"W" Litter - Day 5 & Past Pupdate

Just popping in with some quick pics of the "W" crew and some cute pics of past pups, too:

Whiplash, Whoopi, Andy Warhol at the milkbar.

Same line up.  :)

Wombat

Mama Lychee and the crew - from the front moving back:

Whoopi, Whiplash, Wilson (left), Warhol (right), Wingnut, Wombat (left), Whimsy.

Wingnut

Andy Warhol

Wiiiiiiilson

Wombat

Whiplash

Whimsy

Whoopi

We've also got some great new pics of some past pups:

First up, we've got "Wichita" (HT Wichita) - doing some snuggling, and also working hard to 'run slow' so that her best buddy can keep up:

Next up, we've got "Buzz" (HT E. Buzz), doing some silly snuggle poses of his own:

And last but not least, we've got sweet "Bedahlia" (HT Aunt Bedelia)...who apparently loves to maker her rocking chair rock while she's sitting in it.  If it stops, she jumps off to get it going again.  :)

"Puppy Buyer Etiquette"

Lychee and pups - all settled into their whelping pool at Jen's office.

Whew!

Jen and the puppy crew survived the first day at work.  It was a bit of a circus getting into a new routine of bringing pups to the office, but the pups and mom and her friends all traveled beautifully and settled right in.

Puppy kennel set up at the office - Lychee & pups already sound asleep...
...everyone else mugging for the camera!

And now...for some words of wisdom (we hope)...and a couple of really cute pics thrown in along the way!
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Lychee and Wingnut snuggle time.

Sometimes, it's easy to get mezmerized (even this early on) by one or two pups, just from the pictures.

We want to remind everyone not to focus on just one puppy, but instead to sit back and enjoy watching the whole litter (and Trinity's litter to come in about 4.5 weeks, as well), and the whole process.

We also know that patience is a tough thing to come by, and that sometimes all the 'rules' of buying from a breeder can be overwhelming - not to mention the anxiety of the waiting!

Sometimes the way breeders do things can seem weird (like not allowing any visitors before 5 weeks), or super-controlling (why do we ask for such a detailed puppy application?), etc.  We promise - there's always a method behind our madness.  If you have questions, don't hesitate to ask!

And on that note, Jen stumbled on a really well written and informative blog post from a Cardigan Welsh Corgi breeder that really  hits the nail on the head, in regards to Puppy Buyer Etiquette. We'd like to ask everyone to read through this post, if you will!  If the above link doesn't work, here's the address: https://rufflyspeaking.wordpress.com/2009/04/26/puppy-buyer-ettiquette/

This gal (as well as every other really good dog breeder we know) does things a lot like us, and her post on Puppy Buyer Etiquette is a great way to avoid pitfalls along the way.

Because her philosophy is so similar to ours, a lot of the information will sound familiar, if you've read our Puppy Selection Primer.

But there is lots of new information, too - she talks about things we've been through here at Horsetooth Whippets, and that have shaped the way we match our pups to their homes and homes to their pups.

The one thing we differ on from the above article is that we don't value show homes over pet homes.  In fact, because of our professions, our first and foremost priority for each and every pup is to be in a loving home - regardless of show potential or desire.  If any particular puppy owner wants to show their dog, great, but the love comes first!

(Also note that the discovery of the Puppy Buyer Etiquette blog was just great timing - not aimed at any particular situation!)  :)

W Litter - Day 2

Today was a big day for the pups - we removed their dewclaws (never fun!) and they're doing what puppies do at this stage - lots of eating and lots of sleeping.

Tomorrow marks the end of our 'weekend' and it's back to work - so fewer opportunities to capture photos for a few days.  The pups will be going to work with Jen; having their first ride in the car, beginning crate training, and hanging out at the training studio.

Here are a few shots from last night and today:

Andy Warhol (back) and what looks to be Wombat (he seems to be a darker red than his sisters, Whimsy and Whoopi).

Puppy Pile!  

Lychee's glaring at the carmera.  She hates being stalked by the paparazzi!   

Doing what they do best - eating & sleeping.

The reds are all in a pile and indistinguishable in this pic, but the whites are showing off markings and are easy to identify, from left to right:

Andy Warhol, Wilson, Whiplash, and sleepy Wingnut.

Left to right:  Andy Warhol, Wilson, Wingnut, Whimsy, Whoopi, Whiplash, Wombat

A bit of Whimsy, Whoopi, and Wombat...Wingnut, Wilson, and Andy Warhol

Wilson

Wingnut

Wingnut and Whimsy

New & Past pupdate pics

We've caught a few more shots of the 'W is for Whippet' litter this morning.  It's going to be tough to tell the reds and the extreme whites apart from each other for a while, unless we happen to capture their individual markings.  :)

And we've also got some nice past puppy pics below.

