End of the year report!

First, here is a picture of Birdie I discovered on my son Seth's computer! I think it is from sometime last summer based on the looks of things. Second, thanks to everyone for keeping me updated on your pup's progress ~ I very much appreciate the notes and pictures and hope they keep coming as this litter matures!
Third, you'll all be proud to know that Solo, your pup's Dad, went High in Trial at an obedience trial on December 26 with a score of 197.5 out of 200 points. Very nice!

*******

Here is a note which arrived a little bit ago from Mary Lou:

Here are some current pictures of Blade; he's becoming quite a big, handsome boy.

He is doing quite well in agility and if I can come up with video of him doing it I'll send one.

Gail

A happy face to greet me in the morning!

Spaying and Neutering

Because I know many of you will be contemplating this in the near future, here is some information. I do have a lengthy article if you would like me to send it to you.

On the positive side, neutering male dogs
• eliminates the small risk (probably <1%) of dying from testicular cancer
• reduces the risk of non-cancerous prostate disorders
• reduces the risk of perianal fistulas
• may possibly reduce the risk of diabetes (data inconclusive)

On the negative side, neutering male dogs
• if done before 1 year of age, significantly increases the risk of osteosarcoma (bone cancer); this is a common cancer in medium/large and larger breeds with a poor prognosis.
• increases the risk of cardiac hemangiosarcoma by a factor of 1.6
• triples the risk of hypothyroidism
• increases the risk of progressive geriatric cognitive impairment
• triples the risk of obesity, a common health problem in dogs with many associated health problems
• quadruples the small risk (<0.6%) of prostate cancer
• doubles the small risk (<1%) of urinary tract cancers
• increases the risk of orthopedic disorders
• increases the risk of adverse reactions to vaccinations
For female dogs, the situation is more complex. The number of health benefits associated with spaying may exceed the associated health problems in some (not all) cases. On balance, whether spaying improves the odds of overall good health or degrades them probably depends on the age of the female dog and the relative risk of various diseases in the different breeds.

On the positive side, spaying female dogs
• if done before 2.5 years of age, greatly reduces the risk of mammary tumors, the most common
malignant tumors in female dogs
• nearly eliminates the risk of pyometra, which otherwise would affect about 23% of intact female dogs; pyometra kills about 1% of intact female dogs
• reduces the risk of perianal fistulas
• removes the very small risk ( 0.5%) from uterine, cervical, and ovarian tumors

On the negative side, spaying female dogs
• if done before 1 year of age, significantly increases the risk of osteosarcoma (bone cancer); this is a common cancer in larger breeds with a poor prognosis
• increases the risk of splenic hemangiosarcoma by a factor of 2.2 and cardiac hemangiosarcoma by a factor of 5; this is a common cancer and major cause of death in some breeds
• triples the risk of hypothyroidism
• increases the risk of obesity by a factor of 1.6-2, a common health problem in dogs with many
associated health problems
• causes urinary “spay incontinence” in 4-20% of female dogs
• increases the risk of persistent or recurring urinary tract infections by a factor of 3-4
• increases the risk of recessed vulva, vaginal dermatitis, and vaginitis, especially for female dogs
spayed before puberty
• doubles the small risk (<1%) of urinary tract tumors
• increases the risk of orthopedic disorders
• increases the risk of adverse reactions to vaccinations

One thing is clear – much of the spay/neuter information that is available to the public is unbalanced and contains claims that are exaggerated or unsupported by evidence.

Here is Jetta working on hand signals with one of her favorite people helping her.

Stormy:

Well, I have been using one of my herding sticks on Stormy, and he is bettter about watching out for me. He is very different than the other two. I still have him in the crate at night, as I don't trust him. He knows "crate, but it takes a few minutes before he finally gets into it.

He and Jazz had the best time playing together, and once in a while Cutter will join. I love watching them play.

Jetta is fabulous, we can hardly believe how wonderful she is. She is never crated anymore. Jets sleeps with one of the family, her choice. I also noticed that if she is hot she sleeps on the bathroom floor. She is very reliable with listening even in highly distracted situations. She loves kids, although when I first took her to school dismissal she did give me a look that said, "You sure about this?" It was funny, now she does not bat an eye lash. We took her to a 3K walk around Lake Harriet called The Monster Dash, she dressed up as a witch and did great. She talks to me a lot. I know when she sounds like Chewbacca she really wants something. She loves to run silently up to you and snatch whatever is in your hands and bolt off with it. I think she also enjoys keeping a leery eye on the neighbors.


Right now we are working on "bring it" which is fetch, she loves to run and bring the ball back, just not right to us. We are also teaching her to say, "I love you" She is a bit mouthy at times, nothing unusual for her age. My husband has issues with her jumping on him-I keep having to remind him to give her the signal for sit before he touches her. He is just over the moon in love with her.


She is always with us, loves water, she will get right in the shower with you if you let her. She also adores yogurt and Kifer.


We had an underground fence installed so she has run of the yard and is safely contained. Jetta takes her job seriously and has a stern "I mean business bark" We had family stay overnight and she read my uncle the riot act when he got up in the middle of the night for water before she realized who he was.


Jets weighs 53 pounds as of today.


Thanks for the wonderful pup, we love her so.

Hi Liz and thanks - it sounds like the litter is consistent overall.

Are you continuing to take her to class? I would really encourage you to do so since from now on until she's about 2 she'll be going through a lot of changes (like kids do) I'd love to see a little video of her with her tricks!

Blade is doing very nicely. He finished his first 6 weeks of obedience and did very well. The instructor is gone until January but I still work with him on my own. I think he is going to start up Rally when he gets back which sounds like a lot of fun. We are still doing agility and I'm amazed at how well he does at it; he is a natural. I have just started him at biking(slow and short sessions) but he will also be a natural at that. I also get together with a couple of other people and there dogs and we take them over to the dog park so all the dogs get alot of socialization with other people and dogs. I measured him the other day and he stands at around 24 inches and weighs about 55 pounds; he will be a big boy. I will get some current pictures of him and send them off sometime this month. The only problem I'm having with him is he wants to chase cars. Even as a baby he would try to go after them. I've always discouraged the behavior but with limited success. My agility instructor gave me a couple of suggestions that I will be trying. He is a great dog and I'm looking forward to many years with him.

