Instant Karma MX MXJ NF CGC

(Photo by Rosemary Strasser)

With the puppies here, I think I've failed to talk about my brilliant baby border collie.  Karma turned 3 on March 15 and finished her MX title on May 9, 2010 with this run http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=evQ3vyclWnM .  This was a course that I didn't think we'd successfully run. I was particularly worried about the line from the table to the right side of the tunnel, knowing I'd have to leave her on the table for a decent lead out.  She read it much better than I thought.  She followed that up by finishing her MXJ the following weekend with the fastest jumpers run of the day with this run http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r8D6xBPBLs0.  I was pleased with the run except for being a bit too far behind at the end causing her to almost miss a jump. We did recover in time to fix it though.We repeated that the following day with another great jumpers run, again, the fastest of the day http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A4TuMzgkLGA. 

It''s particularly sweet to run Karma as she was a rescue.  Not knowing exactly what I'd adopted, I feel very blessed to have such an amazing dog.  Never did I imagine that I'd be seriously thinking about attending and competing at the AKC National Championship and now, that seems like a reasonable goal. 

Not only is Karma a delight to run, she's wonderful to live with.  She never tries to herd the little dogs and what I can't do with them (canicross, bikjoring and skijoring) I get to do with her. 

The Fun Part!

The girls just turned 9 weeks old on Saturday and have officially (IMO) hit the most fun stage.  They have been doing fabulous on house training and are now completely weaned onto a diet consisting 100% of raw meat (and yes, even a raw meaty bone in the form of chicken wings).  They got their first vaccinations on Saturday and traveled in the car beautifully.  They have changed a lot over the course of the past several weeks and all just shy of 2.5 pounds...they are still small enough to fit through the fence and are superb at finding the holes.  Shelby is still her father's daughter but has turned out to be the prettiest conformationally. 

http://www.youtube.com/user/cdikeman#p/a/u/0/SH7nSKwE_H4  Not only will she be great in the showring but she is a little lover as well.  Shadow is still our naughty puppy only from the standpoint of the fact that she's the first to tackle everyone else.  She loves to explore new things and I hate to admit that while I was playing with the others and turned in horror to see her racing over the dogwalk.  Yes, indeed folks, this one will make an agility pup and she already has a great recall that can be seen on this video http://www.youtube.com/user/cdikeman#p/a/u/1/JR-U7N8WNfQ  Then there is my puppy...Leia.  She is a very elegant little dog and pretty darn fiesty to boot.  While Shadow may start the fights...Leia won't let them end until she's won.  http://www.youtube.com/user/cdikeman#p/a/u/2/9_N3CSI2URs(pictured from top to bottom: Shelby, Shadow, Leia)

The Busy Dustcloud

Hard to believe the last two weeks have just flown by.  We have been a very busy dustcloud indeed! The girls are now 6 weeks old, eating great, miraculously are either pottying on their indoor potty or outside (hard to believe), and have the most adorable personalities.  Shelby is her father. The way she plays, looks at us, and even wanders off on her own, is so characteristic of Keegan.  Shadow is our naughty puppy. She loves Danny, already picks on the other dogs, and loves to get into stuff.  Leia is a very playful, yet laid back, and super sweet puppy...yet loves to tug on pant legs.  They don't seem bothered by anything. They got to meet their first new people this weekend and thought they were fun new obstacles to jump on.

Huck (we still have the darling foster boy) has turned out to be the sweetest big brother to the girls. He absolutely adores them and his patience with them is truly amazing.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bb0ztzB7hXQ

Keegan has picked up 3 more Double Q's, now putting us at 12 toward MACH2.  Pretty spectacular since he's only not double Q'd 3 times out of 15 days of trialing.  He's become such a fun, fast, consistent boy.  Last weekend he had his fastest Standard Run to date which makes me even happier that we are beating our best times.

Karma finished her MX yesterday with a really great Standard Run.  We have some consistency to work on, but for a 3 year old border collie, I'm pretty jazzed! She only lacks one leg to finish her MXJ...maybe that will happen this coming weekend in Omaha.

Little 4-Lb Trinkit was put on the team this weekend and entered in Open Jumpers with Weaves.  I wasn't expecting her to qualify as she's not seen 24-inch weave poles in training to date, nor does she really like running longer courses (after all, why on Earth should a tiny Princess have to work so hard?). She surprised me with 2 perfect scores both days.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dCi62B-iEyk

More from the Dustcloud soon! Cheers and Happy Mother's Day to my wonderful Mom, Debby and grandmother, Beau!!!!

First Food at Four Weeks!

The girls are 4 weeks old now and have developed into these amazing little blundles of energy. You can watch them on this video:

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ab2KGP-OFFQ

On Friday evening I gave VIP her last evening meal and Leia came bounding over and landed right in the middle of it. She immediately started to eat...so...they have now been getting their first meals from a bowl. I am starting them off on a rotation of high quality canned food, Esbilac, and my raw meat diet in a 1:1:1 ratio by weight. My raw diet may be beef, chicken, venison, or rabbit-based, and has been supplemented with vitamins and minerals (it is not just meat alone).