Enjoy!

Early morning snuggles.  Whiplash's ear markings make her easy to pick out.

Andy Warhol (with his tiny brindle spot on his head - like a yamika!) and 2 of the reds.

Two nice shots of Whiplash's wild, flashy neck marking.

Whiplash says, "Being a puppy is tough!  I'm tired!"

Two shots of Wombat (white toenails, but no white on his front feet) 

Andy Warhol

Andy Warhol, Wingnut and Wombat - showing off his black mask.

Wombat - climbing 'Mt. Lychee'

Lychee's a great mom - diligent about keeping everyone clean and warm.

The milk bar is officially open!  From left to right:

Wingnut, Whiplash, a bit of Andy Warhol's rear, either Whimsy or Whoopi, Wombat, Wilson

Plus, we've got some nice shots of one of Lychee's first daughters, Isla (HT Kissy Suzuki).  She looks a lot like Lychee and also a lot like Chewy, her dad:

Such a pretty girl.

Love her flower collar!

Next up, we've got some shots of Misu (HT Tiramisu Frangelico) - still tearing it up in Rally Obedience, and now also adding Traditional Obedience titles to her list of accomplishments!

She's now officially titled ARCH Misu, RL1X2, RL2X, RL3:

Poor, neglected whippet....with a ton of toys and a big cushy bed next to the wood burning stove.  Tough life!

And last but not least, several fun shots of Indy (HT Herbert West) and Roxy (HT Stevie Wayne):

Indy - looking sleepy

Roxy - Apparently the "Queen of Awkward Sleeping Positions"

Nice boots, Indy!

More awkward sleeping....   :)

They're Here! Introducing the "W is for Whippet" Litter

The "'W' is for Whippet" Litter has arrived...  Seven healthy, happy puppies!  We've got 4 girls and 3 boys.  All are eating well and mama Lychee is very happy.

It'll be hard to tell for a day or two exactly what colors there are - all are either brindle or red, but brindling will take a while to really show up, and the shades of red will most likely vary quite a bit from light fawn to dark red like Lychee.  The red variations develop and change a lot over the first few months, and even throughout the first year!

We've snapped a few pics to get things rolling - excuse our 'mess' as these were taken even before we got Lychee and the bedding all cleaned up after whelping:

From left to right:  Andy Warhol, Whiplash, Wilson, Wombat, & Whimsey

Same lineup.  Missing from the photo are Wingnut (hiding somewhere) and Whoopi (not yet born).

All seven and a tired but contented Lychee.

We just looked in the whelping pool and saw all the solids together, and all the extreme white pups together.  Funny coincidence!

We'll add individual pics soon, but here's the birth order & weights and descriptions:

1.  Wingnut - Extreme White Female - Red patches on ears/face, and one brindle(?) patch on left shoulder.  Born at 2:05 p.m.  Weight:  233 grams

2.  Andy Warhol - Extreme White Male - Brindle patch on top of head - rest of body white.  Born at 2:42 p.m.  Weight:  300 grams

3.  Wilson - Exteme White Male - no discernible colored patches at all.  This is the first completely white pup we've ever had.  He may eventually develop some polka dots on his ears, but we'll see.  Born at 2:44 p.m.  Weight:  241 grams

4.  Wombat - Solid Red Male - Black Mask.  White diamond on his chest, and back toes are white-tipped.  Born at 2:53 p.m.  Weight:  296 grams

5.  Whiplash - Extreme White Female - Large Brindle patch from left ear all the way down left side of neck to her left shoulder.  Right ear is Brindle.  1/2 of her tail is also Brindle.  Born at 3:03 p.m.  Weight:  258 grams

6.  Whimsy - Solid Red Female - Black Mask.  White chin, white "butterfly" on chest; all toes are white tipped.  Born at 3:17 p.m.  Weight:  277 grams

7.  Whoopi - Solid Red Female - Black Mask.  White diamond on her chest; all toes are white tipped except far right toe on right front foot, which is black.  Born at 4:16 p.m.  Weight:  266 grams

We also have some more great past pup pics and some of the Horsetooth whippets here at the ranch, but we'll save those for another post.

Puppy News - Lychee's x-ray & more...

We took a snapshot of Lychee's belly yesterday - she's definitely full of little zippers (spines) and ribs and legs...all in a big tangle.  The count looks to be seven (2 of their heads didn't make it to this picture):

We've also gotten some nice past pupdate pics to share:

"Rohan" (HT Jules Winnfield) - hiking to his favorite statue on a beautiful Colorado day.

"Pip" (HT Auric Goldfinger) - his mom reports that he loves to hang out in her studio when she paints.