Category: Uncategorized

Posted on

Look, Ellie’s Puppies Are Adorable At Seven Weeks Old

Puppies at 7 weeks
LOOKING BACK

Ellies puppies are now seven week old today. They continue to grow bigger and more adorable each day. The puppies are full of energy and curious about everything. They love outdoor play time where they get lots of exercise running and playing with all the puppies. The puppies visited the vet earlier this week for their Check-ups, Immunizations and micro chips and they were all given a clean bill of health. This week puppies were introduced to the crate. Puppies have now made the transition to eating dry kibble puppy food.

LOOKING AHEAD TO WEEK EIGHT
  • Puppies will continue exploring and playing together inside and outdoor as weather permits
  • Puppies will continue learning from their their mama Ellie and daddy Brinkley along with Ruska and Willow
  • We will continue to encourage puppies to use potty area
  • Puppies will continue to get lots of cuddle time
  • Puppies will start to leave for their forever families at the end of the week
paw prints

This week Ruska’s puppies have been leaving to forever homes. Today, five more of her puppies joined their families. The time I get to spend with and care for our puppies is always too short but, I know that I can not give each the attention that the need. I’m always sad to say good-bye but, I love seeing the excitement as the families come to bring their puppy home. I am so thankful for each of the wonderful families that will love and continue to teach their new puppy!

VIDEO – Saturday morning after breakfast, the puppies enjoyed playtime. A couple of the puppies were fighting but Daddy Brinkley stepped in.
VIDEO – A couple of Ruska’s puppies were ready and waiting for their forever families. They went to say good-bye to the remaining Puppies.

Posted on

Eight Weeks Old Today And Are Getting More Adorable

LOOKING BACK

Eight weeks have passed since our little puppies came into the world and filled our days. It seems like so long ago that we were impatient, waiting for the puppies to arrive. Remember how tiny they were…..I could hold them on the palm of my hand. They have learned so much over these past eight weeks. I have enjoyed raising them to the point where they are ready to join their forever families. This past week we have worked on what is acceptable behaviour – mainly the difference between nipping and kisses. Puppies are not alway consistent but, have made great progress in this area. I just love puppy kisses!!!

Ruska went into the puppy enclosure last night and nursed her puppies. She had stopped nursing in the evening long ago. It is like she knew that this was her puppies last night together. After a short feed, she did some submissive training and cleaned some of the puppies. What a good mama!
After nursing, the puppies listened to their mama and settled right down. Ruska cleaned some of her puppies before she wanted out of their enclosure. Good job Ruska; you have raised such well behaved puppies!!!
LOOKING AHEAD

Ruska’s eleven Puppies are getting ready to leave for their forever homes during the next week. Lots of work lies ahead for your family as you continue teaching your puppy! They are still learning, but the time and hard work you put in will pay off when you have a loving well behaved dog that will love you as only a dog can – unconditionally. You will be the most important person in the world to them. 

Three puppies left today for their forever homes. It is bittersweet having to say goodbye to our puppies. I have enjoyed every minute of their care and they all have a piece of my heart. It is with sadness and through tears I say goodbye to each puppy but it brings me joy to see their excited families smiles and to know that our puppies are joining such wonderful forever families that will love and care for each of them.

Posted on

Wow, Look At The Puppies With Their New Toy!

VIDEO – The puppies got a new toy yesterday and quickly started playing with it. You can see in the video that the rest of our dogs want to play too. Ruska and Brinkley finally got a hold of the new toy and it didn’t take long for them to destroy it in a game of tug-of-war!

A Visit to the Vet

Puppies loading into the crate on their way to visit the vet

Part of caring for our puppies is a visit to our Veterinary Clinic. On Monday we loaded 11 puppies into the crate and headed to see Dr. Westermann for their health check. My husband Tom kept watch outside and I took puppies in two at a time for their turn. They received a clean bill of health, their first set of vaccinations, and their microchip. Some of the puppies were brave and only made the slightest whimper while other puppies made sure we knew that the didn’t appreciate getting the microchip – LOL!

Tom keeping watch on the puppies as they return after their turn

When we were finished, Dr. Westermann commented on how calm and well behaved all our puppies were. I was proud that all Ruska’s and our hard work was noticed. The shots always make puppies tired and they came home and slept most of the afternoon.

Puppies ready to go home, they are tired and resting after getting their shots.

Today it was Ellie’s puppies turn to make the trip to see Dr. Westermann for their microchips, shots, and health check.

