A wealth of puppy videos

Happy Mother's Day to mama Dolce!

The puppies are going to be three weeks old tomorrow, and today Maura posted three fabulous videos! They're up and mobile, eyes open, vocalizing with incredible adorableness. In the next few weeks, we'll really start getting to see all the pups' personalities. Probably, after another three or so weeks have passed, I'll know which puppy is Kaline!

 Juno is quite the talker, when off-duty, so hopefully this means Kaline will be too! (To be fair, though, the puppy making all the noise in the video is the black female—evidently she was not happy that she had to have a bath.) I'm always having to tell new people, “Don't worry if she starts to growl when you scratch her butt, that means she's happy and you should keep doing that.” Sometimes if she's really feeling playful she'll make her wounded bear/Wookiee noises. And of course, when we're out at training in the park and she has to honor a different dog working, there's a constant stream of commentary from the Juno Peanut Gallery. You can tell her down, and she'll go, but the whole time she'll be grumbling or yodeling in hilarious protest.

I can't figure out how to embed the third video, which shows some of the pups playing, so here's the link!

Puppies at one week old

I love how adorably fat they are!

Why ... ?

Why a Doberman?

When most people think of service dogs, they think of Labrador Retrievers, Golden Retrievers, and German Shepherds. Without a doubt, these breeds are well suited to the work. They are intelligent, a convenient size for serving most disabilities, friendly and calm.

But for me, a Doberman is the perfect dog.

I have both physical and psychiatric disabilities. No dog fills my needs like a Doberman. Dobermans are intelligent and trainable (yes, there is a difference!). A male who meets the breed standard—26-28 inches at the shoulder—is the perfect size for me, tall enough that I will be able to touch his back without leaning over (I'm pretty short). There are situations where I will need my dog to lead me, or just provide forward momentum, and the fact that his vest handle will naturally be at the right height is a huge plus.

Dobermans are “velcro” dogs. They want to be with you all the time (ask any Doberman owner when the last time was they went to the bathroom alone—most won't be able to remember), and are terrifically in tune with their person's emotions. They want to please you and keep you safe—and they're smart enough to know when they should employ “intelligent disobedience” for your own good. Again, perfect for me!

To some people, Dobermans can be intimidating. While I will be sure to turn my little guy into an ambassador for his breed, the intimidation factor is not necessarily a bad thing for me. A huge problem service dog handlers have is members of the general public touching, talking to, feeding, and otherwise distracting their service dogs. I'm hoping (probably in vain) that a Doberman will not be as likely to get molested as a cuddly looking Golden.

On the practical side, Dobermans also require minimal grooming due to their short, sleek coats. When you have frequent problems getting your hands to work without pain, that's a big plus. What about the ear-posting, you might ask? That's a lot of work on your hands. Well, my Doberman's ears will NOT be cropped. They will be adorably floppy, and thus require no more out of my hands than constant gentle stroking!

Why Gatehouse?

I chose Gatehouse Dobermanns after a ton of research into Doberman breeders and breeding. One of my big limiting factors was that I was not willing to compromise about my puppy's ears. Some people think that cropped ears are what make Dobermans look like Dobermans; I respectfully disagree. I love the natural look!

However, a breeder in the U.S. who will sell you an uncropped puppy is likely (though not necessarily) one of two things: either he/she is an unethical breeder just looking to make a buck, or he/she breeds working-line Dobermans. Obviously, going with an unethical breeder was never an option for me. A good breeder will take care of the cropping for the puppies before they ever go to their new homes; and most good breeders will not allow puppies to go home uncropped because should the dog be returned for any reason, it is much harder to rehome an uncropped Doberman. I don't know why this is so, but it is.

Most working-line Dobermans are just too much dog for me and the job I envision for my service dog. The reason I originally planned to go with Von Luka, a working-line Doberman breeder, was 1) for the uncropped ears and 2) because the breeder was planning a European show line litter—lower drive than your average Doberman competing in Schutzhund. She knew exactly what I needed in a dog and knew that I would get what I was looking for from that litter.

But once I could no longer wait for the Von Luka litter, it meant I would need to look for a pup in Canada. In Canada, cropping is seen as optional. Gatehouse puppies are cropped before they go home, if their owners desire; but if you want your puppy's ears left natural, that's fine too. Gatehouse had a litter coming up in spring, from parents who have been titled in the show ring as well as extensively health and temperament tested. My pup's mom is quite the velcro dog, and his dad is a big, laid back guy. Mom is black and Dad is red; I am hoping for a black male as my service dog candidate.

