Puppydom '08

Puppies 1st Birthday!

2009-03-04T10:49:00.000-08:00

We had a fantastic time! Thanks everyone for coming out and for being such wonderful parents!

First time seeing eachother after almost a year and it was like time hadn't passed.

Oliver and Sasha still look like twins! Except Sasha's tail went curly! Tico was very happy to see his brothers! Joey is so handsome!

Oscar did not seem to mind his party hat.
I think in this picture Oscar, Tico and Sasha are either trying to get out or trying to get first sniff at the next dog coming in.

Don't believe what they say - dog wrangling is not as easy as it looks.

The puppies 1st birthday cupcakes I made!
And in case anyone forgot what their momma looks like, here is Pichu.
this is how we celebrated tico's big day.
and now the party is over. time for bed kids.

Howl-o-ween Hounds

2008-10-29T12:37:00.001-07:00

Pichu & Tico

2008-09-14T21:50:00.001-07:00

one of the best things in my life - cuddling with my dogs
it's extremely hard to get a good picture of pichu and tico together so this was a coup
pichu princess

pichu was sooooo good with Maddie. She played tug with her and was super gentle. Pichu is going to be a great big sister to our kids :)

Tico - 6 Months

2008-08-30T14:03:00.001-07:00

He's usually not this regal.

Look at that tongue!

Sorry it's been so long!

2008-08-10T20:37:00.000-07:00

Play time.

Kisses.

Pretty eyes.

What?! It wasn't me.

The serious face.

40 pounds now. Bunkie is 62. Not sure if he'll end up bigger than her. The growth seems to be slowing.

All the puppies are so adorable. Here's Sasha at 5 months. He's right about 40 pounds, and a little trouble maker, but soooo funny. He makes me laugh all day long. He just got his big dog bark, too. Had to include some of him with Bunkie because they are so cute together and pretty much inseparable. Bunkie is a new dog at 9 years old. Sasha has brought her 100% out of her post ACL surgery funk. Runs, jumps, and plays like a puppy again herself. This is a house of total silliness. Thanks again for this little guy. We just love him.

JOEY & PHREDDY - "urban socialization"

2008-07-17T11:43:00.000-07:00

Joey and Tico were the biggest kids. Looks like things aren't changing. Joey was as big as his cousin Preddy at 8 weeks.

KODI @ 4 months

2008-07-17T11:41:00.001-07:00

LOOK AT LITTLE GIRL! not so little right? she was the runt and the only girl of our litter - look how awesome she's doing! Thanks Ellen and Steve!

OLIVER

2008-07-17T11:33:00.000-07:00

Melissa sent me these pics of our first pup to come out. Turned out pretty darn ok! Look at the markings on his face - so gorgeous.

Tico passed Pichu in height

2008-07-15T11:49:00.000-07:00

at 4.5 months (early July) and gains about 10 lbs a month (40 lbs at 4 months).

Tico's First Day at the Beach Part 1

2008-07-07T17:38:00.000-07:00

first time on sand

first time touching the ocean

Tico's First Day at the Beach Part 2

2008-07-07T17:30:00.001-07:00

paddle out dude
father and son
sand beard

papa bear and baby dog

Tico wants to meet his namesake

2008-05-15T17:48:00.001-07:00

Tico the dog - fits in the suitcase, for now.

This is Tico the car and Tico dog´s namesake. This is the most common taxi car in Peru. Clearly, my husband jives on irony.

Sasha in his favorite hillside spot with the desert flowers

2008-05-06T14:05:00.000-07:00

He's going to be really sad when he's too big to fit under the bushes like he does now to get there.

... or he'll just tear them up so he fits I guess. He just started digging plants up.

I've been bad

2008-05-06T10:48:00.000-07:00

about taking pictures of Tico. I'm totally obsessed with him but i've forgotten to take pics. i only remember to take pics when we're socializing him. why don't i realize he won't be this small for long??? greg took him to the vet on friday and she said he was a "size 6". in laymans terms that means he's going to be a 65-70 lb dog. ho damn!

"Socializing Puppy in an Urban Environment"

2008-05-02T10:31:00.001-07:00

noodle is tico's bff at chandler bike path

this was wonderful socialization! this gentleman walks the path regularly. and crutches could be scary for a puppy. but Teeks is a big strong boy and it didn't faze him.

We started Puppy Head Start with Tico and Oscar at 7 weeks. THANK GOD! tico is already better trained than his mother. one of the things we're supposed to do is socializing him in our urban environment so he gets used to the sounds of cars/trucks/bikes/skateboards/people/dogs. and he wins prizes if we take pictures of the socialization.
he is such a little social butterfly. he loooooooooves to meet people and dogs. he whimpers when a passerby doesn't pet him. HOW COULD YOU NOT PET MY DOG - HE'S FLIPPING ADORABLE. sadly, no dogs have the same amount of energy as tico.

