Red momma and pups

Dark Moon Puppy Project has a new puppy family.  This Red Momma was taken in by Adopt a Rescue Pet of Southern Nevada.  She was wormed and vaccinated for what was likely the first time in her life.  A few weeks later...Puppies! 

The pups were just a few days old when we picked her up from her previous foster home.  Momma was very worried, but she has shown herself willing to trust us.  She spent the first week or so in the puppy kennel with brief trips outside to use the toilet.  The pups are just old enough that the very edges of their eyes are opening now.  They are very gentle and passive compared to the orphan pups from our previous litters. 

All three pups are male, and each has a different color pattern.

They have been handled daily using our program of early development.

and as you can see Momma has been keeping them fat and healthy!

Momma has been here almost two weeks now and she is showing more interest in exploring, playing with the humans and meeting the other dogs here.  Today she is sharing the computer room with me, asking for attention every few minutes and then returning to the pups.  For a dog with little socialization she is doing very well!

A tale of two litters

The last few months we have had a very interesting opportunity for comparison.  Our Dalmatian/Pit bull litter has been joined by a single orphan Shih Tzu. The first Dalmatian/Pit bull litter raised by the Dark Moon Puppy Project is now 8 months old.  All but two have found forever homes.   Whey have a full range of personalities and energy levels, there are several remarkable similarities that seem to come from the way they were raised:  They are not afraid of obstacles.  They have a great ability to focus and remember.  They have a very strong desire to cooperate with people, and they use this connection to accomplish tasks.

While we know the pups from the Dalmatian/Pit bull litter are remarkable dogs the question remains: how much is from their breeding and how much is from the way they were raised?

Along comes a puppy that is pretty much the opposite in every way!  A purebred Shih Tzu orphan who is raised without any siblings- the Hamster!

 This little guy was raised by us from 3 days when his mother died.  He is a toy breed who will grow to 10 or 15 pounds as an adult.  And because he was raised by himself after his mother and littermates were lost he did not have the experience of living in a pile of puppies the way our first litter did.  He had the same infant exercises, the same socialization to other dogs and people, and early toilet training where he was encouraged to differentiate between toilet areas and living areas starting about 3 weeks.

He went to his forever home at 10 weeks, but by this age he was already showing the same remarkable level of focus, ability to cooperate with people, and confidence around obstacles as the other puppies from the project.

The Hamster also shows more of the problems that orphans and single pups are prone to.  He cries for attention, something only one of the older litter ever learned to do.  He throws great tantrums if he is thwarted in any way.

Our conclusion so far:  we are noticing certain traits in all of the puppies we raise that are not present in dogs that come to us when they are older- the ability to focus, cooperate, and negotiate obstacles confidently may actually come from the way we raised them and not from their genetics. It is likely that these traits can actually be taught as a puppy develops. Now we are wondering how these abilities affect the pups as they go through adolescence into adulthood.  Stay with us as we explore the possibilities!

toxic foods

We answer a lot of questions about what you should and shouldn't feed your dog.

With hundreds of brands of kibble, canned food, and raw diets to consider this can be a very confusing subject! We recommend you look at the ingredient list of various foods and choose a brand that has meat as the main ingredient. Avoid brands that have Corn, Soy, and Wheat on the top of the list as a dog's digestive system does not know how to process these. Spend some time doing research online and in a pet store and you can find a food that fits both your budget and your dog's needs.

A lot simpler is to list the foods you should NOT give your dog. According to the ASPCA national animal poison control center these are the foods that are toxic to dogs:

Onions or onion powder

Chocolate- especially dark or baker's chocolate

Coffee and all coffee- related products

Chocolate covered espresso beans

Tea

Alcoholic beverages

Macadamia nuts

Hops (used in home brewing)

Grapes and raisins (including all associated products such as juice or wine)

Tomato foliage (leaves and stems)

Green parts of potato (green peelings, sprouts and foliage)

Rhubarb leaves

Avocados

Pits and seeds from fruits

Bitter almonds

Moldy or spoiled foods

If you want to feed your dog well stay away from the foods on the toxic list, keep table scraps and salty foods to a minimum, and take some time to choose a good quality food from the many commercially available.

The Dark Moon Puppy Project is working on AKC Canine Good Citizen Certification(CGC). We would like to invite members and friends of the Puppy Project to join us for training sessions designed to get you and your dog ready to pass the CGC test!

The CGC program is designed to promote good basic manners in dogs and responsible ownership for their people.  We think that everyone should be comfortable taking their dog out in public. Passing the CGC test proves that you and your dog can handle situations that commonly arise when a dog goes out for fun or to the groomer or vet. The program lays the foundation for other activities from therapy certification to competition obedience to dog sports like lure coursing and agility. When you work together well enough to earn your CGC certification you can be proud to take your dog with you whenever you go out!