Rally would be great for a young dog as is agility...I would think that Rally would help get him started toward obedience also.

I did google 'dogs chasing cars' and found this good link: http://aspcabehavior.org/articles/59/Dogs-Chasing-Cars-.aspx which you might find helpful. I don't tend to have the problem since we're so rural that 10 cars a day is a traffic event here and when the dogs aren't physically with me they are confined.

I'm doing some focus heeling with Gail so that when the time comes to compete she can pay attention to me better...it's fun but hard. I have a GREAT video from Mike Ellis on teaching the focus heel ~ it can be ordered through his website if you're interested. I tried to get some video of her this afternoon on the sheep but wasn't successful --- too much to video and train at the same time. She works very nicely ~ not too wild but still with drive and instinct.

Yes, I'd love to see pictures and I'm glad to hear that you're keeping him socialized ~ please keep in touch!

Thanks Sunny,

The info in the article is pretty much what my agility instructor told me. I guess the good thing is he has never had the opportunity to flat out chase a car as he is always on leash at this time except at the beach. Blade's recall is good but I know from experience with my other dog that once they reach that excited stage and start the run they aren't coming back no matter how much I call. I'll keep you posted on the progress of this.

--------------- continued.....

I just wanted to let you know that I tried the exercise that was in the website you sent and that it is working wonderfully. In fact, after 4 days of working with him you wouldn't really know he had a problem with car chasing.

I think it worked so fast with him because, one, he is a puppy and didn't have alot of time to develop the habit; two,

because he never really got the enjoyment of chasing a car; and three, he is a puppy that picks up really fast what I'm asking of him.

I've never been too interested in clicker training but I have to say it works quite well. When ever I decide to use the clicker to train something to Blade he picks it up much quicker then when I don't use it. It is a handy little device.

Thanks again for website.

That's good news - I'd continue to reinforce the training though. Regarding the clicker -- I don't actually use a 'clicker' but I do use marker words which is the same concept -- a 'Yes!' when the dog is correct, an 'un, uh' (or however that's spelled) when he's wrong. On another topic, I found a 4 week rally class to take Gail to which starts this Wednesday which will be more for socialization than anything else. I can't maintain any kind of a focus heel in a group class because they tend to have heeling for so long and she's just not mature enough but rally shouldn't degrade my training. I'll let you know how it goes.

Creed

OK - now we are going through teen age years, Has decided that he has a mind of his own. He loves to work and we continue with obedience and focus work. He and Spice love to play with each other to the point that we have to do timeouts for our sake!!!.

He and the cat are now playing with each other and the cat is doing his best to get Creed in trouble!!

We are giving thought to renting Creed & Spice out as ditch diggers!! We might be able to off set their food costs.

Let me know how that works out! Maybe we can form a company :)

Creed is growing like a weed. Last Monday his weight was 41.5 lbs. He had a great time at the Vet's office playing with new and old friends. He still gets himself in trouble with Spice when he thinks he is going to be first through the door or first when running up the hall etc. He wants to be in front of her and she is having none of it. Starting to show an independent streak and a little self thinker. But, such a little love when he is watching you and doing his puppy work.

I'll try to get a weight on Gail - she's now finished with Advanced Puppy class - I am doing focus and attention work at home and will take her to classes for continued socialization.

He is a joy and he and Spice get along so well. Thanks!!!

Here's Gail again - she is great in the house, can sleep in or out of her crate, gets along well with the other dogs in the house and is, in general, a good puppy.

Gail and I went out to the sheep both yesterday and today to continue imprinting and obedience. I have her on a long line just in case I think she need help but hardly have been using it. She is learning to 'stop' - to 'down' - and to 'that'll do' - which means to come to me. I also am having her walk up to the sheep to hold them to the fence; which means she walks up to about 15 feet or so then I have her stop. She is so much more relaxed than Trouble that it makes it possible to accomplish more - and more quickly - than I'd expected. I set up the session so that she will be successful of course, always keeping in mind that she's young and we don't want her to be frightened or hurt by the sheep.

Gail's report

We took Gail to the sheep in the arena today - this is her first time officially 'on' sheep. She did great :)

Here she is holding them in the corner - far enough away that they aren't in a panic. I'm patting my leg saying "That'll Do" so that she comes back to me. No sense letting her get in trouble.



Here she is moving them along the fenceline from that corner. She's got great self control and calls off easily.



And finally, she's continuing to move them - she held them here for about a minute and we called it a day. Plenty for a pup's first time. Unfortunately for us, I took down our round pen this summer! We can get a lot of work done away from the sheep - stop, down, wait...and will work on those exercises now.

Happy Birthday!

Creed sends Happy Birthday wishes to all his littermates!

I had Stormy and Cutter to the vet yesterday. Stormy now weighs 44 lbs, and Cutter has lost two pounds and is down to 114. I think that he looks better, but he has really slowed down. I have paid for herding lessons for the rest of the month, but am not going today, as JoAnna is getting ready for the trail this weekend, and I know that she will be busy. Will finish out the month, and then stay home for the winter. Do you have Gale on a rope when she is out herding? I know that Stormy needs a rope, as he is busy eating poop or else running after the sheep. He is a busy busy puppy, and so cute after his hair cut. His ears aren't laying flat anymore. Had him micro-chipped yesterday - the only time he yelped. He got more shots also, and not a sound out of him.

Thank you for letting me get him, he keeps me busy.

I've had Gale out with the cattle doing little chores but not the sheep.