This is what Pichu does

2008-05-02T10:27:00.001-07:00

when she doesn't have her usual excercise. ate 4 cds. actually swallowed shards of sharp hard plastic. dont understand how her gums weren't bleeding. i did find cd case in her poop days later. we're getting her a treadmill stat.

Pichu tried to kill a baby...

2008-04-30T17:41:00.000-07:00

... a baby squirrel!
this morning i let the dogs out and pichu ran straight for the mandarin tree where an innocent baby squirrel was foraging and almost killed him. i was screaming like a crazy lady and im sure the neighbors heard. i wonder if she didnt intend to kill him because she had him in her mouth but didnt bite down. i was so upset. it was just a little baby. i dont think ive ever even seen a baby squirrel. he was finally able to get up the tree and she CLIMBED UP THE TREE. as far as she could anyway. i got her inside the house and then went back out. he was still in the same spot and his mom was a few branches above him. he was chirping away. but it sounded kind of muffled. dont know if that's the normal sound of a baby squirrel learning to chirp or the sound of a baby squirrel with a punctured lung. i watched him for a long time. on the exterior he was fine (no blood or anything) but who knows. when i was leaving for work i went back out there and mom and baby were gone. hope they're ok :/

fave pics from week 8 - part 3

2008-04-23T17:36:00.000-07:00

such good sitters
6am

we're going to grow up together
kodi

fave pics from week 8 - part 2

2008-04-23T17:33:00.000-07:00

sasha & oliver
tico
sasha in basket
where is the rest of sasha's body?
this basket is the best toy ever

fave pics from week 8

2008-04-23T17:28:00.000-07:00

tico
oliver morning greeting (6am, everyday). hungry hungry hippos

kodi
oscar and oliver

4/19/08 Puppy Pickup Day - Part Three

2008-04-21T16:02:00.000-07:00

New Mommy Melissa and Oliver New Mommy Betsy and Sasha

New Auntie Nannette and Joey
New Cousin Phreddy and Joey Sadly, I failed to take a picture of new parents Ellen and Steve and Kodi :(

4/19/08 Puppy Pickup Day - Part Two

2008-04-21T15:49:00.000-07:00

Greg with Oliver in the new Puppy Bjorn
Xmas '08 card!
Sasha! Get in the picture with your brothers and sister!
OK, better than nothing
Tico - already bigger than my mom

4/19/08 Puppy Pickup Day - Part One

2008-04-21T15:41:00.001-07:00

last day in the pen!

Kodi found an empty flower pot - best toy ever!

Sasha's first day home

2008-04-19T22:02:00.000-07:00

There was a bit of crying in the car, and then some serious romping around with Bunkie, and a good sleep, some more playing, a little walk, and now some more sleeping.

#2 aka Sasha - Birth day pics

2008-04-15T17:06:00.000-07:00

2/24/08 sasha was born second (hence his title #2). we had no idea what we would be getting as far as looks and once 2 came out looking almost identical we realized we need to tie ribbons on them to know which was which. then the third puppy was born (his title was mr. brown, real name Joey) and then all the rest looked different so we stopped with the ribbon.

2/24/08 after each puppy was born he would nurse until Pichu started having contractions again. then we'd move them to an incubator box that had a heating blanket on the bottom to keep them warm and keep them out of harms way as she was delivering. this is sasha & oliver in their incubator box.

2/24/08 the 8 of us. all puppies are delivered. momma dog and human parents are sweaty, tired and amazed.

2/24/08 this could be sasha or oliver. a couple hours after birth. pichu was confused by these little being that hurt her so much. she growled at them the first night until her mothering hormones kicked in after they started nursing.

2/26/08 we soon realized that sasha had a big white spot and oliver had a small white spot. if you couldnt see their chest though they were identical.

...and thank you

2008-04-14T17:40:00.000-07:00

Thanks to both Natalie and Greg for taking in a dog who might normally be an undesirable (i.e., very pregnant), and giving her a home and bringing her pups into the world (who are perfect!). It takes special people to jump in with both feet and to open up your home to my/our weekly visits.

It's been great and hopefully the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

2008-04-14T17:26:00.000-07:00

I want to personally thank all of you for providing homes for these little (and sometimes not-so-little) guys and gals. And a special thanks to my incredible wife, Natalie, for devoting nearly every waking moment over the last two months -- and there were A LOT of waking moments-- to the health and wellbeing of each and every puppy!

And now, one of my favorite shots of Tico (the puppy we're keeping)....it's one of my favorites because it was taken around week 3 and it was pretty much the last time I could hold the tubby little guy with one hand! Ahh the mem0ries.

All the best,
Greg

everyone is here!

2008-04-14T15:51:00.000-07:00

poor pichu - soooo tired. look how pink Tico's nose is! l-r either Oliver or Sasha, my parent's pup, Tico, either Oliver or Sasha, Little Girl (name still in the works) and Joey.