We are taking care of Blumen this week.

Because Finn is still with us.

You are two today!

We have a goal to try and teach Zen how to pull a cart by 4th of July. Why? Because we want to be a part of THIS:

photo courtesy of Boulder Creek Insider

There’s a lot to know about teaching a dog to pull a cart but luckily for me there are a lot of educated swissy owners out there who have been doing it awhile. In researching it i came across Jennie Chen’s blog. She has tons of info that for the novice drafter to sink her teeth into. And the local Berner club has a great website, as well as seminars that we could take.

My local club wasn’t sponsering many events, but they just started getting going again. Back in November they sponsored a pack hike/draft dog training weekend. Brian and I have GREAT friends and two of them took care of the kids while we went to Mariposa, CA for the weekend to learn more about it.

It went really well and i learned a lot. I learned that she didn’t mind the sounds and she didn’t mind the weight. But what she DIDN’T like were the shafts touching her rump. She would shy away every time she felt one bumping into her, and after a good session I decided to go slow and not go any further with her training until I got her used to the feeling.

So how do you go about that? Well, someone at the seminar suggested cutting some PVC pipe and using it to get her used to the feeling. They would need to start short so that they didn’t drag at first..and then eventually you lengthen it when she becomes used to the idea.

This was the first weekend we had the time so we attempted to rig it up. I decided to use her pack harness at first, before I invest in the real thing with traces. Brian drilled a hole in the pipe and we attached velcro to the pipes.

She didn’t mind strapping them on, especially since i got a fresh beef bone from the butcher to focus her attention on.

Here’s the rig:

It worked out pretty well! She wandered around the house with them and bumped into objects and freaked herself out. But i calmed her and gave her lots of treats and we ended the first session on a good positive note. I’m definitely encouraged this is the way to do it!

She was none too pleased with me…

My friends just had their first litter at Three Sheep Swissies and the puppies are a month old. This is prime socialization time, so I offered my children up as socialization candidates. You didn’t have to twist my arm much either.

It’s kind of funny thinking back to my state of mind over a year ago when it comes to Swissy Puppies. There was so much longing to have this experience back then, and part of me wonders if i had just waited a year.. I could have had it from the beginning. But then I wouldn’t have had Zen and she is turning into such a special dog.. I feel very fortunate my breeder chose me as her person. Even though we had to fly cross the country to get her…

If there was one puppy calling out to me in this litter, it was this little green boy. I can’t wait to find out who his person will be.

Maiwenn was really into this little girl pup. She kept wanting to hold her over and over again and when we left that evening, she was lamenting about how much she wanted another puppy. I see how swissy people end up with multiple dogs; They really are like potato chips! Fortunately for my husband, we don’t have the room, the time, nor does he have the inclination for another puppy.

Gavin thought they were cute too. But he was more interested in his friend’s toys..

If I were to advise any newbie puppy owners based off my experience, I would say that it really DOES matter who their puppy’s parents are. Especially in terms of temperament. I’ve been told that Zen’s father (even though he himself can be quite rowdy) throws off sweet-tempered pups. And my breeder has told me time and again that Zen’s gentle personality comes from her mother, who is a very gentle dog. But lineage is only half the story when it comes to temperament.. the other half is socialization.

These pups are coming from some amazing owners. True, they have never bred dogs before.. but both of their swissies have been incredibly well-socialized and active with their training. Already, these little ones are getting exposed to people, animals and strange sights and sounds.

This was the first born of the litter, and he’s the fattest of the bunch. He slept the whole time I was there.

Here’s little girl pup, getting weighed. Time for a new scale, me thinks!

They were waking up here.. and getting ready to swamp us. In a few weeks, these beauties will be temperament tested and the final decisions will be made as to who gets which pup.

Mom dog wasn’t too thrilled about stepping in there and feeding them again. I can’t say i really blame her..

This little guy supposedly has the most easy going personality of the bunch. Maybe he’ll go to a family like mine. A family who has never had a dog before, but tons of desire to give the best home possible. I wish him luck. I wish them all luck. Maybe they spend their whole lives happy and healthy, with people who love them and treat them like family members. Maybe some of them will do great things in the dog world and maybe they’ll know failure too. Either way, I feel privileged i got to visit them in the beginning and help them get used to the world they will eventually live in.