Siska's Season - Day 21

Orin is now in a state – so 21 days since Siska's season started, I'd say we are at the climax. He hasn't eaten and is loud this morning, though Zeus has eaten. 

Siska had a few minutes out with Zavi this morning, I think they will have a nice friendship too. I've not attempted letting him out with the entire males yet; that's definitely not something to do with a bitch in season in the house! 

Reacher And Lyra

Nice to see them getting on so well. 

Puppy Pics

Just a few of many today. 

Day 20

Finally Siska seems to be getting to the peak of her season; it's 20 days since I first saw blood. Orin is quite wound up, but both boys are still eating. As usual, it's all quite stressful, not helped by the continued weather, as it's too hot to put the dogs in the pens in the afternoon; at least we can use them mornings and evenings. 

I suppose I could have gone walking this morning, but I was glad that I chose to give everyone time in the fields instead. I was done by 10.30am, it was just getting a little hot by then! I am looking forward to more suitable walking weather, but I guess it'll just rain and rain when this comes to an end!

Semi Siblings

Beti is predictably lovely but had to be on the lead in the field with him because of her enthusiasm. I did think she would be his first friend! 

Everyone In The Field

The First Weigh-In

I don't have Zavi's early weights, but to continue my records, as he's 8 weeks today – we'll start today. 

Mr Zavi is currently 7.7 kg – Strangely, Orin wasn't weighed at 8 weeks (probably because his siblings were leaving), but he was 7kg at nine weeks. About right I think, as Orin was one of nine. Loki was 5.7kg at 8 weeks; again, he was from a large litter, so it was to be expected. Though Ross was from a small litter, he wasn't a big puppy, but he was a little older than 8 weeks when he arrived at Blanik.

What Is It About Orange Collars?

Loki

Orin

Beti 

Meerah

Zavi

How strange, out of all the colours of the rainbow that so many of the Blaniks have been "Orange!" Actually Ian's Kiaan was also "Orange!" Orin was originally blue, but after a lost collar was changed to orange, and Beti was originally red, but for the same reason was also changed to orange. What do I do for the next litter then, hide the orange collar? LOL 

Zavi Is Home

It sure has been a long week. 

Walking

Our lovely walk today - it was just so wonderful to get out. Being out in nature sure is the best medicine. 

Zavi's First Poster

Blackpool Critique

Coat, Eyes And Socialising

You can easily find Zavi in this video, his orange collar stands out through his thick coat. I think his coat is longer and thicker than Orin's was at the same age – though O was quite hairy too. It's my experience from being in the breed for over 35 years that mostly well-coated puppies become well-coated adults, but as we know, nature sometimes throws in a curveball and does it differently! Of course puppies with less coat can continue to have a thick adult coat, we'll use Blanik Fitz as an example of that! Sammi was not a hugely coated puppy, but with every moult her coat seemed to come back thicker, and Ross has been the same really; when he's in full bloom he looks pretty decently coated in recent years. They say there's nothing worse than a poorly coated sable, and my word at times he's looked rough! 

If you watch the video you'll see a glimpse of Mattie and maybe understand why I set my heart on a puppy from this litter other than previous ones. Her free-flowing easy movement is so impressive, and her conformation is unexaggerated and balanced, to finish the picture, she has dark eyes and beautiful colour. Of course I understand that Zavi's eyes may well be lighter than my preference, but eye colour is never a game changer! 

Without flooding him, I'll start socialising as soon as I can; maybe give him a few days to settle in this mad house first. I need to find out who he is, is he a bold Beti, a riotous Ross or a more low-key Loki? How we socialise will have a lot to do with his personality. Kai helped Ziva recover after the disasters of her early socialising, Mikey, Sammi and Noya did wonders for Loki's withdrawn personality ... and Beti is helping me with Meerah, who sometimes reacts oddly in certain situations. Beti herself and most of the others haven't needed the backup of an adult to explore the world, but if Zavi does – well, I've got just the woman for the job! 

