We had an unexpected surprise last week…Breeze came into heat a month early!  Everything has been a bit of a whirlwind since then. 

The first steps are watching your female dog like a hawk.  Then being on pins and needles to see when she is actually ready.  Knowing that I wanted to drive all the way to northern Washington, a friend came for a visit to help us make the trek, needing to do so in June instead of following the July plan.

We have a tradition of taking Breeze to her breeder’s home, Renee at Trailblazer English Shepherds,who has an intact male Connor (out of Breeze’s 1^st litter with Rio), to see if they are interested in each other.  Monday night there was nothing going on.  Tuesday the male we were considering unexpectedly “went off his food”, so among other things, that led us to see if Rio was available, as they are neighbors.

We had been thinking about Rio since 2016 (check it out here or use the sidebar blog month of August 2016 as well as their litter page ), as those puppies were wonderful.  Because Rio, a tri-color, and Breeze, with her Irish black and white, both have a recessive gene for clear (not shadowed with darker markings) sable and white, we had three colors in that litter, adding a little spice to the den.

By Wednesday morning we ran by Renee’s again, and this time it was perfectly obvious that Breeze was ready. Getting the teardrop and gear packed and truck hooked up, we set off to the Ferndale destination at the near-Canadian border. 

The breeding between the dogs was clearly a union.  If we would have stayed another day they may have mated again, as is sometimes done, but she looked complete.  She has been a happy dog ever since, with a new found contentment.  Her love of travel was such a blessing, making that long haul without batting an eye.

In April, I had purchased a puppy from Montana, Katie, to be Breeze’s runner-up when she is ready to retire in a couple of years.  Breeze’s great mothering instincts made their relationship go along wonderfully, becoming a mother and big sister all in one.  Suffice it to say, that when Breeze came home from the long trip, she began developing another level of relating with Katie, quite mildly asking for just a little more space, and preparing our household for a litter. It was a relief to me since she had been letting Katie have her way at every turn, so I wondered how and when things would shift a little…so naturally everything flowed easily into the next part of the river.

Katie began puppy preschool Monday June 29^th, followed by good manner training, even though she is already 4 months old.  There just wasn’t any earlier opportunities open during the quarantine.  I hope to learn a great deal that will not only help me with Katie’s development, but also as a breeder, to offer even more great learning exposure to our litter of pups.

I’ve learned a tremendous amount from Renee that one would never find in a book or online, e.g. playing a movie with unexpected loud noises as they begin to discover something other-than-mother (week 4-8) to desensitize them to sounds a bit.  And, also learned much from just the school of hard knocks, like why did I ever think that loading a wagon with a litter of puppies, multiple times a day, to get out to the puppy park was a good solution? 

Its now an obvious no-brainer and I have the puppy den-pen right next to the back door!  If my body didn’t complain I’d probably have continued doing it.  I think it was the litter of 12 while really working to teach them all good outside potty habits, that brought me into full awareness of simpler solutions…but it was cute to see them riding in the wagon;*))

Rebecca Wingler from the English Shepherd Club, wrote an article about pregnancy and breeding on their websitehttp://www.englishshepherd.org/.  I loved her comment that “one must always be prepared for the unexpected, because our dogs don’t read the same books we do”.  That about sums it up!  We are looking at day 63 (text book pregnancy) being August 27^th for whelping, and then the puppies going to their new homes near the 22^nd of October.  Really a wonderful climate-window for having pups exploring the world.

Breeze and Rio showed a great deal of relaxation and a feeling of being very complete with only one tie. At the end of this video Rio then Breeze each take a turn doing the full-on happy tail wag (side to side and circle)…I think it took!

Please write me at contactme@jaiaenbeck.com with any questions!  As of this writing, there are 5 deposits on this upcoming litter, so if you, or someone you know, are interested in a puppy from a pairing of these great English Shepherd lines, both with really nice 5 generation pedigrees, and sweet temperaments, now is a good time to begin to discuss that option with Breeze and I.  We start the process with a puppy application (sorry – it’s a bit like applying for a house loan ;*)) but after all, you are asking for a family member), and than an interview using Zoom or the phone. Of course, we can always talk by phone before that…just ring me up!

Thanks to those of you who have shared kind words with me. Its all a sensitive process, much like when someone dies, and people just don’t know what to say. Its all part of the wheel of life and navigating that isn’t a casual job for any of us.

