Syväsmäen nelikko

Year 2010 \| Year 2009 \| Year 2008 \| Year 2007 \| Year 2006
24.12.2009 - Happy holidays


20.12.2009 - Picking up Christmas tree and some training

Yesterday we went to search a Christmas tree. Dogs were really happy getting to be outside in the forest for several hours. Belgians ran around and shepherd people. Also Ruska is starting to be a little shepherd, she did regular check ups to see that nobody is missing. Roope barked the whole day and lost his voice in the forest. Today he has been able to bark only very quiet and little. In addition he seemed to be quite stuck in the morning and he got painkiller for breakfest. Too much running and 2 hours in the car wasn't good for our old man. Belgians are ok, although I was a bit scared to see how boys are walking in the morning because of their leg injuries. Today Rolle and Ruska did some little training. Rolle and Mikko did agility, keeping upcoming competition in mind. They did good and less good, so more training. They have some private lessons coming soon also. Ruska was in a training hall for the first time and she was a bit confused. There were lots of food left on the floor and of course she tried to find it all. My cheese and the ball got her attention finally. She also listened voices coming outside for a few times. We got to do some little things and it went well. She also learned some agility obstacles although agility is not on our hobbylist at the moment. But it was good indoortraining for Ruska. More this.
13.12.2009 - Welcome winter!

This week we got some snow after a long wait. It is so much nicer to hang around when it's not totally black everywhere. Belgians have ran and played and eaten snow as much as they can. And Roope seems like a puppy again when he runs and barks extra happily. So far old dog's body has been well although his speed seems to be too fast many times a day. Rolle and Mikko got training agility after a long brake. They both did fine, and were really happy because of it. I have been watching his leg like insane whole evening. Fortunately there is no problem, his movement is still excellent. Now they can start confirming their competition plans for winter. Rasmus's leg still seems a bit sad because it's so thin comparing to the other front leg. It has got back some muscles but leg still needs a big development. And I am still as much afraid than before when dogs run and play. It is so hard to relax, but I'll just have to keep trying. Ruska has grown up to a very nice looking little girl. Picture is taken today and she is already almost 9 months old. And Rolle had a birthday couple of weeks ago. He is now 5 years, and it seems that he has finally got his "backorder brains". He has matured a lot in character this year. Fortunately, there sure is enough puppy for us in Ruska!
6.12.2009 - Greetings from Russia

Rolle had a great day in St. Petersburg. He got excellent, CAC and CACIB! Rolle had behaved really well, and totally fallen in love with travelmate "Chaja". Rolle would have wanted to spend all time with her, even in small travelling cage. Goal was to get the Cacib, and now he has it, great! A big thanks to Minna for taking Rolle on this showtrip, and also for Satu and Mika. And congratulations for Eppu, Jannu, Siru and Chaja too! Our year is now wrapped up. There are no happenings coming. I've been thinking whether I dare to go to obedience-trials with Rasmus or not. And the answer is no. He had his last epilepsyseizure after training obedience in a hall last winter. After that he hasn't got any seizures and I don't dare to risk this good situation. We'll try to make our debut in highest class next summer. Mikko has planned some agility-competitions for Rolle in winter but nothing is confirmed at the moment. Next show will probably happen not until next summer. I think Rolle won't be shown many times because he has everything needed at the moment. And Ruska has no hurry. In picture Rolle is on his way home this evening. I believe he will be Tired when getting home after this day full of action and new friends.
5.12.2009 - Playing with full speed

My nerves are really getting tested when Rasmus is allowed to run and play with full speed again.. Yesterday belgians played around our yard and it looked so scary. This was the first time that Rasmus was allowed to do whatever he feels like. And he really felt like playing! Dogs had extremely fun. Especially Rasmus look so happy because I didn't tell him to slow down at all. After running and playin an hour there was nothing wrong with Rasmus's leg! Maybe I can start relaxing a bit now. Also leg's movement is getting better and better when he moves more. I took some photos and it's in gallery. On Thursday we went to see the vet. Ruska's eye has healed totally and there's nothing wrong, great. Vet listened to Roope's heart also and it was as good as it can be. There is a extra noise, but his lungs are still healthy. We'll continue with the medicine he has had this far. Vaccinations found their way to right dogs and Rolle ate the worm-cure with no problem. We haven't had time to do training. Ruska has learned basic things within normal life. Laying down is excellent! Tomorrow Rolle is going on his showtrip. We hope good results!
2.12.2009 - Finally some sunshine!

We've had a terrible weather. Rain, rain and wet everywhere. Today the thermometer finally went to minus and sun was shining. Of course we rushed outside with camera and there are some new pictures in our gallery. It was really horrible to watch dogs running around without any brains. This was the first time outside our homeyard since Rasmus's and Rolle's sick-leaves. Fortunately everything went well and there were 4 tired and happy dogs when I left to work. Roope was extremely happy because of dry weather and ran around with full speed. We'll see if his muscles get aching in the evening or not.. Masseur visited us on Sunday. Roope was as usual, some aching places mostly in his back. Also Rasmus and Rolle had some mild aching places because of their legharms. Nothing big fortunately. Also Ruska got a quick-check and she has developed really well. Tomorrow dogs will get vaccinations, a worm-cure for Rolle and an eye-check for Ruska. I'm also starting to be a little nervous because of Rolle's trip to Russia. He has never been travelling without us, our "little one". He will be in good care, so I don't have any reason for my nervousness. We'll keep training and playing. And waiting for snow.
21.11.2009 - Recovering and some training

Ruska's eye seems to be normal again. She still gets eyedrops one time tomorrow and then we'll wait and see. Vet will take a look at the eye after one and a half weeks just in case. Also Rasmus's leg seems to be ok. We have trained a little and leg has been ok. Leg's movement is a bit unclean, but we'll see what the masseur thinks about it. Leg isn't aching and that's good. Masseur will also give treatment to Roope and Rolle. And then Rolle who got vaccinated against leptospirosis again yesterday. This time his reaction to the vaccination was way more stronger. He got totally aching 1 hour after the vaccination. Walking and also laying down was difficult because he couldn't find a good position. In the evening he also got 39,3 degrees fever. He also started to whine when walking. He got pain killers and in the morning he was happily waking us up. His neck still seems a bit "stuck" but otherwise he is normal. We hope there won't be any more problems coming. Ruska has been training with the tennisball, and she loves it. Today Mikko took some pictures of us on our own yard and it's put in gallery. She retrieves the ball more relaxed all the time. It's starting to be our treasure in stead of just her's. In the picture she is getting reward from coming to me.
15.11.2009 - An eye-injury, our luck is unbeliavable

