Lewis had a big day today. He went to Jill's school twice, the vet for his health certificate, and went shopping at the pet supply store. He certainly received more than his fair share of attention. He is just a pretty boy. He got to try out some crates and pick just the right one to fly home in. He goes home tomorrow. Oops, do you suppose I ought to let his family know he is going home to them tomorrow and that they need to go to the airport to pick him up? Here we are doing all this preparing and yet almost forgot to let his family know. I just called them and good thing they are delighted and good thing they are able to pick him up tomorrow. I was up really late tonight.
Bye bye Lewis, you were my favorite from the moment you were born because of your white chin, white 'r' on your chest, and your white toe.


It about killed me to have you neutered. I will miss you.

Wham bam...

It was 2:00 a.m. before I got to bed this morning, and before 6:00 when I had to get up.

According to the progesterone testing, today is Mera's peak day for breeding. Mera spent the night so she would be here when Meeko and his guardian family arrived today. They came over around 10:00 a.m. or so. We let Meeko and Mera say hi to each other while we went over to look at Rosie's pupppies.
I handed one of the pups to the mom and, oops yuck, he had some dried
poo on him. I haven't had a chance yet to bathe them
(sigh...remembering the Laaaazy River). I real quick like took one of the pups in my bathroom to give him a bath. When I was just finishing up with him, Meeko's mom came to let me know Meeko and Mera were doing the deed. So I walk in the living room, and where do you think they were? Yup, on the luuuuv couch. That silly Mera. I'll just bet it is a learned behaviour for her now. That is the only place where Da Vinci was able to reach her and now she must think that is where she has to be for it. It was really pretty funny. Meeko is a big boy and he doesn't need the couch to reach her. When they were done, I disinfected
the couch. I don't think I will ever have a cloth couch again. How in
the world could they be sanitary? Sure, not everyone has dogs doing it
on their couch. But still, people sit on them and maybe even put their
feet on them. So,Meeko arrived at 10:00 and was leaving already at
10:30 a.m. He arrived, said hi, did the deed, romped for a minute in
the backyard, licked the top of Mera's head and told her "thank you, bye" and was off.
Yessss....what a good stud boy he is going to be!

The Laaaazy River

Aaahh, today was the best, except for the going home part that came later. I slept in as late as I wanted. It was after 8:00 a.m. before I got up, wow. I spent the entire morning lounging around in my fuzzy purple footie jammies hanging out with my four apartment mates (and Renee when she got around to coming over). So far 3 out the 6 of us has sold a puppy via cell phone and/or computer this weekend. I was not one of them.

This resort has a water park that has a Lazy River in it. Renee and I finally got around to going. As soon as we got there I called the others and strongly advised they come join us. I assured them they did not have to wear bathing suits or get wet. The winning points for them was that we could order food here. Everyone was hungry.
Anyway, Renee and I didn't waste any time checking out the Lazy River. It looked so peaceful and tranquil. One of my very favorite things is just floating on an inner tube and enjoying the sunshine (and not getting wet). So, it took some fancy moves but I managed to get on a tube and on the water without getting wet at all. Aaaahhhhhh...this is the life...just floating along...letting the sun gently wash over us...not a care in the world...aaaahhhhh...perfection....we float around the bend...and what is that sound Renee...do you hear that...what the...OH MY GOSH IT IS A WATERFALL! No...it is right in the middle of the river. Oh we hurry and try to paddle to the side with our hands. Renee managed to get to the side and she reached her hand out to save me. It was all so very dramatic. I managed to grab her fingers and pull over far enough to grab a fern. Ferns don't exactly have branches, but what ever it is ferns have it saved my life because I was able to grab it and pull myself over to to the side. So we kept a hold of the side and inched past the waterfall without getting wet. Whew...glad that is over...now where were we...aaahhhh...back to enjoying peace and tranquility. Hey! Not another waterfall...but...but...that is not fair and it didn't give us enough warning...noooooo...save me Renee....I...can't...make...it...splash splash glug glug. Well, that was invigorating. I went right square under the waterfall and got drenched. Somehow it wasnt' as bad as I thought it would be though. The water wasn't freezing and the sun is warm. I have to keep reminding myself that we aren't in Indiana. Hey, no fair, Renee didn't get sucked under the waterfall, she is dry. humpf! I'll have to try to talk her in to going for another round so I can shove her tube in the current so she can experience the waterfall too. One must get the full experience to thoroughly enjoy it. In the meantime, back to the peace and tranquility. When we rounded another corner there was a young man working there. They had these life guard people stationed here and there to ensure the safety of the guests. So where was my life guard when I was about to get drenched? Renee and I start giving him a hard time about us get getting wet. He made it sound like we were idiots for being surprised that we might get wet while playing in the w-a-t-e-r (that is what he said). Somehow I don't think he caught on that we were only teasing. When we rounded another corner we spotted the others so we got out (without getting wetter).

