August 26

 Let's start this off with 

Been a busy week. For Momma at least.  Had my 1st Lumbar RFA on Wed, so I have been taking it easy.

The pups do try to keep me busy.   Volos, ever my constant companion, keeps me company throughout the day.  He makes me laugh because he's such a silly boy. 

I think after next week, I am going to begin keeping Peryn home regularly as well.   He pretty much only lives to play fetch & I don't think he is getting much of that at daycare.    That & we need to tighten the purse strings for a bit.  Daycare is NOT cheap.    

Honestly I think he'll be better off. Lately he does NOT like getting up & going when Rich calls for daycare.   Rich has to call him many times and when Peryn gets up, it is reluctantly.   So we'll see how that goes when the time comes. 

Peryn is still retaining the A**H*** title.  This dude is seriously the biggest jerk.  I mean, it's part of his personality, so it's "cute" when you apply it to him...but he really is a jerk to his siblings.   He's been instigating with Volos more. He's snapped at Ziva a few times & even was a bit of a jerk to Lada.   

Ziva had her annual exam last week.   She's 77# & very lean.  The good news is that the vet thinks she's very healthy.  So no worries about heart murmurs.   She's very active at daycare & eats so there are no worries.  I did want to get some meat on her so the vet suggested a new food.   We only feed it to her as the last time we did food like this for the others, they gained weight.    We'll keep you posted

Lada is Lada. Loves her whole family. loves her Momma. Loves playing fetch. We got her a bunch of balls (see video) to make up for all the balls that Peryn crushes, Ziva tears apart, & Volos steals & occasionally tears up.    

I will need to take Volos back in, now that his regular vet is back, to have her look at the bumps I am concerned with.  I fear another surgery is in the future.  
Overall he is doing really well mentally & physically, I just worry as Berner's are prone to disease & illness, hence their 8-10 average life span.  He's going to be 8.

Not much else I can think of, just leaving you with some pics of the crew

Pupdate July 2022

 HEY!   

How are you dealing with these hot temps?   Volos-not. a. fan.  Neither is Momma.   Ziva, Peryn, & Lada deal with it by jumping in the nearest body of water--pool or pond.   

The heat though is not going to keep Z down. She is going to play, play, play.  She is such an active dog.  Of all our dogs that have gone to play-care, she is the one who loves it the most. 

We just celebrated the 1 year anniversary of bringing her home.  Hard to believe that time has flown by with her growing so fast & finding her place in the pack.  She really brought life to it that is for sure.  We have never had this active of a pack since Galen & Sheba were a two-some.     

She really loves being around other dogs and then her favorite humans.  Lada is her BFF and Volos is her "Big Brother" whom she absolutely adores.   For a dog that didn't like other dogs being up & in his business, he has definitely acclimated to her presence. 

Then there is Ziva & Lada.  BFFs who have knock down, drag out fights.  It's a wrestling match of some sort or another on our couch nightly.    For two dogs of way different sizes & builds, it's so interesting to watch them wrestle & no one gets hurt. 

On a good day Lada gets to wrestle with both Ziva & Volos (not at the same time.   She really loves her pack immensely--always has.

Peryn's had a few rough days here & there with the storms. He is NOT a fan of storms --particularly when thunder is involved.   

I always talk about how crazy it is on the days they're home from play-care.  I actually shot a bunch of videos one such day & put together a video outlining just a part of our day to give you a small glimpse into my insanity.

This week I have been on a staycation. One that I have very much needed. I was originally supposed to head to TN to spend the 3rd anniversary of my Dad's passing with my Mom & Bro, but plans changed.

Volos has been loving EVERY MINUTE of it. We've gone on car rides, visited the pet store, got him treats, pets... he's LOVED having Momma around. We've even had some early morning cuddles after the rest of the pack left for the day.

