Indy's here to visit

A welcome face has come to visit... Indy has returned to our home for a visit. His Daddy has headed out for his annual vacation, so Indy is here to visit with his family for a week. Although he has a wonderful routine with his Daddy, he has fit right back into things around here very quickly. Everyone was happy to see him and he's been playing with his brothers every since.

Bow's Back

Even though DawnAnn fell in love with Bow this past week, they just couldn't make things work out. DawnAnn is hoping things will change and she'll be able to take Bow back at some point ~ but it's just not meant to be right now. Bow is very happy to be home with all his brothers, little nephews and nieces, as well as his mom, dad, grandmother and aunt. It was a great experience for him to get to go visit DawnAnn for a week and he's looking forward to getting to do it again someday.

Ti's happy to be home!

Ti was very happy to be home and his brothers were very happy to see him! As you can see, Hunter (right) and Ti (left) needed some time to catch up after being separated for a month - there are 5 other crates in this room that one of them could have slept in, but instead I caught the two of them napping together in this one crate.

Two Peas In A Pod

Here is Ti (close) and Krash (further away) saying goodbye. Krash was very sweet and entertained Ti for one month so Ti could see what it was like to live someplace else, where there wasn't as many dogs and there are different people, critters and rules. Ti truly enjoyed his time with his big buddy Krash and I'm sure he'll be looking forward to seeing him ringside in January.

Bow goes for a trial

After a couple of months of trying to figure things out to make her home perfect for Mr. Bow, he finally got to go visit his posible new home tonight. He'll spend the week to see if it's a good fit. We wish Bow and Dawnann the best of luck!

It's official

Black Diamond Soggy Bottom Boy is now Indy. Dennis and Indy came by to visit today and made it official ~ Indy now belongs to Dennis 100%. It was very obvious that Indy has already bonded with Dennis and clearly loves him very much (and vice-versa). Looks like these two boys (men) were made for each other. In less than a week they have already had many great times together, wildlife observing, visiting the businesses in M-F and watching football! Take care guys, we'll see you in a few weeks.

Hunter gets re-tested

When Hunter was hearing tested at 7 weeks of age, the test showed he was a uni. Then on October 17th he was re-tested by the same person as part of a demonstration and discussion on BAER Hearing tests. During his 2nd test, the results were very different from the first test. This info worried me, so today Hunter got to have his 3rd hearing test, this time by NW Vet Specialists. This time we feel confident that he truly is a uni. That's OK, Hunter is a wonderful pet and is going to make some lucky family a great companion for many years to come. Hunter is still available ~ if your interested, please contact us for more info.

Lucky Boy!

"Soggy" has lucked out and was recently chosen by Dennis of M-F, Oregon to be his new buddy! His new call name is Indy (as in Indiana Jones) and he lives with 4 kitties and will have a Sheltie to hang out with every now and then. They've already enjoyed a great day in the Blue Mountains together. Indy will have a great life with Dennis who has had Dals for most of his life. We'll miss him very much but know that he's better off having a family all his very own.

Camp Jordan

The update from WSU is that Ti is doing well, although he's a bit too interested in the rabbits. :) He's having a great time with his big buddy Krash and is his little shadow. He's also doing very well with his crate training and potty breaking. No word yet on his waist line... (whether he now has one or not).

Ti is the one on the right hand side of each of these photos - it's getting harder to tell though, he's getting so big.

Teething

The boys are in full swing with their teething, so to attempt to give them something OK to chew on and that will help their gum pain, we are now freezing water bottles and wash clothes. They enjoy both and spend hours chewing on each of the items. This is Hunter enjoying a frozen water bottle.

Bow looking handsome

Here's Bow, looking as cute as can be! He was playing with the green ball that's sitting in front of him, but when I grabbed the camera he dropped it and posed for the photo instead. As soon as I snapped the photo he hoped down and ran right to me to give me a big kiss... apparently he really likes having his photo and wanted to thank me. :)

Please share...

Soggy & Hunter were having a talk about their nightly carrot here. Soggy let his mom steal his carrot, so he went to his brother Hunter and tried to talk him into sharing, as you can tell by the look on Hunter's face, he was NOT willing to share. Too bad he lost his temper and jumped off the couch barking at Soggy - their grandmother swooped in while the two were having a discussion and Jazz ate it! Too bad boys, maybe you should learn to share with each other.

