I took Mini out to Michigan to be bred to the 2005 National Amateur Champion Upcountry’s Lighthouse Amos.  The drive was about 9 hours and some change.  The people who own Amos live in the upper peninsula of Michigan in the middle of the woods.  The drive was nice; I spent most of the drive following Lake Superior’s shore.  The property that Amos’s owners have is amazing; there is over 300 acres of woods and a wonderful training field.  What can I say, but, that I am totally jealous.  The view they have from their living room is amazing; the pictures do not due it justice.  I am hoping that when I go back to pick up Mini that the trees will have greened up and, that I will be driving back with more than one dog….hopefully, she has some passengers with her (keeping my fingers crossed but 5 puppies would be great).  I drove out there spent the night and drove back the next day.  I stopped to fill up as much as a I could because there was some long stretches of road with NOTHING but, the trees and some more trees.  I did have a slight anxiety attack when I went over the Superior bridge in Duluth going into Superior, Wisconsin…..me and bridges don’t mix so well; it is funny because, I use to work on roller coasters so, you would think I would have no problem on something so big and wide but, I do.  Well, here is what I found when I walked into the door; puppies asleep on the couch and one of them IN the couch. 

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I am happy to say that when I returned from Michigan the house was standing and all the dogs and puppies were alive.  The puppies spent time inside and outside today, and as you can tell they are starting to develop their own quirks and personalities.  Bellini, Jade, and Jagermonster are still the mellow ones while Southern Belle, Georgia Tea, and Mojito are the active ones.  Tornado fits right in the middle of them all as far being a trouble maker goes.  When I got home the other day Tim informed me that they carrying around the wings and playing with the rattles more consistently now.  They are also starting to get louder…..it will just be a matter of time until I will not be able to hear myself think.  It is exciting to see how they scamper across the kitchen floor with their tales up and waging….not a fearful one in the bunch.  Jade and Tornado snuggled with me while Tim and I watched Rambo; I am happy to report that they slept soundly through all the noise….we even have surround sound.  Southern Belle at the moment is barking at me through the puppy gate from inside the kitchen; she has got some spunk!  Jade is the thinker; she is a smart little girl.  She likes to evaluate the situation before she jumps into it.  Potty training is going good; we take them out on a consistent basis so now when they have to go potty they cry first; Tim and I scramble to get them in the basket and outside as quick as possible when we hear their little whimpers.  Our ears have become quite sensitive to their subtle chirps….they will only get louder now.  Just wait until next week they will sound like someone is beating them to get let out.  They all have the perfect little springer head with the intelligence bump on the back; I know many Lab people who ask to have one implanted on their dog; it might happen with the 2 x 4 some people use to train their big dog…..giggle.  Trust me all you will need with a springer is a big voice and a glare and they will be all yours to comand as you like.

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This video is the puppies nursing and as you can see this is why we call them little leeches!

Well, the weather today was horrible so, the puppies spent most of the day in the kitchen and in basket being shuttled outside to go potty.  They are getting better about potty training; everyday is a little bit better than the last.
Here is some information on this litter:
They were whelped March 27, 2009
They have there first series of shots on May 12, 2009
They will be ready to go May 22, 2009

Here is the updated Deposit list:
J. Queck
Meron
Boyden
Schwappach (originally wanted a Trixie Puppy)
Towner
Hendricks
B. Queck

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This video ( it is a little dark because my bathroom is dark) is of the puppies first bath; they were soooo dirty from being outside.  The grass is starting to green up but, there is still a lot of dirt for them to roll around in.  They also manage to roll in their food dish which of course has water in it, then they play and romp and the water acts like glue for the dirt.  Needless to say, the water was very dirty after their bath.
The puppies spent most of the day outside; the weather was nice.  They came in and had their first bath.  They were so cute when they would shake; their whole body sashays from left to right just about to the point where they fall over.  I de-wormed them today as well.  Mojito was feeling up for a climb so, she made it all the way to the third step.  Tim is now convinced to put up the baby gate on the stairway.  Tim was quoted saying Mojito was, “tearing it up today.”  What more needs to be said about the spunky little girl. Bellini Martini and Jagermonster crawled up in Tim’s lap after their bath and snuggled in for the count.  Jade made her way into my lap and crawled up into my shirt to stay warm.  Georgia Tea, Mojito, and Southern Belle all took the opportunity to romp, play, and bite anything with in the reach of their needle sharp teeth.  Tornado spend time chasing Mojito around and then decided to take a break.  They are growing fast; it will just be a matter of time until they start retrieving and carrying around the rattles (the rattles are a little bit bigger than them right now).  I have to make sure not to blink or I will miss everything.  I am getting ready to venture out to the Upper Peninsula (Michigan) to have Mini bred.  I think that it should be an interesting drive with great scenery….I will take pictures.  Tim will be here to hold down the fort while I am gone.

