Well what a difference in the weather it was glorious to see the sun on Monday It gives us all a lift.
Last Friday was a total wash out .  We were pumping water out of the motor that drives the hare but as fast as we pumped it out it filled back up in the end we had to admit defeat and call off trials. This week we have had to delay the start of trials till the sun came through and temperatures lifted a little but we have been able to trial.
 
We got Dreamer (Living The Dream) back on Thursday  the outing does not seem to of effected her in any way, she seems her usual happy self. She was mated to Scolari and had two coverings. I will let you know as soon as we know if she is in pup, fingers crossed she will be
 
At Nottingham on Saturday night Groovy Molly is having her first race back after having her pups (Clash Harmonica) she seems to of come back really well in her trials. Good Luck to her and her owners I am sure they will be cheering her on. Also making his debut is a lovely dog called Uncle Johnny so good luck to him and all our runners

Well Its happened, Living The Dream came in season and on Valentines Day we met the Transporter and sent her over to Ireland. Unless we change our minds again we are going to put her to Droopys Scholari. Each time we look at which would be the best sire it just gets more and more confusing. So we`ll see I will let you know.

I just want to thank my lovely fella for the beautiful roses and chocolates THANK YOU DARLING X . That will embarrass him!!! We had a great day, a crowd of owners came up and later we went out to dinner with some friends I really enjoyed it.

We had a mixed bag of fortune at the weekend a dead heat for first place on Friday for our Ruby (Precious Ruby) and in the same race Buck who can not start for toffee very unlike his mum (Royston Lucy) was last. Tinas Lee also won. Then on Saturday night Dunham Farloe won , the hare broke during Dunham Cooke`s race and Dunham Pendleton also won , I thought Rother Tigger ran much better and although he was 5th he really pleased me he was much improved.

I was very pleased at the weekend to here from several people that they do read my blog , thank you. We had a nice couple of winners on Friday night, Tinas Run and Dunham Jackson one of our pups. Dunham Dancer continued her fantastic string of runs on Saturday, to which everyone in the restaurant heared our cheers. Dunham Pendleton was second in the first race of her career.

We have managed to trial a couple of days last week with people travelling from as far away as Oxford and are trialling when we can. Roll on the warmer weather, everyone says its at least 5 degrees colder at our track than anywhere else and trust me I can assure you they are right I keep saying I will have to get a balaclava I can not get my hat any further down and my collar any further up, my scarf and thermals on and I'm still freezing, I only hope all this wind and cold doesn't give me a rugged complexion (I keep plastering the moisturiser on day and night). Some of the pups we have schooled are ready to leave and we wish them all the very best for a long and successful career. We have also taken in some more pups to school and continue to be busy

Tipi's babies have just had their first jabs,the little fatties.

Fancy is still really well she looks an absolute picture,and is very happy. We are expecting Living The Dream to come in season any time so we can mate her again but as usual any bitch but her is coming in season (patience patience) perhaps she is waiting for the warmer weather. We haven't made our mind up who we will mate her with but have a couple in mind.

Hope you liked the photos of Tipi's pups (Footfield Stocks/Robbie De Niro), we weighed them again this week the brindle weighs 4.3 kilos the white and black dog weighs 4.2 kilos and the black one 3.6.They are right little fatties!

We didn't have a bad weekend with one winner on Friday and four on Saturday.Friday it was a young pup Dunham Jackson having her second race, she was second in her first leading all the way only to get pipped on the line but this time she just held on.
Tinas Warrior was unlucky, going for his third on the trot he got trouble and held up but ran on well to finish third. By the way you can view his races on you tube as his co owner puts them on.( We embedded one of the wins below)

Saturday we had good fortune with Dunham Angel, Dunham Bunty, Judy Jude, and litter sister Lady Poacher all winning.Dunham Dancer was unable to make it three out of three but she did finish second.
Well chuffed with them all.

Well fingers crossed we are over the worst of the awful weather and looking forward to getting caught up with things.
 
We were delighted with two of our youngsters on Saturday night as both brother and sister won.  Dunham Dazzler had his third race and won having also won his second giving him two out of three, good lad. Then his sister Dunham Dancer who was having her first race came out well enough and then took it up at the third bend and just flew home, absolutely smashing.
 