A Baby Orin

Zavi

OMG - I'm in love! 

Meerah and Owen

Little Miss Mwnci behaving perfectly for Owen at club again tonight. She's saving all her naughtyness for Builth!

Beti Visiting

A lovely afternoon sitting in the shade in Carrie's garden, drinking lemonade with a bit of an extra something in it and eating cake. Beti was over the moon to be there again and my favourite purple hydrangea looked better than ever! I think it's a good year for them. Not many photos, as I forgot to take her any treats for payment!

Zavi's Vet Check

A very hot and bothered Zavi and his siblings passed their health checks today. 

His bed is made for him - It'll soon be Friday

And Mother Said ...

Oh Mattie haven't you read the books? Positive training only. Go on, get your clicker out! 

Seriously the best thing we can do is observe these females and learn from them! 

I'm now on Zavi countdown. 

We were told yesterday that the carers will be starting with Mum in 4 - 6 weeks. We all considered it to be good news, apart from Mum who has thrown her toys out of the pram. Though the weather was hot and sunny in Tremadog today, the atmosphere at No. 30 was distinctly chilly! Mum does not remember that she agrees with the plans, and says she doesn't even recall the visit from the social worker. I fear this may not go very well!

Lunch Out

A lovely "light lunch" at The Newborough with my favourite person.  I've no idea what they would consider a big meal if this is a light lunch! We both bought some of it home for supper, and with it being such a big meal, there was no room for a sweet! Damn!  

We also popped to Home Bargains and got some puppy pads ready for putting in Zavi's crate. I have set the crate up in the dog's bedroom, ready for him. It's big enough to take a Beti-sized female, so it will do him for 3 - 4 months I guess. After that I'm going to have to do a rethink; with anything bigger where it is, Meerah's crate won't open, and we still hope for a puppy Kez next year!  

Dad

It's been four years - in memory of my father, please do me the honour and listen! 

This Is Reacher

 

Well now the news is out - Reacher is going to live with our friends Ro and Mark. Ro is the lady who did the crochet of Kaiah. They have Jethro from my J litter and Lyra, an Orin daughter. (They also had TJ from the H litter, and Ro's parents had Heidi from the B litter.) Let's look forward to three siblings in the ring next year. 

Call Him Tommy!

After struggling to sleep again last night I was really pleased to feel the breeze this morning, though I didn't expect the van to rock in the strong wind from Penygroes to Bryncir. After that it was better but still blustery in Tremadog. 

Mum was having breakfast and seemed in a decent mood, though she'd been looking everywhere for her black sandals. Well, she gave them to me during the last hot spell, and I was wearing them, she has no memory of that ... but I think it was whilst she was swigging the morphine! 😯

I showed Mum the photos of the puppies; she loved them but hated the name and had no apprehension in telling me. "Zavi? What an odd name; I don't like it. I thought you may have called him Tommy!" As Steve said yesterday, no one else has to like it, as long as I do, then feck em, and I love it and it's meaning. 

Ravi became Zavi

Steve said, "Well, name him what you like, you shouldn't let other people's opinions influence your choices, your puppy, your choice!" But having thought of Mr Orange as Zavi rather than Ravi (OMG he's back in Enders! 😍) all week I decided to check the meaning of Zavi. Read on, it kind of seals the deal, doesn't it? 

The meaning of the name Zavi varies depending on its cultural origin. It is a rare, multi-cultural name used for both boys and girls. Hebrew Origin: Derived from the name Zev or Ze'ev, it means "wolf," a symbol of strength and leadership. It is also interpreted as a diminutive of Xavier or a name meaning "God is my strength". Arabic Origin: Often translated as "shining bright" or "beautiful". Hindi Origin: Means "graceful".

The name Zaavi (often spelt Za'avi or Zavi) comes from the Hebrew word for wolf, Ze'ev (זְאֵב). When you add the suffix to the end, it literally translates to "my wolf" or "wolfish." It's essentially an affectionate, punchy variation of the traditional name Zev (which also means wolf).

