Arion Bouvier Blog

I Want that Cheese

2011-08-22T04:14:00.000-07:00

I was sitting on the sofa eating some bread and cheese while watching TV, a puppy with me on the sofa, on top of a couple of layers of bath towels just in case. On the table in front of me, close to the sofa, was a plate of delicious Manchego and some olives. The pup sniffed the air. He suddenly became animated and started moving really fast, with a determined attitude. His front legs slipped down off the sofa, but I caught him and pulled him back. He immediately dove forward again but this time I pulled the table closer and his front feet reached the table as he grabbed the cellophane wrapper from the cheese and started to pull on it as hard as he could. I pulled him back to me and he immediately set off again, determined to get the cheese. He was only 16 days old and had never eaten anything besides mother's milk....but he is a cheese lover already.

Three Weeks Old Update

2011-08-22T03:57:00.000-07:00

We are left with four happy healthy pups after losing one to internal injuries suffered when a very exhausted mother plopped down on her accidentally. Despite intensive care for two days round the clock, she left us peacefully.

The remaining four have been growing like wildfire and happily spent their time eating and sleeping and then doing it again. Eyes opened late...I guess because the pups were born several days premature. But most of them only opened their eyes on the 15th and 16th days. Behavior started to change with much more interaction with each other. Then ears started opening last Friday, at 20 days of age. You could see that a loud noise produced a slight head movement. Now they are fully engaged in seeing, hearing and interacting.

Play fighting has started and they appear to be fierce little drunken gladiators, lunging at a sibling and collapsing in a heap of uncoordination. "But it seemed a good plan, why won't my body cooperate?" But then they get up and start all over. I recall a line from a motivational talk by Wayne Dyer on not getting discouraged when life knocks you down, and not saying that you can't do something, nor even judging what others can do. He said, "How many times did you fall while learning to walk and then decided that you wouldn't ever be able to walk?" It is this wonderful innocent life force of forging on. Watching these little souls develop is endlessly fascinating and entertaining. Batuque is a great mother. The pups are so well fed and cleaned. But I can see she is bored out of her skull and wants to work. Her pumped up diet is keeping her in good shape. She is eating Evo Red Meat, Taste of the Wild Sierra Blend, cottage cheese, yogurt, cooked ground beef, cooked turkey, cooked liver.....and she eats like she's never eaten a meal in her life before. If I am a little late with feeding, she starts to throw things on the floor from the counters. She is such a wonderful diva....the local royalty.

PUPPIES! YEAH!

2011-08-01T06:12:00.000-07:00

Batuque had 5 pups on July 30. 3 males, 2 females
Stay tuned for photos, videos and fun posts.

Gooch (Batuque x Athar)

2011-05-28T07:16:00.001-07:00

This was Gooch when he was nine months old. He and his owner Linc have had to postpone training due to an injury to Gooch and an illness for Linc. My best wishes to them and hope to see them back at training soon.

The Gooch when he was 9 mos old

2011-05-28T06:41:00.000-07:00

This was from when Gooch (Arion's D'Judge) was nine months old. I could not get this to download before...hope it works now.

Some great pics taken by Tyler Verlander

2011-05-27T19:53:00.000-07:00

See more Batuque pics at facebook at Atlanta Working Dog Club

Batuque gets her French Ring Brevet

2011-05-27T19:47:00.000-07:00

Yea! Batuque....way to go in style with a 95.6 under NARA Judge Shannon Nieuwkoop at the Atlanta Working Dog Club trial on May 14, 2011. Batuque I am so grateful that you finally learned to humor me by following the rules.

Many thanks to Joey Leigh, trainer extraordinaire and Batuque's fave boy toy in a suit, Michael her training decoy whose Suburban she knows the sound of, and Mike Morgan, our training partner who walks every step we walk, rain or shine. And thanks to Tyler, Shirley and all the other club members who patiently deal with my angst.

New Batuque video

2010-09-05T13:00:00.000-07:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g8i7TRsuErU

Richard at our club took some video of a very hot training day and I got some good footage of Batuque practicing her French Ring with Joey Leigh as decoy. This was August 2010

2010-06-16T07:32:00.000-07:00

This was one more partial clip we got on my friend's iphone.

Batuque 1st attaque a face after 2 year layoff

2010-06-09T19:03:00.000-07:00

A hot Georgia summer night and Batuque is back. Joey has asked that a new decoy in training take the bites so he can practice a technique to teach the dog the pivot leg on an esquive. That's what the cones are about...to help the green decoy with timing and placement and help direct the dog to take the desired trajectory. All that is Joey's department. On the other hand, I was just enjoying the fun she was having and trying to get her used to the whistle meaning to let go as well as to come to me. I think she is having a bit of trouble catching on that the whistle means "out" as well as "come" (despite the fact that she does ballistic recalls to the whistle when there is no biting involved) and she hates to leave her sparring partner.

