Today we stayed home and played with the dogs and puppies, and I tended to Jolene.

Do you remember this guy?
Sam
He was from Baby Grace's litter last spring. He was here until he was 14 weeks or so. He has a wonderful life in Florida. Here he is now.
Sam with his adopted baby brother. Sam is one of the most mellow doods we've had and Bryony's all-time favorite.

A Doodle Romp, a Doodle Romp, we went to IDOG's Doodle Romp. It was fun. Velvet and Mera's three pups, Lovey, Gilligan, and The Professor, went with me. Poor Kori had to stay home since she is not a Doodle and I wasn't the host of this romp. Velvet didn't play as much this romp as she did at my romp. The pups had fun. It was good for them to see all those dogs and people. Some of the pigs went too. We stayed about 3 or 4 hours. It is fun talking to all the people and seeing some of my guardian dogs and past puppies. I need to get scheduling my next romp now.

Josie came home with me. Her guardian family is going on vacation so we get to keep her for the week. That will be good for her to get used to being with us. She will be back in just a few weeks to have her babies.

Jolene isn't doing too great. I made some forumula for her and have been syringe feeding her small frequent feedings. I also gave her some SQ fluid injections. If she dies it won't be for my lack of trying to get her healthy again.

Snow the F1 Goldendoodle.
Do you remember Snow's story? No? Well I'll remind you then. Snow is the Goldendoodle I got from a breeder in Tenessee. I paid way extra for her because she (Snow) was supposedly pregnant. She went directly to a guardian home. After she was there a couple of weeks the guardian mom took her in for an ultrasound and to have her hips checked. Not only was she not pregnant, she also didn't pass her hip testing. I must have gotten Snow the day before her breeder fell off the face of this earth. That breeder is nowhere to be found. She no longer has a website or email. That was an expensive lesson. I didn't have a written contract with that person. I have done business with her before and was sorta pleased. I guess I was pleased enough to do business with her again. The guardian mom was so sweet about it. She had Snow spayed and is giving her a forever home. She already has one rescue and has since started breeding. She isn't breeding rescues. She is breeding Australian Multigen Labradoodles. I'll let you know when she gets her website up.

Josie and Da Vinci are going to have puppies together. Josie had her ultra sound today. The vet counted at least seven puppies. Velvet and Mera's puppies went with her and they got their Rabies shots and Bordetalla shot. Vet bill $179.00

Jolene came home today. The vet said to take her home over the weekend and if she isn't better by Monday to bring her back for them to put to sleep. That is so sad. I don't know if I will be able to have them do that unless she is acting miserable. Jolene's bill $419.00

Jolene is still in the hospital. Poor kitty. Her liver is bad. They are not sure why and not sure if she will make it or not.

The pups that were neutered yesterday are doing just fine. They never did even act like anything happened. Their tiny incisions look great.

Mera's pups are doing well with their training.

Duchess' puppies are doing well with their litter box training. I'm training them to the litter box because I'm expecting them to be too little to want to go out in the pouring down rain and in the snow. Plus, these guys are going to be perfect for those living in an apartment. If they are litter box trained then they won't have to worry about going outside.

Velvet needs a new home. There, I said it. I can't believe I'm serious. She seems to be tired of having puppies around. She is crabby with them. She doesn't help with them like Kori does. Velvet told me she wants a house where she can play and romp with another dog and just lounge around on the couch and beds and not have to deal with little puppies trying to climb on her and chew her ears and tail.

Forgot to mention yesterday that Lovey came back home. She had gone home with Duchess but is just too much puppy for her. She weighs more that Duchess and kept knocking her down trying to play. Duchess was too polite and wouldn't tell Lovey to go away. Really, Duchess doesn't care if there are any other dogs around as long as she has a person to attach herself to. So, Lovey will hang out here and have her hips and eyes tested in another 3 weeks. If she passes she will join our breeding team. If she doesn't pass she will be made available again, of course with full disclosure of why she is available.

