Wednesday 25 January 2012

A scary day! by Galaxy

Yesterday was kind of a scary day. It started out with the fact that we didn’t get ANY breakfast. What’s up with that? Scarlett and Ariel got some, but nobody else. That’s not fair! Then after the human pups went outside, the four of us starving doggy pups got put into a crate and into the back of the big noisy car machine! It was a looooong drive and I figured maybe we were going back to the building where we got poked last week, and I was right!

Once we got there, instead of letting us run around a room and explore, like last time, we got put into a big cage and our human Mommy went away and left us there. Yikes! Don’t go!

Then after a while we got taken out of the big cage, one by one. When it was my turn I was trembling cause I’m a bit of scaredy-dog, you know. Then I got another poke and… I don’t really know what happened after that.

When I woke up, I was back in the big cage and I had a small sore spot on my leg and a big sore spot on my tummy and in my insides, and I felt kind of dopey. Leo and Nightingale seemed the same way. Every time we tried to walk, we wobbled!!

FINALLY our human Mommy showed up again and put us back in the small crate and back into the car machine thingy and we drove a looooong way back home. When we got home I was hungry and ate and drank a bunch and then I really needed to pee. So I did. (On the pee pad, of course.) Scarlett and Ariel asked me what happened and why I smelled funny and I told them I wasn’t sure but my tummy still hurt so please don’t bug me. But after a bit it didn’t hurt so much anymore so I decided to go play and then I practically forgot all about it.

This morning my tummy was a bit tender but when I play I hardly notice it. And I’m not wobbly anymore either. I wonder what that was all about? Well, it’s done now so no sense dwelling on it.

Yours,
Galaxy

Monday 23 January 2012

Guardian Home needed for Scarlett

Scarlett is our “pick of the litter” for us to retain for breeding. She is a lovely solid apricot female with a black nose and a white patch on her throat and chest.



Scarlett is playful, alert, friendly, and confident. When she sees us, she doesn’t like to be stuck in the puppy playpen but wants to come out, say hi and be close to us. She loves her cuddles!! Scarlett is starting to ring the bell on occasion to go outside, though she hasn’t yet connected that to doing her business outside, but that will come. She generally does her business on the pee pads, though not 100% of the time. (Our focus is increasingly on getting her to go outside rather than use the pee pads. She loves to play with Uncle Aspen (our 6-month old puppy) and to chase after balls.

A Guardian Home for Scarlett should be a home where she will have lots of interaction with people and other dogs (either another dog in the house or the opportunity to meet them outside at play) so she maintains her well-socialized and friendly nature. It could be a home with children over age 4, a couple who are not always away, a retired couple or single person, or a working single person who is home enough to provide lots of attention or can make arrangements for that to happen (dog-sitter, dog-walker, other family members or friends, etc).

The Guardian’s responsibilities are to provide a loving, safe and secure home for an “intact” female dog where she will receive training and ongoing social interaction with people and dogs. Having an intact female is not generally difficult, you just need to be sure to avoid close contact with unneutered males when she is in heat (and most females are not receptive to a male’s advances except for the few days where she is actually fertile, though you must still be careful). Guardians should live within a one-hour drive of Ottawa.

The Guardian family is responsible for general day-to-day care of the dog and associated expenses, such as food, grooming, annual vaccinations, etc. As the Breeder, I am responsible for any care and expenses related to breeding and whelping (birth) of the puppies. This includes taking her to appointments for health screening relating to breeding soundness (hips, elbows, eyes, and thyroid), choosing a mate and seeing to the actual breeding, and overseeing the birth and care of puppies at our home.

Scarlett is a very sweet little pup who will bring joy and action to whatever family she joins.

If you are interested in being a Guardian Family for Scarlett, please contact me at roma@dragonramdoodles.com or call 613-552-3066. 

Sunday 22 January 2012

Aspen in search of his forever family

Aspen arrived here at the end of September, 2011, as a stud prospect puppy. Unfortunately, he has turned out not to be of breeding quality, though a very find dog indeed, so we are looking to sell him as a pet.


Aspen is a caramel and white parti male with a lovely disposition. he will be six months old on February 1, 2012. He currently weighs around 10kg (22 lbs), standing between 16”- 17” tall at the shoulders. We expect him to mature to around 30 lbs and 18”, which makes him a medium Australian Labradoodle. He is a lovely dog with a sweet and very friendly personality. He is a big suck, always wanting to say hi to everyone and get snuggles and cuddles. Aspen is completely house-trained and rings the bell to go outside. He likes to play outside even in the cold winter weather (unless it gets VERY cold or messy). Aspen loves the puppies – he has been interested in them from the time they were born, and now they are big enough to play with him decently, though he is still much bigger than them! But he is generally gentle, seeming to realize that he can’t play rough with these little critters. Aspen loves to go for walks and off-leash romps. He is good at coming when called. He is friendly with other dogs, though a bit nervous of meeting other big dogs – he is still interested in saying hi but he wants to be sure they’re friendly back.



