Category: News

As we expected to the very day, Morrow had her litter on the evening of August 2, 2017.  Seven healthy puppies were born and they are all gaining weight and growing.  She had five boys and two girls in her whelping box in my bedroom and although we have been up 24/7 with them with only a few hours of naps here and there for the past six days, it's been well worth watching the little ones grow literally before our very eyes.

We've already started the Puppy Culture program for the Neonatal Period, 0-14 day old exercises for the litter.  Yesterday they mainly slept through all the exercises, including a short stress exposure to a cold wet surface (a refrigerated towel) 😀

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The whelping went smoothly, with Morrow doing everything herself.  Now we've already sent for the DNA profiling kits and when the puppies are three weeks old, we will find out which of the puppies are Remus' and which are Jestan's.

We are very intently watching the puppies grow and develop.  They each already are showing little personality quirks even though their eyes and ears and still sealed tightly shut.  We will be doing the majority of updates through our Facebook group during this busy period.

A pile of three-day old puppies <3
A pile of three-day old puppies <3
Supine position
Supine position

And on one final non-litter related note, earlier in July, our Harley successfully finished her National Association for Canine Scentwork (NACSW) Nosework 1 title.  While we are a bit sidetracked with the litter at this time, we are nonetheless very very proud of Harley and her handler & co-owner.

Due to the litter, we have cancelled all of our summer plans for CsV camps this year, including the I. FCI National CsV Breed Specialty Show in Pozna, Poland this year.  However, we still plan to attend the World Dog Show 2017 in Leipzig, Germany come November.  Hope to see many of our friends there this year!

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We're so happy to share that our A/B litter has been confirmed via sonogram this weekend!  On Day 33 (counted from LH surge) we took Morrow in to see our amazing repro vet Dr. Sebzda, who has been working with us since December.  Her specialized experience has been essential in ensuring the success of the litter, especially pinpointing the timing and travel.

Morrow was happy she wasn't there for any more blood work, and gladly lay on the examination table for us to take a look at her growing belly.  We also did get a count of how many puppies there are, but we'll know for sure how many puppies there will be when they are born.

Morrow's a little bit over the halfway mark now with the litter due in about 4 weeks, the very beginning of August.  At the moment, she's on hiatus from her various classes and hiking, just relaxing at home.  This will be the first litter whelped in the states which fulfills the requirements of the Czechoslovakian Vlcak Club of America (CSVCA) in over two years.  (Here's also a good opportunity for me to pitch joining as a member, even if you don't have a CsV yet!  CSVCA page here)

 

 

Her paws!! <3
Her paws!! <3

Four weeks.. it seems both far and near.  We're so looking forward to meeting all the new little faces in a few weeks.

Although we were planning to travel to our selected studs in the second half of 2017 for Morrow's litter, she decided to throw us a curve ball and resume her split heat at the end of April. With a lot of help from our theriogenologist veterinarian in regards to ovulation & travel timing and so on, at the very beginning of June we found ourselves in sunny Germany.  We would've loved to stay longer but some circumstances back at home forced us to return as soon as possible - we spent less than 45 hours in Europe this time..

 

 

Remus and Morrow.
Remus and Morrow.

If, and that's a big if, everything works out, Morrow's litter will be born at the very beginning of August 2017.  Now we just play the waiting game........

Due to the newly-released re-tested Pituitary Dwarfism results for one of the the studs we selected, we have had to make a change in plans for our A/B litter.

 

Regrettably, with the corrected test results which were originally due to lab error, we will not be able to use Amir z Vlčej rokliny with Morrow.  We have amended our litter plans accordingly and they can be found here.

It's been a month and I can finally write a little bit about our Blu.  In early April, we chose to let Blu go, holding her in the living room as she crossed into the beyond.  It was the hardest decision we have ever made, not only in terms of our kennel and dogs but one of the hardest  decisions in my life.  She had issues that despite the best veterinary help, professional care and consultations with her breeder, we could not resolve.  In her short three years, she had some ups and many downs, but we will always remember her for what she taught us, and I hope that in the future when we think about her we remember the best of what she gave us.  Sharing one's life with other living creatures teaches one the true meaning about love and loss.

