New pups in the house!

Above, our new boy, Currie who is from the breeding that friend Brooke and I co-bred.  Currie is a handsome little Flute puppy.  We also have his sister Vimy below.

Pups, pups and more pups

I have been busy with our litter of thirteen pups, getting everyone ready to leave for their homes, vet visits, grooming, endless cleaning of puppy pens and yards.  It is a more then full time job doing it right.  This past few days we have sent seven off to their new homes, most have been picked up, a few have been flown.  Six are here for the long weekend and soon they too will be off on new adventures.  Perhaps I will have time to blog again....

Delightful twosome

Two of Clover & Beamish siblings looking very innocent.  This is sure to become one of my favourite puppy photos.  If you want to indulge and see more, check out our Puppy Blog here

Time?

I can't figure out how it happens, one moment we are stuttering along in the midst of an endless cold, wet Spring and before you know it we are in the middle of Summer, seriously, how does that happen??  Sorry for the lack of actual words on my blog of late, OK, maybe that is a good thing.

I am feeling a bit overwhelmed this year with all the work we are doing around here, not to mention the explosion in my chicken population and trying to integrate the young birds into the current flock of nasty old mature girls.  Owning chickens I am learning all about the plethora of sayings, recently 'pecking order' is at the top of the list.  The girls can be brutal about establishing this with the young ones.  It doesn't help that my chick purchase of eight this Spring gave me four, yes FOUR cockerels!  I had sort of hoped for one and damn if I didn't get four times that.  One was a beautiful Brown Leghorn, no I didn't order a Leghorn, but he was slipped in disguised as a Speckled Sussex Hen, isn't he a beauty....

Gorgeous Brown (Foghorn) Leghorn Cockerel

 Sadly he was a very 'cocky' fellow and along with fighting with the other young roosters....

 ....he was the most noisy and had started asserting his dominance with very aggressive and unwanted advances to the young hens.  He is the smallest of the Roosters, yet he managed to chase and keep this beautiful Silver Grey Dorking up in a tree

 This week Mr.Leghorn and one other Cockerel were removed from the flock and peace has returned...for now.

Another sign of how fast time passes, I cannot believe how much work Clover's recent litter of 13 pups is.  In past years I have raised two large litters at the same time with a lot more ease then this one large litter, I guess I have to admit that the passing of 'time' is slowing me down :-)  Once more I am so very thankful that the breeding of Hilde didn't work out, I can't even imagine having her litter as well as these pups.

The pups are doing fantastic, what a wonderful, happy, sweet bunch of pups, everyone of them is outgoing and affectionate.  Sunday we had many of the new owners visit for a couple of hours, I think everyone had a good time, I know the pups did ( click here to see photos and video ) and Cyrus had a blast, you can see a little of Cyrus trying to play with the pups in one of the videos on the Nursery blog.

In the garden some things are doing fantastic, some fizzled out with all the rain and we are starting to really reap in the harvest that should continue on into the fall.  Below are a series of photos taken this week.

Flowers in the Herb Garden

Our Corn

Gold Finches are enjoying the spent sunflowers

Squash plants are bursting out the garden fence

Cardoon Plants

Roses put on a stunning display, even beautiful as they wither

Sunflowers the bloom of Summer

Worlds best Auntie

Daisy was thrilled to take over for the pups mom Clover today.  Nothing makes Daisy happier then to spend time with pups.  Here is a little boy snuggling up to Auntie Daisy, look at that smile on her face.  Ahhhh Puppy Breath, it woos everyone.
More photos of Daisy and the pups on our Puppy blog here

Clover's litter on a rainy morning

I have more photos of the pups on the Nursery Blog

Growth acceleration

Broccoli Rapini flowering

 It is amazing to watch the garden explode with life, such an incredible time for nature. 

Our Schnauzers population has exploded this week, Clover gave birth Monday to thirteen pups!  Want to follow the pups journey from birth to when they leave for their new homes?  Visit our Nursery Blog

Strawberries forming

A couple of sunflowers blooming a little early

Our Sage overwintered and is flowering

Team Flute

American Grand Champion/Canadian Champion Dinsdale Champagne Flute

Flute had a great time at the Schnauzapalooza event May 11th 2013 held at Purina Farms in St.Louis Missouri. It was a wonderfully attended American National Specialty, you can see the days entry here
I am the proud breeder of Flute and I co-own her with Brooke Thomas.  Flute is a wonderful result of our Dinsdale breeding program which began almost 20 years ago.  You can view Flute's pedigree on line by clicking here 
Flute was awarded an Award of Merit, only 3 of the more then 40 Special females were given this honour.   Even sweeter is the fact that Flute was being handled to this wonderful win by her co-owner Brooke Thomas, this was Brooke's first time handling a Special at an American National Specialty!  Not bad you two :-)
Flute will be coming back to Dinsdale to be bred in just a couple of months.  I am excited to see what her kids will be like, another generation of Standard Schnauzers at Dinsdale.

