TOPAZ

Well today Topaz is finally showing that she is expecting. I am really excited for this litter and I am praying for an easy time for Topaz. I know she will be a good mother as she is a sweet dog and gentle. Sometimes she will grab my arm and she never puts any pressure on it. Kind of like a cat and its love bite. She went off her food for a full week and I suspected that she was pregnant but I was not positive. Now I have no doubts. I will start getting her whelping pen ready and all the supplies that I need. It has been a long time since we had  puppies here so this is a big event for us. 
It is cold and blustery today and the dogs really do not want to go out. I put them out for a few minutes just to potty and they are immediately scratching at the door to come in. Especially Keeper as he hates the cold. Keeper is the sire to this coming litter but I am sure that he could care less. The tips of the pine trees are all frosted with ice and they sparkle in the sun, it is a wonder that the ice does not fall off with the wind. 
Bling was so funny this morning, she loves to rub against the pen that I keep around the furnace, so that they don't get too close, she is rubbing her back along the pen and you could see it just felt so good and she is really into it. All of a sudden her legs went out from under her and the look of shock on her face was so precious. She righted herself and continued with the back rub. She is a funny girl and keeps me laughing. She will play with Bonnie who is her granddaughter, and plays just like a puppy. She is going to be 9 in June and she seems to be going backwards in age. I am so happy for her that she is having fun and is becoming a very happy dog. 
My seniors are all aging well. Keeper will be 9 on February 23, Max will be 13 on March 4 and Bling will be 9 in June. Brooke turned 9 last December and Rosie was 7 last October. I still hope for Rosie to have a litter. She is a lovely girl and has such a wonderful personality. We will try one more time before she is actually too old.
My three young dogs have great personalities and do keep me laughing but often get themselves into trouble. 
My seniors keep me laughing, they can be so funny and they rarely get into trouble. 
So I guess what I need to say is that the puppy you get, will some day be a senior, and he needs to be a senior with you. The puppy that comes to your home is for life. Dogs are not disposable items, they are special, with spirits and souls.They are another species and they do adapt so easily to our life styles and they give their all for us. We owe it to them to keep them through their senior years. Some breeders retire their dogs into wonderful homes where they can live out their senior years and this is a good thing. If they did not do this there would no longer be a nice selection of pups from your favorite breed. The adopt and don't shop thing has gone a little too far. When you purchase a well bred pup from a reputable breeder you know that you are getting a healthy pup, with health tested parents and you know what the puppy will turn out to be, not only in looks but in temperament too. You know that you will have many good years with your puppy and your breeder will be there for you to help out with any questions or issues for the life of your dog. Most definitely that is worth a lot.
Guess that is it for now. I need to get busy and do something a little more productive today, maybe like brushing shelties. 
Keep warm!

                                                            A PREVIEW

LITTLE LISA

Lisa is not one of my Shelties but visiting to be bred. She is the sweetest of all Shelties.
She had many things to learn while here. Most importantly coming up the stairs to the kitchen. She had never used stairs before, so I started carrying her up. I did not want to leave her downstairs when everyone else was up in the kitchen. They have all learned the words "go kitchen" and they fly up, as there are always treats waiting for them.
It was getting difficult to carry her up all the time. So I started to teach her the stairs. I would put her down at the first step and help her up that one step, praising all the while she was moving a  foot up. Finally she would go up the first five steps and she was so proud of herself. Her tail wagged and she barked as I made a big deal of her going up. Now for the second five, there is a landing between the two sets of steps. The second set seemed harder for her to do. I would encourage her to put a foot up and she tried. It took her a little longer to master this set. When at last she did all the steps at one time we had a party upstairs and she was so excited. Just about turned in side out and was so proud. I love seeing the dogs accomplish something that was a difficult task. They were all coming up after their supper last night and Lisa got to the second set, put up one foot and made the cutest little yodel I have ever heard. She wanted help so I went down and started one foot on the step and up she went.
Yesterday was brushing day and I completely brushed, trimmed long hair on feet and did their nails. Lisa loves brushing, even standing on the table. She would have stood there all morning as long as I kept brushing.  I wish that all the dogs enjoyed brushing the way she does. I did get five dogs done and only three more to go. This is an ongoing process, in two or three weeks you start all over again. Brushing keeps their coats so pretty and healthy looking. And I always feel good when I have accomplished so much.
Lisa will be going home soon and we will miss her. I think that she had a good time and maybe someday she will come back for a visit.
Oh and by the way the dogs loved the warm weather.
                                                                        

The grooming table makes grooming your dog easy and it sure saves your back.

