Bringing the blog to a close

As you may have noticed, this blog ended quite abruptly with 7 week photos. The pups were taken to have their CERF exams done at 8 weeks and contracted parvo. We lost Mac, Fiona, and Ellie to this terrible disease.

The puppies are now nearly 8 months old and in loving homes. Cammie is with me, Captain went to my sister, and the other 3 have fabulous families who spoil them rotten. Though this litter had it's fair share of disasters, I've learned a ton about what truly makes a responsible breeder. Despite the tragedy, I'm so thrilled with my surviving babies and look forward to seeing them contribute to the lives of their families.

Here is a photo of Captain and Cammie enjoying a recent play date:


I will now be starting a blog to track Cammie's training progress. If interested, it can be found here: Learning Together

Without further ado...

...Week 7!

Alex



Andy



Captain



Spy



Mac



Ellie



Cammie



Fiona

Candid cuteness

I brought the crew over to my sister Sarah's house last night. They played HARD for about an hour, and when everyone started falling asleep around the yard, we decided it was time to head home for dinner.

Everyone rode well in the car (I had the litter in a 400 crate). Some whining, but no freak outs and no potty accidents. Everyone hopped out of the car and peed on the grass. GOOOOOOD PUPPIES!

The kiddo's met Silus, a large Shepherd/Lab mix who was wonderful with them. They tagged around behind him and he showed them where the water dish was, the awesome mud puddle in the corner of the yard, and how big dogs play fetch. They also met Boxer, a Smooth Fox Terrier, who played well with them, also.

I'm so thrilled with how these puppies take everything new in stride. Socializing them is hard work, but I can see it paying off in spades.

I'm a bad breeder-mom

I'm sorry for the complete lack of updates as of late... 6 week old puppies are even more work than I expected (and I expected A LOT). Between socialization, feeding, playing, loving, cuddling, tugging, chasing, and all other puppy rearing fun, I find myself consistently losing track of time. I've decided to just forgo 6.5 week photos and wait until they're 7 weeks to get back on track. So, expect photos of the kiddo's this weekend!

In the meantime, here's an adorable photo of Captain after playing with my Mac-man and my sister's Shepherd/Lab mix. They had a ton of fun playing in the mud...

How time flies

The babies will be 6 weeks on Saturday, and I just CAN'T believe how quickly they're growing. They're so much fun right now, I don't get anything done. They'll get their first vaccinations on Saturday, and then we'll start visiting "safe" places and continue our socialization. I plan on getting collars for everyone this weekend to start leash training as well. Here are the kids at 5.5 weeks:

"Andy" Zahara Northern Lights



"Alex" Zahara Emperor Alexander



"Spy" Zahara Northern Spy



"Captain" Zahara Captain Kidd



"Mac" Zahara McIntosh



"Ellie" Zahara Valstar Elstar



"Cammie" Zahara Apple Blossom Cameo



"Fiona" Zahara Beverly Hills

Personality Plus

Let me just say how absolutely thrilled I am with these little guys. I absolutely couldn't be happier with how their personalities are coming along. Nothing phases them, they explore new things with gusto, and there really isn't a wallflower in the whole group.

Despite the puppies turning 5 weeks old yesterday, I do have 4.5 week stacked photos of the kids to share. I'll give a little bit of a rundown on each:

Alex
Alex is the most laid-back of the group. He's happy, affectionate, and wants to be with his people. He's usually the last one out of the pen, but once loose he explores with the best of them. Not shy by any means, he's the "watcher" of the group.



Andy
Andy is an adventure puppy through and through. He barrels into new situations with vigor, is the first or second puppy in your lap, and is the most likely to be tackling one of his siblings. He's very sensible in his play style, quickly letting go if the littermate he's currently mauling squeaks. Andy also has quite the wigglebutt!



Captain
Captain is the most "intense" pup of the group. He's extremely smart, was the first puppy to play tug, and always has a toy in his mouth. He most frequently gets the "zoomies", running blindly until something breaks his stride. This boy loves being played with and will lick your face as long as you let him.



Spy
Spy-man is a mellow guy, but very confident and fun. He's usually the pup on his back while wrestling, though he's one of the larger puppies. He's content being cuddled, but does like chasing thrown toys and shuffling human feet. Spy is also very fond of pant legs. :)



Mac
Mac is still the biggest pup... quite the little tank. He's more middle of the road as far as temperament. While very affectionate and playful, he has a very definite "off switch." This puppy has the exact temperament I was hoping for with this cross: smart, drivey, but able to hang out and make a great companion.



Ellie
Ellie is definitely the "talker" of the litter. She's happy to tell you that walking by her without petting is off limits. She seems to be more interested in her littermates and people than toys, but has very nice food drive. Though not pushy, she loves to be the center of attention.



Cammie
...or as I like to call her, Pistol Jr. This pup has Attitude with a capital "A." She's the only pup that won't lay happily on her back while being held. However, she's very focused, confident, and loves to tug. She carries herself with assurance and if you can catch her when she's still, she is always standing four square with head held high.



Fiona
The most affectionate of the puppies, Fiona wants nothing more than to hang out in your lap. Being the smallest of the litter, she does get picked on quite a bit. She's started pouncing on her siblings while they sleep as its the only time she has the upper hand. Fiona is very smart and is the puppy most likely to follow you around the yard. She's also quite fond of playing in the water bowl.