optimus

Familiar photo Phil. Seriously it's good to see the old 35mm stuff. How did we manage before the Digital media days?

Totally agree with that point. Nobody stays in the game as long without something to teach & there have been many who excelled in looking the part.

Well done Phil your still showing us younger lad's how its done. That merle is a lovely looking animal by the way mate

The thing is however that whether Hancock was a chicken farmer or a collie, greyhound farmer he started breeding in the 1980s. Here we are in 2018 & his Daughter Sally now runs the business so with decades of breeding so many pups in all manner of equations SURELY THEY WILL HAVE GAINED THE KNOWLEDGE DUE TO PUBLIC FEEDBACK ALONE ON WHAT SEEMS TO BE WORK BEST & FROM WHAT STUD LINE ETC. Personally I have no axe to grind regarding the purchase of a Hancock dog but I believe that they suffered from too much exposure from a certain writer of what was often simply nonsense. M

Ralph X Mona

Ralph was plagued by injuries but has had a successful career at stud being mated to quality bitches such as Mona

Red Sonja is Caufields Joe X a bitch named Susie

Heres Ralph .. Buddy X Red Sonja...

That is as good a setup as I have probably seem for a bitch. Best of luck with them ?

Yes you have a point there but I'm certain the saying is"act in haste, repent in leisure" & you have a point in saying that life is a hard game but should our sport & our dog's be such a hard game? Should we not be enjoying these things,or at least taking what enjoyment we can? Obviously opinions vary but I'm pretty sure that the majority of older people will give you this piece of wisdom that 'life is too short so enjoy it while you can".Whether you enjoy Fen running or lamping I hope you have the best of luck but please take what you can from it before the faceless politicians try to

We all have to start somewhere and age doesn't always equal wisdom I'm afraid. Any sport attracts a fair share of arm chair experts but good mentors are thin on the ground. I'd advise anyone to go out & travel around & see what the difference is in dog's for lamping, coursing bigger stuff or what makes a good ferreting dog etc. People who are swimming in advice tend to be in need of some advice themselves. Nobody has all the answers. What i would say to anyone starting the game is to respect the fact that the dog or pup you have may seem not to be want but its what you have bought.

This should be good, beer and popcorn at the ready !!! Déjà vu here methinks ?

That is a lovely looking animal ?