progress

Yesterday was a lovely day at the beach. No, really. While the rest of the UK was labouring under snow like I didn't even know was possible in this country, south Devon remained blissfully frosty and flake-free. Lapphunds, needless to say, adore cold weather, and I've lost count of the number of cute-Lappy-playing-in-the-snow photos I've seen. But I've kept them secret from our dogs who would be very jealous if they knew what fun their relatives were having.

Shhh! - here's Lana (formerly Jonna/Jaana) being a meerdog and gazing longingly out at the winter wonderland beyond her window.





Oh, pleeeeeeease can't I go out and play in the snow?














So to make up for what they are missing out on, we took advantage of a conveniently timed low tide for a quick run on the beach before work.

Keksi has mere days - nay, hours! - left and so has officially passed the "running" stage and will now even take a pass on "playing". "Sitting" is her favorite activity these days (after eating, obviously).















Keskiyo playing his favorite game: chasing stuff thrown into the water











Maija chilling out waiting for the 'photo' bit of the walk to be over with











And chilling a bit too much when she gets caught out - oops!







Today will be stuffed full of chores as I scramble to get ready for the newcomers. It's been a hectic couple of weeks; I can and do work a great deal from home, but much of my work can only be done at work, so I've been trying to get ahead for when I can't leave the puppies.

Progress to date: precious little

Jay once again inherited the job of clearing out the puppy room and although I was too embarrassed to post a photo like I did last time, it started out looking remarkably the same. So today the whelping box is in place and... well, that's about it. As for where all the stuff from the puppy room went, let's just say my lounge looks like a junk room exploded in it. And there's a reason for that: a junk room exploded in it.

Progress to date: a little

I've been shamefully slow in compiling the rest of the puppy whelping stuff. I have my "puppy kit" box that contains the latex gloves, syringes, thermometer, etc. But I haven't yet located the hot water bottle, set up my holding box or sterilised all the necessaries. I have purchased new tiny nail clippers for the puppies' new tiny nails, but I can't quite remember where I've put them. Even more serious, I haven't yet laundered all the dog towels in readiness.

What I have done, though, is collected enough newspaper. Or, perhaps I should say that Jay's parents have collected enough. They've been brilliant and now we have enough newspaper for 2 litters. Or one litter of 9 (I remember it well, how much newspaper we went through that time.)




We have 8 or 10 stacks like this one. Isn't it good to see real recycling in action.








Progress to date: newspaper fully loaded & good to go!

Where visitors to the last litter were not welcome to cross the threshold until they had crossed my palm with newsprint, I am pleased to say that we will subject our visitors to nothing more intrusive than a full pocket and bag search as they leave (to ensure we are left with the full complement of puppies after the visitors have gone).

countdown

We can now count the time before Keksi's due date in days rather than weeks. Or, to be more precise, a week and a bit. In our house we're getting a little nervous because so many things can go wrong. However, Keksi seems her usual chilled self so I'm certainly not trying to stress her out with my worries. In spite of her sister's more difficult time, she does come from good whelping stock in Neka, so I'm being optimistic.

She has been on Panacur 10% wormer for a while now to make sure the puppies have no disgusting parasites. Perhaps I've been lucky, but I have yet to see canine worms.

And, to be absolutely clear, in case it does not go without saying, I have no wish to see any either.

So Keksi has now moved back in with us for the duration of her pregnancy, the arrival of the puppies and staying until they are fully weaned at 6 or 7 weeks. She has slowed down considerably, although she's still up for a game if anyone is offering. She is doing a bit of running with Maija on their walks in the woods. Very quickly, though, she decides that she probably shouldn't be running after all. As well as slowing down, she is panting quite a bit when she's just lying around.

But most dramatic is the change in her shape. Here she is lying down at work this morning.





Only 5 puppies? Really?












In the meantime, in other news, after an enormous amount of work done on one side of our garden a couple of years ago, we decided to rush and get the fence on the other side replaced before we have a bunch of Finnish Lapphund adults and puppies running around. There were a couple of weak spots and one or two actual holes that no canines had discovered as yet. However, the puppies would have for sure, being nosey, clever and capable of finding everything single thing they ought not to.

I did feel sorry for the fencing guy, though, as we've been having sub-zero temperatures for a few days now and he was out there working in arctic conditions. In this weather, I've been making sure to keep the bird seed topped up and lots of fat balls hanging from the trees. That brought all kinds of visitors to the garden, including the usual array of bluetits, great tits, chaffinches, sparrows, black birds & robins. Then yesterday we had the rare treat of seeing a few goldfinches and even my own personal favorite, longtail tits.

Then an even more colourful visitor in the shape of this young male pheasant (perched on the fence).

















Of course, he didn't hang around long once he spotted Keskiyo trotting over to say hello.




