I TOLD THE DOGS IT WILL WARM UP!

Minus 15 this  morning, so very cold. I did tell all the dogs that it will be warming up soon and they will be able to spend a little time outside, with some sunshine.  I think they understood as they scratched at the back door to come in after five minutes. I just can't envision all the dogs that are left outside in this weather and the wild life, how they cope. Hypothermia can set in so quickly and their feet can freeze. Anyway they now know that it is going to get warm and they are so excited. Especially Keeper, I believe he hates the cold more than any Sheltie I have ever know. 
I am turning over a new leaf and really trying to live in the  now, just like my dogs do. They really have it right, no yesterday and no worries about tomorrow. They are incredibly intuitive, and just know how to live. They face each day with new excitement and are so happy to have the day. That is what I hope to do.
Today will be a really happy day for the dogs as my granddaughter is coming to visit and her favorite thing to do is to play with the dogs and they love it and her so much.
She taught Walter to do the high five and I am hoping she will teach some of the other young ones to do the high five. Walter thinks it is just great! 
I need to set aside an hour every day to get in some training time. They love the one on one and to really learn they need the consistency of every day training. You would be amazed at how fast they learn, just fifteen minutes twice a day and you can teach them almost anything. I am setting aside an hour only because I have the three young ones to train, and they need the basics. I used to take Bonnie out to the agility area to train and she did awesome but with the cold settling in I have been lax with her training so now to get back to it. Topaz learned to sit with hand signal in five minutes one afternoon. I will put more training aside for her until she has her babies,  she will be busy for several weeks.
Need to get moving this morning, a few things to get done before my granddaughter arrives. Keep warm and don't leave your pups outside for more than a few minutes to do their business. They get cold just like we do!

                                                                          

                                                                 Brrrrrrrrr!

                                                                      

MY SENIORS HATE THE COLD

The last couple of days it has been so bitter cold that I have to actually help my senior dogs go out. They hate the cold, stepping in freezing snow and just generally don't want to go out. I feel so bad for them but they have to go out. I am really hoping for a nice February thaw. They will more readily go out and can spend a little time in the sunshine. 
After I have everyone out, Keeper will stand there and give me such a look that says, " you really aren't serious are you?"You can just see it in his eyes and he will just stand there and hope that I forget about going out.
I will be sitting at the computer and feel this nose resting on my knee and it is Keeper, he goes where ever I am. Such a love. 
I am teaching Bonnie the stairs, she is getting too big to carry. I stand her on the first step and get a hold of her ruff and help her up to the next step. If I am holding her she will do the first five steps and when we get to the landing I let go and she goes up the next five no problem. She just does not want to start the steps on her own. She is seven months and really should be doing the stairs without help. She must be a little afraid and it will come in time.
Little Lisa who is visiting is as sweet as can be. I sit on the floor to brush the young ones and Lisa comes right over, she would stand there for hours while brushing, she just loves it. She will be going home next week, I will miss her but it will be nice to have just my own dogs here. It is too easy to get attached to a visitor.
Topaz appears to be pregnant and I am very excited. It has now been 19 months since we have had puppies here. I really miss raising the pups. They are so awesome when their eyes and ears open, they start to discover the world around them. I can spend hours watching.
Another 10 degrees and it may be warm enough to get out today.
They say there is a thaw coming soon and the dogs and I are so ready.
 
                                                                        

                                                              First Meal

MY GOOD PUPS

Wow! did not realize how many days I have missed writing here. We had some very nice people visit yesterday to meet the Shelties. And I must say the pups were all so good. I was really proud of how they behaved. Even Walter let his personality shine, he can be such a funny boy and he just loves doing his high five. I think he feels proud of himself for learning this. My granddaughter taught him this little trick. From the way he behaved yesterday I think that he could be a therapy dog. He is very gentle when he meets people and that is so important for therapy. Rosie took turns laying at the visitors feet. She is such a good girl, loves everyone. She is a good ambassador for the Sheltie breed.
Topaz is still off her food and last night did not eat her bedtime biscuit. These are such good signs that she is pregnant. I should know for sure in a couple more weeks. It has been almost 19 months since we have had pups here. It is always such a special event. Keeper the sire is a wonderful producer and has produced better than he is. That is our goal to improve on the breed He has some very lovely kids out there.
Secondly we want to produce healthy pups both in body and mind. With Keeper and Topaz we should have awesome temperaments. Keeper probably has the perfect Sheltie temperament, he is calm and stable but friendly, a little wary of new people but warms up quickly, a very easy dog to live with.
I have had all of Walters health testing completed which is all normal and when he turns two he will have his hips checked. Important to do this testing!
Bonnie who is usually my little wild one was so good too. She greeted our visitors and then decided on a nap. 
Today is my least favorite day as it is dump day. Living in the country so much you have to take care of yourself. Every day seems to be a little easier. Later, off to a friends to help her groom her Shelties. 
I know that my granddaughter will be happy that I wrote. She usually reminds me that I have let too many days go by. She loves the dogs and wants to hear all about them. 
Bling is 8 years old and decided to take up reading last night. I have a book called the Dog Church and it is actually a place in Vermont. I guess the cover looked really good so she took it off and read the first page. I was so surprised, you usually don't see an 8 year old decide to read. 
Dog Church is a fun place to take your dogs, very pretty grounds for the dogs and also a small chapel for pictures of your deceased pets. 
Maybe Bling was trying to tell me something.
All for now.   

