With a sense that we really needed to be ready for an autumn assessment, we approached the summer with a vengeance. Performances improved...

We had set ourselves a fairly rigorous target of at two trails a week to build experience and confidence through the autumn and winter...

In the last instalment we had just made a step-change in reading Venn's body language and behaviour, the lines of communication were wide...

Through the summer months and into autumn, we have been busy running many, many trails. To begin with, I set the trails myself, walking...

I’ve been putting off writing this entry for most of the year so far, but looking back I note it was seven months waiting for the last...

Seven months have passed since our last update, with Covid regulations easing and then being reintroduced as Omicron sweeps through the...

Lockdown easing continues, despite the ominous rise in Delta-variant case numbers and we are crossing our fingers that the vaccination...

As we creep tentatively from the bunker to see if it is safe to come out again, it seems long overdue to write some updates. The...

A few weeks after our last entry we were plunged back into lock-down, and although permitted to continue training under agreements with...

Three and a half months have rolled by, bringing with them some of the most unusual and unsettling times that many have experienced in...

As the first glimmers of an easing of the Covid-19 lockdown appeared, there was some dispensation from the powers that be for some...

Like pretty much everyone else beyond very important politicians, we have spent the last 2 months or more in lockdown. As we struggle...

For many months now we have been playing games to encourage Venn to work with her nose, and we are continuing to develop those skills. As...

The poor performance at the stock test was a bitter blow, and for a day or two it felt like the end of the world. That was of course just...

With the SARDA Obedience Test out of the way we started to look towards the Stock Test, a process to ensure that a search dog poses no...

Coming away from January’s SARDA training with a list of to-dos for homework, we set about nailing obedience issues once and for all (in...

With the hint of possibility of a January acceptance test for SARDA, much focus has gone onto preparing Venn for the obedience and stock...

Looking back over the entries in this blog there is a clear theme to most posts, with phrases such as “roller-coaster ride” and “one...

Probably the key event of the last two weeks was Venn’s development of a sit. “Not so special”, I hear you cry, but this was no ordinary...

Shortly after the last update, and rather at the last minute, we were invited to bring Venn along to the November SARDA Wales training...