Last evening Ruska hurt her eye somewhere while playing with boys on the yard. Eye was painful and she kept it closed during evening. I called the vet and he said that we could come over and check the eye. After we got there Ruska has slept almost an hour in the car, and eye looked quite normal. Vet put some colour liquid in it and it revealed that there was a small cut in her eye. She got eyedrops and injury should heal just fine. Her eye will be checked again when we're going on vaccinations in the beginning of December. Of course sooner if needed. Ruska didn't like at all when vet examined her eye, and told that too. In the morning she tried to growl to me too, but after little discussion rest of today's drops have found their way to her eye without problems. We haven't let dogs play today at all so that Ruska's eye could heal without extra disturbance. We did a little of obedience to get Ruska a bit tired. I've changed her reward to a tennisball and it seems to work really well. With using food it has feeled that we can't get forward. She does everything with my help, but she doesn't really learn what I want. Now we've done just couple of trainings with the ball and she has got a lot forward. There is a video of Ruska in our Gallery. I think this is working for us now. Although I should get her come to me more relaxed than she does now. Rasmus also got to work after a long sick-leave and had way too much energy. We have to do lots of training to get him settle down again. Also Rasmus's trainings are on video. Rolle searched for objects and it's starting to work really well. His working can also be seen in our gallery. What next? Ruska will get eyedrops for a week and we hope she heals fast. Rolle is getting second leptospirosis-vaccination some day in near future. His reaction to the vaccination lasted for a week so we have to get the second more than a week before his trip.
11.11.2009 - Good news from the vet

Rasmus went to see the vet again today. His leg was x-rayed and it showed that leg has healed! There were not any signs of any problems in his wrist. It's so nice to get this good news! Now he can start moving more little by little. Leg looks bit sad because hair came off when we took the packet off his leg yesterday. Also muscles are really small because of this 6 weeks sick-leave. Yesterday we got lots of snow and dogs have had fun outside. I took some pictures of the four of them together today. One is on the frontpage and a frew more in gallery. I also took some pictures of Roope and Ruska playing inside today. They have really much fun as you can see from the pictures. And I don't have a heart to tell them not to do this inside. I've also added lots of older pictures in our gallery. It have been published before on our earlier websites. Especially Rekku's pictures made me smile, although it made me sad at the same time. So much I miss him. You can see pictures in gallery. At the moment we have no plans besides Rolle's trip to Russia. Dogs are getting vaccinations in the beginning of December. I'm also going to order masseur for boys after Rasmus gets to move some more. Ruska is learning obedience and hopefully Rasmus too soon.
9.11.2009 - Travelling plans and some stress with Rasmus's leg

Rolle is heading to Russia on December with breeder Minna. Therefore he has got vaccinated against leptospirosis on last Friday. On weekend Rolle's neck got swollen and he was tired too. I called the vet today and he said this is normal reaction on this vaccination and we don't have to worry. Rasmus's leg is going to be examined on Wednesday. I'm a bit nervous because of that. Although his leg has been good despite of little running and indoor training. I so much hope that we can get back to normal. Dogs have been doing some indoor training with retrieving. Ruska does good job and is learning qiuck. She knows how to hold the object in her mouth as long as there's no food nearby. When there's food, she just goes crazy. Now we're doing retrieving in two parts, holding without food, and motivation with food. Hopefully this will work. Boys have trained also and done good work. As you can see from the picture.
5.11.2009 - A little of careful playing

Rasmus's and Rolle's legs have been a lot better. Rolle has been allowed to play with Ruska for few days and leg is still ok. Rolle still hasn't had permission to run with full speed, but little. Today I let Rasmus too to play a little. Of course keeping control to dogs all the time. Belgians had really much fun, and Rasmus's leg didn't get any worse because of this playing. Situation seems good. Roope has been a lot more lively lately because weather is cool. And little amount of snow makes him even happier. Roope has even played with Ruska, so happy he is. Ruska is enourmously happy when she gets attention from Roope. And they still hunt moles together in the evenings. I took some pictures today when dogs played on our yard and it is put in Gallery. There haven't been so tired dogs in our house for a long time. It was so nice to see them like that when I left to work. Rasmus is going to see the vet next week or week after that so that we know how his leg is doing. I'm feeling positive because leg seems to be much better. Rolle's leg seems so good that he doesn't have to see the vet again if situation stays as good as it is. Now we'll keep doing things carefully and hoping that everything goes well.
25.10.2009 - Ruska in puppyshow today

Ruska went to her first show today. She needs much more training for standing but otherwise he behaved really well. Although she managed to try jumping to judge's lap and leash wasn't long enough. She ended up to the floor on her back, and had lots of fun. And jumped again when getting up. Judge liked Ruska but she was a bit loose. Judge thought that could predict that she might have her first heat soon. We'll be waiting. I think that Rolle will tell us when something starts to happen on that aspect. Ruska's evaluation is written on her Show-page and there are also few pictures in Gallery. And then our patients.. Rasmus's leg has started to recover well. But it still nees few more weeks with the package to become totally healthy. Leg is a lot better and doesn't hurt anymore when Rasmus takes some quick runs. Rolle went to doctor also and got x-rayed too because doctor found some swelling from is toe. The same toe that was aching before. X-ray showed that there was a fracture on his toe too! This is a "good" fracture because it should heal quickly and well. Mikko saw Rolle stepping badly on our terrace before starting limping. We think that his toe was left stuck on an iron grid and got twisted. Now Rolle hasn't limped at all so situation seems good. Now we are waiting for winter and better legs for boys.
18.10.2009 - First snow and other things

First snow visited us for few days. Roope was extremely happy, especially when moles started to come on the ground! He has been hunting moles and has taught Ruska too how to do that. They look really funny when they hunt. Roope goes first and Ruska follows behind. Rasmus's leg seems to be better again. Most of the time he has no problem at all, but when he gets to run or play just for a little while, leg gets aching again. He has now so much energy, that it is just impossible to keep him stay totally peaceful. Of course we are doing our best. Rolle has been resting too, and his leg also has got better/normal. Until last night when he decided to jump over a gate that has been separating Rasmus and Rolle from Ruska recently. Dogs have been isolated so that they can't play when they are alone, and hurt themselves more. That jump wasn't good at all, and again Rolle started limping. What can you do. Belgians are so fast with their ideas that you can't avoid all. Today Rolle has again walked without problems so his symptom is quite on-off. Ruska has had hard time understanding why boys can't run and play. She tries to get them play all the time. And does surprise-attacks outside when boys are just walking around, as you can see from the picture. On Thursday I will take Rasmus and Rolle to see the vet. Rasmus's leg is x-rayed again, and Rolle's leg examined so that there would be some reason for his limping. We'll see. Ruska did some obedience today. She loves the square. She runs there with full speed and has really fun. We did lots of other things too and she is starting to get forward. She loves food and likes to play also, and has lots of energy to learn things. I still have problem teaching her. How can it feel so hard? It is easy to teach her tricks but when we're doing something "real" I'm lousy. Well.. Fortunately we have time.
11.10.2009 - And the situation is..