Today is the last day of stay-cay & I'm trying to think of a good place to take him.  He actually didn't want to get in the car earlier today. This is highly unusual. He LIVES for going places in the car. Has since day 1 so this was very weird. He's acting normal, so maybe he just wasn't feeling it. 

Our neighbors are moving & they're pretty sure the new neighbor has a dog.  Very interested to see how this will play out.  Will they have a new friend, enemy, or will it be a non-issue?      Fingers x'd that its a playful friend for Ziva.

To end this entry, since Peryn wasn't discussed too much in detail, we'll give you a few photos of the handsome PITA.....

  

 

More Updates May 28 2021

First: The bite. I mentioned it in the last post.  Well, almost a week later and I have a nasty bruise.  No other issues so the shot &  antibiotics are doing their job.     Here's a few pics now that we're a week out.

It's extremely sensitive to touch, but other than that--no major after effects!

And....

She's HERE!!!!!!!!   Born May 27 There were 3 females, so we will be getting one. Which one, we do not know yet.  The breeder wants one for herself. There is the other person in front of us, a breeder that wants one for showing--either sex doesn't matter.  We knew about that person.   SO Essentially If they choose a female, we get the remaining one.

They won't pick until their personalities begin showing. They need to see which one will have the best temperament for a show dog. 

We will not be able to see the pups until they're at least 3 weeks old.  So we have to be more patient.   

Momma Rosie is doing well. As is all the pups. 

So we have a few weeks before we can meet with Momma Rosie and the little pups. We have time to begin prepping for another puppy.  I swore we would never get another puppy, yet here we are again.     

As an aside- there have been several Berners needing homes become available. Unfortunately they've all been male or much older.  I would have loved to bring them home, but we really need a young female.  This is exactly why we've gone this route, through a breeder.   
We know what we need to offset the dynamic of the pack.   If we had a bigger home & yard...more pups would be welcome.

So I'll share a few more pics I was sent today.    We don't have any more information that what I have shared with you.   So You can ask more questions, but we don't have anything else to tell you.

The puppers

Rosie Recovering. See pups in corner

Little babies

Additionally, here is an updated Couch Potatoes photo.

Finally-- I've recently been able to transfer most of my personal home movies (8MM) to digital.  Here we have my baby, my #1 Pupper...Galen to finish out this post.

Unleash the Crazy

 Was able to catch something last night.  The kids all playing together with Dad.  Usually Volos will come in and out, but this time he was involved.

This is about 12 minutes of unedited recording. Meaning-- if you like watching dogs play....this is for you.

and another gem shot within the past week ..don't know if i shared or not

Happy Valentine's Day.....

 Welcome Back!      
I've got a confession.  I am LOVING the snow.   Again, it may only be because I don't have to drive in it or shovel it, but I love it.    
Frozen or covered ground is always a plus in a multiple dog household. Always welcome!

And that photo from last time, How many dogs?  The answer is 6

This week they celebrated Valentine's Day at the Day care.   The kids got lots of goodies from each other and the day care provided adorable photos of them.   

 

And we're going to round out this post with a video of the crazies.

We have a YouTube channel!

 I post a lot of pictures of the pups.   A few videos here and there. Part of the issue is I was unsure where they were saved or if it counted against my quota.  

I also do a lot of work on their Facebook pages as well, so to make it easier for me I began uploading videos to YouTube.

I've hit my upload limit for the day, but I started with Athena & Duchess and will slowly work our way to the current time.   

IN the meantime, you can check it out for various puppy vids.

The Crew's You Tube Channel

Pupdate: Athena & Volos

Probably going to be a long one here.  First Athena updates and later VOLOS..

2018 Athena-healthy & thriving

Athena: 
Sigh.  She's shrinking away bit by bit.  It is so heartbreaking.   I was looking at pictures of her from last year and compared to today --she was a chubster. 

