# Watson - show and vacation pictures



## elrohwen (Nov 10, 2011)

I think it's time for a new Watson thread! His first birthday is this Friday, so I decided to stop being lazy and post some pictures.

First is his show picture from June. I got a picture taken to remember our first point. Next show is this Sunday! Apparently the judge loves his breeder and her dogs, so it will be fun to see what happens. He is still so skinny, so I'm not sure if we'll do much winning until he looks a little more mature.




Now on to vacation. These pictures were taken by my friend, who is a better photographer (with a better camera) than I am. We stayed in a boat house on a lake in the Adirondacks. The boathouse used to be home to the owner's mother, who was a well known Newfoundland breeder (Dryad kennels). The whole place was decorated with Newfie things and it was so cute. Since it was a boathouse, we were right on top of the water. Here's the view from our deck on the first night:




Watson enjoyed lounging around the house:



But his favorite was being on the boat:


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## elrohwen (Nov 10, 2011)

Swimming was ok:




But he got tired and decided to hang out on a rock close to shore:







Hiking was fun too:


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## elrohwen (Nov 10, 2011)

Hurry up, mom!



I'll come back for you!


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## elrohwen (Nov 10, 2011)

Finally, we reached the summit.



And I got to feel the wind in my ears





And did some posing for the camera.


All done! Thanks for looking.

Sorry if some of them are huge. My internet is being slow and I tried to resize, but I have a feeling some didn't save correctly.


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## SydTheSpaniel (Feb 12, 2011)

He looks so SOFT. I just want to reach into my computer and touch him! Congrats on the first though, he looks great! And good luck on your next one!


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## Amaryllis (Dec 28, 2011)

He is so beautiful! That feathering is so dramatic all brushed out and perfect for show.


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## elrohwen (Nov 10, 2011)

Oh, and how could I forget my friends' cute ACD mix, Grey. He and Watson were partners in crime all week. I could have done without Grey's 5:30am wake-ups though.


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## Amaryllis (Dec 28, 2011)

I love his spotty ears!


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## elrohwen (Nov 10, 2011)

SydTheSpaniel said:


> He looks so SOFT. I just want to reach into my computer and touch him! Congrats on the first though, he looks great! And good luck on your next one!


Thanks! He is really soft - I just love his coat. It almost always looks good, even though I don't do much to it. And I'll post an update after the show. We're up against another class dog and a class bitch (and a special), so we have a chance for another point (or two if we beat the bitch too, I think)




Amaryllis said:


> He is so beautiful! That feathering is so dramatic all brushed out and perfect for show.


Thanks! That feathering just keeps growing. I kind of wish it would stay where it is, but I'm excited to see how he'll look in a year or so.


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## cookieface (Jul 6, 2011)

He's so handsome! Looks like he enjoyed hiking more than swimming.  Good luck at the show and happy first birthday to dear Watson.


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## elrohwen (Nov 10, 2011)

Amaryllis said:


> I love his spotty ears!


He's such a cute little dog. Such a different personality from Watson! Smart as a whip, but a little bossy with Watson. He didn't try to guard things too much, which was my worry, and got along with the owner's lab (they owners lived in the main house next door). He and Watson are very close in age, so they had some epic wrestling matches which were so funny to watch.


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## elrohwen (Nov 10, 2011)

cookieface said:


> He's so handsome! Looks like he enjoyed hiking more than swimming.  Good luck at the show and happy first birthday to dear Watson.


Yeah, swimming isn't his thing. lol He would jump in if I was in the water, and swim out to me, but he wasn't thrilled with it. He did lay down in a creek at the end of the hike, so maybe his love for water is limited to shallow things. We kept using the life jacket because he would panic and start splashing about 10-15ft away from the shore if he wasn't wearing it. Silly dog.


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## MrsBoats (May 20, 2010)

OMG....he is just way too damn cute!!!!! Great photos!!


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## packetsmom (Mar 21, 2013)

Watson always looks so soft and handsome. He's the kind of dog you need after a really bad day to just sit down and pet his ears until everything feels all better.  I love the pictures of him enjoying vacation!


