When We Grow Up…..

Posted on March 8, 2016 by Sand Spring Chesapeakes

We want to be just like our Dad!

Lzy Mtn 3-D Brown Bear SH “Bear”

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“Forrest”

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“Green” Male

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“Lime Green” Girl

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“Yellow” Male

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“White” Girl

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“Pink” Girl

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“Blue” Girl

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“Orange” Girl

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“Red” Girl

I had fun doing this photo shoot and was pleasantly surprised when “Bear’s” owner sent me the picture of Bear in the wagon. It totally fit with my wagon theme and I just had to share it with you all. I sure hope these puppies turn out like their dad, hopefully they will get the best of both Glory and Bear and be super dogs!

One On One

Posted on January 29, 2016 by Sand Spring Chesapeakes

This week at work Preacher got to have some one on one time again for some ~~play~~ exercise with her pal Weston the Rottweiler. Weston is a rescue rottie that my pal Teresa that I work with adopted a few months ago. Weston lives with his brother another adopted rottie Cyrus who is 8 years old. Both dogs train and compete in agility, lure coursing and carting. Teresa has no idea the up bringing of these boys but they sure have filled her life with tons of joy and love to be out there working. They are the sweetest boys you could meet. Preacher just loves her time with Weston as you can see from the photos.

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The excitement is all in the eyes!

I can take you Weston your Rottie butt has nothing on me!

Preacher down, but not for long.

Sometimes the dogs just need some one on one exercise. That way they know it’s just the two of them and they can concentrate on each other vs worry about where the other dogs are and when someone else is going to do the sneak attack and bomb one of them. They had no troubles racing around in the snow and cold for over a half hour. They were tired pooches for the rest of the afternoon at work.

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The fun and games continue every Friday with FitDog Friday, the weekly Blog Hop brought to you by To Dog With Love, SlimDoggy and Emma from Mygbgvlife to promote a healthy active lifestyle for pets (and their people, too!). Join in every Friday by linking up your FitDog story or visiting the blogs in the Hop.

Dura-Whelp Because Glory Deserves It

Posted on January 28, 2016 by Sand Spring Chesapeakes

Glory is due to have her and Bear’s (Lzy Mtn Piper’s 3-D Brown Bear SH) puppies the weekend of February 6th. Now is the time to break out the whelping box, set it up and have Glory get used to it. You know from the last breeding I did in July Glory used Nellie’s old wood whelping box that I painted to try and make it seem “new” to her.

The wooden box.

I thought for this litter Glory deserved a new whelping box so I did my research and found that Dura-Whelp was the way to go by Breeder Base. I ordered one up, ordered a pad to go with it and waited for it to arrive which took 2 weeks (I did order it on a Saturday). Yesterday was the day to set it up as I had off of work.

What is Dura-Whelp?

*Dura-Whelp® is the Original PROFESSIONAL whelping box.
The worlds Cleanest & Easiest & Safest whelping boxes“since 1994”

Corrugated plastic is somewhat flexible yet extremely durable and easy to clean. Our patented floor-to-wall design eliminates parts with complicated slots, grooves and gaps for poop/urine to get trapped in & leak through. Our flat and open surface area allows for easy cleaning! Outdated wooden boxes are not only heavy but impossible to keep sanitary. Painting introduces diseases, skin lesions, etc. & the probability of puppies eating the paint. The entire Dura-Whelp® Box can be easily cleaned with Bleach, Quatricide, other detergent or disinfectant.*

*from Breeders Base website

The shipping box doubles as a storage box.

I hauled this big box up stairs to my bedroom all by myself so it was actually quite light. My helpers were there ready to help me out. Gambler thought he had the job of opening the box as he gets to open ALL boxes. He was taken back when I told him to kindly remove his teeth from the box. So he just stood and watched me.

Preacher helping me open the box.

You want to be careful opening the box so that you can use it again to store the box in when not in use. I pulled out all the components and got started assembling.

The side rails.

You want to be careful when using a scissors to cut the plastic away from the side rails. They put plastic over the velcro when they were securing the rails together. I almost cut right through the velcro not knowing what it really was.

The instructions.

The box came with instructions on assembling, cleaning and care of the pad that I bought with it.

The base.

After everything was unpacked and opened up I laid down the base in which Preacher had to check it out.

The side piece which is the box.

You center the one piece box on top of the base.

The velcro on the sides.