We found a nice area to lounge and we ordered our food. It seemed to take forever to get there. I only had about another hour before I needed to leave for the airport. Finally it arrived and just as we were getting ready to eat, Diane's phone rang. It was kind of funny. All weekend when someone's phone rang the rest of us would say "oh, maybe she is going to sell a puppy", and we got excited for her. It was neato hanging out with others who know exactly how it is. Our long awaited and expensive food had just arrived but Diane didn't mention it to the caller. She was very happy to talk to her about her puppies. Renee and I were following along. That was pretty funny too. When Diane told the caller "he is 11 weeks old" I leaned over to Renee and pretended to be the caller "what is wrong with him? why is he still there?". Then Diane, who was oblivious to anything else, said to the caller "there is absolutely nothing wrong with him, he just....". Then I leaned over to Renee and we both said at the same time "would you be willing to come down on the price since he is so old?" Yes, of course that was the next question Diane answered for the caller. We couldn't hear the caller but we knew what she was going to say next. See, there are others that live my life. This is the best part of the weekend. Just being with others who understand and know how it is. She likely sold the puppy. That makes just two of who didn't sell one. pout

Whiiiinnneee....I don't wanna go .....

I pried myself from the lounge chair and drove back to the apartment, showered, packed, and drove back to the airport. Yikes, I had to go out of my way to find a gas station to fill up the SUV. I'm running late and I just know I will have some type of problem when I turn in the SUV. Oh man, why did I do this to myself? O.k., I found a gas station, filled up, and found my way to the airport and to the rental return. Wow...no problems at all and it didn't cost anything extra for the SUV. wow. Now, I'm still running late.

I drag my luggage to the terminal and I am faced between using the elavator or the escalator. I figure the escalator must be faster so I climb aboard. Why is this a big deal you may ask? Because it goes up two stories...straight up...no getting off anyplace...just straight up two flights. My hands and feet are sweating for real now just reliving that nightmare. So there I drag my luggage on and go up and up and up and up...I'm a little over half way up...and oooohhhh myyyy goshhhhh...I just know I am going to die...this is it....my luggage is going to pull me backwards and I am going to fall back down the stairs and I am going to be killed...that is it...there is not a doubt in my mind I am going to die right here right now. I try closing my eyes but that makes it worse because I'm afraid I will lose my balance and fall backwards and down the stairs and die. (I have to keep stopping and wiping my hands as I'm writing this). I can't turn around and I can't get off. I just have to stay on until I get to the top and hope I don't trip at the top or get stuck and fall down the stairs and die. I try meditating and repeating to myself that I have never heard of or seen anyone falling down an escalator and dieing. I've never seen anyone falling down an escalator. but...I've never seen anyone getting murdered, never seen anyone get hit by a train, never seen anyone fall off a roof; but I know all those things happen. I was with one of my sisters once when she broke her arm on an escalator. Made it! Whew, I made it and I didn't die. Wow, I had to hurry and walk away from there because I was afraid I would trip or sneeze or somehow my luggage would force me back to there and I would die.

Had to hurry had to hurry I was running late. Whew, the flight was delayed and I was fine. Once on the plane I admit that I looked around for my glasses again. I was sitting in the same seat as before, but not certain it was the same plane. The flight was uneventful, thank goodness.

Ooohhhh man...I lost my van keys. When I got my luggage I ended up taking everything out 2 times looking for my keys. It was 11:00 p.m. or so when I had to end up calling Rick asking him to drive an hour each way to bring my keys. For some reason he didn't act too thrilled to see me when he got here.

I sold a puppy over the weekend and didn't even know it. There is someone I had been talking to about Lewis the Josie/DaVinci pup that is still here. She had submitted an application already but just hadn't been quite ready to commit. When I got home of course I made a bee line to the computer and saw she had sent in payment in full for Lewis. Well how about that. He will go home this week.