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## elrohwen (Nov 10, 2011)

MrsBoats said:


> OMG....he is just way too damn cute!!!!! Great photos!!


Thanks! The soft fur and floppy ears give him a perpetual puppy look. And I'm lucky my friend took such nice photos since I was horrible about taking them.



packetsmom said:


> Watson always looks so soft and handsome. He's the kind of dog you need after a really bad day to just sit down and pet his ears until everything feels all better.  I love the pictures of him enjoying vacation!


He's really comforting, until he wants to play and starts jumping on you while biting at your arms. Such a puppy still.


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## SDRRanger (May 2, 2013)

Love the pics. Somehow in my mind I had him as a puppy still (like 6 months-ish). He's maturing into a very handsome dog.


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## elrohwen (Nov 10, 2011)

SDRRanger said:


> Love the pics. Somehow in my mind I had him as a puppy still (like 6 months-ish). He's maturing into a very handsome dog.


Well, mentally you're spot on with his age


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## kcomstoc (Mar 9, 2013)

I was without internet for a few days or else I would've posted on here sooner (plus we were moving)  OMG watson is looking so handsome  I'm glad you finally stopped slacking because I couldn't get enough of him  of course now I'm going to expect some birthday pictures Sunday


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## elrohwen (Nov 10, 2011)

kcomstoc said:


> I was without internet for a few days or else I would've posted on here sooner (plus we were moving)  OMG watson is looking so handsome  I'm glad you finally stopped slacking because I couldn't get enough of him  of course now I'm going to expect some birthday pictures Sunday


No worries, I just posted this today


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## annadee (Aug 22, 2012)

He's so adorable! I want a Welsh Springer Spaniel so bad, but there are no reputable breeders in my area.


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## elrohwen (Nov 10, 2011)

annadee said:


> He's so adorable! I want a Welsh Springer Spaniel so bad, but there are no reputable breeders in my area.


I bet there are some not too far away. I know there's one in Washington at least.


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## annadee (Aug 22, 2012)

elrohwen said:


> I bet there are some not too far away. I know there's one in Washington at least.


Really? I looked and I couldn't find one! Closest I found was Oregon and California. And there's one in Alberta... but they don't seem like responsible dog breeders... website doesn't say anything about health testing and the pedigrees seem iffy.


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## elrohwen (Nov 10, 2011)

annadee said:


> Really? I looked and I couldn't find one! Closest I found was Oregon and California. And there's one in Alberta... but they don't seem like responsible dog breeders... website doesn't say anything about health testing and the pedigrees seem iffy.


Check WSSCA.com and look at their breeder listing - Brenda Tabor is in Lakewood, WA, near Tacoma. I haven't heard of her, since I mostly know the eastern breeders, but she'd be the place to start. You could even contact the OR and CA breeders and see if they know anybody who isn't listed.

Is there a Welsh springer club of Canada that has breeder listings? I imagine there would be.


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## annadee (Aug 22, 2012)

elrohwen said:


> Check WSSCA.com and look at their breeder listing - Brenda Tabor is in Lakewood, WA, near Tacoma. I haven't heard of her, since I mostly know the eastern breeders, but she'd be the place to start. You could even contact the OR and CA breeders and see if they know anybody who isn't listed.
> 
> Is there a Welsh springer club of Canada that has breeder listings? I imagine there would be.


Okay, thank you!!  

And no, I tried looking for a Welsh Springer Club of Canada but there isn't.


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## mashlee08 (Feb 24, 2012)

Wow a year old already! Time is going to fast! He is such a handsome dude


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## Damon'sMom (Aug 2, 2011)

He is so handsome! I just love him.  Wonderful photos looks like you all have tons of fun.


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## elrohwen (Nov 10, 2011)

mashlee08 said:


> Wow a year old already! Time is going to fast! He is such a handsome dude


I can't believe he's all grown up! Well, I expected him to be a little more mentally grown up by 1 year, but that's ok  He's still got a little of the puppy skinniness going on, but he's filling out more all the time and really looking adult.