The babies are exactly 4 weeks old today and I am eagerly awaiting for them to grow a little more so they are more fun…. They become funner at 5 weeks and so on.  Tim and I played with the puppies for about 20 minutes ( that is all they really last before they are tired) on the kitchen floor with a rattle and pheasant wings.  Southern Belle and Mojito really liked them; Georgia Tea picked up a wing and carried it around.  They all chase the wings when Tim and I taunt them with it; I have to say it is hard to avoid a pheasant wing being waved in your face..  Tornado climbed what must have seemed like Mount Everest to him today; he made it up the first step on the stairs.  He sat there for awhile and then started to cry for help down; after some more time he braved the climb down with a little help from gravity that is.  He made a little thud when he hit the floor.  The flooring in the kitchen is relatively new so, the babies had quite the time keeping their legs under them and their paws on the floor; it was like watching them ice skate minus the skates of course.  They seemed not to mind to much as they nursed on Kahlua from their little butts planted on the floor…that anchored them good against the slick floor.  Tim weight the puppies today:
Tornado: 2 lbs 11oz
Jagermonster: 2 lbs 10 oz
Southern Belle: 3 lbs 1oz
Bellini Martini: 3 lbs 1 oz
Georgia Tea: 2 lbs 14 oz
Mojito: 2 lbs 11 oz
Jade: 2 lbs 10 oz

They are growing like weeds!  I think that Tim and I should call Trixie patches; it reflects the quality of her hair cut that Tim gave her.

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4 week old puppies playing after eating….  This video is really just a test to see if we could post videos for everyone to see of the puppies.  They were in the pen playing with Tim when I took it.

The weather was nice and warm today; the high of 88 degrees.  Jagermonster has been labeled the crier after today; I could hear him from outside while I was working on the video in my living room.  Georgia Tea and Southern Belle are the outgoing mischieveious puppies so far; they are always on the go wanting to know ‘what is up’.  Jade and Bellini Martini are the little thinkers. Mojito is the calm perfect little girl so far….she is my favorite so far; I have to admit that will change like 8 times before they are all gone just to let you know.  We left the puppies to play in the kitchen while we went to town and there was only one accident!  Tornado found out that he can stick his head through the chain link fence that boarders one side of the puppy pen…it is so cute; he will stick his head through and then cry for momma who is playing in the big dog yard.  he just wanted to let her know that he can see her and more importantly can SMELL her and wants to eat.  He has a healthy appetite.  He will also let you know what he wants and when he wants it.  My Purina Pro Plan puppy packets came in today with a loud announcement from Trixie and Miata; that poor UPS guy (it is ironic because Miata’s moms name is UPS).  I think that they might just give him a heart attack one of these days.  Tim decided to shave down Trixie and Miata today.  The pile of hair that littered the ground could of covered a full size Labrador.  Trixie is enjoying the new lightness of her hair cut; I swear there is a bigger spring in her step if possible.  I hope that you all enjoy the video; I will be able to capture more as the puppies grow and start to venture out of their shells and they want to ‘wamp’ on each other more…..  I do have to say that they are getting louder; it is starting to echo through the house.

