For the Love of Wolfhounds and Fiber

Top 5 Dog Breeds with Most Expensive Veterinary Costs (based on pet insurance claims to Trupanion)

2011-04-29T13:26:00.002-04:00

English Bulldog
- prone to cherry eye, brachycephalic syndrome, elongated soft palate, hip dysplasia, patellar luxation and stenotic nares
- 84% illnesses/ 16% accidents
- average claim amount $370.57

Bernese Mountain Dog
- prone to cataracts, elbow dysplasia, gastric torsion and hyperthyroidism
- 76% illness/ 24% accidents
- average claim amount $421.85

Rottweiler
- prone to allergies, elbow dysplasia, gastric torsion, and hypothyroidism
- 63% illness/ 37% accidents
- average claim amount $567.53

Great Dane
- prone to cardiomyopathy, elbow dysplasia, gastric torsion, and hip dysplasia
- 77% illness/ 23% accidents
- average claim amount $385.49

French Bulldog
- prone to allergies, brachycephalic syndrome, hip dysplasia, and stenotic nares
- 87% illness/ 13% accidents
- average claim amount $355.63

Top 15 Cat Medical Conditions

2010-06-15T12:40:00.002-04:00

The Top 15 Cat Medical Condition
(according to the Veterinary Practice News June 2010 & VPI)

1) Lower urinary tract disease
2) Chronic renal failure
3) Skin allergies/infections
4) Hyperthyroidism
5) Diabetes
6) Tooth infection requiring extraction
7) Upper respiratory infections
8) Ear infections
9) Eye infections
10) Constipation
11) Asthma
12) Soft tissue injuries/sprains
13) Lacerations and bite wounds
14) Benign skin growths
15) Gastritis/vomiting/diarrhea

Lagan is having heart problems

2010-05-03T12:00:00.004-04:00

Lagan is having heart problems. He currently has some heart beat abnormalities.

It is possible that it is the beginning of common heart problems seen in Irish Wolfhounds. According to one study that I read, about 40% of Irish Wolfhounds die of heart problems or complications from having a heart problem. Usually these problems turn up around age 6 (Lagan just turned 6 in January) and are more common in males. Often, these problem initially present with Atrial Fibrillation and then become Dilated Cardiomyopathy.

Our vet is giving us a referral to the Cardiology Dept at the NC State Vet School. There are lots of medication out there for heart problems. The hope is that a more detailed analysis of what his specific heart condition is will provide a clearer picture of his current heart problem and consequently what is the best way to treat it right now.

For more information:
The Prevalence of Cardiomyopathy in the Irish Wolfhound - Journal of American Animal Hospital Association
http://www.jaaha.org/cgi/content/abstract/36/2/125

About general health problems in Irish Wolfhounds:
The Irish Wolfhound Foundation
http://www.iwfoundation.org/health.php

Results of research in the health of Irish Wolfhounds presented by the (British) Kennel Club:
http://www.thekennelclub.org.uk/download/1577/hsirishwolfhound.pdf

Audiobooks that I Have Been Listening to Lately

2009-11-07T12:25:00.003-05:00

Between the pet sitting and spinning, I am almost constantly listening to audiobooks. A typical day includes listening to audiobooks for at least 8 to 10 hours.

I'm almost finished listening to the DeathStalker trilogy by Simon R Green (four more hours to go). I'm not sure what I am going to read next. I have several choices from my local library and Audible.

Recent listenings include:
Books by Christopher Moore (Lust Lizard of Melancholy Cove, Dirty Job, Fluke, Bloodsucking Fiends, You Suck, Fool, Lamb, etc)
Doomsday Book and To Say Nothing of the Dog: Or How We Found the Bishop's Bird Stump at Last by Connie Willis
Austenland by Shannon Hale (great if you have been listening to Jane Austen lately
Tutor period historical fiction by Philippa Gregory
We'll Always Have Parrots & Crouching Buzzard, Leaping Loon by Donna Andrews (very entertaining mysteries)
Flash Forward by Robert Sawyer
Sookie Stackhouse Vampire Stories
Anything I can find by Robert Rankin
The Undead and .... Queen Betsy of the Vampires Series by MaryJanice Davidson
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
Pendergast novels by Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child
Vor series by Lois McMaster Bujold
Outland series by Diane Gaboldon
Retrieval Artist novels by Kristine Kathryn Rusch
Literary Mysteries by Jasper Fforde
Amelia Peabody books by ELizabeth Peters
In the Woods and the Likeness by Tana French
Anything by Neil Gaiman
Inspector Banks mysteries by Peter Robinson
Tempe Brennen novels by Kathy Reichs (no, the character is nothing like the one on Bones)
Wicked, Son of a Witch, and Mirror, Mirror by Gregory Maguire

Wednesday in Moab, UT

2009-03-04T22:09:00.004-05:00

Once again, the weather was just wonderful. My husband and I hiked the Syncline Loop trail in the Canyonlands National Park near Moab, UT. It was an 8.3 mile loop with an initial downhill hike of 1500 ft. Since it was a loop trail, what goes down must come up. We walked near the bottom for a little while and then up we went. We took the trail clockwise which was definitely the best way to go. The uphill bit was spread out over a number of miles. I do actually prefer hikes that don't start with an uphill bit. It seems to take me a while to warm up. It took me about 6 hours with few stops. My husband added an extra mile to go to the center of the odd formation. I was ready to be done, so I skipped that part.

It was absolutely beautiful scenery. I took lots of pictures, at least I did until my camera's battery went dead. I am really glad we did it, but I am now very tired. I imagine that I will be pretty sore tomorrow. We are off to the hot tub to soak out our muscles.

Tomorrow we are off to Grand Junction to unload the trailer of my mom's stuff that we hauled from NC. She arrived in Grand Junction with her 3 cats today. She left on Saturday just like we did.

Spending a Day at Moab, UT (Tuesday)

2009-03-03T23:30:00.002-05:00

Tuesday
Once again, the weather was beautiful. With a high around 69 F. There was cloud cover for a lot of the day which was fine with me.

Morning:
My dh biked the Moab Brand Trails
I drove the Willow Springs Flat Off-road trail and hiked around in Arches National Park.

Lunch at the Love Muffin Cafe

Afternoon:
Me & my dh hiked around at the Dead Horse Point State Park - about 3.7 miles (probably more for me)
Yes, I know the name is kind of gruesome
I saw a Jack Rabbit (and took its picture), a ton of Big Horn Sheep tracks and poop, and a Kit Fox poop and tracks. I couldn't believe how many Big Horn Sheep signs we saw. There were tracks everywhere and poop too. Some of the poop was quite recent.