There are 10 test items that a dog must be able to handle gracefully to pass the CGC test:

1. Accepting a friendly stranger
2. Sitting politely for petting
3. Appearance and grooming(allowing the groomer to do her job)
4. Out for a walk(loose lead)
5. Walking through a crowd
6. Sit and Down on command and Staying in place
7. Coming when called
8. Reaction to another dog
9. Reaction to distraction
10. Supervised Separation

You are invited to join us as we work on these skills over the next few months. We will finish by taking the test with a qualified CGC evaluator to see if your dog can be a Canine Good Citizen!

If you and your dog would like to join us for our CGC training sessions contact Asia at:

phone (702)480-8918

email sunhorse1@att.net

5 months old...

At 5 months the puppies are as adorable as ever.  Ghost and Traveler still manage to fit on the little hassock comfortably.  They now weigh about 30 pounds and we are really seeing the benefits of their early handling!  They have all their shots and can safely go out in public where they get lots of comments about how well behaved they are.  All but Runner and Ghost have found families of their own.

We are getting together with the litter and some outside friends every week for puppy class.  In this class the puppies, dogs, and their people can get together to play and work with Judith to keep their manners and socialization current. The last few weeks we have been meeting at Sunset Park where there is a nice fenced dog park and lots of other dogs and people.  We are working on the basics of leash walking without pulling and on recalls- getting the dog to come to you when you call their name.  We would like to get all of the puppies certified as AKC good citizens.

The pups really enjoy seeing the people and dogs they grew up with!

 In one of their favorite greeting rituals Auntie Freyja sings her husky song and shows her teeth while Cookies checks to see if she brought her any food and shows proper puppy/submissive body language.

Bandit and Cookies were very happy to see Lucia this week!

One of the things I like about this litter is how connected they are to their people, especially to Judith who they seem to regard as their mother.  In this photo you can see how each puppy is connected to her in their own way.

Bandit and Cookies are very happy to stay with their person Travis as they walk around the park too!

Puppy class!

 

In this photo you can see me-Asia- with adult mix Corey, Chihuahua Mayet, and an adult Dalmatian/Heeler cross who was boarding with us last week.  Her name is Sophie.  See how much Sophie and the black-eared puppy Traveler look alike?  Buddha and Tank wanted to get in the picture too...

However, this post is not about the eternal cuteness of puppies, it is about our puppy classes!  Now that the puppies are 4 months old they are all receiving their final sets of shots.  That means they have good immunity to the diseases like Parvo that are common killers in this area, and THAT means that they can go out in public!  We want to invite all of the puppies that live in vegas to join us for a socialization class once a week. We introduced the puppies to lots of different people and dogs as they grew up. At four months of age they are starting their shy phase, so to keep them from learning to be afraid we will take them out to see all the things the world has to offer. This 8 week class will keep them in the socialization loop through their shy phase so they can face the world with confidence like Shadow and Freyja in this photo taken in front of Caesar's Palace. 

Judith has lots of fun outings planned.  The plans range from informal dining at Sonic's outdoor tables to puppy parades in Home Depot, attending First Friday's pit bull parade, dealing with the crowds on the strip, and training sessions at the park. This puppy class will take place once a week and should start March 8th.  We are asking a small 10$ donation from each family that comes to a class.  This will help cover our travel expenses. We welcome other dogs, so if you have another dog living with a dark moon puppy or a friend with a dog they can come along too!

Chew toy training

Your puppy needs to chew on things.  For dogs, chewing develops the body, keeps them mentally occupied, and cleans their teeth.  Chewing is such a part of what a dog is that if they can't chew they will actually become mentally ill.

To keep them from chewing on the wrong thing you need to puppy-proof your house before you bring your puppy home.  Just like when you have a toddler, anything that will be within reach needs to be put away.  

You also need to make sure they have good things to chew on.  We cut up old clothes and tied them in interesting knots to make inexpensive chew toys.  We also give them Kong toys, sticks, dried bamboo from the garden, and stuffed dog toys. 

We are always careful to get toys without squeakers if we are going to let the puppies play unsupervised because they like to dig the squeaker out and eat it.  This can result in a trip to the vet if you are unlucky!

Our older dogs generously offer to be chew toys as well.

Ghost: the Deaf Puppy

Ghost is turning into a very special puppy.  

He is deaf.  

  

 Deafness in dogs and cats is associated with the genetics for the color white.  The simple way it was explained to me is that when there are two copies of the gene that causes white color on the eardrum, it interferes with hearing.

We called him Screamer when he was younger because he would make more noise than anyone else. This was our first clue that he was different from his littermates.  If you don't watch him very closely you can't tell any difference.  He has days where training is easy and days where it if hard, just like other puppies. 

 He plays with other dogs just like the rest of the puppies.  He loves to cuddle and follow you around just like other puppies.  But when you call him he won't come unless he can see you.

Since the puppies came back from their christmas vacation on the ranch Ghost has become one of my favorites.  Last night he slept in the bed with me, cuddling all night long.


He is one of the gentler puppies in his litter and he is always paying close attention to me.

Look at this sweet face!  Judith would like to use a vibration collar on him.  We would train him that when the collar vibrates he should look around for his person.  Then we have a way to get his attention without depending on our voice. 
We have had several deaf families contact us about providing a home for him.  Wouldn't it be great if he could learn sign language with a family that understood his world view so intimately?

vote for your favorite pic!

