Are You Ready for a Puppy
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Will your puppy know who its parents are?
Do you realise how hard it is to type with a wet nose and a furry paw
trying to get your attention !! If your answer is 'no' to any of the above, The following points are from a first-time-puppy-family in Sydney... As a first time puppy owner.... Having a puppy
-reduces stress in your household;
-provides exercise for family members whilst you are playing with him;
-attracts a whole host of family members and friends who want to meet him;
-provides you with great enjoyment shopping for his food and accessories;
- is a huge responsibilty requiring time ensuring his health and wellbeing are maximized;
- is like having a new baby in the home requiring your every care and attention;
- requires you to provide him with lots of attention to promote his mental stimulation; - is entertaining and fun for the whole family;
- alerts you to everything that is happening around the home;
- makes you feel important and needed;
- is hard work but the more you put in the more you receive.
Yetholme Karmas Princess Charlotte (above),
THE 10th YORKIE YULE FEST As usual, it was a great day. Regrettably, Micky-Chin was our roving reporter for the 2009 Yule Fest. Here is his report of the day..... The General has given me an ultimatum – ‘You, MICKY CHIN, must write your Yulefest report NOW. You promised and it’s now more than a month gone by and you still haven’t delivered!!!!’
Let me tell you, General Chris is a hard task master.
But I’ll try. Truly, I’ll try.
OK, let’s start at the beginning. That was Saturday afternoon – the day before the Yulefest. I knew something was happening because The General was just doing ordinary afternoon chores with the horses and stuff, but instead of letting all of us members of the Bimbimbie Yorkshire Terrorist Brigade (BYTB) help her ( we run around and bark a lot – it keeps the horses mentally and physically alert) she stopped her labours and went to the kitchen and put out special treats on our dinner plate. Oh yum, yum – left over roast chicken BEFORE dinner.
As you would expect, we all raced in and pushed and shoved each other to get more than our fair share each. Sadly, we failed the first rule of successful terrorism – vigilance. We didn’t see The General sneak out the kitchen door and close it behind her. We were locked inside and the chicken had all been eaten.
Something was seriously going on. The General normally only stoops to this sort of subterfuge when she is going away from home and needs to be sure that Wolfie and I won’t try to follow her car. (We’ve done that before with horrendous results and caused huge stress and expense.) But The General always gets clean before she goes away. She showers and packs clothes and stuff in her carpet bag and things like that. But on Saturday we were locked in the house and she was outside being her normal dirty, smelly horse person self.
What was going on??
We worried a bit and waited. Little One retired to our secret bedroom cupboard hidey hole, but we Boys of the Brigade figured we had to tough it out.
Finally The General came inside and that’s when we knew something awful was about to happen.
First up she started running water in the laundry tub. We know she’s not into hand washing any of her clothes. The only things she washes in the tub is US! And we hate being washed!!
Why now?? Why wash any of us?? For goodness sake, we’d all had a big swim in the big dam when we did the morning horse feed run. We were as clean as cold, smelly water could make us.
I got really worried when she went to a kitchen drawer and pulled out a heavy duty garbage bag and started hacking away at with a pair of scissors and then she pulled it over her head. That meant that Wolfie, or me or Ears were going to get a bath. We all became seriously terrified terrorists and started running around trying to find places to hide.
The General was relentless. She captured me and dunked me. I put up a huge fight. I shredded the garbage bag protective clothing. I fought and fought – but I got bathed. In baby shampoo!! Do you mind!! I’m a terrorist, not a baby.
The General made one serious mistake. She left the kitchen door ajar. Wolfie and Ears went AWOL.
After an horrific 15 minutes of warm water and no tears suds The General wrapped me up in big fluffy towels and locked me in the bedroom. I made sure she suffered for her pains by getting rid of the towels and drying myself off on the sheets and doona on the bed.
The General set about trying to find and capture Wolfie. She didn’t seem too interested in capturing Ears. Little One was still hiding in the cupboard and, somehow, Sprock and Nicholas didn’t seem to think that they were part of The General’s ‘clean campaign’.
They were right. The General revealed that Wolfie and I were going to the 2009 Yorkie Yulefest. And we had to be clean. Grandma Jan had declared ‘Make sure they get a bath’. Gee, thanks Gran. A little bit of dirt is good for the soul.
