Mostly Photos...

First, Happy Independence Day! (I know...I am a day late and the fireworks are over! However, we should celebrate our freedoms daily.)

Photos of Joyslyn's Lhasas Shared by Their Owners:

Mary sent these photos of her 2 Joyslyn's dogs, Belle and Rafe. Rafe is sporting a new "do" that shows off his beautiful head and face.

Kathy sent a photo of Jampa, who is our Millie's litter brother.

Jim sent this photo of Daisy, taken as they traveled to CA.

Sue sent a photo of Monte, who is a litter brother to our Winter. 

Speaking of Winter, she is still in MS with her handler, waiting for a show where there might be a Lhasa entry, perhaps late summer or fall.

Violet sent this photo of Shadow, who is a litter brother of our Chance and Bekka.

Mark has two Joyslyn Lhasas, LiLi is the older; YoYo is the puppy. He calls them the "Beauty Queen" and the "Wild Child."

Shannon sent a picture of Minnie, who is a litter sister to our Archie. She, Archie, and litter mates Hazel, Teddy, and Carso are 3 months old already!

Although she did not send me this photo recently, yesterday I ran across this photo Marsha sent years ago (late 1997 or early 1998) of Oreo (Joyslyn's Leader of the Pack) when he was 6 months old. What a cutie! It brought back so many memories that I just had to share. Oreo has long since passed away. He earned agility titles and was a very smart Lhasa!

Here is a photo of him in action during an agility trial.

Our Current Litters

First, here are photos of Greta's puppies. They are growing, becoming more curious, playing, and still doing a lot of sleeping. Age 4 weeks.

Aspen, 4 weeks

Beau, 4 weeks

Jetta, 4 weeks

Lia, 4 weeks

Willow, 4 weeks

 This is Jenna's puppy, Solo, age 3 weeks. She is a black and tan. She does have eyes!!

And here comes the hard part: 
I know that many of you are waiting for information about Onyx's litter. Let me tell you that the week they were born was the week from hell. All went well with the whelping. They were all born easily and quickly. They were small puppies, all under around or under 4 oz. Then day after day, they died, one each day. All our efforts to supplement feedings were for naught. Onyx, who last year raised a litter of 7, was uninterested in being a mother. The day following their birth, Onyx had mastitis. A few days of an antibiotic, cabbage leaves, heat packs, massages, and hydrotherapy and she was better. 

I went through all the stages of grief at lightning speed that week. Exhausted, emotions raw, I gave myself a good talking to, recalled the Serenity Prayer, and did finally "accept the things I cannot change." 

Because of the puppies' small size and their lethargy, I have a strong feeling that this litter was the result of the last breeding and was born a week too soon. 

Anyone who thinks being a dog breeder is a piece of cake is so wrong.

We have two precious puppies, both males, from the litter. We are still doing feedings to supplement one of them. He is a character and gets so excited about eating! Onyx has settled down and is being a good mom. 

Letting people know about the loss of nearly all the puppies means going through the grief and disappointment all over again. I know most of you who read this are going to feel really sorry for me and the situation. Thanks for those feelings and for the good wishes for the two boys that remain. Please don't email me condolences. They'll just bring back the bad memories of that week, and I want to look forward, not back.

Lhasa blessings on you all.

Thanks for reading the blog!

Joyce