TerraNik

That last photo!!!! ;)

;)

What a cutie! Congrats!

I love Bowhouse ;)

Oh yeah, pronounciation is another thing people should know about Keeshonden! It's not Keesh-hound.. It's KAYZ-HOND!

I'm at the point where I cringe every time I answer the "what type of dog is that" question because there's a really predictable conversation that follows - I'm sure you know all about it by now Nik! I don't mind though it's kind of fun to educate people. ;) It's so true... But I don't mind. I expect them to say "... a what????!" when I tell them, too. So I usually just start on my spiel about reindeer herders. It's when someone asks, "is that a Lapphund?" when I do a double-take and die from shock!

I wouldn't worry too much about having not met one before - I daresay it would be pretty common! Yeah it would be fine in those temps. The dry heat is fine, it's the humidity that causes a bit of a problem, but in saying that this summer was VERY humid and Ahsoka was fine. Of course she didn't really want to go on long runs with me, but who could blame her?! I didn't want to go myself! In terms of the heat - as long as they have shade, they aren't really bothered, though Ahsoka has been known to sunbake in 30 degree heat... ;) Their coats definitely adapt to the changes in seasons. In summer their coats thin out and as it comes up to winter it gets denser, as a general rule. It's not a dramatic change though unless it's a major shed, but you can definitely notice the difference.

Finnish Lapphunds - Most people don't know.... that they exist. Keeshonds - Most people don't know that there's really not much dog under all that coat! They're tiny! And NO - he's NOT going to sink when his hair gets wet while swimming!

Yeah - I'm less likely to break something!

Just to add to the Keeshond info for you -- They seem to tick all your boxes as well, particularly the watchdog part (seeing as that is what they were bred for). They are quite a few that have done well in agility and other dog sports as well (mine does obedience trialing, herding, flyball and some agility). They are very intelligent dogs, but do have a bit of a stubborn streak. They're great with kids but oh-so-cheeky! If you don't have a sense of humour, a Keeshond is definitely not the dog for you! The biggest 'issue' with the breed is the grooming, which for some is not an issue at all, but definitely something you need to consider. A heavily coated male would take about an hour to groom properly per week. Keeshonds are very clingy, with many of them being named Shadow. Mine follows me everywhere in the house and loves nothing more than to just be around other people. My experience from Lapphunds as well are that they aren't particularly clingy as some have commented. I wouldn't say that they are aloof, but Ahsoka definitely doesn't follow me around the house like Jedi. She LOVES cuddles and will often snuggle with us while we're watching TV, but she's not one to come up and lie around in the same room as me while I'm studying -- she's usually off herding birds in the backyard or pouncing on lizards! Always something to do!! She's a good watchdog, though I suspect that was learned from Jedi. They are of course, very good at dog sports - they're quite agile and would definitely suit agility provided, like with all working breeds, that you get it from the right lines (otherwise it may prefer to laze around than do dog sports )

Good luck for the trials! I just caught up on this thread - it's been interesting reading about your progress!

Jedi used to do wide RATs... I fixed up my footwork which solved 80% of the problem and then made sure that I was rewarding immediately at the completion of the turn. He now turns rather quickly with me now because he can anticipate the turn with my footwork and because he has been reinforced heavily for the end of the turn. He knows his reward comes when he gets to that point! Meanwhile... I have been SO incredibly slack with Ahsoka's obedience training. I keep putting it on the back burner and I realised the other day that I really should put some more effort and consistency into her training. The past two days we have done a few sessions and wow... I wish I had been more consistent now! She's giving me some really nice work and is SOOOOO enthusiastic about it! Bouncing around and launching herself into positions... So I've made it my goal that I will train her every day (even if it's just a few minutes here and there if I'm having an uber busy day) for the next month and see where we are at by the end of May. I really have to set myself a goal with her otherwise I'll just keep slackening off... So here we go... I WILL enter her in a trial by July this year. Somebody better hold me to it!

She looks really nice, Bec!!

My two put their toys away. I taught them to retrieve a toy to my hand then held my hand over the toy box and shaped them to drop it in the box. My boy loves the game so much that he'll empty the box when he's done just so he gets to do it all again!! I'm sure there'd be some how-to videos on YouTube.

Wow, she is beautiful!

Awwwwww! What a gorgeous puppy!!!!

Lovely results for your SFE and recall!

Yay Luke and Barkly!

Wow, congrats to all the agility stars!! Here's Jedi's efforts from today -

Wow, congrats to Dyzney!! She sounds like she would be a joy to watch!

Jedi got his second CCD pass today!!!!!!! We got 4th with a 94/100! No scratching either!! Video will be uploaded tonight.

Yay for Lola!

Yay for Poppy's pass!

Great job! Tyson did a great job!!

Good luck to you both!!! We're still waiting for training to start back up for us (there are no sheep at the moment)... Can't wait to get back into it!