Wolfie kept hiding out outside and The General gave up on him and started making Yulefest food and wrapping Yulefest presents.
By the time Wolfie gave up and came inside The General was past dog bathing and I thought ‘It’s not fair . . . he’ll get to come to the Yulefest dirty and I have to be clean’.
Wrong!! She delegated Wolfie bathing to Sargeant Major David (SMD). Poor Wolfie was fast asleep on Sunday morning when SMD grabbed him and tossed him in the laundry tub. What a riot!! By the time the two of them had finished the laundry looked as though there had been a hippopotamus water wrestling competition. I have to say, I put up a good fight but Wolfie can really move water in a big way.
OK, so that’s prepping for the Yulefest. Next we have to get to the Yulefest.
The General packed all the food into the car fridge. She put the presents in the car. And then, being a very observant Terrorist, I saw her put bondage items in the car. I believe they’re called collars and leads. The BYTB do NOT do collars and leads. We help with halter training horses but we aren’t into that stuff for ourselves. I was seriously worried.
I decided it was my turn to go AWOL. Wolfie is a fool. He loves cars and riding in them. As soon as the door was opened he was ‘in like Flynn’. Not me: I was not going to be captured. It took 20 minutes for The General to get me. I had to give up because I could see she seriously meant it when she said she would ‘cut off supply’. I have to eat and I don’t do vegies, so I couldn’t live off the garden.
I surrendered.
Right, so off we go. The General, SMD, me and Wolfie, heading for the beautiful Megalong Valley and the 2009 Yorkie Yulefest. Oh whoopy doo. It’s great for Wolfie. He’s up there doing what he loves best – riding on the car fridge with his nose out the window. Drying his soggy hair. Me?? Well, I hate cars and I get car sick and even though The General had force fed me some ginger I was still feeling queasy. I was not a happy camper.
All the way from Bimbimbie to Blackheath The General was stressing about Wolfie’s ‘tattiness’. I’d seen her put the really horrible instrument of torture into the car – it’s a thing called a brush – and I just hoped she wouldn’t try to use it on me. But she didn’t seem worried about me. I guess my No. 1 haircut was still recent enough not to need too much work.
When we got to Blackheath and pulled up at the traffic lights Wolfie spied two Schnauzer’s (Is that how you spell it?? The General can’t remember) taking their human for a walk. It was all too much for Wolfie. He made another big mistake and leapt off the car fridge into the front seat and The General’s lap. She grabbed him and set to with the brush: he put up a good fight but by the time we got to the valley he looked ridiculously smooth and tidy.
I was so pleased when the car stopped and was all set to leap out of it and go running around exploring things. But no, things went from bad to worse. The General grabbed Wolfie and put one of those collar and lead things on him before handing him over to SM David. And then she put one on me – a purple one. Oh for heaven’s sake – PURPLE!! That’s not a terrorist colour: that’s for girls and wimps. At least Wolfie’s set was blue.
The General put me on the ground and said ‘Walk’. No way! I was not going to be seen in public wearing this ridiculous get up. I sat down and pulled and pulled and very quickly slipped the collar: it was too big. I was off. Now I could have some fun and go exploring. The General’s not too good in the running department but she came after me.
Out of the corner of my eye I saw Wolfie take my lead and he too managed to slip his collar. I thought he’d come after me and that we could have some serious fun, maybe even find some other loose dogs to join us. But no, to my horror and amazement Wolfie headed straight back to the car, jumped in and hid on the floor. What poor excuse for a terrorist! He should have been wearing purple.
The General and SMD focussed their attention on me and before I could really get my bearings and suss out the territory they cornered me. I thought ‘Oh well, they’ll just put me in car with Wolfie’. But no, there was another attempt to make the dreaded purple collar fit me. It didn’t work. For a moment I thought I was safe but then Lyn gave The General a thing that looked like a noose. I thought I was going to be hung for my crime. It turned out to be another collar and lead thingy but this one was made so that I couldn’t escape from it. I was well and truly captured. At least this was a plain inoffensive white sort of colour – not purple. I would have been a lot happier with camouflage khaki, but at least it wasn’t purple.
