Chris Foskett

My kennel name comes from Wilf (my old Springer Spaniel) and Bell. It is a joint affix with my best friend Karen Tyrrell who used to show Dobermans and Borders in her younger days and came back into showing with Lottie, Belle’s daughter I am extremely lucky because another friend who is like a daughter to me is Felicity Freer, an incredibly talented handler and  groomer, who also has a great reputation for training Junior Handlers. We are quite a team, not always a winning, but we have fun and a lot of laughter.

My foundation bitch came from Miss Lynn Bell, “Belyndi Liberty Bell,” my gorgeous irreplaceable Belle. She has Anglo/American breeding and her mum, Shastakin Bell for Belyndi, was bred by Esther Krom from New Jersey and was imported by Lynn Bell.

I met Lynn via work; my job at the time involved working with various schools in the area and Lynn, who works for Southern Electric,  was running energy efficient courses teaching the teachers about energy conservation, etc. She asked if it was possible for her to let her dog out for a little walk in the car park of the school I was based in, as it was during the holidays. I said, “Yes of course” and I met Toohey her male Aussie. It was love at first sight. He was an amazing boy, a beautiful red male with attitude and temperament to match. She said she showed dogs and I said I had always wanted to do that. Lynn told me that she was importing a bitch from America to mate to Toohey and I said I would love a puppy to show. That was in 1998. The rest is history.

Lynn did me a great honour by allowing me to have the best bitch from that litter.

In return I thought it was only right to breed her. From that breeding I had four pups, 3 girls and one boy, and everyone who knows me knows what a day that was. On the day that my first litter was born Karen was in a meeting at work and was ordered home by me!

She had to go to her boss and say there was a family emergency!!! Lynn was in meetings all day and kept having frantic messages from me! Brian, my husband, is a driving instructor and ended up bringing a pupil to the house to be met by this hysterical female running  around with green slime on her hands and swearing never again ever. But I did and 3 ½ years later Lottie (Belle’s daughter) gave me 6 pups. Their sire was Shastakin Blaze of Glory for Belyndi; he is a super blue and tan. I had 5 girls and one boy, 3 blue and tans, 3 reds. 

Lula, one of my blue and tan bitches, went to Belgium and in turn was mated with a German red Aussie called Dustin Vom Struthwold.

 From this mating I have back a lovely red boy called Wade. Misty, another red bitch, went to the Jackson family to be shown by their daughter, Laura, and I kept Christy. Why I will never know. What a madam and a natural born killer she is; nothing is safe in our back garden. If it breathes it is fair game to her.

Not content with letting me have Belle, Lynn also gave me Belyndi the Wild Card (Vegas), an absolutely lovely blue and tan male.

He lived with Karen and had day care with the girls and me. I remember when he was 5 weeks old he tried to mount Belle. I am very proud of Vegas. He is our first Champion.  One of the CC’s (Challenge Certificates) was awarded by Sue McCourt at her first ever CC judging appointment for Aussies in South Wales. When he was just over a year old Ferelith Somerfield gave him the Reserve CC at Crufts. These two awards have meant a lot to Karen and me. Vegas is a son of Shastakin Blaze of Glory for Belyndi and Belle’s sister Dollar.

Apart from showing, the Aussies are great companions, fun to be with, adaptable and very much the centre of our family life. 

Andy, my son, and his partner, Maria, have Christy come for sleepovers; she also goes down to the yard to see Serenity, Maria’s pony. She loves running around the yard and meeting everyone. Often I will walk with Maria when she rides Serenity just to keep her company and it causes a lot of amusement with these 4 dogs trailing behind this pony, and Serenity will stop and wait for them to catch up. I love the breed because they just get on with life. Where I walk them there are cows and ponies roaming, but the dogs never bother with them, never bark or interfere in any way and for terriers I think that is great. There are loads of things I could tell you, for instance, Lottie is one of the cleverest dogs I have ever met. She has definitely been here before, and my lovely Lady (Lottie’s sister) who died of cancer last year …but it would take too long.

Chris Foskett