Six weeks old today!!!

They've made it to six weeks, or I've made it to six weeks!  The necks are starting to show.  Drives a curmudgeon to distraction when they look like they have no neck when they are just fat little balls!!!  I think that we have some nice dogs in this litter.  Still have my fingers crossed.

The kids came back on Friday.

Cash liked Touille feeding the babies.

They got to explore the dog room.  Ono and Pip are in that crate to their left.

Playing like big kids.

Please, let me play with you, Pip!  Give me a taste of your rawhide!  I'm a big kid too!

The others are lined up behind Pip.  Let Zipper/Sherlock test the waters....

Playing in the yard is the BEST!

Comin' at ya!

Morse behind Dame.

"Big" kids wanting to prove they are big kids.

They LOVE playing with Pip.  She is good with them.  Ono plays with them too.  Doesn't love it as much as Pip does.

Back from exploring.

Master earthdog in the making, Drew.

Shade and a place to crash. Betty and Skip came over on Sunday.

No, not earthdog time.  He fell asleep in the digging place.  Cracked up the curmudgeon.That is Lightening Bug.

This is what they do when they have worn themselves out playing outside.  Morse on the right, Drew next to him.  Zipper, with the dirt on his nose on top of someone.  All snuggled up next to Skip.

Leaving tomorrow for a meeting until Sunday.  Probably won't be posting until Monday, if then, as I'll have to catch up Monday.  Nancy taking care of the babies while I'm gone.  Poor lady, all that puppy holding.  (and poop and pee.)
Shoulder improving.  Thank goodness for Aleve.  Apparently it is a much better anti inflammatory than iburprofen!  I didn't know that.  Now I do. 
The Cantankerous Curmudgeon

Pirhanas

Darn teeth anyway!!!  They have them and use them sometimes, on me.  Feet.
Personalities are coming out more and more.  Dame has stolen my heart, mainly because she runs to me as fast as her little body can whenever I am near.  How does one resist that, I'd like to know?!  To be PICKED!!!!  I will NOT let it go to my head though.  She will have to prove herself in the conformation arena before I get to keep her!!!!
I am seeing some awfully nice stacks sometimes.  Keep those fingers crossed!!! 
It is funny to me how all of a sudden the puppies can, and sometimes do, change their look.  Zipper/Sherlock has gotten sleek.  He is going to have one of those fantastic coats that is easy to keep, like his mom, and Kathy says, like his dad.  OK by me!
We have been spending hours outside each day.  The puppies love it.  They play, play, play, then crash.  When they crash, we go in and I get work done, then when they get up, I take them back out and get nothing done except puppy lovin'.  Hard job, but somebody has to do it.
Was kind of a house afire last Sunday and pulled a muscle or something in my right shoulder.  I am hurting, but, luckily, puppies don't weigh much!!!  It just makes me the cantankerous curmudgeon.  I'll get over it!  My doctor tells me that Aleve is the thing!
Will try to find the pictures I put on here.  Hard sometimes....

Connie

 Can't find the rest.  Tomorrow....
Sorry.
cc

Another picture

This one is from the National Specialty and this is Norman.  These puppies are his half siblings!!!  (Mom's side.)
Pretty handsome lad, isn't he?

That is Star Ott showing him.  She does a great job.  I can see his mom in him....
Fingers crossed for this litter too!!!
c

7/11 Seven Eleven

The puppies gleefully went out to the side yard three times yesterday.  They do love it and are becoming more and more adventuresome.  Mom was there with us so that she could help watch for raptors along with the paranoid breeder/curmudgeon.  The aunt and uncle came in at times, not the whole time as they don't let the babies get any of the treats being dished out.   I did take some pictures.

COMPUTER ZONKED

7/11

The computer had problems yesterday, otherwise you would have gotten these pictures then!
The puppies got to go outside three times on Wed. and they had fun.  They are definitely becoming more and more adventuresome the more they are out.  They now do NOT stay solely under the gazebos, and venture out into the entire side yard, causing much consternation for the old curmudgeon/breeder.  The gazebos are right next to the large cherry tree, so it isn't as if there is an open invitation to the raptors, but enough that I watch constantly.  Much better than before the gazebos though, let me tell you!!!
For the third time in the thirteen years I've lived here, there was thunder last night and the wee hours of the AM. TREMENDOUS thunder and lightening, not like the other two times.  A first.  The puppies must have needed to be desensitized!!!  My hay is lying in the fields getting wet.  Second year in a row to be ruined.  I just need to finish the fence and put cattle out there.  Forget the dang hay!!!  Put it to work not as hay!!!
You don't want to hear about hay though.  You want puppy pictures!!!  OK.  Here they come!