We're Training Again

2010-06-09T18:55:00.000-07:00

Batuque and I are back to working at the Atlanta Working Dog Club after a two year and too long break. Batuque is thrilled to be back to her favorite hobby and I live for the joy I see in her (and the others).

Last year was sad beyond bearing as I lost a best, long time human friend from a grotesque medical error and I lost my dear Rebel and Lucy, each just 3 months short of their 16th birthdays at the time of their passing. And I lost Olivia at only 14. I just couldn't bounce back from one jolt before another one hit.

But we're back.

Athar will soon be going as well but first I have to find a stronger crate for his deconstructionist efforts.

I've included a short video of Batuque's return to action on a hot Georgia summer night.

You just think you're bigger

2009-08-06T12:28:00.000-07:00

2009-08-05T16:19:00.000-07:00

2009-08-05T16:03:00.000-07:00

Big Boy Retrieve

2009-08-05T15:58:00.000-07:00

Little boy bottle retrieve

2009-08-05T15:36:00.000-07:00

2009-08-05T15:22:00.000-07:00

Big Boy and LIttle Boy

2009-08-05T15:15:00.000-07:00

This starts a series of big boy little boy clips for someone trying to decide.

2009-08-04T15:38:00.000-07:00

Video at 11.5 weeks of largest male and small female

Laregest male pup

2009-08-03T08:44:00.001-07:00

This is a big guy who likes to engage in any activity and enjoyed his first tug session with a strange man.

Brindle male pup plays with stranger

2009-08-03T08:18:00.000-07:00

This is the smallest male in his first tug play session with an unknown person.

The Face

2009-07-03T13:36:00.000-07:00

Wading through Puppies

2009-07-02T21:00:00.000-07:00

There is a loud noise at the end of this video. I have no clue what it is. I can only say that it is not a puppy. It might be a metal pan on concrete where the rest of the litter was playing. But no puppy was harmed in the making of this video....I can't say the same for the human legs involved.

Puppy play

2009-07-02T09:44:00.000-07:00

Bigger and Better

2009-06-30T18:12:00.000-07:00

Sorry it's been so long since I've written. The pups are keeping me busy! They are so cute and so interested in everything. I'll get some new photos tomorrow.

The carnage starts

2009-06-20T22:17:00.000-07:00

It is a choice between needle teeth and 96 degree heat with 80% humidity....I'll take the teeth for now but in a week I'll be crying. The pups have learned to use their mouths to play and capture moving things. I am so pleased at how keen they are. They love my pants legs for this.

Meanwhile their coordination is improving and one of the little boys tried to jump out of the kiddy pool today. I was really wowed by that at this age.

I'll try to get some video tomorrow. It's kinda dark in the house for the primitive video capacity of my camera and really hot outside. But I'll see what I can do.

A Morning of New Focus

2009-06-17T06:17:00.001-07:00

This morning some of the more developmentally advanced pups have a brand new look of focus. They will spy something of interest, gather the body together, ears forward, eyes steady on their target, and then suddenly, rush forward to....well, my pants leg...or a litter mate...and bite. Good morning new brain cells!!!

Lest I sound a bit too analytical...this is so much fun and I am enjoying pups and mother lots.

Circe is enjoying her pups. They attack her beard and pull on it and with a bemused look she gives them a great big lick with her tongue covering their face and over they go. This stage will end soon as they are developing coordination and not falling so easily.

Sluggish Air Conditioning

2009-06-16T12:50:00.000-07:00

It's a very hot day in Atlanta today. I walked into the puppy room and thought, hmm!, it seems a bit too warm in here. I went to check the vent to make sure it was open and the air was working, but I found it blocked by foreign objects....3 pups sound asleep all in a row on top of the vent...two of them on their backs with feet in the air. I didn't have the heart to move them. I'm sure they'll wake up refreshed.

Puppy Coming Out Party

2009-06-14T22:39:00.000-07:00

These developmental stages the pups go through are quite startling sometimes. Today saw a transformation in the pups. Their previous interaction with each other and their environment was awkward, all efforts at how to get the mechanics working to grip one another or some object. They were pretty uncoordinated and fell over a lot. Today was such a transformation it seemed that my litter had been replaced while I was out for the afternoon. I came home to pups running across the floor, trying to climb up my legs onto my lap, grabbing at my shoes and pants legs. They were attacking their mother's legs and springing at each other to do battle. These next two weeks will be so much fun. I am sorry that you won't be here to see it. It is one of the most engaging periods of development. I'll try to get some film clips for you.

