"ANOTHER DAY"
"Brendan" taking a peek over his yard door
Brendan breaks through for his first win at Gawler. The time was average, but the TAB price was sensational!!

Mum joins us for a pic with her favourite dog.

Gawler record ...
643m  1 start 1 win (BOD)
531m  9 starts 2-4-1
STATELY BIRD X AKUBRA GIRL
16 - 09 - 2003
Brendan came to me from Victoria, where he had notched up a win at the Meadows. Owned by Ray Brown, we had some high hopes for him, but he just wasn't having any luck in racing.
Finally after a few months settling in, Brendan began to show form, winning his grade 5 at Gawler, followed by his grade 4, then surprise..a grade 5 643m win.
With his liking to Gawler, and one of the contenders for the Gawler Trackstar award, I decided to have a crack at the Country Cup. I purposely kept him away from Angle Park, and used the provisional day meetings to race at....resulting in a good win.
Having to be a grade 5 city Angle Park dog for the Cup, I nearly fluffed it when I entered him for a Thursday night non penalty race. The grader duly placed him in a regular grade 5, and I held my breath as he came flying home to get beaten by 1/2 length.
OK, so we are still on track for the Cup.
With 3 weeks until the Gawler heat, to see who represents the club, Brendan fronted up at Angle Park for a grade 4 Wednesday meet. This would be his final run before a freshen up, and then back to Gawler.
Brendan jumped poorly, and as he mustered on the first turn, was spun sideways. Last through the catching pen, he pulled out, and started to chase down the leaders.
He worked hard to take 3rd, and showed he had reached peak fitness....all set to take a short break....but not the kind of break I expected.
By the time I had got home, he was on 3 legs, and in pain.
The xrays confirmed he had 'slabbed' his right hock.
The prognosis was 50/50 chance of ever racing again. Not only had he slabbed the front of his right hock, but there were signs that his left hock had been damaged before too. His bones had decayed, and there was no chance of screwing anything back into place.
After relaying this sad news to Ray, I offered to give the boy a chance, and Ray signed him over to me.
After 7 weeks in confinement, (and if you know Brendan, you would realise what a nightmare that was!), Brendan had his first 'scamper' in the straight track.
With both hocks taped, he has now galloped on a regular basis, and will hopefully make it around Angle Park next Thursday. He has not seen a bend since his last race, and fingers are crossed that this tenacious little rascal can continue doing what he loves best ... RACING! (See updated results)
Weighing in at anywhere between 33-34 kgs LOL, Brendan is an attractive white and dark brindle dog, with funny 'pig' eyes that sit back in his head. He really is a stunning looking dog.