Jazz x Monty pups turned 6 weeks old on Sunday Jul 5, 2020. We've had torrential rains here this past week, with lots of flooding. Our yard is a mucky, puddle filled mess. Needless to say, the pups have ended up spending their time inside this week rather than out.
**with all videos, click on the link, then click on the thumbnail to open fully**
Since they're spending so much time inside and are consistently using the potty area, I've expanded the puppy pen to make some more room for them to play. Elkanah figured out how to climb over the gate, so I also now have the coyote roller installed.
They're being given some 'manding' training, which, in this case, is where they're rewarded for sitting voluntarily before being given my attention and before being fed. My version is a bit different than some, because I ignore all pups that are NOT sitting, rather than looking at a pup and expecting it to sit. That's because there are a LOT of behaviours I want a dog to do when I look at them. Not all of them are 'sit', PLUS any attention or look from me can, itself, be a reward to a pup.
The pups are now eating dry kibble, except I'm still using kibble mush for training. They usually know 'sit' (new areas can cause a bit of regression), and are working on turn, spin, up, off, and down. At the beginning of last week, the puppies not being trained would cry and bewail their fate at not being the picked - & fed - pup. Pups are selected in order of who quietly sits first for me. It didn't take them long to figure out that sitting quietly got rewarded even when I couldn't yet choose them for the next training session. We had a couple of visitors this week. Elkanah and Ember were given the chance to greet them. (Sadly, I only got a couple decent pics, and both of Elkanah) Pics shared with permission.
Pups were exposed to the vacuum for the first time last week; they're finally big enough that they are scattering more sawdust mess than a simple sweep will easily tackle. Here they were showing a gradual acceptance of the first exposure. They were demonstrating enough curiosity by the time I was nearing the end of the session, that I moved the nozzle closer, but kept it stationary. Both Ember & Elko investigated to the point of touching nose to nozzle briefly. In addition, pups have had some crate exposure along with the vacuum noise. Pups were very well behaved.
A fairly long video of all the pups Jul 6, their response to a new toy, interactions with each other & with me.
Weights:
All of the pups alert bark when I come into the room & eagerly greet me. I took training videos of all the pups today in a new area of the house (Eagle had been on that floor for a short period of time at 4.5 weeks, but otherwise, none had experienced it.) I also introduced a cookie sheet and the 'on' command for the first time PLUS added the more difficult version of down that didn't use my leg. So quite a lot to take in all at once. Normally I would only introduce ONE new thing at a time, but this was for temperament and soundness observational purposes more than the training, so I pushed their comfort zones quite a bit. *Before viewing the training videos*
A couple of caveats. Once again, these videos are a glimpse of a moment in time and not the full picture. Take them along with the other videos, pictures and explanations you've seen to form a more well-rounded idea.
As well, please keep in mind that these pups are just 6.5 weeks old. The potential they have at this point in time can be brought to fruition or hindered depending on how they are raised from here on out. There is a lot of maturation and training that goes on AFTER they leave here to make a dog into a trustworthy and pleasing companion. These pups just have a bit of a head start. :) Individual puppy pics
This past 10 days with the flooding, there has been no outside time, and the indoor pics are very poor quality this time around - very poor lighting, so I'm adding ONE new picture per pup and leaving the 5 week pics in place. Thankfully, there's lots of video footage :) 1) Elkanah (God has made - m) At 4.5 weeks when I took them outside for the first time, Elkanah initially lacked confidence and hid behind the laundry basket, while the other three gradually came towards me. Elkanah warmed up quickly - within about 2 minutes - but there was still that first fearful response. Today, during the new situation training, Elkanah was not at all lacking in confidence - in fact both he and Ember were the most outgoing and enthusiastic on the new floor of all the pups. He tends to wag a bit while I'm holding him and tail was going fairly steadily during training today, too. A couple of days ago, when he was chewing my fingers, I said, 'gentle'. He stopped, looked at me, then tried again "Is this what you're talking about?". I repeated myself. He stopped, looked at me, then duplicated the action. I again said, 'gentle'. He stopped. Elkanah demonstrated a bit of playful behavior on my lap when held sitting on a chair in a new area, but was not constantly busy.