The velcro was attached to the base, you then had to peel off the sticky plastic along the whole side then press the small side up onto the side of the whelping box. The sticky velcro will then adhere to the tall side of the box and stay there for future use. This was the most time consuming part. It took me forever to peel that sticky tape off the velcro. You do this for all four sides.

The velcro on the side rails.

The pig rails have velcro on them to that needs the sticky tape removed. You then put the rail into the open slot on the box and push the velcro side of the rail up against the side of the box. This will help hold the side rail in place around the box. There are 2 side rails that get attached into the holes in the box then the other 2 side rails have lips on them that butt up against the first side rails and then you screw them in place.

Attaching the side rails with 4 screws.

I had to use a screw driver to screw the screw into place, it wasn’t that difficult.

Velcro to attach the pad to the base.

The box came with one disposable pad liner that goes under the pad. The pad that I bought separately came with 4 velcro pieces that attaches to the base and then the pad will attach to that velcro. The pad is made of a faux fleece with rubber on the bottom to keep it from sliding around. The pad can be put in the washer on gentle cycle and cool dry in the dryer or hung out to dry. It’s a good idea to purchase 2 pads so when one is in the washer you have one in the box.

Front view.

Ta Da it’s done. The front of the box has a removal door that you can keep in place to keep everyone in or you can pull it out when it’s time for weaning and let mom come out. There is another weaning box that can be attached to this box when the time is right so then they can move from one box to the next. There are corner pieces that you can purchase also to help save the corners, I didn’t get these or the extra weaning box.

The side view.

The box I bought was the XLG box which is 48 x 60 in. For right now I got a K & H heating pad for warmth which looks really small inside the box. It is a 12 x 23 in. I’m not sure if I’m going to use it or not. Breeder Base has a puppy incubation system called the Therma-Whelp which I may look into getting. I’m not digging the heating pad idea with the cord in the box even know it is lined with wire to prevent biting but the cord will have to be strung over the box and not sure how that will all work out. I used to use a heating lamp with Nellie and had no problems with it but I wanted to try and stay away from that with Glory as Glory tends to run hot and she hates heat so I wanted to do something where Glory could be cool and the puppies warm.

Gambler and his gender crisis.

Of course Gambler had to be the first one to hop in the box with the door up. I think he is having a gender crisis and wants to be a girl so he can have a special box.

Time for Glory to check it out.

Come on mom? Is this really for me? That means I’m about to have little burr heads again and have to spend time in the box with them again. She checked the box all out and made sure it was to her liking. Last night thou she didn’t sleep in it she slept on the floor right outside the box.

It’s great!

It took me 35 minutes to unpack and set this all up. Now that it is all put together and I know how to do it taking it down and putting it back up will be a snap.

Easy storage.

Once I’m done with it I can easily put it back in it’s original box and store it in the attic that is attached to my bedroom closet.

I got my Dura-Whelp from Dogs Afield, I found they had the best price.

Cost of XLG box: $199.99

Pad: 47.99

Extra shipping 40.00

Total: $287.98

I plan on keeping you updated as I use the box and do a review later as to how I liked it.

Barks And Bytes

We are joining Linda at 2browndawgs and Jodi at Heart Like A Dog for this great blog hop.

Puppies In Tub

Posted on August 18, 2015 by Sand Spring Chesapeakes

We had a fun photo shoot this past weekend. The puppies turned 5 weeks old on Saturday. Only three more weeks until they go to their new homes. It’s a good thing I’m keeping one as they are just too darn cute. I’ve narrowed down my decision, I will be keeping either Orange or Pink. Who will the lucky lady be?

Furminator Dual Brush @Chewy.com

Posted on April 14, 2015 by Sand Spring Chesapeakes

Chewy White

Ding dong Chewy.com calling. We got our monthly sample from Chewy.com. Today we are sampling something non editable for once. With shedding season upon us I thought it would be great to try out and review the Furminator Dual Brush For Dogs. It says for dogs but you will see at the end of the post I tried it out on MK also, so not just for dogs anymore.

FURminator Dual Brush For Dogs

Furminator Dual Brush For Dogs comes with 2 types of brushes and a carrying/protective outer case.

A well groomed pet is a happy, healthy pet. But, there are many reasons that frequent visits to your pet stylist aren’t always possible. With FURminator’s new line of professional quality grooming tools, you can get near professional results at home.