I figured I’d better be noble and dignified in defeat, so I sort of walked with The General. She took me inside the building and started introducing me to other Yorkies. I was amazed. They were all so clean! And most had amazing long, smooth, silky hair. How on earth could they keep it that way? I know when I had long hair it was a nightmare – always getting full of grass seeds and burrs and knots and mud. The General could see I was perplexed. She’d been looking at the new Yulefest calendar and showed me a picture of a Yorkie all done up in funny little white bows. Apparently Yorkies with really, really long hair spend most of the time done up in hair rollers and then being brushed and brushed. Not for this terrorist. Thank heavens for military hair cuts.
And I didn’t know there were Yorkies that were even smaller than our Little One and Sprock. I met Beatle and Yogi: they were so, so pretty – but so, so small. I didn’t think I’d be game to play with them in case I squished them.
There were lots of little Yorkies running around and not being squished, but I was still a bit worried for them all. I was trying to be on my best behaviour so I just lay down on the floor and watched all the activity for a while. A really pretty little girl person came over and sat down with me. That was nice and she gave me lots of cuddles, even though she had her own Yorkie.
And then I met Rupert. Now here was a Yorkie with real terrorist potential. I could tell he was only very young but he was big, almost as big as me, and he had lots and lots of hair that wasn’t smooth and silky – just all wild and messy like mine used to be when I was his age. And he did lots of wriggling while he was being carried around by his person. I think by next Yulefest he’ll be ready to be a trainee Yorkshire Terrorist.
And then there was a little Yorkie who was definitely not what I’d call terrorist potential. She and her person demonstrated something that I think is called ‘obedience training’. This little dog was running around doing what her person asked her to do. I was absolutely amazed! Another Yorkie’s person asked her to do the same thing but, thankfully, she rebelled and wouldn’t play by the rules. Before that I was beginning to think I was Yorkshire Terrorist alone in a roomful of vegetarian, tea-drinking pacifists.
Next up SM David announced it was time for the Yulefest ‘dog show’. SMD was running the show and Rupert’s person Arthur was the judge.
We all had to line up for the first class – Most Loved Yorkie. Naturally enough we all won first prize because, of course, we are all Most Loved. We each got a really neat little blue ribbon. The General let me wear mine around my neck. I thought I looked pretty smart.
There were lots of other classes. I was the clear winner in the Waggiest Tail class. The General gave me to SM David for the Yorkie and Owner class – she thought we’d win because we’re both large and have grey curly hair. We didn’t win, but I think we got an honourable mention. I was certain I’d win the Biggest Yorkie class but no, Arthur gave the prize to Rupert. Rupert will be bigger than me next year because he’s still growing, but I’m sure I was bigger than him on the day. I was going to lodge a protest but The General told me that was just not on. I sulked.
I thought the last class of the day was the best class, but I wasn’t entered. I was just a spectator. The class was for the Most Christmassy Yorkie. Lots of Yorkies got dressed up by their people in Santa Claus and reindeer outfits. I don’t know how they put up with it. The General had tried to put a little red bow on my forehead earlier and I just couldn’t cope: I had to shake it off straight away. There’s no way anyone could get me to parade around wearing reindeer antlers!
After all the judging was finished SM David ran the Yulefest raffle. There was a huge table full of all sorts of prizes. I had my eye on a really nice looking blue drinking bowl. I thought it would go well with our red dinner plate.
The first prize drawn was the lucky door prize. I am SO glad we didn’t win. It was a big pink bag which The General told me was a travelling bag for dogs. She seriously said that a dog like me would climb into and be carried around in it. She surely had to be joking??
SM David had bought all our raffle tickets, so when one of our numbers got called out The General let him choose a prize. He didn’t choose the bowl. He chose a clock radio. What on earth did he want another radio for? He’s got them all over the house and even in the stables. (When he forgets to turn the stable radio off it drives the stable cats mad: they try to turn it off themselves but have to wait for The General to do it for them.)
It was ages before another one of our numbers got called out and I was sure another Yorkie would get my bowl, but The General knew I wanted it and that’s what she chose. That was kind of her: I’d been worried she might choose one of the pieces of bondage equipment that she called a dog harness because she said if she put me in one of those I wouldn’t be able to escape.
