered. ‘GUTTED’. As I turned and went to address him, he quickly shot back into the uncomfortable, dark, stinking basement. Seconds later he opened his vocal cords once again. It sounded like he was in the same place as before and the locator box confirmed he was locked in a battle that I was hoping we would win shortly. The digging started again.

 

After three hours I could hear him through the last few inches of grey, gritty compound, his voice resonating upwards and outwards creating that euphoria that makes you dig harder and faster then when you first started. Then we were with him. I pulled him out to see his quarry looking at me with its shining white needles packed closely into the punishing rows of a solid argument. Dentures that Hollywood stars would have been proud of. The battle was eventually won.

 

I took Dave home and tended his cuts, gave him some TCP and TLC and he retired to bed.

 

Now as I mentioned earlier, I’m not a terrier man. Dave is the first terrier I’ve owned. I don’t believe he is the best dog in the world, if I’m honest I don’t even know if some of the boys who know what their doing would say he was even a good dog. One thing I do know however is that I enjoy having him in my kennels, he’s a character, a real big quiet character. A joy to own and a joy to have as a companion. I’ve kept dogs all my life and he’s no different from any of them. Loyal and hard working. I hope he continues to show the improvement he has, my gut feeling is that he will. One thing is for sure, I never really had the inclination for terrier work. I do now.

 

Just to follow on, I've had a fair few digs with Dave since then, the last one was a 12-14ft 5 hour dig, he stayed te duration..........but thats another story.

 

Yours in the countryside

 

 

Sidney567

[david2363 42]

Best post I've read on here for a long,long time.

And the moral of the excellently told tale is... well, actually, there is more than one. How about patience to start off with, then maybe loyalty, perseverance, trust, and faith.

Good luck to you and Dave.

With a name like that, you've just gotta love him.

[comeonsteveuk 0]

I wrote this this some time ago and was reading it, thought some of you may appreciate it.

Dave

 

 

I acquired Dave off a very close friend. A two year old black fell terrier. One of the best looking dogs you’ll see, he has a thick head and neck, with a good athletic body, he stands about 13†at the shoulder and really does look ‘the part’ If I had a pound for every compliment that he had received I’d be rich man. Dave comes from very good breeding so I was told. Park’s blood lines. Gamekeeper bred by a man who had the father, grandfather and great grandfather. His forefathers’ all good, solid and reliable working dogs. Dave’s litter brother showed massive potential from a very young age. He quickly became a good working terrier and a firm favourite in his Kennels. So when my friend got the chance of Dave he jumped at it. Dave’s storey was a bit different.

 

By the time I gave Dave a home, he had already been through the hands of three very good dog men, two gamekeepers and a hunt terrier man. Dave quickly settled in to my home and showed his appreciation of affection from the first second he was there. I had been told that he refused to travel and would never make it, but would make a ‘canny’ pet.

 

Dave is not a confident little dog by anyone’s standards. He backed away from everyone and everything. He has been in (and often still gets into) situations where he gets confused and panicked by none threatening circumstances. I must point out that although this is an article about a working terrier and these are not qualities that I or anyone who keeps working terriers appreciates, I’m not a hard and fast terrier man by any stretch of the imagination. In fact I’m not a terrier man and Dave is the first small dog I’ve ever owned. I’m not sure why I offered to give him a home, but I’m thankful I did now.

 

Six months on from Dave’s arrival and I now feel like I can put the imaginary pen to paper about this little character. After giving Dave hours of walking with my two lurchers and plenty of new situations for him to work out and enjoy, he started to show some of the characters that must have been buried deep down inside of him. He started to hunt of his own accord, he started to ‘go to ground’ in the summer months in old sets that had seen little life for some time. However I didn’t discourage this and just allowed him to plod along and do his ‘own’ thing.

 

I took Dave on a couple of digs with friends and kept him tethered up outside the hole. After the initial flurry he showed little interest!