Two of Duchess' boys got neutered today. They are only 3 1/2 pounds and I was so worried about them. One thing I was worried about is them getting hypoglycemic (low blood sugar) from going without food or water. That is a big risk for tiny dogs. When I scheduled the appointment the new tech told me not to give the pups any food or water after 6 p.m. the night before. That is insane. I took away their food and water 2 1/2 hours before taking them in. Since I woke them up to take it away I'm sure it had been a little while since they had eaten. Anyway, when I took the pups in to the vet I had them look at and check the pups to see if they are too little to neuter instead of just dropping them off. They said they would be just fine. I also requested to be allowed to pick the pups up as soon as they wake up. I didn't want to have to leave them there all day as usual. Again, I was worried about them becoming hypoglycemic. They don't feed or water the pups after surgery. So it was 8:30 when I left them there and they called at noon saying they were all done and I could go pick them up. When I got there the pups looked just the same (well except for underneath). I mean, they didn't appear groggy at all. They looked perky and happy. The vet came out and talked to me. He said these little guys are easier yet to neuter. The incision was so tiny that it didn't even need one single stitch and there was not one drop of blood. They had the laser surgery. Having him use the laser increases my cost of the surgery by 50% but it is worth it. I am so blown away that I took a picture. I see these guys and how easy the surgery for them and think of all the adult dogs that have it done and how miserable they are and having to wear the awful lampshade on their head. Here, look at this picture of Little Richard.
No stitch or anything. He hasn't licked at it or acted uncomfortable or anything. This is way so much better than on an older dog.
Today's vet bill, not including Jolene = $450.00

Jolene is still in the hospital. She does not have feline leukemia or any other infectious disease. It is looking like maybe toxicity, but we are not sure what. She has never been outside since moving here. We do not have any houseplants.

Jolene the kitty is at the animal hospital. She has suddenly stopped eating and drinking and she is lethargic. She usually enjoys strolling out in the living room when the doods are there and then growling and acting like she is going to swat at them if they get too close. Today when I put her on the couch she just looked at Kori and didn't growl or swat at her when she stuck her big nose in Jolene's face. That is when I knew she had to go to the hospital. Sure enough they are keeping her and running tests. She is jaundiced and they are thinking Feline Leukemia or something. That is odd since she is up to date on her shots and never goes outside.

Rosie and Pepper are finished being married. The honeymoon is over so she was ready to come home. Bryony and I drove (well I drove, Bryony rode) the seven hours round trip to pick Rosie up. Rosie and Pepper were married three times. The breeders, Andrea and Jeff Brewer of Brewer's Goldendoodles, say that Rosie is pregnant with at least nine puppies. Won't it be so cool if they are correct? We'll have a wonderful, beautiful litter of American Retrievers (Labradoodle x Goldendoodle).

Finally, after searching through 6 different WalMarts in 2 states, I found my piggies. My daughter was just so thrilled to walk through the store carrying 8 pigs between the 2 of us. I kept "accidently" squeaking them to make sure we received plenty of stares.
I had to all but threaten her with bodily harm to get her outside for this picture. She wouldn't even show her face. She is 14. Need I say more?


First they had fun on the swingset.


Then they hopped in the coupe for a cruise around the yard. They had a minor crisis when they ran over the goose and chicken.


After playing out in the hot sun they were ready to go inside and have a snack.


What do I give a pig that is constipated?


Having fun playing in their playpen. Note the 2 piggies sleeping in the Doodle pose.


Rosie's daughter came with her family to pick her up and take her home this evening. She is one perfect puppy. She is from Rosie and Carpenter's February litter.

The house seems so empty now. Maryann, Lovey, and Duchess all went home today. Guess I better start at the beginning.

I got up bright and early and cleaned the puppy area, did some laundry, did the dishes, and bathed all the puppies. Just as I had the last puppy in the bathtub, Duchess' guardian mom called to ask if she could come get Duchess now and take her home. Of course I said "no" because it was too early. After I hung up and was bathing the last puppy I got to thinking. Really it isn't too early for her to go home. She is trying to wean the puppies. She is too skinny and it would be best for her to go home now. Velvet and Kori can finish up this litter. They can play with and discipline the pups. I called her back and made arrangements for her to come get Duchess this afternoon.

The family coming to see Maryann wanted to come see her before deciding if they were going to take her or not. I just knew they were going to get her. How did I know? Here were my clues: 1) Their children have been wanting a puppy for a long time 2) Last evening they emailed asking what form of payment I accept 3) They were planning on bringing their children to see the puppy 4) Maryann does not have a 5th arm growing out of her back 5) I'm not a puppy mill. I was right. They wanted her and took her home with them. They emailed when they got home and said her new name is Layla.

Duchess' mom and aunt came to pick her up. They stayed awhile to play with the puppies. They ended up deciding to take Lovey and guardian her too. That is only on a trial basis.

Wow, the house is so empty now.

