A group of 5 intrepid WSSCA representatives participated in the AKC's Meet The Breeds event on September 28 & 29 at the cavernous Jacob Javits center on 11th Ave and 34th St in NYC. Early Saturday we set up our designated 10 x 20 foot space, and brought in dogs and all the usual dog-related equipment [crates, mats, grooming tables, ex-pen, chairs, bar stools] for the booth. That was the easy part. The hard part was that we really had no idea what was in store for us. We didn't know how many people we were going to meet, or what kind of questions we would be answering, or what we would be doing from 10AM to 5PM daily. Ha!  We shouldn't have worried. It turned out we were thrust into the most intense public relations experience for dogs ever, and we  just went with the flow. This event, for us, was all about introducing the public to Welshies. 

So who manned the booth and what did we do all day? Peg and Doug Lehnen from PA brought Carys and Drue, Rich and I brought Kian, Remy, Tigg and Red, and Wendy Jordan from MD brought Bridget. Red is 13 weeks old and Bridget is 19 weeks old, and the rest of the dogs ranged in age from 2 years to 7 years old. When we first arrived in the morning, we set up the graphic banners that WSSCA provided, and arranged the crates and the puppy expen and stowed all the stuff under the booth tables, keeping the booth neat looking and approachable for the public. We arranged beautiful photos and historical pictures, books and mementos on the two booth tables, and set out informational handouts and crayons for a coloring activity we planned for the kids. 

When the doors opened at 10AM Saturday, the hall quickly became packed with people stopping by our booth to pet the dogs, oogle the puppies and ask questions. We asked kids to color an outline of a Welshie, and hung up the colored Welshies if the kids wanted to share them with us, and they became a part of the exhibit. There were even professional photographers who couldn't resist the puppies-Getty Images and Animal Planet photogs stopped by for sessions. Once the public arrived, the booth team fell into an easy pattern of making sure there were at least two dogs and breeders available for information and petting while the others rested. We spelled the dogs and each other, grabbed coffee and lunch, took photos, posed the dogs for photos, tried to do a little wandering around to see the vendors and booths, gave the dogs walks and potty breaks.


We endlessly described why Welshies make wonderful companions and why families should or maybe shouldn't consider the breed in their search for the perfect pet. There are two activities not permitted at the event, though. First, no breeders may solicit puppy buyers or sell puppies at the event. And second, no personalized kennel information or business cards are allowed to be distributed. We referred all people to the WSSCA website and the Breeder Referral program if they were interested in finding a breeder or obtaining more information about the breed. We handed out hundreds of informational flyers and had to make more copies Saturday night to bring back to the booth for the Sunday visitors.

A highlight of the weekend was the amount of socialization Red and Bridget got with people, and the incredible variety of sights and sounds and experiences they absorbed over the two days wandering around the hall and visiting booths. In addition to learning to potty in the ex-pen area, the puppies were like 'people magnets' and attracted a huge number of folks who just wanted to pet them and take their photo. At one point Red fell sound asleep on the grooming table and people kept petting her. It seemed like the puppies were pet therapy for the people-everyone stroking a puppy just smiled and felt better, even if the puppy kept sleeping.

Wendy will be writing a Starter Barks article about our experience, so I don't want to go into too much detail. But, I want to take this opportunity to ask other WSS breeders and owners to volunteer to participate in next year's event. This is a premier opportunity to introduce the public to Welsh Springer Spaniels. We need volunteers to man the booth for one day each, and a coordinator each day to assure that there are handouts, dogs and breeder/owners, and that the banners and photos are set up and repacked and stored safely for the next year. If you are interested in being a part of next year's event, let Rich know. 

As I've mentioned in previous blog entries, my Bart is in his twilight years now, and every day he shares with us is a blessing. While we made the decision to provide palliative care for however much time he has with us, we still see to his medical needs when there is a change in his day-to-day condition. On Monday we noticed he had started favoring his left front leg. I gave him some 'carry-up/carry-down' help to navigate the 11 steps between the basement/outside level and the main living area during the day. He was subdued but eating and drinking normally, so we chose to do 'watchful waiting'. In 24 hours he would either improve or need to see the vet, so we kept him comfortable and assisted him as needed.

Things have returned to normal since Tigg's remaining puppies left for their new homes. The little guys are all adapting well, and we love the FB and email updates we get. The puppy playpen outdoors and the indoor pen have been dismantled and stored, and the puppy we kept, Red (aka Rysan's Rhedyn As Requested)-has adjusted to her new pack. Her biggest issue is finding someone who wants to play with her, and she's forever hopefully one of the older dogs will join her in a tug of war or a wrestling match. Lucky for her, Tigg's playing along for now. She's been getting socialized at PetSmart, had a couple of outings up and down the street and at a local pet friendly shopping center for leash practice. I'm trying to get her used to cars whizzing by, and she's had a little bit of show handling training in the yard. Sunday she goes to her first Match Show hosted by the local kennel club, so we'll see how her stacking and moving on a show lead has progressed. There's something refreshing about having a puppy in the house-it makes you get out to do all that training you KNOW they need but never get around to doing with the older dogs. Red needs to be ready to go to her first dog show at American Spaniel Club in early Jan 2014...it's a big, noisy and intimidating place and I want her to enjoy herself there. Hence, the impetus to get her out now in beautiful fall weather.

