Happy third birthday to Harmony and the other pups of Topaz's first litter!

Harmony's second litter just went home in late March, so at the age of three she is the proud mama of 14 beautiful babies (two litters of seven each).

 

Sweet Harmony

We have also had the pleasure of seeing Brio and his family fairly regulary and Rusty a couple of times at our Doodle Romps. Darwin lives in Toronto and Sheeva in Montreal, so they haven't been able to join us. :-(

The sixth puppy in this litter, Celeste, was stillborn after a difficult attempt at delivery. We hope you are looking down on us from puppy heaven!!

All the best to the five of you! Happy birthday and enjoy those doggy cupcakes (or whatever your humans give you to celebrate!)a

Happy 2nd birthday Harmony, Brio, Rusty, Darwin and Shiva

This was Topaz's first litter (and one only a few born on an even-numbered day)

Mama Topaz

 Here at DragonRam Doodles, we remember this as the first litter in which we lost a puppy during delivery. Topaz was having a hard time delivering one pup, and try as I might, I couldn't get a hold of it to help it out. By the time the pup finally emerged fully, it was no longer alive. That was a sad day when we lost Minuet.

But we don't want to dwell on that - instead, we would like to remember and celebrate the five beautiful pups that made it out whole and hale and hearty, including our lovely Harmony who is going to become a mama herself in about a month. And Brio, the lovely, lively boy who always looks like a prince (hats off to Shila for the wonderful grooming!). And Rusty Rococo, who lives with his DragonRam brother, Hershey Crispin. We haven't seen Darwin Caprice or Shiva Piccolo since they went home, as they both live Far Away, but we're glad we're able to keep in touch with the other three from time to time. 

Harmony - all grown up!

 Rusty Rococo, Harmony, Darwin Caprice, Brio and Shiva Piccolo - we wish you all a great day and a wonderful year to come!

Happy birthday Harmony, Brio, Shiva, Darwin and Rusty

You’re one year old today!

These were Topaz’s first puppies – and within a short while they’ll be joined by her second litter, due in about 10 days!



Harmon is one!

We are using a musical theme for the names we give Topaz’s puppies, which have now been joined by the new names some of the families gave them:

• Harmony
• Brio
• Darwin Caprice
• Rusty Rococo
• Shiva Piccolo

Harmony is a regular Doodle Romp attendee, and one of our breeding prospects. Next spring maybe we’ll be welcoming her first litter, who knows? We’ve also had a chance to meet Brio a few times with his family at a couple of Romps. We’d love to see Rusty again, as he’s close enough to attend, though he and his family lead a busy life. Shiva lives in Montreal and Darwin in Toronto so the chances of meeting up with them are rare, though pictures are always appreciated.

Happy first birthday! Many spring romps through the fresh green grass!

All gone!

We are pleased to report that all our pups have now gone to their forever families!

Red Boy, Rococo, joined his cousin Hershey (from Galena's January 2013 litter), along with a human brother and parents. He went home Saturday morning, after our Doodle Romp. Hershey and family came to the Romp and were really taken with this active, friendly little guy. We are pleased he has gone to a home where he can share fun and games with brothers both canine and human!

Our black-and-white parti girl, Harmony, has gone to live with a couple in Hintonburg. She has a comfortable home with a tiny back yard that sh shares with people with big hearts. She will be well loved and looked after, and we look forward to seeing her on many a future Romp!

We now have a puppy-less house, for the first time in 11 months! Though three of those months we just had Ophelia Angel, the last little girl from Galena's fall litter who didn't find her family until May, so it wasn't as though we were swamped with pups. Still, it will be nice to have a few months' break. We'll be focusing on our two adult dogs, summer holidays, and seeing my daughter settle into Canterbury High School in fall.

Our next litters will likely arrive sometime in December. The first to arrive will most likely be a second litter from Topaz, coming perhaps mid-December. These pups will be ready to go home around mid-February - and we hope we will have families waiting for them then! If all goes well, we'll have a couple months off and then welcome a second litter from Phoenix, likely early to mid-May - though if the timing of her heat makes it look like the pups wouldn't arrive until the end of May we will have to skip this second litter for now, as we are planning a long summer vacation abroad in 2015 and need pups to go home by mid-July.