Ti goes to college

Our friend Jordan has been brave enough (or foolish enough) to volunteer to foster one of our boys at a time. This great opportunity will provide the boys a chance to get to know some strangers, see many more sites and have one on one time with some humans. Jordan does have other animals (rabbits, mice, etc) but only one other dog, Krash who is also a liver spotted Dalmatian (and the one wearing the towel). Ti is learning to sleep in a crate at night and to walk around campus to greet lots and lots of strangers. What a great opportunity for this lucky boy! Ti will probably spend 3 to 4 weeks at "Camp Jordan" then we will trade him out with one of the other four boys (if Jordan is still up for the challenge after Ti).

Bow enjoys a nap

The boys are getting big and are need of a new home, but meanwhile we are doing our best to make their experiences as 'normal' as can be in a house with 16 Dalmatians!! We bring one boy in per evening to let them have one on one time with us and to get away from the pack. After playing and seeing what's allowed to be chewed on and what is not allowed, he decided the best thing to do with his time is take a nice comfy nap on the couch.

The noses have it

I've wanted to do tracking with Jazz ever since we've had her, so when the LaGrande group of dog enthusiasts decided to get together and help those of us who are interested in getting started with tracking - I had to go, even though Jazz couldn't. Jazz has 4 week old pups right now, so she can't be gone for an entire day... But Soggy could! So, Soggy stepped up to bat and lived up to his name. It rained all morning, so the field was nice and wet, and it didn't bother to stop raining while we were their, but we still had a great time and learned a lot. Soggy did great too and had a fun time being 'moms' only boy for the day.

Loving my boys

Seeing we still have four puppy boys, I now have a total of 5 boys who need their turn sitting in 'moms' lap. Here I was sitting with Romeo at my side, with his head on my shoulder, Ti upside down getting his belly rubbed and then Soggy decided he needed to get in on the action as well! Willow is sitting to the right of Romeo, and Bow was napping on the couch (he's the one in the furthest to the right). Also on the couch was Izza and Hunter but not included in the photo.

Hunter's accident

Poor little hunter has had his first accident. The boys are still small enough that they fit through the holes in our fence line which separates the dogs from the horses. Each morning and night when I feed the horses, the puppies are climbing through the fence and running out amongst the horses while I'm out there. All has been OK up until Tuesday, September 2nd. I was putting a fly mask on one of my mares who stepped backwards and shifted her feet, stepping right on hunter's front paw. Luckily the x-ray and vet confirmed that it is not broke, but very sore and swollen. Ever since the accident his daddy has been very worried about him. Romeo keeps giving him kisses and even tries to lick Hunter's paw. This is a common sight around here this week, Romeo laying with his boy keeping him company and fretting about him.

Black Diamond He's Bonafide

Black Diamond In A Tight Spot

Black Diamond Soggy Bottom Boy

Black Diamond Show Me The Way - 13 Weeks

Lack of posts

Sorry about the lack of posts lately, four 12 week old puppies seem to be taking up all of my spare time!! :) The boys are doing well, although they are at the jangle stage at the moment. All of them really have 'Sit' down pat and most are good about 'Down' (as in to lay down), and heal. We worked on heal without a leash first, by walking up and down the hallway in our home, using a clicker and reward each time they get in proper position. We have now transitioned into walking on a leash and going around the block - we do this with the clicker too, and when they get in proper position, like magic they get a click and treat... within 1/2 a block or so, each puppy has figured out this game and are walking on my left side on a nice loose leash. I'm hoping to find some other people in the area who have pups around this age so we can get together for a Play Day, to keep their socialization going. If you know anyone interested in one of these great pups, please send them our way!!

Elliot & Sonny Video

Elliot's mom has uploaded the following cute video to U-Tube for all of us to enjoy. Check out Elliot in his new home: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cOGy3rqSDlc

House guest

Today the boys met their first four legged 'stranger'. At first they were very shy, but within minutes they decided strangers could be FUN! Their first encounter took place in our backyard so the pups had 'home turf' to help them feel more confident, and the other dog is Callie, a stray that lived with us for about a month before she became a very lucky dog by acquiring a permanent home with Adrian's mom. Callie is very submissive with strange dogs and lives with cats, which made her a great first encounter dog.