 

Then I was visiting a friend of mine for an evening’s lamping with the lurchers. I arrived there early in the day and he suggested we check a few holes. The first set we visited had 4 – 5 eyes and I walked Dave up to it. Without asking or persuading he disappeared down a hole. He started to bay! After twenty minutes of following him around this set he eventually settled down and we got a positive fix on him. I was overjoyed, especially as I could hear him giving tongue deep underground.

 

I set off with the spade, (isn’t it amazing how much more pleasure you get when digging your own dog). After removing the initial green and grey surface vegetation we started to dig to him through layers of cold, wet, sticky clay. After an hour and a half, the baying stopped and I presumed he was taking a rest. I stood up and reached backwards arching like a yoga dancer. A movement caught my peripheral vision. Dave was out. He had popped out of the hole he had entered. ‘GUTTED’. As I turned and went to address him, he quickly shot back into the uncomfortable, dark, stinking basement. Seconds later he opened his vocal cords once again. It sounded like he was in the same place as before and the locator box confirmed he was locked in a battle that I was hoping we would win shortly. The digging started again.

 

After three hours I could hear him through the last few inches of grey, gritty compound, his voice resonating upwards and outwards creating that euphoria that makes you dig harder and faster then when you first started. Then we were with him. I pulled him out to see his quarry looking at me with its shining white needles packed closely into the punishing rows of a solid argument. Dentures that Hollywood stars would have been proud of. The battle was eventually won.

 

I took Dave home and tended his cuts, gave him some TCP and TLC and he retired to bed.

 

Now as I mentioned earlier, I’m not a terrier man. Dave is the first terrier I’ve owned. I don’t believe he is the best dog in the world, if I’m honest I don’t even know if some of the boys who know what their doing would say he was even a good dog. One thing I do know however is that I enjoy having him in my kennels, he’s a character, a real big quiet character. A joy to own and a joy to have as a companion. I’ve kept dogs all my life and he’s no different from any of them. Loyal and hard working. I hope he continues to show the improvement he has, my gut feeling is that he will. One thing is for sure, I never really had the inclination for terrier work. I do now.

 

Just to follow on, I've had a fair few digs with Dave since then, the last one was a 12-14ft 5 hour dig, he stayed te duration..........but thats another story.

 

Yours in the countryside

 

 

Sidney567

great great story a good read keep daves story coming mate nice one good luck to you regs steveuk

[JMc 225]

Good read that,and a good outcome for a dog thats been passed about

[Guest tawny]

I wrote this this some time ago and was reading it, thought some of you may appreciate it.

Dave

 

 

I acquired Dave off a very close friend. A two year old black fell terrier. One of the best looking dogs you'll see, he has a thick head and neck, with a good athletic body, he stands about 13" at the shoulder and really does look 'the part' If I had a pound for every compliment that he had received I'd be rich man. Dave comes from very good breeding so I was told. Park's blood lines. Gamekeeper bred by a man who had the father, grandfather and great grandfather. His forefathers' all good, solid and reliable working dogs. Dave's litter brother showed massive potential from a very young age. He quickly became a good working terrier and a firm favourite in his Kennels. So when my friend got the chance of Dave he jumped at it. Dave's storey was a bit different.

 

By the time I gave Dave a home, he had already been through the hands of three very good dog men, two gamekeepers and a hunt terrier man. Dave quickly settled in to my home and showed his appreciation of affection from the first second he was there. I had been told that he refused to travel and would never make it, but would make a 'canny' pet.

 

Dave is not a confident little dog by anyone's standards. He backed away from everyone and everything. He has been in (and often still gets into) situations where he gets confused and panicked by none threatening circumstances. I must point out that although this is an article about a working terrier and these are not qualities that I or anyone who keeps working terriers appreciates, I'm not a hard and fast terrier man by any stretch of the imagination. In fact I'm not a terrier man and Dave is the first small dog I've ever owned. I'm not sure why I offered to give him a home, but I'm thankful I did now.

 

Six months on from Dave's arrival and I now feel like I can put the imaginary pen to paper about this little character. After giving Dave hours of walking with my two lurchers and plenty of new situations for him to work out and enjoy, he started to show some of the characters that must have been buried deep down inside of him. He started to hunt of his own accord, he started to 'go to ground' in the summer months in old sets that had seen little life for some time. However I didn't discourage this and just allowed him to plod along and do his 'own' thing.