The house was not in bad shape at all.

The Romp and Dinner

I'm still in Orlando, Florida at a Doodle breeders convention thingie.

Wow, I slept in this morning. No puppy whines, no toddler getting in our bed, no alarm clocks, no husband snoring, no nothing but peace and quiet. We (not the royal we, my apartment mates) couldn't lounge around too long though. The Doodle Romp started at 9:00 a.m. and I was going spastic thinking we might be late. It was a beautiful day. It was perfectly sunny and warm. When we got to the romp I ended up taking off my shoes and going barefoot. I half expected a dog to run off with my Crocs, but they didn't. The romp was really nice. They had a service there with a guy walking around with a pooper scooper picking up the poos right away, very nice.
Here are pictures (not of the pooper scooper):
See how nice it is outside? I'm barefoot in November.

One of the breeders who helped put this weekend together trains killer whales at Sea World. She had the dog trainer from Sea World come to our romp with his dog and do a demonstration for us. It was really neato. I took their pictures because they are probably famous and I just don't know it.


Here are some breeders and some people (what, like breeders aren't people?)

They gave prizes away and I was a winner! I won a water bottle and Renee won a nice basket of doggie biscuits. We coveted each other's prize so we swapped. I feel badly that I don't know who donated it. I would like to thank them.

After the romp some of us were hungry and wanted to go grab something to eat. I didn't want to leave anybody out, so I went around to each breeder and invited him/her to join us. It was all very last minute. Imagine my delight at the restaurant as eventually almost all of the breeders showed up. It was great. It was so fun seeing in person the people I hang out on the forums with. I would so love to name-drop, but I better not. I don't know how shy some of the other breeders. Hey, if you were there and want to say "hi", feel free to post a comment with your website and email address included. I sat next to Renee. She doesn't come across as being shy. She is hilarious.

After lunch I was supposed to go get my bathing suit on and meet Renee, Karen, and Peggy at the pool. Well, I did get my suit on, wrapped a towel around me and drove off to where I thought the pool was. I saw a sign for the pro shop and was thinking the pool was behind that. The parking lot was nearly full and there were people walking around in nice golfing clothes. Somehow I felt uncomfortable with the idea of walking through an upscale golf shop wearing a bathing suit and towel. This isn't Motel 6. I was disappointed and got depressed and went back to the apartment and went to bed. Ahhhh, that was nice to go to bed in the middle of the day. I took a 2 1/2 hour nap. That was total luxury, but not a luxurous as napping by the pool would have been. I felt badly at standing the others up. I tried.

That evening we went to dinner and listened to two speakers. The first speaker was Dr Arun of the Florida Animal Reproductive Center I learned lots from him. The other speaker was a trainer who told us how/when to train our pups before they go to their new homes. I learned lots from her too. I'd say the weekend was worth it. It was so great to chat with the other breeders. One of the poor breeders got a phone call from home during dinner. His 14 yr old Poodle died unexpectedly.
Here are some pictures from this evening. I won't tell you who they are unless they let me know it is o.k.
Those are not pictures in the background. That is really real.

Ta Da!

We all lined our cameras up and one of the employees so kindly took pictures with each of our camera. The battery of my camera died so I wasn't able to take anymore pictures. This was good though.
They had give aways this evening too. I won some shampoo and conditioner that Mindi donated. Thank you Mindi, I have been enjoying them.

Speaking of being a winner. I forgot to mention that another breeder had shirts and hats made that she gave to each of us. Someone also donated Lupine collars and I won one. Again, I feel badly that I don't remember who. I think it might have been Alisa that donated them.

Leaving on a jet plane

2:30 a.m. came too quickly. Bright and early, 5:55 a.m., this morning I flew to Orlando to a doodle breeders convention. The sky was bright and blue and the sun was warm. The book I'm reading while doing the airport/airplane thing is "Cesar's Way" by Cesar Millan, star of National Geographic Channel's Dog Whisperer. It is great. You guys should all read it and watch his show.