Dinner
All you can eat pizza at Zax (we watched vintage bowling - a match from 1974)

Soak in the hot tub at the hotel

Travels to Moab, UT and Grand Junction, CO

2009-03-02T20:08:00.002-05:00

My mom is moving to Grand Junction, CO. My dh and I offered help her move. This includes packing a trailer and then driving it out to CO.

We left on Saturday, Feb 28,around 7:45 am towing a trailer filled with mom's furniture. We drove straight through stopping only to eat and fill up the tank (a frequent occurrence).

We arrived in Grand Junction around 2:00 pm on Sunday. I think that it was about 1900 miles. We dropped off the trailer and headed to Moab for a couple of days R & R before we meet mom in Grand Junction on Thursday morning. We arrived in Moab around 4:00 pm.

Sunday
We walked around Moab checking out the changes since our last visit. The last time I was here was 3 years ago; my dh was here about 2 years ago.

Monday
Morning:
Dh biked the Gemini Bridges Trail
I drove the trail stopping frequently to take lots of photos.

Lunch

Afternoon: We hiked the Corona Arch trail (about 2.5 miles)
Drove down the Long Canyon Trail (very pretty)

I took lots of photos today, but it is unlikely I will get a chance to post any of them anytime soon.

Lagan turns 5 years old

2009-01-24T13:20:00.002-05:00

Lagan celebrated his fifth birthday on January 11th. We didn’t do anything special for it. We just had a good time together as usual. He is doing well considering his age. He still enjoys playing with Farset, just not as often as he did before.

Whew! I Made It through the Holidays and Farset Going through Her First Heat

2009-01-04T00:11:00.003-05:00

It has been a long holiday season. Not only have I been really busy with pet sitting (a good thing), Farset went into heat for the first time. She went into heat on December 11th which was the day before the guild Christmas party at my house. I had planned on taking her to doggie daycare that day, but I couldn’t do that with her in heat. So I was really stressed out at the party.

It was really poor timing. Farset would have to go into heat right before Christmas and I was booked absolutely solid from Dec 21 – Jan 2. It was her first heat, so it has been a real learning experience for both of us.

I had been waiting to buy anything until she had either finished growing or went into heat for the first time. After cruising the web, I ordered a pair of Fancy Nancy’s Dog Panties. There is a picture above. Now I just need to get a few more pairs before the next time she goes into heat.

http://www.fancynancys.com/

Dogs are in season for about 21 days, but it may be for even longer. It is not advised to breed a dog during their first heat. You shouldn’t breed an Irish Wolfhound girl before she is 2 years old. Most dog breeds go into heat twice a year.

Since Lagan is intact too, I had to keep her and Lagan separate while she was in heat. Fortunately, only Lagan was interested in her. She wasn’t interested in him. She also seemed to have an internal calendar, so she basically went out of heat in almost exactly 21 days. Yea!

The only reason they are both intact is because to show dogs in conformation, they have to intact. The idea is that you want to improve the breed. So for now, Lagan and Farset are intact. If I get to a point where I decide that I am not going to show Lagan anymore, I’ll have him neutered. As an intact male, he is at higher risk for prostate problems or testicular cancer.

Farset and Lagan and Me

2008-11-24T23:09:00.001-05:00

Here is a photo of me with Lagan and Farset. The photo was taken by my DH.

keeping busy with work (& a little handspindling)

2008-11-22T23:24:00.004-05:00

I've been keeping busy with pet sitting (with a little hand spindling, too). Thanksgiving is a busy time of year as you imagine. This year is mostly cat sitting. It is kind of interesting how every year is different.

If you want more timely updates, look at my facebook updates. I update it a little more frequently.

Farset is now 13 months old. She is doing the obnoxious, adolescent thing right now. She is very mouthy and chews up a number of things including some felted slippers that I made (from knitty.com http://www.knitty.com/ISSUEwinter02/PATTfuzzyfeet.html). My sister gave me a beautiful merino sweater that had been accidently washed and dried. It is now tiny, so I gave it to Farset as a chew toy. She has really enjoyed it. It is now missing a significant number of pieces.

Farset is now up to 155 pounds. Even Lagan didn't weight that much at her age. I figure that she is going to be bigger than he is. As it is, her rear end is taller than his is. I expect that she will be taller than he is.

I've been hand spindling (using a hand spindle) the merino fiber that I created at the end of Deb Menz's color class. I've spindled all of it. I am in the process of plying it now. It is primarily purple. I've been really pleased with how it is turning out.

Thinking of you.

I am going on vacation!!

2008-09-26T00:55:00.004-04:00

I can't wait. I am going on vacation on Saturday. It will be the first real vacation I've been on since this time last year. I will be following my DH around while he participates in Cycle North Carolina. He will be cycling from Black Mountain to Oak Island.

Next week I will be driving up to the Poconos for SOAR 2008. I can't wait to have a whole week devoted to spinning. I am bummed out that Heather Ordover (of Craftlit fame) will not be coming this year, but I am looking forward to getting away.

I was able to find a great person to help me out. Not only is she going to take care of my dog walks while I am out of town, she is going to take care of my dogs and my other dog sitting jobs. I have someone else taking care of my cat sitting jobs. I've been busy enough to need help even after I get back. I feel very fortunate to find good people to help me out.

Both have their own pet related businesses.

My dog walk and dog sitting person is: Ruth Jones
Her website is: www.alloverart.net
She create pet portraits

My cat sitting person is: Sue King
Her website is: www.companionchi.com
She performs pet massage, the Healing touch, quantum healing, Reiki, and teaches classes
Both have their own businesses

Farset is now 11 months old

2008-09-26T00:54:00.000-04:00

Farset is now 11 months old. She still weighs about 150.4 pounds.

She has been eating like there is no tomorrow. She has been eating even more than Lagan ever did.
Currently gets fed two times a day:
- 5 to 6 cups of dry food (I have changed her food to a higher calorie food to cut down on the fiber – cuts down on the amount of poop)
- 1/2 can of canned food
- 1/2 pound of 4% cottage cheese
- 1/2 cup of canned green beans

This is on top of treats and occasionally stealing some of Lagan’s or Murphy’s food. We’ve been going through a 30 pound bag every week and a half. It has become very expensive.

Lagan’s prescription Duck & Potato food is now selling for $91 for a 32 pound bag. He goes through a bag in about 3 weeks. I spend a lot on pet food.

Farset is now 10 months old

2008-08-08T17:21:00.005-04:00

Farset turned 10 months old on Thursday. We celebrated by going to the vet. She and Lagan have been having diarrhea, so I wanted to get it checked out. So we all went. Farset is now up to 131.5 pounds. Lagan weighed in at 179.3 pounds.