By the time the raffle was over I was getting a bit tired, so while lunch was being put out on the tables SM David took me and my new bowl back to the car and Wolfie. He’d stopped hiding on the floor and was back on the car fridge: I told him he was a wimp and a very poor excuse for a Yorkshire Terrorist.
SM David had promised to bring me some Yulefest lunch as a reward for being good. He did, but he also brought some for Wolfie too. What had he done to deserve lunch?
I had my lunch and then had a big sleep while the people had their Yulefest lunch. When the Yulefest was over we had to drive all the way home. I a bit regretted having lunch because I was seriously queasy all the way home but I managed to hold it all in until The General let me out of the car at our front gate.
I really enjoyed my Yulefest this year, even though I don’t like being on a lead. I don’t know what next year will be like because apparently Grandma Jan and SM David are planning some sort competition involving obedience and obstacles and ‘thing’. Sounds a bit frightening because The General says we’ll have to go into training for it. I’ll have to see if I can find out more.
So, there you have it – MickyChin’s 2009 Yulefest report.
I’m sorry it’s taken so long to get it you but things have been very, very busy here and I just couldn’t get The General to type it for me. We’ve had our orphan foal to look after and then there was a foal born with really weird legs so that she couldn’t stand up to drink. The General had to milk the mother every hour on the hour for four days so that she could feed the foal from a bottle until her legs straightened up and she could stand up to drink by herself. That was really exhausting work for all of us. And the mare retained the afterbirth and had to have lots of injections to get rid of it and then she got and infection from it and was getting sick. We’ve had the vet out here so many times in the last month that we don’t even bother to bark at him any more.
And last, but not least, I had to go to the vet last week because I got a grass seed stuck in my ear. That was really horrible and now I have to put up with having drops put in my ears every day. I hate it.
I and the rest of the Bimbimbie Yorkshire Terrorist Brigade, and also The General and SM David, hope all Yorkies and their people have a really wonderful Christmas and the New Year sees us all happy and healthy.
Love to all
MickyChin
**
The 2007 Yorkie Yule Fest, held on Nov 25th , is over now until November 2008, and what a great day it was. See the write-up below .......I would like to pay tribute to all those generous people who contribute their time, energy and 'good's of all kinds as without you all, the Yule Fest would not be the success it is. Bringing yorkie lovers together............! 2007 Yorkie Yule Fest story, as presented by Chris Haigh (Chris was also the 'judge' of our fun events). EI is having a devastating effect on the horse industry in and it's very easy to get depressed and negative about the whole situation. Drawing of the continuous raffle was also great fun. How many prizes were there? It seemed like hundreds. And so much variety - First prize was a very stylish Yorkie size travel bag. Then two very pretty Christmas wreaths. From then it was 'choose your gift when your number is called’.
After the last raffle ticket was drawn and the last prize taken from the table it was time for the big draw of the day - the lucky door prize. **************** I would like to pay tribute here, and huge thanks, to all who helped in any way at all to make these Yule Fests so successful and memorable, not least of all the people who simply turned up to have fun!!
** Yorkie Yule Fest in Hawaii, USA - 22nd October 2006 - that was a fabulous event. ** Yorkie Yule Fest, Megalong Valley, NSW - 26th November 2006 - this was our fifth YOYO (yorkie-owned, yorkie-obsessed) gathering.
The first Yorkie Yule Fest was held at Wallerawang (NSW) in 2002, and it has grown in number each year since. We have now found a wonderful venue in the beautiful Megalong Valley that we hope to call 'home' for the future. Quiet, peaceful, and off the beaten track, there are excellent facilities so that no matter what the weather, it makes no difference - the show will go on! It is a purely-for-fun day with yorkie lovers coming from all parts of the world, as well as interstate. In 2005, additionally, we held a mini Yule Fest in Hobart, Tasmania, coinciding with Hobart Royal Show and other shows held at the same time. This was THE most enjoyable time and we have some great memories of the occasion.
Yorkie Yulefest 2007 2006 the project for the Yorkie Yule Fest was a beautiful quilt, portraying pics of our yorkies and beautifully put together by Cathy. 2007 our project was a 2008 calendar featuring 192 different yorkie pics.