We arrived in Orlando at 9:35 a.m. That meant I had all day to enjoy the sunshine. That airport is so big we had to take a tram over to the other side of the airport to get our luggage. (that is the royal we and our) O.k., so, I have my luggage and I go over to the car rental place. There all these counters for all these different car rental companies, and only one company has a line. It isn't just a couple of people, but a whole big long line of people waiting. I'm looking at my car rental reservation that I printed out yesterday. It says something like "bypass the lines, go directly to pick up your car...", so naturally I thought "well, I don't have to be like all those poor people, I get to skip the line". I dragged my luggage and walked way over to the garage to get my car. The chick there looked at my reservation and said I would have to go back over to the airport and wait in line. But...but...it says...she didn't care what it said. She said I have to go back, so back I went. It look forever, I was so glad I didn't have an appointment or any reason to be in a hurry. After I waited forever and signed the form I went back over to the parking garage. It was so weird, they said to just go pick out the car I wanted that was in the area I signed up for. They all had keys and I was just supposed to get in and drive away. They had tons of cars, but only two in the Premium section. There was just a little car that didn't look like anything special, and an SUV. Ooooo, that SUV had to be a mistake...I wonder if I would get caught if I took it....oooo but it was in the premium section. I looked around to see if anybody was watching...then I real quick-like put my bags in. This chick came over and looked disappointed to see that other car was the only one available in that section, she got in it and drove away. Well, that means this SUV is the only one in this section. Still I was just waiting for someone to come over and tell me I couldn't have that one. I got in, looked around figuring out how to operate everything then back it up and started driving off. This was too easy, what was to keep people from just diving away in them without signing up? Oh, I get it now, we had to stop and show our paperwork before getting out of the garage. Oh great, there is no getting away now, he is going to see I signed up for premium and not an SUV. But but this was the only vehicle in the Premium section. His computer must have been down or something. It was forever to get up there. The plane landed at 9:35 a.m. and it was 11:30 a.m. before I finally got out of there. He just looked at my paper work, did something in the computer (probably dialed the cops to report me for stealing an upgrade) and said o.k. I am free to go. I said "That's it?" oh gee, do you suppose I could have been more subtle? and he said "yes, that is all". off I drove. Oh, did I mention that I lost my glasses on the first flight? Yup, I have to take them off to read. I either put them in my shirt pocket or had them on top of my head when I was reading and waiting to board the first flight. I don't remember if I put them back on when I got up to board the plane. At any rate, they were no where to be found when the first flight landed. I really need them for distance vision. That means it is scary for me to drive without them. Well, actually, driving during the day in good weather is fine. So, anyway, off I drove. What an adventure to hop on a flight, grab a car, and drive to the resort. I drove right to it. It was about 1/2 drive and would have cost $78 each way for a cab or if the resort hired a car for me. No thanks, driving is fine and much cheaper. So I got to the resort and was really hoping to be able to check in early and take a nap before heading back to the airport this afternoon to pick up some other breeders. Just as I was afraid of, since I am not the one who made the reservations I couldn't check in. I had to wait. Shoot, I was so tired. I went out to the car and napped on and off for three hours until going back to pick up the others. I drove straight to the airport without any problems. It was early so I went to the food court and had some pizza and read more of Ceasr's book. It is a good book, you need to read it. Then I went down to the baggage claim area and found where they will be picking up their bags. Then I walked from that area to where I parked the SUV. I wanted to be able to impress them with how well I knew my way around the Orlando airport. Then I went back and alternated between reading the book and looking at the travelers and trying to guess which were the other breeders. I love doing that (trying to pick out people I know only from the computer and telephone). I thought I figured out who they were but just as I went closer to them some guy that was obviously part of their group joined them. I wasn't rooming with a man so I knew they weren't the ones. I kept seeing these two women, but I was looking for a group of three, and besides, one of them looked too fancy for a dog breeder. It turned out to be them. The other was over with a family delivering a puppy to them.

Yeah, it is time to go back to the resort now. Keep in mind that I have already driven straight there and back already. That is over an hour in that vehicle with no problems. Well, we make our way to the vehicle and all get in. Then one of them says something about feeling nervous when she drives people around because she feels like they are watching and judging her. Hmm, I hadn't thought of that. I don't feel nervous when I drive people. So what do I do right away? I turn on the windshield wipers instead of putting it in reverse. Then at one point on the way back I made a wrong turn. Oh well, at least we made it in one piece.

We got all checked in and each got our own key card. It is a cashless resort so we have to put everything on the card. It is a 2200 acre place, and very nice. Our room was great. It really was more like an apartment. It had three bedrooms and three bathrooms, living room, kitchen, balcony, and even had an oversized closet with a washer and dryer. I had a room, dressing area, and bathroom all to myself. It was wonderful.