better with Rasmus, but bad with Rolle. Rasmus's leg has healed well. He steps on it with full weight and can move steady and slow without problems. Any more moving still doesn't feel good, so we're trying to avoid it. Sometimes the belgian is although too fast for me, and gets to take a jump before I even get my mouth open. Rolle started limping last Sunday. Pain was coming from one of his toes, I can't tell where he had hurt it. Limping lasted for a couple of days and Rolle was ok again. For some reason limping started again yesterday and Rolle is again on sick-leave. Now I can't tell what place is aching so we might have to visit a vet. If limping stops, we'll have to keep Rolle on sick-leave longer and more strict than we did now. Roope went to city today, and had really nice trip. There were so much smell everywhere that a little dog had trouble with getting to smell them all. Now he is totally tired and sleeping on our bed. Ruska has had enourmously energy because boys haven't been able to play with her recently. She has for example stealed socks and eaten carpets, and had lots of fun doing it. My back is better so we can start doing some brain work again.
4.10.2009 - Hello from our home-hospital

I had to carry Rasmus around on Thursday when he hurt his leg. Although I tried to do it carefully, it just was too much for my lousy back. Now I have been resting with Rasmus and taking painkillers along with him too. On Friday morning Rasmus's toes were swollen a lot. We opened his package a bit and Rasmus got to move a little after sleeping all night. Fortunately it helped. Already on Thursday Rasmus started to jump on sofas and our bed when we didn't pay full attention on him. Because of this he got to sleep isolated with Mikko, with no place to jump. On Friday he started to step with the sick leg too. On weekend his movement has became better and better. Of course it's not good yet, but as good as it can be at this moment. Rasmus has a shoe he has to wear outside. Package doesn't let his wrist bend at all so it makes him drag his leg and his shoe keeps nails and toes well. It also keeps the package dry when it's wet. Rasmus has no problem with the shoe. Our old-man Roope has tried to challenge Rasmus a couple of times because he knows that Rasmus isn't well. This is of course forbidden. Also Rasmus knows that now it's time to act friendly and nice, as you can see from the picture. Now we just wait and hope for the best.
1.10.2009 - Bad luck hasn't forgotten us

This is unbelievable how much bad luck we can have.. I went training with Rasmus today. After training square I was picking up the marks and throwing a ball for Rasmus. After few times of running after the ball I heard a scream. Rasmus came to me limping and whining. I tried to examine his leg but it seemed really painful. I drove straight to the vet and he examined Rasmus. There was pain in his wrist when touching it, and wrist didn't bend normally. Because of this he got x-rayed too. And there was a little fracture in his wrist. Doctor put his leg into a package and gave him painkillers. Rasmus's wrist otherwise was totally healthy, so this is just bad luck. At home Rasmus has just slept. In really slow speed he steps a little with the sick leg too, but most of time he goes with only three legs. Optimistic healing time is about three weeks. He should start stepping with the leg in a week so that this optimistic situation could happen. This means that our obedience-training and -trials are cancelled. Of course it is the most important thing that Rasmus gets better. But it still makes me sad that we've worked so much and hard for trials and can't go after all. Shit happens.
27.9.2009 - An old dog can learn new tricks also

Today I took Roope with when training square. And what wouldn't our old man do for goodies. He found the square really nice and had lots of fun. Also Rolle learned this trick just for fun. And he also had really fun. They have been working with retrieving and coming so exact, that this more free training was good variable for them. Rasmus got goodies when stangind in the square. He has had a new problem in finding the square because he loves retrieving so much that he only searhes objects to retrieve. Today's training seemed to help a lot. He also loves food. Ruska learned that four orange marks means that there is food! She ran to the square very happily. Rasmus and I have been working with nose work a lot lately. Rasmus did it really nice for a while but the he started to taste the wrong objects again, as before. We have tried lots of different solutions last weeks and haven't got any forward. At the moment there is a net on top of the wrong objects, only our object is on top of that. This way he can't make the mistake and has to work just with his nose to find the right object. We'll see how this will work after all. We have taken some training pictures today and yesterday and pictures are updated in gallery. Rolle and Mikko have made a great progress in tracking. Rolle finally shows objects on track by himself!! Although it seemed impossible, now it's working. Now more training and more goodies for Rolle when showing objects, great! Next weekend we're going to obedience-trial with Rasmus. Nose work won't work yet, I know that. But maybe something will go well. If I can keep Rasmus under control well, I'm satisfied with that.
19.9.2009 - Ruska was BIS3 in Match Show today!

Weather was fine today so we headed to Match Show. Ruska participated in puppy class where there were 8 dogs. She was first in her class! After that she placed BIS3 in the BIS-ring! Wau! She moved surprisingly well, without extra jumps ect. Standing need more training. She doesn't yet have enough patience to stand for long. It seems that Ruska is having some kind of a "spooky-age" For a couple of times she barked and was careful when meeting people. This "bad" behaviour passed away when I told her I didn't like it. In the ring she was her friendly self and judges liked her character a lot. With strange dogs Ruska has no problem, she doesn't care about them at all anymore. And as you can see from the picture, we had our own class too - Who has the most scary face. More pictures are updated in gallery. Now we just wait for the puppy show in the end of next month.
18.9.2009 - New pictures and obedience

Today I took some pictures while dogs were playing together. I realized that I haven't taken this kind of pictures in long time! Rasmus's favourite toy frisbee won't last very much longer, but it still gives lots of fun. Pictures are updated in gallery. We also managed to get a new frontpage picture! For last couple of weeks we have been working with obedience mostly. Rasmus and I have made progress with many things, and some relapse too. As usual when we practise before upcoming competition. Well, we still have couple of weeks to work with our problems. Rasmus is going to another competition too in the beginning of November. Ruska has learned the basics and we're managed to make some progress. Ruska has also done some tracking and couple of days ago she showed me an object at the end of the track. She hasn't had any objects on track before this, so this was really nice surprise. Way to go little girl! Roope does little things and Mikko and Rolle are working with retrieving. And training agility too. We'll see how this training ends up with. Tomorrow Ruska is going to a match show (unofficial show) if it doesn't rain much. Boys will stay home and rest without our "little monster". Now some sleep and let's hope for a good weather for tomorrow!
6.9.2009 - Some plans for autumn