I'll have her on a line when we start sheep - - probably when we get back from this trip to Alaska I'll take her over to Phyllis's and put her in the round pen first to keep things from getting out of hand. (I took down my round pen this year) I have the school sheep back here at my place now so they'll be excellent for getting her started. The cattle leave after our Oct 14 trial.

Hopefully your vet is done giving him shots -- Gale has had her two and a rabies and that's it. We're concerned about over vaccination and immunosuppression in dogs more now than in the past.

Stormy!

I took him to the two different nursing homes that we go to, one on Friday morning, and then Monday morning. He was in a great hurry to get from room to room, but once he was in the room, went up to the people and stood there, and let people pet him. He did very well, and
loved the attention. I was a little afraid that he would taste fingers, and he did a little, but was very gently doing it, and the people that he did that to, loved it. He won't go again until maybe Christmas when he walks on the leash a lot better. They all loved seeing him. Cutter wasn't real crazy about sharing his people with Stormy, but he allowed it to happen. And they both had a good time.

Wed. I took the group to get groomed. Sue, the groomer that I have been using for yesterday, thought that Stormy is really cute, and he was so good. I will try to get a picture, cause you can really tell that he is brnidle, I really couldn't tell before. He is black, and gray, and just darling.

Yesterday, we went to herding. Stormy got to go out with the sheep. Mostly he was very interested in what the sheep were leaving, but a couple of times he saw them and started to get after them. JoAnna was in there with us, and we walked about a small pen twice. He looked very proud of himself. We were in there, maybe 10 minutes. JoAnna was impressed with how he did.

Jetta

She was a rather serious small puppy but I think that she has decided that we are O.K.

and fun to play with-she actually jumped off the boat into shallow water to play with the kids

all by herself-she very much enjoys making up her own mind about what she does. She will take into consideration any encouragement from us

though.

We walk every day and my husband has run with her as well-something he cant really do with our Frenchie because he overheats so

fast.

She is in a really goof ball stage but still listens and doesn't run away. That brings me to my next question. Fences.

Would you recommend underground? Or traditional? The underground is very popular but they fail and I know are not
for everyone.

We have never had an underground fence; the way our farm is set up there is an old gravel road that runs between the house and the barns so it's just not practical to set up an underground system. My cousin's husband has a company in Somerset called "Apple River Fencing" that does do fence work (both traditional and underground) so he might have some ideas but to be honest, I'm not sold on the underground. I can only imagine my beloved dogs spying something irresistable and going through it and getting hit by a car - so we have traditional chain link fence for our own dogs.

Also, you won't want to run with her very much yet --

I'll post to the little blog and maybe some of the other folks will chime in...

Blade

I just wanted to let you see how big Blade is getting.
He is enrolled in an obedience class and does very well. He has had one agility class and he picked up real quick what I was asking of him, but that will be pretty limited until he's a bit older.
Although he has his moments-he's a puppy, he grasps everything pretty quickly and tries very hard to do what I ask of him.
I don't think I could have picked a better puppy.

My yes, what a nice looking pup at his age! I'll be interested in seeing what he matures into ... For the moment, Gale is the same, very smart and funny -- she is now going through a stage where she startles at the rototiller and other things that have been around since she was born -- "what's THAT?? And Where did IT come from???" so I'm careful not to make a big deal out of anything. We're headed to Alaska for 10 days and she'll stay with my friend Lynn in Minneapolis which will be a very different and good experience for her.

Thank you so much for taking him to classes, that is just the best thing for a young bouvier!

Jetta

Jetta is a delight. I sent a photo of her brindle coat that we love and hope it doesn't change. Jetta loves to be with her family and squeaky toys. The boys start school next week and I am sure she will miss them. Jetta was 30 pounds last week at her check up. The only issue we have is carpet seems to mean a place to potty, my fault I am sure as last time I house trained a pup we had carpet everywhere, now it's only in the bedrooms. Jetta knows down, sit, shake, talk and kennel. She is consistent when asked to sit or down with hand signals as well. Thanks again for the great pup!

Stormy

Stormy went to Puppy Class on Monday night. He is so different than Cutter or Rytar. They both held back, and didn't really join in the puppy fun. Stormy was right in the middle of it. I can tell that he is getting older as he listens better. Of course, no one except Margaret knew what breed he was. Still like the crop ears better, but am getting use to his ears. They are all getting groomed next Wed. I am thinking that I will take him to the nursing homes, I didn't trust him to this point, but he is so soft and the people will be excited to see him. Wish us luck on Friday. If that doesn't work well, he won't go Monday.

Creed waiting for the Tooth Fairy!

From a few days ago:

Creed lost his first two puppy teeth today (top middle incisors). He is 15 weeks 3 days old.

Blade Update!

Just wanted to let you know Blade is doing very well; he is such a smart puppy. He is already house broken(has been for about a week), where he'll go to the door when he needs to go out. I'm working on basic commands which he picks up fast so I will be putting him in a competitive type obedience class sometime this fall. There is also a woman who trains in tracking so once he turns four months I will try him at that and see how he does.
He did excellent at the dog show and had no problem with all the people and dogs there. He made several human friends who absolutely adored him.
Funny though, everyone thought he was a poodle mix as they kept telling me they had never seen a bouvier a puppy before, just an adult. I even put him in a fun puppy class(conformation) but of course we lost since neither of us knew what we were doing.
He's growing fast and it looks like he'll be quite a big boy. He's a real joy to have around.

Gale update

Here we are, ready for puppy class this week!

Gale

This weekend we are hosting a cattle clinic and stockdog trial at our farm; most of the dogs participating will be dogs hoping to trial on cattle and our Trouble will also take part in both the clinic and trial. We have a clinician coming up from Missouri who is very good and who was a friend of Kathy Heilenman - Kathy has passed away but has Gale's Aunt at her home. Gale has been helping set up the trial field and got used to the 4-wheeler and the fence pounder and explored gopher hills while we were working. Both yesterday and today she joined her Grandma Una, her Dad Solo, her Auntie Trouble and her little friend Star in a run through the pasture and into the fishing hole and creek. A great riotous wet time was had by all!