TV Pup .. oh, and teeth emerge

2009-06-11T18:51:00.000-07:00

OMG, one of the pups, a little male, suddenly noticed the TV this evening as I was watching So You Think You Can Dance. He was walking across the living room and looked up, no doubt attracted by the flickering light, must have seen the people on stage...it was a very large, round rap singer in close contact with a tightly clad dancer both doing what could be considered aggressive movements. Puppy barked several times in his strongest baby voice and went directly toward the TV. I picked him up to see the whole thing from a higher altitude and he continued to watch, but barked again in my hands when the singer and dancer got close to each other and made more violent moves. Hmmm! Then I redirected him towards playing with me as he is too young for violence and sexually explicit TV.

Brain Development of Pups Dr Michael Fox

2009-06-08T22:00:00.001-07:00

Boy Pups First Explorations

2009-06-08T21:34:00.000-07:00

Girls First Outing

2009-06-08T21:11:00.000-07:00

Boy Pups

2009-06-08T20:52:00.001-07:00

First Outing for the Pups

2009-06-08T18:48:00.000-07:00

This evening was the first field trip for the pups out into the world. I separated the boys and the girls as I cannot carry them all at once, and took them with their mother into the yard. Hopefully I will have gotten some good photos and short film clips. I'll try to upload them in the next couple of days. The pups did great, moved around a lot. The grass was high for them...and when you see the photos you'll think I don't mow the lawn but it was mowed only four days ago but it rained lots. The pups are getting more active every day. I found an old book by Dr Michael Fox about puppy development and it shows photos of the brains of pups at very early ages and then how rapidly the brain develops. Very interesting. I'll try to get my scanner speaking to my computer again and see if I can scan and upload this interesting stuff.

Finally a Photo

2009-06-06T21:30:00.000-07:00

This is the way pups look at 18 days.

The Naturalist Observes

2009-06-06T05:11:00.000-07:00

I've been trying to observe the advances in behavior in the pups. I started noticing during the first week that they already had a startle reaction when areas near the eyes or the top of the head were touched suddenly. This is consistent with some neurological development of self protective zones around the head. As their motor skills develop, I have noticed the gradual perfection of skills as clumsiness and inaccuracies turn into proficiency. I have created a bedding environment of quilts, sheets and bath towels that I and Circe turn into little hills and valleys to negotiate. The pups have a softly cushioned opportunity to gain steadiness and sure footedness. But as they begin to interact, it's easy to see that they must perfect their ablity carry out the behaviors they set about. A pup may focus on another pup very keenly (and this always from a short distance as they can't see very far at this age), then bow up and do their very best puppy roar, and launch forward at the other pup....but fall over instead of hitting the mark. With practice they become much more fluent in their aim and then have to perfect what they do when they make contact. Yesterday I caught a pup (still toothless) practising various different knawing techniques on his brother's front leg as the brother slept.
Today I decided to open one of those tiny baby food glass jars...strained chicken...and see how the pups would cope. They were instantly attracted to the food but had difficulties with accurately aiming to get their mouth in the opening of the jar to lick the food. Much effort was spent experimenting around the rim of the little jar and the outside of the rim. There was considerable trial and error about getting the nose into the jar to lick the food. By the second opportunity, some learning seemed to have taken place as the attempts were far more directed, efficient and eager.

3 Weeks Today - Lots of Advances

2009-06-05T20:13:00.000-07:00

They are growing and getting more mobile each day. Their interactions are also more sophisticated and they are starting to grasp one another with firmer grasps with their little toothless grips. They are starting to lap water and they'll start eating a couple of meals a day on Sunday. I'll be giving them goat's milk with some yogurt and meat baby food jars at first until they get some teeth, then follow with the same plus some cooked ground meat alternating chicken, lamb, beef and turkey. I used to use raw meat, but I'm concerned with only having a supermarket source that it may not be as "clean" as I'd like. I carried a few of them outside today and was concerned about the 6 lb tigress that lives outside and brings in much bigger rabbits than these pups are right now. She was Rebel's best friend but the look on her face about the pups was a bit too keen. Kitty, the feral who adopted my household, may have to be crated for early puppy outings to prevent issues between her and Circe.

