Sheltie math: 1 + 1 = 2... sometimes three- or maybe more?

Yesterday afternoon we went for a drive to north Phoenix to visit Helene and Wally at Roseglen (Helene is the breeder we purchased both dogs from). Bisee and Prescott do pretty good in the car, although unlike some dogs, they're never overly thrilled about taking a car ride-- thankfully neither of them gets carsick, though!

It's kind of funny: Prescott always seems like such a "tough guy" at home, and I don't think he moved from that spot the entire time in the car! Bisbee is much more comfortable in the car, and was quite interested in the scenery for most of the trip. She only laid down a couple times, which is when I managed to snap this picture of both of them.

Wally and Helene were quite happy to see the dogs (she always likes to see how her dogs turn out), and we were glad to show them off. Bisbee made herself right at home once we go there; here she is sitting in Wally's lap, getting some skritches!! (traitor! she never hops into my lap like that!! ...just kidding about the traitor thing, but really, she never does hop right into my lap.)

This pic is Prescott (in the background) and one of Helene's dogs, Krista... Helene got a couple doggie treats, and that always gets Prescott's attention! In addition to showing off the dogs, we also wanted to introduce them to Krista-- Helene has her up for adoption, and we wanted to see how the dogs would get along together. Krista is four years old; Helene had her for breeding, but never got a litter of pups from her, so she's looking to find her a good home. We know having two dogs is fun, and figure three won't be much more work than two, so the thing to do was to find out how they would get along... she seems pretty mellow and easy-going, so should fit in pretty well.

Here she is with Tom-- he was holding her so I could get a decent picture (and this still isn't all that good-- she didn't stand still very long). And do you see Bisbee in the background, making herself right at home on their couch?? lol!! Bisbee and Prescott are both an inch or so "over-sized" so they can't be shown (Sheltie show standard is 13 - 16 inches tall), so it was a bit of an eye-opener to see a standard-size Sheltie-- she looks so much smaller than they do; it's amazing how much of a difference that inch makes! She's never seen stairs, or a cat, so there will be some training involved, but we know that two dogs is twice as fun as one, so three dogs should multiply the fun to six times as much, right?! (along with the hair, I'm sure... lol!!) We just need to decide for certain, then make arrangements to bring her home (which probably won't be for a month or so). We were joking with Helene that she should institute a "frequent buyer card: buy 4 Shelties and get the 5th one free!" (although I don't think we'll go that crazy... lol!!)

This picture is just for gratuitious cuteness: three of Helene's newest litter of puppies, from Bisbee's sister Kachina. (This is the second litter of puppies Helene's had this summer; she's been extra-busy this year so far!) They are sooo super-fluffy and cute at this age-- and nothing compares to that puppy breath! Puppies are tempting, to be sure, but stair training sounds like a piece of cake, compared to going through teething and potty-training again... :D

puppy!!!

today, we drove up to Glendale, AZ to visit Roseglen Shelties... I've been waiting (somewhat) patiently for the phone call from Helene. The puppies were seven weeks old a few days ago, so this weekend was the time!! Here he is-- isn't he cute?? (and the puppy, too-- haha!!) Helene said he's got quite a personality, and that he was one of the first puppies to start developing a personality. But, he's running a bit too close to the top of the size range for his age, so she's concerned he'll grow too large to show. (top size range for show is 16 inches tall.) So, Helene's loss is our gain. He was definitely not tentative at all; he came to us pretty easily (after getting used to seeing "strangers" in his territory, that is), he played with us, and he explored around the room with no hesitation at all.

The puppy had never been around any of the adult dogs besides his mother, so this was his first exposure to an older dog. The older dog is Kokopelli, who is actually his grandfather, and Bisbee's brother. (it still amazes me that a 3 year old dog can be a grandfather, which makes Bisbee this puppy's great aunt... lol!!) Helene brought Koko inside so we could meet him. The puppy was looking for milk, which of course he wasn't going to find, but then he got interested in trying to pull Koko's tail, which bodes well for how he and Bisbee might interact.

Kokopelli is a gorgeous dog, very similar in temperament and looks to Bisbee, although he's not quite so delicate in the legs and nose as Bisbee is (since he's a male). He was extremely friendly, coming up to meet us, and happy to play! He was equally as happy to just crash with Helene on the couch, which is also quite similar to Bisbee.

Here's a shot of Helene and the puppy... she does such a great job with all of her dogs, both in breeding and handling. The puppies get plenty of attention from her and her husband, which is great, and Bisbee is a very mellow, laid-back dog overall, which is also good, since Shelties can be a bit over-anxious sometimes.

here's another puppy shot-- isn't he just the cutest?? He'll be coming home next week... by then, we hope to have a name finalized for him!

the weekend in pictures (well, Saturday afternoon, anyway)

Saturday started out as a lazy morning, which was nice-- then, we headed to Roseglen Shelties to meet Cherry Bomb, the expectant mama. Her puppies are due next week, which you couldn't prove by me-- she doesn't even look pregnant! (maybe it's all that hair?!?)

She is a sweetie, too-- this is her, with Helene. She is so tiny and dainty- looking next to Bisbee, and Bisbee is only an inch and a half taller than her; it's amazing how much difference a little height makes for a small dog. Bisbee always looked small next to Sedona, so it's interesting to see her as the big dog!

Bisbee did want to play, but Cherry didn't really know whether she wanted to or not. We didn't have a chance to meet Kachina (Bisbee's sister), unfortunately, but in talking to Helene about Bisbee, we discovered that they do share some similarities of personality, which was really interesting to find out, considering they haven't been together since they were just a few months old! On the way home, we saw a rainbow over the mountains... for a few minutes, there was a second one, but I couldn't get a good shot of it on camera.

Bisbee didn't exactly like the car ride there and back-- she looked pretty green around the gills most of the way (it was about an hour each way), so she napped most of the evening after we got home.

I know I didn't get good shots of the clouds, but I did try... that split second when the light shines out from behind, as they move out of the way is gorgeous, but the camera just couldn't get it... these clouds were huge, and later that night they turned into a pretty impressive monsoon storm.

Now, we just have to wait for good puppy news from Helene, and cross our fingers that there's a puppy out there for us! (This link is to a photo of the sire-- he's gorgeous, isn't he?? I can't wait to see what the puppies look like!)