Over the next months this blog will be fairly quiet, but I will post announcements of upcoming Doodle Romps and hope to post general info about dogs, puppies, care and training, etc. etc. Plus photo updates of our pups!

Stay tuned!

Still available ...

Red Boy
Hi! I'm looking for a family I can adopt for my very own. Do you love to play tag or ball? I do! I really love to run and play hard. I'm brave too - not much can scare me, or if it does, I just go right over and show it I don't stay scared for long! I love to go on adventures and explore new places. Making friends is easy for me! The world is an amazing place, don't you think? If you can relate to that, I'd love to share the world with you.  

  Black Boy 

Hey there! I'm a pretty thoughtful, observant fellow. My brother, Red, goes crazy pretty quick, but me, I like to watch and figure things out before I run into the fray. Don't get me wrong - I love to play! But I'm not noisy and boisterous about it. I'm just as happy having a warm cuddly snuggle. I'm a pretty quiet dood. I'd love to adopt a family that's on the quiet side, too - active but not rowdy, energetic but not wild, if you know what I mean. If that sounds like you, gimme a call, how 'bout?

We hope to see you soon!

Gold boy going home soon!

Gold boy is an energetic, self-confident and people-focused pup who learns fast and is very resilient. He plays hard, gets a bit silly and then flops down for a nap - if possible, close to (or on!) his people so he can be in contact with you. He has a culry fleece coat with floppy ears and a brownish nose.

Goodbye to Piccolo!

Gota love that face!

This cutie (we call him Piccolo) received the following temperament description for the evaluators.

CAUTIOUS, ATTENTIVE, SILLY

Piccolo is a mellow, non-confrontational pup. He is apprehensive in new situations and will look to a human for guidance. He is a people pleaser and will bond very closely to his owner(s). When frustrated or challenged, Piccolo will bark and play posture. Piccolo uses his mouth to investigate and should be provided with many chew items. He is a resilient pup who enjoys playing with humans or other dogs.

Gold boy will be going to his forever home next Sunday, July 13. He will have a mom and dad who are home all day (being retired), and get lots of visits from kids & grandkids! He gets to live on a large suburban property with lots of outdoor space to explore. Lucky guy!

Red girl has a home

This sweet, playful little girl has a very soft fleece coat with gentle waves to suit her personality. She is patient and forgiving and will do almost anything for a pat and a good word from her people. She will be around 18-22 lbs at maturity - similar to her mama in size. Her lovely red coat may lighten with time but it will remain soft as a cloud!

 This is how the temperament evaluators describe her (we call her Caprice):

RESILIANT, SENSITIVE, ADVENTURER

Caprice is a balanced pup with a sensitive, sweet demeanour and a great desire to explore. She is very food motivated and uses her nose to investigate new places and people. She is non-confrontational and will flee in the face of danger. She will become playful and excitable when with others dogs. Sheenjoys her freedom and independence, but can be affection and social with people.

Caprice went home yesterday to a family in Toronto with one 8-year-old daughter. We know she will be well-loved!

Red boy: You can't resist me!

Our impish red boy is waiting for a family that loves to play! He is an active little dood, very adventurous and inquisitive, who is keen to explore his surroundings. he is not necessarily the cuddling type, but does love to play with his people. He'll do ball, chase, tug - you name it. Red boy has a curly wool coat and is expected to mature to about 15" at the shoulder and 22-25 lbs.

8 weeks old

3 weeks old!

 Here is his temperament description, based on the evaluation done a week ago. (We call him Rococo, which was a muscial style of the mid 18th century characterized by ornamentation and light, fancy themes).

SILLY, SOCIAL, EXPLORER

Rococo is a lively and entertaining puppy. He can be playful and clown-like at times. Rococo loves to follow a human on an adventure and will investigate anything with encouragement to be brave. He is food motivated and uses his nose to explore. His high propensity for adventure can make him act independently and be easily distracted by environmental stimuli at times. Rococo does not like to be restrained so this area will require work. He gets easily frustrated when he is unable to access something he wants. Overall, Rococo is an animated and interactive puppy.

 Rococo will do great in a family with active playful kids or grownups who love to take their dog with them on outdoor adventures or play hard indoors. He is a fast learner who is attentive to people and has a lot of self-confidence. He isn't keen on being restrained, but will love it when you pet him as he sits beside you on your lap.