Who's your daddy?

Beamish is all smiles, he is going to be a daddy in a couple of weeks.  Poor Clover has almost 3 weeks to go and the girl is HUGE!

Sleepy Boy

Toys are exhausting

Afternoons are good

When you can spend time playing with pups.  More photos of Hexe's pups on her Nursery Blog here 
Everyone suffering from the February Blues should be able to get on the floor with a bunch of pups, sure can lift a mood!

Nom, nom, nom.....yum!

Mother Hexe looking very maternal

And then....nom-nom-nom....eating puppy heads :-)

 OK not really, Hexe is teaching her pups not to nibble so hard when nursing, guess the puppy teeth are coming in now.

Posted video of Hexe and pups this weekend on her Nursery blog, check it out, super cute

two boys, two colours

Standard Schnauzers come in two colours, Pepper & Salt and Black.  We have a boy of each colour in Hexe's new litter.

Our New Year babies

Five beautiful pups born on Sunday.  There are more photos on our Nursery Blog here. 

He's a cool dude

Yep, that's our guy Cy, a casual sort of guy.  Of course as I type this he is doing major zoomies around the room. The boys got style.

The Looking Glass

Love catching moments of the dogs when they don't notice I am looking, like Cyrus on the porch step, he loves things that fly, birds, bugs, butterflies, anything will do.  Doesn't need to chase them, but loves to study them.

Eventually he always catches me looking

Thief captured

We have some old fashioned roses around the property that grow wild like weeds.  In the Fall they produce loads of rose hips which I was thinking I would collect to make a jelly with.  Times are busy and I keep forgetting to do this, I started to notice that that 'birds' were eating the rose hips as the numbers were dwindling.  Not birds after all, look who I spotted out the window this afternoon helping himself to some vitamin C. 

Scary

Ya just don't mess with this face, the schnauzers here all know that...Cyrus is learning, boys are a little slower on the uptake.  Fiddle, however, is a very consistent teacher :-)

Watching

I like the personality of Cyrus, he isn't overly clingy, he gives me space while keeping an eye on me, works for me.

One pup mornings

 When you raise a litter of pups mornings are kind of CRAZY nothing like being greeted by schnauzer pups all screaming with excitement to see you, then screaming with the excitement  of breakfast.  Hurry hurry, get them fed, outside, pen cleaned, it's all me-me-me from the young pups.
Contrast that to raising one pup, what a relief.  I know most new puppy owners wouldn't agree, they will just have to trust me when I say, this one puppy thing is a breeze!

Yeah it is more work then the adults, you have to constantly monitor, even when house-training is going well you want to keep one eye (and ear) on the pup.  You can't ignore unwanted behaviour, it must be addressed, this can be a pain when you have the rest of life to deal with, but, pay now or pay later and I choose now.
New boy Cyrus has this morning thing down pat, I am greeted every morning to the sound of that glorious tail thumping inside his crate, Cyrus always comes out at a leisurely pace, he gives me a wiggle, stretches, and saunters out the front door for a whiz.  Then it is all about the cuddle, he must get his 2 minutes of 'Cyrus' time, preferably in my lap.  Once that is done he shakes, gets a drink of water, picks up a favorite chew toy and settles on the dog bed while I see to the rest of my dogs.  I couldn't ask for a better morning pup.  Once I let some of the adult dogs outside it is time for his breakfast, Cyrus is very food motivated and this is a high light to his morning.  He rushes into his crate to wait for his dinner, he learned very quickly that meals happen in crates around here.  A big burp and I know he is finished and he is back outside to complete his bathroom duties.  He is VERY strict about his morning routine, it is ALWAYS the same (right down to the after dinner burp) every morning.
Raising a schnauzer pup is all about routine and consistency, guidance and rules, give them that and the rest is easy.