Their diarrhea could be due to something in the natural pool at the bottom of the driveway. They both drink out of it after we have gone on a walk up and down our driveway. I collected samples of their poop to bring into the vet’s office and had intended to bring in a sample of the water too. It didn’t happen. The poop is still in bags on the front porch. I’ll dispose of them later today.

Farset has also been eating unripe blueberries. We have about 5 blueberry bushes in our front yard. I think that Farset can find the ripe ones by smell, but winds up eating unripe ones by mistake. She can’t smell and pick at the same time. She is good about not eating the leaves amazingly enough.

I’ve been working really hard lately. It is great that I have been getting a lot of calls about pet sitting this summer. It has been keeping me busy. As I keep saying (and not doing), I really need to find a couple of people to give me some assistance.

Farset is 9 months old

2008-07-13T00:38:00.005-04:00

Farset turned 9 months old on July 7th. We went to the vet on Friday, July 11th, and she is up to 127 pounds. She is almost as tall as Lagan and may get close to his weight at 10 months. He was 140 pounds when he was 10 months old. He then lost 10 pounds, and bounced up and down between 130 and 140 for several years. I wouldn't be surprised of she tops out at 140 (10 stone for my English readers). It is definitely possible that she will get taller than Lagan. After all, her mother was about two inches taller than Lagan. I'll have to wait and see. Her weight had been pretty stable at 115 for about a month and a half.

Lagan's weight is in the 175 to 180 pound range which I consider too heavy. As I said earlier, he weighed in at 140 for a long time. It was only once we got Farset that Lagan suddenly became very food obsessed. I have cut back on his dry food and am adding in cooked broccoli stems pieces as added fiber to help him feel full.

Since we got Farset, he has been getting a lot more exercise. She certainly makes sure that he runs around a lot. I also take him and Farset out on walks usually twice a day, depending on my work schedule and the weather. If you have ever seen my driveway, you will know that those are not easy walks. I may have to go to a weight reduction food in hopes that it will help.

The problem with monitoring Lagan's weight is that he is not easy to weigh. I have to take him to the vet to get weighed. I usually weigh Farset at PetSmart when we are there. I'm not sure that Lagan will even fit onto the scale at Banfield (it is in a box instead of being out on the floor like at most vets. I've been going by how he feels and looks.

So far I've lost 27 pounds

2008-07-12T23:58:00.007-04:00

So far I've lost 27 pounds. I am more than halfway to my weigh loss goals. I will have to wait until I get closer to my final goals before I decide what is the right weight/condition.

I've been doing the low carbohydrate diet thing since March (I think). I read the book "Good Calories, Bad Calories" and created a diet with that information in mind. It is primarily the Atkins diet with a little less restriction. Because of the negative association with the Atkins diet, I have been describing it as just a low carb diet. Specifically, I say that I am eating "no sugar, no grains, no fruit."

I am also avoiding starchy vegetables (actually low glycemic load vegetables). So I'm not eating winter squashes (butternut, acorn, spaghetti, etc), sweet potatoes, peas, corn, lima beans, beets, etc. I also limit my intake of beans; legumes, not green beans. Primarily, I eat tomatoes, greens, cabbage family vegetables (such as broccoli, cauliflower, kohlrabi, cabbage, etc.), bean sprouts, lettuces, mushrooms, summer squashes, raw carrots, onions, shallots, etc.

I eat as much protein and fats as I like. The fats and proteins keep me from getting hungry. I don't eat just to eat. I eat limited amounts of nuts. For snacks, I primarily eat nuts (cashews, macadamias, and almonds), cheese, and Atkins chocolate chip granola bars. For desert, I've been eating sugar free Jello cups.

I firmly believe that if I am hungry, I need to eat. If I don't, my metabolism with decide that I am in starvation mode and slow down my metabolism (within reason). By not eating the sugar and grains, I keep my blood sugar and insulin levels low and relatively stable. It makes me less likely to get uncontrollable cravings for sugary or starchy treats. It is the first three days that are the hardest. I do try to avoid situations where I am watching other people eat sweet things. Sweets are the biggest craving for me.

I'm going to SOAR this year

2008-06-15T22:04:00.005-04:00

I got into SOAR (Spin Off's Autumn Retreat) this year. SOAR is an annual spinning conference that is probably the largest in the world. The top instructors teach there. If you spin, this is the place to be.

http://www.interweave.com/spin/events/soar/

My getting in this year was due to luck (and statistical probability). A lot more people applied to go this year compared to the number of available spots. They had a 5 day period in April where they accepted applications. From those applications, they selected by random drawings who got to attend. Some of it is related to the popularity of the classes you are interested in taking.

SOAR consists two separate parts. The first part is a three day intensive course. They have several choices available. Participants are able to list three choices in order.

The second part of SOAR is two days of half day classes. That is just strictly a numbers game. You don't choose the classes until you are at SOAR.

To me, with the price of travel, it only makes sense to attend both parts. The location changes every year. This year it is in the Poconos in Pennsylvania. Next year it is in Bend, Oregon. Last year it was in Michigan.

Got to have something to look forward to. I've been keeping really busy with the pet sitting and dog walking. Yes, I am walking dogs in the middle of the day and the highs last week were in the upper 90's to 101. The heat here is a wet heat, so it makes it feel quite a bit hotter.

Yes, It has been forever since I posted

2008-06-14T22:45:00.003-04:00

Yes, it has been forever since I posted a blog entry. Farset and work have been keeping me insanely busy. I've also been trying to complete some knitting projects. I made a fancy diagonal mohair scarf for my DH's aunt. I just finished my first real sock. I started last spring. I am not real thrilled with how it turned out. I definitely need to practice my kitchner stitch.

Farset turned 8 months old last weekend. She is about 115 pounds (and has remained so for the last 3 weeks) and about 30 inches tall. She is going to be a big girl.

More later including pictures.

Dog Show Week

2008-03-20T22:30:00.002-04:00

It has been a week of dog shows. They started on Tuesday and will continue until Sunday. I have been insanely busy consequently. Fortunately, I'm only showing Lagan in the real shows. I will be showing Farset on Friday evening (assuming that her sprained ankle is better) at basically a practice match. Just like a real match, but without the points and usually helpful tips. My BIL handled Lagan on Tuesday, we came in second out of two. After showing Lagan on Tuesday, my sister had me bring Lagan over to her barn and we stripped the heck out of him (mostly my sister) and then gave him a bath. He certainly looks better, but if it weren't for the shows, I wouldn't go to all the trouble.

