Torch X Rowan - Puppies 6 Weeks Video

Puppies are doing GREAT!  Sleeping thru the night, eating 3 meals a day, playing outside as often as possible.  They are finding that pottying outside is good and fussing when they cannot get there to do so.

Here is the latest video!

Rowan X Torch Babies 2 Weeks Old VIDEO

Rowan and Torch's babies are now 2 weeks old.

Duncan X Rowan - 5 1/2 Weeks

The pups are 6 weeks tomorrow!

Everyone is doing great. They are really enjoying their outside time and coming along nicely with their baby housebreaking routine - they are already mostly pottying outside so long as I can get them out as soon as I hear them waking up from their many naps. Tonight they came in after their supper and were up again whining at 10PM - they wanted to go OUT!


We have also managed to get them to start following us indoors and outdoors, so less carrying than this past week! Much easier on my back and quicker, too!


Puppies will get their first shots soon and will be wormed one more time. They are eating regular food three times a day and now nursing only once or twice a day, when Rowan is feeling uncomfortable. I suspect puppies having teeth is a major contributing factor to Rowan wanting to wean them!


We are trying to expose the pups to as many new things as we can. This week I took a bucket into the puppy yard to water some flowers and they all were fairly sure the bucket was WAY TOO SCARY. Once it was empty I tossed it into their yard and left it for them to investigate. You can see how they did with it in this photo of Banks and in their latest video:

Duncan X Rowan - 4 1/2 Week Video

New Video!

Four Weeks - Rainy Day Update

Puppies have been doing very well outdoors. Now that they are getting around better, they are beginnning to enjoy the grass and learning about toys and new smells and how to play together.

They have also started on regular food which we try to feed outdoors so they can potty afterwards OUTDOORS! Yesterday was so nice they spent most of the day outside and there was no pooping indoors at all!

However, this morning was drizzly but still fairly warm. I put the pups outdoors under the eaves of the porch so they could attempt to potty outside before their breakfast. A few brave souls ventured out into the wet grass and drizzle to potty. Soon, of course, they were all huddled under the protective eave and I opened their gate to let them onto the covered porch to eat. One by one they followed me onto the porch and discovered their meal. Soon the bowl was empty and the pups were exploring the porch.

There were many new things to see: a few toys, furniture (ooh! wicker!), a broom, rugs of different textures, a bucket full of scrub brushes and garden tools, the grill... One puppy managed to knock over the broom but nobody seemed to mind. Soon they were all examining the handle and attacking the bristles... Someone found a plastic piece of who-knows-what and proudly carried it off to show the others.

The pups are very curious and every day is a new adventure. However, at this age their stamina is limited and after about 15 minutes they were all huddled under a table, looking cold and sleepy.

One by one, I called them into the laundry room. Each puppy managed to brave the BIG 5" doorjamb into the house. Keeping in mind the pups are only about 6" at the shoulder right now, it was quite the climb! The pups each are learning to respond to my voice and follow my fingers. As each pup made the big climb he or she was scooped up, given a smoosh and put into the box. This apparently was NOT part of their plan! Soon they were all at the front of the box, yelling for their lawyers and wanting BACK OUT!

All is peaceful now. They are piled up under their heat lamp, sleeping off their breakfast and getting warm and dry again.

Pointer Puppy Video - 4 Weeks

They are now 4 weeks old and really beginning to enjoy being outdoors. They are all doing great. They have learned to use the newspapers and keep their blanket clean. They will be starting on soaked kibble and goat's milk this weekend as they are getting so big! Their teeth have come in and Rowan is being very tolerant about it, but it is now time to begin learning to chew kibble and eat without mom. They were wormed again this week - more gagging and smacking of lips over the strange taste! PUps all weigh about 5 lbs now, except the little girl, who is catching up. She now weighs 4 lbs, which is pretty good since for quite some time they were all TWICE her size!

This next video is a bit long - sorry for those folks whose computers are choking on the file, but I wanted to get a little bit of every puppy in this! Hope you enjoy it!

PUppy Video #3

I cannot promise a video every few days, but I have another for your enjoyment.

First an update. Pups are all doing well, continuing to grow and learning new things every day. They have been outdoors twice now and were somewhat braver on the second trip out. As they are still only awake for 10-15 minutes at a stretch, all adventures dissolve into naptime...

Pups have been wormed once so far, due again next week. It is pretty funny to see them standing and sitting about the box, all coughing and gagging on this new taste. Even the adults seem to gag on the wormer (which apparently tastes like butterscotch). It must be the slightly sticky texture.

As a treat, in preparation for their introduction to real food, I placed a plate in the box today which was smeared with yogurt (just vanilla). I dipped each little nose into the plate, and soon they were all sitting around, licking their lips humming with pleasure. I went to answer the phone, and when I came back 5 minutes later, the plate was licked clean and the pups were working on each other. I let Rowan back in and she finished up the cleaning.

Since I caught several of them standing elbow deep in Rowan's food bowl the yesterday, I think they will be quite pleased when it's time for food. Rowan was a bit annoyed that three little heads and six little feet were taking up most of her bowl, (altho she just growled and pushed in between them to eat) so I've gone back to feeding her OUTSIDE the box. They have also had a few sips from the water bucket clipped inside teh box - so they are learning that not all good things come from Mom. I'm not, however, in a hurry to start them on food so long as they are still gaining steadily and Rowan is maintaining her weight (albeit with about 12+ cups of food per day plus goat's milk and eggs). Once they begin on real food, often the dam is less willing to help keep the box clean and my job gets quite a bit more arduous.

