We always love to hear back from puppy owners about how things are going and what experiences the puppies are having. We especially love to hear about successful hunting trips. We heard back from Steve and Pam in northern Idaho about their pup Lucy. We got some great photos and heard about their hunting adventures with the new puppy. Lucy seems to be a real game dog at 4 months old!
There is no way to keep your bird dog 100 percent safe in the field, but there are ways to help prevent disasters. Chris and I just finished doing a snake break for some dogs that we have been training. We had a good session and I am confident that none of those dogs will be interested in the sight, smell or sound of a rattlesnake. They won’t dive in or even want a closer look.
Snake break training is fairly simple in principal, but difficult in practice. Basically, you want the dog to use as many senses as possible to locate the snake, and then when the dogs jumps in you hit them on the highest setting on the e-collar multiple times. The problem is finding the snake and then making it so that it can’t hurt or kill the dogs. Some guys duct tape the snake’s mouth shut, we use a skin stapler. Needless to say, this isn’t the easiest task to accomplish. The snake wasn’t happy and our heart rates were more than slightly elevated during the process.
After the snake was made harmless to the dogs, we let it slither around on the ground and start bringing dogs in one by one. Dogs react differently to snakes. Ideally, the snake will strike the dog, but it doesn’t have to for effective training. When the dog gets curious and sticks its face down near the snake or steps near the snake, we hit them on continuous on the highest setting on the e-collar. Hold for 4-5 second, pause for a second, hold for another 4-5 seconds, pause and then one more time. This creates a very bad memory of the sight, smell and sound of a rattlesnake. Afterwards, we move the snake to a new location and then bring the dog near it to see how the dog reacts. We did six dogs and none of them wanted anything to do with that rattlesnake the second time. Needless to say our clients should not have to worry about their dogs getting bit by a rattlesnake in the field this season. Nick Muckerman
The puppies are now 4 weeks old and they are fairly active. They have their needle-sharp puppy teeth and have tried solid food for the first time, which they dove into. The kids love to take them out and play with them or just cuddle them and watch TV. When we take them outside they are starting to venture out and explore the world. They have been exposed to birds and noise sensitivity. The three females and one male are spoken for. There are four males available. Call us to reserve your puppy. They will be ready around the 8th of September.
The puppies are 3 weeks old today. They still sleep a fair amount, but they are getting more active playing with each other and with the kids when they climb in the whelping box with them. Notice “Yellow” in the photo batting at her sibling.
Sam has been working with Allie all summer doing a dog 4-H project and getting ready for the State Fair. We didn’t know if Allie would be able to compete in the events just having had a litter of puppies. We decided to enter her and Sam ran her in both obedience and showmanship classes. Allie’s nipples were hanging low, especially after waiting for so long to compete during the evening. Sam did a great job with her and won two second place ribbons. Way to go Sam! When they were done, Allie was ready to get back to the pups.
The puppies are two weeks old and there eyes are just opening. The cuteness factor just ratcheted up a notch. They still spend a lot of time sleeping though.
Some close friends of ours offered to take care of the puppies so we could go on our previously planned family vacation for a long weekend in Yellowstone NP. When we got home Monday, we were surprised at how much the puppies had grown. We weigh each puppy every day and chart their growth, but numbers on paper are one thing, but visually see the change in size in just a few days it is amazing. Everyone is healthy and growing well. They are still spending a lot of time sleeping, piled all over each other. Eyes typically open around day 12, which is today, so we are expecting to see eyes cracking open little by little.
They’re here! Allie had her puppies this afternoon. Eight healthy puppies, and man are they cute. Three females and five males. Sam loves them and cycles through holding each one. We all have to take turns holding Rachel back from climbing in the box and grabbing them. She is sixteen months and super excited about them. All the pups are about the same size and are vigorous and nursing well. We’ll keep the updates coming.
We are getting ready for puppies. We are expecting them anytime from tonight through Friday night. The family has all placed our bets. Sam and I built a new whelping box. He was a big help this time around building it. Once we got it done and placed in the house, the first thing he did was curl up in it and say, “Dad, I could sleep here with Allie.”
This time around, rather than using contact paper for the floor, I found 12″ vinyl tiles 4 for a dollar; so $4 covered the 4’x4′ whelping box. Another change I made this time around is made the sides 24″ high rather than 18″. We’ll see how that goes. Right now, visually I prefer the shorter (18″) sides. We have 2×4 bumber rails ready once the puppies are born. Now the waiting part.