Balck boy: I need a home!

This gorgeous black boy is a real cutie! He has a teensy white spot at the very tip of his tail, small white toe-tips, and a larger white blaze on his chest. This guy has a distinct personality. He is rather more poodle-like in looks (body & face shape) than your average Labradoodle, but his coat is wavy fleece, not wool like the curly Poodle coat.

Here is the description of him from the temperament evaluation done last Monday. (We call him Brio.)

INDEPENDENT, DETERMINED, IMPULSIVE

Brio is an intense and intelligent pup. He is very independent and determined, but can be impulsive and nose-driven. He is non- confrontational and will flee to avoid danger. He is sensitive to environmental changes and is observant of body movement. He is highly food motivated which will be helpful for training. He loves to be held and cuddled by familiar people. He will bond closely to his owner(s) and will make a loyal companion once trust and structure are established.

 I have to say that this is the one pup where I don't quite see the same characteristics in him as the evaluators did, with the exception of the cuddling part. He definitely does LOVE his cuddles, so if you like to have a dog on your lap, this is the one for you. And yes, he is a bit independent but perhaps not quite as impulsive as they say. Anyhow, he does pretty well with solitude so if you are a working family, gone most of the day, he should do well on his own but ready to greet you and get his share of cuddles once you get home.

DragonRam Harmony: Guardian Home needed!

We are still seeking a Guardian Home for our sweet girl, Harmony. She is a lovely black-and-white parti girl. Her spots are very balanced on her white fur, so "Harmony" just seemed to suit her (we used a musical theme for this litter). I don[tusually post the names we give the puppies as people like to choose their own names. Howwever, with our breeding pups, we will continue to use the name we chose, which is their registered name, even if the the family chooses another name (as they often do). We then add the name chosen by the family to the registered name. 

 

This is the description of Harmony from her temperament evaluation done last Monday:

CAUTIOUS, SENSIBLE, SWEET

Harmony is a gentle and thoughtful pup. She is shy with people at first, but warms up quickly and becomes quite social. She seeks familiar humans for safety and security. Once comfortable she is very playful with humans and other dogs. She will enjoy having a “safe place” in her house where she can be alone (such as an open crate). Rushing harmony to socialize, confront or bond would be a mistake and could cause her to flee. She analyzes new people and situations and should be encouraged to be brave, but not rushed. She is highly food motivated which will be excellent for training and desensitization.

To be a Guardian, you need to live within about 30 km of Ottawa and be willing to work with us for several years while we breed this lovely girl. You provide the loving family home and cover ordinary pet costs while we handle all breeding-related appointments, arrangements and cover all those expenses. She normally comes to us to have her puppies and you are always welcome to visit her and the pups during that time. We breed her up to four times, then she is spayed and becomes your forever family pet. Because you are working with us, you pay nothing for her; your "costs" is the willingness to make her available to us and commit to working with us during her breeding career.

If this type of arrangement might interest you, please contact me at roma@dragonramdoodles.com or 613-552-3066.

Topaz puppies: 8 weeks old and ready to go!

Well, the big day has come - the pups are now 8 weekd old and ready to head to their new homes!

The temperament evaluations took place on Monday. Once again this was a very interesting experience. With Phoenix's March litter each dog reacted completely differently to the experience. This time, the differences among the puppies was more muted - there were definitely differences, but they were more subtle and not so absolutely obvious as with Phoenix's pups. I will post the results over the next couple of days.

Then on Wednesday the pups went for spay/neuter surgery. Poor little red girl was very sore and subdued all evening, and the boys were quieter too. But by yesterday they were pretty lively again, and this morning you would never guess that they had undergone surgery a mere two days ago!

This afternoon the first family comes to select their puppy. The second family will make their selection on Saturday July 5. Those are the only two pups definitely spoken for at this point. I keep getting inquiries about the others, but nothing firm yet.

And I am still in need of a Guardian for little Harmony, our beautiful black-and-white girl. Several people have expressed interest but not followed through for a variety of reasons.

