I'm 23 years old and am currently living in and travelling around Australia for three-and-a-half months. I'll be back in Lincoln in October where I still live with my parents and two sisters. I've completed one year of a Foundation Animal Studies degree at the Nottingham-Trent University on the Brackenhurst campus, which has already given me a solid educational foundation in the areas of animal health, care and welfare. I start the second year of the course in October.
I recently worked as part of the "Team Terv" household in Derby, where I helped out with the day-to-day chores and took general care of their Belgian Shepherd Dogs. I also got to attend many dog shows with the Belgian boys, and learn about handling, training and grooming them. I feel I was very fortunate to have received this opportunity and am hoping that it has helped put me on the right track for a career with dogs. I've also worked at Damon's Restaurant in Lincoln several times over the years and have done jobs ranging from dish washer to food prep' and fajita cook.
As a person, I'm a tomboy, quiet, sometimes rather hard to talk to, a procrastinator and can be under-confident about doing new things. (I suppose I'm a bit like a Belgian Shepherd really, which is perhaps why I like them so much - I'm a bit aloof and wary until I get to know you, after which I'm friendly enough, but am never extrovert and loud.) My time working at Damon's has helped to give me much more confidence as a person, and also taught me about people and the "real world", something which my time at school never did.
Online, I become a different person; I'm guessing that's because I'm not held back by the stigmas of appearance, age or culture - everyone just mingles with everyone else without prejudice, and it's great! The internet is my release - I've met people from all over the globe (and from as close as half a mile from my house) who share my enthusiasm and interests and I couldn't be happier. The internet has also given me the chance to share my creativity with the world - I can finally share my fanfictions, artwork and now also my websites with people outside the four walls of my house.
I have recently lost my rescue dog, Bonnie, which came as quite a blow after having her around for thirteen years; you can see some pictures of her on her memorial page. I co-own the Belgian Tervueren Phoenix with his breeder, Dr Margy Pratten, of Bergeau Tervuerens. He's still living with the other Everquest boys at present in Derby but will hopefully be coming to Lincoln to live with me as soon as the opportunity arises.
Apart from the internet and dogs, my main passions are writing, drawing, and basically being creative, though my creativity is usual sparked by someone else's (i.e., I'm a fan-artist). I love sci-fi, fantasy & historical books, programmes and movies, and my favourite characters are always either the villains or the enigmatic, dark personalities (I'm told I have a "thing" for mature, scheming males with beards. ^_^) I'm a particularly big fan of Australian Oscar-winning actor Geoffrey Rush, who I was fortunate enough to meet in October 2007, and who I'm happy to say is one of the kindest, most lovely men in the world.
I'm a member of the Anti-Docking Alliance, which helped to push through the ban on dog tail docking in the UK Animal Welfare Bill in 2006, and am also part of the Young Kennel Club. I support the Dog's Trust when possible and am a member of the Belgian Shepherd Dog Association of Great Britain.
I have a few ambitions in life, but most of them are unrealistic. I'd love to write a novel one day; if I do, it'll either be a fantasy one, or a piece of historical 'faction', the genres I enjoy most. I have plans to take on a Dobermann in the next few years of my life, too, which is a breed I've admired since I was very young, and am hoping that one day I'll be able to embark on breeding them, too, since I have a very clear idea of the kind of Dobe I'd like to produce - an elegant, noble animal which is as capable of working as it is showing, and which is above all sound in temperment and health.