It's Raining

Today I drove to our vet and held Whitney as she took her last breath. It's moments like this that you wonder how life can be so short for our pals that give us so much.

I am not even sure how I made it back but I think the rain was pouring off my face inside my car. But I won't bore you with my sadness.

What did Whitney teach me in her short life? Patience, unconditional love and that being broken can be turned around. Whitney was a rescue with a heart of gold.

We never put so much into a dawg as we did her trying to turn her around and rid her mind of fears and we were successful with much work. She was happy. Her only residual fear was thunderstorms and even that was minimal as the years went by. She taught me that when others tell you something is impossible, go for it as it may not be so.

She is already sorely missed. Our gentle soul that adored the puppies all the way to the end.

Why Do Dogs Nest?

Dogs "dig" at the ground or on a bed to create themselves a den. It's also why they turn around before curling up to sleep at times.

Canine moms also create a den for their impending brood up to 24 hours before they give birth. They know before we know.

Is it instinct or a learned behavior?

They say instinct but when you watch moms, they do show the little ones what to do so perhaps it is a little bit of both?

The dawgs had a wonderful day today getting groomed, playing retrieve and doing a hunt and seek game.

Another Dusting?

Did you know if we get wet snow your havanese can get snowballs that form on their legs and tummy?

The quickest way to remove them is to just run them under warm water but then you have to dry them and brush them.

Next way is to take a brush and brush them out and then dry.

Another way is to put a jacket with legs on them and avoid it all. hehehehe

Or just enjoy the season and laugh about it. I do!

Closer to England

Nathan went out to Lindsay and Raylan won Winner's dog and Best Puppy in Breed getting him closer to that championship so he can go to England.

The roads were treacherous but they went, they won and now they get to chill till tomorrow.

We are so proud of the little man but let's see how proud he is when I have to bathe him again tomorrow morning before he goes. At least he's on later in the day.

PS: We won't tell you the stories of the missing dress shoes and how Nathan was on the hunt.

One has to plan these things AHEAD of time.

We went tp Woofstock and I have to say I like the summer one MUCH better. Less vendors at this one, too crowded and dogs peeing everywhere in close quarters. We ended up buying a huge bed rrom Mammoth. That's all.

Big and Little Dogs

 Do big and little dogs get along? Depends ... Absolutely! You see it depends on the dawgs.

I find big and little relationships fascinating.

Do Havanese know other Havanese? Yep!

Well tomorrow Nathan is going to a show with Nathan so I am off to wash Raylan.

Me, I am staying home and doing dawgs and pups. What about you?

Bella Goes to Forever Home

Bella is a puppy from our Kat and our friend Paula's Teaser. She was here to go to her forever home and she left tonight. This saves her new owners a drive to Sudbury.

I work with Paula on the Rescue committee and we just had 2 rescues come in that need adopting. Check them out. They are not at our home as they usually are as we have been told we have a bylaw limit of dawgs (no more rescues or boarding) so we are attempting to find foster homes and forever homes as quickly as possible. It's VERY tough.

So, if you know of someone interested, please let me know. I will hook you up with our foster home parent and she will tell you more about them. She will have the day to day with them and will know them best.

Well, we are already missing Bella and so is Raylan and Red. It's already so very quiet around this place.

I do love the puppies sooooo and you all know Nathan does too!

Remember, if you are getting a puppy, be aware during the teething stage to stop the play when they nibble on you, and over emphasize the ouch. They are babies learning from you.

As always, if you need anything, and questions, just ask. We are always glad to help. Without the dawgs we would not be who we are nor be fulfilled.

Baths Today

Mommy is losing it. She thinks I need another bath but I swear I got one last week. She says she is going to look it up.

So when she put that apron on, I went outside and decided I was going to stay there. It's not that I dislike baths as I do get a nice massage and treats and Mommy one on one time but I have better things to do, don't you know?

If you were a dawg how often would you want to be washed? Mommy says as soon as we feel or look dirty.

Baer Testing

What is Baer Testing? it's a hearing test. We have never had a deaf puppy but we still check the pups. Deafness can happen from the environment, nutrition, genetics - so many reasons and rather complicated but testing is important to evaluate the pup and it allows us as breeders to make decisions based on what we know, not what we assume.