I handled Lagan on Wednesday with the same result as Tuesday. My sister gave me constructive criticism afterwards. I handled Lagan again today with a similar result, third out of three. I arrived late and really didn't have my head together, so I am not surprised that we didn't do very well today. I tried to remember as much as I could from what my sister said. I do think that it helped.

As of Friday, the shows become really big. There will be 25 Irish Wolfhounds competing on Saturday. I don't think that I have ever seen that many in a show.

On top of the dog shows, I have dog walks and pet sitting to do too. I have also been walkign Lagan and Farset in the afternoons. Lagan may get some exercise, but Farset hasn't and gets a little explosive. So for her sake, I try to get them both out too. And if you have ever seen our driveway, it is a good cardio workout just getting to the street.

I certainly have been getting a lot of exercise. Since I am not getting any thinner, in my opinion, it just reinforces the message from the "Good Calories, Bad Calories" book. When you exercise more, you get hungrier to compensate. I have been trying to cut out the carbs, but they are truly an addiction at this point. It is going to take some non-super stressful time to get past the hump. If I can make it for three days, things begin to get much easier.

I love my dogs. They can just be a little challenging at times. Trying to handle them myself and work full time and do anything else is a struggle right now. The shows will be over on Sunday, then back to once a week handling practice. I do want to enter them in the Hound show in early May. Farset will be old enough to show by then. I will need someone else to handle one of the dogs in case we do really well. With them being different genders, they don't initially compete against each other. It would only be an issue if they both won their groups.

I am also craving fiber arts. I did actually finish spinning my yak/dyeing experiements yarn. My goal was fluffy and soft and I think that it accomplished that. I had no interest in making it really uniform or anything along those lines. I still haven't gotten a photo of it yet.

Fiber Craft Overload

2008-03-14T23:14:00.002-04:00

I have quite a bit of space in one large bedroom to use as a craft room. When we first moved in, I sorted all of my craft things into boxes with the intent to put them away once I had a better idea of how I wanted my room to function and obtained the appropriate storage.

Well, the Vet Tech program at Central Carolina Community College happened, and I didn't do anything craft oriented for the year I was attending the program. Since then, I have been working out of the boxes. I started to get more involved in knitting and actually bought yarn from stores (rather than spinning it myself). I had a small dresser that worked pretty well to store it. I kept buying yarn as I learned more. Most of my early yarn purchases were novelty yarns. I have quite a lot of that kind of stuff, especially since I most of my yarn purchases were from AC Moore and in the beginning, I would buy enough yarn to do a particular project 2 or 3 times (usually in different colors).

I worked for Nancy of Nancy's Knit Knacks for about a year and learned a lot more about knitting and the fiber arts business and just how hard it is to make a living in the fiber arts business. I have been involved with dog training and my own pet sitting and dog walking business since then. So I have spend up until the last 3 months staying busy with that.

After getting a little overwhelmed with the pet side of my life, I am finally back to doing more crafty kinds of things. Farset, our 5 month old puppy, has made it almost impossible to spin up until now, but I have been able to knit. I have been doing enough knitting to have a better understanding of yarn and how to use it in projects.

I am in the process of sorting through my craft room/office finally. I have sorted the yarn into the different sizes. I used a WPI (wraps per inch) tool to determine the size and attached it as a small label on the yarn. Not all yarn marked Worsted or DK or fingering is actually the size the label claims it is.

Now I just have to find homes for it all. Plus I need to finish going through everything else in my sewing room/office so that I can actually get some things accomplished. I really need to have an additional table set up. My desk/table contains two monitors, a desktop, and a dysfunctional printer. There really isn't room for much else.

I have a knitting machine that I would like to set up. I have a drum carder that I would actually like to use on occasion. I really need to have a ball winder and swift set up all the time. I just remind myself that I have to take it one day at a time. I really need to find someone to help out with the dog walking. It is hard to grow my business (and find time for crafts) when I am working all the time.

Pictures Finally - How big is she?

2008-03-02T01:10:00.011-05:00

I finally got a chance to process some pictures of Farset.

She looks very puppyish in these pictures. You don't really get an idea of scale.

Here is a photo of Lagan and her together. You still don't really get a good idea of her size.

Since I am usually taking pictures, I am not usually in them. I have a photo of Farset graduation photo that includes me. All of these pictures have been taken in the last 2 weeks.

Farset Graduates from Puppy Class

2008-02-21T23:12:00.006-05:00

Farset graduated from puppy class on Wednesday.

She is now about 4 ½ months old (20 weeks) and up to 68 pounds. At this point, there better be a darn good reason for me to pick her up. Getting her into the car when Lagan is in the car is one of those reasons.

Farset started the class when she was 10 weeks old. The instructor, the other student, and I figure that Farset gained 40 pounds while in the class. She went from a small harness to a large harness during that time. When we started the class, she was smaller than her classmate, a cocker spaniel. When we finished, she was so big the cocker spaniel could walk under her and had been able to do so for several weeks. I just wish we had taken a before and after picture. I do have an after picture that I will eventually post.

She learned so much in that class. Things that were never covered in all of the obedience classes that I had taken with Lagan. I haven't decided if I am going to move her up to the intermediate class soon or if I want to wait a little while. I would like to work on conformation (what they judge in dog shows)with Lagan and her. There is a class on Tuesday nights
at a different place. It is a drop in kind of class, you just go when you can.
I would also like to take Lagan through the intermediate class. He could use the practice.

It figures that a week before the end of class, Farset "forgot" the "down" command. She also forgot how to stay. She is driving me crazy in that respect. I think that it is just a matter of working through it. Some of it is due to her wanting to be close to me. Right now, she inevitably breaks a stay or wait when I am out of view. So we have been working on all of it here at home.

There are two practice matches coming up. One at the fairgrounds on Feb 23rd and one at the Durham Kennel Club on March 8th. I really want to enter her in both of them. I would love to bring both her and Lagan to the event at the fairgrounds on Saturday, but there is no way for me to handle both of them in that kind of situation. I can do ok when they are both just walking around outside, but not with a big crowd inside. Yet another thing to practice.

So much to do, so little time.

Life has been busy

2008-02-18T10:17:00.003-05:00

I know that it has been a while since my last post. Things have been really busy. I am walking lots of dogs every week day and the pet sitting is picking up again too. The economy seems to have significantly affected personal travel and is causing people to cut back on the extras. When talking to friends and acquaintances who own small businesses, they are feeling it too. I do have enough business that I need to add a dog walker or two soon, and hopefully a pet sitter by the end of March.

Farset continues to grow. As of last Wednesday, she is up to 62 pounds. She only gained 2 pounds during that week. I expect her growth to slow down a little bit.

