Thank you!

I have 'been into dogs' for over fifty years .
When I was a baby my Mother died and I went to live with an Aunt who had a Rough Collie and a Scotty. Other family members had Labs, a Dalmatian, and a Yorkie and Grampa had WHFTs and SBTs.

A friend of my Aunt's used to trim the Scotty, she also bred and showed SBTs and I used to go and play with her dogs, I think this was when I first decided I wanted to work with dogs

At the age of 15 I left home to train as a Kennel Maid and worked in a number of large show kennels eventually becoming part owner of one. The first dog that was mine alone was given to me when I was 15, she was a Miniature Schnauzer called Bunny and I had her for 16 years. I have owned Schnauzers for 43 years.

When I met my husband I was surprised to find both his sisters showed dogs and bred the occasional litter too, so dogs have always played a big part in my life.

(Kennel Maids Tales are on my homepage)

i grew up with dogs - my parents always had labs.

we got our first dog in 1996 from a friend of a friend - he used to work nights and this dog was keeping all the neighbours awake all night every night with his barking, i stepped in and offered to have the dog while this guy was at work - so Sam (springer) came to sleep the night at my house every night and go home in the morning!! cut a long story short the guy that owned him had split from his wife and a few months after sam started to sleep at my house he decided to get back with his wife, and his wife said i'll come back if you get rid of the dog!!! So sam came to us permenently! we had him for 5 happy years until he got old and poorly and i made the decission to have him pts.
From the age of 5 i can remember a friend of mine whose mum had an irish setter, i've always loved them and always wanted one. shortly after we lost our sam we were in regents park and a lady walked past with 2 of them - gorgeous they were - and as they walked past me i said to my mum - thats my next dog, and 4 months later we had Jazzie!! and we got Kenny in july this year.
opps - sorry, rather long reply!!

Parents always had dogs, but the ones I remember from childhood were Pekinese, so I guess I've "been into dogs" all my life...... 53 years!

I was born into a dog owning family in 1956. My father kept 2 racing Greyhounds and I remember 'helping' with them from an early age. The first dog of my own was a Rough Collie in 1967 and I then started going to training classes and local shows with him.

I was taken under the wings of some local GSD breeders where I learned about showing and handling but my first show dog was a Cocker, my second choice after a GSD, as my parents weren't keen for me to have one.

Through reading the dog papers, I later became entranced with the Bernese Mountain Dog and travelled to Crufts to see the first one ever shown there... not sure of the year, 1970 or 71?.... but didn't own my first one until I had my own home in 1974 when I also bought my first GSD. Bred my first litter (Bernese) in 1977.

Born into a house of well established dogs (staffords, dobes n an elderly pekingese)..who were quite put out at the screaming, red cheeked baby! Then had the odd foster/part time rescue through those years too. Polly the lately lamented JRT was my first "own" dog though, mine to take care of etc etc..proceeded by Florrie The Weasel and Ralph-so basicaly, dogs have allways been a main factor of my life!

my mums dad used to breed dobes in france and my dads family always had dogs so it was my destiny!

when i wsa born we alreday had beauty who was a gorgeous mastiff x great dane found on my parents estate in liverpool and they took her in, she was so protective of us and used to tryand claim me as her own when i was a newborn!

then she went on holiday to spain and never came back when i was about 4 (she was PTS!!!my dads story ) then we got goldie collie x retriever/lab???,
we met her on the heritage market in liverpool, this guy had her wrapped up inhis jacket, she had been thrown over his wall, and he was in the process of finding a home for her....voila!!

she died when i was almost 18 and it took years getting over her, she was fab!

then went withou for a few years as i was at uni etc...

then we got our little cheeky monkey in nov 04 from RSPCA, and that is it until next doggy (hopefully wont be long......!!!)

so all in all, since the day i was born so since 8 sept 82 ive been "into" dogs!

from being a baby .......... i grew up around dogs.
my 1st dog was benson who we got as a pup in 93 only a few months after getting our own home.
my kids louis was 18 months and caitlin was born with them.

We had a a Labrador when i was born called Shandy. That was in erm 1983 ooops i mean 1963 I used to share her wicker basket, sit with her for ages in it. Had dogs ever since, they were my best friends when i was growing up.... (i had human friends too, i wasnt a totally sad loser type ). I think Toby is now my subsitute little boy, bless him

had my first dog for my third birthday ,1965, really my fathers dog lab cross gsd. old soldier got put to sleep when i was 18 . got married at 19 and had a dog to go with the brat, lab cross spaniel, when we split up he was down my parents before me . next wife no dogs of our own just dog sat for the whole word and his wife in holiday season but we did have a manky cat . third wife we had 22 dogs most of the time ,borzois, spanials, collies , yorkies and other small yappy things now happy with o/h and nothen inuit ,cassie, and ridgeback cross ,roger