Tunnel Work

Seeing 7-12 week old puppies learn extremely fast, we have been working on clicker training the boys. So far they are very good about 'Come', 'Sit' and now tonight we began working on 'Tunnel'. All boys were very brave and had a great time with their new toy. By spending time working with them now, we hope to create dogs with a passion for learning, setting them up for success in their new homes.

Four wet boys

It was 116 degrees today, so everyone spent the day inside for the most part. This evening it dropped down to the 90's, so we decided it would be a good evening for the puppies next life lesson... swimming. We have a 32" deep kiddy swimming pool in our backyard, which is just perfect for puppies to learn to swim in. All four boys were naturals and swam as well as their daddy who happens to be a fantastic swimmer. They enjoyed it so much that they would run around in the yard a moment or two and then right back trying to climb in the pool again! It was lots of fun, but once we came in the house they were all tired and a little chilly in the A/C, so instead of being sprawled out all over our laundry room floor, they stacked up like cord-wood. I thought this photo was too cute, especially how they made their pattern of black, liver, black, liver. :)

Elliot & Sonny

Yellow is now known as Elliot II and is seen here with his new big buddy Sonny. His new family says he's doing well and is already fitting right in with their family and routine.

The other four boys who are still at our home had their vet check up today and all received clean bills of health - no surprise as they are all doing very well.

We are looking forward to the next boy going to his new home this weekend. The next to go will be a show potential puppy headed to Pomeroy, WA. Then we'll just have to find homes for the remaining 3 boys. :)

Red 8 Weeks

Red is my personal favorite even though he's going to be heavily marked. Just like his color, he's a fire cracker (or devil boy). Red is for sale to a show home only.

Blue 8 Weeks

Blue is a handsome boy with a bold personality. We are hoping Blue will find himself a show home and will get to have his day in the conformation show ring.

Orange Week 8

Orange is a very sweet boy, who is very quite and tender. He's going to make someone a very special boy. He has a very nice front and rear end which may make him a nice show boy if someone is willing to work with him to bring him out of his shell. Orange is available to a pet or show home - which ever comes along first.

Green 8 Week Shots

Green is a very smart boy who is going to be a ton of fun for someone looking for a dog who likes to learn and problem solve. Green is looking for the right pet home to take him home.

Yellow heads for California!

'Yellow' was the chosen puppy this afternoon. A very nice couple from Crescent City, CA had the first choice of the pet puppies and after facing a tough decision, they decided to go with Yellow because he is the mellowest of the group as well as his very attractive two blue eyes.

Yellow won't be alone however, he will have a 'big brother', a 7 year old Dalmatian by the name of Sunny who also made the trip up from California today. Sonny was very happy and excited to meet his new little buddy.

Yellow will be living the good life, within 10 minutes of the beach as well as miles of hiking trails.

We'll miss you Yellow, but know your in good hands with your new parents. Take care!

Final night together

Here are all 5 boys waiting for their final dinner all together. Tomorrow morning we will make the long drive to Vancouver, WA to have help evaluating the litter. Our goal will be to determine the top two 'show picks' - the two puppies we feel have the best chances in the conformation show ring. Once the evaluation is finished the first puppy will be picked up to head off to it's new home.

Mom and Dad watching over

It looks like the perfect little family but in truth mom and dad are just waiting for me to leave so they can steal the carrots from their babies. Romeo is really starting to enjoy his babies, he wishes they would grow up quicker so they can run faster and play with him. Just about every night he lays on the couch and they come up and give each other kisses, the only problem is his lips look very chewable and the puppies have teeth and are not afraid to use them.

Orange 6 weeks

Orange is our quite boy, very sweet and loves to be cuddled, he's also our smallest boy at this point. He's missing some nose trim still, but we're hopeful that it will fill in before he turns 6 months.

Blue at 6 weeks

This is "Blue" who happens to have one blue eye and one very nice dark brown eye. Blue is our other bold personality puppy who is a lot of fun.

Green 6 Weeks

This is Green. It's hard to see in this photo but he has a small piece of blue inside his right eye (the lower piece of it). He has a very nice, even going temperament and should mature to be a nice boy.