They have had fabulous solid stools with the inclusion of this mixture to their daily nursing from VIP. I continue to hear misconceptions about the feeding of raw diets to puppies. Like older dogs, the major risks and concerns associated with any raw diet feeding are related to the risks of bacterial contamination to the human handlers, not the canine consumers.  Additionally, some people that make their own raw diets fail to ensure the diets are properly formulated to meet nutrient requirements.  With over 44 nutrients to be concerned with, unless people have done their homework and spend the time and money necessary to properly make a raw diet, I do suggest purchasing a pre-made commercial raw diet instead. 

They are all responding well to Danny and I, and we have been introducing new things for them to explore, touch, and interact with daily.  I have been trimming their tiny nails and turning on the dremmel tool to let them get used to the noise. 

Additionally, I have been loading the sound of the clicker while they are eating and call them over to eat, rather than carry the food bowl to them.  Danny and I let them chase us down the hallway while we call their names.  I will begin to invite friends and neighbors over in the coming weeks to interact with the girls and add to the variety of people they see on a daily basis. 

 

3 Weeks!

I have no idea where the last three weeks went! The girls are growing so fast and changing daily. Just in the last week, they started playing, tackling Mom (or at least giving it a girl-power effort), and started experiencing new things.  I had to remove the box this week, as Leia got out twice (thinking there's an agility pup there!).  With the box gone, they were able to move to the linoleum on their own.  It certainly took them each some time to figure out how to keep their feet underneath, but as of today, they all 3 move back and forth from the blankets to the linoleum at will.  They also have started responding to my voice and looking toward me when I come in the room.  Yesterday they had their fist exposure to the grass and being out in the sunshine.  Shelby has started to exhibit her father's temperment (A LOT!).  She gets a touch frustrated when she can't get where she wants at that very second...honestly, the world should know it revolves around her!  Shadow continues to be the calmest, although she has become very playful. 

Feeding Mom

I think sometimes we manage to complicate feeding regimes.  VIP of course is only having to feed 3 puppies but it has been rather simple.  During her final 2 weeks of gestation she was fed about 1.5 x her normal amount split into 3 meals instead of 2.  Following the first 24 hours after birth, she got 2 x her normal amount split into 4 meals during the day and we've been maintaining that amount.  She's maintaining her weight well and has more than enough milk based on the growth rates of these kids.  We have supplemented her food with additional calcium but I will give her a couple tablespoons of Esbilac a couple times per week (more as a treat than anything else).  She is being fed raw and still gets her fish oil daily along with vitamin E.

One Week and Growing

The little girls are just over a week old and growing like little weeds.  The day they were born, I found out that 2 friends lost their beloved dogs that very day...their names were Shadow and Shelby.  We have been calling the oldest girl "Shadow" and the youngest "Shelby".  The middle child is "Leia".  I have enjoyed them daily and watching them develop.  Each puppy has been challenged with Carmen Battaglia's Early Neurolgical Stimulation exercises and those will continue through day 16. 

Girl Power!

This morning when I came upstairs, it was obvious VIP was in labor.  At 8:10 AM the first little girl, weighing 139 grams,  was born (left puppy in photo).  At 10:03 AM the 2nd little girl arrived, and was nursing by 10:07 AM.  Very shortly after, at 10:25 AM came the 3rd little girl (118 grams).  Mom and girls are all doing great.  We are wishing all our friends in Tulsa at the Agility Nationals the best of luck!

Looks like Four!

This evening VIP had her x-ray that showed what we all counted as 4 little tiny spines.  She is on day 57, so we are expecting the puppies this weekend. It seems like I've been waiting forever yet hard to believe the time is so close.  VIP has been very playful this week, playing with toys, wanting to go for walks...and of course bouncing.  We tell her not to shake the babies but she loves to jump.  I have been feeling the pups for the last week or so, and the one (now we know two) on the right are very active.  They kick around every time I touch her side, but the one on the left is much more quiet.  It will be so fun to see them develop and see how their personalities vary.  I'm very proud and excited for this litter and very anxious for their safe and healthy arrival.

She's growing!

We have made it past day 40 and I am now very certain we will indeed be seeing puppies in another 3 weeks!  Her belly is definitely growing and she is beginning to look a bit sausage like.  How very exciting. 

VIP has definitely decided she needs more food.  Her appetite has been ravenous over the last week.  Her diet is the same, we don't add anything unusual, just her raw meat, fish oil and some Prozyme but have increased the previous amount by 10%.  She does enjoy her Activia and gets a spoonful daily at noon.  We will keep her at this amount through the remainder of her pregnancy and she should be in a GREAT energy balance going into lactation.