We will be going to the fairgrounds on Feb 23rd to participate in a B match. The AKC is hosting an event at the Dorton Arena. You can find out more at: https://www.akc.org/news/index.cfm?article_id=3425 B matches are for inexperienced dogs to get some practice being in the ring without the points. They allow puppies as young as 3 months old, so it will be perfect for Farset.

There are regular dog shows at the fairgrounds from March 18 through 23. I will only be able to show Lagan since puppies need to be at least 6 months old before they are able to go into the regular match. I plan to showing Lagan and Farset at the hound show at the fairgrounds on May 11 & 12th. That assumes that I have an additional handler.

Update on Farset with Photos!

2008-02-08T17:56:00.000-05:00

Farset turned 4 months old yesterday (Feb 7th). According to the vet's office, she is up to 61 pounds. When we came in about 4 weeks ago, she was 40 pounds, so a gain of 20 pounds. That averages out to be 5 pounds a week. No small feat (or feet :) as the case may be). She and Lagan are really enjoying playing together. I've included a photo of that. She also likes to snuggle up to him. He is not all that interested, but he puts up with it. She is tethered to our kitchen island in the photo of her snuggling to her. She is pretty reliable when it comes to the house breaking thing, but she wasn't at the time of the photo.

Good Calories, Bad Calories - a must read

2008-02-06T15:55:00.000-05:00

If you eat and are concerned about your weight &/or health, you really need to read Good Calories, Bad Calories by Gary Taubes.

It is a little difficult to read. It contains lots of analysis of scientific (and not so scientific) studies regarding food, weight, exercise, and health.

Basically it says that everything that we have been told regarding eating healthy
and how to lose weight is wrong. He shows how almost none of the information
we have been told is not backed up by any study/research/biochemical pathway, etc. Plus he shows how some of the seemingly new radical ideas about food and eating are not not new.

Also that not all calories are the same. Carbohydrate calories behave very differently in our bodies than fat calories.

It is truely mind altering. An absolute must read.

For more info on this book check out the following websites:

http://www.randomhouse.com/knopf/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9781400040780

He wrote an article for the NY Times back in 2002 which led him to writing this book. You can read the article at:
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F04E2D61F3EF934A35754C0A9649C8B63

There is a YouTube film of the Larry King live show featuring Dr. Andrew Weil and Gary Taubes. You can see it at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoQGRJqGQTs

I Wish I Could Find Time to Do Crafty Things

2008-02-06T15:43:00.001-05:00

Right now I have been so busy with work that I haven't been able to do much crafty lately. I do look at pattern books and dream. I found one with designs that I can actually imagine wearing. They are in the book "Fitted Knits" by Stephanie Japel. I have also been excited about Nalbinding. The only thing that I am currently working on is in Nalbinding. Not quite a week left before I need to finish. I have at least two more inches before I finish. I may still run into problems finishing the edges, etc.

Farset hasn't been getting as much training lately either. I haven't had a chance to do any of our homework since our last puppy class. I am going to see the effects of that in a couple of hours.

I have been doing some serious reading, see my next entry.

Farset update

2008-01-31T22:49:00.001-05:00

Farset is now 16 weeks old and up to 55 pounds (as of Wednesday). We have puppy class one Wednesday evenings at PetSmart. We usually take that opportunity to weigh her.

This class, we were working on Stand Stays. Pretty challenging. We need to practice that and just the "Stand" command. Plus we need to start working on her "Stack" command so that she will know what to do at shows. I hope that I will be able to make it to the conformation class next Tuesday. I also need to take Lagan so that he can practice before the March shows.

I shot some video of Farset and Lagan together using my camera (first time I did that). I am not sure how to handle it yet, but I am going to try to post it somewhere. Assuming I can find time. As it is, I still haven't had time to put up some new photos of her (as you probably noticed).

Sick, but the Beat Goes On

2008-01-31T11:19:00.000-05:00

I have been really sick over the last week and a half. There is something going around in this part of the world, and I am just one of many that has fallen prey to it.   Last week it was just no voice and all sinus congestion. This week, it is mostly a cough and little voice. I overdid it on Sunday and have been paying for it. I went to the quarterly canine networking group meeting on Sunday.  About halfway through
the meeting, the local Beagle rescue group turned up and the place
became a whole lot noisier.  I didn't have much voice to begin with,
and by the end, I had none at all. I brought Farset with me as a
socialization experience. It is the perfect example of some of the
promotional activities we will be doing in the future.

I realized that Lagan needs more away from home activities. Since we have had Farset, he has not been getting out much. Plus there is an upcoming set of dog shows in March at the NC State Fairgrounds in which I want to show him. Farset won't be old enough. They need to be at least 6 months old.

There is a hound show in May that I am planning to show both Lagan and Farset (assuming I can get help). In the first classes, they will be in different groups, but if they win a couple of them, they will be competing against each other, so I will need an extra handler.

Fiber-wise
I have been working on a Nalbinding square (well, actually a tube that I will cut to make it into a square). I have gotten very excited about doing Nalbinding again. It creates such a neat fabric. I have all of these ideas about projects to make with it. Like I really have time. I have also gotten excited about all sorts of other projects too. I just bought the new Cat Bordhi sock book which is very exciting. I also have been excited about the idea of making wristwarmers using sock patterns. I just don't have to do the heel part. I also want to spin and knit a scarf for me. I bought some more paco-vicuna fiber from Chris Switzer at SOAR this year, and I think it would be wonderful as a scarf. I am such a "princess and the pea" kind of girl that I find almost every fiber scratchy.  I bought a relatively inexpensive
cashmere scarf at Target and just love it.  It makes me want to make a scarf
or two for me.  I really would like to make the DNA scarf.  I also want to make
a lace shawl.  I love the one from Winter 2007 knitty,the Jeanie one.  I also want
to make a shawl for my mother.  And I want to make several pairs of wrist warmers/fingerless gloves for me.

I have been walking 3 - 4 dogs a day plus the occasional pet sitting client (Jan & Feb tend to be a little slow pet sitting-wise). It doesn't leave much time to do anything else, especially since I am behind on documenting my business finances so that I can close out the year.

So much to do, so little time. . .

More pictures - still not up to date

2008-01-17T18:50:00.000-05:00

Here are a few more photos from last month.

Here Farset is playing with Lagan. Photo taken on Dec 3o.

Here Farset is playing on Dec 12th. One of the toys is the shell of a formerly stuffed toy with stuffed legs. She really likes it. Don't ask me why. We have been crating her in our bedroom when we are away.

Photo of Farset on top of my DH taken on Dec 28th. You have to remember that my DH is 6 ft 3 in. She may be on top of him, but she certainly isn't the dominant one.