Key Benefits

Helps remove mats, tangles and loose hair
Features a pin brush on one side and bristle brush on the other
Pin brush works on long coated dogs
Nylon bristle brush is an excellent all round brush that can be used on almost any coat type
Removes debris from short coated dogs
Finishes the coat and creates a natural shine for long coats
Designed to follow the natural contours of pet’s head and body

Isn’t this suppose to be food?

Of course when the Chewy.com box came in the mail, Gambler thought it was for him and it was something edible, he was sadly mistaken when he tried to eat it and it poked him.

Nellie enjoying the brushing.

Nellie has a thick wavy coat that is shedding something fierce now. The pin brush worked great at going through her thick coat grabbing all the hair that she was shedding out.

Nellie on top and Gambler on bottom.

The pin brush really made the dogs coat stand up looking really full.

Glory loving the soft bristle part of the brush for head brushing.

The soft bristle side of the brush worked great on the smooth not so long parts of the dogs like their head and legs.

The hair easily came out.

All the shed hair came out of the pin side of the brush very easily.

Dual brush, not just for dogs.

MK couldn’t be left out. The dogs were all getting brushed so she came running to find out what the fuss was about. She didn’t mind the brush at all so it’s not just a dog brush but a cat brush too.

Right now the brush is on sale for $9.94 a 48% savings over the normal cost of $18.99. What a great price for a brush that works well on long and short hair of dogs and cats.

Why Chewy.com?

Because: Chewy.com has more than 300 brands to choose from and is ready to fetch it and ship it, direct to your doorstep, anytime of the day. Have a question regarding the best food for your pet? Call us 24/7 and our helpful customer service team at Chewy.com is ready to listen.

Chewy.com lives and breathes pets. Headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Chewy.com’s dedicated staff is committed to providing quality pet products to our customers in a fast and easy way. That’s why we have warehouses located throughout the country – so the products are delivered quickly and efficiently. Bottom line, Chewy.com delivers pet happiness – and there’s nothing really better than that. Their products are 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed (if your not happy call them and they pay for shipping the item back), they have expert pet care and product advice, over 200 of the best pet brands and 24/7 customer care. Another great benefit of Chewy.com is they have autoship for your pet food needs and orders under $49.00 are a flat rate shipping cost of $4.95.

Chewy.com 200 SW 1st Avenue Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301 1-800-67-CHEWY

I was compensated (1) Furminator Dual Brush For Dogs for a honest review from Chewy.com.

Bad Mom No Biscuit~Gambler Blows A Moccasin

Posted on March 15, 2015 by Sand Spring Chesapeakes

Bad Mom No Biscuit~Gambler Blows A Moccasin

A couple weeks ago Gamblers brother Easy from across the pond tore his toenail off you can read about it here. Gambler not wanting to have his brother feeling like he was the only one to blow a moccasin decided to blow one of his own the first day of spring training at the Sandspring ranch. On my day off I set up some blinds for G & G, we ran our blinds, set up camp for the evening and John asked why Gambler was holding his leg up…..ahhhh that would be because he broke his toenail. This would be the third toenail that Gambler has broken off. Second time while out training, the other time while attacking the vacuum.

Rut roo not good to go for a ride with mom on a work day.

This was totally my fault, I noticed over the weekend that his nails were getting long and that they needed to be trimmed but of course I ran out of time and didn’t get to it now poor Gambler had to suffer. 🙁

Broken back toenail.

He just took off the top part of the nail.

Other toenails very long. Bad Mom!

The toenail on the right is the one he broke off over a year ago, it still hasn’t decided to grow back like a regular nail. The toenail with the arrow by it is showing the quik (blood vein in the toenail- pink area) and the white tip of the toenail that is over grown and should be cut off so it doesn’t break off.

How I trim toenails.

Trimming equipment.

There are different types of nail trimmers, I like those big orange ones. You should also have on hand kwik stop to stop bleeding if you cut one too short, styptic pencils can be used too but will sting.

Gambler laying on his side.

Since I had help I had Gambler lay on his side. The holder put her elbow across his neck and used her left hand to hold his lower front leg and then put her right arm across his stomach right in front of his back legs and held his lower back leg. With those legs held if he struggles he can’t get up. I then trim the tips off the nails, I trim the skinny area right before it gets to the thick part of the nail shown above by the arrow. If they are light nails you can see the quik in the nail which is pink so you want to cut right before the quik.