Summer is gone and evenings and nights are again so dark. Dogs have been playing and training. Rolle and Mikko have been training agility again after their summer break. Their competition-career has to wait for next year. It is not reasonable to buy a competition-license just for a few starts this year. Dogs have been learning obedience lately. Rolle would really like to come straight to Mikko's side when coming. Now they have been learning that Rolle should sit in front of Mikko. And it's starting to go well. After this they can pack up their retrieving and they're starting to be ready! Rasmus and I have been training everything, and training goes well at the moment. Ruska is learning basics. She is really eager and likes to play with toys so she is easy to teach. The only problem is that I don't know how I should teach her. It's been so long since Rasmus was learning basics! We are both learning. Also Roope got to do some tricks one evening. When retrieving he carried the object to bushes and was really satisfied with himself. After little bribing he knew exactly what I wanted. We took some pictures too and it's put in gallery. There are some plans too. Rasmus is going to an obediencetrial in the beginning of October. And Ruska is going to a puppyshow in the end of October. It is really nice to have some plans after this really quiet summer.
11.8.2009 - Finnish Speciality, tracking, obedience

Lots have happened since last update. Last weekend we spent in Finnish Speciality Show for Belgian Shepherds. We travelled with caravan and Rolle and Ruska were just like they are at home. When we started to go sleeping, they both fell asleep immediately. It was really nice to travel with them. I couldn't get sleep because of the nearby road. I'm used to silence here in countryside, not noise! Rolle participated in open class and got excellent. His unofficial placement was sixth. He didn't move well and he has a wound in his lip which has taken the pigment off. These things left him without placement this time. Rolle also participated in Pyrytuulen breeder class (placement 4. with honorary prize) Muru's offspring class (placement 3.) and Vili's offspring class (placement 2.). Ruska was with us getting familiar with shows. She had lots of fun. She was a bit nervous of the large amount of dogs a couple of times but mostly she just had fun. She got lots of dog- and humanfriends. Rolle and Mikko went to Taipalsaari to do some tracking. Maarit and Mari helped them to get forward. And it seemed to work! I went to see Mia Skogster with Rasmus and we too got some good tips to get forward. Now it's time to practise! We still have 3 weeks of summer holiday left so we should have time. Mikko went spending time with his friends and I decided to sit down and update pages containing information of Rekku. Looking back to his life and his last month still hurts bad. I have been writing and crying, and writing and crying. But now it should be clear on pages that Rekku exists now only in our memories. Now it's time to take the dogs with and get some sleep. There is always at least one furry fellow to take in armpit and dry tears on.
16.7.2009 - Some new pictures from swimmingtrip

I took some pictures today on our swimmingtrip. Ruska didn't have to wait on beach while others were swimming. Mikko took her with! And Ruska was so happy. Pictures are updated in gallery. It's really hard to get familiar with this silence around us. Everything is really quiet. When dogs run, only thing that can be heard is paw steps. When Rolle and Ruska play together they are totally quiet. This is really odd for us because Rekku was really noisy. Rasmus seems to be a bit lonely because he doesn't like to wrestle with "youngsters". Roope is doing his own things as always. Rasmus is training obedience and I hope that we will be able to compete this year. Rolle has been tracking and he is finally starting to understand that there are objects too. He loves tracking so much that it has been hard to get him pay attention on objects too. Maybe he'll learn some day. Ruska is growing and having fun whatever she does. She has started to listen commands really nice. But there still is lot to learn. Ruska is also changing teeth and everything looks good at the moment. After few weeks it's time for Finnish Speciality. Rolle is participating and Ruska comes along with us. She is unfortunately one week too young to participate.
6.7.2009 - Rolle got his final CAC

Rolle and Mikko went to a dog show in Hyvinkää yesterday. And it went really well. Rolle was the best male and got his third and final CAC! He still needs working results to become champion so there's some work for Mikko to be done. Our herd is starting to settle down again. Rasmus and Rolle run and have fun and Ruska is teaching Rolle how to wrestle. Rolle has been more like "runner" as an adult but Ruska is a great teacher. And because we have this big yard dogs won't have to play inside. As you can see from the picture.. Dogs have been swimming, playing and tracking. Running across my kitchen garden when it didn't have a fence around it.. And running across it through the fence around it. Maybe there still is something that can be eaten. We have found lots of Rekku's treasures from the yard, whole and broked tennisballs. On terrace there is also a piece of wood that he carried there on his last evening. So many memories. We want to thank everyone who has somehow remembered us during this hard time. Next happening is probably Finnish Speciality in the beginning of August. Rolle's agility has been left out of program lately, but planning continues. Tracking is also on the to do -list.
29.6.2009 - What a hard weekend

Weekend was really hard for us. It was really a shock that we had to let Rekku go. Rekku started hrowing up about four weeks ago. All dogs got worm-cure a week before Ruska was vaccinated. After that it started. We gave Rekku a recipe-free medicine (Antepsin) and he started to get well. Less than two weeks ago he started hrowing up again. He did it once or twice a day, not very often. On Wednesday 17.6. Rekku started limping his left rear leg. He didn't give any sign where did it hurt. We thought that he had hurt it somewhere while running. On next weekend he got worse. He limped all legs and hrew up again. On Saturday we measured his temperature, an it was a bit high (39,2ºC). On Monday it was even higher, 40ºC. He didn't eat almost at all and was really tired. On Tuesday we went to Imatra to see a vet. Rekku was examined widely. X-rays didn't give any explanation for limping. All was healthy, except the old mutation in his croup. Blood tests didn't find any reason also. Endoscopy of stomach revealed many ulcers that propably were the reason for Rekku's situation. Doctor took biopsy. The high temperature propably got Rekku's joints aching and that was the reason for limping. Rekku got lots of medication for his stomach and we got home. Rekku got a bit better during the week. Although his temperature was 39,5ºC all the time. On Thursday evening he hrew up once. On Friday morning I called doctor again but we couldn't do anything before we knew what was causing Rekku's problems. On Friday-Saturday night I opened my e-mail before we went sleeping. And there was really bad news. Biopsy showed that Rekku had a stomach cancer which had made progress for some time. Prognosis was bad. It was naturally a terrible shock for us. Decision was really painful but clear. Rekku got to sleep on Mikko's pillow that night, and seemed really happy. On Saturday morning I called the vet one more time. He confirmed that situation was bad. After that I called nearby veterinarian and we got there. Rekku was happy when getting in the car. He walked happy and barked for a couple of dogs too. He got lots of cuddles from us while waiting the doctor. This was how it was supposed to be, we didn't want to wait any longer so he won't have to suffer more. Rekku slept away peacefully with cuddles and tears. I can't describe how much we miss him. Now one is missing. And it feels so unfair. One high tail is missing, one bark is missing. There is no one sleeping on Mikko's pillow in the evening. Rekku was the best friend for Roope, Rasmus and Rolle. Now no one in the herd has same kind of relationship with each other than Rekku had with everyone. Rekku had a big role. Mikko bought a rubber boat yesterday and we went swimming. Rasmus and Rolle really enjoyed swimming after the boat and Mikko. Ruska loves water also and swims really well for short rounds. Roope watched them all and seemed to think that they are really stupid if that is fun. Lotta and Vieno were also with. Besides the longing and pain, life has to go on.
27.6.2009 - In memoriam Pyrytuulen Nuuskamuikkunen