We went to the Animal Planet Expo in Indianapolis today. There were so many dogs there. I had no idea we were allowed to bring our dogs. Bryony wanted to go home and get Kori. It was an hour drive each way or else I would have considered it.

Somebody applied today to adopt Maryann. They are coming tomorrow to see her. It really is a bummer that Liuda doesn't come on the weekends. That is when most people come to see the puppies.

I didn't take any pictures today. Here are old pictures.
This is Velvet with the litter she had May 2004. The black pup with a white ribbon around her neck is Mera. The black pup with a yellow and red ribbon is Zoe.


This picture was taken 4-24-2006 when those puppies were two years old. Zoe is on the left, Mera in the middle, and Velvet is on the right.
They grew just a little didn't they?

Today I finally accomplished a couple of tasks I've been putting off. Ever since Ruby has her Pennhip testing done I've been needing to send the x-ray CD in to the OFA for them to evaluate them too. I finally did that.

Oh, but something I didn't do and really need to is to send an email to everybody in this area who has a Lincoln Manor puppy. I need to remind them about the Indy Doodle romp next Saturday. Crud, I can't believe I forgot that. I should do it right now but it is getting too late and I want to go to bed. It takes forever to go through and get all the emails from my breeders assistant program. I'm not computer savvy enough to know how to create an email group.

I've been working with Mera's puppies individually every day. They are doing very well and will sit and are getting better with tolorating the leash. They don't jump on me nearly as much.

Here is Jill and MaryAnn. Maryann is wearing Jill's bathing suit, and Jill thinks she is going to put sunblock on the puppy.

I didn't get too much done today. I just cleaned and worked on the computer. Liuda didn't come in today so I got to do all that stuff she normally does too.

Here are some pictures I received today.
RudyRudy from Zion and BrideGroom's litter. He is turning a lavender color.

Zeke Zeke from Velvet/Koby Oct 9, 2005.

Rosie and Meeko broke up today. After what happened with Josie, I was too afraid of Rosie not getting pregnant. Meeko is wonderful, has great health scores and great confirmation. I know he is going to be a great stud. Maybe I'm just rushing him and need to chill out and let him mature a bit before expecting him to sire a litter.

Rosie went to Ohio to marry Pepper. I'll fill you in on all his details after they get married. It was great seeing and talking with his breeder again. They have a great set up. Man, I want to move soooo bad.

I got to see Kori's parents and brother today. I want her brother. I need to add her brother to our family. He looks just like her and his coat is just like her's. They would have so much fun playing together. Does anybody around here want Kori's brother? I'll go get him for you, but you have to make regular playdates with Kori.

Shortly after I got home the girls and I drove an hour each way to meet Meeko's family so he could go home. They could have come to get him tomorrow but I felt really badly because they have already driven to our house a couple of times.

The two hours driving to northen Indiana and the 3 1/2 hours each way to Ohio made for 9 hours driving today. It really wasn't too bad. The weather was great. You know what was about it though? I looked in two states today and still couldn't find those stupid pigs. Heather says it is probably just some elaborate hoax and they don't really exist. Yes they do, and I will find them. A couple of people (thank you Carol and Rita) have offered to get them for me. That is really sweet. At this point though, I want to find one myself. I want to feel the sweet victory of spotting it on the shelf. I doubt if the doods really care one way or another if they get a pig toy. Those fake toys I got them are still in one piece.

I didn't take any pictures today. Here is a family photo taken at the romp we hosted June 17, 2006.
The family.
Left to right - Daughter Ruby, Daddy Da Vinci, Mom Mera, me, Grandma Velvet, Son Chevy (he and Ruby are littermates), some weird chic who didn't want her picture taken.

Meeko and Rosie still didn't get married. It sure wasn't for lack of her trying. Poor guy, she wouldn't leave him alone. At one point he got up on the coffee table and lay down to sleep. She came up behind him and pawed at him. He looked over at her like "What do you want?" Then looked over at Kori as if asking for help. When Meeko wouldn't play with her, she did go over and play and romp with Kori and Velvet.

I guess Meeko wants what he can't have. When Rosie is in her crate he stays right there beside it (the crate). As soon as she is let out he is all over her. When I left to run some errands today I put him in Jill's room. He must have tried his best to get to Rosie. This is what he did to Jill's door.
Meeko wanted to get to Rosie.
He wants her but he doesn't want her. He is sending mixed signals.