All our pups are coming on a treat and glad to be out enjoying the freedom again. The tiny ones are already six weeks old and weigh around three kilos!!!
 
Unfortunately we were unable to attend Charlie Lister’s birthday celebration down at Nottingham track due to feeling unwell, but I hear he had a good night.... Happy Birthday Charlie.

We wish you all a very healthy ,Happy New Year.

Not a very good start is it. We are unable to do much at the moment the best thing we can do is keep all the dogs warm and take them out when we can.

The last lot of snow was so deep we were able to let the dogs out in the paddocks for five minutes just to have a play, which they absolutely loved. The pups got rid of some of that pent up energy and were soon asleep afterwards the older dogs all loved it too.

I have a saying "There is always a silver lining" in this case I am struggling, the only one I can find is for our staff, this weather means we cant do so much so their working day is shorter. We are all certainly looking forward to the end of this cold spell.

I have had an emotional roller coaster of a week, firstly I took two old dears to the vets, they were both the same age (10 1/2) and have had some of their pups born, bred and raced here with us. Weirdly they both had the same thing wrong with them, cancer.  
Fancy (Kilcannon Fancy) has it visible under her tummy while Ka (Coomlagane Ka) had it higher up inside her groin. Ka had began loosing weight but was still eating well and appeared to be herself, we did the usual things like worming checked her motions and temprature but all seemed ok yet still her weight was dropping off.
On the Sunday her owners came over from Huddersfield to see her and I raised my concerns with them and decided to see the vet. The next day Fancy was laying on her bed legs in the air when we saw her cluster of lumps. The appointment was made and the diagnosis was cancer.
I brought them both home to make them comforable and keep a close eye on them but unfortunately it was to be only a couple of days before Ka deteriorated badly and I took her back to the vets to end any suffering.

I can not explain how much it upset me to do this and then to ring her owners up (Trevor & Maurren Kaye) and tell them and it still does she was an absolute darling in all the time we had her not once did she ever bark or fall out with her mate or neighbour.
Fancy is still with us she is eating well and happy enjoying all the extra treats, bless her.
 
Tipi (Footfield Stocks who belongs to Dave & I together with Fuz & Val Farrow) had her pups she started very early in the morning and had three, two females one male It is her first litter and she seemed to be coping really well and the pups all seemed fine, however Tippi was not producing milk properly . 
We had another visit to the vets & thankfully after an injection all is now ok and the pups are thriving.


 
Due to a contact of David & Pam Allmarks we were very pleased and excited to welcome a new arrival last Thursday, an August 09 bitch pup out of Farloe Oyster x Droopys Scolari Royalty no less. We are calling her Dunham Queen (Queenie) we might race her but her future is to be having plenty of pups, fingers crossed she throws some offspring like her mother has, time will tell.
We are very grateful not only to get this opportunity to acquire such outstanding breeding but also to David & Pam who have purchased a half share together with myself and Dave.

Last weekend I went along with some of my owners to the Midland RGT Christmas Fayre. It was great, the sun came out the, the rain stopped for several hours and we parted with some money for charity. We tucked into mince pies and cakes, tea and coffee.

While we were there I met up with some of our former race dogs Gus and King, it was absolutely brilliant to see them, they looked fantastic, so loved and well cared for, maybe not at their racing weight now but they are entitled to put on a bit of poundage now they have retired .
Ben (Break Away Now) Nana (Banna Tidings) used to kennel together here and are still together which is lovely. Cinders (Clash Cinders) now lives with a Labrador bless her. Stella (Stella Star) lives with another greyhound and is still as lively as ever when the other dog has had enough and wants her to calm down he just presses her down with his head, which made me laugh. Ollies’ (Clash Have It) owner was working hard selling cards, calendars and lots of other bits and bobs. I bought lots of cards and some have photos of a couple of our former race dogs on them which I thought you would like to see.(pic here coming soon)

The new pups are settling in really well, they are lovely and right fatties. Four of them shall begin schooling next week as they are starting to get used to us now.

Chutney (Lady Poacher) had her second race at the weekend and won(yeah!!) she finished well in the heavy going so that's got her off the mark. Now one of her sisters is going to have her first race on Friday Judy (Judy Jude) so good luck to her and her owners.

