What Dogs Teach Us.

If a dog were your teacher you'd learn stuff like:
When loved ones come home, always run to greet them.
Never pass up the opportunity to go for a joyride.
Allow the experience of fresh air and the wind in your face to be pure
ecstasy.
When it's in your best interest--practice obedience.
Let others know when they've invaded your territory.
Take naps and stretch before rising.
Run, romp, and play daily.
Thrive on attention and let people touch you.
Avoid biting when a simple growl will do.
On warm days, stop to lie on your back on the grass.
On hot days, drink lots of water and flop under a shady tree.
When you're happy, dance around and wag your entire body.
No matter how often you're scolded, don't buy into the guilt thing and
pout. Run right back and make friends.
Delight in the simple joy of a long walk.
Eat with gusto and enthusiasm. Stop when you have had enough.
Be loyal.
Never pretend to be something you're not.
If what you want lies buried, dig until you find it.
When someone is having a bad day, be silent, sit close by and nuzzle
them gently.

--I found this online a while back. I would also like to add that dogs sometimes make choices for us. I my last posting I wrote about Gretchen being my summer mom, well needless to say she and Fritz took advantage of my turned head a couple days ago when it snowed. I'm blaming the snow. Yep, it was so pretty coming down and I was watching it and taking pictures of the dogs running around so happily in the fluffy white lace, that I missed the opportunity to stop Fritz. The funny (or not so funny) part was that just a couple minutes before as I was walking down the stairs behind the dogs to let them out, I thought to myself that Gretchen was looking smaller and drier and hopefully would end her heat soon. Well I got my wish, her heat will end as a sign that she has become pregnant.

Time

Both Hiedi and Gretchen are now in heat. We are not breeding Gretchen this cycle, she is our summer mom. Hiedi will be breed in the next week or so. It's funny how it seems like it takes so long for puppies to arrive once a mom is bred, but they arrive pretty fast when you mix into the formula, work, family, dogs and home. Life can keep you pretty busy when you are shuffling everything around all the time. In fact when I stop and think about it, a week has pasted already since our poodle mom Mercedes was bred.

My Grandma passed away two weeks ago. Two weeks gone by already. Sometimes it seems like when something happens like this happens to us, time stands still. Maybe it's because the focus seems to be on memories of the past. Time is just time and it is measured out in the same way every second of everyday of every year. I didn't really know this Grandma of mine, she was my father's mother and my parents divorced when I was 6. So my memories of her are very faded and dependant on the memories of others. Its like looking out the window thru shear curtains, you can kind of see out but the colors are all blurred.

Count Down is On

Last weekend the Littles and I took our sweet Mercedes to meet Cassie. This was also my first face to face with Cassie's owner, Jan. I've been communicating with her for about 2 years now via emails. I knew I was at the right house when we pulled up in the driveway. There is poodle lawn art work everywhere. Jan has been breeding and showing standard poodles for more than 30 years. Cassie's pedigree can be traced back by Jan for that length of time also. I got to see Jan's set up for grooming also. It's quite impressive, especially for someone like me who is on knees on the floor in front of the tub to bath dogs and sits on the floor til my legs and other regions have gone numb to groom dogs.

Cassie was better than I expected. I didn't want to breed Sadie (mercedes) to a male that was really tall. They are about the same height and weight. Cassie is a nice dark chocolate (semi-sweet dark chocolate) with a grey undertone. Sadie is shiny light silver with milk chocolate undertone. I think they are going to be beautiful puppies. Silver Chocolate mixes. Puppies are due January 5th, 2011 and will be AKC registered.

Mercedes Last Heat

Our standard poodle mom went into heat last weekend. I'm very excited, since she is our only poodle mom it means that we don't often have a poodle litter in comparison to the labradoodle puppies. This time is also special because this will be the last litter of puppies from Mercedes before she retires. I found a charming chocolate stud to breed her to, his name is Cassie and he only produces chocolate and silver chocolate puppies. I'm hoping for an all chocolate litter. I have plans. I will be keeping her smallest chocolate male pup to breed with Emma and Tawnee, our medium sized labradoodle moms and make chocolate pups with Emma and with Tawnee red and chocolate pups. I'm also going to keep two chocolate females to breed with Fritz, so I will have two poodle litters a year instead of just one. I'm already thinking up names. What do you think of Baron? Like Baron Von Chocolate? The girls I'm thinking Alice and Charlotte. I know its about 10 week before we even see these beauties, but I like to plan ahead. I actually have a list of names in Alphabetical order of names I like. If you look to the side you will see that my dogs are in alphabetical order by name. Next year I will be adding A, B and C to the list. Alice and Charlotte are going to be Bear and Cubby's puppies. Oh sure they always have a puppy to play with, but these ones will be for keeps.

By the way the puppy in the picture is Sugar, a chocolate girl of Mercedes from last year. Isn't she gorgeous? Check out pictures on my photo blog of our Gretchen as she travels around American with my son in his truck. She is now more traveled than I.