Rekku was euthanised today on 27.6.2009. He started to hrow up after having a worm-cure few wees ago. He was examined and biopsy gave us bad news. He had stomach cancer. We miss our little Rekku more than words can say.
8.6.2009 - Tracking and agility

Last week we had time to train tracking. Rasmus did very good job and found all objects well. Rolle might have learned something about objects too. He loves tracking so much that he wouldn't like to pay attention to anything else. More training. Ruska also loves tracking because there is food! She is starting to do really good work. Rekku has searched for objects and Roope food. Yesterday I built an agilitycourse for Mikko and Rolle. And they did great work! Of course there are some things that can be done better, but isn't there always. Ruska also got to go to the tunnel and she had so much fun! Maybe she'll grow up an agilitydog too. There are pictures taken yesterday in Gallery. Yesterday evening Lotta and Vieno came to play with boys and they had really much fun. I took some pictures of them playing and it is also in Gallery. Ruska got vaccinated today. She had really fun at the veterinary station. She got lots of cuddles and some food too. What else could be better for a little girl like Ruska? We will get next vaccination after four weeks. Rolle is going to a dogshow on 5.7. And after that to the Finnish Speciality show in the beginning of August. Mikko is planning some agilitycompetitions for Rolle if everything goes well. We'll see.
1.6.2009 - Roope is 12 years old!

Roope had a Birthday on 24.5. He is already 12 years old! Unfortunately it seems that age doesn't come alone.. Roope has again had odd "seizures", same as before. There were two weeks without it, and now again. He gets again extra vitamin B and we hope it helps as well as before. High temperature has also got Roope a little tired. He rests in the shadow and every now and then barks to belgians who have energy dispite of the weather. Ruska came along to Rasmus's obedience training on Saturday and I tried some little things with her too. She had really much fun and she really loves meatballs! We did a little of sitting, laying down and coming to me. It seemed that she understood something too. There are pictures of Ruska training and after training in our gallery. Rasmus's training went well. Control is good, Rasmus is good, I am good.. I booked a private lesson for us next week. We'll see what kind of tips and goals we'll get there. Weekend was really warm. Even belgians didn't play as much as normal on daytime. I was working in a cold office and left others sweating home. This weekend I am going to enjoy my free weekend with +10 degrees, pouring rain and barbecue. Sounds fantastic, doesn't it?
21.5.2009 - Rolle BOB in Lappeenranta!

Our showyear started today in Lappeenranta. And what a surprise it was! Rolle was best male, best of breed and got his second CAC! I called Mikko in the middle of our day and he couldn't believe it. Our little Rolle.. Rolle also participated in Pyrytuulen breeder class which was BIS2! Great day. Rolle's evaluation is written on his show-page. Ruska has travelled around and around, having lots of fun. She is full of energy and she likes to taste everything, from carpets to other dog's tails. Dogs have been home alone for short times and Ruska doesn't have any problem. I can get back to work next week with calm mind. I'm working evenings whole week so dogs won't have to be alone more than couple of hours a day. Summer's first thunderstorm came today. Roope was restless because of noices, but belgians didn't notice anything different from normal. What's next? Nothing is planned at the moment. Training and living, hoping health for everyone. I bought a Back On Track -Back Brace for myself, and I've been feeling excellent using it. I don't know if it really helps or is it just helping inside my head. I don't care as long as it helps.
18.5.2009 - Rolle and Mikko in agility

Last Thursday Rolle and Mikko went to an unofficial agilitycompetition. First course didn't went very well because they both had too much fuss. Second course went really well because Mikko could keep his mind calm. One bar was knocked down so their result was 5. A video can be seen in our Gallery. Ruska was with Rolle and she met many nice dogs and lots of people. Ruska has learned to travel nice. Mostly she is sleeping but there still are some opinions about how boring it is to stay still. We'll keep practising. Rekku and Rolle gave Ruska an unpleasant surprise on evening. They started to fight under our kitchen table and Ruska was left in the middle of them and falling chairs. Because of this accident Ruska has been careful with boys, especially when they come towards and bark. Today she was running with boys again with no problem, so she seems to got over the accident. They had really fun playing on our yard, as you can see from pictures. I'm still on vacation this week and today we have been out all day. There are still lots of gardening to be done. And Mikko had to repair our car today also. Dogs are now tired of running and playing all day. On Thursday it's Rolle's dogshow in Lappeenranta.
13.5.2009 - Quartet is now Qvintet

Yesterday we travelled to Norway to get Ruska home. We left early in the morning and got back home at sunset. Ruska's mother Cirka is really nice dog. Open and social, energetic and playful. Same can be said of Ruska and her brother Jaz who we met too yesterday. Breeder Ann-Merethe's thoughts about belgians and breeding sounded good. It was really nice to meet and talk face to face. Thank you Ann-Merethe for wonderful Ruska, and everything else. Ruska charmed lots of people on airport walking with her tail up and getting lots of cuddles. On aeroplane she barked during takeoff and landing. In the middle she slept. Car trip went well. She slept all the time, mostly on my lap, but some time in trunk of our station wagon too. Boys took Ruska welcome nice. Just to be sure Mikko and Ruska slept in another room for the first night. I slept with "big ones" so that Roope would be happier. Today we have spent time outside doing some gardenwork and exploring new home. Ruska seems like she has been always here, and boys don't have any problems too. Ruska doesn't dare to go an play with boys yet because they have so much speed but she does her own things, like chasing a rake. I've took lots of pictures of Ruska today and put it in Gallery. There are also lots of pictures from boys taking their first swim this year in own Gallery.
7.5.2009 - Something for everyone

Today Roope got tracking first time this spring. I made a short track in our "back-forest". At first Roope was just searching moles but after finding his fir foodbox on track he understood what was the point. Roope thought that he didn't get enough food for reward and tried to eat couple of boxes too. Our little hungry curly-tail. Roope left covers of the foodboxes in the forest and it was Rekku's job to find and bring that back. He searched and found covers really well. Some problems were in returning because covers are thin and hard, that didn't stay easily in Rekku's mouth because of his missing teeth. I took few pictures and put it in our Gallery. Rasmus and Rolle did obedience on "our own" trainingcourse. Rolle trained retrieving and recall. Rasmus did very fine, quiet and controlled heeling. It's again starting to be a pleasure working with him after having these control-problems during winter and spring. Rasmus also trained square and it's getting forward well. Few days of work and the on Tuesday-morning towards Norway to get "Ruska" home. Mikko is on holiday for a week, and I for two weeks. We have time to learn manners and see the world. I'm so excited!
2.5.2009 - Obedience and enjoying good weather