Two pups from our friend Paula is here as they were in for Baer testing. In Sudbury, where Paula is from you have to wait for clinics or drive 10 hours round trip but here in Toronto we are blessed with having someone local.

One of the pups will be going back to Sudbury as soon as we can make travel arrangements and the other is going to her forever home (her name is Bella) on Thursday. We are excited for her. These are our Kat's and Paula's Teaser pups. One of the pups is going back to Paula as a show potential after her adventure here getting a test done and getting to socialize with the other dawgs. We will miss these two and so will Red.

We now have a date in March for Raylan to make his way to England and then it will be Red's turn. Talk about missing.... These pet passports from Defra are so complicated.

But they will be loved!

Playing With Pups

Once a mom, always a mom? Fiona was playing with a visitor we had that is a real pistol.

I am always so fascinated at their maternal instincts even though they are not the mom.

The dawgs are really fascinated by the pups. Can you blame them?

They are also pleased that our son is doing night time duty now and I am back in bed to snuggle with them. It's amazing how excited they were. I missed them too.

Shhh I also missed Nathan too. hehehehe

Can't Miss That Snow

 Yes, it snowed today - can you believe and the dawgs LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it! Can you blame them? It's nice and cool.

We had visitors today, canine and human so we had a very long day. Now it's time to put my feet up, play with the ipad and wait for the pups to wake so I get to play with them.

Something about the cool weather is invigorating to them.

But when pups go out in winter that first time, it's like a person moving from California to Toronto in the dead of winter. Well, it's a tad jolting but they adapt much faster than humans. Aren't you glad?

Plus wouldn't you love to watch this much enthusiasm over white stuff? I do!

No Brush Yet Day

The dawgs play rather hard around here enjoying life and if I don't get to brush them quite yet, well they are a sight for sore eyes.

You have to laugh.

I do and shake my head and take the brush out but today is my day off cause tomorrow I have baths to do.

Plus I am going to go get a massage - can you believe? I need one after all this couch non-sleeping taking care of this little one but good news no supplementing last night though I checked and weighed as if I was - progress.

I love to see hard work pay off. it helps when she was a fighter along with me.

The crew is mucking it up in a big way.

Lucy is smitten with Raylan but shhh you didn't see my dawgs this way - unkept heathens - hahahahaha

Well, okay natural wonders.

A dawg should be a dawg too!

Crazy Daze

We have a puppy here from one of our good friends, Paula that is a Kat pup visiting till she goes to her forever home on Thursday. This saves the owners a drive all the way to Sudbury. She's a true pistol and so is her sister. The black and white is down here so I could get an upclose and personal look at her. She's a show potential. She's heading back to Sudbury about the same time her sister goes to her forever home.

I have to say, I adore their personalities and puppies are plain fun. I will miss this splash of fun but soon the Wasabi and Abigail pups will be similar in age and doing their own splash of fun.

Lucy also came by to say hello. Oh Lucy...she's a dream gal. I just adore her. I am reminded of Ricky Ricardo every time I hear her name.

Then Fiona had her bath. It's about time. hahahaha. Risa needs one next. but I am getting a deep tissue massage tomorrow and I think the last one I had was oh 5 years ago and I adore and need one. I am usually the last one to treat myself. The dawgs come first so wish me luck and hope I don't fall asleep and miss it.

Penny may be coming by with her human to pick up a Havanese calendar and say hello sometime this weekend. Otherwise, it's dawgs and dawgs and fun and fitting in showers, cleaning and snuggling and training and lovin and well dawgs!

Birthdays are Special

Shoshi had a birthday yesterday and I was a bad gal for not mentioning it even though I wished her happy birthday many times.

Two weeks from now Nathan and I have another anniversary. I expect a fabulous meal. ROFL

But what did Shoshi get? A fab meal, I hear.

Don't fotget birthdays or anniversaries. It's a moment to make memories and life is way too short to not treasure the memories.

Hug your Havanese today and guess what, you are apt t get one back. Now how great is that?

Messy Times

Fiona is our tiniest Havanese and is a delightful ball of hair but sometimes no matter what you do, she gets her hair looking like she just got out of bed.