We're kind of on "alert".  We're trying to determine if it's just been coincidence or bad timing...but she's had a few issues with her front paws.  As in, we've seen them "roll" or bend under on different occasions.    Her use of her hind legs is diminishing more and more.   Some days she can maneuver on them around the house and other days she just drags them .   It makes me sad.

Climbing into her bed

It could be nothing which we are hoping.   This scares us as if it is something, it could mean the disease has started to progress to the front legs.   Time is running short then because we've agreed when she loses full functionality of the front legs it is time. 

This dog lives for playing with other dogs and her pack.   If she cannot do that, she has no quality of life.  To keep Athena in your hearts and send pawsitive vibes this way that we just had a couple of bad days.

Healthy weight.

Sharing a handful of pictures so you can see the difference These first four photos of her are from 2018 when the only thing we would notice is she would be when she tired out and she would begin to limp.  That would happen near the 2nd half/end of 2018.

Sunning herself

Look how beautiful she is here.   She and Duchess loved to sun themselves in the nicer weather.   Look how healthy she is here. 

Athena now:

These photos are all from the past month and a half.  The one you can see the "position" that she finds herself in often. She is stuck and unable to move out of it.

She gets stuck in this position and can't get out of it

Top view of er in her cart

Here she is so small.  She's very fragile.  I can't believe it's my same girl.     

Don't feel too sorry for her.  Except for arthritis pain, she doesn't feel much with this disease. 

Look at how tiny she is

Nothing stops her. If she wants to be somewhere and she CAN do it, she will be right there.   She's VERY determined.   She is a maniac in her cart and you better not get in the way.   

Top view of her on her bed

She's still very affectionate and will come demanding attention.    She may be limited to some things, but the rest is just a new way of life.    She loves her cart and gets super excited when she is being put in it--especially if she knows it's to play with Lada & Peryn.

VOLOS
I'm blogging somewhat regularly, but I feel that I still get so behind because so much has been happening with this dude.

Hanging out in his crate

 Wow, I just realized I haven't blogged since Saturday, so yes there is so much to tell you.    

Sunday he really began to explore the house.  He still would return to Rich's office or as I am calling it now-Volos' room.
Sunday though, he really was gaining confidence in exploring.  However, if Rich is at his PC and has the TV on, Volos was in his crate... lying there.

Oooh that feels good

Monday- the monsters...err I mean Peryn & Lada went to play care, so I was hoping he would really branch out and come hang with me.   Nope.  While I worked from my office at home, he only occasionally made an appearance.
I decided to try something different.   I moved his crate from the office into the living room. 
So Monday afternoon, he came out to be with me and get his loving on. 

 Then he sat down in front of me while I loved him.   Then he finally laid down and allowed me to keep on loving on him.   I then slid down to the floor and continued.   He ended up being with me for over an hour and just chill.   It was fabulous.  He even got into his crate to chill out while we watched tv.        

Finally relaxing

In the morning on Tuesday, he was already out greeting me when I got up to let the Cattle Dogs out at 4am.   I love that he gets more and more comfortable .

Fighting for attention

He was home with the pack today while we went to work.  We still locked his crate to give him some feeling of safety.   When I got home he was soo happy to see me. Once I let him out and got everyone situated-we walked down to the park.  He rolled on his back again and just enjoyed being able to walk around outside.  

Munching on the chomp he stole

The biggest surprise was later on after we got home.   I give my dogs Pork Chomps baked pork rolls in lieu of rawhides.   Rawhides are nasty and unhealthy, this is a great alternative for your dogs.     I've been giving them to my guys for years and they love them.   In fact, the game they play is you snooze you lose.   I put out enough for each dog, but it doesn't matter.  If you were working on one and walk away, it will be stolen.      Well, one was out that Lada had been working on and she walked away.   Volos was comfortable enough to steal it!   SO awesome.    He went to town on that puppy and stayed right there in the living room while he did. 