Starting in the middle.

I start taking the middle of the nail off then I rotate the clippers to take some off of each side and then go back to the middle and take more off the top.

Rotating to the sides.

Opps I cut one to short.

If you happen to cut one to short, you can use kwik stop powder or corn starch to stop the bleeding. Styptic pencils can be used too but do sting so we use those on asleep animals.

Bleeding stopped.

A dremel can be used to smooth out the rough edges.

Trimmed up.

Don’t be like me and wait for your dog to break a toenail before you trim them. Granted they can still break a toenail that is trimmed up but most likely it happens when they are long. This was a minor break once it was trimmed up and cleaned up Gambler was good as new and back training. Can’t keep this hard running dog down at all.

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I Wanna Be A Cowboy~Beef Hearts @Chewy.com

Posted on March 9, 2015 by Sand Spring Chesapeakes

Chewy White Ding dong Chewy.com calling. We got our monthly sample from Chewy.com. Today we are sampling

Evanger’s Beef Hearts Freeze-Dried Dog & Cat Treats, 3.5-oz tub

Riding on the range, I’ve got my hat – on, I’ve got my boots – dusty. I wanna be a cowboy and you can be my cowgirl’s. Riding on the chuck wagon, Following my man. His name is Gman I wanna be a cowboy and you can be my cowgirl’s. Looking like a hero, Because I called Chewy.com, Chewing on my beef heart. Out on the horizon, I shared with my cowgirl’s. I wanna be a cowboy and you can be my cowgirl’s.

Some nice big pieces.

Glory taste testing, it’s a hit! She took it and ran.

Nellie laid right there and enjoyed her tasty snack.

Gambler chewing that nice big beef heart piece.

Evanger’s Beef Hearts Freeze-Dried Dog & Cat Treats, 3.5-oz tub

Because of the palatability and wholesomeness of these treats, they are excellent for finicky pets or pets with food sensitivities, as well as for use as a training reward or food mixer. Key Benefits

Grain and Gluten Free
Only 1 ingredient
Nutrient dense

Evanger’s Beef Hearts Freeze-Dried Dog & Cat Treats, 3.5-oz tub on sale now at Chewy.com for $6.61 a 45% savings. What’s not to love about a one ingredient treat that the dogs go gaga over? Why Chewy.com? Because: Chewy.com has more than 300 brands to choose from and is ready to fetch it and ship it, direct to your doorstep, anytime of the day. Have a question regarding the best food for your pet? Call us 24/7 and our helpful customer service team at Chewy.com is ready to listen. Chewy.com lives and breathes pets. Headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Chewy.com’s dedicated staff is committed to providing quality pet products to our customers in a fast and easy way. That’s why we have warehouses located throughout the country – so the products are delivered quickly and efficiently. Bottom line, Chewy.com delivers pet happiness – and there’s nothing really better than that. Their products are 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed (if your not happy call them and they pay for shipping the item back), they have expert pet care and product advice, over 200 of the best pet brands and 24/7 customer care. Another great benefit of Chewy.com is they have autoship for your pet food needs and orders under $49.00 are a flat rate shipping cost of $4.95. Chewy.com 200 SW 1st Avenue Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301 1-800-67-CHEWY I was compensated (1) 3.5 oz tub of Evanger’s Beef Hearts for a honest review from Chewy.com.

Tuesdays, Just Got Tastier!Tuesdays, Just Got Tastier!

We are joining the Tuesday Blog Hop Hosted By Kol’s Notes and Sugar The Golden Retriever

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It’s A Ducky Monday~Monday Mischief

Posted on March 9, 2015 by Sand Spring Chesapeakes

With a couple weeks of not knowing if Monday Mischief was going to be here or not I am so glad that it is here! Thanks to Jen at mybrownnewfies for keeping it going! Lord knows we always have mischief at our house to report on Monday to start the week out with a bang.

Today’s mischief involves little duckies. Each year I buy day old mallard ducks or I incubate them from eggs that are laid by the adult mallards I’ve kept through the winter. This year I didn’t keep any mallards through the winter so I had to buy day old ducks. Usually I buy them in March/April when it is warmer as I don’t want the little buggers to freeze if shipped in the mail. This year I wanted to buy them as early as I could so they could be big enough to start using them for training come June. So I placed my order for first hatch on February 23rd. I went and picked them up from Abendroth’s Hatchery just after they were hatched, brought them home and set them up in our shed. It just so happened this night it was going to get well below zero and not much warmer the next day so I had to keep the litter buggers warm.