We often go off roading, so we wanted her to have an experience doing that. Fortunately, there was an outing in the beginning of December at Uwharrie National Forest. We put her in a crate that was almost too small. We put a blanket down for padding and to keep her from moving around too much. We strapped the carrier in the back of the Land Rover Defender 110. It was a lot of fun and she had a good time too. The photo on the left is of my husband looking at the underside of a Land Rover Discovery after we went off-roading.

Photos of Farset (Finally !)

2008-01-12T17:02:00.000-05:00

Here are a few photos of Farset. They were taken on Dec 5 - 7. You can see how much smaller she is compared to her father, Lagan.

BTW: As of January 10, she was 44 pounds.

Lagan Turns Four Years Old

2008-01-12T16:55:00.000-05:00

Lagan turned four years old on January 11. I am so proud of my boy. He is still my hearthound, even with the new puppy. Hopefully he will be with us for many more years.

We are hoping to show him in upcoming AKC dog shows. He did very well in the last shows that he attended. I would love to "finish" him (earn his Championship). I think he is a beautiful dog and he moves so well. He has a more mature attitude which shows in the ring.

Time for the Giant Crate

2008-01-09T11:23:00.000-05:00

Well, Farset is definitely too long for the large crate now. I looked into borrowing one from someone in the local fiber arts guild, but they were either too small or of the wire variety. I like using the plastic airline crate type because it decreases visual stimulation in addition to keeping her safe. So, it is time to bring the Giant crate upstairs. It means disassembling it first, bringing it up from the garage to our bedroom and then hoping that it will fit the space.   I need to
move the large crate out of our bedroom first.  Plus I desparately need clean clothes, so I need
to do that too.

Farset has been eating a ton of bark, paper, sticks, leaves, etc. I have been unable to keep her away from it. I woke up to sounds of her retching last night. I took her outside, and surprise, surprise, it was primarily bark, paper, sticks, and leaves. She threw up two more times this morning. She has been having problems with diarrhea over the past week. I have been feeding her rice and ground meat for the last 4 days. She seems to be doing fine on it. No more diarrhea. She does seems to get fevers too. I took her temperature the other day, and it was 103 (normal is around 101.5). We have an appointment to go see the vet on Thursday. I'll let you know what he says. Her energy level seems unaffected. She remains a happy & energetic puppy. She is really enjoying playing with Lagan.   She is finally tall enough to play well with him. She just needs to fill out a little. Their playtime is always supervised. On occasion, he will step on a foot or something like that and she will yelp.

And she continues to grow

2008-01-04T22:32:00.000-05:00

Hi,

I weighed her on January 2nd at PetSmart. She is now up to 37 pounds. She almost reaches Lagan's chest.

She has almost outgrown her current crate. She isn't too tall for the Large crate that we are using now, but she is so long that we will need to get something a little bigger soon. We have a Giant crate, but it is almost overkill. An extra-large would be ideal, but I really don't want to spend money on one since she will outgrow it in a couple of months.

I'll let you know how things go.

______________________________________________

And for the crafty part of this blog:

I am almost done knitting the second sleeve of a baby sweater for my nephew (4 more rows to go). It is a size 12 mo, and he is now just past 13 months, but he tends to be a little on the small size for his age (or so I continue to hope). I've been working on it off and on since Oct 2006. He was born at the end of Nov 2006. I have already woven in the ends for the body and the first sleeve. I just haven't had much time to do crafty things since November hit. Between working the holidays, normal work, and Farset, I just can't seem to find the time. If I am in front of the computer, it is primarily either email or work related (or both). The only tv I watch is either while I am eating dinner or working on the computer.

I did actually start knitting on a lace scarf that I started I don't know when. It is in commercial sportsweight black baby alpaca yarn. The pattern is an arrowhead lace from the cover of Spin Off a while back. The one on the cover is in white merino. I'll try to post pictures of both soon.

Just watch her grow

2008-01-01T16:58:00.001-05:00

As of Dec 26th, she is 31 pounds and 11 weeks old. I'm beginning to weigh her on Wednesday nights when we go to PetSmart for class.

Puppy Class Update:
Well, Farset and I have been learning a lot. The instructor uses positive reinforcement, but she comes at the training differently than I learned with Teamworks. I was disappointed at first because there was only one other puppy in the class (a cocker spaniel), and there wouldn't be any puppy playtime. I am glad I signed up for it. I think that it is good for me and Farset to experience a new method of training.

She continues to be a very brave puppy. The instructor set up a covered narrow platform suspended by two bricks with cones on the sides. She was planning to use it as a fun learning activity after we worked on the stay commands. When Farset and I came in, she went right to the end of the platform and walked all the way down it without any hesitation. The instructor had come over right as she was doing it. She was really impressed.

We went over to our neighbor's New Years Party last night. They had live bands and lots of people, noise, and smoking. We brought her right in. She was a little reluctant at first, but soon settled down and started checking things out. She was fine with the band, the crowd, and everything. Before long, she was tired out and curled up in a little ball in the kitchen (where most of the people were hanging out) and started to take a nap. It is hard to beat that. My DH brought her home to sleep and then came back to the party. When I got home after midnight, I let her out to see and hear the fireworks. She was unconcerned.

She just keeps getting bigger

2007-12-21T11:45:00.000-05:00

Hi,

Sorry to have been so tardy in getting another entry out. Farset keeps us busy, especially with Christmas almost here. I have been taking pictures, but I haven't had a chance to download them onto the computer.

Farset continues to grow. She was up to 26 pounds on Monday and is about 18 inches tall. I imagine that she is heavier now. I bought her a harness to wear instead of a collar. She has moved up from the Small to the Medium. You can almost see her grow. When I pick her up, I can definately tell that she is heavier.

We went to the vet for the first time last week to get more puppy shots. We go back in another 2 - 3 weeks. I bought Vet Insurance for her. Irish Wolfhounds have very expensive vet bills.

I continue to try to socialize her to a lot more things. She continues to be very friendly. She seems to especially like men. She seems to do well with other dogs. She has been meeting cats and children. We took her out 4-wheeling off road a couple of weeks ago. She wasn't thrilled by the experience, but coped with it really well. I still need to take her to more places and introduce her to more things.

We started a puppy class at PetSmart this week since they allow puppies as young as 10 weeks to start the classes. I primarily signed up so that she would have a chance to socialize with other puppies. It is a little difficult to find other puppies for her to play with. Unfortunately, in this class, they don't have socialization time. The instructor is good, so I think that we will still get something out of it, just not what I had intended.

