New Posts to Publish at Dedicated Website

Blogspot is fine and well for a free platform, but...well, it's free, and thus limiting.

So, I took advantage of some cheap domain registration sale at Godaddy, and the generous hosting of a friend to pay a whopping $2 to move things to something better:

All new posts will go live at:

http://puppyparables.com

Thanks!

Exercising Your Puppy

One of my pet peeves that I see in new dog owners (and keep in mind, I am no expert, more just a conscientious owner myself) is the lack of exercise after bringing a puppy home. People bring a pup home, and after the first few days of "cute" wear off, the pup starts to nip, bite, and even exhibit destructive behavior. The owner gets frustrated and either shouts, disciplines the dog, or worse! Often times this is how pups end up in rescues. 

What's This?

So, here's a fun game.  Take an ordinary household item, and use it as expected.  Then, present it to your puppy and see what happens.  Our first item - a water bottle!

Looks normal, right?  So, use it as expected and what do you get?  An empty water bottle:

Easy enough to understand, but what happens when you apply an 8 week old puppy to it? (a.k.a. Kenzie)

Total annihilation!

What other objects should we try this with?  (We're presuming that the objects suggested are safe to present to a puppy - things like batteries, electronics, or choking type hazards will not be items to do this game with...)

Puppies Love to Run

Puppies, regardless of breed, have lots of energy, and as the old adage goes - "A tired dog is a happy dog" so we try to let ours run as much as she wants!  In Kenzie's case, that's quite a bit...here's just a couple segments I've assembled together for viewing enjoyment...

The Only Thing Cuter...

Than a puppy is that same puppy sleeping!

We've had few opportunities to capture pics when Kenzie is sleeping this week primarily because when she crashes, so do we!  But here's one that made it to my iPhone library:

Here's another from the wireless camera we have set up in her sleeping room - not as "awwww-some", but kinda neat in it's own way...

Back at Work

Back at work today, but Tracy took the day off to help Kenzie acclimate to life at home.  Yesterday was quite the schedule - 3 hour cycle seems to be her average:

• Play for 30 minutes
• Eat for 30 minutes
• Exercise for 30 minutes
• Nap for 90 minutes
• Repeat

Just like regular parents, I tried to follow suit:

Our First Play Date

The rope tug is an awesome first toy for a puppy - it satisfies their need to chew with those sharp little teeth, and gives you a way to interact with your pup.  You can tug it lightly (never tug too hard as those teeth are needed right now to each!), lift it out of reach for them to jump, and even race it in front of them.  We had a blast during our 30 minutes of afternoon play time today!

How do you play with your pup?  What kinds of toys do you and your dogs like?  Be sure to sound off in the comments!

Bringing Your Puppy Home

When bringing your puppy home for the first time, it is always very exciting.  This cute adorable bundle of fur and tail and paws and ears and for me, those adorable lab eyes make the first day awesome.

Our day home started with a seven hour car drive.  We started out thinking that maybe we should have the crate, but that went for all of 20 seconds before severe whining started.  Sine we will be hearing a lot of that, opted to go the lap route.  So, with me in the driver seat, and the wife riding shotgun, Kenzie started in her lap.  Begin squirmy syndrome!  After 500 feet I finally suggested that she drive and I'll take first shift of doggie care.

Ten minutes into the ride, things were gong swimmingly well:

By our third hour, the floor in the front of the car was also satisfactory.  The hum of the engine and the darker environment made almost the entire drive home perfect.

But when you think about it from the dogs perspective, it's pretty terrifying.  You've been alive for eight weeks and all you know is your litter mates, then all of a sudden, they are all gone.  There's these new sights and sounds and smells and you have no idea who these strangers are or what the heck is going on.

The best you can hope to do on night one is to really play with them a lot!  It will tire them out and make the first sleep easier.  Mine is sleeping under my legs right now.  There was a little whimpering, but shortly after that she crashed pretty hard.

Make sure you provide plenty of water and get the breeder to give you at least a few cups of what they're feeding with.  Don't freak out if your pup doesn't drink a lot or eat everything...they're going through something pretty traumatic right now.  Pet them, rub tummies, let them nip a little, and just be very attentive. Give water often even if they don't drink it.

Also take them outside often to eliminate. We had one accident already, but it's going to happen. Just try to clean in up when they aren't looking.  Use enzymatic cleaners to kill the scent too and you may as well buy stock in paper towels too because you're gonna be using tons of them.  I also left her BMs in the yard so she knows where to go.  These will get picked up every few days...eventually immediately, but she is in a new learning phase now.

Just remember, patience and love!

Hello to Kenzie! Now at Seven Weeks!

Very excited to announce that we are now in agreement and our pup (barring a major personality discrepancy) will come to us with the name Kenzie!  We are in the final days before picking her up this coming Saturday, so please join us in welcoming Kenzie: