Jake x Shirley

Litter Born On: 10 November, 2015

3 Ridged Males (Black-nose), 4 Ridged Females (Black-nose)

Sire: Ch. Chilolo EK I'm In Charge
"Jake"

Click here for Jake's pedigree

Dam: GCh. Luvakis Ekundu's Don't Call Me Shirley, CD, RE, SC, MX, MXJ, VC, HIC, CGC, CGCA
"Shirl e y"

Click here for Shirley's pedigree

Watch Us Grow...
(Scroll down to view the latest puppy photos and video)

Week 13... This week we visited the staff at AVREC one last time to thank Dr. J and her surgical team for bringing us safely into the world, then Saturday we're headed home already! How times flies!

One last visit to Puppy School this week.

The puppies visit Dr. J and the AVREC staff to say goodbye.

The Girlz

Sheila, now Coorah

Matilda, still Tilly

Lolly, now Nori

The Boyz

Dingo, now Woody

Bruce, now Quinn

Brumby, still Brumby

Week 12... This was our last full week together. The puppies have worked so hard and learned so much. Soon it will be on to newer and bigger adventures than they could ever imagine!

See the difference between feeding from
a traditional bowl and a slo-bowl.

Feisty, playful, boisterous and energetic twelve-week-old puppies
play hard and sleep even harder.

Our visitors this week...

Matilda says, "I like you, you have a beard!"

Puppy bombardment!

I'm diggin' this "paw-free" rawhide holding... this lady is GREAT!

Matilda, "Have I mentioned......... I LIKE BEARDS!!!"

This week we welcomed the Slagor family. Thanks for visiting!!

The Girlz

Pavlova

Sheila

Matilda

Lolly

The Boyz

Dingo

Bruce

Brumby

"The Auzzies"

Week 11... Puppies are getting so big, they're sleeping in their own kennels, they're each using a "big kid" Slo-Bowl for every meal (not just lunch time) and have been weaned down from three smaller meals to two regular-sized meals per day. We're continuing to do lots of outings to get use to the car, meet new people, other dogs and explore new places. So much to do in these final weeks!

The Girlz

Pavlova

Sheila

Matilda

Lolly

The Boyz

Dingo

Bruce

Brumby

"The Auzzies"

Week 10... Look how much we've learned!

Snack Time: Fun with enrichment toys!

Our visitors this week...

This week we welcomed the Sisko family. Thanks for visiting!!

The Girlz

Pavlova

Sheila

Matilda

Lolly

The Boyz

Dingo

Bruce

Brumby

"The Auzzies"

Here are the commands we're currently working on...
Off = keep you feet off (of me, the furniture, the table, the counter, etc.) Off is NOT interchangeable with or mean the same as DOWN. Down means (lay) down, Off means (get your feet) off.
Sit = sit when told, anywhere, any direction, just put your butt on the floor
Down = down when told, anywhere, any direction, just keep those elbows and hocks securely on the floor
Stand (Kick-back style) = stand but when doing so keep your front feet planted and kick back with your rear end
Front = come sit between my front feet, facing me (No jumping allowed!) Do not practice front and Get In or Around together; this can translate to one continuous command to puppy and result in and automatic finish.
Get In = come into heel position by passing in front of me to my left
Around = come into heel position by passing behind me to my right
Let's Go = heel; move with me at the same time and at the same speed as me (REMEMBER TO LEAVE ON YOUR LEFT FOOT - the leg closest to puppy gives him the visual cue to move or not)
(Automatic Sit) = There is NO command for this. It is presumed puppy will automatically sit when you halt (stop heeling). Puppy does this by visual cue only. Remember to **slow** your pace in the last few strides to aid the visual cue; don't stop abruptly. Your left foot should be the last to come to rest and this should be at the same time as puppy's butt hits the floor.
Easy = slow down, you're forging ahead of me while heeling (low, slow tone)
Quick = speed up, you're lagging behind me while heeling (high, sharp, quick tone)
Stay (Sit or Down) = DO NOT MOVE! I will come back to you before we go again. (REMEMBER TO LEAVE ON YOUR RIGHT FOOT - the leg closest to puppy gives him the visual cue to move or not).
Wait (Sit or Down) = Do not move, I'll give you a command to move towards me in just a few moments. (REMEMBER TO LEAVE ON YOUR RIGHT FOOT - the leg closest to puppy gives him the visual cue to move or not). This command is most often used before a recall (Come).
Come = run to me and don't stop along the way! (No jumping allowed when puppy gets to you.) NEVER EVER USE THIS WITHOUT THE ABILITY TO ENFORCE IT UNTIL PUPPY IS 100% RELIABLE 100% OF THE TIME!!!! For some dogs, this could mean never using this command off-lead until they're two years old or older. NEVER scold him by using this command to call him to you; only good/positive things come from you when he responds to this command.
Stop = don't move; puppy can remain in any position, but they must stop forward motion. This again can be a safety command like Come. It is a great way to keep puppy from rushing over to investigate something hazardous you might have dropped (glass dish, chicken bones, etc.) or to prevent him from crossing a street to come to you. Ultimately, this command is given from quite a distance away to help puppy keep his distance from whatever it is that may be hazardous to him should he approach you. (This command can be modified to a "drop on recall" by always asking puppy to quickly assume a down position when the command is given.)