Creed at the Training Club

Creed -
Tracking - Had the training director watch how I laid the tracks and he gave me some good suggestions. After we ran the one that I laid, he laid a short one and Creed nailed the 2 corners very well (Training Director was impressed). Creed had a great time as he loves what he finds in the grass (hot dogs)!! Better than Easter!!! Creed was not bothered by the Training Director talking to me while on the track, or his walking around during the track - Creed wanted the prize in the grass - the heck with everyone else.
Obedience - we are not doing formal training at this time. Will talk to the obedience training director next week about when and what to start. Right now we are doing sit, down, wait, and focus on me in very short positive sessions.
Protection - he watched the last dog in protection and showed more interest than in the last 2 times we were at training. He chased the rag (tied to an old Sh whip) the training director had, caught it and played tug with the training director. After 3 times of this I took him back to the van, running, tug in mouth and whip dragging behind. This was a 50 yard run, up-hill and he did not want to let it go when I got to the van!!



We were very pleased with how well both dogs did. The German Shepherd members are impressed at how well Spice works and how well Creed is learning. Thank you for 2 very good working dogs. More importantly, thank you for 2 great companions!!!

Jetta

Jetta is really picking up speed in the water! she has learned "kennel" this week and to swim to the side of our boat with the swim ladder, I am sure that in time she will figure out how to climb the ladder into the boat.

Zoey

Zoey has been doing exceptionally well. She has been responding to commands, playing fetch, and learned to let us know every time she has to go outside. She hasn't had an accident for almost a month and a half. She also loves the water! Anytime she gets a chance she will run and jump in the pool. She isn't too big on swimming around, she loves to just sit on the first step and lay in the water. She will also stick her face in the water while she splashes around which I thought was pretty unusual for a dog. It's been nice having another dog around to help her release some energy as well as help her learn what's ok and what isn't ok when dogs play together.

The only problem we had was about a week ago, Zoey got a little bit sick and threw up her food for a couple of days. We fed her rice, hot dog, and some other bland foods to help her stomach get back to normal. After a few days she was definitely feeling much better so we started feeding her the nutrisource dog food again, but she threw it up. So we did a little more bland food and mixed in some iams puppy food over the next few days until it was completely just iams puppy food. She hasnt had a problem since. I also tried giving her a single piece of the nutrisource as a treat, but she just spit it out. I can only assume that she is allergic to something in the nutrisource or she connects throwing up to the taste of nutrisource. I think I am going to compare the 2 ingredient labels of nutrisource and iams and see if there is something she might be allergic to.

Also, Zoey's hernia has grown in size just a tiny bit, but i am assuming it is just because she is growing as well. It had a diameter of about a nickel at 8 weeks and now its about the size of a quarter so not really too much difference. The vet had said she will probably have to close it up when she gets spade, but we would talk more about that in our next vet visit. I did call the vet when zoey was sick and throwing up, just to make sure the symptoms weren't linked to the hernia which they weren't.

Hi and thanks for the note about Zoey...it sounds like she's coming along great. Who knows what the deal is with the food - sometimes they change the formula slightly or it might have gotten a little mold during the humidity or she might be starting to teethe and not feel well. At any rate, if the Iams works for you, I guess I'd go ahead and feed it to her although it wouldn't be my first choice for a food -- a million people do seem to feed it. Please - Keep me informed about her hernia; as you know, my vet thought it would go away ~ I guess if it continues to get larger you might want to consider spaying her earlier but I'd leave that to your vet's experience.

Zoey has been doing exceptionally well. She has been responding to commands, playing fetch, and learned to let us know every time she has to go outside. She hasn't had an accident for almost a month and a half. She also loves the water! Anytime she gets a chance she will run and jump in the pool. She isn't too big on swimming around, she loves to just sit on the first step and lay in the water. She will also stick her face in the water while she splashes around which I thought was pretty unusual for a dog. It's been nice having another dog around to help her release some energy as well as help her learn what's ok and what isn't ok when dogs play together.

The only problem we had was about a week ago, Zoey got a little bit sick and threw up her food for a couple of days. We fed her rice, hot dog, and some other bland foods to help her stomach get back to normal. After a few days she was definitely feeling much better so we started feeding her the nutrisource dog food again, but she threw it up. So we did a little more bland food and mixed in some iams puppy food over the next few days until it was completely just iams puppy food. She hasnt had a problem since. I also tried giving her a single piece of the nutrisource as a treat, but she just spit it out. I can only assume that she is allergic to something in the nutrisource or she connects throwing up to the taste of nutrisource. I think I am going to compare the 2 ingredient labels of nutrisource and iams and see if there is something she might be allergic to.

Also, Zoey's hernia has grown in size just a tiny bit, but i am assuming it is just because she is growing as well. It had a diameter of about a nickel at 8 weeks and now its about the size of a quarter so not really too much difference. The vet had said she will probably have to close it up when she gets spade, but we would talk more about that in our next vet visit. I did call the vet when zoey was sick and throwing up, just to make sure the symptoms weren't linked to the hernia which they weren't.

Hi and thanks for the note about Zoey...it sounds like she's coming along great. Who knows what the deal is with the food - sometimes they change the formula slightly or it might have gotten a little mold during the humidity or she might be starting to teethe and not feel well. At any rate, if the Iams works for you, I guess I'd go ahead and feed it to her although it wouldn't be my first choice for a food -- a million people do seem to feed it. Please - Keep me informed about her hernia; as you know, my vet thought it would go away ~ I guess if it continues to get larger you might want to consider spaying her earlier but I'd leave that to your vet's experience.

Bouviers in Service to Dogkind

Creed taking Spice for a walk. this is his community service for the older dogs!!! He such a caring dog!!

And here I thought Spice was trying..trying...trying...to show that little kid how to TRACK! But no, what does HE want to do but play with the line! Kids!!

