Rearing

This has to be the thorniest issue that seems to crop up on discussion forums time after time. Some people swear by one method and another by a completly different method. My view on the subject is that whatever works for you and has given you success cant be far wrong. The only very strong opinions I hold are the following:

1. Time
Dont thing for one second that a pup can be reared by being put into a field at 12 weeks and taken out at 12 months and be expected to be a champion. Pups need to be taught social skills but most importantly they need out to hunt and have a bit of variety to their enviorment. If you are going to rear a litter of pups be prepared to forget about weekends away and a social life because its a 24/7 job.

2. Facilities
They dont have to be flashy, they dont have to be high tech but they need to be suitable. Having large numbers of pups in the same pen is asking for bother. Dry ground, shelter and a bit of heat are essential for the developement of pups.

3. Grub
People seem quite content to spend over a grand on a well bred pup and will gladly pay 40 quid a week to train it but complain like mad about being asked for 20 quid a week to rear them. Pups eat far far more than racing dogs and require far more time than a racing dog ever will. The quality of food given to pups is vital to their growth, skimp here and you may as well skip their racing career and rehome them straightaway.

People often comment on how the likes of Dessie Loughrey,Shelbourne Stud, the Dunphy's and Ian Greaves consistently turn out open class dogs year after year. The obvious answer is the outstanding bloodlines they breed from but its not as simple as that. All of the above have one thing in common, they are outstanding rearers of dogs. Sure their pups have the pedigree in place but there are plenty of people down the years who have bought well bred pups and then placed them with the cheapest rearer they could find. The end result? I think you know the answer already.