Apples litter

The dam of the Apples litter is Penny. She is my co-own girl from Abigail's second litter. This was her first breeding. She was placed with a dear friend of mine who gives her a great life but actively competing in sports just isn't in the cards for her at this point in her life (the human, that is) although Penny has been herding a handful of times and showed a lot of very nice instinct and she's attended several agility classes, which she shows a ton of promise for, but again her handler is not ready for any competitions. She's got her CGC and a couple trick titles. But what Penny has really been tried and tested in is being a very stable and sound dog, who has done a ton of traveling, lots of patio dining and coffee shops, attended countless parties and social gatherings, all of which she handles beautifully. She is very social, loves all people, is great with dogs, kids, and all of the hustle and bustle of city life. She doesn't show any environmental sensitivities and takes on new settings with grace. As she's continuing to mature, she has set some boundaries for unruly dogs and will appropriately warn and correct if necessary if a dog is getting out of hand - i.e. humping, playing super rough, being really disrespectful. All in all she is a phenomenal companion with a lot of potential for more. Penny has very high toy drive - for tugs, discs, balls, you name it. Her favorite is probably tug though and she has a very full and firm bite and loves a good "fight", where you push her around and make the game more challenging for her. For frisbees, she is a great catch and I would say she has moderate hops. She's been tested through Optimal Selection and came back as a carrier for EAOD and clear for all else. She has OFA Good hips and Normal elbows and shoulders.

And the sire of the litter is Nitro, owned (at the time) by Butterfield Farms. He has had one litter but they are still very young. He is the son of her dog Fable, who has produced many litters and generally passes on his friendly and good natured temperament.

Nitro came to me for the breeding which gave me the opportunity to really get to know him. When he first arrived, he walked right into our house which smells like a ton of different dogs (as we host board and trains at our place) after several days on the road to get here and only had a moment's hesitation before giving me a "hug" and checking the place out. He's been super social and friendly with all of the dogs and not pushy or over the top with the girls who aren't in season. He has basically no toy drive, which is a bit of a surprise but Penny has toy drive to spare, so I'll be interested to see how the pups respond to toys and where their drives will fall.

Now, one of the parts of Nitro that I was not aware of prior to breeding. While he would never dream of putting teeth on someone or being aggressive or reactive, he is really soft and sensitive and he never quite fully warmed up to being at our house, so I don't know that he ever really showed us his best side. We didn't make much progress training wise with him during his time with us because I will not train dogs outside a zone of comfort and he just isn't comfortable with the pressure of training, and I'm a very positive trainer so it's not like I was trying to give leash corrections or push him around whatsoever. He just gets into this mindset that he wants to be hugged and cuddled and doesn't want to play or try new things for me to have a chance to mark behaviors. The sensitivity and softness that Border Collies can sometimes possess is something I generally try to breed away from, but Penny is so confident and forward that I do think the puppies have a good chance of ending up balanced and nice. So far, they all seem to be taking after her temperament in the ways I had hoped to see! I don't think Nitro is a bad dog or anything like that but it's not the temperament I want to see in my program. Although I do think there's a chance it's just the way he was raised (he wasn't raised by Butterfield Farms, he was a stud fee puppy back) rather than being his genetic tendencies but there is no way to tell that for sure. Penny is very strong in the areas where he is weak so I have high hopes that the litter will take more after Penny in terms of biddability and adaptability! Nitro has gorgeous structure which I believe complements Penny's really well. He is clear through Optimal Selection and has OFA excellent hips and normal elbows, he was also tested through PennHip and scored 0.19 and 0.20. The degree of laxity (DI = 0.20) ranks the hip within the tightest 5% of DIs for the breed.

