J-C Pups: 8 week and final stacks!

With the conformation evaluation and temperament testing completed, we have matched all these lovely pups to their new homes.  We could not have been happier with this litter, one of the most consistent and typey litters we have produced.  

Miss Purple will be our keeper and she not only a beautiful package but full of sass.  

J-C Pups: 7 week stacks

Our Holiday litter out of Chaz and Jam are maturing beautifully.  At 8 weeks, we will do the final conformation evaluations by respected Weimaraner breeders along with the Avidog Puppy Evaluation Test (temperament test) and use this information to decide which home each puppy will go to.

Show day not a snow day!

 Hard to believe that Jam had puppies 11 weeks ago as she re-entered the world of dog shows last Saturday at the Rockland Kennel Club show in Suffern, NY.  She has not been in a dog show since last summer but showed like the rock star she is.  She is in super physical shape and was happy to be at the show around all our friends.  We also showed some of our Grayhart pups, Reagan (Parker x Savi), who made her show debut, and Ember (Summit x Jam) only her second show.  Once we receive photos of them we will share.  I could not have been prouder of how well the pups did - solid in their stacks and moved beautifully and tails wagging!  The best part was spending time with the owners and friends!

The Best of Breed class lineup

J-F Pups Day 42: The Wonder Litter 6 week stacks

 We continue to take our weekly stack shots of the Wonder litter to see how they are developing.  It is hard to believe that they will be going to their new homes in two weeks, although our puppy families will not find out who their special pups will be until right before the puppy party.  We are very happy with how promising this litter looks.  The pups have lovely breed type, nice bone, angles and balance.  

 Cream cheese is the best!

J-F pups Day 35: Wonder litter 5 week stacks!

We began stacking the Wonder pups on Friday when they turned five weeks old. The purpose of stacking or making the dog stand in a specific stance, it to to see all parts of the dog's structure to determine if he follows the standard of his breed. When a dog is shown in conformation shows, the dog is stacked so that the judge can lay "hands on" the dog and examine him to feel his bone structure and muscular condition. We stack the dogs to get an idea of their conformation each week with the final evaluation at eight weeks. 

Conformation also impacts how the dog functions in any performance sports they may do and as we say, form equals function. A dog that may not be build correctly, could be prone to injury.  

We are very excited at how great these pups look at only 5 weeks and look forward to seeing how they develop.

CeCe 14 weeks old

I love when the puppies come to visit and go through withdrawal when I don't see them for awhile.  Thanks to KellyAnn for bringing CeCe, Grayhart's Almost Famous, (Parker x Savi) up for a night time visit so we could play, cuddle and stack her.  She has grown so much since our last stack shot and we are please with how pretty she looks.  Plus, she is such a sweetie and very biddable, stacking like a pro.

Mica at 13 weeks of age

Mica, Grayhart Lightfoot River of Light, (Parker x Savi) from our Fast Times litter at 13 weeks of age, stacking like a pro with owner Debbie Moody.  Debbie is holding a lid with cream cheese on it to help Mica stand still and enjoy the training.  Who doesn't love cream cheese?  I call it puppy crack!

Debbie has also started Mica tracking, something which Weims excel at and Mica made it look easy.  The beginner puppy tracks were 25-30 yards and Mica love finding the glove at the end.  Debbie reports that Mica is also a little retrieving machine just like her Momma Savi.

S-P Pups Day 56: 8 week stacks

The final stacks of the Fast Times litter (Parker x Savi), done at 8 weeks of age, the day before we are to evaluate the pups on their conformation and movement.  A very consistent litter with good breed type...we are extremely happy with how our pups are developing.  A big weekend of parties to post about!

S-P Pups Day 49: 7 week stacks

The Fast Times litter

Hard to believe the pups are seven weeks old and will be going to their forever homes in a little over a week.  We continue to evaluate the puppies' conformation as well as observe how they play and react to new experiences.  We took the 7 week stack shots today and we pleased not only with how the pups look, very consistent and promising for show pups, but they have been the easiest litter to stack as they all have such easygoing and biddable temperaments. 