We had dinner with a bunch of other breeders and it was really fun.

No puppies

Today was Holly's due date but it came and went and she is still not even looking pregnant. Tuesday when I took Mera
to see the same vet that did Holly's ultra sound, I told him that Holly
doesn't seem pregnant. He said that if she is only having one pup then
she could pop it out without ever looking pregnant or might only start
showing the day before having the pup(s). Great, that got my hopes up.
I emailed her guardian mom to let her know that and to be on the look
out for suddenly enlarged mammery glands. She said still no signs of pregnancy.

Today I finalized all the going-away plans. When I double checked with my husband to make sure he had his end covered - transporting the girls to and from school and a babysitter in case he wanted to go out - he gave me the deer-frozen-in-the-headlights look. Oh my gosh, it is not like he didn't know I'm leaving and it is not like he doesn't know he is a parent too. So, I made all those arrangements too. Jill's birthmom and her husband will be coming over to babysit. This will be the first time for that. I'm so happy they will be part of each other's lives. That topic is for another blog...back to the doods. Liuda will be coming over Friday and Saturday and Jill's birthmom's husband will be coming over Sunday (first time for that) to take care of the dogs and puppies.

Remember when I said somebody from ILA might eventually notice that one entry? Well...somebody noticed.

I didn't get to bed until after midnight thirty or so.

Rosie's boys got neutered today. Ernie, Steve, and Duncan are their names. I'll spare you the details, just insert the usual...I can't believe how quickly they are growing up...I can't believe how well they do after surgery...They are running around and playing like nothing ever happened....

Ashes looks and acts so much like Velvet. Just looking in to her face and her eyes is like looking in Velvet's face. Sigh...I love Ashes already. This is her puppy picture She was born 4-5-05. She is just going to hang out here with us until either after she retires or until after she is spayed. Hmmm, I guess either way she will be spayed before leaving us.

Boo

What a day today was. Man, it was too busy.

Today started out with the usual taking dogs/puppies out to potty and exercise; got the (human) girls up and took them both to their schools; came home and cleaned the pup areas; cleaned the house; then answered emails. I had to rush to get all that done and then hurry to the airport to pick Ashes (a Velvet/Koby girl that is 1 1/2 yrs old and coming back to live with us) up at 1:30 p.m. That is an hour drive each way. As soon as I got back home I had to drop Ashes off and pick up Bryony and take her to her appointment. Then I went out and picked Mera up, went back to Anderson and picked up Jill from school, picked Bryony up from her appointment, took Bry and Jill home, took Mera to yet another town for her Porgesterone testing, then took her back to her home and then went home. By the time I was finished with all that running it was 8:00 p.m. and I had missed seeing Bryony and Jill Trick-or-Treating. Bummer...I am such a bad mom. They had a great time. As soon as I got home Bry's friends came back to our house and we all sat around watching a movie and eating candy and french fries that Bryony made. It was fun.

All the puppies got dewormed and the shots today. They are getting so big and are so cute. Rosie just spends a little time with them, but not too much.

Lewis (the remaining Josie/DaVinci pup) is in with the big dogs now. Last night he slept in a crate in the living room. I put the crate up on an end table and slept on the couch right beside him. He just whimpered a very little bit and only a couple of times. I put my fingers in the crate and he immediately quieted right down. I took him outside to potty around midnight and again around 5:00 a.m. or so. He is doing really well with housetraining so far. He hasn't had any accidents yet.

They better poo gold

Another puppy, Leland, went home today. That leaves poor 'ole Lewis all alone with the babies and the grown ups.

Holly was supposed to come here today and stay until after she has and raises her puppies. Dangit! She isn't pregnant after all. Remember, she had the ultrasound that showed she was having a small litter? Well evidentally it is so small she isn't even showing or anything and she is due in a couple of days. The vet probably just saw the bladder or something and not a puppy. Dangit, and this is her last litter. That is what I get for not doing the progesterone testing on her. I put a time limit in the guardian contract so their obligation wouldn't drag out indefinately. According to her contract, she is to be spayed by Feb '07. Since she has only had one litter, her guardian mom has graciously offered to let me breed her one more time. That is very nice of her. I may take her up on it, but maybe not. I'll have to take inventory of all the dogs (that makes it sound like they are in a closet) and figure the breeding plans for the next two years.