Today Rasmus and I went to an obedience training of Christa Enqvist. We trained "square" and guided retrieving. We got great hints how to get forward. Today our control was really good and we could focus on working only. Yes! More training, both control and fun, it seems to work. Rekku and Rolle had trained object searching. Rolle has developed much this spring. He has really good motivation and he has learned to use his nose on air. Rekku had again much fun. Nowadays he would like to break objects with his teeth, and Mikko has allowed it every now and then. He does it just for fun, and this is fun. Roope has still had his "seizures". Some days are better and some days he has many of these. He has had heart-medicines from Monday. We'll visit doctor again if situation doesn't get any better. Weather has been excellent for a couple of days, and we have enjoyed it outside. Dogs have ran around and had fun. Roope catched a mole today. And was extremely happy having an evening snack. After snow melted, there haven't been much moles anymore so this was really nice surprise for Roope. One week and few days and we are in Norway getting puppy home!
27.4.2009 - Roope went to see doctor

I took Roope to the vet today. He still gets those ood seizures although he has taken painkillers for last week. Doctor listened to his heart and found hypofunction. This might have caused his seizures. Now Roope gets medicine and we keep our eyes on him. In couple of weeks we see if medicine helps. We naturally hope fingers crossed that it will. Something positive too for last week. We went training obedience on Saturday. My goal was to take Rasmus under control. Again he tried to do things of his own and I had to tell him hard that it's just not ok. After that he worked excellent. Maybe we've done to much training just having fun and Rasmus needs a lot more controltraining. At the moment working with him feels really good. Rolle also worked really well so it was a good day in general. We took some pictures too. On Saturday evening we got visitors too. Rolle's halfsister "Nemi" came to play with boys. And they sure had fun! I catched few pictures before I had to go to work. When I came home at night, I found a very tired herd. They had been playing on yard whole evening. Puppies are 6 weeks old. They love beeing outside having fun and after that sleep through nights. Sounds good. There are pictures on Montmorenja's site.
21.4.2009 - Obedience-trial and new pictures

Today Rasmus and I went to try our luck on obedience-trial. More luck would have been good. Our control is really lost at the moment. Movements were like I expected but otherwise it wasn't good at all. I had a chance to demand better behaviour from Rasmus but I don't know if it helped. I had to do it several times. Something has to be done before we can go and compete again. Meanwhile we were in obedience, Rekku and Rolle had done their first object searching for this spring. Rekku had really fun, even too much, but every object was found. Rolle has learned to use his nose on air also beside tracking, and he did really good work. Way to go boys! Roope searched food from backyard, he doesn't want to find anything else. Roope has had some odd seizures in last month. At first it was so mild that I didn't pay much attention to it but last four (last one today) have been more clear. He seems to have a tic (myokymia) on his head and front. It lasts only few seconds, and happens maximum once a day. Roope doesn't seem to notice it at all. At first we are giving him painkillers in case of these seizures are coming from his back although he hasn't had other symptoms. Weather has been beautiful for couple of days and we've spent it playing and having fun. There are new pictures in our Gallery.
17.4.2009 - Some gardenwork

We've spent this week in gardenwork. Our well was repaired last fall. After it we we're supposed to order some sand around it, but somehow we just didn't do that. This week we've had a flood around the well. Water has been carried and pumped away every evening so that house will stay on dry land. Today ground has melted and water can sink in it too. We'll see what weekend brings along. Today was our first "evening off". Mikko went out to enjoy it with friends and ATV. I took camera and spent evening with dogs on our yard. There are some new pictures in Gallery. There are also few pictures of our gardenwork from this week. I've also updated our frontpage picture. Roope was really annoyed because he had to come and take a pose in the middle of molesearching. Next Tuesday we were supposed to go to a training exam with Rasmus, but at the moment I don't know. We haven't had any time to practise this week. Hopefully we can do that on weekend and Monday. Last training showed that Rasmus needs more control. Most of training has been really fun with new tricks, and Rasmus needs opposite too to stay in control. He knows what I want, he just tries to do things his own way. More training it means. Puppies are soon 5 weeks old. Halfway of waiting is passed! There are lots of new pictures on Kennel Montmorenja's homepage.
8.4.2009 - Some little picture-updates

Finally I managed to take new pictures on healthpages when dogs were having afternoon snack on backyard. Although Rekku has lost many tooth, he can still eat bones as always. I also updated Rolle's agility- and obedience-pictures. We have trained and just had fun playing, as you can see from the picture. I've thought that we would go to an obedience practise-exam with Rasmus at the end of the month. He is not ready for official competitions yet, but we could try and see how is the highest class going in competitions. I've never seen a competition of the highest class at all. Mikko and Rolle set a goal for themselves. They are going to compete in agility at the end of June. Way to go boys! And I've planned a dogshow for Rolle at May in Lappeenranta. Next show will propably be not until July in Mikkeli. That's all that's planned at this point. We have a huge puppyfever! Puppy's breeder has took some video of puppies, and oh my how cute they are! You can see videos on breeder's website. I've booked flights for us and we're going to Norway on 12.5. I can't wait to have her home!
2.4.2009 - New photos and training

I took Roope with me and Rekku today. We went playing with Lotta and Vieno. Roope behaved so smart that I could unleash him too. And he had so much fun, he even played with belgians a little! He seemed really happy although he hates travelling in car. Some pictures are updated to Gallery. In the evening it was Rasmus's and Rolle's turn to get some action when we went training obedience. Rasmus did few movements, mark and square was really good this time, yes! Rolle practised "sending forward". He had really good spead and went straight on. Cat food does strange things, Rolle seemed like a very smart dog! ;) We had lots of disturbance while training and I was a bit scared how Rasmus will react, because we haven't had this much disturbance since February when Rasmus was acting really strange. Fortunately he had no problems so I can relax a bit. We are going to an obedience-training on 2.5. to get some new tips. Roope has learned how to get inside after eating enough moles. Two barks and someone comes and lets the curly tail in. Mikko took a picture of him yesterday. He still has some drool hanging after enjoying some delicious moles. I've translated Rasmus's seizure-diary in English. You can find it here.
29.3.2009 - Training weekend

