stonecutter

We had a great time with Tim from Kouzoku this afternoon/evening and had lots of puppy cuddles . Anyway - introducing our little lovely - Kouzoku Ziva This pic wasn't too good - extracted from a video Tim was originally keeping her to be shown and later on used for breeding, but his health isn't fantastic at the moment so he wanted her to go to a great home and he chose us . She'll be on the main register. I wasn't keen on an entire dog - but given she was being kept for her potential, we'll wait and see how she looks at 5 months. If she has potential - we might get in to showing (I'm going to need heaps of help there!). Ziva's great aunt was the first JS to win an agility title - so hopefully she has a little of that in her as well! Her homecoming will be first week in April - I can't wait I'll post some more puppy pics in a sec

Nice stash Naomi!

Yeah - let's break that down to see crossbreeds and pure breeds as separate figures - perhaps they didn't because pure breeds may have come out lower What is classified as a "health problem" anyway - something as simple as a skin condition caused by allergic reaction to something in diet could potentially be classified as a "health problem". Got to love half-arsed attempts at research (especially surveys - response bias!!)

Naomi - I have a fluffy heart beat pillow for night time we can take out the heart beat bit and use it as a normal cuddle toy later on. Apparently the Reject Shop has a good selection of toys. I'm looking for treat chew toys to keep him/her occupied during the day while we're at work.

Nadine - at this stage it looks like our puppy will be coming home April 2nd as well Naomi - I'm not keen on showing either (it seems like people spend their entire weekends at shows!) but I wouldn't mind agility or OB. I know you can't start agility until 18 months - but at least our dog will be used to tunnels! (we are having to create a tunnel in the wall for the doggy door)

Looks great smoothie girl! We're also building a dog run from Bunnings supplies - PVC coated mesh wire and green steel stakes that will be tied on. Hubby is making a gate out of old fence palings. No puppy visit after all - Tim (our breeder) was kept in hospital for 2 days observation after his CT scan - hopefully all is well. We'll probably head out during the week to see the pups after he's discharged and feeling better. I'm in the process of starting the dog door today. Bit tricky since it's going in the wall - but I've managed to remove the tiles on the wall (laundry skirting), found the studs - and amazingly the dog door fits exactly between. Now I'm just calculating exactly how high it needs to be. I have the measurements of the parents so I'll go for somewhere in between.

Loving the pics We get to have a puppie visit tomorrow - I am so excited! It will feel like forever for the 4wk wait until he/she comes home

Koda is so cute

Bobbi is so cute - his colouring makes it look like he's wearing socks Woohoo Aannie! Lots of pics when you get home please

Awww - lovely words Vi!

Do you have an OH that will check the receipts I've been given a budget of $500 by hubby - but that does include $250 for a dog door that will go through a brick wall. I've only bought toys and the crate so far - need to get cracking! Love the Halo pics - she's such a gorgeous girl!

I second that I hear there is also a NSW Spitz club - but I can't seem to find any info online about it.

Hey Naomi See if you can get a piece of blanket or something from their mother's den to take with you to put in the crate. I've been told that it will make the transition a bit easier. I found the books you can download from http://www.dogstardaily.com/ really helpful in explaining crate training - apparently you close the door the first time for only a minute and then open. I've read that a rule of thumb is that they can stay in the crate for 1 hr for every month of age - though that does sound like a lot!

I love Lilly - beautiful My hubby has a theory on dog/pet names - they should only be 1 or 2 syllables. He refuses to discuss any name with more than 2! I wanted Hideki for a boy - but 3 syllables (named after the Japanese baseball player Hideki Matsui - I figured it would be good for a Japanese Spitz!). At the moment it will be Merlin for a boy, Ziva for a girl.

Naomi those tags are so cool!

Somewhere to sleep - we'll be crate training so I already have the crate. Need to get some bedding. Grooming brush/comb - I've been advised to groom for a few minutes each day for the first couple of weeks to help with bonding Baby gates or play pen - for confinement to a room or area Doggy door Pet insurance (if you're going to get some) Booking for puppy pre-school Storage container for the dog food

Hope everyone is handling the waiting ok My first load of puppy toys arrived today! Some puppy Kongs, a squeaker toy, some tug toys and a heart beat pillow - all up 6 toys delivered from the US for less than A$60. I checked pet store and online store prices in Oz and they were so expensive - love Ebay

I'm a little biased because one is coming home to us in April - but have you considered Japanese Spitz? If you're time poor for exercise, I've been told 1x20 min walk a day is perfectly fine. Ours will be alone during the day - but our breeder will select one who is a little more on the independent side. No doggy odour inside either. Training wise - one of my breeder's dogs won an agility title - so there must be some obedience in there I don't know of JS with obedience titles (but I haven't really looked) They are medium sized and even though they look fluffy - girls shed twice a year, boys once - not all year round. I'm sure some of the experts on here will have plenty better advice than mine though!

Wow - that is impressive! We're 20 minutes away near Quakers Hill (Blacktown Kennel Club is closer but I can't find many on DOL who have been there and had such glowing reviews!) - so a quick trip down the M7, off at Norwest Blvd and we should be there. Now all we're waiting for is the puppy!

Nice post - I hadn't thought about puppy pre-school at a training club - I'd only looked into the DogTech one ($110 for 3 weeks - ouch!) and the one at Rooty Hill vet hospital Monday nights might work too - as long as I can get home a bit early - is traffic around the showgrounds a shocker like it is on the weekends?

Oh that is just adorable!

That is the practice with the other JS breeders I've encountered (however they also desex at 8 wks whereas we would prefer waiting until 5-6 months). There are about 10 JS (besides puppies) in the family and the breeder also boards dogs that have been purchased from him - so there are plenty of opportunities for socialisation. I've read that pups shouldn't be socialised with other dogs until their 2nd set of shots (12 wks) besides puppy school (where vacc is required) and dogs they can prove have been C5 vaccinated (or titre tested I assume). Tim also does a lot of house training with them between 8 and 12 weeks - they watch parents and other dogs give the signal for eliminating (they put their paw up on a particular door) - being around others who are house trained means they are supposed to get the idea much more quickly. During the 8-12 wk period they also go on car rides, to the shops etc to be socialised with people and motion. This creates a pup who is a little more independent which is what we're after (since we don't have any other animals for him/her to be at home with during the day when we work)

Yup - that's where we are at - we have to wait for first shots and vet check until we come visit, then they don't go home until they've had their 12 wk shot.

Still ages for us to wait - first week in April

WA - Halo is so adorable!! I bought a whole stack of doggy toys (mostly Kong stuff) from EBay in the US - 6 puppy chew, squeaker, treat and soft toys for A$60 delivered - about 50% of the price they sell them for here Welcome Nadine! Atua - so very cute