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Justice All Hyped Up (Aka Hype)


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This thread is a little delayed as we have only just got our internet restored following the Newcastle Storms in April (yay for the speediness of Telstra!).

On Wednesday 6th May 2015 we welcomed this long-awaited bundle of fluff into our lives. I have had my eye on this breed for many years now but the logistics of importing from the UK put them well out of reach. When I heard that a friend of ours had imported a few into NZ I thought to myself, "I might be in with a shot one day", but given the average litter size is 1-2 pups I put it to the back of my mind. Then Posh went and threw 6 puppies :laugh: They were a day old when the breeder messaged me and asked if I was interested in one. I mentioned it to Tailwag and within 5 mins we had decided, by that afternoon he had a name LOL

I will include a link to the breed standard although it really doesn't do them justice. We had absolutely no idea what we were in for! Hype is a little firecracker, very wary of strangers and from 8 weeks of age has flat out refused attention of any sort that isn't on his terms. He is so different to the border collies and terriers who, as puppies, are just passed around to meet anyone and everyone. Hype wants nothing to do with anybody who isn't his friend and the more someone tries to become a friend the more he despises them. The best tactic seems to be to completely ignore him and go about your business. Then he can approach at his own pace and when he is ready. If you have yummy treats then you will enter the good books (until the yummy treats run out).

The first 2 weekends were spent at agility trials where everyone, understandably, wanted to meet him and cuddle him. I learnt very quickly to tuck him under and run away as people would rush up to him and try and scruff his face, expecting that all puppies love attention. His litter brother was at the same trials so they spent the weekends together in a puppy pen where they could see people from a distance and play to their hearts content. I was really impressed with the number of people who went away and researched the breed after the first weekend, and were much better prepared for interactions with him the second weekend. They are used to seeing him now and everyone just ignores him, much to his delight! He is old enough to be on the ground which helps as he can choose the pace of the interactions. He loves food and tugging and will happily perform tricks for anyone with food. His only condition is that you do not attempt to pat him in any way (although he is becoming more accepting of that too).

The initial plan was to get him into the show ring but he is a long way off being ready for that. His confidence has improved greatly with people but he still is not ready for strangers to be approaching him and running their hands over him, let alone looking at his mouth etc. We haven't ruled it out for the future but he will need a lot more practise before that can happen. I don't see the point in setting him up for a negative experience when he has come so far already.

He is an absolute clown of a dog and has just fitted into our lifestyle so easily. I would have a whole house full of these dogs, they are such characters and he has us in stitches constantly. As Tailwag says, he lives in a world of unicorns and rainbows. Life is just one big party and meant to be enjoyed! The other dogs are incredibly tolerant of his stupidity because, although very full on, he is not in their face like the BC puppies. If someone doesn't want to play, he just wanders off to play with something else. When he does play, it is very loud with lots of barking and growling and pretty full on. The terriers enjoy his style of play (although at 14 and 16 they rarely feel like playing with him) and some of the border collies have adapted well, the others just ignore him. Meeting strange dogs is the same, they either realise he is playing or think he wants a piece of them and move away.

In saying that though, they are definitely not the breed for everyone. Hype has met a few people who have wanted the breed for themselves, only to have them turn around after 5mins and say that perhaps they are not the sort of breed they would like after all. They are incredibly headstrong and do not like it when things are not going their way, so it is important that their owner is a strong leader. Hype throws the biggest tantrums I have ever seen in a puppy and they can go on for half an hour! They are into everything and can bounce ridiculously high. Given half a chance I suspect that he would bounce onto the kitchen counter from a stop start and he is only 17 weeks old. Constant Positive Socialisation is a must with these dogs. They are bred to be wary and guard against threats, they will not hesitate to use their teeth if they feel it is warranted (but will bark and carry on first to give plenty of warning). Most of them do not want to meet friends, they have their people and that is all they need. They shouldn't be aggressive, they should just ignore everyone around them.

Now for the important part- the photos!!!

The first cuddle with Tailwag. He was so traumatised by the flight and a mixup at the airport that had them badly delayed at customs it took us 20mins to entice him out of the crate once we got home. Once out though, he just melted into our arms.

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Playing in the yard the next day

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The brothers relaxing at their first agility trial. Wookiee getting a belly rub and Hype passed out on a friend's lap.

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8-9 weeks of age

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First Aussie beach trip (he had been to the beach in NZ as a puppy though). He would be about 15 weeks old I think.

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With me at Puppy School Graduation. He chucked the biggest tantrum about having to stay still and have his graduation cap put on. Anyone would think I was trying to murder him! We were actually going to repeat the class as he made so much progress but the timing just didn't work out with travelling to a few agility comps. By the end of puppy school he was interacting with the other puppies and trying to climb onto people's laps, it was great to see him come out of his shell and had hoped to continue it further but it wasn't to be.

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Another beach trip, about 16 weeks old. Anything is a toy to this dog!

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such a happy soul :)

He really is. He is just the most happy-go-lucky dog I have ever owned. Completely bombproof with pretty much everything (except strange people) and not at all fazed by anything. He just lives in his own little world :laugh:

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Well done you for biting the bullet and going after your dreams! He sounds like an absolute riot.

Where are you located, DC? If I ever see you out and about with him I'll simply HAVE to say hello, but I'll remember this thread and keep my manners about me for his sake :laugh:

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Well done you for biting the bullet and going after your dreams! He sounds like an absolute riot.

Where are you located, DC? If I ever see you out and about with him I'll simply HAVE to say hello, but I'll remember this thread and keep my manners about me for his sake :laugh:

We are all in NSW :) We are near Newcastle, his litter brother is in North Sydney and then there is an unrelated 10 month old male who has just been imported from the US living in Bathurst. I think Presto is a little more accomodating of strangers and has finished his US Ch so will be shown in Aus too. Wookiee was a little more confident than Hype but I haven't seen him for quite a while so not sure what he is like now. 2 of the litter brothers are making their show debut over the next few weeks in NZ, his 2 litter sisters (stayed with the breeder and her good friend) are more like Hype and not ready to handle the show ring yet. So, they all seem to be different :)

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His favourite game is jumping into the beanbag. Either to retrieve a toy or of his own accord. He goes flying down the hallway at my friend's place and launches himself into the beanbag :laugh:

His favourite toy is a cheap brush that we got from God only knows where...

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He sounds like a riot! Can't wait to meet him at some agility trials :)

He will be at ADC next weekend and the Aussie Shepherd Club if you are doing either of those :)

Awesome, I will definitely be at ADC, so will keep an eye out for you guys :)

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He sounds like a riot! Can't wait to meet him at some agility trials :)

He will be at ADC next weekend and the Aussie Shepherd Club if you are doing either of those :)

Awesome, I will definitely be at ADC, so will keep an eye out for you guys :)

I expect Leoney will be there with Wookiee too so the brothers can catch up (or try and kill each other.. only time will tell!)

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He sounds like a riot! Can't wait to meet him at some agility trials :)

He will be at ADC next weekend and the Aussie Shepherd Club if you are doing either of those :)

Awesome, I will definitely be at ADC, so will keep an eye out for you guys :)

I expect Leoney will be there with Wookiee too so the brothers can catch up (or try and kill each other.. only time will tell!)

Excellent! So I can see them together! I've met Wookiee once before at training :)

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