On the flip side, we have the geriatric dogs to care for, a group that now comprises nearly 50% of our houseful of dogs. The three Welshies are Bart, Mollie and Cody, and then there's Nick, the English Setter (in the vernacular, he's our 'foster failure'). Of the four, Bart has shown the most dramatic and inexorable slide into very old age and requires more watchful oversight. He's only twelve and a half years old, but he acts more like he's 14 or 15 years old. He has a couple of chronic but well managed conditions-Cushings disease from a pituitary tumor and secondary hypothyroidism due to the Cushings. He has been treated for both Lymes disease and anaplasmosis, and all three conditions have left him more frail than his age would indicate. While he has preferred to be the last dog going down stairs for a while, he now just stands at the top of the stairs and waits for one of us to guide him down. We prevent him from following us up and down the stairs on our laundry and freezer runs to conserve his energy. By the end of the evening, he'll get a boost or even a carry up the stairs if he's really tired. He has definitely lost hearing-we have to nudge him awake and signal him when we want him to come in from outside. When he tries to get up from the floor, it's in two stages-first he sits up and then he carefully gets his unsteady rear under him before he stands up. He doesn't scramble around the rocks where the groundhog hides anymore, but he still loves writhing around on the grass like a puppy. We noticed he dropped some weight over the course of the year, and switched him to puppy food with supplemental oil and canned food to give him more protein and calories and he's gained back a few pounds. We keep a close watch on his eating habits, and I'm ALWAYS happy when he finishes his entire bowl of food twice a day. He has some cognitive deterioration and is showing new separation anxiety and an aversion to crates. We manage to keep him safe and less stressed by letting him sleep in the gated off kitchen when we leave the house.

The other three older dogs have shown only a slight loss of hearing and a mild decrease in their activity level, but still run around the yard, navigate the stairs, and respond (kind of...) to general commands. Nick recently had an episode of Canine Geriatric Vestibular Disorder (CGVD), but recovered in three days and the head tilt is now completely gone. We don't really know how old he is, but figure he's at least as old as Bart He's still going down the stairs on his own as long as he's at the end of the pack of dogs, but he's close to asking for some assistance, and I do sometimes guide them both down stairs as a unit. We are monitoring their weight and have adapted our daily routine to keep them safe and exercised. If the neighbors have noticed me standing outside calling more loudly and waving my arms to bring the dogs inside, well. at least they haven't complained!

Living with older dogs makes you readjust food, consider safety factors in the house and yard, and brings home how short a time we have to love the dogs. I guess that's why I like having puppies and young dogs in the house together with the older dogs. When we lose a dog, there's always another one standing by to lick the tears off my face and ask for a game of tug of war or catch in the yard. It doesn't take the hurt away, but it makes it a little more bearable...

Yes, I've been absent for a few weeks from the blog-having a litter of puppies does that to you! Well, the time has come-the first puppy leaves today. So I'm busy filling out forms, finalizing paperwork, making sure the AKC form is all recorded, and that I've taken care of the myriad details that go with sending a puppy home. Our usual procedure is to provide an adult WSS grooming demonstration during a prior home visit, so new owners know the grooming requirements. We like to do the first 'real' grooming the day the puppy goes home so that the owner can see the tools we use and how the puppy handles the grooming process.We use a quiet battery operated trimmer for doing the ears for the first grooming, and the pups tolerate this very well. They are already used to nail clipping, but we make sure we do it with the owner and stress the importance of regular nail clipping. For inexperienced owners, we do ear cleaning, demonstrate teeth cleaning, the use of styptic for nails, and how to use scissors and strippers, if needed.

Before any puppy leaves our home, they have had dew-claws removed, received two DAPP shots, had two negative fecal exams, had their first dose of flea/tick preventive applied, and have been microchipped. The new owners are given the health certificates for the first two vet visits with any physical findings noted by the vet. We also include a copy of the vaccine label for the product that the puppy was given, and our recommended vaccine administration protocol, based on Dr. Dodds' recommendations-with dates for completing the protocol.The owner is asked to share all this health information from our vet with the puppy's new vet. We also provide a copy of the label for the flea/tick product to prevent confusion at the vet's office about what product was administered. The new owners are advised to obtain Bortadella and Rabies vaccines, and to purchase additional flea/tick preventive and start heartworm medication. Since we require a vet visit within 7 days of pickup, these things are all scheduled with the vet in a timely manner.

Other items in the packet include a copy of the fully executed sales agreement, the puppy's pedigree, microchip tag and number, with instructions on how to register the number with CAR online (with a reminder to include us as the alternate contact), a grooming schedule for the owner and grooming instructions for themselves or the dog groomer they may choose to use. We have created a booklet called "Tips and Tidbits for Raising Your Welshie" to include information about feeding, toys, crate training, housebreaking, enrolling in obedience classes, grooming etc. We also provide a list of crates and grooming equipment with photos and links to the online seller with the best prices so they can acquire these items over the next few weeks.

We require all our puppies to be transported in crates when they leave the house, and will give loaner crates for people who have not remembered to pack one for pickup day. We will give the new owners a bag of food if they have not purchased it yet, and newspapers or an old towel for the crate, plus plastic bags and paper towels if they have forgotten them-all come in handy for the ride home.