Creed at the Lake!

pictures of Creed at the lake - next we need to take him wake boarding!!!

See, Jetta, it runs in the family!

Blade Update!

Just wanted to let you see Blade with his new hair cut. I hadn't planned on shaving him down so soon but he lays under the pine trees and got tree sap all over him. He was very good for his first bath and cut.
We have an AKC all breed dog show here every year and this year it's this coming up weekend; since it's an outside show you can bring your own dogs. So Saturday he'll be going to the dog show. I'm real interested to see how he'll handle all the people and dogs.
He is doing great and has adjusted very well to his new life Thanks again!

Yes, the tree sap! We have moved the play yard away from under the pines for just that reason!

Jetta Update!

Our first class went well, took a while for Jetta to really focus but she did every task asked of her

and was not terribly easily distracted. We continue to visit strip malls, Pets Smarts and farmers markets for socialization

We have had house training setback this week as Jetta is NOT a fan of the heat. She will tinkle outside

but made up her mind that #2's should happen in the house! We were outside and I KNEW she had to go potty,

she went to the door and asked to go in, I said, "go Potty" Jetta said, "bark, bark, bark" This exchange

went on for several minutes until she marched down the driveway, used the grass to potty on then ran back

to the house!

She is a smart cookie!

We added puppy lamb and rice from Nutro as she didnt like the Taste of the Wild so much. She has a better appetite now.

She likes to swim. As long as the lake is fairly calm. I think she really gets a kick out of it. We have a Pontoon boat and she enjoys that as well.

Creed in the big city too!

This was a big day for Creed. We started with playing tug with a rag; took a long walk around the block (when walking on the street in front of the house he sat on command); then he met Spice’s chiropractic vet and had a small adjustment; then went to a city downtown and walked around where he saw a blind man and cane, a limping women pulling a wagon, a handicap person in an electric wheelchair, a baby stroller, met a several people (including a 6 year old), city traffic; then he got to go to, not one but two pet stores.

He handled all of this very well. He was not afraid of any of the encounters today. Show keen curiosity on everything.

Yesterday we tracked in the back yard (grass is 3-4 inches high) and while tracking the neighbor’s dog was barking at him – he raised his head twice but did not leave the track – then he just kept on tracking while the dog barked.

Still working on house breaking – his accidents are more out fault for not catching him.

Loves to play with his Aunt Spice

Starting to sit and wait for his food (on command).

Sunny, thank you and your granddaughter for all that you did in raising Creed. He is very stable, very outgoing and learns quickly!!!

Gale says she wants to go to the city also! She's tired of being stuck out here in the sticks!

Jetta goes to town

Here is Jetta downtown White Bear Lake, we visit the farmers market. Jetta gets a chance to be in a crowd and see lots of different dogs, bikes, strollers and people getting around with walkers and wheelchairs. They even have live music! The cello really surprised her. She is a champ meeting new people; she loves everyone she meets. Change of plans with puppy class, we start this Tuesday. Jetta was 18 pounds at her checkup last week.

That is excellent exposure for our rural kids!! And look at that great handler she's got with her!

Gale update~

Hi everyone! Well, if your puppy is like Gale, you may begin to notice the wonky ear period starting! (notice pix!) It just started today which coincides with the beginning of teething (and you thought the teething period was in full bloom!) You might want to give your pup a frozen wet washcloth if you notice they are cranky and losing teeth.

Gale continues to delight us - she is a wonderful natural retriever like her Dad - shoving her toys at us to get us to throw them. When she brings them back, we pay a little tiny game of tug, always allowing her to win the toy to reinforce the retrieve. She walks nicely on a leash for both Crystal and me and sits, downs and does very fast recalls - all with food rewards of course. Housetraining is going fine, she's had a couple accidents in the kitchen but usually when I'm preoccupied. She is a puppy full of intelligence, joy and energy which is what we aim for in our Bouviers.

Stormy update again :)

Boy, if Trouble puppies were more active than Birdies I am glad that I got Birdie's pup. I don't remember either Cutter or Rytar being so active. He and Jazz do have a good time playing.

Creed update ~

He is lying underneath my chair as I type this. Several updates about him.
He now has balance - able to stand on hind legs an put his feet on you or something.
Trying to jump
Loves the water - either the pool or the hose - no issue getting wet
More verbal - not barking but "talking" in a deep voice; some may say a growl.
Wants and demands more attention
Knows his name and comes when called
Having a great time playing with his Aunt Spice

He is what we wanted!!! Thank you for such a great job in breeding and raising the pups!!!

Stormy update ~

Stormy is walking on lead fairly well for the first 10 minutes, and
then he wants to go and play. We go between 15 to 20 minutes a time.
He is doing a good sit, and okay down, and has learned he doesn't get his food until he waits. Life is hard when you are a puppy. I was bragging about the fact that he hadn't got potty in the house, so tonight he walks in Cutter's crate and does it. I was looking right at him, so got him right outside. Poops are another matter!

Photo of Jetta goofing around with the kids, much water involved.

Blade Update!

I just wanted to send a couple of pictures to let you see Blade; he is doing great. Housetraining is coming along fine and his crate training is not even an issue. I leave the door open when he's loose and alot of times he just goes in on his own to lay down. I did get him a new crate, which is quite a bit bigger than was suggested, but he has never soiled in it and it gives him more room to stretch out. His sit is great-did you teach him that? And he has learned the word check(to look at my face) very fast. He also is getting very good at the wait command. When I feed those are the three things I teach them: sit, check and to wait until I say okay. He is very food motivated so it was quite easy to teach him. We are doing leash training and going for short walks but most of his training right now consists of house rules, which he has picked up fairly fast.
Thanks again for such a great puppy

Thank you for the nice note! We did do some work on focus; getting the puppies to look up at my face after which they got a reward ~ and often they would sit. But no, I didn't really teach any sit exercises. Solo is also very food motivated which makes training fun and, in many ways, easy.