On Mom's back

A Dame!

Agile puppies

Always after mom!

Zipper, or Sherlock, his other name.

Drew

Morse

Exploring Dame and Morse

Dame after Mom

Spread out all over the yard to make the Curmudgeon nervous!!!

New toys from someone trying to bribe the breeder.  VBG

We'll get outside a lot this weekend.  They will have more and more toys, thanks to Jill, also, more and more things to use to climb.
Curmudgeon signing off for the weekend

Outside rascals

First adventure out in the side yard.  They stuck close to Randy and Kathy!Morse by Kathy's right wrist.

 The puppies had their first adventure outside on Saturday.  As you can see, it was a very nice day.  Warm and not raining.  The kids stayed close to the humans as they didn't really know what to make of the green carpeting in that yard.  They weren't afraid, just not sure about what to do.
Randy and Kathy get one of these boys.  They lost their Griswold, Border Terrier extraordinaire, awhile back and have a big hole in their hearts that someone is going to fill. Randy tried to get away with Zipper, but the old eagle eye breeder was hip to that and didn't let it happen!!  VBG  
On Sunday we went out and the puppies were more adventuresome ranging a lot more.  Chris was here to help herd them and to help watch for raptors.  She tried to get off with Morse!!!  Keeps telling me she only wants big hounds, then falls for the snuggly BT boys.
I think that Kathleen and Kate will come soon to socialize puppies, toss them around and essentially fall in love with one and all.
A number of them have gone outside at twilight to help me put the four kitty boys into the cat house.  When we do that, the black and white tuxedo cat, Kidd, initiates them on what it is like to be brushed by a cat.  He rubs up against them hard and they can't figure out what he is doing.  He never even acts as if a dog were around.  I figure it is good for them to have that experience, so it will happen each evening.  They take turns.  The three young cats don't know what to make of puppies, but Kidd has been around for a LONG time, maybe eleven years?!!

Staying in the shade!!!  Kathy's shade.

Randy and Zipper bonding.

Touille getting in on the loving.

A herd o' puppies!!!

Kathy was the main attraction.She loved them all!

I'll put more pictures up soon.  Probably not soon enough for you, but soon.  Now that summer is here, and when I get them running around more, there might be more pictures.  Fingers crossed.

Curmudgeonville

Tails awaggin'!

The babies took a few days to acclimate to the kitchen floor and all of their toys, but they have and now are very enthusiastic to be in there.  They seemed to know how to bite my toes from the second they start walking on the floor!  How is that?!!!!! 

Maybe this weekend we will go outside for the first time into the grass.  I have a friend who will be visiting and she can help me watch over them.  Even with the new "gazebos" I will feel better with help.

These guys are an adventuresome bunch and go exploring like they like it or something!!!  Good kids.  Of course, they have the bad habit of running to me and falling asleep in my lap when I sit on the floor with them.  Rascals!  I am trying to get down to their level to watch their movement, etc.  I have caught glimpses of some pretty nice stacks, held momentarily, not long enough to grab the camera and get a picture, before they are off and running, jumping, etc.  They have the attention span of a gnat, so it doesn't take them long to decide to move and explore something else!

Dame is the climber.  She will climb anything, the little rascal!  She tried to climb up my front and onto my head this AM.  She is darker than her sister, so it is easy to tell them apart from afar.  I can actually tell them all apart at this juncture.  Amazing how their looks and personalities start to stand out after such a short time.  I was sitting on the floor with them this AM thinking just that.  I sometimes can't believe how much they are hard wired and how fast it all shows up once it starts to show up.  Fascinating and stupifying!!!

These babies love to be held and cuddled, so whoever  receives one needs to remember to keep that up, the holding/cuddling.  Tough job, but someone has to do it.  PS  They have wonderful puppy breath!  Fancy that!  Can anyone out there figure out how to bottle it?!

Best,
Curmudgeon