I need a chocolate ALD stud.

Holy cow Batman! I have switched doggie food and have I mentioned how expensive it is? I stopped at the store last week and bought almost $200 worth, thinking it would last a long time. I just stopped in today to get more and it came to $275. That will probably be two weeks worth. It is http://www.naturesvariety.com/ It is good stuff and a great way to feed a raw diet with the convenience of just opening a bag and giving it to them. Jeepers, I guess convenience comes at a price. The bag of dry food is $40 for a 25 pound bag. I can feed them a raw diet from the meat dept of the grocery store for less than that. Well anyway, they give me coupons to give send home with the puppies and it is best to try it before just recommending it to the families.

Brooklyn flew home this morning. He got to fly out with a cousin. Well, maybe they weren't technically related, and maybe they didn't get to fly in the same crate, well I don't even know if they were on the same flight. There was another local Labradoodle there just finishing up dropping off a puppy when we got there. They had another Fancy puppy with them and man, was she ever a cutie.

Lonnie/Fizz went home this afternoon. His daddy has a really nice camera and took classes so we should expect some good pictures of him (Fizz, not the dad). They also hope to be able to come to Doodle romps now and then. Won't that be fun?

Louis Louis, Louis Louwow

Louis went home this evening. His family is going to take lots of pictures of him and take him places. They don't live too far from here and will hopefully come to some Doodle romps.

Rosie's puppies are certainly turning out wonderfully. I just love 'em so much. Here, look at SteveNow doesn't he look like a model puppy? Oh, and look at Mike He has the perfect sad puppy dog eyes. He looks that way all the time.

What a Honey!

This is Lincoln Manor Honey She went home to her guardian family this evening. She may end up being just a little spoiled. She is going to get all the attention of her parents.

Poor Lewis, did I mention what happened to him? Something came up with the family that had chosen him and they have to wait until after the first of the year before they can bring home a pup. That means he doesn't have a family and will be stuck here all alone after this weekend when the rest of his siblings go home. This means he will get lastofthelitteritis. No matter how wonderful and perfect a puppy may be, people think there is something wrong with the last pup. "Why hasn't he been picked yet?" "Is there a reason everybody has passed on this pup?" "Why is he still there?" and some people come right out and ask "What is wrong with him?" He was originally going to a family that was going to hunt with him. I took this picture for them Have to say, I thought that was pretty clever.

This is Leon.His name is Brooklyn. He is going to move to Brooklyn, NY. Isn't he such a cutie? I love the shape of his face. DaVinci passes that along to his puppies. Brooklyn is going to fly home this Saturday.

This is Lonnie. His new name is Fizz. He is moving to Chicago this Saturday.

What a busy stressful today was. Rick and Bryony both stayed home because they were sick. However, they were not too sick to get out of bed and bug me. Jill stayed home because she and I were supposed to get together with others from our little adoption group. That was canceled at the last minute because some of the others were sick. I spent the day running doing family stuff and not doggie stuff.

Kami flew back home to Texas today. She is all done with Chevy. He stopped by yesterday for a quickie, but she would have none of that.

Luke and Mira went home this weekend. Wow, how they grow up so fast.

Cleaning and more cleaning. So many pups = so much poo.

Josie is what?!?

Josie just has not been recovering quite the way she should. She
just...well, she is just not nice. She has been a female dog. Something
is not right with her. She used to be so sweet, but not lately. First I
attributed it to her being in heat. Then she settled down and we
thought everything was o.k. Then when she came here to have puppies she
was not nice toLiuda or my sister and I blamed it on the brand new
puppies. After a couple of weeks she was fine until all of a sudden a
couple of days ago she growled and acted unfriendly to a friend. She
has never bitten anyone, but still, that is so not right for her or for
aLabradoodle in general. There is really no choice in what we have to
do for her. Something is wrong with her so she must be spayed. If her
hormones are all out of balance then that will take care of it. These
are some of the best puppies we have had yet. She had very quickly
turned into my most valuable breeding girl. But...(don't you hate big
buts)...this is not all about Lincoln Manor. This is what is best for
Josie. It is best for Josie to be spayed to see if that is why she is
not as calm andsweet as she was. Also, if she is just a bad dog then I
certainly don't want to breed her. So bright and early this morning I
took her to the vet to be spayed.