The housebreaking is going well. The mouthiness is an ongoing issue. We have dog toys scattered around the house so that there is something we can put in her mouth instead of whatever it is she is trying to eat. She likes to bite people, furniture, cardboard, the carpet, paper, and worst of all, Lagan's tail. (Lagan, her daddy, has broken his tail once and had a serious tail tip injury and really doesn't need to have her biting his tail)

She has very sharp puppy teeth. Like people, they have baby teeth that will eventually fall out to be replaced by adult teeth. She gnashes her teeth together and makes a clacking sound. I call her "shark" on occasion because of her snapping. I also tell her that she has "bitey, bitey teeth".

We opted to not have a Christmas tree this year since we figured that she would probably eat it or tip it over. We also decided not to get poinsettias since they are poisonous and she enjoys eating leaves.

Got to go. She needs to go pee and she doesn't understand "wait".

Her name is Farset

2007-12-02T10:10:00.000-05:00

We finally decided on Farset as a name for our new puppy. Things have been going well so far. We are making progress on the potty training front. She is still waking me up during the night to take her out to go pee. She had been waking me up every 2 hours, but last night, she only woke me up once. Usually at sometime during the night, she had peed in her crate at some point (it is a large crate and we put down puppy pads in the back of the crate).

She is definitely a smart & brave puppy. I weighed her this morning. She is currently 16.5 pounds at 8 weeks (Dec 2).

Lagan is not sure about her. He still finds her a little scary, although he does try to play with her on occasion. He may be a little protective about her. I put her and Lagan in my SUV and took them down our driveway to the street. I unloaded them and we went for a short walk. I am trying to get her to like riding in a car. So, a little while into our walk, one of my neighbors let their dog out. It is a small terrier that barks a lot, but stays in his yard. Lagan usually marks around their driveway, but otherwise typically leaves that dog alone. This time, he ran into that neighbors' yard. I clapped my hands and called him and he came on back. I'm not sure if he was doing it just to have a little fun, or if he did it because he is being protective of the puppy. I really hope that it isn't the latter.

I took Farset back home, and then Lagan and I went out to run our errands. I needed to return some items at PetSmart, drop by the library, and took Lagan to the Cary Dog Park. He enjoyed having some fun time alone with me.

Little Puppy Girl

2007-11-27T23:17:00.000-05:00

We still haven't decided on a name quite yet. Since our other Wolfhound was named after an Irish river, we ideally wanted to name the puppy after another Irish river (or geographical landmark or something in Gaelic). The first try was "Dargle," which sounds a little too much like gargle to me. Plus it doesn't exactly roll off the tongue. Our current trial is "Farset" (Feirste in Gaelic). According to Wikipedia, it flows into the Lagan (our other dog's name).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/River_Farset

I have been working hard trying to expose her to items on my list of things to socialize her to. We brought her home on Thanksgiving. So she got to come with us to Thanksgiving dinner at my sister's stables. Yes, it is kind of an untraditional location, but there were about 20 people all together, and none of us have room in our homes for that many people. She was exposed to lots of people, several other dogs, children including my 1 year old nephew, and a fearful chihuahua. We still haven't introduced her to horses yet, but that may be on tomorrow's agenda.

Tomorrow we are going to help my mom move from her rental house to a house next to my sister's home. That will expose her to a lot chaos. She will be around trucks, boxes, several different houses and yards, and so much more. I will have her crate in my truck, so if she starts showing signs of overload, I'll just put her in the truck for a nap. If it gets too bad, I can always just drop her off at my home which is about 10 - 15 minutes away. If she is doing well, we can expose her to horses too (obviously, we will not let her get into a situation where she might be hurt).

I am trying to take pictures every day since they grow so fast. I still haven't gotten around to weighing her. It means weighing me, and I am not real keen on that part. I think that my sister and mom will be surprised with how much larger she has become in only a week. She is definately heavier. I swear she is significantly heavier than she was only this morning. Granted, she has recently eaten.

I'll try to get some pictures of her up sometime soon. I keep taking pictures, but I haven't had a chance to download any of them from my camera.

And the winner is

2007-11-22T00:24:00.000-05:00

Here is the new girl puppy (name yet to be determined)

Puppy size comparison (Pictures of Brigid and the pups)

2007-11-09T22:50:00.000-05:00

Here is Brigid and the puppies on day 8, 10, 18, & 32.
It shows you the increase in the size of the puppies in a very dramatic way. It also shows how their coats are more obviously brindled.

Here are pictures of the puppies suckling from their mother, Brigid.

Puppies at 26 days

2007-11-06T13:52:00.000-05:00

I went to visit the puppies on Friday last week. It was amazing how much bigger they were. They are also a lot more active. The puppies were still confined, but in a larger pen than last week. They have gotten big enough to begin to climb over the edge of the pen.

The breeder is starting them on puppy food this week. I had a chance to watch them eat the puppy mush. They are fed in pairs to make sure that they all ate. Since they are fed just outside the pen, the ones not eating have been trying to get over the edge of the pen to the food.

They are still sleeping a lot. After eating, they all napped for a little while. Then back up to play some more.

I made sure to pick each of them up to separate them from the rest of the litter. I then turned them belly up until they stopped squirming. Then I held them up so that their legs dangled and waited until they stopped moving and then put them back with the rest of the litter. I am trying to expose them to some novel experiences to improve their ability to deal with change and uncertainty.

Update of current activities

2007-11-05T18:04:00.000-05:00

I am happiest when I balance my pet/animal activities with my artisitc/fiber activities. Lately I haven't had much time to do any of the artistic activities.

I knit quite slowly and so I tend to not get very far, very fast. And then considering how infrequently I get time to knit, I really don't get much accomplished.

Long car trips with my husband are the best time for me to knit. My DH prefers to drive when go somewhere, so I get to knit. Unfortunately that doesn't happen very often any more. I tend to work most weekends nowadays.

I've also been spending a lot of time working on my blog (such as it is). I am trying to go visit the puppies once a week and then post pictures of them. Plus I am spending quite a bit of time on Ravelry.

I've also been trying to clear up some of the chaos at home prior to the arrival of the puppy. So far that isn't going very well.

I had a booth at the Canine Carnival last Saturday. I had a lot of work required prior to the event and then the event itself was time consuming. I am mostly booked up for the Thanksgiving holiday plus I will be getting a puppy on the Friday. I am already getting a lot of requests for service from potential clients.

And after having gone to SOAR, I would rather spin if I have a choice. I am still knitting up some of the sample skeins that I made in Janel's Painted Rovings class.

One of these days I will try to find the pictures of finished objects. Right now, I would be happy to put up my projects in process. I think it would help me use my time more efficiently. When I get a little bored with the project(s) I am currently working on, I can look over my list of incomplete projects and make a little progress on it instead of just starting another new project.