Something else that I just recently learned, right before the litter was born, and want to be very transparent about. 
When I chose to breed Nitro to Penny, a lot of the reasoning was because I trust his owner and we are pretty close. I considered her a friend at the time. I liked what she told me about him. So I went with him without doing as much research as I should have and there is no one to blame for that but me. But I was recently doing a pedigree deep dive, researching into his lines, and I found some concerning things. On his dam's side, there have been a few dogs with epilepsy. The closest to him being an offspring of his dam's sibling, so a cousin of Nitro's. And there are some other more distant relatives as well. Had I known this ahead of time, I would not have bred to him, but now the deed is done and while there is a good chance the puppies will not end up affected by epilepsy, I have to be honest and upfront about the risk. While this isn't a super high risk for the breed, it is a potentially higher than average risk. His sire's side is healthy, no neurological issues I could find, and Penny's pedigree is also clear of epilepsy as far as I can dig. But to make sure to hold myself accountable for these puppies and stand behind them to the best of my ability, I will be including a 4 year health guarantee which includes a guarantee against epilepsy. That means that if a puppy from the litter ends up with epilepsy, I will refund the puppy purchase price and the puppy buyer will have the choice to either keep their dog or they are welcome to send it back to me, but either way they will receive full reimbursement for the puppy purchase price. And I will also be lowering my usual purchase price for this litter. That still includes all of the extensive puppy raising that I do and everything else that I always include as well (puppy go home packs, digital training sessions, etc).

So, while this litter may not be the best high level sport competitors or breeding prospects, they will still make some excellent, very sweet pets.

11/29/21
Abigail's grandpuppies, the Apples are officially 2 weeks old as of yesterday. They are beginning to open their eyes, walk around, give kisses, & potty on their own. They're also learning to appreciate dog beds!

As we enter the transitional period, the pups are rapidly changing, developing motor skills, beginning to interact with one another & become aware of their surroundings. During this period, while they are becoming aware but still have no true fear responses, we introduce things like loud noises (think vacuums, power tools, slams, barking, desensitization playlists which include city noises, sirens, etc, as well as classical music) & we begin to really prioritize giving each puppy daily individual handling & attention, as their mother becomes less stressed about being apart from them. Penny has been a real helicopter parent & adores her puppies & she hasn't been super comfortable with us taking them out of the whelping box much, so I haven't been pushing it & only do it every few days & for short doses. Mother's stress levels are important to monitor to make sure she is feeling happy & comfortable! Penny went on a short walk yesterday for the first time since they've been born & she had a nice time but as soon as we arrived back to the house, she was ready to rush back to the pups! She's also beginning to be happy to relax on the patio & sunbathe for a few minutes each day, which has always been an activity she enjoys!

It's always a concern with first time mothers, not knowing how exactly they will handle everything, but Penny has really been an excellent mom. Even better than Abigail with her first litter! Abbie just wanted to ditch the pups & follow me around like usual for the first few days so we spent a lot of time together in the whelping box. She's improved greatly since the first litter though!

Good moms are something that I value highly. I want my girls to have healthy pregnancies, easy deliveries, good motherly instincts, healthy litter sizes, easy and fast recoveries after pups are weaned. So far, I've been really fortunate!

12/15/21
The Apples are 4 weeks old! 

The pups have been exposed to tons of different sounds and household norms and they're handling it all quite well. They took to litterbox training like pros! They've still been feeling really young to me and not quite developing as fast as the RPG pups did, so I haven't started Take-a-Treat just yet but intend to before the week is up. They're loving toys which I am super happy to report, given their sire has no toy drive. But Penny has it to spare so I'm happy she did appear to pass that on! They have a definite CER (conditioned emotional response) to the puppy call, which is our foundation for recall. They've been experiencing something new every day, be that a new space in the house, noise mat, empty boxes to climb around on, etc. I've tried to give them chews a few times but they haven't shown a ton of interest yet, but I know it will be happening any day now.