Our veterinarian suggested Breeze had a “false” pregnancy. To have her milk glands swell and other symptoms are some of the indicators. Another big one for us, is this silly little toy-pup that she brings out only annually – its actually a black, gray and white racoon. She first brought out from her basket just before whelping her first litter, and again she did the same on her second litter. Then, again when we talked of moving the puppies in her third litter to the outside yard, and she promptly moved this toy-pup outside. So its her communication tool to us humans.

She is just such a good mom and so tuned in. Its quite touching to see her in her dilemma.

So, the last few days she has non-stop been bringing this toy-pup out to get my attention, plus doing some small whines like she has done after each litter would leave and go home to their families, as she was searching around for what happened to her little ones.

We began doing some treatments for myself to move through the feelings, and now today, we did a treatment for her as well. She is doing much better, reduced number of those little whines and lots less toy-pup, and back to showing a little more interest in food, about which I’m super pleased.

On another ironic note, we were planning on purchasing a puppy to be able to encourage Breeze to retire in a couple years, and give her someone with which to play. We had the right parents picked out with some great lineage, and the litter was going to be born in another 2 weeks. Just got the call that their dog also just had a false pregnancy! How strange is that?! As a musician I know that timing is everything. Mercury in retrograde gets the blame most of the time. And, it also makes me ponder about how beautifully entangled we each are with each other and the world around us. What an odd set of circumstances to be synchronized…

This has prompted me to do some discovery work. I may be doing treatments for Breeze to check for the round-up residue etc. that is in our food, for example. Its like when the frogs begin disappearing from the ponds, we know they are an indicator species of what is happening on the planet. Maybe I’m jumping into a different rabbit hole, but maybe many pieces are connected.

I wonder about hormone’s being disrupted by the chemicals, and the increase in radio frequencies. In humans there is an incredible change in fertility that no one really talks about, with much being attributed to these kinds of ‘unnatural patterns in our lives . Anyway, I’m going to be exploring this topic!

Wow…what a process! Thanks for listening…we’ll be back online with more info as another breeding comes forward in a few months…in the meantime, off to the Zimbabwe music festival in Monmouth this weekend at WOU (stop by the booth if you are there), and then on to Zimbabwe maybe in November. They are having a famine there, so I’m not sure how that affects a trip, but I’ll be back in touch at another point, hopefully in 2019.

Always feel free to write and stay in touch!

The news of the day is that the breeding didn’t “take”, she is not pregnant, and we are not having puppies this time around.

Wow…this is so very disappointing and we are all sad…we had a vision, and preparations, and hopes for wonderful families to whom we can extend the puppy love.

Those of you who planned on one of these pups for your new family member, are obviously very disappointed too! I’m so sorry. We just don’t tend to do the ultrasounds, x-rays, etc. unless there is a medical reason. The “symptoms” that I was reading were actually telling me something else. For instance, they say to increase their food at 1 month…and I did that…and guess what…she is now a few pounds overweight.

Well, live and learn. What an assimilation of info and an educational process!

Those of you that are wanting a puppy, I will be able to give you contact info for some current litters that are part of this particular lineage, in case that would be helpful! Maybe you can find your puppy there…and if not, we will be breeding again next cycle for pups in early March and the puppies would be with families by early May. Those that may decide to wait because of the connection we are developing, I thank you. I’m honored that this is not just a transaction to you either. Its touching! And, as a musician I totally get that timing is everything. So, its paramount that everything is lined up for everyone!

The ultimate question is what might have “gone wrong”? I mean really, wolves and dogs and the like have been populating the planet for a long time. There are a couple of things:

Of course, we are doing controlled breeding rather than natural, so that we can assure having the appropriate genetics. This means that we, as the owner, have to have our finger on the pulse of the cycle. One possibility is that we may have bred too early in the cycle. Even though a female will only stand for breeding when “its time”, they can actually engage before the eggs drop, so then if its too early, by a day or two, the semen may not stay alive. This is undoubtedly why people will let the dogs breed more than once, or have them hang out for a couple of days.

Another possibility is that the tie was interrupted by some cats in the barn, so it was shortened from previous breeding encounters. That seems like a no-brainer that I could have realized, but there were some extenuating circumstances that complicated the opportunity. So, oh well…

I’ve learned tons. Not just about dogs and breeding, but all of the emotional, mental, and spiritual reasons that I’m a breeder of English Shepherds.

The Large Love that I get to share with the world through these dogs is immense…first of course, you have the Absolute Light that traverses from Creator through the galaxies into these little beings. And then, we get to be the steward of that…what a blessing! The frosting is a tasty morsel … the incredible relationships with the people that come from having a dog, and subsequent puppies. Not only the families who embrace their new life-long friend, but also all of the other people who Breeze and I encounter along the way.