Ellie’s puppies Packed into their crate and off for their turn at the vet

Dr. Westermann was amazed at how calm and well behaved all Ellie’s puppies were today. All the hard work by Ellie is paying off as she has calm, gentle puppies. The puppies received their first set of vaccinations and microchips. Everyone was brave with only the smallest complaint except for one puppy that let out a loud yelp! All our puppies were given a clean bill of health and returned home to sleep after the excitement of their first outing.

Back to the crate and headed home
The vaccination shots make the puppies tired. Time to take a nap!
Posted on

Look How They Have Grown, Ellie’s Pups are now Six Weeks Old!

LOOKING BACK

Six weeks old today. We have had another busy week caring for the puppies and introducing them to so many new things. They have grown bigger and you can see each unique personality developing. Puppies have progressed to eating softened kibble. They enjoy exploring during outside play time. Ellie’s is teaching them to submit and Ruska, Brinkley and Willow are helping out with this.

LOOKING AHEAD TO WEEK SEVEN
  • Puppies will meet their forever families
  • Puppies time spent awake will continue to increase
  • Puppies will begin dry kibble by the end of the week
  • We will continue to encourage puppies to use potty area
  • Puppies will continue to socialize and learn from each other through play
  • Puppies will continue exploring and playing together outdoor as weather permits
  • Puppies will continue learning from their mama as she disciplines them and teaches them to behave 
  • As always, puppies will continue to get lots of cuddle time.

Sixteen puppies playing and exploring together

The last couple days, all the puppies have been playing and exploring together in our yard. It has been a very busy time keeping track of all 16 puppies in our yard! They are getting along very nicely and Ruska, Ellie, Brinkley and Willow have been playing with them as well as teaching them to submit. Notice in some of the pictures below, the puppies on their backs. This is what puppies do to show that they are submitting.

Puppies are very good at coming when called. This helps me make sure we have them all but also teaches them “recall”. This will be something their forever families will continue when they train their puppies. The only reward the puppies expect is lot’s of praise and cuddles.

VIDEO – How do you gather 16 puppies to do a “puppy count”? With the “Puppy Call” of course

Posted on

Look Closely, Can You Find Sixteen Adorable Puppies?

Well, I finally decided to do it…….introduce Ellie’s Puppies to Ruska’s. All sixteen puppies met in the puppy enclosure and played together. I began by first choosing four of Ruska’s puppies to introduce to Ellie’s puppies. The four puppies I chose were Gold Collar Boy, Light Blue Collar Boy, Purple Collar Girl, and of course I had to choose our tiny Black Collar Girl because she was so fascinated with them. She would sit on the other side of the fence watching them and would run back and forth barking at them. At first the puppies were a little unsure but soon started to sniff each other and then began to play.

VIDEO – Four of Ruska’s puppies meet Ellie’s puppies. They were unsure at first but, enjoyed playing with each other!
VIDEO – Ellie’s Orange Collar Girl is barking at Ruska’s Purple Collar Girl. I think she wants to play but Purple Collar Girl isn’t too sure!
VIDEO – Ruska’s Black Collar Girl finally gets to meet Ellie’s puppies without a fence separating them. She had a great time interacting!

After a short time I decided to add the rest of Ruska’s puppies to the mix. It went very well! All the puppies had a great time meeting each other and playing together! Ruska, Ellie, Brinkley and Willow were watching from the other side of the enclosure.

VIDEO – All of Ruska’s and Ellie’s puppies finally get to meet face to face. Can you hear Willow squeaking the ball? She brought it to the puppies to play with and left it outside the enclosure LOL

Dogs on guard while puppies sleep

Adorable faces

Posted on

“Seven Weeks Old – Can These Get Any More Adorable?”

Ruska’s Puppies

Tired puppies taking a rest from all that exercise

Ruska’s puppies are seven weeks old today. The saying “An active puppy is a healthy puppy” makes these puppies very healthy. They are all over the yard exploring every corner. It is a two person job to keep track of them. I put them into the puppy enclosure (as you can see in the picture above) to give them a safe place to settle down and rest. They were not too please to be confined in the outdoors but, it is a good learning experience to teach them to calm down. Puppies have now made the transition to eating dry kibble puppy food today.

Some of my grandchildren came by for a visit and photo’s with our puppies

LOOKING AHEAD TO WEEK EIGHT
  • Puppies will continue exploring and playing together outdoor as weather permits
  • Puppies will continue learning from their mama Ruska, and the rest of our dogs Ellie, Brinkley, and Willow
  • Puppies will continue learning as the play with their litter-mates
  • We will continue to encourage puppies to use potty area
  • Puppies will visit the vet for their check-ups, immunizations and micro chips
  • Puppies will continue to get lots of cuddle time
  • Puppies will start to leave for their forever families at eight weeks.
paw prints

Ellie’s Puppies

One of my favourite time in puppy breeding, is when I introduce our puppies to their forever families. We are looking forward to meeting them at Ellie’s puppy selection/visitation day this weekend. Until you meet your puppy in person, enjoy watching these adorable puppies play with Willow in the video below.

