Lhasa Apso Blog: Happy Groundhog Day!

If ground-hog day was bright and fair,
The beast came forth, but not to stay;
His shadow turned him to his lair,
Where six weeks more, he dormant lay
Secure in subterranean hold—
So wondrous weather-wise was he—
Against six weeks of ice and cold,
Which, very certain, there would be...
~H.L. Fisher, "Popular Superstitions," Olden Times

Retirement Update

February 2nd! My "retirement" has only 27 days to go. January went by really fast and I cannot lie, I enjoy being home and not at the office, as much as I missed my staff. I'll be traveling almost once a week in February, so I'm sure the time will fly and it will be March before I know it and I'll be back in the office, albeit only part-time.

Thanks to those of you who sent private messages congratulating me on my retirement. I appreciate the comments and well wishes.

Puppy Update

Charley and Zeke left with their new owners and the reports I've received have been positive. Greta, who is now 3 months old, and Jenna, who is now 10 weeks old, are the two girls I plan to show. They have become great pals. Even though Greta is the older and larger of the two, Jenna seems to be the boss, or at least Greta lets her think she is!

Here are the most recent pictures of the Josh and Charli puppies -- and also of Greta.

Charley - 9 weeks

Zeke - 9 weeks

Jenna - 9 weeks

Greta - 12 weeks

Greta will be known to AKC as Joyslyn's No Regrets
Jenna will be known to AKC as Joyslyn MLS Dakota Je Na Sais Quoi

You may remember our girl, Luna - Ch. Joyslyn JaMa Dancing By The Light of the Moon, who earned the final points for her championship in October during ALAC's (American Lhasa Apso Club) National Specialty week. We recently did a "Luna Photo Shoot," so I'd like to share some of the photos with you. I was pleased with the way they turned out. I am very proud to be the breeder of this beautiful Lhasa.

I've been getting quite a few email messages from people asking about upcoming litters. We have two, maybe three, breedings planned for 2016. If all goes as planned, we should have litters in the summer and early fall.

Notes and Photos from Others

Congratulations to Karen Schlais and Jan Graunke, who had a great January. Their girl Sybil earned her championship, and their Penny earned both of her majors. Penny's litter brother, Stewie, earned both his majors in December. These two Lhasas are still puppies that will not be a year old until mid April. I'm especially proud because their sire is my Ch. Joyslyn's Heartbreaker. (Karen and Jan, I know you are rolling your eyes! I can't help myself!)

Penny and Stewie's litter sister, Zoey, lives in Illinois. Her owners, Diane and Jeff, wrote a lovely note to Karen and me: "Hi Joyce and Karen, I just wanted to send you a few pictures of our beautiful Zoey and let you how much we love her. She is the sweetest little girl who has added so much joy to our home. She loves to play and retrieves her toys all the time. It’s hilarious how she frequently “pounces” like a bunny rather than run like most dogs do when we play catch with her. I attached a picture of how she likes to retrieve 2 tennis balls at a time which really cracks us up. Zoey tends to be quite persistent about getting our attention, which Joyce noticed when she had her those few weeks. (Me, Me Me!!!!) But we don’t mind it at all----she’s very affectionate and loving. Surprisingly, she is quite the lap dog. (Our 2 Lhasa’s certainly were not.) She is smart and will do almost anything for a doggie treat. Zoey is also a good traveler and enjoys her car rides to Green Bay to visit my family. She is personality plus, that’s for sure… I’m so glad that the two of you are Lhasa Apso breeders---they are for sure the best breed on the planet. Thanks so much to both of you for bringing her into our life---that was the perfect collaboration. We feel extremely fortunate to have a wonderful puppy like Zoey."

Zoey

Kathy sent a note saying, "I was just thinking of you because Greta, Sophie, and their brothers are three months old today. ..She is doing great, and she never disappoints us with learning something new, or showing us a new behavior every day. She starts her puppy class on Feb. 6, and then she will be going to Gulf Shores, AL with us on April 22 for a week. We are giving her plenty of new experiences, and she is giving US plenty of new experiences! Ha, ha! Today, we gave her a bath for the first time. Boy, was THAT a learning experience!… Everyone comments on what a beautiful puppy she is…"

Kathy is a friend of Marilyn, who owns a Joyslyn's Lhasa named Maci. They sent me a great video of Maci and Sophie playing. It was too large to include in this blog, but here is a photo of Marilyn's Maci and Kathy's Sophie. The video was hilarious. The two girls had a great time playing.

Mary sent more photos of Belle in action at an agility trial. I am amazed whenever I see those pictures. Belle was an adult when Mary purchased her from me. Belle hated going to shows and seemed only to want to lie around and look lovely. I never ever expected that she would be an agility dog! Mary has done a super job training her. Here is Belle with another of Mary's Lhasas, Moka, who also participates in agility trials. The girls are at a trial, hanging out and waiting their turns to run.

Left - Belle, Right - Moka

Links to Some Interesting Articles

Does your dog misbehave? If so, it might be your own fault! The article, "Five Things You're Doing to Make Your Dog Misbehave," points out what you might be doing wrong.

Have you heard people claim that mixed breeds are healthier than purebreds? It's a common myth. You might refer to this article, "Healthy Dogs, Sick Dogs—Does Breed Type Make a Difference?"

Other good articles to read:
Angel Days and Devil Days - Teaching Bite Inhibition to Puppies

Who's In Charge Here? A Lesson In Becoming Alpha

Fair Warning: This Has Nothing to do with Dogs

As most of you know by now, one of my sons is a musician. He plays with a band named Black Fast. The band will soon set off on its next tour. Here is where they will be -- perhaps in a venue near you. It amazes me that they travel from town to town and state to state, playing a different venue each night. It must be exhausting! Their albums, Starving Out the Light and Terms of Surrender, have some great music and have earned some nice reviews. You can find out more about the band on Facebook and other sites on web and find links to hear (and buy) their music.