The whelping box has now grown to a weaning pen. It is basically the Taj Mahal of sleeping quarters. All we did was add 2 more walls to make it twice the size, and what a difference it makes! The puppies now are able to have their sleep area and their potty area be seperate. They seem to be figuring it all out pretty quickly. In on corner they have a crate to sleep in, as well as their food and water dishes. At the other end they have their washable pee-pads to make life easier for me to clean up. 
Here is Cedar checking out the new digs. Kyler at least lets him look in now without threatening to bite him! They are just starting to show some interest in the pheasant wing. They don't seem to always see it yet, but they are starting to carry it around and try to chase it a bit. The next few weeks should be interesting to see their reactions.
Andrew, from The Regal Vizsla, came up for a day of training in Bernardston on Sunday. We had a fairly successful time, after Mike and I were finally able to find out where each one had gone and meet up for the training. Cedar has had some issues lately where he is lunging at the bird when it flushes. I think this stems from too many poorly flying birds and him realizing that he can just catch them out of the air. We spent his time with a collar and check cord on to try and get him back to where he used to be. His previous problems had just been with honoring, so we are trying to work on that as well as his newly developed bad habit! For Kyler, I really wanted to get some honoring out of her, as that is the main thing stopping her from completing her SH title. I am hoping, after the puppies are weaned, to finish it before the year is up.
Andrew got to meet the puppies for the first time, and they certainly received him well! The navy blue boy thought Andrew was there just so he could lick him and chew on his ear. He is the sweetest boy (the puppy that is, Andrew is nice too, though) ;-)
As fall is fast approaching, we are trying to get the dogs back into shape after a summer off. Bird season is only about 6 weeks away, so the dogs need to be in top shape to be able to hunt effectively. We took the dogs for an hour hike in The Women's Federated Forest in Petersham. We spent most of the time going along the powerlines, as that is where all the blackberries were that Jaida loves to eat. The dog have come quite adept at finding their own trail snacks and pick their own berries whenever they feel the need. Kyler seems to enjoy her time away from the puppies, and she is slowly weaning them on her own. We usually use a skid plate to cover her underside, since it is a bit more sensitive than usual, but after using it yesterday it rubbed her raw in a couple of spots and we decided not to use it. 
Happy Trails! On the way home at last!
1 comment:
What lovely pics! Poor Cedar. He's probably jealous he doesn't have his own box.
Post a Comment