Today, they are two! Phew! We made it to a really big milestone. Once the dogs turn two, we can do health testing. We’ve asked our homes to certify the puppies for hips, which is the minimum requirement for the VCA to use for breeding. So that is the next big thing on all of our agendas.
As part of our annual tradition, we did a photoshoot with Maggie, Louie, Cheeky, and Halo with Allison Mae Photography. As always, Allison captured some absolute magical photos of the puppies, but MAN. What a crazy night we had!!
The shooting location ended up being PACKED. Not our usual, calm, pristine mountainy vibe. With CoViD, people are flocking to Colorado to camp and enjoy outdoor activities. So, we had people racing around on razors, four wheeling in Jeeps, and just basically living the hippie life in the camp ground. After shooting in a couple different locations, we were headed back to the car and saw a BEAR. YEAH! Crazy. He was a big guy just sauntering down the road. Then headed down towards the lake to get around all of us. Like, “Don’t mind me, I’m just going to scoot out of your way and take a little detour.” Lauren (Louie’s Mom, had literally mentioned earlier that she has never seen a bear, and has always wanted to. It was like her wish was granted!
But on to what our amazing babies have accomplished in the last year:
Maggie has debuted in agility, and what a star! At a young 2 years old, she is already ready for competition AND succeeding. She also managed to win a major in her 2nd year — handled by Catherine — and did it by going Best of Opposite over specials too. She lives this amazing life with Byron and Catherine where she gets to be the center of their universe with her canine sister, Cotton. We feel so blessed to have placed Maggie in their home!
Cheeky is still so much a puppy, and she loves SO hard. She is demanding of time and affection — either by pawing at you or scooting her head under your palm. Right after her birthday last year, Cheeky and Jenny tried out NAVHDA Natural Ability and walked away with a Prize 1 PERFECT SCORE!! It was an amazing feeling. Then, in September, she finished her Championship including taking a Best of Breed win! A few weeks after that, she finished her Junior hunter title too, proving she has the looks and the brains! She really enjoyed quarantine 2020 and we don’t think she missed a single conference call; she loved being a star! We spent breaks in conference calls doing tricks, and Cheeky earned her Trick Dog Advanced title this year by virtual submission. During quarantine, we also gave Barn Hunt a try since it was one of the few activities happening, and she earned her RATN title in short order. In agility, Cheeky earned her ACT 1 title and enjoyed going to class every week. Sadly, those stopped with CoViD, but hopefully, we can get back on track soon. Finally, she picked up 2 Grand Champion Majors both with Champions defeated. She’s up for anything, still tries to jump into every shower we take, loves to play and hike, and has discovered the Scent Work game this year that she really loves and she is well on her way to her first SW titles. We SO love our Cheeky Baby!
Louie. Our sweet, sweet boy! Louie followed in his Mother’s footsteps last fall going 4 for 4 to his Junior Hunter title! He also managed to pick up a major from the Bred By class with Jenny at the helm. But more importantly, he lives this fabulous life in Boulder with Bo and his canine sister, Jade — and now, his mom, Lauren is finally home with the pack after finishing grad school. They spend their weekends adventuring, and Louie is an expert mountain bike, snowshoe, and hiking buddy.