VIDEO – Willow plays with Ellie’s puppies
Posted on

How Do I Continue Potty Training My Puppy At Home?

Updated 2023

Potty Training starts with the breeder

Why do you train your puppies so young?

Wild dog species have an instinct to keeping their den clean so that the smell doesn’t attract predators. A mama dog also has the same instinct to keep her puppies and puppy area clean. When puppies can start to go potty without the help of their mother, they have a natural instinct to move away from the area where they sleep and eat to go potty.

After puppies are moved to the main floor around 3-1/2 weeks of age, we begin potty training. I spend most of my time during the next three days, putting each puppy in the potty area each time they wake and after they eat. This teaches them there is a “place” to go potty.

Litter Box Training

We now train using a litter box filled with pine pellets in it. This method (as opposed to potty pads) is environmentally friendly because the pine pellets are biodegradable.

Puppy area set-up
Two puppies in potty box

Consistency

These pics show how we have set up our puppy area. when we move our puppies to the main floor. Puppies have access to whelping box and potty box only. Until the puppies become more consistent, it is best not to give them too much room.

Constant Cleaning

The potty area must smell like a potty area and the whelping box must smell clean. If a puppy has an accident in the whelping box, it must be cleaned right away . We replace the Vet Bed liners multiply times a day to keep it fresh and clean. Lots of Laundry!!!

The Goal

The goal is for puppies to sleep and play in their whelping box and move to the potty box on their own, when needed.

Watch as our Green Collar Girl (Day 27) decides to use the potty area on her own… …it is truly amazing!

Larger Puppy Area

Once the puppies are more consistent we give them a larger area.

By teaching puppies “there is a place to go potty”, I believe it makes it easier for their forever family to house train when they go home.

Outside Potty Box

With the introduction of outside play, it is more of a challenge to teach the puppies to “go” in one spot which is the potty box. This is because when a puppy has access to a large area, they move away to “go” but not necessarily in the box. I have been correcting the puppies by taking them to the potty box.

Watch as Pink Collar Girl goes to the potty box all by herself!👏

POTTY TRAINING AT HOME

How do I continue potty training when I take my puppy home?

Take advantage of the early training that we have already started. So when you take your puppy home, you should be teaching them “the acceptable place to go potty is outside“. This means “no potty pads”. If you introduce potty pads, you are teaching your new puppy that it is “okay” to go potty inside your home.

After you bring home your new puppy home, the first thing you need to teach the pup is to walk to the door. Do not carry them. Make the puppy walk or it will not learn to alert you.

Do not use treats when potty training as it takes the dog’s focus off of the business at hand and puts it on the food. You do not want the dog’s brain to be on food when it is time to relieve itself. Keep the focus on the task at hand. Rewards for going potty should be the relief the dog feels when it empties itself and your happiness that the dog did the right thing; ie.; verbal praise, a pet and/or back scratch. Puppies/dogs can feel when humans are happy.

How long can my puppy “hold it”?

Typically to calculate how long a puppy can “hold it” is to take their age in months and add 1 (ie, 2 month old+ 1 = 3 hours.) The older the puppy, the longer they can hold it. I have found large breed puppies can hold it longer as their bladders are larger

Can my puppy “hold” it all night?

It is not likely that your puppy can go the whole night without a potty break when you first bring them home. When your puppy whines in the middle of the night, chances are, they need to go outside for a potty break. Take them to their spot and say “go potty” When they have relieved them-self, give them a short praise and return them to their crate. If you pay too much attention to them at this time, they may continue to wake you up “just for the attention” Don’t feed your puppy or let them drink water too close to bedtime in the evening.

Helpful tips

  • Don’t give your puppy too much room to roam your house.
  • If you can’t supervise puppy, put them in their crate for a nap.
  • Before putting your puppy in their crate, make sure that they have had a outside potty break
  • Take your puppy outside frequently—about every two hours
  • Take your puppy outside immediately after they wake up, after playing, and after eating or drinking.
  • Pick a potty spot outside, and always take your puppy to that spot. This helps them “smell the spot” and know it’s the place to go potty. Use a command word such as “Go Potty”
  • Some people like to put their puppy on a leash when going to the potty area. This helps with teaching them to go in a certain spot
  • Reward your puppy with verbal praise, a pat and/or back scratch  every time they go potty outdoors.
  • Feed your puppy 3 meals a day, removing any leftover food when done. This helps you know when your puppy will need to go for a potty break outside. If they always have food available, they need to go potty more frequently which makes it harder to know when they need to go outside.
  • Don’t feed your puppy or let them drink water too close to bedtime in the evening.( Take food away after dinner meal, take water away three hours before bed time.)

