Zen’s best buddy is staying with us for a long weekend. He’s a Shepard/Pyrenees/Viszla mix. He’s a little older than Zen by 6 months and they LOVE to play. They have been at it all day.

They got bones yesterday…

In the sun..

I never got a good picture of it, but starting the third day.. Zen kept trying to mount Blake. It was starting to really weird him out, so Zen had to go into time out a couple of times.

But then there was more running play.

Also on the third day, Blake started obsessing about the chickens.

He was hanging out under the coop for extended periods of time and just watching them.

The pups have finally exhausted themselves. It’s been a good experience and the only mishap is that both got into some cheese today. Tomorrow Blake goes home and will probably sleep for a week.

Big Dog near Big Trees.

In a little over a week, Zen will be one. I can’t believe it’s already been a year. We’ve come so far..

She’s had the runs for the past day.. Here’s probably why.

It’s been a busy four day weekend for sure! Not only did we have friends visiting but it was the 4th of July which in our town means PARADE DAY!

Every year Boulder Creek has a big 4th of July parade that the entire town comes out for. There are blaring fire trucks, logging trucks, motorcycles driving on top of cars, crazy cars, floats, prancing horses, costumed dancers and tons and tons of people.

We brought a blanket and had the Pixie out before the festivities so she could meet people.. but when the actual parade started, we kenneled her.

She’s getting too big for this kennel so our vet visit today will probably be the last time she uses it. But she did really well with all the sirens and noise. She even fell asleep for the 2nd half of the parade!

Today was her second vet visit. She got her second round of shots and the once over by her vet. I absolutely adore this man… he is so nice and good with her and really likes the breed. He also was right in line with us in terms of timing of shots and put up with my crazy ideas and questions.

Other than that, we’ve been spending lots of time working with her. She’s a really responsive puppy. She already understands how to go into a sit and stay. She’s getting better at “come” and she’s getting better with “lay down.” Our friend who used to train GSDs saw her this weekend and was pretty impressed how well she’s doing for a 11 week old. I’m most proud of my daughter, though. She’s getting over her fear and she’s really liking working with Zen. She’s been watching me and trying hard to emulate. Here’s a picture of her getting Zen to “stay” and then “come.”

Until I get a little Zen in my life.

In the meantime, I’ve been busy. Besides two jobs, kids and other bits of busiesss… I’ve been cleaning up loose ends to get ready for being a dog owner.  We have a new vet.  Dr. Atton of Felton Veterinary hospital. Brian interviewed him on Monday and he seems perfect. Zen will go for her first check up with him the Thursday after she arrives.

We got pet insurance. I did quite a bit of research of companies but decided to go on the recommendation of our breeder. We went with PetFirst Healthcare. There is some interesting debate about whether or not pet insurance is driving the costs of pet health care up … in the same the way human insurance companies are.  Many breeders are against it for this reason, and recommend instead.. that you put away the same amount of money you would use for premiums into a savings account. But I read some horror stories of puppy owners who were waiting for their pending insurance to go into affect and then discovered some big congenital health problem. I don’t expect that with Zen, but it did scare me enough to want to have some protection.

And we signed up for Puppy Classes. Our first session will start July 9th when she is 10.5 weeks old. We decided to go to Sirius in Los Gatos. It was more expensive than our friend’s school Living with Dogs in Santa Cruz.. but we chose it because they allow kids as young as three to attend, where the santa cruz school required that kids be as old as six. We’re excited about it and signed up for their complete puppy program. Six weeks starting at 10.5 weeks, with a two month break in between… and then we’ll start up again for another 6 weeks in October. Sirius mainly subscribes to the Ian Dunbar guide of off leash/lure reward system. (It is his school after all..) They give homework, charts to make sure you keep track with socialization, and a manual for easy reference.

Here’s a little Ian for ya.

Sit Zen, Sit. Good girl.

I have been pretty quiet in the last few weeks about our potential puppy, but I can confirm we have put a deposit down on one. The litter is about 6 weeks old now. It is a litter of 8 and according to our breeder, our puppy will be one out of 3 girls. She’s been awesome at answering questions, and she’s been sending weekly photos of the litter.

I dont feel comfortable posting pictures of the litter yet, and probably wont until our puppy is confirmed and it is cleared thru our breeder. We are waiting to hear back about her protocol for pickup when flying in on an airplane. I’ve been researching airlines and what carriers can work under the seat, and what is required to bring a dog on a plane. So much effort for a little puppy! But we know it will be worth it.

We have an appointment to interview a vet we want to use. His name is Dr. Robert Atton of Felton Veterinary Hospital. He’s been a local vet for many years and I know first hand he has a few Swissy clients. Brian has an appointment on Monday to just sit and ask him questions, just to make sure he will be a willing partner and we jive with his practices.

