Good Bye, Puppies

Puppies Go To Their New Homes

It's a sad day. The very cute puppies are going to their new homes. They will be greatly missed! Zeb is fixed now, so I guess they will be our last puppies. We are keeping two of them, so that will help ease the pain. And hopefully the work load. I've been doing puppy wash a couple of times a day. Our carpet could use a break too. Good bye, puppies!

The Puppies are Here!

Maggie had her puppies last Friday night/early Saturday morning. They are so cute! One looks exactly like Zeb, but poor Maggie did all the work and there is not one tricolor. There are six puppies, two girls and four boys. Maggie has been a good mom. I've been feeding her lots of fresh eggs to keep her weight up. Of course since Zeb is fixed this will be our last litter. We have homes for at least three of them, probably four, and we're keeping one for ourselves. Maggie did good!

Puppies Having Puppies!

Mother to Be?

I'm so embarrassed. I was open to the possibility of breeding Zeb and Maggie, so I hadn't had them fixed. Finally I realized I was never going to get Zeb's paperwork, so I scheduled THE SURGERY, and guess what? Maggie goes into her first heat. No problem, just keep them apart for a few weeks, right? Wrong! Days before Zeb underwent the knife they bred, thanks to someone who will remain nameless forgetting to latch the stall we had Zeb in. It's hard to say if Maggie is really pregnant. She doesn't look it, but her due date would be March 13. I'll keep you updated, and let me tell you, it's easier said than done to keep a dog and his bitch apart. Especially when there are six in the family and numerous little friends over. I am so glad Zeb is fixed now. I don't need puppies every six months.

Happy Birthday Zeb!

Is Zeb Officially Not A Puppy Now?

I guess it's time to admit the star of The Puppy Blog, Zeb, is no longer a puppy. He is turning 1 this month is almost all grown up. He really is a good dog, very obedient and good at all the things English Shepherds are supposed to be good at. He learns quickly and tries very hard to please us. He's a scary watch dog, barking and baring his teeth. For the most part that's good except when friends come. People have to visit a few times before he will leave them alone. He displayed spontaneous herding the other day. We had just separated the yearling colt from his mother. He was hanging out with my two year old filly and the miniature horses when I decided to move them all to another pasture. He wasn't so sure about going. After I got the two year old and minis in the new pasture, I went back to get the yearling, but Zeb was already yapping at him, getting him to go where he was supposed to go. It's been a little tougher with the chickens. He gets along well with the older chickens, but seems to find chasing the younger ones irresistible. We've had a couple of baby chicken casualties, but I'm not sure it was Zeb who did the deed, with four other dogs on the farm right now. Somehow I don't think it was him, since the other day I saw him with a chicken in his paws. He was holding it quite gently, although the poor thing was very scared, and when I told him to stop it he let it go and it was fine. I'm sure that once the baby chickens grow up and aren't so flighty and fun to chase they will all be fine. Zeb does sure keep away any predators!

Big Boy

Zeb has Gotten Huge!

Zeb has been spending most of him time outside now, mostly because it's wet and muddy and he's WAY to dirty to come in the house. But the other night we had him in to watch a movie with us, and he was huge! I guess I don't notice it so much outside, but inside it was just so obvious he was much bigger than he used to be. I should have figured, he's now officially taller than our Golden Retriever, Aunt Goldie. Zeb likes to hang with me while I garden, go for walks with my son, and go for runs with my husband. He also loves playing with Maggie. They are so cute together. Getting two puppies at once is sure great for them, if you can pull it off.

King of the Mountain

Snow Dog

We live in the UP of Michigan. That means there is still a couple of feet of snow on the ground, even though it's officially spring. Yes, that was feet of snow. Good thing Zeb is a snow dog. He loves being outside and he loves romping around in the white stuff. He came with quite a coat of fur on him. Good thing. He's needed it here. We've also been having tons of fun with new pup sister Maggie. Zeb and Maggie play together all the time. It's funny because he's so much bigger than her, but she is very outgoing and enthusiastic. There is nothing cuter than Maggie barreling down at Zeb full steam. We keep warning Zeb that he needs to be nice to her because she's going to get bigger.

You Can't Have Just One

New Kid on the Block

Okay, so this is Zeb's puppy blog, but today we got a new addition to the family, Maggie. Yes, it's true. English Shepherds are like potato chips, you can't have just one. We got Maggie from Bert Jager, a breeder here in Michigan. He was great! Highly recommended. Maggie (formerly known as Josie) is the sweetest puppy ever. Not that Zeb isn't sweet, but she is just very confident and cuddly. My daughter loves her and hasn't put her down since she got home. Some of her brothers and sisters are still for sale if you are in the market. Check out their website here and give Bert a call! By the way, Maggie's mom is Pearl, and Maggie means Pearl. Isn't that precious? Maggie was also my husband's Grandmother's name. Keeping it all in the family. One bit of sad news, Grandma Kitty passed away yesterday. She had just woken up from a cat nap on top of the hay, came down for a drink and keeled over. At least it was quick. She was a good cat.

In Memory of Fia
AKA "Grandma Kitty"
1993-2008
She Taught Us All How to Get Along
(As Demonstrated by Tiger and Zeb)