Wisconsin

Hi everyone! Thanks for the recent notes below - here we are trying to find an Ark after the recent floods; we got 3.5 inches of rain yesterday morning; it took out the fences in the pastures (again) and the front yard looked like a lake. This morning it's incredibly humid so the dogs have been out with me for a run and are already inside in the air conditioning. It's just too hot and humid for them to be comfortable.

I took Gale with us, she swims in the creek and keeps up with the big dogs on our walks, is doing very well with housetraining, walks on a leash well and rides in the car in a crate without complaining. (Finally!!!) She's a delight.

Creed - life is good in Ohio!

Several updates about Creed.
1. He likes tracking, keeping his nose down and walking the track
2. Started playing with rag - he has a short attention span
3. Has not met a stranger - we had him at the outlet mall last night and he did very well meeting people
4. Open umbrella is not an issue
5. doing well staying with me when we walk - Just another example of the excellent training you gave him.
6. Attached is a picture - I am calling it "Fun time in the summer time"
7. Likes the pool and water a lot!!!!

Jetta

Here she is outside digging in the clematis roots, I know I shouldn't let her but its so hot so she is not very ambitious about digging an extra large hole. This morning for socialization we visited a strip mall, a gentleman from Europe was delighted to see a Bouvier. We start puppy class this week. Sorry about the poor photo quality, sent from my phone.

Brainy Spike!

Well, Sunny….for brains, this is the breeding combo! We have a routine: Up at 5ish to pee and poop….romp in the enclosed rear patio area, with Kate, while I dress; into the car for the 2 mile ride (still desensitizing Kate to lose her car-ride fears)….and then, “dinner”.

Spike races with me, to the food barrel, leaping with anticipation.

Kate gets fed first, being higher in the pack, but, at the sit-command, Spike plops into a sit, next to Kate, hoping that, just this once, he can dive into her dish. No luck.

So he scampers to his X-Pen, sits at the door. I open it, and he’s already in a sit at the spot where I’ll set his bowl.

I must repeat that, tho I hear him stirring and chewing on a toy, I know I can laze in bed, a tad, because Spike will hold his pee. Don and I so appreciate your years of focus and labor to produce this superb litter! Any other feed-back re these pups’ intelligence?

Spike

Sunny, Spike has not had one accident.

He held his pee, for so long, last night (we slept late), that, when outside, he peed for 45 minutes ( I exaggerate by only seconds).

I guess, Count your Blessings!

Question: Is he brilliant, or did you start training the pups, or both?!!!

Spike now enjoys playing with Kate. Kate is teaching him skills to resist coyote attacks. Two years ago, I observed our 2 older Bouviers, in sync, teaching Kate how coyotes would attack her.

Kate circles us, on walks, and leaps into the air, to aggressively show any coyotes that she's on guard.

Blade

Just wanted to let you know that Blade is doing great. I think this puppy will live up to his name; he will be as sharp mentally as he will be physically, we can see it in him already. The herding instinct is strong in him as he tries to drive both myself and my husband when we take him out, as well as the cats. He and Jeep (my other dog) are getting along fine, although Jeep felt put out for awhile. He had his first day at the beach today and seemed to really enjoy it. We spend alot of time at the beach so it will be like a second home to him. It sounds like everyone is enjoying their puppy as much as I am. Thanks again!

Yes, it does! A great bunch of pups and owners!

Puppy Socialization

Thanks to Creed's family for sharing this link: http://info.drsophiayin.com/puppy-socialization-checklist-0/ which has, within it, a neat little schedule for socialization. They also sent along these notes:

When you pick up Creed's food dish he heads to his crate and when you open the door he jumps in. We also use treats when we want him to get in the crate at night and other times. He is getting the routine down.


We had training at the dog club today. Creed - Everyone was impressed with him and how well he handled himself in a crowd of 25 people. We did a track with a left & right corner. He wasn't sure at the start but half way through he was sniffing the ground so loud you could hear it.

A good day was had by everyone

That's how Solo tracks - very loud, deep sniffing. Tires one out just listening to how hard he's working! We did do another titer on him (I probably already told you this) and his Lymes titer was still very high so he's back on doxycycline for another 28 days @ 600mg/day. I know he doesn't feel well. Gale's scent pad was good - I"m curious why you did a regular track and not a scent pad?

I'm glad to hear he was fine with the people; Solo's contributing that trait to all his pups as far as I can tell at this stage.

We got 2" of rain the past two days; hopefully my hayfield will finally germinate now! We just got 3 loads of hay for the winter - !

To Sunny:
That is the way Mark teaches tracking. We tracked this morning on 4" grass and he kept his head down all but one time. Will track him on Wed & Fri

Crystal and her little Helper

Crystal is cutting up cooked liver and hotdogs for the dehydrator - great dog treats for all this week!



Hey, Crystal, whatchadoin? Smells good up there!











Think I can come help?








Hey! Looks like liver and hotdogs!









Maybe just a bite?? Come on! Just a little bite??








"NO!! Sunny!!! Come get your dog!!"

Stormy!

Other than the fact that he is driving Cutter nuts, he is doing well. There is something wrong with the air conditioning in the house, so it has been so hot here, no one is eating real well. Of course, Stormy likes Jazz and Cutter food much better than his own. Cutter is on low calorie so really don't want him eating that. He is full of energy although he is sleeping right now - he is sleeping in his crate, and he doesn't think that is a good place, so sings to everyone all night. He also sang all the way to herding and most of the way back home. JoAnna thought that he had the cutest face, which is what I am getting from everyone that sees him. There was another lady there that had a nine week old black German Shepherd puppy. She said that the breeder that she got him from (drove to New York State ) said that he had all the puppy shots that he needed. That puppy was just a little bigger than Stormy. It was funny seeing two puppies there..

Am waiting to send in his papers until I have seen the vet and gotten the microchip number.