Damon'sMom said:


> He is so handsome! I just love him.  Wonderful photos looks like you all have tons of fun.


Thanks! It's funny that my doofy looking puppy is actually becoming handsome.


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## Vicky88 (Jan 29, 2012)

Lovely photos. They are both beautiful dogs.


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## Hambonez (Mar 17, 2012)

He is so handsome! I love springer spaniels.


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## elrohwen (Nov 10, 2011)

I sent Watson's show picture to his breeder and she said someday I will look back at it and laugh. She said "the bones are in the right place, but right now he's just potential". Lol. Poor Watson! I swear no matter what I feed that dog, he's the skinniest little thing. Plus he has no chest. Just when I start to think he's not so doofy looking, I'm reminded that he sort of is. It's going to be really fun to compare his show picture in a year or two and see how he turns out. He's definitely looking more "elegant" than expected.


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## GrinningDog (Mar 26, 2010)

He's WAY LESS doofy now, though! Looking great! And still totally adorable.

You should share more pictures. I'm a Watson fan.


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## elrohwen (Nov 10, 2011)

Kirsten&Gypsy said:


> He's WAY LESS doofy now, though! Looking great! And still totally adorable.
> 
> You should share more pictures. I'm a Watson fan.


Haha. Yes, slowly getting less doofy. Unless you look at his face straight on. lol


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## kadylady (Sep 23, 2010)

He is so handsome! Another Springer fan over here, my sister has a Black and White ESS. Love seeing Watson pics!


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## elrohwen (Nov 10, 2011)

kadylady said:


> He is so handsome! Another Springer fan over here, my sister has a Black and White ESS. Love seeing Watson pics!


Of course, the Welsh ones are the cutest ones *wink wink*

I love black and white ESS though. I always seem to see the liver and whites, but I love the high contrast of the black and white.


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## kadylady (Sep 23, 2010)

Not to highjack your thread...but what are the main differences between the English and the Welsh Springers? Just curious because I only have experience with the ESS. Grew up with 2 liver and whites and my aunt always had black and whites.


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## Cattledogfanatic (Sep 18, 2011)

Awesome pics. What a gorgeous dog! I kind of want him.


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## elrohwen (Nov 10, 2011)

Cattledogfanatic said:


> Awesome pics. What a gorgeous dog! I kind of want him.


He's an annoying butthead now that the lyme is clearing up. You can have him! Plz return him when he isn't so annoying anymore. I will send along his new monkey toy that sings a really annoying song.


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## elrohwen (Nov 10, 2011)

kadylady said:


> Not to highjack your thread...but what are the main differences between the English and the Welsh Springers? Just curious because I only have experience with the ESS. Grew up with 2 liver and whites and my aunt always had black and whites.


I love talking about my breed :-D 

The main similarity is that they hunt in the same way (so do cockers) by searching for and flushing birds, then retrieving them. So they have a lot of similarities there just by being bred to do the same job. Personality-wise I think they are fairly close - sweet dogs who are velcro with their people. Welsh are often velcro to the point of minor SA. Welsh tend to be reserved with strangers, which is in the standard, but it can be to the point of timidity (which is bad). Watson is friendly with everyone though, so he's a bit atypical there. IME, the girls tend to be more reserved. I haven't met a reserved ESS.

I think Welsh are more laid back than ESS, with less of that hyper vibrating energy. They are still high energy, no doubt, but I think they just have less of an edge, at least compared to the field bred ESS I have met. Maybe closer to the bench bred? I don't have much experience with bench bred dogs outside of seeing them at shows. They can still hunt though, and don't have a split between hunt and bench lines, though honestly they aren't super popular for hunting (not compared to the ESS). In the field, they are slower and less flashy, trotting a good pace instead of running here and there, but they are methodical and will find everything.

I have read that ESS mature faster, and I don't have experience there (I have only known adults) but Welsh, especially the boys, are slow to mature. They act like puppies for a long time, which is probably one reason hunters don't use them as much as ESS and cockers. 

Physically, they have more feathering than the field bred ESS, and less than the bench bred. Their size is about in between the two as well.


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