Shade. I love this puppy. But yet again I had to have a hard conversation with myself on the limitations of being a small scale breeder with a lot of other things on her plate.
A couple of weeks ago someone found me via the Breeder's Directory and asked if I had any available puppies. The more I talked with this person and learned about her family the more I realized I could provide a great home for my girl. Long story short, Michelle and Guy and their 3 young children have brought Shade home.
Her new name is Hero after the Shakespearean character in Much Ado About Nothing.
I am sooooo happy with this family. Shade... er, I mean Hero... is their first dog as a young family. And they're all getting along great from the sound of things. With the exception of one of their cats (not the one in the above photo) but hopefully he'll come around.Hero will be an easy baby for them to learn on. The whole time I was at their home talking to them about how to teach her things she sat at my feet fully attentive to me, waiting for me to direct her. Very gentle with the children (ages 2, 4 and 6) but happy to be interacting with them too. Love, love, love!!! that gentle, confident demeanor!
Other puppy news:
Wilson (fka Boo) is well and happy with his momma Donna and buddy Rudy.
I will be saving this photo to show how you can tell a Pem from a Cardi without looking at their butts.
Moxie (fka Raven) is doing equally well.
All three of these kids really took after Panda, being athletic and snuggley clowns. They are making their families smile everyday.
Also wanted to pass on some history of the breed. Moxie's mom, Ruth, has been doing a lot of research and happened to fall upon the Norwegian Lundehund. She writes:
"One source suggested that though they have a lot of connections to the Spitzes, they are most closely descended from the "Norwegian Lundehund". (When I look at the different breeds, I could see more Spitz in the Pembroke and more of a Lundehund look to the Cardigan.)
When I looked up the Lundehund, I was quite fascinated by it's similarities to the Cardigans in particular.
They were bred for hunting Puffins in the mountains and are exceptionally agile.
They have 6 toes including an opposible thumb which makes them capable of grasping in a manner similar to humans, making them excellent climbers. They can leap in the air and grab things with their paws. They are the only dog that is capable of spreading it's forelegs straight out to the sides in the same manner as humans. (I checked and Moxie can do this very comfortably also - but not quite straight out.) They are extremely flexible and can fold themselves completely backwards - something I see Moxie doing frequently when sleeping and have wondered how she can possibly be comfortable. They can shut their ears completely to keep out water, etc - Moxie also puts her ears back and down in a similar fashion (though I don't know if the corgi ears are quite as efficient at keeping out water?). I have also noticed that Moxie takes like a mountain goat to climbing."
"Most sites I found feel that there's a connection with the Cardigan to the Lundehund and probably the Dachshunds and the Basset Hound early on and then, later, more Spitz, possibly Vallhund was added to the breed later, producing the Pembroke. Early Cardigans worked as herders in mountainous regions on rough terrain, so a Lundehund connection certainly makes a lot of sense. . .
Moxie closes her ears when she rushes to greet me or when she goes through high grass, and, when she does, she looks just like this Lundehund."
Note: I have started some classes this summer. Human Biology plus Lab for that course. And Human Genetics! It's only been a week but I'm having a blast. On top of gardening, kids and dogs I might be over the top busy for blogwriting!
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