Calling time on a ferreting career

Описание: At nine years old Millie has a lot of rabbiting mileage on her clock. Her body and mind now cannot withstand the rigours of a hard winter, but that does not totally exclude her from the odd few hours out. This is one of the beauties of ferreting; your dogs can, if managed well, continue to work even after you think their best days have gone, but you must be vigilant. Their physique may have changed, their once powerful hindquarters may have weakened and their muzzles greyed, but their nose and mind are still young.
My dogs have worked hard for me and will hopefully enjoy a long and good retirement, but on the odd days they do go out, I hold them in too high an esteem to pit them against rabbits I know that they have no chance of catching. But nets, which I like to use, are perfect for aiding and abetting the mature dogs we had out recently. No brace of lurchers fits the bill more than the Hinge and Bracket of our rabbiting pack: my Millie and my friend Steve Taylor’s Maze. One was an out-and-out ferreting dog in her day, while the other went ferreting after time was called on her lamping career.
While checking out some opened-up warrens locally, we decided to give the old girls the chance to stretch their limbs. Their speed may have long gone, but they still have their noses and combined with their experience and an understanding of how we ferret, they are still as quick over one yard as the youngsters.