TerraNik

Love the 2nd gull photo! Nice!

Congrats! He's gorgeous!

Yeah, I think Kivi and Ahsoka are two ends of the spectrum! Kivi is a real sook! He's gorgeous! Once you meet him, you'll fall in love.

How exciting!!!! She will certainly blow your socks off! She's not exactly what I would call a calm lapphund...

Jedi follows me EVERYWHERE. He stares at me all the time and looks for me if I'm not home. He's a real cheeky bugger who makes me laugh every day without fail. Jedi sleeps on the bed with me and we cuddle all night. Jedi isn't a dog-dog or a person-dog. He only really has eyes for me. He won't even greet others unless they are well known to him like my OH, Woofenpup and ~*Shell*~. And dogs? What dogs?! :rolleyes: Ahsoka is much more independent. She will pop in and say hello every now and again but is then off doing her own thing. She goes NUTS when we get home though. And she loves a good cuddle with us. She will say hello to anyone in a 100m radius though - she is a real social butterfly. The thing she loves doing most with us is having a game of tug or going for a run but she would happily do that with anyone. She sleeps under the bed but as soon as the alarm goes off she's up on top for morning cuddles.

Lyn, I don't know if any lappies are entered on the 19th, but I can pop into the show with Jedi and Ahsoka if you like so you can meet them?

Congrats everyone! 199! Wow!

I don't think Jed and I will be doing the ET now... He keeps having trouble with his left front paw and isn't able to run at the moment. The Et is in a few weeks.

That is awesome Kavik!! What a boost!

From that photo, you'd think he was quite placid. You haven't lived till you've had Harry hit you at full pelt! He takes cuddles to the extreme! I really need to get some Harry-action on video one of these days!

Wow! That is amazing, Vickie!! I would love to see her in action!

I never physically force my dogs to do anything, even if they have ignored a cue (though it is extremely rare). If that happens, I ignore them or put them away (if they are a trained adult dog with good proofing). For a puppy who may not understand a cue or is too distracted, I give them the benefit of the doubt and ask again. If they still ignore the cue I know that I haven't trained it well enough for that environment or that I'm not rewarding them enough. I agree with Vickie - I would try to use a technique that does not require physical direction.

We take our two on my Dad's boat but never longer than just during the day. I would highly recommend getting a good life vest though. We have the Ruffwear Float Coat.

I always giggle at the title... My family is from Lithuania Wow, nominations open already.. Better get cracking!

I agree about the grooming, Rysup. I find Keeshonds easy to groom, too - but on a relative scale they are harder than Lappies. I guess if I had to do a comparison... Jedi in full coat takes 30-60 minutes to do a full groom (it's been a while!!!). Ahsoka takes about 10 minutes. A male lappie takes about 15-20 minutes.

Oh yes! And then we can have bets on which breed will win! I'm not sure what you mean by "mixed" for Keeshond colour... They're all black/grey/white - though do have varying shades of darkness.

Go right ahead!!! Will look forward to your conclusions!

Seriously, do not be concerned about people being intimidating!! All the lappie people here are awesome and so generous with their time! We can't stop talking about the breed once we get started!

I don't know where you're looking, but there are 14 listed on DOL. Miavig is in Sydney and they are very happy for people to visit them. Their lappies are complete cuddle muffins and very laid back. Awesome for some fluffy snuggles! They also breed Keeshonds. Snofyre is on the Central Coast but she shows in Sydney regularly. She has two adult lappies and two puppies at the moment. Ausvarg is in Sydney and they are expecting a litter soon with their bitch Scribble. Aside from that, there are a few of us who show in Sydney as well with ranging ages. Ahsoka (almost 2), Demi (almost 1), Quito (about 7 months, I think) and Mitch (3). We're always happy for people to come visit us at shows to have a cuddle and a chat. But you should definitely come to the lappie picnic - that's where you'll see the most lappies of various activity levels and ages!

Keeshond breeders or keeshond numbers? But yes... There are only two Lappie breeders in Sydney and one on the central coast. There are a few other breeders who own them, but haven't had a little yet to my knowledge. There are over 10 Keeshond breeders in NSW. Keeshonden are much more common. I am not surprised when I see one when I'm out and about... But I die of shock when I see another Lappie.

No, I would say Samoyeds, Keeshonds, Lappies. There are not many lappies in NSW - there's only 300 in the country. Health-wise I can't comment on Samoyeds... Keeshonds: PHPT (genetic test available), epilepsy, skin problems, Cushing's, hypothyroidism. And the usual hip dysplasia. Lappies: lots of eye conditions - PRA (genetic test - we have no lappies WITH PRA, only carriers or clear), retinal dysplasia, PHTVL, PHPV. And hip and elbow dysplasia.

Ruffwear's Griptrex boots are about as heavy duty as you can get. We have a set and they're brilliant. Made out of the same materials has human runners.

Lappies Vs Kees from my perspective (can't comment on Samoyeds) Lappies are a cross between a cuddle muffin and a working dog. They would happily lie around all day with you, but at the same token would happily be active all day. They do range in activity levels from couch potato extreme (i.e. don't you dare wake me up for a walk!) to crazy psycho lappies (i.e. constant zoomies, playing, running, etc). I have a crazy psycho. I find them more independent than Keeshonds in that they don't really follow you around as much, but they do check in every now and again. I have met some that are a little more clingy. They can be stubborn, but I wouldn't say as much as Keeshonds. They're very smart, too - I'd put them on par with other working breeds particularly kelpies. I am training both breeds at the moment and they're very similar to work with. Though others are harder to work with because they don't have the same level of drive. They LOVE others but can be a little shy of strangers. On the whole though, they are all over new people and other dogs. The grooming is relatively easy. I've left Soaks for 3 months without a groom (as an experiment) and she had no matts and you couldn't tell that I hadn't groomed her. If I did that with Jedi I'd be in big trouble! Keeshonds are cheekier and make me laugh more. You really need a sense of humour to own one! They can be more stubborn but I don't find they have that much of an independent streak. They follow you around EVERYWHERE, often being aptly named, "Shadow". They are pretty active dogs but are definitely happy to sleep aaaaaaaaaaaaaaall day! :D They've very smart and pick things up quickly so easily trained if you are able to break through the stubborn barrier with a good bond. I think it depends on the individual keeshond whether they are really social with strangers or not. Jedi couldn't care less, but I have seen others who are all over new people. Same with their interactions with dogs. The grooming is much more tedious.

Yay Huski and tiggy! That's awesome!

Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!!!!!!!!!!!!!!