Why a male?

Generally, for peace in the household, it's a better idea to have two dogs of the opposite sex, rather than two of the same sex. Juno's a girl, so I had always planned for her successor to be a boy.

Boys also get a bit bigger than girls, and I want a dog on the bigger side. (That is not to say that breeding dogs specifically for large size is acceptable—it is decidedly not.) I would just rather have a taller, heavier Doberman, and with a boy, that's what you get.

All dogs are different, obviously, but from what I have heard from other Doberman owners, males tend to be more eager to please, more goofy, more affectionate, etc. I have definitely experienced the bitch personality with Juno—sometimes you just get the look: "You want me to what? Um, no, not right now. Stop bothering me." I think the whole boy-girl personality thing applies, to an extent, with all dog breeds. I train a lot of different dogs, and I almost always have a better rapport with the boys. Except when it comes to Juno, naturally!

I realize it's a big generalization, and I'm not saying girls or boys are better. I'm just saying I think a boy is better for me, right now, and for what I want him to do.

Why Kaline?

My puppy will be named for Detroit Tigers great Al Kaline. His "call name" anyway—his official registered name is still up in the air. Al Kaline is in the Hall of Fame, hit 399 home runs over his career, won a batting title at the tender age of 20, and played on the 1968 World Champions. He is also a complete class act, known as Mr. Tiger. He is a constant presence around the current Tigers. In case it wasn't obvious, the Tigers are my favorite team!

Milestone for Juno ... and more puppy pictures

Today at drop-off training, Juno scored another great milestone in her vision recovery. Freddie, the trainer I work with, had told me she was bringing a jump to practice with, and I was both nervous and excited. It's clear Juno has a lot of vision back, but I wasn't sure if she quite had enough to do a jump.

We started her out low, and I was super worried when she knocked the bar off at ten inches. But it turned out Juno just didn't quite get it that I wanted her to jump, rather than walk, over the bar. Once she got that, it was amazing! It was like she never had any issues with her vision at all!

I was crazy happy when Juno jumped 14 inches. We stopped there for a while (there were other dogs to work on the jump with). Then I decided to up the ante. Sixteen inches, then eighteen. Then twenty. No problem. My pup still has her mad hops. Then we did twenty-two. When she did twenty-four, I decided I needed a video, no matter how crappily it came out.

And then, just for shits and giggles, we did twenty-six inches. Juno is almost 26 inches at the shoulder, and she cleared the jump twice with no problems.

I am so proud of my girl, and so happy that her vision is back! I just have no words for how great it is to see Juno so happy and peppy and ready for anything again.

And now, here are a few more puppy pictures (3 days old). They just had their tails and dewclaws done.

Sad news

I just learned on Facebook that one of the red boys died last night. Apparently Dolce was stressed for a little while, but settled down after about half an hour. Maura thinks she knew that he just wasn't going to live. This is one of the many reasons why I could never be a breeder. Wouldn't be able to handle it when one of the little guys doesn't make it. Here's hoping the rest of the pups are doing well.

Puppy photos!

Here are some photos of the babies! The first three are from the day the puppies were born (April 23) and the second three are from Wednesday, April 25. The pups and mama are doing well!

This is the firstborn puppy, a black male, who was born in the daffodils.

The first three puppies, all black males!

These are nearly all the pups (one red pup isn't visible) on the day they were born. The amount of cuteness threatens to make my brain explode!

The pups at two days old.

Mama Dolce and two of the puppies.

Possibly the most adorable picture ever ... until the next installment of photos, that is!

The puppies are here!

I have been waiting to start this blog until my puppy existed. Well, now he does!

Yesterday, Dolce gave birth to seven beautiful puppies: three black dogs, two red dogs, one black bitch and one red bitch. The girls were last, keeping everyone in suspense. The first black boy, on the other hand, was born in the daffodils as Dolce got out of the van coming back from the vet. 

I'm hoping for a black boy, so the fact that there are three makes me pretty wild with glee. And the fact that there are five boys total is even better. My whole family are hoping I get matched with a black boy (the breeder will choose my puppy); my boyfriend is hoping for a red. Either way, I know Maura will pick the one with the best chance of succeeding Juno as my service dog!

I have the urge to go on a puppy shopping spree, either at my favorite local independent or online. I will, of course, end up buying things in both places. It feels like I've been waiting forever for this little boy to exist, and I feel so great now that he does!