Sunday, 25 January 2009

Our Cottage Before....




We bought our holiday cottage in 2003.


We spent every holiday we had from work and schools for a year decorating, updating, extending, new kitchen and bathroom.


We loved our Cottage, it was so removed from our every day life in Coventry.


It was our Escape from the "rat race"

Thunderbolts and Lightning











Two disasters in one day!



Twas 30th May 2004, the semi-finals of the Derby, I had taken bets galore on that years Derby on Betfair but not one penny did I lay on Premier Fantasy - he looked the business having run Wimbledon perfectly.



It was half term for the kids so we had booked our usual ferry trip over to Ireland to spend the week at our cottage in Co.Cork, we almost caught the earlier ferry and my Dad had thought about flying over the day before and meeting us at the cottage. Thank heavens we and he didn't, the sequence of events that happened that Saturday morning did spell catastrophe but could have been so much worse.



We were on the 2am ferry over and at about 5am I received a call from my neighbour, Roger, in Cork "Richard, some very bad news I am afraid, your cottage has gone up in flames and has burned to the ground!"



Needless to say I couldn't beleieve what I was hearing but after Roger explained that he'd heard a big bang and opened his front door to see the cottage in flames with the firemen on their way I had to accept what he was telling me. I pressed the end of call button and punched my fist against the wall of the ferry. My Wife Clare asked what was wrong, having to explain to Clare our holiday cottage had gone up in flames, what a feckin nightmare!



We drove the 2.5 hours from Rosslare to Macroom that morning knowing that on arrival we'd see the remains of our Cottage, but words don't really explain what greeted us. The fire engine, the firemen, Garde and the remains of our perfect little Cottage.



Clare and the kids started crying and had to go to the neighbours house. I had to talk to the firemen and the Gards, we were all in shock. The general opinion was it was a Thunder Bolt! Went straight down the chimney, exploded the range and the energy created a huge fireball which exploded and proceeded to burn everything inside the Cottage. The walls of them cottages are 2 feet thick yet the force of the impact put a crack all the way through the walls.


We had no holiday clothes with us, nothing, all our holiday belongings were in the Cottage, including our 3 month old son, Jim Bobs' cot,clothes, toys etc. Everything was gone. A new kitchen was fitted only the week before and we never even saw it!


We booked in to the hotel in town for the week.



That same night Premier Fantasy was running in the semi-final of the Derby and looked to have every chance of qualifying from his heat, he was head and shoulders above the remaining Derby runners. I didn't get to see the race having the day we had, we stayed in the hotel bar and drunk ourselves to the point where we could just go to sleep and not think about the Cottage.


Only the following day did I discover that Premier Fantasy broke his hock whilst 2-3 lengths clear at the 1st bend.


Of course it could have all been a lot worse and dog racing pales in to insignificance when you consider if we'd caught the earlier ferry or if my Dad had flown over the night before all of us could have been killed. So I say I am lucky to be here! I have my family and they will always come first, there are more important things in Life than dogs! Life itself!


I'll continue this story but I have to get the gravy on!

Thursday, 22 January 2009





Droopys Scolari x Droopys Dior


Born 2nd August 2008


Dogs €850 Last Bitch €750

Buyer can have pick of remaining 3 dogs and 1 bitch. These pups are 6 months old and look the business. No nerves, excellent temperament and already mad keen. Inspection most welcome!


Dior won the Red FM Stakes in the 7th fastest time ever for a bitch around Cork unbeaten in every round doing 29.80 over 550 yards as a pup.


Heat winner of Comerford Cakes National Puppy Stakes and won opens at Shelbourne (525) and Clonmel (575)



Impeccably bred litter sister of Droopys Clarke (one time English Derby favourite)



Dior's first litter out of Maldini produced a 78lb dog pup that the schooling track thought would be Derby class!



Dior THE fastest daughter of Droopys Shauna one of the Dunphy's top producing broods.


Can be seen at Kielduff Racing Kennels, Co.Kerry and reared on if required.

086 3795761 or 00353 86 3795761

Wednesday, 21 January 2009

Where we live







I have attached a couple of photo's of where we live.






We are in between Cork and Killarney between Macroom and Millstreet on the side of a mountain range handy for Tralee or Curraheen Park. Limerick about an hour and 15 away.






We moved here from Coventry in August 2005 and built a new house after our cottage was burned down (not by anti's btw)






I'll add more to this page when the kids aren't giving me so much grief!

Malicious Falsehood by Greyhound Action




My name is Richard Newell. I live in Co.Cork, Ireland.

I have been falsely accused of being an evil animal abuser by an anti greyhound organisation called Greyhound Action (GA)

I am NOT an evil animal abuser!

At the moment I own two greyhounds living with my family in Co Cork. A nine and a half year old bitch called Bella and a 5 year old bitch called Dior that we have bred two litters from.

I have spoken to a Solicitor about GA's accusation and I can legally take them to court for malicious falsehood, however, my solicitor believes GA would welcome the publicity so the last thing I want to do is help publicise their twisted cause.

I have owned greyhounds for over 16 years and not once have I had a greyhound put down unless on the advice of a qualified vetinary surgeon.

I bred one litter of 6 greys in April 07, whelped them and reared them myself. What follows is what happened to the 6 pups.

2 pups were put down at 4 weeks old by a qualified Vet as they could not hold their food down.