Here they are, after their nap, wide awake and full of vinegar:

Puppies First Outside Adventure...

This is a video of the pups' first time outside. They are 2 1/2 weeks old. They were a bit sleepy as they had just eaten. Keep watch for Grammy Scarlett, who pretty much hogged the limelight...

Rowan's Puppies - 2 weeks Video

This is my VERY first video ever.... :-)

Introducing Puppies to the Gun

It's important that your puppy learn about the sound of the gun in the most positive way possible. Many a good birddog has been ruined by improper gun training.

There are many dogs who will simply ignore the loud noise without much fuss and require very little in the way of introduction to the gun. Others need to have this introduced slowly and carefully so as not to spook them and put them off their birds. Remember you are working with a puppy, not an adult dog, so no matter how outstanding their temperament is, you don't want to give the puppy a poor first experience.

You will want your puppy to have seen birds a few times, and be very interested in the birds and eager to hunt and find them. If your puppy has not reached this point, it is not yet time for gun training.

Some important DON'Ts:

1) Do NOT fire the gun while the puppy is eating

2) Do NOT fire the gun directly over the puppy for the first time

3) Do NOT take your puppy to a firing range (unless you can have playtime at a sufficient distance that he can be hearing the noise without it frightening him.)

If possible, it can be helpful to have a trained adult dog with your puppy the first time the gun is fired around him. Puppies learn a lot by example, and seeing the adult react in a postive way or not at all to the gunfire can help prevent him from becoming concerned about it.

It's useful to have a low-calibur blank pistol to begin with. A .22 is perfect. We have also used a .32 blank pistol. Both are available from dog supply catalogs and online.

You will also need some birds - the more the better. It's also useful to have a second person to fire the gun so you can work near the puppy and the other person can fire the gun on your signal (a raised arm usually works).

What you want to do is plant a few birds for your puppy. Allow him to hunt and find them (you might want a checkcord on your puppy so you can control him). Have your gunner ready at a good distance away (20 yards is not a bad distance, further if you will be using a shotgun or larger calibur gun) and make sure that person knows when to fire.

Once the puppy is pointing, you may go in and flush the bird (make it fly). Or, if the puppy has jumped the gun and flushed his own bird, this is the time to fire. The gun should be fired shortly after the bird has taken off. Have the gunner point the gun away from you and the puppy, and fire once. Hopefully, the puppy will have no reaction, or simply look around in surprise. Whatever his reaction, DO NOT SAY ANYTHING and DO NOT become concerned if the puppy spooks. Just pick up the checkcord and move on to the next bird. If the puppy has had little or no reaction, it's fine to fire again on the next bird, as it is flying. If the puppy has had an extreme reaction such as bolting or cringing, do not fire the gun this time. SImply allow the puppy to find his next bird and watch it fly away. You might do this a few more times until you are sure the puppy is again enjoying his birds. IF he is not up and going quickly, tail up, ready to hunt, leave off the gunfire for this day. Let him have the positive experience of the birds in his mind when you quit for the day.

If his reaction has been mostly positive and unconcerned, you can continue firing the gun as each bird flushes while the puppy continues to hunt. Let the puppy begin to connect the birds with the gunfire without becoming worried about the noise. There is NO RUSH to work your way right up to the puppy on this first introduction to the gun. Plan on 3-4 experiences combining the gun and the birds before reaching a point where the gunner is close enough to have actually shot down the flushed bird. It's useful to work your way up to the puppy with the blank pistol before moving on to the shotgun. We normally progress to using a .410 before going on to a larger calibur shotgun. It's important when moving "up" in calibur (and therefore noise level) to have your gunner begin again at a distance to the puppy with the louder gun, working his way closer so long as the puppy continues to work without concern. Don't be afraid to stop firing and allow the puppy some birds without the noise if he begins to worry even after some progress has been made. Make sure always to put the puppy away after a positive experience.

Sometimes you might have a reaction you were not expecting and have to dispense with the gunfire for the day after several positive sessions without incident. Don't react - just use your head and make sure that day ends on a good note. Usually on the next session, working at a greater distance will bring the puppy back around. Often a few days to reflect on a training session will lessen a negative experience and you can move forward.

One of our early dogs was gunshy. She spooked and cowered at the sound of the gun and we had to work very hard to repair the damage we had done by rushing her gun training. It took about 2 months of weekly sessions, birds and blank pistol at a distance, to bring her around. A good deal of patience and time were required but she finally understood that the noise was not going to hurt her. Gunshyness can be fixed with many dogs, but it is time consuming and doesn't always succeed. It is best to avoid having to correct a problem. Do not be in a rush due to upcoming hunting season or upcoming field trials or hunt tests. The time you spend in the beginning will be far less than you might have to spend if you rush too fast for your puppy and ruin his desire to work.

Ideally no pointer should be gunshy, but the reality is that individuals vary and puppies can go through periods of less confidence as they are learning. You want to take your time and be sure your dog progresses with confidence and always enjoys his work. Remember never to react to your puppies fears by coddling or being upset. Ignore his worries and think carefully about each next move so as to build his confidence, not burden him with your concerns.

Happy hunting!