Snow!!

We are lucky enough to live in The English Riviera; one of the warmest parts of the UK. As such we are generally at least 3 degrees warmer than the rest of the UK, the majority of the time.

The last time we had snow here is around 10 years ago, so you can imagine my excitement when I woke up this morning to find a nice white blanket covering the ground outside.

Stanley has only ever seen snow once before in his lifetime and Edna had never seen it before, so I thought it too good of an opportunity to miss and off we went to our local nature reserve, at Ham in Plymouth for some fun.

As you can see the dogs had a thoroughly wonderful time.
(Edna did start off in a thick Weatherbeetacoat but as she is so active was getting very warm, so I removed it)

Dartmoor at Dusk

We absolutely love Dartmoor and regularly walk at Drake's Leat on Roborough Down, which is only a ten minute drive from where we live. 

In order to keep the dogs active in both body and mind, I like to walk a different track each time we go and luckily for us there are plenty to choose from! Today we walked 4 miles, which was a relatively short walk for us, but I groomed Edna during the day and by the time we were ready to go out walking the sun was already setting.

We often see ponies, cattle and other livestock on the moors but both Stanley and Edna have been well socialised around livestock from a very young age and luckily do not chase.

Below are a few photographs from our walk today. I hope you enjoy looking at them as much as I enjoyed taking them.

For more photos of the poodle pair on their adventures, please see our Flickr or Instagram account, both of which are available on the links to the right of this blog.

The Year of The Dog

Kung He Fat Choi!

Well, its Chinese New Year and this year is the year of the dog.
I thought I'd take this opportunity therefore to reflect on what has been a wonderful year for us here at Marcasite Poodles.

Firstly Edna's hip scors came back as a
fantastic 3/3. This is well below the breed average for a standard poodle so I was very pleased with this result.
Alongside her other health tests, this will mean that any future puppies born to her should be genetically healthy.

Secondly, I have begun training the dogs more seriously in agility and have found an excellent facility, just outside of Plymouth run by Kay Allen from K9 allsports. Both Stanley and Edna thoroughly enjoy agility and approach new things with real gusto and excitement.
I am very much looking forward to our progression.

Earlier in the year, we were also contacted by a canine modelling company, Urban Paws, who found us on Instagram and said that they were 'absolutely blown away' by my photos and videos of them.
Stanley and Edna are both available privately and via Urban Paws for modelling. Their profiles are linked and easily accessible by simply clicking on either of their names below:
Stanley
Edna

And finally we have spent many happy hours, just walking and enjoying the beautiful county we live in.

Here's hoping that the next year will be equally as kind.

                                 Edna's hip x-ray and results certificate

A small selection of my favourite photos taken on some of our walks.

An Introduction

Spring is supposed to be a time of new beginnings, so I have created this blog in order to record all of the exciting things that happen here at Marcasite Poodles.

Allow me to introduce myself.
My name is Amy and I am 31 years old. I have owned Poodles for over 10 years.

My love affair with the breed began when I rescued a poodle cross, Maggie. Maggie was the best dog in the world, but had many congenital health issues due to poor breeding, she unfortunately died at the age of 11 of cancer.
Maggie's health problems lead me to conduct extensive research into canine genetics and is the sole reason I feel so strongly about health testing dogs that are to be used for breeding purposes.

I currently share my home with two wonderful dogs - Stanley, a 6 year old toy poodle and Edna, a 2 year old standard poodle. I also have a corn snake.

I am an IANLPC registered dog groomer and a silver member of the International Alliance of Holistic Pet Therapists. I also hold a diploma in Canine behaviour.
In addition I am an lifetime member of Canine Health Concern, who are an excellent resource in research advancements. This assists me in always having the ability to expand upon my existing knowledge.

                        Myself, Stanley and Edna

                  My darling girl Maggie.  2000 - 2011