101 little peepers.

Have to keep the peepers warm.

So how does JoAnn keep the peepers warm you ask?

Besides having three heat lamps they have their own space heater.

And a sheet to keep the heat in.

Can’t accuse me of not taking very good care of my little peepers, they have a warmer set up then I have, lol.

All the little peepers have made it two weeks now. They are such hardy little things. They are growing like weeks and making a mess of things. G & G are happy as they know when little peepers come training is just around the corner.

This is a Blog Hop. Thanks to Alfie’s Blog, Snoopy’s Dog Blog , Luna, a Dog’s Life , and My Brown Newfies for setting up this hop. Please go to any of the sponsoring blogs to find out who else has been mischievous.

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Class Is In Session~Chewy.com

Posted on February 24, 2015 by Sand Spring Chesapeakes

Chewy White

Ding dong Chewy.com calling. We got our monthly sample from Chewy.com.

Class is in session today. Students Gambler, Glory, Nellie and MK have something to learn and share with you all.

Class in in session, where are our students?

Don’t be a dunce, listen to your teacher and eat healthy.

Does giving your dog real rawhides scare you?

There is an alternative, SmartBones by SmartChips~Peanut Butter Chews.

SmartBones SmartChips Peanut Butter Chews Dog Treats, 12-pack

Many veterinarians are concerned with the potential health risks associated with dogs consuming rawhide. Rawhide-free SmartChips chews made with real chicken, vegetables and other healthy ingredients dogs love provide your canine companion with needed chewing exercise and great taste. These chew treats are the healthier alternative to regular rawhide treats which may cause intestinal blockages. SmartBones are 99.2% digestible, which is higher than the digestibility of premium dog foods (85% digestibility). Smart chews for smart dogs!

Key Benefits

SmartChips Chew Packs are perfect for small to large dog breeds – each chip measures approximately 3 inches long
Nine out of 10 dogs prefer SmartBones over rawhide treats
Safe – rawhide-free
Made with real, dried chicken breast
Chewing activity promotes healthy dental care
Fortified with vitamins and minerals
Great taste dogs love – available in chicken and peanut butter

MK please stop disrupting the students, class is going on right now.

Ok students you can eat your treats now.

Nom, Nom, Nom

Gambler taste testing.

Glory taste testing.

Nellie taste testing.

The chews are somewhat hard, it took the dogs a fair amount of time to chew them up. They couldn’t just eat it down, they had to work at it which was nice. They loved the taste and wanted more right away.

The gang gives the SmartChips a A+ and 16 paws up.

Gambler loved them so much he had to help himself to more.

MK thinking these should be made for kitties.

SmartBones SmartChips are on sale right now with Chewy.com 12 pk bag $6.99 which is a 26% savings.

Why Chewy.com?

Their products are 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed (if your not happy call them and they pay for shipping the item back), they have expert pet care and product advice, over 200 of the best pet brands and 24/7 customer care. Another great benefit of Chewy.com is they have autoship for your pet food needs and orders under $49.00 are a flat rate shipping cost of $4.95.

Chewy.com

200 SW 1st Avenue

Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301

1-800-67-CHEWY

I was compensated 1 bag of SmartBones SmartChips for a honest review from Chewy.com.

We’re joining the Tasty Tuesday blog hop today. This is a blog hop that celebrates good food, sponsored by Sugar the Golden Retriever and Kols Notes.

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It’s All About MK…No Chessies~Thursday Barks And Bytes

Posted on January 15, 2015 by Sand Spring Chesapeakes

It’s all about MK, MK….No Chessies, It’s all about MK, MK….No Chessies.

Poor MK hasn’t gotten much lime life on the blog so today it’s all about her and not the chessies.

MK loves to hang out outside. I did find out the reason she want’s to be out their is probably to meet up with her boyfriend the striped cat that lives at my brother in laws house. I will see him dart off across the field to the line fence and he is traveling a ways from home so it must be to meet MK. MK also had a abscess last summer so it must of been from him. One of the many reasons to keep your cat indoors but do I listen or does MK? Nope, it’s a do as I say moment and not as I do. She is as photo genetic as the chessies so it’s all about MK today.