This weekend has gone with training. At last our flu seems to be over and we really hope it stays away. Yesterday we did some obedience-training with Rasmus and Rolle. Rasmus and I did a little of everything. We found out that we need to practise many kinds of marks, because yesterday we had a new one and Rasmus didn't think it as a mark at the beginning. With a little help he knew what we were doing. Rolle practised retrieving. He has had a habit to play alone with the object byt yesterday he realised that nothing is fun until the object has been returned. Really good! We took some pictures yesterday and they are in Gallery. Today was Rolle's agilitytraining. I went with them to see how they're doing. Control, control, that's what they need. They go really well, when Rolle is in control but he easily slips of. More training, that's what it takes. I took some pictures today also but there was really green in the hall. Some green pictures are uploaded to Gallery. I also ended up to try a small course with Rolle. And now I have a terrible longing for agility with Rasmus. I haven't made a decision of his agility-career yet. Osteopath said that it is possible to do agility with him, but but. We'll see. Puppies are 2 weeks old and they are opening their eyes! There are new pictures on Kennel Montmorenja's website. They look really cute. Puppy will be placed to us and Minna Hämäläinen will have its breeding rights.
23.3.2009 - Finally some training!

I felt so good this morning that I decided to head to trainingcourse with Rasmus. We trained combining mark and square. I thought that we wouldn't make it, but how wrong was I! Rasmus understood what I wanted and he did few good exercises. I had a camcorder with me and you can see our training in Gallery. In Gallery there are also some new pictures of Belgians playing together. Here have been many wonderful days but we haven't been able to leave home because of our flu. Fortunately it seems that now it's over. Rasmus did something really odd (and stupid) on Thursday. He had eaten one and a half socks! I can't understand why he did it. On Friday evening he started vomiting. It lasted until Saturday morning. At night he seemed very sick but fortunately got better on Saturday. And fortunately socks came out! He has been normal since then so there seems to be no more wrong things in his stomach. Roope handled blackouts really well last Monday. He reacted only once, and didn't stay scared. Really good. It's been already a week from our new family member's birth. There are new pictures on breeder's website Kennel Montmorenja. We can't wait to get our little girl home. It's really exciting to have a puppy again!
15.3.2009 - Back to work

It's time to get back to work next week. Our giant flu hasn't still went away. We're starting to be totally bored with this. It's really annoying not to have enough strength to go to training. Lotta and Vieno spent couple of days with us and dogs have had lots of fun. I took some pictures today when they played on our backyard to Gallery. Roope has had lots of things to say, as you can see from the picture. Rekku has become very excellent thief. He has stolen almost 1 kilo of candy during this weekend although we've tried to hide it so that he just couldn't do that. He can, I don't know how. Because of this he got diarrhea, this was too much for his iron-stomach. Tomorrow we don't have electricity because of maintenance. We'll see how Roope will react. He has been normal lately and I'm afraid that he invents to get scaired again. I hope I'm wrong. Today I got an e-mail which we waited enthusiasticly. A new member of our herd was born last night! If everything goes well we're going to have a little red girl in couple of months, tervueren of course. You can see pictures of newborn puppies from breeder's website http://www.montmorenja.com/.
12.3.2009 - Home sweet Home

Dogs spent a couple of days with a nanny while we were travelling. Everything went well at home, and on our trip too. We got home yesterday, and today we drove again to south to Espoo. Rasmus and Rekku went to see osteopath Maare Kaiperla. Rasmus had a couple of jams. They are a result from playing with Rekku and Rolle. They usually rush into another and that's not wice, but fun comes before wisdom. Rasmus's back was totally healthy. Maare thought that we don't have to quit agility at this point after all. We'll think about it in the summer when it's possible that I could run on agility course with my back. Rekku was in good shape. He had jams in front and in right rearleg, as usual, but they were not big. We've thought that he is doing well, and that's true. Very positive news from both dogs. Rasmus and Rekku were extremely happy to get to travel with eachother. We have watched them smiling whole day as they enjoy being together without others. In the picture we're having a break on our way home. Aksi-malamute has been entertaining Roope and Rolle today. He has done something odd, because when coming home today we found Roope playing with him and Rolle! Roope doesn't usually like to play but today he did. I took some photos before sun went down. You can see it in our Gallery. It's really nice to be home again after three days of travelling.
8.3.2009 - Having fun on ice

Weather today was so fantastic that we decided to head to the lake. I'm a bit scared of walking on ice. At first we saw a skier, and that helped my mind a bit. After that we found an iceroad with fresh tiremarks. That helped more. After we saw someone driving a car on ice, I started to believe that it isn't going to break underneath us. Belgians had really fun, as usual. Roope was a bit depressed because he had to walk leashed. After his runaway at the beginning of this year we haven't dared to let him go unleashed much. We had some food for him with us and he was happy at least the moments when he searched food from snow. We went just for a little walk, because we are still not totally recovered from the flu. After coming back to home we noticed that we were there for 2 hours! I took some pictures and you can find it from Gallery. We start our winter holiday tomorrow. On Tuesday we head to Tallinn, and dogs stay home with "nanny". And on Thursday to osteopath. In the picture Rasmus and Rolle are having fun today.
4.3.2009 - Videos in gallery!

We humans have been suffering from a great flu and dogs have been resting with us. I have worked with videos as much as I've had strength to. There are some videos which were in old gallery, but also something new. You can fing a video of Roope hunting a mole, his favorite hobby nowadays. I've also finally added Rolle's charactertest video there. So go on to Gallery! Rekku's mouth has healed really well. There is only a little hole anymore and gum hasn't seemed infected. Today dogs had raw bones for supper and Rekku had no problems eating it. Roope has been scared couple of times, because of our bedrooms radiator. These times he has recovered fast so we haven't get him herbs yet. We'll keep monitoring him. Rasmus and Rekku are going to see osteopath on next week. They're just getting checked out, because it's been a year since last time they got treatment. Hopefully the osteopath doesn't find big problems from them. We are trying to get well so that we could get moving again on weekend. It's really boring to just watch from the window when dogs play on the yard. And of course it would be nice to carry on training too! I'll get back next week to tell what the ostepath said.
25.2.2009 - Rolle and Aksi had fun

Me and Rolle went to see Aksi-malamute today. At first boys had to discuss a little of who is in charge, but just a little. Weather was amazing and of course I had camera with me. There are lots of pictures in Gallery. Rekku in now without medication again and we really hope he gets well soon. Gum has got much better and the hole isn't very big anymore. Roope has been normal again. We didn't have to get him herbs this time. We could connect one of his fears to a short power cut. I don't know if there are more of those short blackouts and Roope is the only one quick enough to react. He is afraid of blackouts because he thinks they come from thunderstroms only. Rasmus has still had to put his feet down for Rolle. Not much, but sometimes Rolle tries his luck. With Rekku everything is okay and there are some photos from our "twin brothers" playing in Gallery. Rolle and Mikko has got well started in agility again ans Rasmus has had time to think over our new movements. Now it's time to really get to work. Summer comes fast!
16.2.2009 - Rekku went to see doctor again