Hope that you had a good visit with your Mom and everyone else. I know that I was really ready to sit and do nothing when I got home around, but of course with Stormy that wasn't possible. He is doing so well on the house breaking - nothing on the floor as yet. He does like to put his foot in the water bowl and tip it over. I took him for a short walk yesterday, there are four driveways off the one main one, and it is a wonderful place to train, as there is not much traffic - usually none. As we are walking back, a car came down the main road, and Stormy took off to get it. Can use tell that he likes to go after things that are moving. We do have to work on walking on the leash.

I couldn't find your dog food, so got him Solid Gold. Have used their treats for years.

Well, it is dark here, we had some rain during the night, and looks like we should get more.

Jetta Update!

Wanted to thank you for Jetta, she is smart as a whip!
She has learned "sit" and "shake" and has asked to go out and gone to the door twice!

She has the most endearing habit of talking to me in little woofs when she is happy or interested
in what I am doing.

We had house guests for the fourth of July and she was great, she never skipped a beat with the commotion
of the holiday.

Creed Update!

Creed had his wellness check. Our Vet was very impressed with him and stated that we have a very good breeder (we agree)!!
He met the guys who do our lawn and had the opportunity to walk up and down the trailer that they had the mowers on.
He has heard fireworks (fairly close) and just looked to see where the sound came from.
He can get through the puppy gate that we have to the bedroom (it is PVC and he likes to pull it down and drag it around)
He has been playing tug and has decided that biting me is the most coolest thing he has ever done. I am working on re-directing him to the soft tug toy. He does retrieve and when he brings the tug to me he holds on and puts his front feet on my chest - shows no fear.
He and Aunt Spice are playing chase around the kitchen counter. This should make him sleep well tonight.
He is eating well, sleeping in his crate without barking (except when you go to get him out)
I am sending you a picture of Creed dreaming about Sh3 work

Gale

This afternoon Gale is spending time with Flirt, Crystal and me as she adjusts to having her littermates gone. She loves to retrieve a stuffed rat we found at IKEA and to bite Crystal's hair and my sandals. The biting will end soon since we don't reinforce it and the retrieve should intensify as we do! She will sleep tonight in a crate in the house so I'll be joining you all in a night or so of sleeplessness!

Jetta

A quick note to let you know that Jetta is settling in nicely
she has moved up a couple crate sizes and is only in it overnight
and seems to have adjusted to it. We keep the crate at our bedside.

We are just amazed by how smart she is. We are using a quick "ouch"
or "yip" and "Ack" to correct biting.

She likes yogurt and bananas and peaches, we are feeding her 3 times a day.

She loves to go under the kids trampoline and eat dog treats.

Monkey has been great, they play "chase" in the house and take turns running after one and other.

Half-way home on the long drive to Ohio!

OK, the trip to Madison went well. Creed settled down by the time we hit Rt 12 and only had a few times of barking (except when I got out of the van - he barked his head off; I came back and Carol got out of the van and he was quiet for me). He settled as we drove and took naps. Spice slept with her back to us and him the first couple of hours.

We stopped to let both dogs relieve themselves (Wal-Mart) - he did both. Then he chased me, ran with me, followed (with food) me in the heel position (only did 3-4 steps)

Introduced him to Spice outside the hotel and she wanted nothing to do with a puppy following her. She did not get ugly but just would not look at him and if he got too close she turned away.
Outside he peed and pooped without any issue. As we unloaded the car he barked continuously. You could hear him inside.

Brought him into the room and Spice spent time smelling him, pawing him, cleaning his rear. Creed growled at her twice and she did nothing.

We went to dinner and he barked the whole time (until we went inside - came out and he was quiet). He had to ride in the cats crate because his was in the room.

Got back to the hotel and are trying to get him to be quiet in his crate!!! starting to work?
I had him on the couch in the room; the cat came up to him, smelled him then hissed. Ziegler made sure the Creed could see all of his teeth. (cat is now on the window seal looking at him bark in the crate)

He has met the puppy in the mirror and told Spice off when he was tire of being nosed and explored.

Great!! Personality.

He is now a sleep in his crate and we are trying to not make any noise.

Thanks!!! He is the right puppy

Landing in Oregon!

We got our puppy and he's doing fine. Here's a real little trooper and seems to take everything in stride. Thanks so much for such a stable puppy. He is really adorable and I will keep you posted on his development.

Spike - living the good life in California!

At this moment, Spike is inside his X-Pen, sacked out, while Kate naps near-by. Spike went to bed at 8 (and already regards his crate as a safe place), and, tho I could hear him changing positions, didn’t awaken ‘til 4:30 AM. He allowed us to dress, without fuss, then the 4 of us trooped out to the pee area…where he did his double-duty. He had a good appetite, and drank lots of water….and we all took a good walk.

Each time he eats or drinks, I take him outside, and he promptly does his duty. Today he’s spent lots of time sleeping….as I’m sure the trip was hard on him.

He’s so very bright! And loving.

The best thing I did, was to buy 3 X-pens. We keep the other 2 in the rec room, and in our kitchen/family room. It will be easy to move 1 outside. Kate understands that, even if the gate is open, she’s not to enter. Spike needs his private area.

Today, Kate “gets it”, that this is a puppy, not just a small adult dog….and is calm, walking with Spike and wanting him to explore the wood-piles for critters.

(2 hr. later) Don is on a forest walk, now, with Kate and Spike.
All is unexpectedly idyllic.

Thanks for checking.

MAKING LIFE WITH A PUPPY EASIER - USE A CRATE!

Virtually every training expert and anyone who has ever tried it are avid believers in using a dog crate for housebreaking a puppy! It will greatly speed up the training process and reduce the number of indoor accidents ... and keep him out of trouble and danger when you can't keep a close eye on him.


Many new puppies don't want to stay in a crate at first, but would rather be right beside you. Some may cry pitifully. If he does, let him cry for a while if you are sure that he does not have to "potty" and that he is not hungry or in pain. Usually, he will soon fall asleep. It may help at first to put treats in the crate and let him walk in and out. It also comforts him if you sit right outside his crate where he can see you until he falls asleep.