Today when I called the vet's office and I said my name, like I always do, the person answering didn't give me any special acknowledgement. Uh, what is up with that? Whenever I call there they always give me a warm and personal greeting. When I asked her how much a puppy has to weigh before Dr Baker will do a neuter, I knew something was terribly wrong. She had the audacity to tell me "6 months, a dog has to be at least 6 months old". It became crystal clear to me that I was speaking with a new employee who missed a vital part of her training. She wasn't paying attention when her preceptor told her all about me. Humpf! Guess that will teach me for going 12 whole days without going to that particular vet's office. They forgot to tell the new person about me. Anyway, I scheduled two of Duchess' pups to be neutered next week. Wow, and they are so tiny. The smallest is 2 pounds 5 ounces, and the largest is 3 pounds 11 ounces. They are way smaller than Velvet's puppies ever thought about being at this age. They still sound like kittens.

Meeko is back and he is hiking his leg! He is on his way to being a man. He came over this morning and waited all day for Rosie to get here. He did have lots of fun playing and running and romping with Kori. When Rosie did arrive he was so excited to see her. He made a couple of half serious attempts at her fairly quickly. She didn't want him to. When I held her still she didn't fight me, she did let him try. Ugh! My man is such a teenager. He tried to consumate the marriage ... um... but uh... missed. I was just so sure he could do it. I saw him do it with Velvet before. It would have helped if I had someone here willing to help me. Ludmilla will be here tomorrow. She will help me. Don't know why in the world Rick didn't just jump right on the opportunity to assist me with this delightful task. He just muttered something about "How did dogs ever reproduce in the wild"? Well now Rick, think about that one for a minute. How many packs of wild Toy Poodles have you ever seen in the wild? I can just hear the conversation down at the barber shop: "Hey Fred, better watch yer prize winnin' rabbits. I heard them wild Pugs are out in force."
Maryann says How 'bout them wild Doodles

"Bwaaaahaaaa I'm so funny I crack myself up".

Right now Rosie is asleep in a crate, Meeko is asleep on one side of me, Duchess is asleep on the other side of me, Velvet is asleep on the floor by Rosie's crate, Kori is asleep (I hope) in Jill's room, Mera's puppies are asleep in the garage, and Duchess' puppies are asleep here in the hall area. Oops, somebody is not asleep and now they are all barking. I better go quiet them down.

Today was a veg-in-front-of-the-computer day. It really was a waste of a day. That is too bad and yet so nice. I did give the puppies baths again and take some more pictures.

Bryony and Jill tend to pick the same puppy from each litter as their favorite puppy. They don't do it because that is the other's favorite. It is just a coincidence. They are both drawn to the Labbier looking puppies.
This is their favorite in Duchess' litter.
See how she is already used to being manhandled by Jill? She (the puppy) even follows Jill around like a ...well, like a little puppy dog. She really likes Jill and doesn't mind the treatment.

Clean clean clean...thats all I ever do but it never seems to get done. My house is like one of those trick candles, you know the kind that you blow out but it comes right back on. As soon as I do the dishes more dishes appear. As soon as I dust, more dust suddenly appears...and on and on. There is also just so dern much clutter. I also mowed the whole yard and bathed all the puppies.

These are the puppies we are keeping out of Duchess' litter. This is Princessa.

This is The King.Teehee, doesn't he look like a bad junk yard dog?

I have been doing so much thinking lately. Puppy sales are way down. I've always had a hard time selling all the puppies. It is just getting harder and harder. I have to look around and try to figure out why. My puppies are cute and healthy from good parents. There are the obvious faults that I talk too much in this diary and on the forums. One big problem is I live in Middleofacornfield, Indiana. The people on the coasts seem to not be having a problem selling their puppies. Well, great for them. I am having problems so have to do something about it. Supply and demand = price. I have to lower my price. Maybe that will help.

Rosie's progesterone level is 0.4. It needs to be 5.0 before they breed. They will be coming back here Monday evening. Their families are hoping they will do the deed right away so they can take them right back home.

Mera's four remaining pups, Maryann, Lovey, Gilligan, and The Professor each worked on leash walking and "sit" today. They did really well. They also got baths and did their usual crate time. They are getting better with the crate all the time. They never pee/poo in it anymore.

I didn't take any pictures today. Here is one of Jill I took a few weeks ago. She is using a Kong bone shaped toy as a telephone.

