“Marney is doing great!  She was spayed last Friday and
had no problems.  She weighs 62 pounds.  Everyone at the 
vet's office just loves her.  Their comments go from how 
beautiful she is, how sweet she is, what a wonderful 
temperament she has to she is such a nice dog. She is 
growing out of some of her puppyness and is truly 
becoming a very sweet girl." - Wanda S.   

We have a bench on our deck, that I taught Roxie to 
climb up on and be brushed, well now Marney jumps up to be 
brushed "every time" we walk that way. She absolutely 
loves being brushed.”  - Wanda S. 

"Dear Catherine,

 
Just a quick update to tell you that Jake is a beloved member of the family. The picture enclosed is my youngest daughter Charlotte and Jake. (about 4 weeks ago) As you can see from the picture, they are the best of friends and I am certain that my daughter loves him more than any animal she has ever known. He is kind and playful and well mannered. He is growing at a remarkable pace and is almost 50lbs. Yet very fit and very healthy. All shots and visits have been completed to date and his neutering is scheduled for late June early July.

 
"He wears and electric fence collar and he learned quickly and since he is smart he has yet to ‘relearn’ the consequences. I put the fence around about 60 acres of the farm so he has a lot of space to enjoy. The entire family treasures him and you created a real gift to my family. It is impossible to conceive of a better more loving companion.  Thanks again"  

Sincerely,

Phil B.

"Just wanted to give you an update on Zorro. He did real well in training class. We had a lot of days he just wanted to play and not follow directions. He had the one dog named Winston that was his favorite and Winston didn't want to listen either. But he passed!"  - Rick and Michelle

Hey Catherine,

Just letting you know that Bosca is doing great!  She's learning more day by day, and she's really unlike any dog I've ever had... totally exceeding expectations at this point.  Very attentive and gentle around the chickens.  Anyway, as she gets a bit older, we'll try to remember to send some pictures.  

Best,

Forrest and Nancy P.  

Hello Catherine,

We took Kozzi in for her lyme booster today and she weighed in at 65.8 pounds.  The vet says she looks great with the exception of an ear infection.  She does great with the Zymox (hydrocortisone) solution he gave me; much better than the Epi-otic.  She went through a bit of a "toddler phase" but has graduated from her puppy obedience class with honors.  She's a good dog!

We hope you and all your puppies are doing well.

Shallyn

Aspen (Hilda x Sas)

Hi Catherine!
Aspen went to the vet today, he is 69 pounds even!  he is getting sooo big!   

He is dong WONDERFUL!  Other than the small defiance every now and then, he is as good as gold, loves the dog park and hanging out with the 'gang'  :)

Thanks again for such a wonderful little man  :)  He has all our hearts

Barb and Rob S.  

Riker (Hilda x Sas)  He is a big boy!!!!!

Catherine,
I thought this would make you smile...this morning Riker got riled up and was running a circuit through the house that included jumping on and off the couch.  On the third go-round, he jumped on the couch, snuggled in like he was going to stay a while and changed to channel on the television; to ANIMAL PLANET!!
Everyday this clown comes up with something new.
Take care,
Debbie and Jim

Riker - By the way, he's pretty much given up the nipping, much to our relief, and our puppy class coach says that Riker is advanced and doing great!

Thanks and take care.
Debbie 

Lexie is doing great! She weighs 28 lbs now, is eating well and is enjoying her big back yard!

- Patricia

Hi Catherine,

I saw all of your new babies on your website.  They are very, very cute.  You must be a very busy lady.  What nice looking pups.  Ayla is doing wonderful.  I have given in and now let Ayla in the house.  I just couldn't take it any more.  She was doing great with the goats, but she really wanted to be in the house with me and the rest of the dogs.  She can still go to the barn if she wants.  However she is very content as a house dog.  I guess I'll just hope that her presence will keep predators away.  She now weighs about 113 lbs.  She is a big teddy bear.  Definitely a gentle giant.  She is laying here at my feet as I type this.  I just adopted a Foxhound who she has really become attached to. I still love her to death.

I'm sending some pictures for you.  I will talk to you later.

"... Last spring my French Bulldog had puppies.  Ayla was amazing with them.  She just loves them.  She definitely took them under her wing and decided that it was her job to watch over them.  She acted like they were her pups.  She jumped right in the whelping box and laid down with them.  She lets them just jump all over her.  It is amazing how their guardian instinct takes over.  Doree was a wonderful mom too, but Ayla really thought it was her job to take over when Doree wasn't around. "

"Rocco completed basic and advanced obedience training.  The basic training was the five commands plus leash walking. The advanced training included off leash and off leash/emergency recall. He did so well and has no problem retaining. We walk at least twice a day and he has plenty of opportunity to use both on leash and off-leash commands. Most of our walks are off leash and he has never wandered away or failed to respond to a verbal command. He also learned doggy etiquette and does wonderfully when we are approached by other people or dogs. I really want to have him take the Canine Good Citizen test and also test for a therapy dog certification. So far, I have not had the time to pursue those.

 Rocco is amazingly gentle with our granddaughter and the kids in the neighborhood. When our granddaughter is visiting, Rocco will position himself on the floor near her. Other than watching his size around her, he really seems to understand that she is a baby. He doesn't seem to mind when she crawls over to him and touches him. His temperament is outstanding.

 He really likes to go to the beach and fortunately it is only a few blocks from the house. Rocco loves to run in the sand and charge into the water. Although he is not a swimmer - he mostly likes to splash - he does chase our neighbors Golden Retriever into the water when she is fetching a water toy. He could care less about the fetching, but enjoys chasing after his buddy. I have some video of his running like a crazy dog on the beach, and as soon as I figure out how to reduce the size and post it I will let you know.