Rekku's recovery didn't go as expected. He got gingivitis and is on antibiotics. We went to see the doctor today and Rekku has to take antibiotics still for a week. We really hope that it helps and we don't have to cut of tooth's root. It is so deep that operation isn't small. Doctor said that Rekku can live normally, and we headed straight to enjoy the sunrise. There are lots of pictures taken today in Gallery. I've also added few obedience-videos there. Dogs had so much fun after taking a week slowly. Especially Rekku, who hasn't been allowed to do anything. Roope has been odd again couple evenings. He is scared of something that I can't notice. We'll keep looking after him and I'll get him herbs again if needed. Rasmus's castration seems to be shaking our herd. Rolle seems to think that it's his time to be the Boss. Also Rekku has tried to challenge Rasmus for couple of times. Rasmus has stopped their tryings fast and clean. He has no intention to loose his Boss-title. I hope Rolle and Rekku realise this fast. I've tried to look some shows for Rolle, but it seems that showrings wait for summer. I've become so self-indulgent that going to small rings and narrow passages in halls doesn't sound good at all. We'll see.
11.2.2009 - New layout and monitoring Rekku's mouth

Rekku seems to be ok. He has a huge hole instead of canine teeth. Although it looks really awkward, he isn't painful. He would just like to play as always, but we haven't allowed that just yet. He has to take it easy for couple more days. Rasmus and I started to learn new movements in obedience yesterday. And it went extremely well! Rasmus's behaviour was totally normal, so I think that odd behaviout earlier was somehow related to the epilepsyseizure. We'll keep working towards our goal, to get to compete in the highest class this year. Rolle and Mikko are going to concentrate on agility for the spring. They are getting started this week. And Roope is concentrating on moledigging. I think he has cathced over hundred moles this winter! And he is so happy. Wuppe.net has a new layout. If you find anything that doesn't work or works somehow odd, please let me know by e-mail. Pages work best with Mozilla Firefox browser.
8.2.2009 - What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger

At least it's comforting to think like that. Rasmus has been really weird in a couple training. He is scared of everything and can't concentrate on doing things. This has been really odd, not Rasmus at all. Three days after this behaviout started, he had an epilepsy-seizure. I woke up before the sunrise when he was shaking next to me. At the same time he peed all over our sheets. Seizure was quickly over, it lasted less than a half minute after I woke up. We went training again after the seizure and Rasmus was himself again. Could it be, that beeing scared was "making" the seizure? I don't know. We'll keep monitoring his situation. After Rasmus it was Roope's turn to get me upset. He ran away in the middle of our forestjogging. At first I was really angry but soon I got worried. Me and belgians went after him but didn't have any clue where he went. I started to get extremely worried because Roope hasn't done anything like this in years! When I loose control, Rasmus takes it. He started tracking Roope's path and finally after two hours of searching we found him! Everyday life seems to go the same as competitions. When I think that we don't have a chance, Rasmus does everything as he should. From now on Roope will be leashed in nearby forest. And today. Dogs were playing with Lotta and Vieno tervuerens and I took some lousy pictures in the rain. We started watching pictures and found something odd. In one picture Rekku's canine tooth was pointing 90 degrees on the side and out of the mouth! We went to the vet and he removed the tooth. And what happened? Most likely explanation is that someone of the dogs has smashed in Rekku's mouth when he has had ball in his mouth. Ball has came out of his mouth and broke the tooth. Tooth was totally normal in every way and Rekku should get fine soon. Rasmus and his littermates has birthday today! Happy Birthday to all 7 year olds! I hope to have better news on the next update in the future.
22.1.2009 - Rasmus is getting well again

Vet removed Rasmus's stitches yesterday and Rasmus has healed very well. There are still some swelling but otheriwise everything is fine. Rasmus was extremely happy playing with others. That has been forbidden for 1½ weeks. We also got more snow yesterday and dogs have had very much fun playing in it. I added some pictures to Gallery. Today it was my turn to try skiing.. Because of my back problems I can't take dogs to pull me, they just ran with me. I had to tell Rekku and Rolle to get out of my way x times. And Rasmus off from my skis with his teeth. It was really extreme at start. But it got better. After 1 kilometre dogs realized it is best to stay out of the way. On weekend we went to a nearby lake, and on ice. It was unfortunately so slippery that dogs had to stay on leash. We will take a new try on this weekend, now that we have snow. The picture is from last weekend. Because Rasmus has healed so well it seems that we can go to the obedience-training on 1.2. It's wonderful to start learning new tricks! And Rolle is starting agilitytraining again in the middle of February.
12.1.2009 - Patient Muumipeikko

Rasmus was castrated last Friday. Everything went well and although he is very swollen, he doesn't seem to be in pain. He has a collar and he bumps into furniture and walls. For him the collar ain't even a retard. We've have to move furniture to the side so that he wouldn't break anything. We hope he gets well fast. At the same vet visit we took a x-ray from Rasmus's back. There was seen two new changes in his vertebras, diagnosis is starting spondylosis. It's not reasonable to go to agility anymore, so we leave it to Rolle and Mikko. We are going to concentrare to obedience. Our beautiful winter has turned to raining. We hope that some snow stays on the ground because Rolle and Mikko have a new hobby! They trained skiing yesterday. Rolle had lots of fun. You can see pictures from Gallery. Rasmus and me are going to an obedience-training on 1.2. if he gets well before that. We need some help to get started with new movements in highest class. In the picture Rasmus is coming home from the vet.
4.1.2009 - And again a new year has started

Our New Years eve went very well. There were so little fireworks that Rekku was only a bit scared outside. Inside he was fine and he wanted to go out with the others several times. Roope didn't seem to be scared more than couple of bangs. Maybe his hearing has become weaker and he doesn't hear everything. Our year starts with Rasmus's castration, he has had signs of prostate problems again. We made the decision in fall, that he will be castrated if symptoms come back, and here we are. I'm calling the vet tomorrow. We've had beautiful sunny and freeze weather recently and I've naturally took some photos. You can see it from our Gallery. I hope that Rasmus and I can go to obedience-exams in the summer and make our first start in the highest class. Agility is still on a break because of my back problems. We'll see if we can start training again this year. For Rolle there are no plans. Maybe a few shows and hopefully tracking-exams in the fall. Roope's and Rekku's plan is to have much fun, and a lots of food. Of course we hope that everyone stayes healthy.