Topaz

 

GOOD GROOMING DAY

Well it snowed over night and it is still snowing. I always have a hard time with motivation on these gray days whether snowing or raining. I will wait for the snow to stop before I go out to clean up. 
In the meantime I will work with Bonnie, she definitely is ready for more training even having to train inside. Once we do a little training I will do some grooming. It is strange that my dogs are shedding this time of year. Not just a small amount of coat but a complete shed, losing all the undercoat. They usually shed like this in August. Maybe it is just this crazy winter we have been having with cold and warm. It seems to be the older dogs who have the most coat. The younger ones don't have the undercoat that the others have so that is a huge help. 
They all look so nice when brushed out. Will try to do some nails and teeth too. Which most of them hate, only because I did not start young enough, with the teeth. It is really important to try to brush your dogs teeth, dental disease can bring on so many other health issues. If you do a little each day they will eventually be good with teeth brushing. So important!
Starting with a young pup you can make a game of it, something to have fun with, and they will always look forward to the brushing. Be sure to use tooth paste that is made for dogs, our tooth pastes are not safe for them. Plus dog tooth paste is made to taste good which is a help. If you can be conscientious with this, regular brushing, you will not have to have cleanings under anesthesia, nor spend the money that it cost. It can be expensive!
So much to think of in caring for you new pup. If you start now your pup will grow up to enjoy the attention and grooming will be so much more pleasant for both of you.

Bonnie

HAPPY NEW YEAR

Happy New Year to Everyone! Hope you have made some good goals with your dogs, whether it be obedience training, or just learning a few new manners. My young dogs can easily get out of control and act like they have not had any training. So it is now time to concentrate on them. 
I would like to have Bonnie herding tested in the spring and I can't do that with her if she is out of control and does not have a good recall. Basic obedience for her is a must. I can't just sit by and let her grow up.  She is 6 months now and really ready to learn. Maybe even a Beginner Novice in her future. Young Shelties love learning and they love to please you. 
For Keeper I would like to do some basic obedience training and then maybe shoot for a Rally title.  Lots of work for sure and he is almost 9 years old. Old dogs can learn new tricks. He is very engaging and I think will enjoy the training.  I remember reading the Sunny Bank Collie books by Terhune and how each Collie found his favorite place in the house and as I look around here I see the same thing. Keeper who has only been here a month has found his spot beside the couch in a corner. He loves it there and if I ever can't find him that is where he is. Bling who is also an older girl has picked the landing of the stairs that go to the dog room. I think she chose this place because the heat from the furnace comes up the stairs. And Max who will be 13 in a couple of months is always under the computer desk, his den and he gets upset when someone takes his space and Brooke usually tries to take it. Both Rosie and Brooke like the floor in front of the couch in the living room. Rosie is more under the coffee table than Brooke. 
Walter, Topaz and Bonnie are too young to have the run of the house yet so they have not found favorite places. Topaz's favorite thing to do is to grab the remote and often something clicks on the TV. She will run with the remote, maybe because it has a soft rubber cover on it. Once in her mouth it is a real challenge to get it from her. 
So it is time to get busy with training the young ones a few basic manners. If I don't we won't have a peaceful house and that won't work. I joined Susan Garrett's Recallers and with that I will have hopefully the motivation to get into training. Her training is game based and fun for the dogs and for me. 
Now is the time to get started, they are not getting any younger and this is a goal that I should be able to keep.

                                                                    

                 This is Amber who belongs to friend Kathleen, doing a pretty sit.