Wednesday-   I worked from home and Rich was home as well.   We had an appointment in the later afternoon and so it was us, Athena, & Volos.   We got the kids home and decided to test the situation.   We didn't lock his crate, so he was able to leave it at any point in time.  I don't know if it was because our appointment screwed up the schedule or he just can't handle being alone, but we came home to a mess Volos made.   That was the first time since day 0 that he had gone in the house.  Pretty decent.  
He got spooked due to the carpet cleaner being ran after we came home.    Chose to go back into Rich's office for the rest of the evening and to sleep.

Thursday-- Rich was home and I had to go into the office. It was a decent day and Rich decided to take the ACD's & Volos to one of the parks not too far from us.  It has rocks vs grass so when it rains there isn't mud.  

He told me Volos did great. Walked around by himself going up to people for some loving and went up to the other dogs to check them out.   He seemed to have a great time.  

The ACD's keps themselves busy with their herding ball so this visit was a win win for everyone.   

Daddy, that feels nice

After coming home and having dinner, I got to chill out on the couch with Lada & Volos.   Lada is very possessive of me.  Like all Cattle Dogs, I've been deemed HER person. She has a conniption if any of the other dogs try to get attention. She was very intolerant of Duchess getting any and she goes into a meltdown if Peryn even looks at me.
With Volos, she's been pretty chill. It's more of a cutting off each other between the 2 to see who gets the closest spot to Mommy.   So that evening I had Lada on one side and Volos on the other.  I think they're bonding over their affection for Mommy. 

Rich has been walking the 2 guys together for a short jaunt around the clock to get them to warm up to each other.   Peryn looks like he tries to initiate play when Volos starts getting ramped up at the park. 

Yeah.... Righ there!!

    To Be Continued.

 Friday......   
I worked from home and Rich was off again.  After I completed work, we decided to take Athena and Volos back to the park.  It was a nice sunny day and the 2 of them could use some outdoors time.

The park had a handful of dogs when we arrived and Athena barked up a storm to announce her arrival. This was the first visit back there since she got her cart.   She was beyond excited.  Took off like a rocket when we got in. She was eating up attention.   People seem to adore handicapped dogs--- and she milks that for all it's worth.

Volos walked around on his own, sniffed some butts, sniffed around and started to loosen up a bit.  He started to "run" and try to play with the other dogs.  THEN..... THEN... he got up on his hind legs and put his front paws on me.   He then did it again AND then turned his head into me.   HE GAVE ME A HUG!!!!!       DAY IS MADE!!

sleepy

Today the other 3 went to play care and we left him in his cage for a bit to run errands.   He was out and about in the house while we were home. Spent some time in his room, spent some time in the crate, came up to me in the kitchen for some pets.      He's definitely getting more comfortable here. 
We've even had him come into the bedroom.   My ultimate goal is to get him to sleep in there with the rest of us.   I just need to be patient.

We've tried to start with some training commands-- but he's still too sensitive right now.  If we raise our voice, make sudden movements, or startle him in any way he takes off for his room.  I threw a treat and it landed on the ground next to him. He heard it and took off...   

love how his pawa are crossed

Another issue we're having is getting him to go to the bathroom.    We have a tie out for the front that we used for Duchess.  We have attempted to put it on him...it freaks him out. The white cord following him scares him.  
Rich will take him out on the leash and walk him around the house. He will go pee, but not #2.   I take him out on a leash and he tries to get me to go to the park.  I've tried to stop doing that in the mornings because I don't want him to think that's the only time he can go #2.   

At the park (any) he'll go, just not in our yard.
He loves to lean back into our legs when we're out there and he's "done".   I was hoping going out with Peryn & Lada would get him to go, but no... it's not like that. 

Hanging wif Momma

He really is a sweet guy.   I wish I could start working on training and getting him to do things the way they should be, but since he's so sensitive we're not pushing too much. 

Peryn's tried to engage him in play. While he has not reciprocated, he has not run off.  SO progress!!

Monday's the surgery....  keep sending your pawsitive vibes our way.