Keskiyo, of course, has been spending as much time out in the freezing garden as we will allow. These days he has tennis balls permanently frozen into the pond that he likes to bark at from time to time. Easily amused.

we're having puppies

At last, some blog-worthy news: Keksi is having 5 puppies - wh00! Well, that's how many we're expecting anyway, following the scan a couple of days ago.

For a couple of weeks, it's been is-she-isn't-she. Daniel reported a terrible kitchen bin raid during which Keksi spread rubbish all over the kitchen and hallway looking for food. Food stealing is usually a good sign that a bitch is in whelp. In the case of most bitches, anyway. In Keksi's case, you would think she was always in whelp, she's such a scavenger. Her sister Taika is bad too, but Keksi makes even her look like an amateur. 'Tenacious' and 'cunning' were two words one of her owners used to describe her food thieving exertions. In fact, since she has been here while said owners have been away, I've been quite astonished by her ingenuity in finding food in the kitchen. This dog who barely breaks her sedate waddle out on walks will stop at nothing to acquire the least little morsel.

So, while the bin escapade was a sign, I wasn't convinced by that alone. I asked Daniel whether Keksi was showing a little skirt of fur in front of her back thighs. That was something that Neka showed in both her pregnancies. Suddenly the fur on the sides, just behind the rib cage, stuck straight out in a ruff. No, Daniel said, no skirt.

Then she came to stay with us. There was definitely a skirt. And you can sort of see it here:













So, did I say so to Daniel? No, I didn't want to get everyone's hopes up, just in case. Did I say so to anyone? Of course! But only to Jay. I wanted someone to know I was right, after all.

So, the scan said 5 puppies, same as Taika had. We might get 5, we might get 4, we might get 6. The 5 is, shall we say, "fluid" at this point. Things can still change, but at least she's definitely in whelp. And so I have to start getting ready.

First things first: make sure Keksi is as fit as she can be. This is a tough one for a dog who doesn't really like to break a sweat. Daniel was under strict instructions to get her fit before she was mated, and he gave it a good shot. Then she put on a bit of weight, got lazy, as she is prone to do. This girl has to squeeze out some puppies in a few weeks time, so she's now on a gentle fitness drive before she's too far gone. Since she arrived here, she's been out for long walks at least twice a day - and not leisurely strolls either. She trots, she runs, she breaks a sweat. Is she impressed? Probably not. Is her shape improving? Her stamina? Yep and yep.

Today she had fun on the beach then came home and has a snooze with Maija on the sofa to recover.




When she puts her ears on sideways like this you can see why Jay & I have nicknamed her the brown sheep.








In no time at all she's back to her usual funny self, asking when dinner is going to be ready.





Classic Lappy-no-ears face









And this is how adorable she was at 6 weeks:

beaches

The lovely beach in the last post is at Teignmouth, south Devon. We are so lucky to be within spitting - or at least driving - distance of many, many fabulous beaches. It was one of the reasons I moved here and it is one of the 3 things that keep me here. The beach at Teignmouth is small but conveniently located and the town is one of the few seaside towns that still retains some of it's charm. Forget Torquay & Dawlish and don't even go near Paignton - for me Teignmouth is the little coastal gem around here. And it's only a 10-minute drive from home.

Granted, on a day like Saturday it was a 15-minute drive over icy hills, but we made it unscathed.

A couple of weeks ago we were on a very different, very much longer, flatter, muddier beach at Weston-Super-Mare for a mini Infindigo reunion and impromptu Lappy walk. In addition to the various people attached to each dog, we had Neka & Keskiyo, the girls Taika & Keksi and the boy Taito from Neka's first litter, the girls Maija & Kaija and the boy Rauhan from the second litter and sisters Minna & Kesa from the last litter. In addition to the Infindigos, we had Keksi's housemate Ismo, Rauhan's housemate Sukka and little 14-week-old Miika out on his very first Lappy walk who had a grand old time chasing the older dogs. We even had 2 non-Lappies whose names escape me now, but there was a very fetching (and large) 8-month-old Rottie X and her tiny terrier housemate. Unfortunately my camera had given up before they joined the group for photos.



L-R: (in shot) Sukka, Miika, Taito, Kaija, Neka, Maija, Taika, Kesa, Keksi, Rauhan, Ismo
Hidden behind other dogs: Keskiyo, Minna
Missing from photo: non-Lappy guests









3 generations of girls
L-R: Taika, her daughters Minna & Kesa, her mum Neka








Keskiyo's family
L-R: Neka, Keskiyo, their girls Maija & Kaija (Sulo) and boy Rauhan





Shame everyone was already sandy, muddy and bedraggled by the time we took the photos, but that's just the way it has to be when you're at the beach. Needless to say, no one was in the mood to pose before the walk. We even had quite a time trying to keep Minna still after the walk, as you can see from her expression: "Let me go!"

in the meantime

Back along before I got distracted by seasons, progesterone testing and trips to France, the brothers Usko & Kallio had their very first show at Darlington. As, of course, did their owners Ian & Liz and Nicole & Charlie. Although it meant rather more driving than I would like, I had to be there to cheer them on.