Amber (Rother Amber) also won at the weekend her owners were in the restaurant everyone in there would of heard their cheers well done Amber.

Firstly I apologise for not updating my blog last week there is just not enough hours in the day and definitely not daylight ones.

We are looking forward to taking in 6 pups from Questhouse Kennels to school this weekend. I will be able to tell you more about them next week . We were hoping to go up to collect them ourselves but unfortunately it is not possible one of our lads is going up instead. Shame as it would of been great to have met with Dave and had a look around but im sure we will at some point.

One of the pups I told you about, Robbie De Niro x Lady Leeds is having her first race this weekend she is the first of the litter to get on the card her name is Lady Poacher she has graded on in A7 but as I said to her owners its not where you start, good luck Chutney.

All the Groovy Molly pups are now sold, thank you everyone for your interest and good luck to the new owners.

Following on from a successful week last week, the winners continue to flow. Clash Ker Royale, Dunham Tracey, Mountview Three and Clash Demaggio all did the business. Special mention must go to Demaggio who had to have a front toe removed recently but has come back in terrific form winning his last two races.

On the Schooling Track front things are progressing nicely, the track continues to be very well patronised by all corners of the greyhound (and whippet) world.
We are getting very busy as well schooling pups for owners and the latest batch have left us to begin their new careers on the track, the feedback from satisfied customers has been tremendous which is great to hear.
As previously mentioned we are so busy taking in pups to be schooled that there is now a waiting list. If you would like to use our schooling services in the future, please book well in advance to secure your place.

Our bred and reared litters continue to thrive, Clash Alive x Robbie De Niro pups and Groovy Molly x Clash Harmonica pups are scofftastic (new word i invented for them!) and continually amaze me how they put so much food away and and so quickly, we will shortly be posting up the latest pics.
(incidently there are two bitches left for sale from Groovy Molly if there are any prospective owners reading my blog).

We have had a number of dogs retired to new homes and will update their stories with pics very soon.

What a great weekend on the track front, 7 winners (Charlies Chuck, Clash Demagio, Dunham Sherlock, Rother Amber, Sourhill Storm, Swift Cuba and Firecracker) shows the kennel is in fabulous form and well settled at Nottingham.

We are looking forward to seeing some of the pups bred and reared at Dunham hitting the tracks very soon. We have possibly Fortune Mike’s very last mating to Kilcannon Fancy ready to run , some nice early paced Droopys Corleone pups by Tynwald Vera as well as pups by Robbie De Niro out of Lady Leeds that have just started grading on.
Plenty to look forward to in the coming weeks, regular updates here on my blog.

Below are photos of Groovy Molly and her Clash Harmonica pups. They where born through the night starting at 11.15 pm on 28th August. We have whelped her for Jon & Helen Harrison, there are 4 bitches & 3 Dogs all are a nice size mother and pups are doing really well.

Nottingham grading trials are going nicely, the dogs are adapting extremely well to their new track, we have a busy day tomorrow with over 20 trialers!
Myself and Dave are taking a weeks holiday next week and are off to Portugal, however its business as usual at Dunham and Fuzz will be manning the phones.
Unfortunately last week Clash Alive lost one of her pups, we now have 2 dogs and two bitches but they are doing fantastically well (all of them are between 700gr-800gr).

This is a very important time at Dunham Greyhound Centre, with the track now up and running and proving to be very popular, we have decided to leave Sheffield Greyhound Stadium and accept a position at Nottingham. The travelling distance of the two track is probably the same but Nottingham is possibly a little easier to get to. I first started out as an owner at Nottingham and had a lot of success, to be going back as a trainer fills me with a lot of pride and a real sense of achievement.

I must thank Rachel Corden for the opportunity to run at Colwick Park, I have been very impressed with the rapport between management and trainers and very much look forward to a new chapter in my training career.
I would especially like to thank my owners who have remained incredibly loyal to the kennel and 99% of the dogs will be switching to Nottingham with me.

We have started to trial a few on at Nottingham and I am currently working a notice at Sheffield so things are a little hectic at the moment to say the least.

At this time I would like to express my gratitude to Sheffield, it has been a brilliant place to be a trainer, I have thoroughly enjoyed my time there and will miss everyone that made it my home for so long.

I’ve just been given my final leaving date from Sheffield, it will be Friday 21st August.