As we mourn Blu, we try to pick up the pieces and move forward as best we can with the rest of our dogs.  In a small spot of brightness, Harley rallied in her last Nosework Trials at the end of April to complete her UKC Superior Nosework title, becoming only the 2nd Czechoslovakian Vlcak to hold it (our Ronin is the first).

Life moves on little by little.  Through the years, heartbreak on top of hope alternatively moves through our lives with our dogs.  All we can do is look forward to some tomorrow, always waiting.

Wesen Girios Dvasia, 20/02/2014 - 01/04/2017, forever loved.
Wesen Girios Dvasia, 20/02/2014 - 01/04/2017, forever loved.

Yesterday we returned to the states from a trip to Slovakia to visit with one of the stud dogs we have selected for our planned 2017 litter - Amír z Vlčej rokliny.  He lives in the Trencin region of western Slovakia, close to the Low Tatra mountain range and other amazingly beautiful areas of old European civilization.

 

We primarily select the studs we want to use based on their pedigree, and then conformation and temperament, the first of which is sufficient to read, the second two insufficient to review on only paper.  Photographs only do so much and we like to evaluate the temperament of a dog ourselves as well.  We are satisfied now with both of our selections, having met Jestan II zP earlier last year already with Morrow in Poland and now we just wait for the right time!

Morrow seemed to like Amir alright 😀

 

In addition to our 'official' reason for this trip to Slovakia, we also spent the rest of our time traveling around in Hungary and Austria, eating and drinking in the company of some of our favorite people (and dogs!!).  Once again, Morrow received a full-immersion course in acclimatization and socialization, traveling with me through a huge roster of cities, hotels, restaurants, rail stations, trains and even a ferry throughout dog-friendly eastern Europe.  She's such a funny little dog and really enjoyable to travel with.  We would like to thank especially our friends at the CSV breeding kennel "Potomok vlkov" for all of the great times!  You can see more of our travel photos on our Instagram linked in the site footer.

Behind-the-scenes with Morrow at one of the shoots
Behind-the-scenes with Morrow at one of the shoots

As a final note, we - well, Morrow - were also able to take part in a multi-day photography session in Austria with Alicja Zmysłowska Photography  (Facebook  here) and her friend at Sarah Hubmann Photography  and their dogs Ciri the Border Collie and Heiko the Miniature Pinscher.  We're super excited and really looking forward to the results and memories captured in beautiful locations around Hallstatt and Grundlsee!

All in all, as usual, we had an amazing time and look forward to later in the year with fingers crossed.. Thank you once again to all our friends for making it possible!!

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We have finalized our plans for our only litter for 2017. All details can be found here.  We are accepting an extremely limited number of wait-list places at the moment.  Please read all the information under the Litters and Applications section. 

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Click to enlarge

A short post, but three of our dogs placed in the UKC National Top Ten rankings for 2016!  So we'll wait for our invitations to the UKC Premier Top Ten Show in the mail for this year too.  🙂  I don't think we'll be going to Michigan for the Premier this year either, since there's more competition to be found elsewhere, but nevertheless, it's a nice touch and a nice wrap up for 2016.

So UKC Top Ten 2016 results for our dogs!:

#1 Ranked: Grand Champion Wesen Girios dvasia SPOT-ON

#3 Ranked: Ch. Łojma II z Peronowki SPOT CA

#4 Ranked: Ch. Wintermoon z Lasow Preczowskich
 

This is the 2nd consecutive year that our Blu has ranked first, and the first year of four competitive years that Ghost has ranked only 4th. He will probably be retired at the end of 2017 from the show ring. I hope maybe we can do a few fun veteran classes, but I think three years ranked first was enough for him (and he won't complain living a life of leisure.. ) This was also Morrow's first year ranked in UKC, although last year in 2015 she was ranked 70th female Czechoslovakian Vlcak in the Open Slovakia Dog Cup 😛

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Our winter break seemed too short, but we're back in the game for 2017 already, with a single-day set of trials the past Sunday. Rōnin and Harley picked up where they left off in 2016, for Harley in the Advanced class and Rōnin in Masters and Elite classes. Additionally, he also trialed for the first time in two searches in Novice handler discrimination (alerting to handler's articles). Despite (or perhaps because of!) the break, they both did really well, with Harley passing her final two pre-trial odor recognition tests and 3 of 4 trials in containers and interiors. Alas, she did not qualify for one of the interior searches, and so she did not finish her Advanced Nosework title but we have our sights set on completion in February!