Personally, I find this delightful. I find dawgs better looking naturally than brushed and kept on a table to stay just right but they still need to be brushed. heh

I miss sleeping with the dawgs. I am still sitting vigil with the pups and the crew is sleeping with Nathan. Fiona loves to snuggle up close to me and I do miss that but so do most of the others but I guess Nathan is enjoying and getting his fix and hey that's okay too. 

It was raining and windy today and I was so busy I didn't get photos but there is something magic about the wind and Havanese. They go together quite nice especially when they are in full coat.

The crew is highly interested in the pups but we keep them separate at this point. We do take them out, let them sniff and look. This is the start of socialization with others.

So, if you have a messy dawg? Get your camera out and click, click and share. I wouldn't mind seeing.

Mother's Have Time Outs Too

Today Yvonne was supposed to meet a puppy buyer at our home and they decided to opt out. They don't know what they are missing with missing out on a Havanese.

The day we we were exposed, the day our lives changed. They are amazing beings - I tell ya!

This is Abigail out for a run in the backyard. She's ever so busy these days but balance is important. So, she gets out for play and running in the backyard and snuggles and massages. Wasabi also does and the rest get mini massages when they are groomed not quite the full body ones that moms get daily but they still do that ooohm does that feel good tune out thing.

One day I am going eat something delish, get a massage and do nothing but play ipad games. ROFL

But if I do that, I will miss the dawgs. hehehehe

Leaves are Falling, I Still Get Groomed

I like it when Mommy takes a break from grooming but usually she only does this every once in awhile.

When I was a puppy, I could get brushed less but as an adult in full coat, she likes to brush me daily. It's not if she does it every few days that I will be a ball of knots. That's not the case as really I am ok. She just likes how I look nicely brushed.

We are still pulling in leaves and doing the sweep and vacuum many times a day.

How are you surviving?

Coach & Sassy Visits

Coach and Sassy came by today to play with the crew but unfortunately we have had much off and on rain. Still, it was great fun having them here. We already miss them.

It's great for the dawgs to have playmates that come to visit. It's great socialization for the visitors and for our crew.

It's important to expose your dawgs to all sorts of environments and other dawgs in a safe way. Know who you are exposing them to and when the mix works, well the fun begins and they are better for it.

No dawgs should live afraid and by us slow conditioning them, well you fear what you don't know not usually what you do.

Well, the weekend is gone. How did that happen so fast? Tomorrow we are in for much grooming and Fiona gets her bath. I am hoping for a sunny day - and you?

More Teddy Fun

We had a glorious time watching and capturing the dawgs at play. Here you can see Raylan with Teddy. Teddy came over to play again today as he had so much fun. Tomorrow Coach and Sassy and their parents are coming to play and we are hoping for more fun. Well the parents will watch. Only Nathan goes running around with the dawgs while they run after him. Me, after grooming, exercising and a lack of sleep - well I can click the camera and enjoy.

We still have puppy calendars for sale for the HFC. Check them out. You can pick them up here if you are local. Proceeds go to help the breed. It's filled with wonderful puppy photos of Havanese for 2011.

We also have a new blog that is getting updated as I can to help you with your holiday needs - heh It's called, Silly or Not Dog Products. Let us know of a product we should add and hopefully this will help others in their search for those precious dawg items.

Today I washed Kat, brushed the rest and I am hoping on Monday to wash Fiona. Everyone is always groomed despite how I feel. The dawgs get better care than I. But...I wouldn't have it any other way.

Catch today's photos. 

Such Teddy Bear Fun!

Teddy came to visit us today to play with the guys and it was a great amount of fun. The guys really missed him. Check out the photos to see what I mean.

Today we had a no brush day. What is that? I decided no brushing for 1 day. hahahaha Tomorrow we will begin again. Every now and then you need a time out day and that's okay.

I did get a laundry room/grooming area all cleaned up. One has to do that on a continual basis. I tend to take shampoos out and they don't make it back in the cabinets. I do similar with the brush and combs and then I look at the grooming table and go yikes - got to clean that up so that was what today was. I also did a fair bit of laundry with pups and all and played and took photos and enjoyed our visiting.

Tomorrow we have another visitor, the human kind.

Strategies

Okay, Raylan says Kat, let's run in a quick fashion, take Red at the stairs and jump and play and show him how to do it?

Okay, I didn't hear any conversation on this one but that's exactly what they did.

Don't you imagine what you dogs are saying to each other? They do communicate, just not like us.