Now, I have all the technical difficulties worked out and can blog; sorry!  The puppies have grown leaps and bounds since the last time I wrote.  They are little escape artist.  Tim decided today to put the whelping box away; they were getting out of it on a consistent basis.  Tornado, Georgia Tea, and Southern Belle were the trouble markers; they would escape as soon as you turn your back after putting them back in the whelping box.  Today was the puppies first day outside; it was a gorgeous day.  We also fed them puppy food soaked in water today for the first time.  As expected they mostly walked through it and drank the water but, that is how all puppies start out eating for the first time.  Their little needle sharp teeth are coming in.  We have been having a slight problem the last week or so….Trixie thinks that Kahlua’s puppies are hers and has been trying to nurse them and guards them from Kahlua.  Poor Kahlua comes running to us with fearful eyes that say, “she won’t let me have my babies, HELP!”  Every time we turned around Trixie had herself planted in the whelping box and nothing was going to move her.  Tim had to physically pick her up in his arms and carry her away so Kahlua could nurse.  Well, I think the problem will now subside that there is no whelping box to stake claims for anymore.  As you can see, I put new portraits up not too long ago and I believe I will need to put some more up in the next few days.  This litter has some outgoing babies; they include: Georgia Tea, Southern Belle (she is the biggest so far) and Bellini Martini.  Those little girls are on the move and they want to check everything out.  Tim laid out in the puppy pen with them today and those were the three puppies that ran to him and played; the others soon followed.  Tornado is a little howler right now; he sits on his little butt, sticks his nose in the air, and howls for his momma.  It is so cute!  The babies are so active; we have started potty training them today and they will sleep in a crate together tonight.  We had a visitor today and the babies ran around in the living room waging their little tails…..I love it.  They scratch and yawn. Their personalities are starting to emerge with great animation.  We put rattles (plastic water bottles with coins or rock in them…they make a lot of noise) down for them in the kitchen so, they could have something to play with and chase.  Tim and I have been taking time everyday to snuggle all the puppies; we bundle them in as close to our hearts as possible when we are relaxing and the puppies just fall asleep.  They like to be snuggled in, especially, close to a beating heart.  It is a matter of a minute before they are sound asleep twitching and growling in their dreams.  Puppies dream a lot when they are asleep; you watch all of them after their tummies are full and the dream just takes over their whole body: barking, running, growling, twitching…. If it quite comical to watch.  SoBe, Mini, and Miata are all in heat so, that puts a stop for right now on running any field trials.  I am taking Mini out to Michigan to have her bred to the National Amateur Field Champion Upcountry’s Lighthouse Amos.  The gentleman that owns the dog is keeping a male and I am planning on keeping 2 females.  It is going to be so awesome to actually keep a puppy that I have bred; Tim always says no…..could you  image how many dogs I would have if he didn’t!  Don’t forget that that ticks are going to be coming out soon now that the fields are greening up so get your Frontline on your dogs soon.  I have also been giving my dogs heartguard…the state bird is about to emerge from its nest soon ( the mosquito)….be prepared!

Well, whoever bet one day for Kahlua taking something big off the counter won.  She grabbed a BOX of cookies and decided to share them with the babies.  They had blue frosting on them….busted Kahlua.  Tornado actually stood today for about 2 seconds. His eyes are still shut so, he did not know exactly which way to topple over but, he did it.  Georgia Tea’s eyes are starting to crack open.  Tim and I ask the puppies if they “can see me yet?”  Their ears are opening up as well.  Tim and I have the puppies in paper shreds in the whelping box now.  We used towels the first week and now paper shreds.  We don’t use newspaper because it turns white puppies into black puppies and we don’t use pine shavings because the wood dust can cause allergy problems for the puppies and people.  Paper shreds work the best because there is no dust or coloration that affects the puppies.  The kitchen floor looks like it snowed paper but, that is why I bought a great vacuum cleaner; it will be working overtime until we start potty training the puppies.  Tim and I decided that we are going to weight the puppies once a week to report their growth and size.

The drive to the trial this morning was icky; there was heavy wet snow on the roads making it difficult to drive faster than 40 mph.  I was second dog dog this morning with SoBe.  The course was covered with heavy wet snow making it difficult for the dogs to make their way through the grass.  SoBe ran her little heart out for me; she gave it her all.  She covered the course and put up a bird; the gunners shot it and I sent her.  She went the distance but did not have the bird.  After I brought her back to me I gave her a “back” and she went right to the spot but still no bird.  As she was coming back my way again she flushed another bird.  She stayed steady on that just fine.  I brought her in and gave her one more “back” she still did not get the bird so, I pulled her.  I was a little frustrated but, as I watched other dogs they too were having problems with retrieves in the snow and cover.  On the way home the girls slept the entire way; I can’t blame them, they worked so hard for me in the trial.  On the way home Tim called me about contacting people about their deposits; I told him what I could remember besides what was wrote down on the deposit slips.  I have to admit I was exhausted and ready for my own bed.  I made a mistake and thank the goodness that Tim was able to correct it before it was uncorrectable…(sorry Mary, I did not mean to make you sad).  I got home and unloaded the girls and they ran right upstairs and plopped into our bed and did not leave the rest of the day. I went into the bathroom and checked over the puppies.  I picked up Southern Belle and she started to talk to me; she had quite a bit to say I might add.  As I watched I realized that they needed to be in the bigger whelping box in the kitchen.  Tim and I moved them into the kitchen whelping box.  Kahlua was not a huge fan of it but, after a little bit she started to relax.  Then she realized that she can now counter surf without anyone really knowing because she in now actually IN the kitchen.  Georgia Tea let out the cutest yawn today.  They are growing so fast.  They are starting to get louder as well; we can hear them in the bedroom with the door shut.  I think that Kahlua is going to take full advantage of being on the front line where all the food action is taking place.  Anyone want to take bets until she takes something big off the counter?