Aspen will do well in a home where he can have lots of attention and play time. A family with children age 4 and up, another dog (or cat?), a couple where one is home at least half the day, or a retired couple or single person would be ideal.


We are asking the pet price of $2500 for him, which includes all his vaccinations. For that you get a fully house-trained dog who is past the worst of the puppy phase.

If you are interested in being Aspen’s family, contact me at roma@dragonramdoodles.com or 613-552-3066 or Linda at cooldood@doodlepuppies.ca or 613-720-5589.



Saturday 21 January 2012

Available puppies

These are the puppies still in search of forever families.

   Cardinal  

Cardinal is a beautiful apricot parti girl with “raccoon” eye patches, apricot ears, a saddle on her back and a large apricot spot at the base of her tail. She has the cutest “butterfly” nose – it normally would be black but with all the white on her the pigment on her nose hasn’t fully come out, so it is spotted pink-liver-black.

Cardinal is the largest pup in the litter, weighing in at 2.6kg at 8 weeks of age. She will probably mature to around 10-12kg. She loves to play with Uncle Aspen (our 6-month-old puppy), whom she closely resembles. The two of them can go at it for minutes on end. Cardinal would have been kept for breeding except that she has a slight underbite, which she may grow out of (or may not). She has a lovely soft, wavy fleece coat.


   Galaxy  

Galaxy is the smallest pup of the six, a mere 2.1kg at 8 weeks of age. She will probably mature to between 8 and 10kg. She is cute black and white parti pup. The black forms a “toga” over her left shoulder and back, with a little “tuck” at the mid-section. She has a black head with a white muzzle and a very cute short-haired face. She has white legs with black freckling over them. Galaxy has a soft, slightly short and fairly dense fleece coat that is relatively straight and may end up with just the merest wave in it.

Galaxy is a somewhat shy little girl, not as adventurous as her sibs. She tends to hang back a bit when encountering new people or things, but it doesn’t take her long to warm up and be friendly. She loves to play tug and chase, and to tussle with her brother Leo.


   Nightingale  

Nightingale is an active pup who is always going gangbusters. She loves to play tug, tussle with Uncle Aspen, race back and forth through the rooms, and be generally active and rambunctious. And she LOVES to give puppy kisses and snuggle up, too – she is our best kisser. She and Leo are best buds with similar energy levels.

Nightingale is all black with a very thick and short coat that shows little sign of wave or curl, and an “open” face. This is not a standard coat for an Australian Labradoodle, but it is still very soft and she is super cute! With the soft, fleecy texture of the coat we do not expect her to shed even once her adult coat comes in. 

Nightingale weighs 2.4kg at 8 weeks of age and is expected to mature to about 9 – 11 kg.


   Leo  

Leo, the only boy in the bunch, is a dashing, daring adventurer. He LOVES to tussle, play tug-of-war, and chase balls. He goes up the stairs and has already started to come down (no mean feat for a small pup!). He enjoys playing outside in the snow and is a good listener.

Leo is in the middle of the pack, size-wise, at 2.5kg at 8 weeks of age. He will likely mature to around 10 – 11kg, maybe a bit more. Leo is also a black and white parti boy. His shoulders are white, with the black starting just below the shoulders, “notched” by white, with a white stripe across his mid-riff and down the left side of his back, and the black then extending down his hindquarters and ending at the hock, making him look like he’s wearing black shorts on the right and with a black spot on his left hip. He has a black head with a white muzzle. Leo has a soft, slightly wavy fleece coat with a rather “open” face (shorter hair than on the rest of his body).

Scarlett will be kept by us for our breeding program.

Ariel will be sold or traded to another breeder.

Friday 20 January 2012

Eight weeks old! (by Nightingale)

I am getting really big by now! I weight over 2kg and my older sister Cardinal is already 2.5kg – she is kind of fat ha ha! (Just kidding.) My Mama went away a week ago, back to her own family, but I don’t really mind – I’ve got my sisters and brother and there’s Uncle Aspen to play with and Grandma Momo, when she’s in the mood. We get really yummy food to eat now that we have lots of teeth.

I can climb stairs (though it’s scary to go down), carry a ball, tug on a rope, pee on the pee pad (most of the time), drink from our fountain, sit for a treat, and ring the bell to go outside. I sometimes pee and poop outside and my people seem to really like that! Outside it’s cold and white and freezing but my nice long fur keeps me toasty warm – at least for a few minutes. Uncle Aspen likes to go outside and we chase him out there and play with him. Grandma Momo goes out too but she doesn’t like playing as much as Uncle Aspen does. I sleep in my crate through the whole night now, from around 10 at night to 6 in the morning, without whining to go out and I NEVER mess my crate!


This is what our day is like: My sibs and I get to play for a long time after breakfast, then we have a nap in our crate again until Nanny comes to let us out, give us lunch, and play a bit more. In the middle of the afternoon is when it gets really fun! The human pups come home and we get to PLAY – well at least for a while, then they go sit at the table to read and write and stuff like that. I don’t know why they spend so much time doing such boring stuff when they could play with US! But when they’re FINALLY finished they play with us some more and we do fun stuff like playing tug of war, getting treats for simple stuff like sitting and lying down, and running back and forth playing tag. Every once in a while the human pups put coats on us and take us outside to play in the fluffy white snow for a few minutes. That is FUN! Then it’s supper time, more play time, and eventually all the lights go out, the humans head for their beds, and my sibs and I settle into our crate for another night’s sleep.


