October 2011

Well, where to start? It has been an eventful month to say the least:

I'll start at the beginning; at the time of writing my last blog it was a few days before our little Jazz was due to give birth. She went into labour on Sunday the 25th of September at sixty-four days. She started a couple of contractions in the early hours of Sunday and then stopped, so we took her to the vets at 10am just to get her checked over. After a shot of calcium we were sent home and to wait. In the afternoon she started contractions again, but with no results so off to the vets again and it was decided a c–section was needed. We were sent away and told to return in an hour. When we left jazz she was happy and healthy - wet nose and wagging tail despite her contractions - and because of this I tried not to worry too much. Upon returning to the vets, about 20 minutes early, we could see through the window from the car park, into the surgery room and witnessed a 2nd vet shouting at our vet and a lot of commotion with people running around etc. At this point I was very worried as I knew that they wouldn’t panic like this over a fading puppy. Shortly after our vet called us into the waiting room and confirmed that Jazz hadn’t made it. Words cannot describe the loss I felt and still feel now. The vet then went on to say we had five healthy puppies….

I shall not go into details but it was, and still is apparent due to many factors that jazz was not monitored as she should have been and we have since been lied to by the vets on many occasions, so are pursuing this matter further. I accept that we are all human - even vets - and it is in our nature to make mistakes. If they had said "we're sorry, we have made a mistake and we are prepared to help in any way," it would have been easier to swallow and I could have at least tried to move on. The fact that they took both my partner and me for mugs has not helped in anyway. I will keep you all updated on developments in future blogs.

I have been hand rearing the puppies - all boys - and they are now 5weeks old and going strong. It has been very hard work and I have had to cut down on a lot of my working hours. Weeks one and two I was doing feeds every other hour and stimulating them to make them go to the toilet as their mother would have. By week three feeds were every 2 and a half hours and by the end of that week they started to to go to the toilet by themselves. Now the pups are being weaned onto solids it is getting a lot easier. They are playing with each other and toys, wagging their tails and enjoying cuddles. Our other dogs are teaching them about dog language and manners, as am I teaching them how to cope with frustration.

We will be keeping one so as we can hold on to at least part of Jazz’s wonderful spirit, though we dont know which yet as their personalities are still developing. Because all the pups are boys and I had homes for girls - we do have two available to go to extra special homes; please contact me if you are interested.

In conclusion I would like to put forward a few points for you all to consider: When people ask me for advice on breeding their own bitch I have always been very straight with them, saying things like "do you have the money and time to raise a litter of pups?" They are a lot of hard work and ‘real breeders’ do not make money out of a litter as they cost a lot to raise, especially if you have to pay for a caesarean. Jazz’s previous litter were born naturally with no problems, but she needed a c-section this time so there are no guarantees. The only reason we mated her again was in the hopes of getting a bitch to try and get better temperaments within the breed. Every litter carries the risk of losing their mother; are you prepared for that? Now hindsight is a wonderful thing, and if I had the choice again: pups or Jazz? Well I would choose Jazz hands down. But we live and learn.

In saying that, having the pups after losing Jazz has given me the strength to carry on, I have had to for their sake, but it does not stop me missing her.

The loss of Jazz has hit the whole family hard, including the other dogs and even one of our cats and this has to be taken into consideration when choosing the new pup. Jazz was our pack leader (within the dogs), kept everyone in check and gave our dogs the stability they needed so it is crucial we consider which puppy will fit in the most with our pack.

Ziggy, our Dachshund boy, is very obviously grieving for his best friend and although he is lapping up the extra attention I fear he will never fully recover from losing Jazz as they were so so close.

Another point to make is because the pups did not receive the first milk from their mother (colostrum - which provides them with their mother's immunities) we have had to be very carefull with risks of infection etc, and as such our dogs have not been able to go out for walks which affects them greatly. They have not been bouncy but the opposite and quite depressed. I feel that walks would help them out of this slump, but unfortunately they will have to wait another couple of weeks.

Jazz was just four years old and words cannot describe just how wonderful she was; she touched so many lives and had a long list of people who swore they would have her if ever I couldn’t. I keep telling myself "only the good die young" but it all feels so wrong not having her here. I am very angry with the vets to say the least, but nothing they do now will bring her back. All I can do is concentrate on what I call her "gifts" (the puppies), and find the best possible homes for them.

Until next time, Sarah

September 2011

What a busy month!

We Started Our Training Classes and at time of typing we are fast approaching the fourth week of eight and all dogs at both puppy and level one are doing brilliantly.

Also at time of typing Jazz our own Miniature Dachshund Bitch (pictured above) is heavily pregnant, she is on day 56, so only a few more days to go before she is due to start whelping,

I have been very lucky to have had the opportunity to mate her to the wonderful 'Slug' UK Ch. Zarcrest Ice Conqueror (www.zarcrest.co.uk) who has the most wonderful temperament, just like Jazz.. Unfortunately we will not be keeping any of her puppies, but provided she has a bitch she will be homed with my good friend and dog trainer Wendy Schilling, where she will be of course spoilt rotten but trained and socialised to a high level, then provided all tests etc are clear we will be keeping a bitch from her in when the time comes.

