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Raising puppies takes a great deal of time and effort. It's not about seeing how many puppies you can create, it's about creating great puppies! Starting from the very beginning we take every decision to heart. From ​deciding who will be parents for us, to testing, to selecting who we pair together we always keep our goal of quality over quantity in the forefront of our decisions.  

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Our Moms and Dads​

• When selecting our breeding parents, we are looking for the "perfect" dog. We evaluate their structure according to the teachings of Pat Hastings. We also evaluate at temperament with the help and guidance of Kelsey Weber with Pawsitively Trained. Both temperament and structure are vitally important in creating a well-balanced dog.

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• Timing is also extremely important. We don't over book ourselves as we limit the number of litters we will have at one time.  This ensures we have the proper amount of time for all the activities, hands on time, and adventures needed to help mold great pups!

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Birth and New Borns

• All of our litters are born here with us. I am with the mamas when they deliver and provide as much support and intervention, or space, as the mom wants/needs. Being a nurse gives me a unique set of skills and perspective that really helps with smooth deliveries and great outcomes with puppies and when we need veterinary interventions. We keep the environment calm and quiet so mamas can focus on delivery with as little environmental stress as possible.

 

• We keep a close eye on our puppies and weight them daily for two weeks and then weekly. 

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• Puppies go on 3 car rides between day of life 3 and 10. These quick car trips greatly reduces the changes of puppies getting carsick in the future!

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• Starting at day 3 of life we start to move them around, holding them straight up, on their back, and upside down. We rub their ears and paws. We hold them against us so they can feel us breathing, hear our heartbeat and get comfortable with human movements as we move about the house.

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• We play classical music daily for them as multiple studies shows that this helps them to self-regulate. Don't worry they also hear a fair amount of country, 90's rap as well as movies and TV shows including Star Wars, Downton Abbey, and many others.

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• Puppies are exposed to the dishwasher, washer and dryer, the front door opening and closing, as well as dogs barking....daily life. We want them to be exposed to as much "daily life" as possible from the beginning.

 

​Eyes Open - about 2 weeks of age

• Once their eyes start to open, we introduce potty pads. Puppies naturally want distance between them and the potty. We foster this by placing a puppy pad on one half of their area. It's pretty amazing to watch them scoot themselves over to use the pad, yes even at 2 weeks old.

 

• We introduce new items every few days if not daily. Anything from a spatula to a new toy it's all about them experiencing new things with low stress fostering curiosity and confidence.

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• Puppies also experience warm and cold by placing their paws on warm and cold washcloths. 

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Customized Puppy Rearing 2 Weeks and Up

• As the puppies develop, we customize their actives. We use the bones of Puppy Culture to help us form a well-rounded program while adjusting to the needs of the puppies and their response to the activities. Exposure helps puppies to develop confidence and curiosity but pushing puppies when they are not ready fosters fear and timid puppies.

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• Some of the things that puppies experience here are:

  • Tunnels                          *Tippy Feeders             *Baths and water play                *Doggie Doors​​

  • Swings                            *Grooming                    *Outside adventures                  *Eating out of different types of bowels 

  • Wabble Boards              *Slides                            *New people of varying ages    *Interacting with our house dogs

  • Different flooring         *Stairs                            *Walkers                                       *Kennels

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The Final Stretch

• All puppies meet our trainer/behavioralist so we can see where each puppy is and learn things we can do to help the puppy develop emotionally. We also take our list of clients and create groups of which puppies that would work best with different clients. We want to make the best connection between the puppies and clients.

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• At 8 weeks, +/- 2 days, we evaluate their structure. This helps us to select any breeding dogs we may be holding back. 

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• Vet appointments are done once the puppies have pasted the 8-week mark. Exams and first vaccines are done by our vet. Microchipping is done inhouse before their vet appointment.

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• We continue to work on kennel exposure including sleeping in a kennel for one night by themselves before they go home. This will reduce the stress of kennel training at home and the overall stress associated with their big move to their new families.​

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• And don't forget our puppy meet-n-greet! All of our clients come to the house to meet the puppies, learn about them and get in some good puppy kisses. Clients then send me a list of puppies, any of which they would love to take home.

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Placement

• ​Once we are done with temperament testing, structure evaluations, and puppy meet-n-greets it's time to match up clients and puppies! We painstakingly go through our clients wishes and lifestyle, the insight provided by our behavioralist, and my knowledge of the puppies and we patch puppies to clients. This has been a great way to take in all the different factors to help create a lifelong love affair. 

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Although this is not a complete list it does give a pretty good overview. We truly put a great deal of thought, effort, and heart into our program. Our goal is quality, not quantity. 

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