Posted on

Just Want to Cuddle And Kiss These Adorable Puppies

Ruska’s Puppies

Ruska’s puppies continue to progress. They love their outdoor playtime and are becoming more adventurous with each passing day. They have now discovered the rear of our yard and love to play in my grandchildren playground. It is getting harder to keep track of all 11 puppies so every so often I do “The Puppy Call” and they come running for some cuddles

VIDEO – The Puppy Call
paw prints

Ellie’s Puppies

Ellie’s puppies are loving their outdoor play time. We have them in the fenced enclosure to keep them separated from Ruska’s puppies. They are 10 day’s younger so I didn’t want them with the older puppies yet. They do still interact and play with them but have the fence in-between. I see them barking at each other and running back and forth together.

Sleeping outside with mama
Posted on

What An Exciting Day ….. Ellie’s Puppies First Outdoor Adventure

We had a very busy day with “Double Excitement” yesterday. First, it was puppy selection day for Ruska’s Puppies! It was also the day that Ellie’s puppies turned 5 weeks old and that means…. “The Puppies First Outdoor Adventure”. Enjoy the videos below and see how well they are walking and running.

Ellie’s Puppies

VIDEO – Ellie was so happy to have her puppies outside with her. She even brought her ball for them to play. Playing fetch is Ellie’s favourite outdoor game. The puppies now have a whole new world to explore!
VIDEO -Brinkley, Willow, Ruska and her puppies are all so interested in Ellie’s puppies inside the enclosure. I don’t want the puppies to have free play with Ruska’s puppies yet; even though they look similar in size, they are 10 days younger
VIDEO – Like all our puppy litters, Ellie’s puppies love playing on the rocks. Can you hear a couple puppies crying? They want to come out to play with Ruska’s puppies
paw prints

Ruska’s Puppies

One of my favourite days in puppy breeding is Selection Day. It is so exciting to meet the families and introduce the puppies to them. We enjoyed meeting everyone and watching you interact with your puppy. I am so thankful that our puppies have such wonderful loving forever families. The puppies were so tired after the excitement of the long day visiting so many people that they spent the afternoon sleeping! All too soon, our puppies will be leaving us but, until then we will love and care for them and continue to give lots of cuddles!

It is always a “mad puppy dash”when they head outside now that they’re more independent. I shot this video in “slow-motion” so you can see the puppies better. Can you find your puppy?

Posted on

So Exciting, Ellie’s Five Week Old Puppies Are Progressing

Ellie’s Puppies

LOOKING BACK

Ellies puppies are five weeks old today. They have developed from helpless newborn puppies to “mini dogs”. The puppies have progressed so much over the past five weeks. We have been working hard on training puppies to use the potty area. I am always amazed to watch puppies wake up or stop playing and walk over to use the potty area. Some of the puppies are more consistant than others but all are making great progress! Nursing will decrease now that they have started to eat puppy mush, and drink their water. Puppies have enjoyed interacting with people of all ages. They love playing with my grandchildren and are learning important social skills. Puppies are now awake for longer periods and enjoy playing with their toys and each other. Mama has begun teaching her pups to listen to her. 

VIDEO – Puppies standing up to nurse. They are definitely ready for solid food!
VIDEO Puppies were pros eating their first meal of puppy mush and lapping up water.

Puppies go from nursing from mama to begin eating solid foods. Ellie is keeping a watchful eye on them
LOOKING AHEAD TO WEEK SIX

  • Puppies time spent awake will continue to increase
  • Puppies food will become much thicker progressing toward the goal of eating dry kibble
  • Puppies will continue learning to use potty area
  • Puppies will continue to socialize with each other through play
  • Puppies balance will continue to improve.
  • Puppies will begin daily play time outside as weather permits
  • Puppies will continue learning from their mama as she disciplines them and teaches them to behave 
  • Puppies will be meeting their forever families 
  • As always, puppies will continue to get lots of cuddle time.
paw prints

Ruska’s Puppies

Ruska’s puppies are enjoying their outdoor play time. It is a full time job keeping track of our 11 puppies. They are learning from their mama Ruska as well as our other dogs. I tried to snap some photos of them but didn’t get many…. puppies don’t stay still for long while awake.

Outside Play time
VIDEO – Brown girl wants to play with Willow
VIDEO – Puppies playing tug-of-war with their Stuffy

After play, puppies sleep