armahani

I sure will! Not sure what it is, but these babies have just been extra fun for some reason. Perhaps because they are mostly girls, and little girls are so sweet. Or maybe because they have crazy parents . But they all have just the most interesting personalities and characters. Lots of tears will be shed next week!

Hi Shell - yes you did

Snowflake (staying in VIC): Holly (staying in VIC): Angel (going to NSW):

Seven weeks old now: Mistletoe (going to SA): Star (staying in VIC): Noelle (going to QLD): St Nick (going to NSW/ACT):

A great vet, with lots of sensible knowledge, is a wonderful thing, and worth their weight in gold. A vet who doesn't have a lot of specialised knowledge I can also accept and appreciate - after all, I don't expect my GP to know every little medical issue that can arise. But I do expect them to be aware of their limitations and refer where neccessary. What drives my BONKERS is a vet who has very little specialist knowledge in reproduction, mobility issues, etc etc - and yet lectures in an extreme way, diagnoses readily and acts rude and arrogant when questioned. They are the ones I never go back to - and the ones that I groan about when I have a puppy buyer who has one. Like the vet who told me when my girl with 1 week old pups started to get one breast that was hard and swollen (but still producing clean milk) that there was nothing we could do, it would probably develop into mastitis, and it would be swollen-up and hard for the rest of her life - and then got annoyed with me when I questioned him But I do love this story ..... I had an email from a future buyer yesterday for one of the pups for my current litter. They had been into their vet to get their cat vaccinated and took in photos of the puppies. Apparently the vet questioned them about their lifestyle, and told them most of the pups would be suitable for them (I just LOVE that he was able to make that decision about the pups' suitability for their lifestyle on the basis of photos! ), but that puppy X would not be suited for them, and they were quite concerned to let me know that they wouldn't be able to take her on their vet's advice. The reason puppy X would not be suited for them is because she has a slight snow nose (not full - just a bit of pink still in the middle of the nose), and as they were hoping to do outdoor activities with her, such as taking her to the snow and the beach, etc, she would not be right for them because she would have "special needs" for the rest of her life. This is the pup in question: I haven't had the energy to reply yet, and it is hardly an issue as it was very unlikely that puppy x was going to be offered to them anyway. On the one hand I thought it was really funny. But there was one part of me where my heart sank with "oh no, they have one of THOSE vets!", and despite the fact that I really like this couple I had a moment's thought of wondering if I could pull out on the basis of who their vet it :D . I just have this awful feeling that in 6 months time their pup is going to step on a prickle, and the next thing their vet is diagnosing severe hip dysplasia requiring surgery! I can't believe I'm begin so cynical! :D

I have to agree about the information pack. I was actually thinking about this today (planing future puppy packs LOL) and have decided to include in my puppy pac a little info for the vet re: breed traits (Ideal weights, unusual features etc), what the pup has had done up till then and anything else between now and then. This way they can get the information that I as a breeder need them to know so they can help my puppy owner. I would also include my details so that if they ever needed to contact me about anything genetic they could do it directly with the owners permission. I did this with my first litter - put together a nice letter for the vets giving them that kind of information. Except the feedback I got back from my owners was that the vets weren't remotely interested in even reading it. :D

Play time:

A few single puppy shots - didn't get them all this time:

Some extra photos - these were taken at the beginning of the week, when the pups were just under 6 weeks old: Eating the grown up way: Mistletoe likes to lay down in the food bowl when she eats: Which makes it a bit hard for everyone else: Of course, we still like to eat the old way when we can: Hey Dad, do you have any of that good stuff up there? Noelle loves her Dad ..... and she is growing on him

Your Joking But she's gorgeous Who wouldn't want her Jodi Ah, not a case of not wanting her. More a case of personal circumstances conspiring that they couldn't go ahead with getting her .

She is very very cute - and also by far the FUNNIEST puppy I have ever had. She is just the ultimate clown - quite hysterical. When I turn up, you know how pups will get excited and come running to the gate and jump up happily - well she does that but accompanied by the happiest funniest grin you have ever seen, and just does this little spinny jumpy thing of glee - kind of turns herself inside out in a half spin, jump in the air. Everything she does is with this kind of submissive, joyful body language that is just HYSTERICAL! It's like she has all this joy that is just BURSTING out of her and she can't contain it. She chases her dad around constantly (stupid boy keeps jumping over into the puppy pen while I am in there) all submissive and sooo happy to see him and he really doesn't know what to make of her. She has very much what I think of as a "minnie mouse" face which she gets from her mum, but her head is smaller than the bigger girls with a similar head type (like Angel). Her ears are smaller (TINY!!!) and half up at the moment which probably makes her look different too. She doesn't have the coat of the others, and there is something about her body type which has never attracted me but I can't pinpoint (although that probably has a lot to do with the fact that she never actually stands or moves upright because she is too busy doing this wriggly, joyful submissive thing that she does). But you just can't help but love her. Full of energy too, and just a rascal. I think she may have got the Loony-Louis gene I can't work out whether to own her would be to pull your hair out every day or just to spend every day with a big grin on your face because you can't help but be happy when she is around .

Doe anyone know if there are any show training classes held (maybe at KCC Park?) on the eastern side of Melbourne - particularly suitable for brand new exhibitors and/or puppies?

Oh, no, they're very very innocent ;)

Lappies are hard to resist , and I'm sure you would have fun with one when you move. I lost Snowflake's potential owner during the week though , so I'm hoping there are more people like you out there who a really drawn to the cream ones.

He makes me laugh a lot! But then, I've given him a registered name that means "to laugh" and call him St Nick while he is here, so it was inevitable really

SF mentioned to me that someone had spoken to you. Pretty sure I know who it is, given I've only got the one going to Sydney so far .