A week ago we took a loooooong ride in that big metal machine thing that goes fast and makes noise – whaddya call it? Yeah, a car! And at the other end we got to go into a strange building with lots of people who told us we were super cute and then poked and prodded us and stuck us with a needle, yikes! Though it wasn’t as big as the needle we got poked with the night before to stick a piece of metal rice between our shoulder blades. I think they call it a microchip. Do you have one too? The man there seemed to think we were really cute and pretty and the best kissers around – especially me of course! He liked my thick coat and cute face. We all got snuggles and treats and then we took another loooooong ride and hey! We were home!

Well, it’s been nice chatting! If you want to come visit I’d be happy to play with you. Maybe you’d like to take me home with you – my people say I’m “available,” whatever that means.

Ciao,
Nightingale


Thursday 19 January 2012

Doodle Romp of Jan 7

It’s been almost two weeks since the last Doodle Romp! Earlier in the week, the forecast had been for a warm (+4) sunny day. That morning, however, dawned cloudy with a chance of rain (!) and not quite as warm as earlier predicted. We stuck to our plans, though, and met at 2:30 at the parking lot to Conroy Pit.

A total of 8 dogs joined in: our Amore, Aspen, and Garnet; Zirci whom we hadn’t seen since last summer and who has faded to a rich cafĂ© colour and is now, at 16 months, a big boy of about 30 lbs; Lyra who is still as feisty and playful as ever; our lovely little black Cassi who’s now bigger than her Mama Garnet; Carni who enjoyed meeting up and romping with his bro’ Zirci; and Galena, who is still a dark chocolate and, as a graduate of Intermediate training, was now deemed responsible enough to be let off leash.


The day turned out to be quite a lovely one after all. One family met with a bit of rain/sleet on the drive down, but by the time we were all gathered it was a mix of sun and cloud, not too cold, and very little wind. We set off down the trail, taking one of the smaller paths to help keep our bunch together and keep the interference from other dogs to a minimum. The dogs were happy to see each other, playing tag, pouncing, engaging in mock battles, and generally having a ball.


When we approached the fork that would either lead us back to the main path or down towards the tobogganing hill, we chose the latter, longer route, seeing as the day was fine, the paths were good, and the dogs were still full of energy. By the tobogganing hill we leashed the dogs again to ensure they wouldn’t think chasing kids down the hill was a fun idea, and proceeded to climb the hill opposite the toboggan runs to begin the trek back.


By the time we reached the parking lot we’d been out for about an hour and the dogs were getting tired (and perhaps a bit cold). Before people headed on their way, everyone received a treat – a cupcake or pastry to celebrate my birthday!!

All in all it was a great time.

The next doodle romp is planned for Sunday, 12 February from 1:00-2:00pm.

We'll have another one in mid-March, date to be determined. Stay tuned!

Friday 6 January 2012

Now we are six!

… weeks old, that is. A great time to be a puppy!
I still like drinking milk from my Mama, though she seems not to enjoy it very much. She keeps walking away and dragging us along with her. She even stepped on me the other day! Gee whiz, Mama, watch where you’re going! I guess I didn’t want to let go… We also get some food in our own dishes to eat – YUM!! It’s sort of crunchy, sort of sloppy.
This past week we went outside for the first time! It was cold – BRRRR! But I liked it. The fluffy white stuff on the ground is fun to play in, and it tickles my bum-bum when I pee outside. When I did that my people were really happy and gave me lots of praise! I think I’ll try it again. We put our jackets on to go outside to play with the people pups, but when we went out on our own with the big dogs we didn’t. I guess we were only out for a few minutes. The other pups scrambled back inside as fast as they could, but I didn’t – I took the time to sniff around and figure out everybody who’d been there. But all I found was the smells for Mama Garnet, Grandma MoMo, and Uncle Aspen. Oh, and the people pups and the big people, too.
Last night we had some visitors who sat on the floor and played with us. It sounded like they might want to take one of us home with them! They really liked Nighty. Hey, what about me?!! But then I’d have to go away from here. That’s scary. But exciting too.  I’m sure it won’t happen for ages, though. At least two or three more weeks!
My favourite game is chasing my sisters and brother and tussling with them. That’s so much fun! Most of the time we can only play in our own corner of the kitchen, but after we’ve eaten and peed and pooped we get to go explore the rest of the house and hide in all sorts of fun places – under chairs, on the warm air vents, by the boots and shoes that are so much fun to chew. Except I keep getting chased away from there.
Well, it’s been fun talking to you! Come visit us soon!
Yours,
Cardinal

(and my sibs:)
Scarlett


Galaxy


Nightingale
(with me and Galaxy)


Leo


and Ariel