Please keep in mind, not all of these commands have been worked equally. Some have only recently been introduced this week, others we've been working on for better than a month.
Yes, we use a *LOT* of luring at this stage. The purpose of this is to help the puppy understand what is being asked of them and to ensure consistent success. Moving away from luring to actually testing their knowledge and rewarding correct behaviors will be the next step for them to transition to in the coming months. As willing as these puppies are to please, that transition should be quite smooth. Just remember to use lots of patience, practice and consistency; they really do pick things up AMAZINGLY quick!

Pardon the poor audio; please refer to the definitions to the left for clarification on any commands you cannot hear well.
Videos do expand to full screen, just click on the Full Screen button along the bottom menu bar under each video.
Yes, many of my clicks are not timed well. I don't do terrifically well trying to talk to the camera and concentrate on puppy at the same time, but hopefully you get the idea.
Again, if you have any questions or want to see something re-demoed, just let me know.

(Demonstrations done by our Zero x Shirley litter:
Bro, Thorin and Ramesses.)

Front, Return to Heel and
Heel with Automatic Sit
(Thorin)

More Return to Heel
(Bro)

Sit, Down and Stand
(Thorin)

Long Sit (Sit-Stay) and
Long Down (Down-Stay)
(Thorin)

Come, Wait and Stop
(Bro)

Quick Drills - All Exercises
(Ramesses)

Week 9... Our family visits continue! So much excitement with the flurry of visitors!

Practicing the stairs.

Our visitors this week...

This week we welcomed the Bryant, Gilbert and Streiff families. Thanks for visiting!!

The Girlz

Pavlova

Sheila

Matilda

Lolly

The Boyz

Dingo

Bruce

Brumby

"The Auzzies"

Week 8... Many thanks to all who traveled far and wide to come help with structural evaluations!

Exploring the new enrichment feeding bowls.

Our visitors this week...

Many thanks to our good friend Tara for coming to visit the puppies, help with structural assessments and bringing Margaret to visit the litter.
We would like to thank our other friends, Lorna, Susan, Lois and Tricia for also helping with puppy evaluations this week!

The Girlz

The Boyz

"The Auzzies"

Week 7... Merry Christmas from the puppies!

Our visitors this week...

Dr. Boddy and her daughter stopped by for a post-Christmas snuggle with the puppies.

The Girlz

Pavlova

Sheila

Matilda

Lolly

The Boyz

Dingo

Bruce

Brumby

"The Auzzies"

Week 6... We're priming the clicker and starting to learn some fun behaviors this week

Our visitors this week...

Little Graham is in Puppy Heaven and loving all the excitement and activity of the puppies. Sheila says he's full of sugar and spice and all things nice... and she's sorry for nibbling on your ear a bit too hard in order to find that out. :(