So I have been a little slow on updating the blog with photos - mainly because I take a lot of videos and it takes years and years to download them -- wee. So this blog will have oodles of photos and videos.
Man, do I love the puppies. I love in the mornings when I rush them out to their pen, and when I come out again to set them free in the yard. Over time they've decided the own every square inch of it, but usually end up in Plant, where Fury and Rex also like to spend time - they even have their own stupid den in there. Plant smells like something so it must smell awesome and be like home to all the dogs, I don't know.
Puppies playing in the yard: Yesterday we let them out and they really wanted in my planter so I put them in there. Yishai has dubbed it the Rally Planter because they tear around in there and just "aerate" the crap out of the dirt in there - my icky broccoli didn't make it, but I don't like broccoli all that much anyway.
The Rally Planter - lite (they were tired, second play session):
They are moving around like dogs now - they leap and bark and work out problems. Their personalities are even more clear to me than they were just days ago. I am feeling pretty proud of myself because they all seem to be well mannered little guys. They sleep through the night, ask to be fed around 7, then go back to bed until say 9. They sit politely to be fed, they all come when called: "Puppy puppy puppy! YAY!"
This is what that looks like:
Most respond pretty instantly to their names. "Uh-uh" gets them to stop unwanted behavior or they get bopped on the nose. It's pretty cool.
Curry in the dirty.
Rippa.
Reid.
Firma.
Curry
Fie looks regal.
The only problem is that when they find carpet, they want to pee on it - so now I know that using carpet when they were younger and not into being housetrained was a BAAAAAD idea. Woe betide you future homes with carpet. But otherwise, they're close to house trained. Should be an easy ride once they are one-on-one. I can't imagine how much work it must be to have two puppies to manage at once.
Moto tries out a wading pool.
My roommate and I are getting pretty excited for when the house is puppy-free. The official Spring Cleaning will then commence! This especially exciting because this weeke I have discovered a major mold invasion of our house which is less-than-amazing, I would say. We will have to move all the furniture, scrub the walls, good times, let me tell you. Thinking about it gives me a headache. Or is that the mold? I've been steadily trying to remove it all, but there's big furniture where it is probably hiding. So fun. A few weeks ago I was dealing with a gas leak and it was so cold I was running the stove to make sure the puppies were comfortable. Winter in SLO . . . we're not so prepared.
Yishai officially took ownership of Rippa last night. I figured him taking her at 7 weeks is fine so long as she gets plenty of litter time. Her first big foray was movie night at Josh's house. She cried in the car both ways and we didn't feel so bad for her because of all the puppies - separation anxiety is not something she is allowed to complain about. I think tonight he'll probably take her home with him for a sweet night of unending whining and yipping. That is one thing I do not miss about puppies. He suggested we take them on short rides around town to get them used to it because he wasn't looking forward to hours of puppy screaming on the way down to the airport.
The first official one of these will be tomorrow, when I take the for their eye exams. I'm thinking of just rebuilding Fury's big crate and stuffing them all in there - comfort in numbers. I keep thinking it's cute how the vet office calls and restates they need my permanent ID or registration numbers - "They's *puppies*" I say, "None of that there stuff." Anywho, I'm not too nervous. I've been staring intently at puppy eyes and have been at this long enough to know if something is up, and it's not. But good to do anyway. When I got Fury, I guess she was so wiggly that the exam was useless - another proof that Miss Curry takes after her mama.
Also, my predictions on eyes and ears are failing miserably. I think all the merle females will have predominantly brown eyes with the exception of Curry, who has one of each. Moto's got marbled eyes. Everyone except for Reid has wonky ears right now - but they're not really rose - I think Fury's high earset is dominant. I keep obsessively rolling their ears to fix them, but I'll get over it - just like I did with Fury. It keeps making me go back to the battle I had on the ASCA breed standard committee - that rose is perfectly natural and acceptable. I think very few Aussies naturally have that triangle shaped ear, and I don't think encouraging obnoxious ear manipulation/gluing/taping is right for the breed (ahh, but my conformation background still makes me obsess).
Rex and Fie play on the couch:
Do not watch this video if you have a crummy sense of humor.Puppy play/pile:
I wish you could hear Reid - he hums to himself while he eats!
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