It’s been three whole weeks since I last posted and my, puppies are growing and changing! Believe it or not, I still have Mr. Griffon. I cannot understand why this puppy didn’t sell, but today I am officially take him off my website as “available.” I suppose if just the right home came along I would still consider selling him, only because I do not want this many dogs. But unless that happens, the Griffonator is staying put.
I love this puppy!! He is so amazing. He’s everything I was hoping for in this breeding: fun, calm, super good natured, happy, well put together, fun to train, and easy to live with. Don’t get me wrong, I am still nuts about Raven and delighted to have her, but I’m just tickled to have this “left-over” puppy turning out to be so particularly nice.
Today I took him to a CKC dog show. We arrived late in the blistering hot afternoon, to find very few dogs and competitors left. Nevertheless we made the best of it and wandered about meeting all we could.
Interestingly, people comment on how nice his structure is. While his final development won’t be obvious for months yet, I think the initial evaluation of his structure was overly critical. This may be why I had trouble placing him: Griff was evaluated as having the least nice structure in the litter. Compared to Raven or Snap, he does have his shortcomings. He could use a touch more neck and he’s a little broad, leading him to be slightly cowhocked. But compared to the average BC, he’s pretty well put together.
Next we went to Petsmart to cool off in the A/C and meet other dogs. Instead of enrolling in puppy class, I have been taking the pups to pet stores and dog events to experience and train in busy, noisy, dog-filled environments. While I love puppy classes, my schedule doesn’t work well with schedules!
Today Petsmart was very quiet but we did meet two Dachshunds, who were initially very scary until carefully inspected. Upon realizing that they were actually *dogs*, wee Elvis and his older sister suddenly became much more fun. Their owners were far more interesting, however, as were all the other humans in the store. Somehow I do a good job of raising puppies who love people, but do a less effective job of raising puppies who like strange dogs. Or maybe it’s just the BC snob thing.
Surprisingly, everyone I met today asked me what kind of mix Griffon is. Um, mix? I have never had a Border Collie who looks more like a Border Collie than Griffon. Black and white, rough coated, completely classically marked. Mix? I am not offended as I am use to people thinking my smooth coated and tri-coloured dogs are mixes. But Griffon?
Given that it was 32C this afternoon, I decided stopping for a swim on the way home was a good plan. This was Griff’s first time in water deeper than the flooded fields on the farm or the sheep drinking tub, and at first he was not so sure about the whole not having his feet touch the ground thing. So I threw the stick in the shallows and cheered him on as he retrieved it.
After a few tries I threw it a bit deeper. He hesitated so I waded in with him. He quickly swam out, grabbed the stick and headed for shore. Having gotten some water up his nose, he spent a few minutes prancing around in the grass before trying again.
I ping-ponged the distance I threw the stick, mostly within wading depth but occasionally into water just deep enough to require a few strokes to reach it. And soon Griffon was swimming like a champ! I am proud of my little man. He’s a confident little guy but definitely still a baby and needs some encouragement and time to figure out his comfort zone.
This whole litter stresses low, and so gets quiet and still when thinking things through. I have learned to just give them time, not rush or push, and they will always come through. In a little under 10 minutes Griffon went from being worried about sticking his toe in the river to swimming like a pro.
It’s funny how things work out. I cannot imagine not having this little ball of fluff around. I never could, as you may recall. There was always something about Griffey that tugged at me, from the moment he was born. So…welcome aboard, little man!
Kynic Stockdogs 