Thanks again Mike. Lovely bit about understanding the shape. It helps somewhat to think of it flat on the ground.
I am more looking for thought process when I say attack rather than a magic button to do it for me. Method. But I hear you. I just need to let it sink in and combine it with testing and experimenting a lot. I don't mind the moving around bit at all, but I am extremely intimidated by why am I moving this UV that way. You know Worse than drawing that first stroke on a blank piece of paper.

Here's a first, quick quick paint pass just to see if the map is ready to paint on. It's not. There's not enough room for the ears and nose still, and there are a couple of overlaps. Sheesh they're hard to spot unless you zoom in like a madman. One more attempt at untagling nose and ears in this cylindrical projection are in order before I try planar mapping.
Thus, the color map is not subject for critique. It's just a quick slab of paint to test accuracy. Having done this quick test helped me understand more about the dark arts of UV'ing. Nothing is lost.

I have a feeling I am wasting precious resolution on the sides and down at the bottom where the neck is. If I shift stuff around there's more resolution for the front of the face. I hope things won't distort or stretch out of control.