2) Elko (His collar has a wavy 'sash', thus Elko, meaning 'Noble' - m) He was the first pup to use the potty, and is pretty consistent, along with Ember.
Elko was also the least adventurous in the new photo area at 3 weeks. He became more outgoing than Elkanah in new situations for a time, but was more cautious than the rest of the puppies during all the unfamiliar. He appears to be a bit more of a laid back pup. A couple of nights ago I took each of the pups into a new room and sat in a chair with them, just observing the reaction to being away from their littermates, and to the new setting. He was a little concerned about the new area, but relaxed quickly on my lap, content to just quietly observe things rather than being busy all the time on my lap like Eagle. He made eye contact and communed with me. He was nibbling on my fingers and I softly said, 'gentle', which I've never used specifically with him. He looked at me, licked my fingers and didn't chew anymore. In the training scenario, Elko was the least confident pup today - which is a change from his response to first outdoor exposure at 4.5 weeks, and from what I've seen observing other times, but at 3 weeks, he was also somewhat hesitant... so... that may be a revert... or it may be that he's started into the developmental fear phase that all pups go through somewhere between 6-8 weeks. Even still, he went through the majority of the time with tail up and some wags. However, there was enough hesitancy from Elko over the cookie sheet that I actually did 2 videos of him training with me, done back to back. Here is phase 1 of his 6 week training videos showing his first response. And phase 2 showing his second. He is the only pup I did that with. All the others, the first video is their first exposure.
3) Eagle (This boy's collar reminds me of a bird - m). He will be saddleback.
He, along with Ember, was the most explorative in new surroundings until recently. He sometimes licks my face when I pick him up, and now wags the second I pick him up, too. He's also sported a bit of a 'tude on occasion, and appears to be a little more dominance oriented, but after some corrections, I haven't seen any sign of that in the past 10 days or so. He does notice change (new person, strange noise), and alerts to it with barking and some growls, so we have implemented some more sound desensitization. Also interested to see what temperament tests show.
On my lap the other day, he kept moving - very interested in everything that was happening, wanting to explore. It took several repeats of 'gentle' to get him to stop trying to chew on my fingers. He's cheerful and generally outgoing and will likely be a higher energy level. That being said, Eagle was a bit hesitant during the training today, which was a surprise & change from any behaviour he's exhibited up until now. It was nothing major, but it made me wonder if he's entering the developmental fear phase that occurs sometime within the 6-8 week period. We'll have to see. Eagle is quite voracious when training, snapping the food off my hand eagerly with a wide open mouth. He does, rarely, accidentally connect.
4) Ember (She has a little flame of white on the back of her neck - f). At 3 weeks she, along with Eagle, was the most interested in exploring the new surroundings for the photo shoot. At 2-3 weeks she was, on occasion, a bit of a drama queen - she absolutely hated being given the dewormer 3 days in a row, squirming & yelping throughout. (Ember has not been a drama queen since, although she is arbitrarily quite concerned about being carried). She's also wags her tail when I pet her and tends to lick my face when I pick her up <3 At this point she is an interesting mixture of curiosity & caution; she notices and tends to investigate when things are different. Today on my lap in a newer part of the house, she was somewhat intimidated, but warmed up, wagged, and was a bit playful. However, she remained alert to every changing noise and nuance in the house, so she's definitely going to need some continued work with sound desensitization. Because she's been a bit hesitant lately, I was pleasantly surprised that Ember was one of the more confident pups during the higher stress training today.
All pups are currently reserved, pending temperament tests. Anyone interested in being on our wait list either in case a spot opens up from this litter, or for future litters, please contact us & fill out our application form.