The final conformation evaluation, done by a group of experience breeders, will include hands on grading and watching puppy movement, will be when the pups are 8 weeks old. Then, along with the results of the temperament testing, we will make the final and extremely important decisions of which pup is the best match for each family.

S-P Pups Day 38: Stacking Practice & Sweet 16!

We began stacking the pups last week to get them used to being on the grooming table and can start taking a critical eye to their conformation.  At 5 weeks, the pups have much maturing to do and we do not make any decisions on whether the pups are show prospects until they are 8 weeks old.  We were happy with how the pups look at this age, the consistency of the litter and they all had solid toplines, good tailsets and beautiful heads.  Cream cheese is what we use to bait the pups and they love it!

 The pups have also an enormous amount of socialization from people of all ages and last weekend was   no different.  Friends came with their young children and then it was a Sweet 16 party for my daughter and the girls couldn't get enough of the little gray pups.

 Sorry girls, the puppies are not your party favors!

J-S Pups Day 49: 7 Weeks Already!

Miss Stripe

 The countdown until the 8 week puppy party is on and as we do each week now, we took stack photos of the pups along with some fun shots.  Not only are these pups very sweet and confident, but multi-talented and awesome little retrievers.  They take turns retrieving and playing with the metal utility article which is like a dumbbell.

The stack shots aren't always easy to get and this week, we did not have a lot of time so the handler (me) did the best I could.  The final conformation evaluation, which will include hands on grading and watching puppy movement, will be when the pups are 8 weeks old.  Then, along with the results of the temperament testing, we will make the final and extremely important decisons of which pup is the best match for each family.

J-S Pups Day 43: Six Week Stacks

 We began stacking our Rockstars when they were five weeks old and here are the six week stacks.  The purpose of stacking or making the dog stand in a specific stance, it to to see all parts of the dog's structure to determine if he follows the standard of his breed.  When a dog is shown in conformation shows,  the dog is stacked so that the judge can lay "hands on" the dog and examine him to feel his bone structure and muscular condition.  We stack the dogs to get an idea of their conformation each week with the final evaluation at eight weeks.  

Miss Purple

Miss Green

Miss Stripe

 Miss Yellow

Miss Leopard

Miss Raspberry

 The pups love the cream cheese we use to help them focus and stand in place.  The stacking blocks are another tool we use to teach the pups to stay where we place their fee.

Savi at two: the official stacks & more!

 Kellyann was kind enough to spend the morning with us and photograph Savi, Grayhart's Shear Genius,JH,NSD,NRD,CGC, (Clay x Trixie), who she affectionately calls her PBP (Puppy by Proxy). Kel has watched Savi grow up from the puppy pen to the sweet girl she is now. She's also been with us to photograph and celebrate many of Savi's wins (she only needs one point to finish) and titles earned including her Novice Shooting Dog (NSD), and Novice Retrieving Dog (NRD).

What a face!

It was a very cold and blustery day so difficult to get her tail up. Otherwise, we think she's looking good.

I thought it would be fun to look back and show how Savi looked at 8 weeks, shown below, taken by Sara Renee, when she visited us and took all those fabulous shots of the Bravo litter.

And at our official puppy evaluation party, with friend/mentor, Bonnie Lane.

and at only four months old, Savi had her first major modeling assignment for Swiffer!

Who knew what fun and friends this little keeper pup from our Bravo litter would bring?  We have big plans for Savi, as we know that she has great potential in many venues. Our goals for 2012 include finishing her AKC championship, training for her Companion Dog (CD) and Novice Agility titles as well as Senior Hunter title. 

Most importantly, Savi, is one of the sweetest dogs we've ever owned and has a wonderful, stable temperament.  We will be getting her certified to be our next Delta Therapy Dog.

Beach stacks of Bravo

Time to pose for Linda

Of course, we had to get some stacked shots of Bravo and see for ourselves what a handsome boy he is!  The last time I stacked him, he was 8 weeks old!


What a good man and the fabulous beach was the perfect background for our photoshoot.