Hi from Belfast...

I've been lurking for a while. I own one three year old B&T Cav girl, and am expecting to pick up No 2 (a ruby) in 6 weeks or so. I've owned Cockers in the past, so Cavs were an eye-opener at first, but now I'm a convert. I'll never have another breed. Then again, apart from her vaccs and being spayed, Holly has only needed vet attention once- for a tummy bug- so I've been lucky there so far. I just hope it continues; I'm very aware that she's now past three and the risks of heart murmurs etc are rising.

Which reminds me- anyone know of any vets with Cavalier experience (hearts, SM etc) in the Belfast/Down/Antrim area that are easy to get to? My last vet visit wasn't too pleasant. Maybe it was a new vet, or an inexperienced one, but her manner was off and she gave me a dirty look when I asked her to check Holly over in addition to giving boosters and microchipping. As a result, that visit hasn't reassured me, even though logically I know that Holly's her usual bouncy happy self...

I've also ordered the Gentle Leader harness after reading about not using leads with Cavs. I was starting to think of it anyway- if Holly pulls too much on the lead (not usually too much of an issue since I've become quite handy with loosening and tightening the retractable as required) she hacks a bit. It's only happened a couple of times. Anyone else see this?

..and I'm glad to be here. Amused by the apparent preponderance of Irish members, though! Once I work out how to post photos I will... :badgrin:

I cant be of any help with the Vet, being in the US however I did want to take a minute to welcome you to the board.....

Thank you! And that atavar is just so incredibly cute. I've got a few cutes ones myself- once i hit 12 super-cute photos, I'm gonna print them on photographic paper and make them up as calendars. I'm currently on six photos now!

I've uploaded some photos to flickr- no matter what I do, I can't get any of them set as atavars, or inserted as images within a post. I'm sure at least one of the photos is small enough for an atavar, but I may be wrong...

Here's the link, anyway!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/37298423@N00/?saved=1

I love the bathtime in a bucket photo- she looks surprisingly content there.

Oh and welcome to the board icon_welcome
There is certainly an influx of the Irish on the board :lol:

:jump: icon_welcome Hi welcome cannot help with the vet as live in England have a good time on the site :jmp: :lotsaluv: Aileen

Holly is such a cutie--love your pictures. Welcome!! :jmp:

*g* Thanks for the welcomes, and I'm glad people like the photos! The bucket photo came about 'cos she'd gotten messy and we were at my mum's.
Holly was about 9 months at the time, maybe a little older. Anyway, we filled the bucket with lovely warm water, Mum added Marks and Spencer's Florentyna, I think, and we put Holly in. At first she flapped and then she twigged how warm the water was and just relaxed. She sat quite happily in there for a good ten minutes and we had to physically extract her in the end!

She is soooooo scrummy..... don't you just love b/t's they're just so chocolately that you could eat them up! ( I am colour biased of course!!! :lol: )

I told a friend today about the chocolate and tan cavs I discovered on this site, and she said, "Cool! Chocolate orange cavs..." Someone should tell Terry's. Imagine that for an ad campaign for Terry's Chocolate Orange. :lol: :lol:

Now excuse me while I shudder. I loathe the very thought of the stuff...

How did you get your dog to sit with the sunglasses, or is that a bit of photoshop wizardry?

Hi
Welcome to the list, our Beyonce *Blen girl* was the worst one of ours to pull on a regular lead. She does great with the harness.
She doesn't pull and I have better control when needed.

Hugs,
Deana and The Gang
Tia *Tri*~ Bentley *Blen*~ Beyonce *Blen*