Topaz puppies: 7 week update

So Topaz's puppies turned seven weeks old on thursday. They are defiitely young dogs now - walking, running, playing, and we are even getting a few mini-barks out of them from time to time, in addition to the puppy squeaks and whimpers. They are pretty close to weaned - they still like to suckle, but mama is not keen as they have sharp teeth and are little monsters. She lets them suckle for about a minute (or less) and then starts to growl and try to get away. They are mostly eating solid food now, and drinking water.

We took them to the vet on Tuesday for their first vaccinations and check-up. All passed well - no major issues. Two pups have very slight underbites which shouldn't be an issue with a pet puppy. And one boy just has one testicle so far, but hopefully that will resolve itself in the next couple weeks.

We have decided to release the red female as a pet puppy ovin to her slight underbite. It's not major, but we have had bite issues with some of our pups before and so we want to really try to eiliminate bite issues from our breeding stock so as to avoid any bit issues with future pups. It's a long-term project, and sometimes we might keep pups with minor underbites if they have other attributes that we want in our progra, but for the most part we will be avoiding underbites and overbites in the pups we reatin.

That means we still have two puppies available for pets. Can't yet say for sure which ones, as the allocation won't happen until next eekend, but I think it's likely to be t black boy and either the red or gold boy. We shall see.

Watch for more pictures later today or tomorrow. I'm the "text person" on this blog, and my daughter is the photo duru. She is busy with other stuff at the moment (playing cards with her brother!) so she'll post pix later on. And again, if you wnat more regular phot updates, check out our Facebook page that she keeps pretty updated.

Visit to the vet

Today the pups had their first visit to the vet for their check-up and vaccinations. All went well, everyone handled the poking and prodding with aplomb, and we had barely a squeak when they got poked. A treat or two helps to distract them!!

For this first vet visit, besides the first DAP vaccinations, the pups get a thorough check-up. The vet looks at eyes, ears, and teeth, goes over their coat, checks the rear and goes over joints, spine, tail, and abdomen. We prepare a "health check certificate" on which we mark the results of this checkup (normal or abnormal) and make notes of any abnormalities. The vet then signs the certificate. This certificate is provided to the new owners when they pick up their puppy, so they can see the condition the pup was in.

Out of 51 puppies, the most common issue we've found is underbites or base narrow canines - mostly minor, but some more marked. One pup also had a heart murmur that is not uncommon with puppies and she grew out of it by 16 weeks. And we had one male with only one testicle descended. Other than that, we've been lucky to have no real health problems detected in any of the pups.

The pups were also micrchipped on Saturday, so they now have permanent identification that will help reunite them with their families should they ever get lost.

fantastic five pups!

Red girl:
Hmm, what should I do now - chase a fly or go pee?"

Mo & Blac parti girl: "I know you're not my mother - so wo=who are you? Oh, I know! Grandma!"

"So, Grandma doesn't want to play... Maybe I'll just chase my tail instead."

"I got myself up - now how do I get down?!!?"

Topaz puppies: Six weeks old!

Hard to believe, but these little doods are six weeks old! They are growing well, with more and more teeth every day, and very playful and happy little tykes. They are still nursing, but we're starting to notice Topaz is not comfortable while nursing, whining a bit and moving around, and she doesn't let them nurse more than a few minutes at a time, but she is still being a dutiful mama and feeding her babes when they get noisy. They are also eating more an more "solid" food - that is, soaked kibble to make it mushy. But with their teeth being pretty well developed now, in the next week we will begin mixing dry kibble with the mush and soon enough it will be all dry kibble mixed with soft food (but not mush).

Topaz is a great mama from another perspective (great for us!) - she is still cleaning up after her babes very regularly and efficiently, meaning there is little clean up for us to do. This makes our lives a lot easier - not so much poop to deal with and not as much laundry to do with continual washing of pee pads. Not sure what it does for Topaz's diet, but hey, this is normal for mama dogs... though many of our other mamas stop being so diligient by the time the pups are that old. Isn't hat what humans are for, after all - cleaning up after us dogs?

The pups' personalities are starting to be more distinguishable as well. The white-and-black parti girl is very brave and adventurous. The black and white boy is very social and cuddly. The red girl is confident and friendly. The red and gold boys playful and independent.

A couple of them - black boy and red boy - will have quite curly coats, while red girl has a very soft, more wavy coat. As far as size goes, they are fairly similar in size - they are not huge pups, in fact a lot smaller than Phoenix's were at this age, but they're all growing well so there's no concerns in that department. Topaz is on the small side herself, so we fully expect these pups to be in the 20-lb range, give or take 3-4 lbs.