Usko (L) & Kallio (R)







No one was more shocked than I to see that Usko's "little" brother Kallio had not only overtaken him in the size department, but looked about a month more mature as well.

Handled by yours truly, Kallio went into the showring and didn't have 4 paws on the ground at any one time. And he flatly refused to let the judge come anywhere near him - he thought it was a great game! And that carried right on through winning best puppy in breed and going into the big puppy group ring. As they announced the Finnish Lapphund, before all the spectators and cameras, Kallio hobbled across the ring on 3 legs. Not only did he refuse to walk properly on his lead, he decided he needed to have a good scratch as well and thought he could do so while on the move. Oh, so funny!

Usko, on the other hand, behaved impeccably for Ian & Liz's first real show with him. All those hours of ringcraft classes paid off - Usko behaved like a perfect little showdog in the ring, trotting around beautifully with Ian and standing nicely to let the judge go over him.

I'm sure all the exercise before going into the ring helped. Here are the brothers enjoying their reunion.














































Not only was Kallio bigger than Usko, but he was almost as big as his very big uncle Taito.

















Seeing Usko & Kallio together reminded me so much of seeing Taito & his brother Karhu together at their first show at 6 months of age. Taito, like Kallio, was quite mature while Karhu was like Usko and still looked very much the puppy. Here they are in the ring at the Manchester show 2007. As you can see, their ringcraft has come on quite well since those days - proof that there's hope even for Kallio!





Karhu & Wendy (L); Taito & Emma (R)









2 years on and Karhu has grown right up. At Darlington he went on to win Best Rare Breed in the very last Rare Breed competition that Lapphunds will participate in. Next year we will have challenge certificates and so the fun we've had over the years in Rare Breed classes with the Estrela Mountain Dogs, Pyrenean Sheepdogs and the like will come to an end.

I had some photos of Wendy & Karhu winning Best Rare Breed, but I can't find them at the moment - very frustrating, but not unexpected considering my, er, compromised organisational skills these last few weeks. If you're out there Wendy - please send me some more.




So proud of the beautiful boys!
L-R: Usko, Karhu, Taito, Kallio






Many, many thanks to Scott, Charlie and Ian (& possibly Liz) for the photos. Without you I would have had none at all.

je suis fatigué

Those who check in with the website from time to time will probably have spotted that for some time I've been planning a liaison between Keksi and a mysterious French gent. Well the time finally came and Keksi and I set off on our aventure française together.

The object of my affection was this adorable boy, Lapinlumon Kuuraturkki, known as Elias:
















As it happened, Keksi's affection was rather more inclined toward the cream sable puppy BjØrn. He, bless him, had no idea what her intentions were and would attempt to play then flip onto his back. Eventually Keksi came around to the idea that Elias wasn't so bad.

I was expecting the visit to take a few days because I knew we were, in fact, a tad early in Keksi's cycle. You might wonder why go through the effort and expense of progesterone testing and pre-mate testing at the vet if I then ignore their advice that she's not yet ready and go ahead anyway. However, I was using a third method of ovulation prediction as well. Between that one and the results of the other two tests, I was pretty sure I knew what was going to happen when. What I couldn't predict was what days the French workers would be striking.

When I got the email from Brittany Ferries telling me that my ferry to Caen had to be rerouted to St Malo due to industrial action I didn't have my normal reaction. Normally I would take that as a sign that Keksi was not ready, as suggested by the tests, and that I was being given the opportunity to save some money and wait until after the strike to travel. Instead, I decided to take it as a sign that my travelling to and/or from France might be tricky and so I should just get there and worry about everything else once I was safely ensconced within driving distance of the Kennel Des Royaumes du Grand Nord. So that's what I did.

In the end I think things were a day or so later even than I was expecting, but with a bit of rearrangement of travel plans and similar jiggery-pokery, we got what we went for and now we wait to see whether this sweet couple will produce any puppies for us.














Photo: Stéphanie Dubois

Elias wasn't overly keen the whole time, either - he knew when she was ready and when she wasn't.















While we were waiting there was plenty of time for socialising, trips to visit the ponies and to the beach.
















Photo: Stéphanie Dubois

I can't thank Stéphanie and her family enough for their generous hospitality - not to mention the amazing pink peaches that I carried home with me from Madame Dubois's garden. I hope Elias didn't mind sharing - never have I seen a dog enjoy fruit so much! He would hear a peach fall from the tree and off he would go to retrieve it and quickly devour it. He had an additional stash of them piled in a little den under a shrub. There were moments when we wondered whether he was more interested in the fruit than in his girlfriend. But luckily he had sufficient attention for both.

