Keskiyö & family

At the Welsh Kennel Club show yesterday in the rain, one of Keskiyö's sisters and his mother were also there so I thought it would be an excellent opportunity to get a family portrait, especially as the 2 siblings are so very alike. Quick photo of 3 well trained dogs - piece of cake, right? Um, nope.

Here is a selection of attempts with Keskiyö and sis Curly flanking their mum Toive who is still rocking the show ring and showing the youngsters how it's done at the age of 10. You can see that show dogs are unaccustomed to being requested to face away from their handlers! They're not so good at that.



"What you doin' up there?"









"Look there, no there!"









Keskiyö taking a bit too much interest in his sister.











While she's all about the food.











Smile, everyone!

teething & other life-changing events

Well, perhaps life-changing is a bit dramatic.

But the Tuisku puppies will be 5 months old in a couple of days, well into the chore of growing those adult teeth. It can be a trying time, the teething period, for puppy & owner alike. There's all that chewing, for starters. The puppies need lots - I'll say it again - lots of things to chew on. Different textures, different sizes, different tastes. New and exciting different things each day. Or at least new since, oh, 4 or 5 days ago. And hopefully none of those delectable chewables include the table legs. Or the tv remote control. Or your favorite shoes. Or the corner of the fire hearth, book case, or any other handy nose-height corner. Or, in Neka's case, the camera lens cap.

In addition to all the chewing, there's likely to be a bit of grumpiness. Yes, ok, the humans are allowed to be grumpy from time to time too. Especially if someone has just chewed the corner off their brand new and expensive leather handbag. But actually, I was talking about the puppies. They're in pain, it's frustrating, and so a bit of irritability is to be expected. Not to mention floppy ears, upset stomachs and a very short attention span.

But if you're lucky you find 1 or 2 of their little baby teeth on the floor (or in your arm, in the case of some puppies, right Keskiyo?). And then when your little puppy has grown into a big galloot you can look at these tiny teeth to ooh and ahh and try to remember just how tiny they used to be. When Usko visited a couple of weeks ago he left a canine tooth behind.

These are Maija's.












The major life-changing event for these puppies at the moment, though, would be the onset of puberty. Ah, hormones! And what goes with all those hormones? Apart from the obvious. Obviously. Well, more mood swings, a bit of independence and teenager-ness. Pushing to see what they can get away with, that sort of stuff.

But for now let's concentrate on the cute photos, shall we?

First, the "twins" Kallio & Kesa. Can you tell who's who?



































Ok, make that triplets. Here is Jaana with big sis Ellie in the new car bought especially for them. (Yes, you have to make a big commitment to become a 2-or-more-Lapphund family. The car is usually the first change.)














And, finally, here is Usko camouflaged in the wheat.
















If I could just find some time I'd take a drive up Bath way to acquire some photos of Minna. Well, any excuse for a puppy visit...