IrishWolfhound

Haha Luna’s having fun again

Tug -O-War

Every now and then you get to see something incredible.

Well yesterday night Pixie at all of 10 pounds decided that a tug of war with Luna at 105 was actually winnable. I would’t have believed it but Luna pulled, Pixie growled and next thing you know Luna backs away and Pixie is sporting a new rope. Laughter all around as the big girl just stood there and looked confused.

Next Saturday another opportunity for Luna to shine

Next Saturday is the United Kennel Club show in Saint Lazare. There are eight competing Wolfhounds and two baby puppies in the show. Luna will get to compete against one of her other siblings. We are all excited to see how she will do.

Raising Wolfhounds

We have heard all sorts of advise now about exercise and over feeding. There seems to be a great number of opinions on the right method. We are watching Luna closely and letting her determine how much activity is too much. To date she seems to have a pretty good handle on it. Once our girl gets a little tired she heads for her bed and phffff out like a light. We have consulted the Irish Wolfhound Club of America site to make sure Luna is the proper size for her age. And low and behold at 105 pounds she is in the middle of the range for a seven month old Wolfhound.

 

Rendez-vous Belleville

   After my last effort at an indoor event Luna was having nervous second thoughts about my ability to be her guide. Well she needn't have worried, after a brief talking to I felt ready to go. We arrived an hour early so I could spent the time studying the competition. Not that it would make a difference in how I performed. I was hoping that I could figure out what not to do by watching the pro's. We were up against our old nemesis Niela from Kaldoun. This time Luna and I came out on top. She ended up first and "Best Puppy in Breed". This resulted in earning Luna her very first point towards her championship. 

  Although we did well I still managed be surprised when we were called in to compete against Voodoo one of Bailey'Song dogs handled by Sara. It was the best of winners being compared and of course I had no clue again. I don't think it made a difference because Voodoo is a gorgeous Wolfhound.

   Today was the Halloween rehearsal for Luna and Pixie. 

Decked out as a Hellhound and a Fairy they both attracted a ton of attention at the local PetSmart.

Play! Play! Play! that is the highest priority for Wolfhounds

As you can see Luna is having a normal spoiled day. Sue (Mummy)  took her out for an afternoon play date at the park and Luna took advantage of every moment. At one point she was distracted by a noise (Squirrel Syndrome) in the woods and at full speed decided to investigate. After moments of anguish and some frantic calling she proved that all the effort we put in to "recall" is paying off.
   Frisbees and "Neila", two of the things Luna loves the most. During the our most recent visit to "Kaldaun", Luna and Niela were as completely inseparable. They rough housed the entire time, by the time we left to go home both dogs were exhausted. Luna ended up sleeping for the entire way home and for most of the next day.
   The other day Pixie finally noticed Luna's antler. Luna has only been chewing on it for three weeks now. Then , out of the blue Pixie grabbed it and decided it was hers. She then went on to protected it with her life. Luna couldn't get near it. Totally funny, how the monster 100 lbs dog backs off from the 10 lbs Yorkie when she shows her teeth.

Finally, tomorrow is luna's next show. We are headed to Belleville in the morning. Hopefully Luna will keep me in line and I don't screw it up.I will post an update on how we did on Sunday.
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Two weeks without a word out of Luna
Our fans must be quite disappointed

Luna's first trip to grandma's gave me a bit of a pause. Luna's big and mom's place is small. I wasn't sure if it would work out. It turned out to be a resounding success. 

   While we were in Kitchener we took Luna to a pet shop called Ren's. This was possibly the best pet store we have ever been in. All of the staff were friendly and attentive. As usual Luna got all the attention. At one point i think most of the store employees were on the floor with her. We got all the things we needed, stripping knives, new toys and some great ideas for the dog.

   Luna is continuing to grow at an amazing rate. Now, table and counter grazing has become a common activity. She has also grown much stronger.  Up until now Luna was satisfied with playing with her toys. In the last two weeks however "toy destruction" has become the order of the day. Ropes are chewed through, stuffed toys are unstuffed, balls are crushed and squeaks are surgically extracted from seemingly indestructible stuffed animals. 

   This week Luna got new clothing. A beautiful day glow cooling jacket.  The envy of all Wolfhound owners. As a matter of fact i suspect more clothing will be made in the near future. 

   Another awesome visit to Kyreen Shorey's on Thanksgiving gave everyone a good laugh as the woof pack greeted long lost Luna. 

"Irish Wolfhounds", The centre of attention wherever they go!

Today was the annual "Harvest Market" at the Cumberland Heritage Museum. When we arrived the parking was quite full. I was a little concerned because of how tight the space was and the volume of people attending. The venders tables were quite close together and the area between was filled with shoppers. Sue said Luna would be fine, so i snugged up her lead and in we went. As you could imagine a lane opened for us almost immediately. Only to close just as fast. We were quickly surrounded by people wanting to meet and pet our Luna. Luna sat and stood majestically while strangers patted her head and rubbed her belly. It appeared as if all thought of shopping had evaporated once they got a sight of our Luna. I was surprised I wasn't asked to leave by the people hawking their wares. But they all joined in the fun and made Luna feel welcome. A couple of times during our visit families with very young children tentatively approached us. Luna like a champion stood rock still and allowed the children to give her a pet. I couldn't have been prouder. People constantly commented on how beautiful and calm Luna was. It was hard for me not to take credit for what comes so naturally to our little girl.

   Now to a sadder story, last week in Montreal a new bylaw banning Pit Bulls was enacted. This type of reaction to a dog attack is the worst  one possible. A entire breed of dogs (in this case several breeds) is being blamed for the act of a single animal. In my 56 years i have found that very rarely is a dog directly responsible for this kind of behaviour. I have always imagined a dog regardless of their age nothing more then a young child. Young children need constance attention and positive role models. You would not blame a five year old if he or she got their hands on a fire arm and injured somebody. We should look at pets the same way. 

   Regularly on the edge to the rougher parts of our continent you hear of mauling's by bears, mountain lions, wolves and cougars. After these events I have never heard of a call to eradicate an entire species (breed). The offending animal is generally found and put down. Although this example is not the same as dogs in a city the response by authorities can easily be applied.