Prairie Springers: February 2015

Wednesday, February 25, 2015

Evan Learning to Talk

He says Jayla. He doesn't even say Mom yet. I'm feeling a bit put out :) The sound is not great, so turn up the volume!

Sunday, February 22, 2015

8 Weeks

How did we get to this point already. I have a saying that I live by these days. "Slow as it goes, Fast when its Past." And that is more true for puppies than anything. It is only about 4 months from the time we decide to go ahead and breed Roxy, to having the puppies going to their new homes.

It has been an adventure. Busy, busy, busy. They grew up in our kitchen for the first 4.5 weeks along with our 6 kids, and 2 dogs. Then moved to the Garage for more space. We have loved watching these puppies develop into such cute, nice pups. I loved all of their personalities, and find myself wondering about each individual puppy. I am anxious for pictures of them in their new environments, that I can show off.

Luckily Jayla's family had commitments and could not come till probably next weekend. So we get to spoil her rotten! As much as I miss all the pups, it is fun to have just one or two (we had casey until Saturday). It makes it a bit quieter and less chaotic. Jayla was sad to see Casey leave. She was very mellow for the next day. Lucky she still has her mom and pop to play with.

I could not be more pleased with the homes our pups have gone to. Both this litter and our first. I still keep in contact with a few families from our first litter, and I look forward to keeping contact with who ever would like. I would like pictures of your pups over the next few months, and when they are full grown, so we can show off how amazing our puppies are. Thank you for supporting us in our adventure of raising our puppies. I realize we are relatively new to this hobby, but our hearts and heads are more than committed. We do lots of reading and research on our dogs, and feel like we are breeding dogs that will be a benefit to their families and the English Springer Spaniel Breed.

Here's some pictures of our last week.

Casey

Here is Casey going home with her family. They were so excited to have her, and she is transitioning really well. These kids are so adorable, and excited to have a puppy. I love that part of having puppies! It makes the work worth it.

This week we had two puppies left. I loved how we had one brown one, and one black one. They spent a lot of time playing in the yard, and I often saw the pups play fighting at the same time Tucker and Roxy were play fighting. (Roxy has returned to her playful self now.)

Jayla getting spoiled by Anna!

Could you get a cuter little girl cuddling a puppy? Seriously love the freckles and smile on this girl.

This is Jayla being part of our family tonight. We watch AFV most Sunday evenings. She joined us, until she got to interested in the popcorn the kids had. Then she had to go out. Brody loves this puppy. Especially now that he has a broken leg, and spends a lot of time crawling on the floor.

Jayla- 8 weeks

Here is her pictures for the week. There are lots, since she was the only puppy for our weekly photo shoot. I wish that I had hired a professional to do pictures when I still had all of them, but I'm SURE Tim would not have approved that expense. She was being very cuddly with Tim tonight, and was tired. But we captured some cute shots.

Doesn't she look like Roxy?

Roxy and Tucker have been somewhat neglected for the past several weeks, as we were so incredibly busy with puppies, broken legs, and doctors appointments. WE are excited to be back to focusing on them. With the weather being so nice, I plan on making these two my running partners!

Wednesday, February 18, 2015

Mid Week Update

I am so happy that we didn't loose all our puppies at once. We lost 5 in one weekend, and it did make it much calmer around here, but I'm missing their little personalities. So we are enjoying having the last two girls here till Saturday. Then we have little Jayla for one more week. I hope all the puppies are adjusting well, and you are enjoying them. It's an adventure!

Here's a video we did tonight. I missed the best parts. By the time I got my camera, the fun was about over. Jayla was attacking Tucker, and got the ball out of his mouth. He was not to impressed, but played along. We tried to get them to re-due it, but it just didn't happen the same. But they are still cute!

Monday, February 16, 2015

Saying Goodbye

7 Weeks

Can you find your puppy? I can name them all. This picture was taken at one day old. It is so amazing to see the difference time makes. It has been an adventure!

This post is a little different, as we have some pups posing with their new families for their 7 week pictures. We have some really lucky puppies, and we also have some really lucky families. I am so pleased with how the puppies have matched up with their families. It is/was very important to us to have our puppies go to homes that will love and care for these guys. We want our puppies to grow into excellent dogs, and companions. And we succeeded. We have met the most amazing people through this experience, and I have no doubt that all these pups will thrive in their new homes. And I also believe that all our pups are great dogs, and the families are lucky to have them in their homes.

