Cymbrian Twila (2006-2014)

1/12/2014

These blog posts were not designed as an Obituary column but our kennel has been hit hard in the last 12 months. Last February, we lost Eunice (see blog of March, 2013). Eunice was one of the top 5 we ever had here, followed by the passing of Hoss, Mahwah and now Twila.

Twila was a sweet little hound who was the lead hound in my pack. She was a tireless hunter and handled extremely well. She could drive with the best of them as well as pick the tough check to keep the race going. Her horn-like voice was always true, never out of place, and was a constant in the pack. She took over for Eunice as my trainer of the young hounds as well as their kennel mate. She was always kenneled with a youngster as there was not an aggressive bone in her body.

Twila started at 6 months or so, at my now deceased friend’s enclosure. She opened on that first box trapped rabbit and continued to improve from there. She was a lovable hound in the kennel but in the field, she stayed busy the entire time out. I never found the bottom in her; she had endless desire and endurance. She also never ran trash her entire life. I will never forget her in a pack of 14 at our club, which was right up her alley. She was slightly competitive but not so much as to be a fault, she wanted to outdo her pack mates but not at the cost of losing the line or blindly charging for the front.

Her conformation was also above average. She was measured at an AKC trial once at 11 5/8” but I would guess she was more likely around 13 ¼”. She was uncomfortable on the measuring stand as that is something we never worked at. She had nice tight feet, straight front legs, well proportioned chest and loins and a beautiful chestnut colored head. (Going through my photos, I find that I have very few pictures of Twila and those I do have do not do her justice) What will stay with me most about Twila, besides her hunting ability, was her sweet disposition; just a wonderful, wonderful companion and friend.

As much as I miss her and will continue to do so, the “Twila” branch of the line will continue on. I have a full littermate brother, 2 half sisters, and several nieces & nephews as well as a beautiful bitch pup from her. Her 2 littermate sisters are with friends of mine, Ruby and Dolly are both special hounds. Dolly’s owner, who has several hounds from me, says Dolly is the best of all of them. Ruby is with an older gun hunter and has never been bred but Dolly has at least 2 litters on the ground that I know of and we have Duffy from Dolly.

I buried a piece of my heart with Twila, as I do all the special ones, but we keep moving forward. I owe it to Twila, Eunice, Bonnie and Mya to take the next and succeeding generations to their fullest potential.