Clash of the Mini-Titans

2009-06-03T04:48:00.000-07:00

Development comes fast now.
Each day the pups have new powers.
This morning they have started to face off against one another with all their might....mini might...which amounts to slow, oddly coordinated mouthing targeting the other pup's head and neck amidst fierce baby growls. Soon they tire and fall asleep from the effort of their battles.
They are investigating more and this morning one of them showed that they are beginning to try to pick things up with their mouths. One of them started the quest to conquer the sofa, little feet up on and air sniffing what might be happening at that strange altitude they get a look at when I pick them up for their daily enrichment exercises.
This is a very joyful time as personalities start to emerge.

A Bouvier Fish Story -- The One that Got Away

2009-06-02T20:49:00.000-07:00

Arion's Ruff Daddy, twelve year old son of Brinks and Morgaine, lives in a country home with a river running through it. His owner Nancy was walking him last week one day when he stopped and started to stare intently into the water. Nancy was just contemplating that he would get dirty if he decided to jump in, when he plunged into the water, head going completely under, and came up with a large catfish in his mouth. He was so proud and pranced up the bank and placed it on the ground. Nancy wanted to throw it back and approached the fish but Ruff didn't want to lose his prize so he picked it up again and moved it away. This sequence repeated itself about three times before Ruff got the idea that if he put the fish down in the water, Nancy might not go there for it. But when the fish felt the water, it gave a mighty push with its tail and swam away. Ruff starting digging and splashing and barking furiously at the loss of his fish....the one that got away.

"Shame" Cougar Kim van de Vlaamse Beof video

2009-06-02T16:15:00.000-07:00

Here is a video of Cougar Kim van de Vlaamse Boef "Shame", the Grandfather of the pups, Cyrano's father, earning 96 points in his protection routine at the NBC Championship in October 2008. http://www.dailymotion.com/user/pakkie/video/x746cm_carmen-en-shame-combinatiewedstrijd_animals

And here are some wonderful photos that show the charms of the Bouvier.

http://www.bouviers.ch/Shame_pic.htm

In Memoriam Arion Bouviers and their People

2009-06-02T07:10:00.000-07:00

Mandy and Shawn shared the sad news of the passing of Arion's Reggae, 1996 -2009, a daughter of the great Nottingham's Sergeant Brinks Sch III, IPO III and Arion's Morgaine. Our condolences go out to Mandy and Shawn and family. They gave Reggae a great and loving home for many years. Thanks.

A note for those who think Reggae was shaved down....no, this is the natural old fashioned coat...I wish I could breed them all with these wonderful easy care working coats.

The Great Escape....Puppies on the Loose

2009-06-02T06:52:00.000-07:00

The great escape has happened. I came into the living room to find all the pups out of the whelping box and investigating and interacting with each other. They are 17 days old today. Their mother is excited about this new development and thinks it's time for them to start playing, so she was tossing a latex squeeky toy at them, hopeful that one would engage in play. They are starting to play with each other a bit, growling and pushing and slightly biting at each other's necks and heads. Very awkward still.

They get wormed today for the first time. My vet recommends it at two weeks and I hedged a few days because stools are looking good.

I've been doing a lot of the "super puppy" type developmental stimulation to increase brain development. They've had the exercises Dr Carmen Battaglia describes of rotating body direction and stimulation of feet plus putting them on a cold surface, but in addition to this, I do skin/hair stimulation and rocking and rolling on little hills formed by a nice padded quilt so that they roll down the hill and climb up the hill...all before eyes opened.

Pedigree of the Litter

2009-05-25T08:23:00.000-07:00

Circe was bred to Cyrano to reinforce some character qualities wihout losing any working drives, trainability and physical stamina. Cyrano and his father are both social dogs yet love to do protection work, have plenty of tenacity and courage and are responsive to handler controls. Circe is a retrieving fool, extremely willing to please and enjoys a chance to do protection training. Both partners are very happy, up tempo dogs while still retaining that innate sense of what and who are threatening that forms the foundation of an excellent protector. The icing on the cake is that both dogs are very typey and well built...good examples of the breed.

Check out the pedigree at http://www.arionbouviers.com/CyranoCirceLitter.htm

Cyrano x Circe pups born May 15, 2009

2009-05-24T11:33:00.000-07:00

May 15, 2009 was a great day for 10 new working line Bouvier babies to arrive in the world. Circe was also grateful to lose 18 lbs in one day! :-}
I am so excited about the prospects for these 5 boys and 5 girls.
They are now 1 week old and already a couple of them have climbed out of the kiddy pool whelping box. Eyes still closed but already on the go.

I'm happy to share photos of parents and other relatives and the pups as they grow and develop.