Lewis, the unclaimed chocolate
puppy boy also went to the vet this morning to be neutered. Every
litter I say I am not going to spay/neuter the pups until they are
chosen. This time, based on how Josie is acting, I think it is prudent
to not keep a stud from her. Oh, but he is so scrumptious and has been
my favorite all along.

Honey, our little female we are keeping
back for breeding went to the vet this morning too. Her two lower
canine teeth are coming in wrong. They are going in too far and if not
pulled they will poke the roof of her mouth. So she is just going to
get those teeth pulled. I was so afraid they would not be careful and
just spay her without reading her card to see what I want done. Before
I took her in I got a red Sharpie marker and wrote on her belly. I drew
a big red circle with a line through it and wrote "do not spay". The
techs there thought that was pretty funny.

I wasn't home from
the vet's office very long when I got a call from there. It was one of
the techs. This was the conversation:
Tech: Jane have you tried to breed Josie recently?
Me: Her puppies are not yet 8 weeks old. How recently do you mean?
Tech: Well, she is pregnant. Do you want us to go ahead and do the spay?
Me: What? No, her puppies are barely weaned, they are babies, she can't be pregnant.
Tech:
Well, they have her opened up and the vet found nodules and she is just
a little bit pregnant. So do you want us to continue and spay her?
Me:
(at this point I'm thinking I would not terminate a pregnancy. I don't
care if she is pregnant by the neighbor's cat. I still wouldn't
terminate. On the other hand. I'm not stupid. Josie's puppies are not
even 8 weeks old. She hasn't gone in heat yet. There isno one here who
has impregnated her. She is not pregnant. What they found could be our
answer) Yes, I'm certain she is not pregnant. Even if you think she is,
please continue with the spay.
Tech: O.k.

A couple of hours later I spoke with the vet. She said it was a good thing they spayed her. She had a row of cysts
on her uterus. She said they most likely wouldn't have resolved on
their own and that Josie really did need spayed. She also said the
history I gave on Josie makes perfect sense with thecysts. Cysts cause hormonal imbalances and can cause aggression. Who wudda
thunk it? She said this not anything at all worry about with the
puppies. This is just one of those unfortunate things and now that she
is spayed life will be good.

About an hour after I spoke with the vet about Josie, it dawned on me...oooohhh noo...Lewis!
That wonderful little perfect chocolate wool unspoken for puppy boy. I
ran from the garage into the house and dove for the phone. I called the
vet, but it was too late. Lewis had already been neutered. I asked if
they could dig them back out of the trash and put them back on. I think
the tech thought I was teasing.

Did I mention that Josie is not
a big fan of getting combed? Have I ever mentioned that after a Doodle
has puppies it is like she goes through coat change? They get so matted
so quickly. It was around 6:00 p.m. or so when I got home with Josie
and the puppies. The pups were doing great, playing and running around
like nothing happened. Poor Josie on the other hand, she was acting
like she just had major surgery. Oh wait, she had just had major
surgery. She even puked, poor thing. If I wasn't already a big fan of
early spay/neuter, I sure would be now. Just seeing first hand over and
over the huge huge difference in their recovery is enough to convince
me. Anyway, back to Josie's coat. She is really matted quite badly. The
minute I got home and got Jill settled and put Lewis and Honey in their
own areas, I grabbed the mat buster and comb and went to work on
Josie's coat. She was letting me work through her coat with not one
protest. Wow, this was exciting. I wanted to work quickly and get as
much done as possible before she woke completely and/or before her
guardian came to get her this evening. I was so intent on getting her
done that I didn't want to stop for supper. My husband, bless him,
fixed a really nice supper for us. I figured I'd eat later. I wasn't
even half way done when Josie's guardian mom came to pick her up. She
was excited about the progress too. She has a son that is Jill's age
and they always enjoy playing together. So, Mason and Jill played and
Heather and I chatted while I worked on Josie. When it was time for me
to takeBryony to her friends house, Heather took her for me so I could
continue working on Josie. Finally at about 10:30 or so we were all
worn out and decided to call i quits. All the mats were out except the
outside of one of her rear legs. Not too bad at all.

Lewis did get chosen today. A family that wants to train him to be a bird dog is getting him.