Luckily we still have 2 girls left for a week or two more.

little Bolt left this morning, and I found these two cuddled together. We will enjoy them for a little longer, and they will be spoiled by the kids with cuddles and attention.

7 Week Pictures

Sherlock

Sadie was very sad to see Sherlock go. He captured her heart from the start. She claimed him, and spoiled him rotten.

Here is Sherlock with his new owner. I didn't get permission to list names, so I won't. He will be a happy boy!

Lucky and Crosbie

These two pups got to go home together. It was so much fun to feel the excitement of these kids (and parents). The puppies are already transitioning beautifully.

Playing before hitting the road!

Bolt (New name coming!)

It was so fun to finally meet this family. They travelled a long way to pick up Mr. Bolt. We can't wait to see pictures of their children meeting their puppy!

Rogue

This little girl was our first to go home. She will be loved and cared for! My kids LOVED her new collar.

Casey

I woke Casey up to take her pictures this morning so I could do the blog. She was a little sleepy. And not to excited about learning to sit on a stool. She did it though, and was happily sleeping moments later.

Jayla

Jayla was happy to sit and pose for me. She seems to like getting her pictures done, and she is so cute! She wouldn't stand for me to show how big she has gotten. But this week she took the lead as most aggressive eater. It has surprized me. She is so playful, and has LOVED the backyard experience while we have had such nice weather. At one point yesterday I looked out to see Tucker and Roxy play fighting, and Jayla and Casey play fighting in the exact same way just a few feet away. I couldn't get a video or picture, because as soon as they see or hear me, they all come running.

We will sure miss our little Fur friends. I think I will miss them the most, as I have done the most work with them. I'm glad we have just a bit longer with these two girls. It helps wean both me and Roxy!

Saturday, February 14, 2015

I am happy and sad to say we have said goodbye to three pups. It is so fun and satisfying to see the pups and families interact. Unfortunatly we also had our 3 year old brake his leg yesterday, that landed him in a full leg cast. I have some fun pictures to post, but haven't got the time at the moment to post them. Stay tuned! We loose 2 more pups on Monday, and then head out of town for afew days. I hope to post some pictures on sunday. The pups are thriving and loving the warm weather.

Have a good weekend with your family!

Monday, February 9, 2015

FYI: It is TUCKERS 3rd birthday Today. He is celebrating with the puppies while it is freezing rain outside. After 3 years he is still very high energy, but very well trained (according to us:)) and is still learning new tricks. We have LOVED having him in our family, and look forward to many more years with him.

6 weeks

This has been another fun and eventful week for the puppies and the kids. The puppies have had several adventures outside, and they all LOVE running and stretching their legs. We have a fairly roomy kennel for them in the garage, but it's not near as fun as a big back yard with grass. I have had them outside for a few hours at a time the last few days, as the temperature has been fairly warm. Today is a bit cooler, but they are out at the moment while I washed the floor in the garage. Even with the chilly air, they are romping and enjoying the fresh air.

They have grown by leaps and bounds. It is constantly amazing to me how fast these little guys grow and learn. This week they are all obsessed with tug of war. They all love ropes and stuffed animals. And they CHEW CHEW CHEW everything they can sink their teeth into. So be prepared with some chew toys.

I am adding a small kennel into their big kenneled area today. Last night they had their first night without Roxy, and they made sure we knew how unimpressed they were this morning. I about needed ear plugs when I went to say good morning. I know there are a few pups being kennel trained, so I am putting it there to help them learn to like it. I will not be locking them in at night, as I don't plan on getting up every few hours to let them out to do their business. That will be your privilege:) But I will start locking them in for very short periods of time over the next few days probably with 2 pups at a time. This should help them transition.

Here are their pictures for the week. We did it mid-nap so most of them look tired and were not looking at the camera. We are going for shots tomorrow. I have heard from 3 pups to get microchipped- Rogue-Lucky-Crosbie. If you want this done, and I have missed you, let me know before the end of today.