YORKIE YULEFEST 2008 ROVING REPORTER
The last Sunday of November has become an institution. It’s Yorkie Yulefest, and this year it was my first. I had a macro view of it – the Hall at Megalong Valley, tables set with goodies, great food, lots of chips and cuties. All set up, me arriving, enjoying the day with Rosie.
Surprise! The fairies didn’t appear, and my weekend started early Saturday morning! And it was raining.
Firstly Peisia arrived by car from the airport, and then Suzy and Terri arrived. They had rented the house next door to mine for the weekend. So we had an IMM (Immediate Meal Moment) at the Red Door café at Leura, where I picked up their fresh-baked doggie biscuits which they had made especially Yorkie-sized for us. They are a secret recipe, but I know they have fresh grated carrot, and cheese in them.
Then off we went down to Megalong Valley, to pick up the keys to the Hall and await Jan and Gail who had been flat out packing the van at Yetholme, then driving up the mountain and down into the valley.
Whilst we waited for Jan and Gail, we opened up the Hall and discovered it was messy and filthy, so we had to restack all the tables and chairs (a huge job) and wipe everything down, including the kitchen sink. We readied the kitchen – fridge worked but not the stove (bugger! No hot quiche). Jan and Gail arrived and we helped unpack the van – got a preview of the goodies that were for sale – exciting!!! Put my dibs on a few things. Then we set everything up: a table and area for the cashier (Gail), pens and trolleys for dogs, festive tablecloths, tables for food, tables for music and computers, areas for chatting and just sitting.
Tired but happy, we drove back to Leura, where Jan and Gail unpacked their things to stay with me and in the house next door. The six of us were joined by my daughter Kay (who’s a Pomeranian fan), for dinner at a café in Katoomba called the Savoy, right opposite the beautiful and famous Carrington Hotel (Google it, folks). Another MM.
Home, chats, coffee, doggie talk and play, then bed, exhausted.
Sunday, the Big Day, dawned clear and bright. After quick tea and toast, we piled into cars and drove down to the Hall in the valley to open the doors and to wait to see if anyone turned up. A sort-of nervous moment – but then people started arriving, and arriving, and arriving………….I counted over 60 there at one stage. It was just wonderful. Rosie was beside herself meeting so many new dogs. Especially fun were the puppies, some of whom were going to new homes. And not just Yorkies – there were Chinese Crested (Lyn’s), Papillons (Sharon and Don’s), a Pomeranian (??) who came with a Yorkie, and their attendant humans.
Alanna and Stephen arrived, and set up a photographic area with backdrops of either red satin with a little dog-sized red car, or white satin with Xmas baubles. Alanna took her wonderful photographs and downloaded them on her computer to CDs, which were available for sale. Great idea.
We had competitions – and every doggie got a prize. And a continuous raffle, which saw the raffle table gradually diminished of its prizes. Amongst those were the Red Door doggie biscuits, which were a hit with the dogs. The first prize in the raffle was won by Daniel, who chose the big gingerbread house.
Yulefest calendars were on sale, as were almost anything you could ask for for your dog. I went a bit crazy – spent like a sailor, and came home with doggie doonas (duvets to some of you), cotton T-shirts and woolly jumpers (for the dog, not me), mugs, coasters, lots of red bows, carry bags, and so on. Photo on the website.
Then lunch. And what a lunch it was! It always amazes me that when people are asked to “bring a plate” they can manage such a variation and it always seems to be that the right amount and type of food appears, as if by magic. We had cold cuts, salads, dips and crackers, fruit and desserts. Word spread and a line formed for Valda’s cheesecake. There was a choice of berry, or passionfruit (I had both, but just a Small Slice of each, ha ha), with a big dob of cream on top. Soda, tea and coffee laid on. And it was wonderful to see little Yorkie people and doggie mates sitting at the tables too.
And so the afternoon passed, dogs and pups went to new homes, we met new people, and renewed old acquaintances. And all because we have in common our love of the little people – no matter what their breed or breeding. Our beloved Yorkies are more than just our pets or our hobbies – they are the catalyst for friendships, help, news, assistance, and support amongst their humans.
I am so glad I am Yorkie-Owned, Yorkie-Obsessed. Thank you all my doggie friends, for a wonderful day.
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