The next 2-3 weeks will mark lots of adventure and change for these wee pups. The near future holds microchipping, a vet appointment, temperament testing, neutering, and then - bye-bye mama and the hopme they've know so far and off to begin a new life with their forever families!

Topaz puppies: One month old!!

So these little pupsters turned one month old on Sunday! They are starting to get some real teeth by now - the canines are poking out and the incisors are on the verge of emerging too. We have started feeding them puppy kibble, softened with water or broth until they get more teeth, to help supplement the milk they get from Mama and make it easier for her to keep the hungry beasts satisfied.

On Sunday these babes had their first real outdoor experience. We took them to the field and let them run around. As we were taking them there, a worker from the old folks home next door saw my son carrying a big bag and came out to see the pups - she knew what he must be carrying, as she's seen us out there with puppies before! She spent a good 15 minutes playing with the pups and taking some photos.

As usual, some of the pups were a bit more adventurous than others, but all of them didn't have any qualms about this new experiences, enjoying the texture of the grass under their feet and sniffing all the diffierent things around. It was a hot day, so we all ended up napping in the shade for a bit, humans and pups alike.

Topaz puppies - photos

What, it's not Monday still? How did that happen?!?!

Okay, so I'm late again. As usual. But here are the photos of Topaz's pups at 3 weeks of age. Of course, they're now almost 4 weeks old... so I'll try to get even more up-to-date ones up by the weekend.

I do recommend checking out our Facebooks page every so often, as you're more olikely to get updated pix there than here (these days at least) since my daughter makes it her job to post there. (Thank goodness!) (In fact, I have to confess these photos are simply reposts of what she put on Facebook last week. Shh, don't tell anyone!) But for those of you not yet into Facebook (is there any such person out there besides me?), here they are!

Topaz puppies - 3 weeks old!

So the puppies turned 3 weeks old on Thursday! It’s quite amazing the changes they go though at this young age. A week ago their eyes and ears were just opening and they still were crawling around like little crocodiles. Now their eyes and ears are fully open, they are toddling on their four legs – and getting etter at it daily! Though the vinyl floor can be challenging when they’re out of the whelping box – and even emitting the odd little high-pitched bark, as opposed to squeaks and squeals.

For up-to-date pix, check out our Facebook page. My daughter posted some photos there a day ot two ago. I’ll aim to get some on this blog on Monday, once my son’t soccer tournmanet is done with and I can focus on puppies again.

Topaz puppies - photos from 2 weeks

I know this comes a bit late - like a whole 8 days late! - but after sending all the puppies home over May long weekend, my attention was turned to organizing my son's soccer tournament, which I had somehow volunteered for without meaning to be the mainn organizer. So that has occupied my brain and time for the past two weeks. The tournament takes place tomorrow & Sunday, so then I'll have brain space to focus on this litter of puppies again!

Anyhow, here are some photos of the pups at two weeks old.
(For more up-to-date photos, go to our Facebook page, which my daughter keeps fairly up-to-date.)

Topaz puppies: 2 weeks old

The little pups are now located in the puppy corner, aka (former) breakfast nook, right beside the kitchen and close to the action of the household. From  here - now that their eyes and ears are opening - they will be able to see and hear the action of our family's daily living, from sounds of kids chatting and the radio playing to the sights of people walking by and dogs free to roam in the rest of the hosue. And, of course, they will be close to all the tantalizing smells of supper cooking and - when we have the windows open, now that the weater is getting nicer - the grass and trees and cars outside.

We occasionally see one trying to stand on its little legs already. At this point they take a half-step and then flop back down as their bodies are still to heavy for their legs to support them. But it won't take much longer!

Mama Topaz is happy to be closer to the household action, too. It was a bit lonely at times tucked away in the bedroom. Now it's easier to take a few moments outside the "den" and interact with the other dogs when she feels like it.

Now that puppy eyes and ears are on the verge of oepning, we will be stopping the daily neural stimulation exercises we've done since they were 2 days old, and starting to do other things like play the radio, shake noisemakers, and so on to help get them used to the different types of sounds, sights, and actions they will face in the big wide world out there.