My only problem is the sound Zavi- Sammi - but I'll have to live with it! 😁😁

The Plan Came Together.

You may recall that last Sunday I mentioned a plan. Well don't you just love it when a plan comes together ... When you just can't decide you have to learn to share! Meet Zavi (Orange) and Kate (Pink). Zavi will be coming to Fron to live with his daddy O and Kate (Pink) will be staying with Mummy Mattie. For showing purposes, Nicola and I will co-own them and, with luck and good fortune, campaign both of them.

Too Hot

The heat is just too much for me and the dogs, and last night Zeus gave me a bit of a scare. It was around midnight, and Steve was already asleep. I was struggling and fed up and thinking of going to get the fan when Zeus started panting and pacing. I told him to lie down, but he didn't! He was obviously uncomfortable. I got up and let him out, and then after 10 mins out we tried to settle, but he was the same again. An unwanted thought popped into my mind, Blade had a torsion in heat like this, well yes, twice in July heat a year apart. Oh shit, I checked on Zeus again, but I think he was just hot and fed up. After a while he opened the bedroom door and went to lie on the cold bathroom floor. He did come back sometime later but maybe it did him good to find a cooler place, I should have joined him.

I was very sad to read of another GSD in our showing community who'd had a torsion, or as he said, bloat! I know I'm probably being pernickety, but I wish people would be aware of the difference. Bloat is far less serious than torsion, though bloat can lead to torsion. Torsion is an emergency situation which causes death within a couple of hours. This dog had a torsion, but his owner's quick action saved his life!

Maybe I'm getting like my mother; little things irritate me. The question, "who is your dog out of?" Well for instance, Orin is out of Sammi, end of conversation. "Who is your dog by?" Orin is by Fransisco; end of conversation. A pup cannot be "out of" his father it's physically impossible, but if you want to know the parents, how about asking, "who are his parent?" Or "What is his breeding?" Equally, when writing about "Blanik Kyriacos", it is "Fransisco x Ivana," not "Ivana x Fransico." If you are going to do it, well do it right eh! (And let's not get me started on German Shepard! 😡)

A couple more photos from Nicola last night. Miss Pink has her ears up, but Mr Orange still looks like this. I know it's early days to be getting my knickers in a knot, but as I know there are soft ear issues carrying from Mattie's paternal side, it's already playing on my mind! I'm hoping that the strong ears from Fransisco breeding will override the weakness from elsewhere! Of course light eyes could be an issue, but that is not a deal breaker, and with Mattie's dark eyes I can only hope for something acceptably in between. Actually that is something I've become very aware of lately, for show purposes, doubling up on light eyes is a no-no, Sky has light eyes and the majority of her pups to Orin have very light eyes! 

I can't wait to go and see the pups again tomorrow; a decision will hopefully have been made by this time tomorrow!

Eric The Scruff!

Another reply about the cat amused me. 

"We named him Eric Scruff when he used to come to us, we fed him for 3 years. We tried to trap when we moved home but had no luck. He's extremely feral; he made his way up from Nantlle about 4/5 years ago." Well I'm afraid I'll now be calling him "Eric Scruff" too, far more apt than Hazel cat! 

Last night he and Choo had words, to be honest, I think Choo was the aggressor; he certainly chased Eric under the shed. I had hoped Choo was sticking up for himself with Luther, but nope the black cat was not about, and Eric was seen making his escape later on. 

Morning Exercise

With the heat set to rise, I got up early to feed the gang so that I could get them out into the fields. No more than 15 - 20 mins per group but at least they all go to stretch those muscles. Everyone has been happy to chill indoors, apart from Beti who is constantly being called back in from sunbathing! 

I forgot to mention yesterday that we saw a weasel; well, I presume that that is what it was and not a stoat. He was ever so lovely and spent a lot of time mooching about right in front of us. I just wish I'd taken my camera!