Training > Puppy Raising (publicly viewable board)
Puppy-itis
Kirsten:
I have puppy-itis, and I have it bad.
Today picking up some cat food and Cole's favorite canned food at the farm store I walked past a display of stuffed squeaky toys and couldn't resist. So Junior, not yet born, not yet even conceived, now has a new purple teddy bear. He also has a puppy sized booda rope toy that was on sale at a ridiculous price. Okay, okay, he also has a new skid resistant heavy stainless steal bowl that matches my adult bowls but has low enough sides for a puppy to eat from comfortably. The old puppy bowl was eaten by previous generations. The puppy water bowl was taken over by Ollie, who claims dog water tastes best and can't tell the difference between water with actual dog spit in it and water from a bowl shaped like the dog water bowl. :rolleyes: So he'll get shifted back to the kitty water bowl, which is actually a corelle cereal bowl and Junior will get the puppy water bowl back. The puppy bowl has a flat bottom and is harder to tip over when you get rambunctious and dance in your bowls. Ollie doesn't have that problem.
The adolescent bowls, made of vulcanized rubber in case we feel like killing the bowl or banging it along the side of the crate, are waiting patiently in the dog cabinet. And the raised water buckets that resist being played in, are still in use because someone who-shall-not-be-named but whose name starts with "R" still thinks water is a great toy. Assorted balls of all sizes from 8 weeks to adult are in the toy box, including the famous Luna ball. But I think he still needs a wee puppy kong. I have a medium puppy kong (pink, as it was Ruby's), but I think he needs a smaller one while he's tiny, and it should be one that squeaks. And a puppy sized nylabone, since mine that lasted through three generations was finally consumed by a visiting guest.
The silly dog doesn't exist and I'm buying stuff for him. I'm hopeless.
Oh, why did he need a new stuffed toy when I already have a laundry basket full of toys? You're going to love this! His prospective mother has a thing with stuffies, that is quite adorable. She sucks on them. As if she was nursing. Her eyes roll back in her head and she kneads her front paws like a kitten. How adorable is that? She has passed this trait on to a couple of her pups and I think that's cute enough I want to give him every opportunity to develop the behavior himself if he happens to inherit the tendency. Anyway, this one is made of a sort of terrycloth and is very washable, whereas our existing plushies wouldn't hold up well to sucking. I think I might even go back and get the matching duck. I'm kinda suspecting Luna is going to wind up stealing the teddy bear because it is purple, which is her favorite color. And if for some reason he doesn't develop the trait or isn't a Raven pup, then he'll still have a stuffy of his own to carry around and kill.
And then there is the strawberry. It is a puppy toy, so it gets put away whenever the puppy outgrows it. But Cole adores it. He walks around the house with this tiny puppy toy, squeaking it. Technically it is a choking hazard because it is so small. But boy does he love it.
Roxie:
I fully undrstand! I can hardly wait until you finally select the special one.
Are the breeders going to pre-select for you? Or are you going there to hand select? The bitch hasn't taken yet, right?
Their dogs are gorgeous! In the ballpark of what Tay's breeder sells her pups for. She always has them all sold before they are born.
Kirsten:
This bitch won't be bred until spring. The sire has not yet been selected, but the breeder is planning a trip to visit her first choice and see if she and the owner of the male agree on the suitability of a match.
I will not have any say in the choice of pup other than yea or nay. I won't get to pick for myself. That is just as well for two reasons. First, the breeder is the one person on the planet who knows her pups best and can best predict how they will develop. She not only knows the genetic history of the pups and how they are raised, but has watched them throughout every day of their lives and observed their personalities and behaviors. I trust this breeder to know her dogs. We've already had an extensive conversation about what I'm looking for, and will go into even more depth as the time approaches.
The other reason it is better for the breeder to choose is that it is very difficult to choose a dog for yourself because it's hard to keep your emotions out of it. It's a choice that needs to be made with the brain, not the heart.
On the plus side, this breeder breeds for versatility, but she uses them for sport (schutzhund). This dam happens to be an excellent schutzhund dog (which isn't why I am interested in her--I like her rock solid level-headedness, exceptional problem solving ability, intuition, determination, work ethic, and the fact she adores children of all kinds). The fact that at six years of age she is still competing hard is a testament to her physical structure. The problem with a schutzhund dog? They tend to choose a sharper dog than what I want for service work. Even higher energy than my guys. Fortunately, this breeding, if it happens as planned, is intended to tone down the intensity in favor of the level-headed thinking side of the bitch's personality. And fortunately, this breeder does not breed just for schutzhund, but for over all versatility. Like me, she throws her dogs at any challenge, including lure coursing.
There is no guarantee there will be a match for me in the litter. If she can't match me, then she will not place a pup and I'll have to wait for another breeding. That's life in the breeding world. This breeder is insistent that she will not place a pup unless she is convinced it is a good match. So technically the pups are not sold before they are born, but there is a waiting list and you must commit a down payment to be considered for a pup. But it's not first come first served. It's first match on the list.
Ilghaus:
If all goes as on the drawing board right now, my next pup will be a nephew of Kirsten's Jr. But a pup from any of her females is top of the line. I know quite a few people that have gotten pups from this breeder and some that have more then one from her. I was thrilled when Kirsten told me she was thinking of checking into a pup from her. I've had my mind made up to go to this breeder for my next pup for the last 8 years.
Roxie:
I am so impressed with the breeder.
If I weren't so stuck on Terv's... I'd be a copy cat! (Um: copy dog I mean!) I love GSD's, too.
Tay's breeder has a Terv I'd really love to buy right now. A couple years younger than Tay - shorter and bulkier and much more coat.... is finished. Soooo tempting! But, I don't know if I can manage all the steps up & down taking 2 Tervs out for potties and a little walk. And I definately can't do another dog while I'm hooked up to this machine.
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