Well, we're off!

We flew off early this morning for our summer holiday trip to China. It's been a lot of preparation but we finally made it and we are set to have fun!!

Unfortunately, Black Boy and Topaz didn't find their homes before we took off, so - given their young age - they are being generously fostered by Lyra's family for the duration of our holiday. (And I do mean generous - they are taking on these two little pups at what I consider to be the most challenging period: the house-training period, when they're old enough to want freedom and to run around but young enough that they haven't yet learned the appropriate place to "go" and don't yet have the ability to hold it for long stretches!!)

As for the bigger dogs, they are staying at our house where they will be ably looked after by our (and their) good friend, walked during the day by another young friend whome we are employing to walk dogs, clean guinea pig cage, water plants, etc, and maybe even given more love an attention by the visitor styaing in our basement for a month or their big sister Garnet's family who will be staying for a week, too.

So despite our absence, the house will be a busy place and we do hope Amore, Phoenix, and Leo (who, yes, is still with us and still in search of his own forever home too) will benefit from lots of attention, love, and snuggles.

If there is anyone interested in adopting Leo or Black Boy (known to us as Obsidian or Sid for short), or in being Guardians for Topaz, don't let our holiday stop you from sending me an e-mail. I will be checking in from time to time and we can always get the ball rolling for visits etc when we're back mid-August.

Phoenix - the other Princess

Topaz might be the new Princess, but Phoenix is still Princess Number 1! (Or maybe #2 if Galena insists on top ranking...)

Whatever the number, Phoenix doesn't mind having a little twerp following hard on her heels in the Princess department. She says she's going to be the big mama around here!!

And BIG she will be - at barely over 4 months of age she is almost as heavy as our Amore (age 4 years!). At Tuesday's vet visit she weighed in at a hefty 8.2kg (18 lbs) - compared to Mo's 9.8kg (22 lbs) - which sets her on the path to mature to about 16kg (36 lbs) when she's full-grown.

Maybe she and Kodiak will be a good match down the road, to give us lots of lovely caramel and chocolate babies!

Topaz is good to go!!!

Topaz: The new up-and-coming star attraction!

Topaz had her recheck at the vet's last night, and he found no evidence of the heart murmur he detected at her first visit in June. So she has indeed grown out of it and is our new Princess-in-Waiting!!

Topaz is a beautiful, very sweet and friendly, playful and confident girl. She is a great kisser and snuggler, but also plays hard with her brother and tries valiantly to keep up with the bigger dogs in the household. She is (so far) a good listener, comes (mostly) when called and is eager to be around people. She has a lovely red wavy fleece coat with white markings on her chin, chest and toes.

Unfortunately she is still waiting for her Guardian Family to identify themselves. We've had two families now that said they were interested but changed their mind for various reasons (mostly "not ready for the commitment of a dog at this time").

Will YOU be the lucky family to take this great girl on and give her a forever home? If you're interested, just e-mail...!!!

Doodle Romps

July Doodle Romp

The July Doodle Romp will be held this coming Sunday, 8 July, from 4-5pm. For this one, we`ll meet at our house and then proceed to romp through the nearby forest and fields. It’s an “accepted” off-leash area (i.e. not official, but all the neighbourhood dogs go off-leash in that area). We likely won’t meet up with too many other dogs, and this way our two remaining little pups can tag along too. It will good for them to meet a number of other dogs and people while they’re still in their prime socialization period.

At this point we are expecting Cassi, Galaxy, Carny & Galena, and Kodiak, along with their people, to join us with our five (Mo, Phoenix, Leo, Topaz & Obsidian “Sid”). Should be a nice gang!

June Doodle Romp

(All photos courtesy of Martin L.)

The June Doodle Romp occurred on Saturday, 23 June at 9:30 at Conroy Pit. We met Galaxy, Lily, Lyra, Carny and Galena, and their people. Mo & Phoenix joined in from the DragonRam household. It was a fine morning – sunny and hot but not excessively sweltering.

We stuck as much as possible to the forest trails, where the trees offered some relief from the sun. Occasional breaks for water (dogs and people) and just to chat kept us all refreshed. As it was so nice and nobody was in a big rush, we walked all the way to the bottom of the sliding hill and then back up the north side of the Pit, taking a good almost two hours to finish the circuit.

The dogs started out with lots of energy, running like crazy, playing tag, doing the wild and crazy circle run, and just generally having a blast. By the end of the Romp they were all worn out, walking quietly by us and not indulging in too many wild chases.

And here are a couple of videos of the dogs in action!

Future Romps

After July, the next Romp likely won’t be until late August or sometime in September, after we’re back from our summer holiday. Watch for a Doodle Poll after August 18^th!