January 17th, 2013

First of all I would like to wish everyone a happy new year. Duchess is now officially pregnant after receiving her scan yesterday.

 “Who,” you might ask, “is Duchess?” Click here for Photo She is a two year old red Bullmastiff that we have had since she was a puppy. I have been so impressed with this breed that I wanted to spread the word to everybody out there, as she has certainly made an impression on our family and everybody who visits us. Her husband is called Bram and he is a large brindle dog from Finland. By sheer luck we met a lady from the west side of the country and her whole life has been devoted to improving this breed. Her help and advice has been very much appreciated. I would like to give you a brief history on this breed because, after all, they were bred by gamekeepers as a personal security dog. In the late 19th and early 20th Century, many gamekeepers were badly injured or killed during their duties, especially at night. This led to the keepers breeding a dog which would knock a man to the ground and be heavy enough to hold them there ‘til he was apprehended. Eventually a breed was perfected which was roughly 40% Bulldog and 60% Mastiff. THE KEEPERS’ NIGHT DOG. They are large dogs measuring 2ft at the shoulder and 130 1bs in weight. The Bullmastiffs’ coat is waterproof so they thrive outside in kennels, but Duchess is kept indoors where she is a big, soft, loving pet. She is very gentle with the family and does not take up as much room as her size might suggest. She normally only barks if there is a problem, which is a great confidence booster when your wife or girlfriend are alone in the evenings and when you live miles from any police station or neighbours. Everybody has had a long, very wet, season and we are all looking forward to the end. No doubt the last week of the season will be full of Keepers days, where we can repay some of the hard work and enthusiasm that our beaters and helpers have given us through the year. It is worth remembering that many shoots could raise money on that day on behalf of the SGA by selling a gun to someone to stand every drive. It would be very much appreciated by some guns to have the chance of shooting on your estate. This year we have invited Kenneth, our PR man, to come and experience a keepers day. I will keep you posted.