My dog's pedigree (Lagan - Gulliagh Miraz)

2007-10-31T22:56:00.000-04:00

As requested, here is the pedigree of my dog. If you feel like having a Ch in the pedigree, here they are.

Sire side:
Rossalare's Sandor (USA CH)(BOS-IWCA 2001)
Ballyhara Rumor (USA Ch) X Rosslare's Quinella (USA Ch)
Lilliput Fitzarran Khronos (US Ch)(BOS-IWCC-1997) X Ballyhara Scarlett (US Ch) / Ballyhara Shane (US Ch) X Rosslare's First Addition (US Ch)

Lilliput Fitzarran Khronos (US Ch)(BOS-IWCC-1997) was the offspring of
Nellwyns Barnabus (US Ch) X Fitzarran Nyke of Lilliput (US CH)

Ballyhara Scarlett (US Ch) was the offspring of
Fitzarran Shadowfax (CDN US Ch)(BOS-IWCC-1985) X Cashel Siobha of Culach (CND Ch)

Ballyhara Shane (US Ch) was the offspring of
Fitzarran Shadowfax (CDN US Ch) (BOS-IWCC-1985) X Cashel Siobhan of Culach (CDN Ch)

Rosslare's First Addition (US Ch) was the offspring of
Sharbo Gunther (US Ch) (BOB-IWCA-1986) X Boolteens Lady Miagh (CDN Ch)

Dam side:
Gulliagh Narnia
Maximillian Fionnmae (US Ch) (World W Jr-2000) X Gulliagh Serendipity (GB IRL Ch)
Curoi Jazz (Int NL D L DK Ch) X Unity Fionnmae (NL D Ch) /
Shadow of Kilmara (GB Ch) X Gulliagh Nadia (IRL Ch)

Curoi Jazz (Int NL D L DK Ch) was the offspring of
Quincy of Kilmara (Int B L NL Ch) (WorldW-94 & 95) X Geasa's Kaeliy

Unity Fionnmae (NL D Ch) was the offspring of
Magnificent Troy Fionnmae (Int FIN D NL VDH S Ch) (NordicV-95)
X Oda-Mae Fionnmae

Shadow of Kilmara (Gb Ch) was the offspring of
Nasch from the Good Heath (Int NL L Ch) X Miss-Marple from the Good Heath (Int B NL L Ch)

Gulliagh Nadia (IRL Ch) was the offspring of
Culvercroft Benjamin of Gulliagh (IRL GB Ch) X Gulliagh Isolde (IRL Ch)

Photos of Puppies at 18 days

2007-10-27T19:08:00.001-04:00

Here are some photos of the puppies at 18 days.

They have grown a lot.

In this photo, Brigid is feeding the pups. As you can tell, they take up a lot more space than they did last week.

The puppies have their eyes open now.

They are beginning to move around better. They have begun to play with each other and toys.

They still spend a lot of their time sleeping.

Puppies at 18 days

2007-10-25T16:47:00.000-04:00

I had a chance to visit the puppies today. They are now 18 days old and are walking around with their eyes open. They seem to only have two states, on and off. Either they are running around playing with each other, playing with some of the toys, and feeding from mom; or they are sleeping. I took pictures that I will post soon.

I had the opportunity to pick them all up and give them a little time on their backs and suspended in the air holding their body with my hand with their legs dangling. I am trying to give them some new body sensations to improve their reactions to novel situations later in life. I waited for them to settle down before I would let put them down. I wanted them to learn that only by being calm, they would be able to get back to the other puppies.

I also helped cut their toenails. Next time I do that, I'm planning to give them something wonderful to taste while I do it. I want them to have a positive association with getting their nails trimmed. I am also going to touch their feet and mouth so that they are used to that kind of handling. I waited for them to calm down after I trimmed their nails before returning them to the pen and other puppies.

It looks like we will be able to take her home on Friday, Nov 23. I can't wait (although there are so many things I need to do before she comes here).

Of the four females, one is one of the smaller dogs of the litter. It looks like she will be a lighter brindle. She seems comfortable sleeping away from the other puppies. She is not as food focused as most of the other puppies. One of the females is very curious and confident. She is already playfully attacking her litter mates. The other two females seem kind of middle of the road, not too reserved or friendly, not dominant or submissive, not big or small. I'll have to wait and see how they develop.

The answer to the question "How much will she weigh when you adopt her?" is 20 - 25 pounds.

SOAR photos (evenings)

2007-10-23T23:43:00.000-04:00

I am finally getting a chance to post a few pictures from SOAR this year. I was at all three "Stupid Yarn Tricks" events. Abby and Denny were great fun, even without the cheap swill. I hope they will be there next year.

Fibergal and fiberguy were the life of the party and not just because they provided the large amounts of cheap swill. Fibergal was in the same 3 day workshop that I was in, but we didn't get that many chances to talk. Maybe next year.

SOAR is such a great opportunity to get to know some of the most gifted people in the field of spinning and fiber arts.

In the evenings I hung out with people like Janel from Chameleon Colorworks, Stephanie Pearl-McPhee, Fibergal, Fiberguy, MamaOKnits from Craftlit, Abby from Abby's Yarns, Denny, and more.

SOAR photos

2007-10-23T17:45:00.000-04:00

Hi,

I have finally gotten some pictures of SOAR up on my Flickr account.

Just a little about me

2007-10-21T15:41:00.000-04:00

I love Irish Wolfhounds and fiber arts, especially hand spinning.

I am the proud owner of Lagan, a 3 1/2 year old male Irish Wolfhound and two cats. We bred our Wolfhound to a sweet Wolfhound girl that lives nearby. She was pregant with 14 puppies, and gave birth to 10 live babies on October 7th.

I would have loved to be there when the puppies were being born, but I was on my way to SOAR (Spin-Off Autumn Retreat) in Michigan. The litter consists of 4 girls and 6 boys. We get the pick of the litter. I would like to have a girl puppy this time. We have only had male Wolfhounds, so this will be a change.

I am a spinner primarily and a knitter secondly. I attended SOAR (Spin-Off Autumn Retreat) in 2006 and 2007.

I learned to spin in Belfast (Northern Ireland) at the Ulster Heritage Museum. It was a great experience with a wonderful instructor. I have been spinning for about 4 years. I was taught to knit shortly afterward to have something to do with my handspun yarn. I was instructed by an English woman who learned to knit from her left-handed German nanny. So I carry in my left hand.

I have also been known to quilt (a lot) , bead (a lot), felt (a little), crosstitch (in the past), needle punch (a little), and some embroidery (not so much).