We are making a new version of the Dark Moon Puppy Project calling cards.  We are using these cards like business cards so people we meet can look up the blog when they get home.  

Six of the puppies are looking for their forever home and these cards may help them find it!

Which picture is the best illustration of the puppy project?  

 

#1:  The Pied Piper

#2:  Puppy Collection

 #3:  Sweetiepie the Second

 # 4:  Attentive puppies

 #5:  The Pile

 

Post your comment and tell us which one you like best!

new homes for Angel and Galaxy!

Two of our puppies went to their forever homes this week!
Wednesday Galaxy went home with Jess

Thursday Angel went home with Travis

We hope everyone is happy with their dark moon puppies!  It is hard for us to let them go.  We can tell a difference in the pack each time one of them leaves. I am confident they are both in fabulous homes where they can be a valued member of the family.  Congratulations!

training- puppy pushups

When I got my first dog I took her to puppy classes at Petsmart and we learned the lure/reward method of training.  This is hands down the best way to train a pet dog.  It surprises me when seasoned dog owners don't use it.  Today we would like to show you an exercise the Dark Moon puppies are learning called puppy pushups.  This exercise introduces lure/reward training.  

A lot of people don't want a trained dog, they just want a pet.  But teaching simple tricks and games actually teaches him to communicate with you.  When the two of you can cooperate in the sit, down, and stand the dog gains confidence, knowing he did the right thing. Without this training your pet will not understand what you want.  He makes mistakes and you end up punishing him, weakening your bond of trust.  Just a little work together will make your lives much easier, so take the time to practice this simple exercise!

Today two of the puppies are demonstrating Puppy Pushups.  They stand, sit, lie down and stay, following hand signals and getting lots of treats. First is Runner, a quick study who has the makings of an obedience or agility champion.  She love to play games where you cooperate and her athleticism really shows!

Judith starts with a pocketful of treats- we use the same kibble they get at mealtimes.  (A nice way to bond with your new puppy is to feed them their meals as part of a training session rather than from a bowl!)

Start by getting the puppy's attention

This can be the most difficult part of the session. 

A room without the other cats and dogs will be very helpful!

Runner decides on her own to sit

She has learned a hand signal that tells her we want her to sit.
  Judith holds a treat in the other hand, ready to lure her into position if she is confused or distracted







 She gets a treat for sitting on the signal

 Another hand signal tells her to lie down.  This time Judith uses the treat as a lure in the same hand that is doing the signal.  Runner follows this lure using her nose until she is on the floor.

This is what a good down position looks like.  

She is on the floor and doesn't look like she will jump right back up. In this picture, licking the nose is a sign that she is thinking and has an accepting state of mind

Runner doesn't remember the signal for stand yet, so we use the treat as a lure.  Let her smell the treat, then follow it until she is standing.  Then she gets the treat!

Because she is doing so well on sit and down, Judith asks her to stay

This "stop sign" hand signal has to have a lot of focus with it.

Judith backs up just a few steps, keeping runner's attention, then moves right back to give her a treat!  In the stay you have to time it carefully so they don't move before you can get back to reward them.

Runner's session ended with several beautiful stays in the sit and down position.  We spend about 3 minutes working with her this morning.  We will work on the puppy pushups with her one more time today.  Twice a day will be often enough that she will remember the last session, but not so much that she will get bored with them.

Ghost is our deaf puppy, and for some 

reason he has more trouble, 

so he will illustrate how you do this 

when they don't understand as well.

Get his attention

Since Ghost can't hear, other senses are used

to get his attention- here Judith makes vibrations by 

thumping on the floor.  She is also in his line of sight 

so he can use his eyes.  Smells and gentle touches 

can also be used.

He approaches and asks for the treat by placing a paw on Judith's lap. 







This isn't what we want so he doesn't get a treat until he sits.


Judith lures him by putting the treat right above his nose so he can smell it without letting him have it.  She then moves it back over his head, keeping it very close to him so he doesn't stand on his hind legs to reach for it. As soon as he sits he is rewarded by getting the treat!

 

His attention is wandering

She gets his attention back before his body can follow it by using the treat in front of his nose to lure him into a down position

This is harder than the sit, but he earns his treat!

Ghost keeps bouncing up from his down, so a gentle hand on the back guides him into position and keeps him from jumping up too easily.  It can be tempting to force him into position, but this will not teach him to cooperate with you or to think for himself.  Instead it will weaken your bond of trust. You cannot use force to teach a dog how to do something themselves.

another sit gives him a little break

Lure into a stand

Every day brings its own particular challenges.  Because down is hard for him today he gets to practice down with lots of petting and extra treats

 His focus is really good when he can ignore the cat!

When he can relax in a down position we know we are doing well!

Ghost chose to sit facing out when he needed a break.  As you get to know your dog you will know when he needs a break like this to sort through what he has been learning.  He is still calm and is not distracted, he just needed a moment to think.  Letting him have this moment is a way to show that you understand his needs and individuality.