It’s funny… Brian made a funny comment about it when he wrote to tell me he made the appointment. Here’s what he wrote:

“I called. The lady I talked to was surprised by such an appointment before we even have the pup. But, she’s going to talk to the doc and get back to us with a time.

We follow all this good advice, and yet it seems everywhere we go people don’t do what we’re doing at all…

Le sigh.“

It’s true. Every thing we have done, has seemed to be judged in excess by other people. Honestly, through this whole process we have been trying to do the right thing. We have tried to research, we have tried to be discriminate, we have tried to do right by this future family member. The first breeder I ever talked to, Maria Jenson.. she said something to me in that first email that I will never forget.

She said: “You get the kind of dog you deserve.”

What kind of dog, do WE deserve do you suppose?

1) Not a perfect one. – We are not perfect, so we don’t deserve a perfect dog.
2) A loving dog maybe? – Yes. We have done all of this searching in Love.
3)A dog with a sense of humor? – MOST DEFINITELY.
4) A healthy dog? –I would hope so.
5) A persistent.. maybe slightly obsessive dog? Uh oh..No.. um. Yes? Maybe? *she says meekly*

Other than that.. I cannot say. Except… we are so excited to finally meet this pup, whoever she may be.

My first copy of the SENNtinel.

Image from Matterhorn GSMD website.

No matter where I get this puppy from, he or she will require training and socialization. Laziness and apathy in terms of the dog’s education will create a dog that can’t be trusted in public, and regardless of our lack of experience in dog training.. we cannot let this happen. Swissies are a working dog personality and have a tendency towards climbing hierarchy within their family. They can be stubborn and willful in their adolescence. All dogs have this innately in their nature, some more than others.. but the reason it’s especially troubling in a Swissy is because this dog will likely be 115-135 pounds at full grown. These are incredibly strong dogs that can easily overpower someone if one decides to go after another dog or run across the street after a cat. This is one of the reasons the GSMDCA doesn’t recommend this dog for a newbie. #1 reason these dogs get surrendered to a rescue is because the owner couldn’t deal with the dog and behavioral issues cropped up.

So I am determined to not be a statistic, and trying to figure out ahead of time how we are going to train this dog.

First off: There is Socialization. Week 9-11 of a puppy’s first year is considered to be the Fear Inprint/Impact period. During this time it is incredibly important for a pup to be exposed to children, men, other dogs and all sorts of experiences. They need to be positive experiences because any negative impact that happen during this time will imprint on the pup and could cause issues later down the road. I found THIS ARTICLE that adequately maps out the socialization process of puppies and what one should do in the first 30 days after you bring the puppy home.

Once the pup gets its second round of shots, it should be ready to go to some sort of Puppy Kindergarden. There are all kinds; everything from group classes at big box stores like Petco and Pet Smart and ones at professional dog schools. There’s lots of methods to consider: everything from off leash, to leashed training. Clicker training to food reward system. I am still researching this, but so far all I do know is that I want to work in a Positive Reinforcement system. I’m not too interested in the kind of school that just lets the puppies run around and play the whole time. I’m look for something with a little more structure.

I am told that the best way to go about this is to actually go and check some of these schools out and sit in on them. This is going to be my goal before the puppy gets here. I have found three that seem to have a robust enough program that I could continue my dog’s training into Obedience as he or she grows. Two are in Santa Cruz and One is in Los Gatos. All have weekend classes THANK GOD!!!

Santa Cruz:
Living With Dogs
Bingo Dog Training

Los Gatos:
Sirius Dog Training

I also found one that may not be good at first but sounds kind of fun to do when the dog is older. Its a school taught by a guy who trains K-9 cops. He has a lot of experience with dominant personality breeds and his program also included obedience and therapy dog training. It’s in Corralitas, CA.

The K-9 Clinic

just in case

In lew of the earthquake that hit Japan, it got me thinking about preparedness at home. One Father’s Day the kids got Brian a four person emergency kit. You can buy them on line at all different levels: 3 days, 6 days, 3 people, 100 people.. Inside it has a store of food, emergency blanket, medications and all sorts of things one might need in an emergency. They say you should store kits like this in a place that is away from the house that is easy to get to.

What about for your pets? Well, they sell kits for your pets as well. I remember thinking it was kind of silly when I first saw the offers. But now that we are planning to add a dog to the family, I think its a great idea. If you have never thought about creating an emergency pack and plan for your house, this site is fantastic for walking thru every disaster imaginable. And they even talk about how to prepare your pets.

You can’t prepare for everything.. but having some kind of plan might just save a life.

(Doesn’t he looks like he’s ready for the Alien Invasion?)

***later edit****

I’m friends with my local SPCA on my Facebook and they put out this GREAT PAGE for disaster preparation for your pet; whether it’s four-legged or two.