With Max back. . .

So. Since Kuna's heat is finally over, Max was allowed home on Saturday. Kuna was so happy that she jumped all over him and licked him everywhere. Max was happy to be home too. There was a tiny part of me that was afraid that Max would know that Kuna had a rendezvous with a lover, but if he knew, he didn't care, he was just happy to be home. So we got back to a whole household again. Max had to be gone for more than three weeks. I think his absence took more of a toll on the family than ever before.

Like I said before, Max is the rock of this house. He is our protector, our steady hand, the clown that makes us laugh. He makes us remember who we are as a family. We are very lucky to have the most amazing dog in our life. It's funny that a dog can teach us more about being human than we can teach ourselves. If everyone could have a dog like Max, I think world peace might possible. lol I am f'reals.

The sad and almost unimaginable part of this, is that Max, my BoBo has very bad arthritis now. Because he has always been a big muscled boy, he has never been the most agile nor the most jump-friendly boxer I've seen. He is athletic, just not in the typical boxer way. He's stout, he's big and he can pull and or smash anything he want's. He has been known to chase down a few moose or two. . . not to mention some not-so-intelligent scuffles with porcupines. lol Which I am quite sure, HE has come out worse for wear.

So, you see, my snortin-snoring Max is strong, but is too heavy for his bones. I don't need doctors to tell me that he has arthritis. I have seen it many times before and a $300 diagnosis isn't going to change that he is in pain. I know he is. He is the best dog that I have ever had the privilege to love. I am going to try a supplement that supposedly reverses arthritis miraculously in dogs. I hope it works. As my best friend, I know that I won't allow him to be in pain for long. I wont force my "human" weakness on his animal spirit, so I will put him down before he can't walk and he loses his dignity.

All that said, because the Creator provides for all our needs, we are waiting to see the signs that Miss Kuna Mae is pregnant. It's been two weeks today and it's too early to tell. There are few signs are foreshadowing the distinct possiblity: her appetite is very strong right now and she is sleeping so hard that she is dreaming almost every time she closes her eyes. Now this might not seem unusual to most, but Kuna is a very light sleeper usually and only occasionally dreams.

So, my instinct is telling me that we are going to have a growing belly in a few weeks.

I can only hope that one of the babies she is growing turns out to be Max's shadow. . .

Beauty and the Boxer

This is my story in raising a puppy litter from its inception to when they are adopted to their new wonderful families. I will share the ups and downs of dog breeding and puppy raising. I hope it's fun and enjoyable for all the readers. If you are interested in one of the pups or you want to talk puppies, please feel free to leave me a message.

So here's my first post:

My little princess Kuna met with a handsome fellow named Booth on May 10th. The two of them acted like they had known each other for years. The chemistry was instant between them. And although Booth outweighs Kuna by 40 lbs. or more he allowed her to be in charge of everything. Since it was love at first scent we are expecting there to be some gorgeous love puppies out of the two of them.

You have to know these two dogs to truly appreciate the uniqueness of this relationship. Booth is the suave, have-any-girl-he-wants kind of guy, with both muscles and brains. And despite his lover boy ways, he is actually quite the gentleman. He is a AKC registered flashy reverse brindle that weighs 90 lbs. Kuna is a small, delicate female that would do anything for a child. She is also AKC and this will be the second time she is a mommy and will be the last. Miss Kuna gets to keep one of the puppies from the litter to become her new companion. Her current companion, a non-registered Boxer named Max, is getting up in age. He is the rock of the whole family and Kuna is very attached to him. So I decided to breed Kuna one more time for a new family member. We hope for a new man of the house, one that will follow in Max's footsteps and be like him when he grows up. So the fact that Kuna liked Booth was quite the surprise.

So now if you know anything about what the nickname "princess" entails, then you know that it requires that the "princess" must be given constant petting, special diets and prime real estate on the couch AND the bed. So it's only just begun, the princess is officially going to be pampered for the next few months.

Because my girl Kuna is going to be nourishing babies, she is on a very high fat, high protein diet. She gets a decent mid-grade dog food (she gets upset stomach on the high grade dog food) mixed with canned puppy food, cottage cheese every morning and night, as well as a raw egg once a day. Because I had been anticipating her getting pregnant I started her on this diet about a month ago to ensure that she would not be deprived of essential nutrition when the time came.

So, now we wait for the first signs. We have done everything we can and now we just let Mother Nature do her magic.