While chatting to a very close friend recently, we discussed how her Christmas plans had changed due to the loss of her oldest labrador. This dog was extremely special, with an incredible working career and a massively enviable trialling career, whether it was beating, competing, picking up or sitting on peg. Once home, he was content to walk around the house, offering everyone the chance to throw him his toy pheasant.
His owner explained how he had begun to lose control of his back end and would sometimes fall. He was over 14 years of age, and as he grew weaker it became apparent that the time had come to say goodbye. This horrendous decision is something all experienced dog owners will have had to deal with at some point.
Dora was my first working dog. A longhaired German shepherd bitch may not have appeared the ideal shooting companion, but there was nothing she