 Around the house he is our shadow. When I am home he is at my feet or very close. Carol likes his shadowing when I am not home. It is almost like he knows to keep an eye on her for me. We allow him to sleep out of the crate at night. If he isn't positioned near the foot of the bed (on the floor), he lays just outside our bedroom at the top of the steps. When we are both out of the house, he is in his crate. However, when he sees us putting on shoes or if he hears the car keys, he makes his way to the door. I wish I could take him everywhere because he is just that well behaved and mannered.” 

"Thanks again for providing so much valuable information up front when we chose Rocco. He has been a wonderful addition to our family."  - John D.

"Kozzi was a great guard dog with us today...sat her butt on the cement pad just outside her dog door (which she loves) and barked at a bald eagle perching in a nearby tree.  It was the biggest wild bird I have ever seen (definitely could've carried either of our girls off).  She stays right along side of us when hiking off leash...and is very alert with her surroundings...pushes wild animals back with assertive barking/movement.  It is really quite a delight to see how she is growing and maturing.  We do love her...even if she plays puppy still -- trying to eat the bristles of the push broom, dig in the girls' sand box like a lunatic, and eat their shovels or hats and sunglasses.  It is a good reminder from her that she is still young.  :-)  Evelyn enjoys daily training with her still with me.  I need to practice "leave it" a bit more right now.  I also want to get her out in public a couple times a month still (as you had recommended) and around other dogs to play and stay socialized.  There are still enough subcontractors coming by that I am not worried about strangers.  She sits at the front door to greet them and make sure they leave...never misses anything."  - Shallyn 

"Our love affair with Jake continues unabated. He is truly a remarkable dog. He is kind yet protective. He is calm yet is capable of real action. I have enclosed two pictures of him. The first of Jake simply lying about and the second with my daughter Charlotte. As you will see she is deeply attached to him and probably loves Jake more than everything else on this earth. You will see her holding her two favorite things, Jake and a Harry Potter book.

 He is such a success we are beginning to wonder if we should get a second one.

 
Thank you again for doing such a magical job of creating this magnificent member of our family."

- Phil B.

"His coat seems soft/coarse to me but I do not know the range of coats like you do. It is soft yet it is very easy to clean. He also cleans himself regularly by jumping into our pond. Or as you can see from the enclosed, he also can wrangle a good bath before a check up at the vet. He is still a puppy and has no clue to his size unless he senses a threat and then he transformations into a significant guardian.

 Last week a 9 year old girl visited the farm and joined Charlotte for a visit with our Clydesdales. The two foals of this spring are playful and will chase you around for a good scratching on their necks. They are gentle but persistent. The girl, Ashley had grown weary of all that service and started to playfully move away from the gelding and Henry took pursuit in hopes of more of his beloved scratching. She panicked and began to run away from him and of course Henry had played this game before and dutifully took up the chase only panicking Ashley even more. As she ran she screamed and within 3 seconds Jake ran to her aid and planted himself between Henry (750lbs) and Ashley and would not permit him near her. Henry tried to get to his beloved scratcher but Jake would block and bark, block and bark. She left the paddock unscathed. Once gone, Jake and Henry began to play by running after each other in circles.

Ashley’s father and I were truly in awe of this 8 month old puppy’s innate response and remarkable protective reflexes. To see it in action, it felt almost balletic. I am certain Jake would never let anything bad happen on his watch to any child on the farm. A stranger came on the farm and he planted himself between Charlotte and the man and made a noise that I can only describe as coming from the middle of the earth. It was so powerful and menacing that we were all stunned. Especially the guy, who froze and retreated to his truck.

 Again I cannot reiterate how kind, gentle and loving a dog he is and how our children’s lives have been enhanced beyond expression." - Phil B.

What an awesome note!!  Jake is definitely Duke's son!!

"Thought I’d update you on Rainier and send a couple of recent pics.  He’s adapted extremely well to his new home, and enjoys his new buddies and mentors - Toby the yellow lab, Benga the tabby and Spare the Maine coon.  Surprisingly the cats have tolerated him (i.e. not running away or going into attack mode), and the female cat actually seems to enjoy his company.  Every now and then they touch noses, which I know is a more endearing gesture in humans than animals, but still pretty darned cute!  Toby is the big brother who allows himself to be chewed on and climbed like some unconquered mountain peak, and shows Rainie the ropes around the neighborhood.  They’ve been to our local lake as well as the Potomac River together, indulging in copious amounts of mud which is then deposited into my car and home.  But nothing could make us happier since they enjoy it so much."

"He’s quickly taken to my basic training, and is starting to connect the dots with us being not only mom and dad, but those in charge as well.  My wife has also taken to my training, since she’s never raised a puppy before!  So the trainer is also the trainee in her case.  We’ve gotten the Rainman to sit when we present food, and will STAY two feet away from the bowl until he’s given the command to eat.  Also, he takes food from the hand now without lunging or blindly biting, and in fact is quite gentle now pulling with little nibbles.  This took about 3 days to teach, so I think he’s a quick study… I remember it taking a little longer with my lab."

"As I have no basis for comparison to other Anatolians I can only guess at this, but I really do think you made an excellent choice of puppies for us personality-wise.  Rainie is very level-headed and laid back, with a few exceptions when he gets into his play [mode].  His temperament is a perfect blend of cool confidence, extreme intelligence, awareness and independence… and acts neither like an alpha male nor the runt.  He just seems very happy being himself, being around us and his playmates, and doesn’t exhibit any emotional or mental flaws whatsoever.  We’re very happy with him and couldn’t thank you enough."

- Tom D.