In the beginning, it is a good idea to put the crate in a room where you can hear him, but his fussing the first few nights does not keep you from getting some sleep. The first week or so, he may will really need to go outside once during the night since his regular routine has been interrupted (somewhere between 2-4 AM). It is strongly advised to get up, take him out, praise him, and put him immediately back to bed. To ignore his fussing will result in a messy crate in the morning ... and teach him that it is of no use to try to be neat and clean. I recommend, at first, putting a bath towel in the crate ... it is much easier to launder in the case of an accident than a big blanket or crate cushion. Do not leave food or water in the crate.

Believe it or not, he will actually get to love his crate and will want to sleep in it or run to it when he feels threatened! It is an ideal solution to confining either a puppy or an adult dog when you are not there to keep an eye on him. And when traveling in the car, it is safer to crate him if room allows. The crate comes in handy when staying at a relative's home or in a motel room (some of which require dogs to be crated at night). Last good reason to crate train: if your dog ever gets injured or requires surgery that calls for "bed rest" and no activity, you will have to crate him. This time of stress would be made much worse if the dog was panicked at being confined to a crate; in contrast, a crate-trained dog will be relieved to be able to feel safe and rest on a comfy cushion in his own crate.

In other words, I believe that you are making training and life with your dog much more difficult than necessary if doing so without a crate! If you're buying one, remember to buy one big enough to accommodate the dog when he becomes full grown. They come in molded plastic (like airline crates) or welded wire that fold and carry like a suitcase. If you use a wire crate for a puppy, you may want to drape a blanket over the top to give him a sense of enclosure like a den. Just make sure he doesn't pull part of it into his crate and eat it!

Registration Information

Hello all,
I have entered the pups' AKC information into their database ~ when you look at your AKC registration document you will see a yellow "PIN" number which allows you to register your puppy online through the AKC website. It's very easy and quick; I generally get my puppy's papers back within a week or so using this method.

Raining here this morning!

EARLY DISCIPLINE and TRAINING

Bad, unruly dogs are almost always the result of lack of training, or inconsistency, neglect, or abuse on the owners part. In as little as 5 to 10 minutes per day you can have a well-behaved, happy dog that the whole family, friends, and relatives will enjoy.

Do not allow your puppy to do anything now which you would not like him to do when he is full gown. Some think it is so cute when a little guy jumps up on your legs and rough-houses and chews you hands. But it is rarely appreciated when a 75-pound adult continues the same habits! Avoiding bad habits is much easier than breaking them, whether it be begging for food at the table, barking, jumping on people, or sleeping on the couch.

A sharp, loud "uh-uh" or "no" is sufficient reprimand for a puppy. Women with soft, sweet voices need to work at getting enough sternness in their voices so that the pup can distinguish between the happy voice and the unhappy voice. They learn fast and are eager to please you, and tone of voice often means more than the command words themselves. As soon as the offending behavior has stopped, praise him. Always remember to use a happy voice and praise warmly when your puppy does well.

Chewing things in the house is rarely a problem if you make an effort to avoid the problem. Remember, the puppy will be teething and needs to chew. So have plenty of acceptable things for him to chew, kong toys, treated natural sterilized bones, nylabones or gumabones. Avoid anything he could swallow, such as bells inside rubber toys, etc. Do not give the dog toys with only ONE hole in them such as the Pimple Ball made by Four Paws; suction can cause the dog's tongue to get stuck inside and swell to the stage requiring amputation! For a while, you may want to remove temptation by picking up expensive shoes, books, etc. from the floors. But if you watch the puppy and direct consistently, he will quickly learn that certain things are not for him.

Young puppies all "play-bite" at your hands, just like they did on their littermates. You can quickly teach them not to bite by not allowing them to get your hands in the mouth. When they do, scold with a warning sound or command such as "easy" or "careful". You also can pinch the puppy's lip a little to reinforce the idea.

Sometimes people have so much fun playing with a puppy or young dog that they forget how important it is to teach him to enjoy calm, quiet affection. A "live-wire" puppy can greatly benefit by holding, cuddling, and petting the puppy while praising him with a soothing, quiet voice. Limiting the amount of rough-housing with young children also helps calm down a young puppy.

Jumping up on you can be stopped by always bending near to the pup's level and petting him when he approaches. That way you are also ready to hold him back and push him to the ground if he does leap ... and scold him with a command such as "off".

And ALWAYS recognize with praise and petting when the puppy (or adult dog) comes when called to come. Many people actually unknowingly train their dog not to come. A perfect example is when the dog is roaming too far away, or is investigating something not appropriate, and the owner calls "come". The dog stops what he's doing and starts to come; the owner (now satisfied), turns away and ignores the dog. Eventually, the dog learns that "come" must not mean come all the way to me, and he learns to ignore you just as you ignored him.

You can begin teaching your puppy a few things right away, but remember his attention span is very short and he gets sleepy quickly. Start calling him by his name right away to get his attention. By as early as 8 to 10 weeks, you can begin short training sessions (5 minutes once or twice a day) for simple commands such as "sit", "down" (lie down), "stay", "come", etc., as well as getting him accustomed to a soft collar/leash. And get him used to staying still for having his ears cleaned, his feet handled and toenails clipped. There is nothing wrong with reinforcing his good behavior with little treats as well as praise during these sessions.

Patience and consistency are keys to successful training and a happy, well-behaved dog. If you feel you are losing your patience, or the puppy is not concentrating at all, stop (preferably on a good note) and try again later. Remember, reinforcing good behavior is more effective than punishing poor behavior. You'll be amazed how quickly he'll learn these simple commands! If you are having consistent problems with certain things, it most likely is due to confusion. Try another approach to communicate what you want or don't want.

I strongly recommend some type of obedience training once your puppy is old enough, which can be fun and rewarding for both you and your dog. You both will learn a lot and it's great socialization for the puppy.