And so now we wait.

almost 6 months old

Two days ago marked the Tuisku puppies' 6-month birthday - happy half-birthday, puppies!

This weekend will be the very first show for the boys Usko and Kallio. Minna has been excused as there is a human birthday party at which her presence is required. But I'll be taking Keskiyo & Neka and picking up Taito on the way for the looong drive to Darlington to see the puppies in their debut. I've heard that they both have a bit of a naughty streak but I don't believe it for a second and I'm quite confident that they'll behave like little angels and show like pros. Yes I am. I am.

The latest photo updates have been trickling in and some lucky pups have been having their very first visits to some amazing beaches over the summer.



Taika & Minna
















"Race you to the birds, mum!"

















Sandy knackered puppy














Here's another sandy puppy - Jonna










Jonna & Ellie with what looks like the entire northwest coast of England to themselves










Kallio having his first of many, many subsequent forays into the water












Having fun with his friends














Causing trouble with his housemate (again)

















And, finally, here is Kesa getting a different kind of wet. She doesn't need the beach - she's quite happy "helping" with watering the garden.






In the meantime, Usko is being very grownup and dry

another week ...

... another show

The dog shows come fast & furious at this time of year. Last year I didn't go to many at all and with puppies in the house in the spring, I missed all those scheduled then too, including Crufts. Next year I'll be at Crufts to support all the Infindigo team, but my own dogs won't be there because their breeder Toni will be judging. So I'll just get to relax, socialise & watch it all from the sidelines for a change. It's usually such a hectic day that I miss most of what's going on. But for now I'm packing the shows in.

Last weekend Keskiyö was Best of Breed at Newton Abbot & South Devon Canine Society under judge Dave Weller who gave him Best Opposite Sex at Bath a few weeks earlier. Then this past weekend we had the 2nd annual madness that is the breed show and champ show in one day in Warwickshire.

I remembered from last year how very tiring the day was with 2 shows, all the running back & forth, the long drive to the Midlands from Devon. This year I thought I'd get clever & book accommodation somewhere convenient the nights before & after the show so we could have a nice relaxing weekend of it and enjoy the whole thing. After all, a breed show for our rare breed is a special event. Lots of Lappies, some we don't see any other time of year, an expert judge all the way from Finland. Wonderful, right?

Well, relaxing it wasn't. You know when people say 'everything that could go wrong did go wrong'? Yeah, that. It started a few days before the show when I found out that Emma M's entry for Taito in the breed show hadn't made it. After that it was one thing after another: non-existent postcodes leading to satnav disasters (three times - three! - in one trip), dead phone lines, difficult-to-find hotels, missed classes, country walks curtailed by rain, terrible traffic, planned pub lunches derailed.

What else? Oh yes, vomiting and diarrhea. No, not me. Have you seen how fluffy Keskiyö is? Well he ate something he shouldn't the night before the show and when I went to rouse the canines from the car at 6am I had an hour or so work cleaning up the mess in the crate. And the fur. Oh, oh, oh, poor dog! Wait a minute - poor dog? Poor me! Just lucky he prefers to sleep in his crate, I guess.

Anyway, if I do say so myself, I did a great job with limited equipment (water bottle, wet wipes, many towels, one small squirt of Impulse just in case). Toni very kindly agreed to show him for me and didn't he look gorgeous!






































Many thanks to Gareth Thyer for so generously sharing the wonderful photos he took on the day!

I think the judge quite liked Keskiyö, having got him to move & move again. In the end, though, he was only 3rd in his class. Well, the boy is, er, sensitive about having brushes & combs near his nether regions at the best of times. And believe me when I tell you that his nether regions were subject to never-before-experienced levels of attention that morning for the frantic hour before he went into the ring. In the end he was walking as if he was a tad too aware of his bottom and apparently the judge noticed. Oh well! Luckily it's all about the fun, not the winning.

Inko romped to 1st place in her class, being the only entrant (ahem). But she looked very sweet in spite of having just had the first enormous moult of her life. She was the prettiest little bald Lappy in attendance - fact.




















Rauhan? Missed his class for complicated, frustratingly unnecessary reasons. However, Katy did win the junior handling with him for a 2nd year - congratulations Katy!

And so on to the afternoon show where Rauhan won his class (also looking a tiny bit on the un-coated side) and Keskiyö missed his class due to there being not enough wet wipes in all of Warwickshire to deal with a 2nd small attack of the squits. Luckily Toni spotted the body language and got him out of the ring just in time. Phew and phew again. Inko was 3rd in her class and Taito 4th in his.

Was it difficult? Stressful? Oh yes. Was it worth it? Fun? Yup and yup. Roll on next year, at which time I will personally be checking everyone's entry and rationing out the food morsel by morsel the night before.

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...