1 dog pup smashed his leg and broke 4 metacarpals out galloping doing what greys do naturally, he was in such distress the qualified Vet recommended the only humane thing to do was to put him down. After me helping his Mother bring him in to the World, being with them pups and him every day of their lives, you cannot imagine how that hurt to have him put down after the previous incident bringing back yet more painful memories!

1 pup sold at 14 months old.2 pups still owned by me and enjoying their racing in England at Perry Barr in Birmingham.

6 pups all accounted for and not one pup put down unless on Vetinary advice!

I currently have 8 new pups, this time thankfully all healthy at nearly 6 months old, being reared by a full-time rearer. I didn't fancy going through all of the hardship and commitment of rearing them myself again. Two sold, three still for sale and three a friend and I are keeping. 8 all accounted for and none of them put down!

I'd say my story is similar to hundreds of one man breeders\owners across the World. Breeding and rearing greyhounds is an enormous commitment with hours of dedication and certainly not for the faint hearted.

It would be good if GA showed some sign of respect for these pups and stop publicising my words and glorifying the pups deaths to aid their own twisted cause. I'd like to remember my pups for the joy they brought to me the day I whelped them down, the sense of achievement, the connection I had with them. I'll admit I did get to attached to them, I think all one man breeders must do, and that's another reason why at the moment I'm not rearing them myself.
The quote I made on a forum that GA now publicise on posters etc is taken out of context at a time when I was under great emotional stress having just lost two 4 week old pups from the first ever litter I bred myself.

When I wrote "if any of my pups are not fast enough they have to go" I have owned numerous greyhounds in the past some slower than others and when I said "go" I meant either sold on or retired them to live out their lives as pets! I have rehomed numerous greys in the last 16 years, one grey I paid £300 to be fixed up after a career ending race track injury. I could have chosen to have him put to sleep, many would, and that is their perogative and it would not have been illegal or wrong to do so, however, I decided to pay for his injury to be treated by a Vet at my cost and the family that now have him love him to bits and after moving to Canada he is living out his days as a family pet!

I have never and would never have a healthy pup put down! The trip I took down to the vets was a hard one! It was for 2 very weak pups. The vet diagnosed an internal defect and we lost the two pups. GA even rang me pretending to be someone else and asked me about the incident, I gave GA the full facts of the matter, I did no wrong, the pups were both weak and could have picked up illnesses or disease that would have put their healthy littermates in danger. Of course GA didn't print any of this!

I did say hundreds of greys are put down before they make the track, when you consider I lost 2 in a litter of 6 through internal defects and 1 whilst out galloping I stand by what I said "hundreds of greys do not make the track" BUT not thousands like the GA falsely claim.
I have been in contact with a libel Solicitor and I have every right to take GA to court for malicious falsehood BUT my solicitor advises me this could give GA yet more publicity they want, the last thing I want to do is publicise GA's twisted cause. Although I have not pursued legal action at the current time I still have the right to proceed with legal proceedings should I wish to in the future. I certainly doubt they will ever remove my words from their anti-propaganda or ever apologize in public or to me even though they know they have bent the truth to suit their own end on what was a very sad event!

For anyone that didn't know that the GA spread lies hopefully this blog will put the record straight. GA tell lies to sensationalise and they don't care who they harm along the way. Abusing law abiding citizens both mentally and physically, these are the real Actions of Greyhound Action!

So my name is out there blackened by the GA however, I hope this blog helps put the record straight.

Anyone is welcome to come visit Bella and Dior both living a very happy and fulfilling life.
Pictures are of our latest litter of Scolari x Dior pups and their mother Droopys Dior out rolling in the January snow!

Bella's Story




Hi, my name is Bella, I am a 9 and a half year old greyhound.

I started life like so many of my kind, reared in full freedom, fed the best and catered for by my caring rearer.

At 12 months I was introduced to a schooling track, wow, that was some excitement, I couldn’t wait to go back.

At 16 months I was taken to a race track and raced for the first time against 5 other greys, the thrill of it all is beyond words..

I was sold from Ireland to my new owner Richard Newell at 2 years old and started racing at Perry Barr. My trainer continued to feed me well and exercised me regularly. I had checks at vets and muscle men manipulating me, I was in prime condition and performed to the best of my capabilities. I was stepped up in trip and started winning some good races, then Richard began to take me Open racing all over the country. I knew I was going to have some excitement every time Richard’s car drew up at the kennels and I couldn’t wait to get in the car and go racing.
I won several races and won a race on a SKY night where I was paraded around the track like I was a Queen!

I did eventually pick up an injury, an injury I could have picked up in a field just as easy as on a race track. My owner tried to fix me but alas I had to be retired. I am now 9 and a half years old and still live at Richard’s place with a few others of my kind, we all get on but I am so jealous when Richard opens his car door and my friends jump in to go racing, I try my best to jump in there with them and go for another race, sadly I can’t, but I still get walked every day, I get fed well every day, I get the occasional run about in the nearby farmers field, I have had a good life and I am enjoying my retirement despite being unable to race.

Often when out walking with Richard he talks to me about the people out there that want to stop me and my kind from racing. I don’t understand why anyone would want to stop us from doing what we love to do. I know that thousands of my kind are rehomed upon retirement from racing and live out their lives in similar conditions to myself.

There are a few scary fairy tales about dogs being abused but Richard and I both know, along with thousands of other sensible people that these are just a small minority of cases and the people that want to stop me and my kind racing glorify these negatives when in reality the vast majority of us greyhounds have a great life, I really wouldn’t want to be any other animal!

Time for a snooze now and I’ll dream about catching that hare!

Yours Bella

Co.Cork