Size And Wheels

As I'm in contact with the owners of Zavi's brothers, I know that Zavi is now the smallest of the three boys. I'm not in the least bit concerned, as my boys are at the top of the size limit for the breed. (Apart from Zeus who's smaller – well, actually, height-wise, he's spot on correct!) It would be great if Zavi didn't get too big, but of course puppies usually balance out as they grow. 

A little bit more training, yes he had interest in the wheels, as funny as it was, but it had to be stopped today! 

Cesar Said ...

"If you accidentally step on your dog, their instinct reacts to the discomfort. If you immediately drop to your knees and start panicking... You amplify the trauma. Dogs hurt each other during play all the time. They never apologize. Wait until they relax and the discomfort passes. Don't nurture the pain."

An interesting post from Cesar Milan on his Facebook page, and so true. I never made a fuss when Pepsi bumped into anything or fell over; it was "Oops", followed by a giggle and let's do something else! 

This afternoon Zavi got his leg caught between two panels on the puppy pen, the screams were chilling, and I ran out of the kitchen to help him. He was freed, and immediately his attention turned to the fact that he was hoping for his dinner. 

Nice Walks

Moan Of The Week

I've written about this before, but I'm feeling it again, so sorry for being like BBC2. 

I love putting photos on Facebook, mostly it's for myself, making memories. I love to look back, and the memories that come up daily on Facebook mean a lot to me. Hell, I don't expect people to comment on every single photo; maybe it's pathetic to some, but I'm hurt by the fact that people who are important to me don't bother to comment at all. 

I'm feeling it more so right now, as the same old people seem to be totally ignoring the fact that I have Zavi. Is it jealousy? I can't think what else it would be as he/she totally ignored the fact that the K litter even existed. A kind word occasionally takes seconds of someone's time, it's not much to ask, is it? I guess what gets me the most is seeing the gushing comments on other people posts and puppies, but I'm not important enough to even get a couple of words!

Moan over .... Look at my beautiful puppy! 

Shopping With Zavi

                                                  

Our first stop was B&Q where Zavi had his first-ever trolley ride. Initially he lay down and was quiet, but within minutes he was sitting up and almost did a Sammi. (She tried to launch out in a garden centre!) He was lucky to meet some nice people, and I was very good by not correcting the chap who said he was a lovely little "Alsatian."  I think these days I hate Shepard more than Alsatian!

We then went to Pets At Home, where the cashier, as lovely as he was, asked if he was a pedigree German Shepherd or a cross. Again I was polite but as you can see, Zavi was disgusted! 😄

                                                                     

We spent money on toys we wanted but didn't need, lol, but he was a happy chap so who cares! Zavi did so well, it couldn't really have gone any better. Happy days, now where can we go tomorrow?

It's funny how the expression changes with an ear - two would be better, but we'll settle with the one for now, it's been up and down all day!

Presaddfed Kids At Club

Zavi with Owen, Kate, Nicola and Reacher with Linda

The first photo of me with Zavi, I really hope there will be more, but it's hard when I usually have the camera! The pups did really well, Zavi and Kate a little unsure at first, but since Reacher has already been to a show, he was pretty chilled about it all. The more we do now the better! 

Zavi With His Babysitters

I've spent the last three mornings with Mum, today it was a pain clinic appointment. With Steve's poor mobility, Zavi has been spending his mornings with Frank and Linda. He's adapted well to the routine, and been happy and full of fun in the caravan. 

Ignorance Was Bliss

Back in the day when I thought I knew a lot, but really knew f.all life was a lot easier; I carried on with life obliviously and didn't overthink. Last night I was talking to a friend/breeder about puppy ears. She knows, like I do, that there is a male who produced weak ears in Zavi's maternal line, but she is of the opinion that the ear strength from Fransisco will override this weakness. As I told her, I will not relax until there is obvious progress in his ears, but I'm well aware it's far too early to worry, and mathematically the risk of genetically soft ears are low.

Because ear cartilage develops dynamically alongside his skeleton and adult teeth, a few targeted management habits can make a huge difference during the critical window between 8 and 20 weeks.The young cartilage at the base of his ears is incredibly soft right now, and physical trauma can snap or weaken the developing cartliage. (No head biting Beti!) 

Chewing is an absolute powerhouse for ear development. The temporalis and masseter muscles wrap right around the skull and the base of the ear canal. The pumping action, strong, repetitive chewing acts like a pump, drastically increasing blood flow, oxygen, and nutrient delivery directly to the head and the ear cartilage bases. But really even now it's a bit early to overthink the ear issue. I guess in recent times we've got used to Fransisco ears - small strong ears which went up in the nest, falling during teething but back up again very early, but really before "Fransico" litters it didn't really work that way! 

The top photo is of Blade and the second is Mikey - they are about 3, maybe 3 and a half months in these photos. I never questioned their ears, I just presumed with time that they would stand, and they did! 

The Cats Of 2026

Perry and Jamie at the back together, Isla and Choo

Luther and Archie in this photo as well. 

Archie

Luther

Rain

Zavi was over the moon with the rain last night, I doubt he's seen many wet days in his 9 weeks of life, but there's no doubt there's a lot ahead of him.