Growing so fast .... 6 weeks old already: Mistletoe: Star: Noelle: St Nick: Snowflake: Holly: Angel:

Story of my life! Conversations usually go like this .... Person 1 whispering to person 2 with great authority - "that's a Siberian Husky/Alaskan Malamute/Border Collie" (take your pick) Person 2 to me - "what breed is that?" Me - "s/he's a Finnish Lapphund." Person 2 - "a what?!?" Me (a little slower) - "a Finnish Lapphund." Person 2 - "oh." Person 2 whispering to person 1 - "what did she say?" Person 1 - "what breed did you say again?" Me - "a Finnish Lapphund" Person 1 - "is that like a Husky." Me - "no, they are a spitz breed, but no they're a different breed to the Siberian Husky" Person 1 - "is it crossed with a Husky." Me - "no, it is a Finnish Lapphund, that's the breed." Person 2 - "what country is that from?" Me (with eyebrows raised ever so slightly) - "from Finland" Person 2 - "oh ... oh yeah" They turn away. Whisper whisper. Then turn back. Person 1 - "how did you say that breed name again?" of course, generally I am a bit more helpful and keen with information, but when you've been through the same conversation repeated times in the same day .....

Your vet was close FBC, but not quite. It is not if they have 6 dogs, but if they have 10 breeding bitches. And if they run for profit. This is the section from the Domestic Animal Act: s12A The proprietor of a domestic animal business must not sell, or give away, a dog or cat unless the dog or cat has been implanted with a prescribed permanent identification device. So you then need to look up the definitions section of the Act to find our what constitutes a "domestic animal business", which says: domestic animal business means— (a) an animal shelter, Council pound or pet shop; or (b) an enterprise that is run for profit which carries out all or any of the following activities— (i) the breeding of dogs or cats, where— (A) the enterprise has more than 10 fertile female animals of either or both species; or (B) the enterprise has less than 10 fertile female animals but the owner is not a member of an applicable organisation; or (ii) the rearing, training or boarding of dogs or cats; Dogs Victoria is classed as "an applicable organisation" uner (b)(i)(B) above. So, yes, if a registered breeder has 10 breeding bitches (and they run for profit) they do have to microchip (and would also need to be licensed as a domestic animal business with their local council) - but if they have less than that they don't. Not to say I don't microchip my pups (because I do). But always good to know exactly what the law is. For me, I think the exemption for this is a bit pointless, and can't for the life of me work out why it has been written like that (there are other exemptions I'd much prefer to be in there as a registered breeder ). But it is there .

The laws are different in different States. I see you are in Victoria. Here in Vic it isn't law for registered breeders to microchip. Anyone else who breeds and sells puppies (ie who would come under the umbrella of having to be a domestic animal management business) does have to, but the definitions in the legislation mean that registered (VCA registered) breeders are exempt from that requirement. A lot still do however

I think it depends on what you mean by the concept of "stealing". Do dogs moralise and attach the same associated thought patterns to "taking something which belongs to another" that humans do? Well of course not. Although I doubt you could argue a universally applied morality to our westernised concept of "stealing" anyway - so perhaps it is a learnt behaviour for us as well . But if the question is, do dogs learn to associate consequences with certain behaviours (at times quite complex behaviours) so that they know in future that doing that behaviour will result in punishment or or reward or fun or possible capture - and learn to respond appropriately? Well, yes of course (don't we base most training on that fact ). So I think it is quite easy for a dog to learn what our notion of "stealing" is. They don't have to witness our body language in the here and now. It is enough that they have learnt that doing action A (looking at/reaching for/taking object on bench) results in consequence B (your anger, being chased, certain body language) - to know to expect it in the future. So they have, in effect learnt what the behaviour of "stealing" is. Clever really . That doesn't mean that they have the same concept of ownership as us - but they have certainly learnt what they can touch without reaction, and what they can't. My boy loves soft toys and he has plenty around the place that he will pick up and play with quite normally. The other day I came into the living room and he is twisted into a pretzel, bum and tail wriggling like mad, looking back at me just *hoping* for a reaction from me with a glint in his eye - something in his mouth. Well it was obvious what he had done - he'd gone and "stolen" one of the puppy toys from the puppy room. I'm quite sure he had no notion that x toys belong to him and y toys belong to the puppies. But he sure knew that jumping into the puppy room and taking a toy was going to get me to pretend to be really angry with him, all growly and chasing him around the house in a big pretend game - so in that case he very clearly instigated "stealing" to get me to behave in the way he wanted. .

Males around about 17-20 kg (some a little smaller, some a little bigger). Females around 13-16kg (again, some variation on that).

Yep, both mum and dad have to carry the cream gene. I knew there was a good chance Louis might, but never would have dreamed Emmi did - her line tends to produce nothing but black and tan . I suspect it has come through from her sire's line. We have Lappies here in Townsville, and in Alice Springs ... so I guess if they can cope with those climates :D . They obviously prefer the cooler weather, and you would obviously take the normal precautions during hot days. They're just most likely to sleep somewhere cool when it is hot. They can be spitz like, in terms of that streak of independence, but they are a working/herding breed, so they do tend to be easier to train for the most part than many of the spitz breeds. Because we don't have the large numbers here in Aus, there aren't a lot in the obedience/agility rings, but overseas a lot of them will do various sports and activities like that. They are generally quite biddable, submissive and loving to their people. I wouldn't have said they are a hugely strong willed breed, but they do need a reason to want to work with you :D .

You wouldn't be too far off the truth either - so far! :D

Which ones? Maybe you can help me choose :D .