They are all very affectionate and love to give kisses and cuddle. Some are a little more socially driven than others and will stop whatever they're doing to run over to the side of the pen to try and solicit some attention. They have been having some fear responses and "weird" reactions to a few things, which are somewhat concerning to me, but I will continue to supervise them closely and gain more knowledge on them to make the best placements possible.

Penny continues to be an exceptional mother and handles each new phase of her puppies development with grace, as if she's done it many times before!

12/19/21
Penny's little Apple orchard turned 5 weeks old today. It's amazing how the time flies when you're raising puppies!

This week they're really starting to show us their personalities and I am really happy overall with how they're turning out. I haven't done any stacked photos of them yet but I will do the first within a couple days. Today, they had their first session of Take-a-Treat, which was a little later than I usually do it with my litters but I actually really liked the results of waiting. The pups were much more coordinated than they usually are for the first attempt at taking treats and it went so smoothly and well! I'll do another session or two of just taking treats then I'll begin introducing the clicker, which opens the doors for many more learning opportunities.

They have been in the kitchen full time for just over a week now, which is the busiest area of the house and they are handling all the noises and craziness of day to day life with ease. They get to hear a wide variety of dog noises, dogs running past on the wood floor, people stomping around, dishes clanking, cooking sounds, cabinets and doors opening and closing, blenders and power tools (we're always up to some craft or another), loud music - thanks to their "uncle," my brother Connor, and so on. And they just sleep or play through it all no problem! They've been spending more time with their lovely nannies Calypso and Subaru and less time with their mama throughout the day. She still loves and wants to play and cuddle with them but she's nursing them less so she can actually get some time to herself away from them more! The pups all have so much play and toy drive which I am thrilled about. I'll go into some more detail on each of their personalities when I make their next individual posts later on this week!

01/03/22
The Apples turned 7 weeks old yesterday, which means it's time for another photoshoot and for more stacking. It also means that today is their temperament test! So this week, we will be making final calls on placements.

It really feels like the time has flown by with these guys. I can't believe they'll be starting to go to their new homes in two weeks!

They've been having a great time meeting new people this week, meeting new dogs, advancing on their manding skills, trying out new food puzzles, exploring outside, meeting the cat, crate training, and of course playing their hearts out! They are a very playful, toy driven bunch and that includes the "toy" they think my pants legs are. 😅

This week, we will be focusing on adding more "formal" training sessions which we will continue until they leave me. Working on their introduction to having a leash and collar on and giving in to leash tension, the concept of stay, following lures, offering behaviors, "it's your choice", etc. and continuing to build positive CERs (Conditioned Emotional Responses) to novel things.

I've found myself struggling more this litter to document everything and record all of the moments but I'm trying not to beat myself up about that. What's important is that it gets done, not that it's all on tape! I still have footage from the Space and RPG litters I haven't shared yet, as well as this litter. The digital side of the job that I choose to add to my plate can be challenging to always maintain but I still think it's worth it to try and share as much as I can with you all!

11/14/22
​The Apples litter is 1 year old!

Happy birthday, lovely babies. Penny's first litter, my first litter via co-owned dog, my first Gen 2 litter, Abigail's first grand babies... this litter is a special bunch!

I've had such an amazing co-own experience with Penny and Madison. Getting to be a big part of Penny's life and know who she is inside and out, and having such a trusted friend to share her with has been lovely.

I have also had the pleasure of getting to train and work with several of the Apples since they've been with their new owners and I am so happy with how they are turning out! We've had 2 back for board and trains so far, have done virtual lessons with 3 more, and have worked in person with 2 others. That's a substantial sum of the litter who I know and understand very well and they are such stable and wonderful pups. I hope they continue growing into amazing dogs! All of their owners have been very communicative, especially in the litter group chat.

And boy did this litter go far and wide! Puppies from coast to coast and even in Canada! Super cool although it lessens the chance of a reunion one day. 😂

Even though I didn't keep any puppies from the Apples, they sure do make me proud and eager for more Penny babies and Abigail descendants one day!