Harley has also been started on foundations in Agility recently.  She's so food motivated, we'll see how far she goes with this.  As long as she's enjoying herself.  Of course all details of the results from the weekend can, as usual, be found on each dogs' individual profile under 'Our Pack'.

Rōnin had 4 qualifications out of 6 trials, with high time placements in all four, including 2 High in Trials! We're so happy and proud of Rōnin - when he does feel like cooperating, he really can do it well.  He only has Exterior searches outstanding before he finishes his Master class title, and so we look forward to the March trials which has outdoors searches.

Ronin and his HIT ribbons!
Ronin and his HIT ribbons!
Harley and her various Q's
Harley and her various Q's

Additionally, plans for our projected 2017 litter are being finalized.  We're awaiting the official confirmation of several health results; in late December we renewed Ghost and Morrow's annual OFA eye screening and in the beginning of January Morrow's elbow radiographs were taken.  These were the last remaining screenings necessary to finish out her CHIC requirements, and while we expect an all-clear, we are waiting to hear official results back.  In late January or early February we hope to announce litter plans and all other related information.

We also have several travel plans in the works; half for fun, half for dog-related reasons.  We hope that everyone had a nice holiday season!  We are certainly looking forward to where a brand new year takes us!

 

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Morrow also turned two last month!
Morrow also turned two last month!

The past weekend of November 19-20, we went to our last UKC shows for 2016 with Ghost, Blu and Morrow.  Under an at-times rare grey California sky, the temperature was perfect and we had an enjoyable 4-show cluster which ultimately finished out Blu's Grand Champion title, the very first in the breed.  Blu is officially (well, pending verification and certificate issuance) GrCH. Wesen Girios dvasia, SPOT-ON. 

Blu - Wesen Girios dvasia, First US Grand Champion of Breed
Blu - Wesen Girios dvasia, First US Grand Champion of Breed
Łojma II z Peronowki - Morrow, 2x BOB
Łojma II z Peronowki - Morrow, 2x BOB

Total results from the weekend:

November 19, 2016

Judge Lynn Martin

Champion Class:

1. Wesen Girios Dvasia (Blu), Best of Breed, Group 1

2. Wintermoon z Lasow Preczowskich (Ghost)

Łojma II z Peronowki

Judge Lynn Poston

Champion Class:

1. Łojma II z Peronowki (Morrow), Best of Breed, Group 3

2. Wintermoon z Lasow Preczowskich (Ghost)

Grand Champion Class:

1. Wesen Girios dvasia (Blu)

November 20, 2016

Judge Cynthia Sanders

Champion Class:

1. Wintermoon z Lasow Preczowskich

2. Łojma II z Peronowki

Grand Champion Class:

1. Wesen Girios dvasia, Best of Breed, Group 1

Judge Connie Mathewson

Champion Class:

1. Łojma II z Peronowki, Best of Breed, Group 2

2. Wintermoon z Lasow Preczowskich

Grand Champion Class:

1. Wesen Girios dvasia

 

Wintermoon z Lasow Preczowskich - Ghost
Wintermoon z Lasow Preczowskich - Ghost

We are happy with the results, especially with how Blu has improved in showing and ring behavior.  Morrow has also made a lot of gains this past year and is developing nicely.  We are looking forward to the start of the show season in 2017, both here and abroad.  It actually started to rain pretty hard (which is very rare in Southern California..) near the end of the Sunday shows so we didn't bother the judges with any win photos but it was nonetheless a nice set of shows and we got to see our friends and their successes as well.  Our next cluster of shows will likely be in February of 2017.

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