 

I took Dave on a couple of digs with friends and kept him tethered up outside the hole. After the initial flurry he showed little interest!

 

Then I was visiting a friend of mine for an evening's lamping with the lurchers. I arrived there early in the day and he suggested we check a few holes. The first set we visited had 4 – 5 eyes and I walked Dave up to it. Without asking or persuading he disappeared down a hole. He started to bay! After twenty minutes of following him around this set he eventually settled down and we got a positive fix on him. I was overjoyed, especially as I could hear him giving tongue deep underground.

 

I set off with the spade, (isn't it amazing how much more pleasure you get when digging your own dog). After removing the initial green and grey surface vegetation we started to dig to him through layers of cold, wet, sticky clay. After an hour and a half, the baying stopped and I presumed he was taking a rest. I stood up and reached backwards arching like a yoga dancer. A movement caught my peripheral vision. Dave was out. He had popped out of the hole he had entered. 'GUTTED'. As I turned and went to address him, he quickly shot back into the uncomfortable, dark, stinking basement. Seconds later he opened his vocal cords once again. It sounded like he was in the same place as before and the locator box confirmed he was locked in a battle that I was hoping we would win shortly. The digging started again.

 

After three hours I could hear him through the last few inches of grey, gritty compound, his voice resonating upwards and outwards creating that euphoria that makes you dig harder and faster then when you first started. Then we were with him. I pulled him out to see his quarry looking at me with its shining white needles packed closely into the punishing rows of a solid argument. Dentures that Hollywood stars would have been proud of. The battle was eventually won.

 

I took Dave home and tended his cuts, gave him some TCP and TLC and he retired to bed.

 

Now as I mentioned earlier, I'm not a terrier man. Dave is the first terrier I've owned. I don't believe he is the best dog in the world, if I'm honest I don't even know if some of the boys who know what their doing would say he was even a good dog. One thing I do know however is that I enjoy having him in my kennels, he's a character, a real big quiet character. A joy to own and a joy to have as a companion. I've kept dogs all my life and he's no different from any of them. Loyal and hard working. I hope he continues to show the improvement he has, my gut feeling is that he will. One thing is for sure, I never really had the inclination for terrier work. I do now.

 

Just to follow on, I've had a fair few digs with Dave since then, the last one was a 12-14ft 5 hour dig, he stayed te duration..........but thats another story.

 

Yours in the countryside

 

 

Sidney567

sometimes what you've got is often better than the noted terrier men out there ??

dont give in on the dog mate he sounds like a born worker to me ???

[Miffy77 0]

A bloody good read there pal ....... it's the quiet ones that always come good with patience !

You'll hopefully live on with a terrier at your feet, wouldn't be without one myself!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[TUFFTY 1,476]

Very good read that

 

TUFFTY

[harddigging 42]

well done dave

[TRUE SAXON 108]

Very good read and a nice dog aswell

[lamper12 30]

great read mate and a lovely dog...

 

atb...lamper12

[mickanles 0]

little

great read mate and a lovely dog...

 

atb...lamper12

superb, i hope my little lakeland bitch turns out to be half the dog of dave

[mouse 282]

great read mate.sounds like you think the world of the little chap.keep at it and enjoy.best feeling in the world when its your own dog that you can hear below you.

[lakieman 25]

EXCELLENT READ MATE BRILLANT GLAD TO SEE THE DOG GOT ANOTHER CHANCE IN LIFE SOME TERRIERS CAN TAKE AGES TO START WORKING SOME CAN DO IT ON THEIR FIRST TIME OUT

[skycat 6,172]

WEll done to you and the dog. 2 years old and already had 6 homes???! What chance did the dog have as no one would have had him long enough to give him time to settle. Not all terriers have the insensitivity of a rhino! Good on you for giving him the time he needed.

[Rabbit Hunter 6,608]

quality post mate, theres nothing in the world that beats digging down to your terrier working his quarry, hope he carries on for you mate...