Rosie and Meeko went with me on some errands today. I went on another pig hunt. I was determined to find that pig toy that all the cool doods have. I still couldn't find them but find some that are just like them only in different shapes. Meaning they are made out of latex, are squishy, and have a long squeek when squeezed. They don't tear up easily. They look like the type that would be destroyed in no time, but aren't. Here is the picture of them. They are bigger than they look in the photo.

They are so cool.
I was pleased as punch with them. When I handed one to Meeko he took it, gave it one little squeek, put it down, then I swear he looked at me like: "What is this? No way! ALL the cool Doods have pigs. I am NOT going to be seen with this rooster!" Rosie wouldn't even take one. When we got home I gave one to the puppies and they loved it. Kori also had a great time with one. Jill thought they should be for her. Actually, I hear a squeek coming from her bedroom right now. Kori is sleeping in her room. They have the rubber chicken toy in there with them. One of them is playing and not sleeping.

Meeko and Rosie also went to the vet. Rosie had a Progesterone level drawn. He said their size difference is no problem. Meeko is 27 inches tall and 65 pounds. Rosie is 21 inches tall and 50 pounds. They will call with the results tomorrow.

I gave Meeko and Rosie baths this evening. Then I scrubbed the living room floor. I should have scrubbed the floor then given them baths. Man, I was a sweaty smelly mess and I couldn't wait to give myself a shower.

Meeko and Rosie, Meeko and Rosie, Meeko and Rosie. Are you tired of me talking about them yet? They went home this evening. They will be back either Saturday or Monday, depending on the results of Rosie's progesterone level.

Gilligan the puppy spent the night with Kori in the crate in the living room.

My 3:00 a.m. trip to the bathroom.

O.k., so my husband came dragging in to bed at 2:40 a.m. after a rough evening of playing computer games with his buddy. I couldn't get back to sleep because I was afraid they didn't put Rosie in her crate. We can't let her and Meeko together unsupervised. So I got up and stumbled out in the dark hallway. Sure enough they were up. They were excited to see me and now they weren't going to settle until I took them outside. O.k., I took them outside but had to go out with them. Man, what a muddy mess. Finally convinced them to come back inside; wiped the mud off their paws; put Rosie in her crate. Then...ooo yuck, what did I step in? Had to go wash my foot. As long as I was in the bathroom I decided to use it. This was the main bathroom and it has a night light. I was just using the night light, no sense turning on the light. Sat down on the toilet and...oooo...yuck! A wet seat! That is something I am so not used to in my own home. One of the blessing of having only girls is not having to worry about wiping the seat. I'll need to remember to remind Rick's buddy to lift the seat next time. Now back out to clean up whatever it was I stepped in earlier. As long as I am up might as well feed Duchess' babies.
Now maybe I can go back to back to bed for a couple of hours.

O.k., so maybe there is only some Lincoln Manor Doodle liken' going on. Meeko and Rosie like each other but it seems it just is not the right in her cycle. I don't know. I will just have to trust that Meeko knows what he is doing. Man, he is such a superb looking fellow. "Hey what's that Crazy Neighbor doing over there?"
He reminds me so much of Koby, only white. He is built like Koby, the same size as Koby, and has that "I'm the king" walk. His coat looks like Koby's but is so much softer, and of course is white. Another big difference is the tail. I always thought I like Koby's tail because it curls tightly up. Meeko's tail gently slopes up and has a wonderful fan. It is beautiful. He has a big black nose like his mom's (Holly). Speaking of Koby, I've been thinking about breeding him with Holly but that would probably give us an entire litter of black puppies. I really don't want that. Anyway, back to Meeko the great. He is also the same around puppies like Koby was. He doesn't bother the pups, but when a pup goes up to him and jumps at his face, he gives the pup a quick gowl snap that sends them scurrying off in another direction. It only takes one time and the pup won't bother him again. Now he isn't totally Mr perfect. He still squats to pee and he has this whiny bark that doesn't match his body. I've not seen him do it, but he has marked his territory in the house. Stud dog pee has a distinct odor.

Now it is time to talk about Rosie. She is really pretty. She is nice and quiet and out of the way. Her coat is really pretty. She is such a nice F1. It is amazing how differently F1's can turn out. She has bulked up nicely too. She just doesn't look like the same dog we got back in February. I kind of hate to breed her with Meeko because I really want a litter of reds. But, we will get really nice puppies with Meeko. Guess I don't have as much to say about Rosie. She is a really nice girl, nice blocky build, nice coat. She likes ear scritchins'.

Velvet is back! I missed her. She missed me. We're a happy family.

It is muddy here.