Surprise! (added something)

Chevy came over at 7:00a.m. again this morning. He and Kami were sure
glad to see each other. Ally was barely out of the driveway when the
happy couple were...uh...coupling. She doesn't yell anymore.

I took Jill to school then ran home and did the usual cleaning routine.

At 1:00 p.m. I took my van to the shop for new brakes and other stuff.

I bet someone filed a complaint with the ILA/ALAA
about me. Oh gee, I wonder who that could have been. Can you hear me
rolling my eyes? No, it wasn't crazy neighbor. This afternoon after I
got back from running errands, someone from the ILA showed up with a
camera and announced that she was here to do a kennel inspection. For
some reason she brought another breeder with her who is not affiliated
with the ILA. So she looked around and took pictures of the stupidest
stuff. That was probably because she had to really stretch it in order
to find something that may be construed as wrong. See, the puppies were
in the house and all nice and clean and warm. The areas they were in
were clean, no poo, they had ample fresh clean food and water, and
fresh bedding. The nighttime area where they sleep was also nice and
clean and cozy with nothing wrong. She took pictures of the area where
the puppies sleep when they are 2 and 3 weeks old. I don't have any
puppies of that age now so that area was not set up at all. I didn't
have
the barricade or heat lamp or anything at all set up. I told her that
but she insisted on taking pictures anyway. Does this mean we will all
have to have every area cleaned and ready to go even when we are months
away from using that area? The next thing she took a picture of was a
hole in the drywall in an area where the puppies do not ever hang out.
Wow. A free home inspection is now a benefit of being a member breeder
of the ILA/ALAA. Someone will now waltz into your home and take
pictures and tell you what you need to fix in your home, even when it
doesn't have anything to do with the puppies. And now get this, this is
the kicker, she took pictures of my couch. Yes...my couch. I had the
couch cover and chair cover off because Chevy and Kami were active. I
even told her that I keep them covered (not that the condition of my
furniture is any of the business of the ILA). I quiver with
anticipation just waiting to see how the pictures of my furniture will
be part of the report. The only reason I can think of why she would
have done that is way back a year or two ago when her daughter was
playing with some of the baby puppies that were 2 or 3 weeks old, one
of them peed on the couch and her daughter wasn't paying attention and
sat in it. Bet I'm the only breeder with baby puppies that pee on
people.
Oh, I almost forgot to mention the yard. It has been raining so much here lately that part of our yard is flooded and really muddy. We had a storm last night that broke some branches off the big tree behind the garage that fell on the old dog house that we never use. I dragged the biggest branch to our burn pile this morning. The inspector focused on the flooded muddy part of the yard. I told her I would never let puppies out in that. She just said "I know" but took pictures of it anyway. She didn't even go over to the separate fenced in area where the puppies hang out when they are outside. So now what? Are we to control the weather? Are we not allowed to have any part of our yard muddy or flooded even when it storms and even though that is not the area the puppies stay when outside?
Unless I missed something, she didn't take pictures of the cute, healthy, clean, and cuddly puppies. Nor did I notice her taking pictures of the area where they were. As I said, the area is/was clean, warm, and cozy with fresh clean food and water. It would seem to me those two things are the most important. Instead, she took picture of:
1) a hole in the drywall behind a door in an area where the puppies don't go
2) my couch with the duct tape, even though it is normally covered and my furniture is none of their business
3) the area where baby puppies stay even though I won't have pups that age for a couple of months so it isn't set up
4) The muddy flooded part of the yard even though: it has been storming, I wouldn't let puppies out in that, that isn't even the area the pups hang out when outside

grrr

It is a good thing not many people read my diary now
that I changed it over to this format, otherwise the ILA people just
might have something to say about this entry.

I had to rush those guys (still haven't figured out why that other breeder came along) out in order to get Bryony to her appointment. After Bry's
appointment and after picking up Jill we were on the way home and I
made a wrong turn. Now I have lived in this town my entire life except
when I was serving in the Navy and when I lived in NY. There is no
valid reason for going the wrong way. Anyway, I found myself driving my
my mother's-in-law office and decided to stop in and say 'hi'. I
haven't done that in years. We were there less than 5 minutes when she
got a call from the retirement community where her father lives. They
told her he is not doing well. Since I am an RN she asked me to go with
her. After a quick assessment I had to gently tell her that he will
likely die and she needed to decide how she wanted to handle it. Wow.