The darker faced dog is Thunder and the
Lighter faced dog is Lightning.
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“Hi Karen, just thought
I'd drop you a short note and a picture of Thunder & Lightning.
Thunder (Ultimate Ukiahya
& I Look Just Like My Daddy's pup) is the dark faced guy on the left
& he is already 17 pounds. Lightning (Berachah & Saranac Sam's
pup) is on the right & he tips the scale at 25 pounds. They had
their vet check on Tuesday & are doing very well. House training is
progressing nicely too, even if there is still some cleanup. They both
will sit, lay down and stand on command. For 9 & 11 weeks old I am
very pleased. I sometimes put a leash on them in the house just so they
can start getting used to it, but Lightning has a tendency to pull
Thunder around like a kids pull toy.
They spend much of the time
wrestling, playing and sometimes fighting, but nobody seems to get hurt.
I'm so pleased that I got 2 at the same time. It is a lot of work having
2 puppies, but they are the best of buddies and are inseparable. We have
plenty of good chew toys and they are not chewing anything they
shouldn't - with the exception of my hands and feet, but we're working
on that too.
I broke my toe a week ago
walking down the hall with them to let them out first thing in the
morning. One of them got under foot as puppies will do as they scamper
along excitedly. I sidestepped so as not to step on him &
slammed my toe into the wall. I let out a holler & they both went
scrambling for cover. I guess I scared them. I'm not hobbling around as
much now, but I do look down more when I walk, even first thing in the
morning when I'm not quite awake.
Everybody loves them &
think they are so cute. I have a friend who would take Thunder home in a
heartbeat, so I have to watch her when she visits. LOL
Well, gotta go now. Just
wanted to say thanks. I'll send more picture as they grow and keep
you up to date.
Ed Farwell”
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I guess it's time I sent
you an update on Thunder (born Nov 23/2004) & Lightning (born
Nov 11/2004) for you web site.
The boys are growing like
little weeds. At 5 months old Thunder is now 58 pounds and Lightning,
only 2 weeks older, is a whopping 80 pounds now. They are ploughing
through a 40 pound bag of puppy food every 2 weeks. I swear they will
put me in the poor house. LOL. But what the heck, I am enjoying them so
much & I just can't get over the comments we get. Everyone loves
them. They have the softest fir I have ever seen and I am pleased that
it is indeed true that they don't shed. Thunder's fur feels
like the finest silk, when he is clean that is. They are
constantly wrestling, rolling around on the ground and getting dirty.
They get a bath every 2 or 3 weeks just to keep them presentable &
to give me at least a shot at keeping the house clean.
All winter I kept them out
of the back yard because of the Koi pond. I didn't want them going
through the ice. Once the ice melted and they had access to the yard
they seemed to think of the pond as a big water dish, but now that
it is warmer and the fish are active they will sit and watch the fish
swim around. So far they have not gone on a fishing expedition &
that's good.
A couple of weeks ago we had
a thunder storm with lots of lightning. They played in the rain without
the slightest fear of the noise and flashing lightning. Good thing too.
It would have been a bit embarrassing, considering their names.
I am taking them to
obedience school and Thunder is in week 4 doing very well. He
is a very smart puppy. Lightning started school a week earlier and is
doing fairly well. Each week his agility improves, but at his size he is
a bit of a putts and either gets tired or bored and tends to
sit down. When an 80 pound puppy decides he has had enough training
for one day there isn't a lot you can do about it. It's kind of comical.
Well time for me to go, but
before I do I just want to say thanks again for my beautiful boys. Keep
up the good work.
Ed
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“Just a quick update on
Lightning. He gets lots of healthy treats like carrots and turnips,
all the love and affection he can handle and the occasional
walk to the park where he plays with the children. Even
the teenagers stop and play with him. He is a real attention getter and
is so big, about 120 pounds now, but so gentle. He could easily knock a
child down (or an adult for that matter), but he just sits there letting
them pet and hug him and of course he loves all the
attention. Last time I took Thunder & Lightning to the
park there was a woman there with a child who was obviously handicapped.
I was absolutely amazed by how extra gently they were with this little
girl. They sought her out amongst the other kids almost like they could
sense she was special. At first she was afraid of them and the mother
seemed nervous but they laid down on their backs so she could touch
their bellies. Her face lit up and she squealed with delight when
she finally got the nerve to gingerly touch them. I think her
mother was close to tears. What a wonderful breed you have created.
I look forward to seeing you
and all of your dogs again very soon. Until then - have a great
Thanksgiving.
Ed”
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“PS: I gotta tell you about Thunder. He is so smart. I stuff treats
(carrots, celery, that sort of thing) into Kong's for the boys to occupy
them. Thunder has learned that if he throws the Kong into the air the
treats fall out a lot faster, so he runs around the house repeatedly
throwing his Kong into the air until he has everything out of it.
Lightning figured this out today too, but he's a bit more sedate. He
sits on the sofa, tosses the Kong to the floor then chases whatever
falls out. Thunder has also figured out how to open the sliding patio
door. I don't normally lock this door, but after finding a cold breeze
wiping through my living room a couple of times I started to lock it
with the cheep little lock on the handle. He can even unlock it. Now
that surprised me. He has also mastered the gate between their run and
the back yard. It has a sturdy latch and a string, about 5 feet above
the ground, that comes through the fence to undo the latch. I can't
shake the gate enough to open the latch without pulling the string, so I
figure he has it figured out to pull the string. I just can't
believe how smart he is. What great dogs.”