Jazz and Slug are very friendly and outgoing which is my primary reason for breeding so as to get better temperaments into the breed – though this isn't just due to genetics, it mainly comes from the breeder and the dam (mother of the pups).

Below is an article I wrote earlier this year for a Dachshund Club Newsletter explaining the importance of this – please note this is relevant for all breeds, mainly ones who are known for being reserved.

Have you noticed how so many Dachshunds or Daxies are wary with strangers?

Some bark, others hide behind their owners' legs and some do a mixture of both, but at home and with people they know they are the most loving things ever. 'It's part of the breed," you may say, but I beg to differ; although a small percentage of the wariness to strangers is an inherent genetic predisposition, whether this affects the dog in everyday life is entirely up to the breeder and dam of the pups to put a good foundation in the puppies learning development and then for the new owners to carry this on, but as I said that foundation of learning is the key.

Let me explain:

It's all down to something called imprinting. Imprinting is what the puppy learns within the first weeks of its life and what is learnt at this point will stay with them for life.

The behaviours/boundaries that are learnt through imprinting are so strong it's the next strongest thing to instinct in a dog (remembering that instinct cannot in anyway be 'untrained' or trained out of a dog, only managed.)

Taking this into consideration this can either work greatly in the dog/owner's favour or severely against."How does this relate to wariness? Surely it's just down to socialisation on the owner's part?"

You may be asking.

Well yes, socialisation a key factor for any puppy and puppy owner, but the most important window of socialisation and imprinting is between 3 and 8 weeks of age - before the puppy goes to its new owner.

For example;

Mrs Jones from down the road has a black Labrador, Rex and lovely Dachshund bitch, Daisy, and wants to breed from her.

She can be a tad wary with strangers, but she's lovely when she gets to know people.

Having done all the relevant tests and having a waiting list for puppies and a vet check, she mates Daisy to a stud dog and eventually three little bundles of joy are born.

At about four weeks old a stranger visits to view the puppies, Daisy barks at the stranger, this then imprints on the puppies to trust the person(s) you live with but be wary of strangers.

Mrs Smith, Mrs. Jones's friend, pops round the next day with her dog Bess for a cup of tea and a catch up.

Daisy has never met Mrs. Smith's dog and barks and or hides from Bess.

This then imprints on the puppies to be wary of strange dogs but trust dogs that you live with e.g. rex. It is almost a certainty that Daisy was taught the same thing by her mother with her litter at a young age.

Careful socialisation on the new owners' part will help Daisy's puppies but they will never eradicate that initial wariness that was imprinted upon them.

So if you are looking to adopt a new daxy pup keep this article in mind and try to initially meet the dam before she whelps to see if she is wary of you and also so you won't have those cute little daxy pups staring at you in the face tempting you to take them home no matter what the temperament of the dam.

If you are looking to breed from your Dachshund bitch question yourself objectively about her level of 'wariness' to new things.

My Dachshunds are so well balanced we regularly get asked to help with the rehabilitation of retired greyhounds for socialisation with small dogs, puppy socialisation sessions ( not puppy parties) and I use them regularly to help teach dogs that are fear aggressive with other dogs that they are no threat to them.

We have done numerous children's talks on responsible pet ownership in schools where Ziggy and Jazz lap up the attention from the children.

Having 'non wary' daxies has made such a difference to everyone involved – including countless children who had previously never even touched a dog who after meeting Zig and Jazz not only stroked them they became more confident and no longer lived in fear of people with dogs on the street etc.

On a totally different subject, I attended yet another seminar, this time in Edinburgh. Patricia McConnell Phd (pictured above) was the speaker – all the way from America!

This was her last international 2day seminar, and boy was it worth the long drive!

The first day she covered aggression toward people and dogs, with many videos and demonstration dogs – dog with real issues that she addressed in front of all 175 attendees, the second day covered the dogs' brain, its capabilities and emotions, all subjects were very insightful and practical.

Patricia is such a wonderful person too, very approachable, friendly and so generous with her time, and of course knowledge.

A very entertaining and humorous speaker, she is a dog trainer/behaviourist of over 20 years experience and has written many books, which I consider invaluable….some that are of note are 'the other end of the leash' , 'for the love of a dog' and for those of you with rescue dogs, a new book 'love has no age limit' .

Patricia is returning to the UK in her words 'next fall' and has agreed to come and do an evening seminar for Wholly Dog Events ( our Sister Company), which of course I am very excited about.

I think I shall leave you here for this month……. I have to go and check Jazz's temperature and will no doubt be up for the next few nights with her to check all is well……Puppy Pictures Galore next month, you have my word…..

TTFN