Thank you for staying tuned and being part of our lives!

Well, we made a few assumptions going into this. The first is that Breeze would just do what she has always done and whelp at 60 to 63 days.

Guess what? The full gestation can be 68 days! Ahhh…so Sunday was day 62 and we sit today at day 65. Nothing like feeling very premature about everything.

We are all waiting patiently! Thank you so much for your thoughts and encouragement!

“We have arrived” …in Zimbabwe they say “Tashika“… but no pups today…no panting, ‘nada…

So we are relaxing into the waiting mode and getting caught up on all of those things, like this blog post, that have received a lower priority over the last couple of weeks.

We set up Breeze’s den and have been hanging out in it off and on. This is my current office and is where she has been whelping each time. I’ve been inviting her inside the house at every opportunity since she has a favorite spot under the front deck where its super cool. She also loves to sun herself on the deck or lawn. We definitely do not want her accidentally slipping under the deck in a passionate moment.

Everyone says she doesn’t look pregnant. And I agree, until I see her in a particular position and she spreads her middle. She has a long body and hides the puppies up inside. Another litter was similar until the very last moment.

If you are looking at this picture on the computer you’ll notice the small colored wire around the base of the den. I found this great flexible hamster caging to use, instead of cardboard! The pups when first born for a week or so, can slip through the larger wire and find themselves in my office. Ahhh…the benefits of research!

In the den with her favorite whelping toy-pup, and also the litter gift from Canada in 2017 ( behind the toy-pup), which the puppies absolutely love.

She has a favorite place at the bottom of the stairs.

Hoping to post as soon as we have any news! Guess it depends on whether we pull a whelping all-nighter.

Here we are…right on the front edge of our seats. Doing all the nesting possible. The puppy yard got set up this week. (Although the pups don’t go outside until end of week 3, I don’t want hammering going on, once the little ones have arrived.) Its a great area just out the back door.

We put it together with this and that…but its wonderfully functional. I think the only thing missing is the carpet…that plywood ramp is slick when they are still tiny, and it turns into a slip and slide even on a dry day.

I can’t believe how much I’ve learned. The first 2 litters I loaded all the puppies in a wagon and would shuttle them outside multiple times a day. It meant going down a ramp and around the side building to get into the yard. Now we open the back door…;*)) Voila! Much easier on the body!

Right now, we are working on any tasks that would be good to complete over the next 2 months, since once we are in puppy-land, that takes over everything. Having pups sets the tone for every waking moment, through September…so we’ve been in a let’s get ‘er done mode!

Here are some pics from the 2018 litter. You guys have graciously shared photos of your beautiful puppies that have grown into wonderful family members…thank you so much! It warms the cockles of our hearts to see their happy faces!

BREEZE AND BEN 2018

More BREEZE AND BEN 2018

Gadget came over for a visit. Although they both know “sit” and “down”, they were very excited to be in each other’s company, so this was super fun to see them together and get them to listen. Gadget is a pint-size of Breeze.

We had gotten to know Amy and Christian better than most puppy buyers. They live 5 miles away, and came to visit the puppies regularly during the 8 weeks. Amy also had helped me on more than one occasion, in puppy sitting but also doing some of the routine jobs, like worming and bathing. She house sat for me when I went to Zimbabwe early in 2018 as well, so she and Breeze are old buddies.

Amy was a vet tech in a past life and so has spent countless hours with dogs. She fantasized about having a puppy and how it would get along inside with their pet bunny, and I could only cross my fingers, since the basics alone are often plenty for me. Here is a video she took of Gadget at 1 week in their home….yes, 1 week. Gadget was the little one of the bunch from the 2018 litter.

And yes, all is good in the puppy-bunny frontier…not sure how they do it but its working!

Before 6 months old, Gadget got an AKC Novice Trick Dog title … Amy says, “Breeze makes whip-smart puppies!”

The possibilities are only limited by our imaginations!

And time, of course. ;*))

This Memorial Day weekend was memorable…we had an instinct to take Breeze to see Connor (one of her male pups from 2016 who is kept for breeding and lives close by).

Although she wasn’t really interested, she was definitely flirting with him. At a point in our visit, she walked over to the car, which she never does, as if to say, lets get going!

So, it seemed like the messages were all lining up and I was hoping it was worth a trip to Molalla. Sure enough Breeze hadn’t been out of the car more than 10 steps and the courtship began. She knew exactly what she was doing.

This Is Ben (Benedict)

This time around there wasn’t lots of romping and playing…they were very serious about getting to it and tying. We stayed a rather short time visiting and then made our way back home after they took time in the shade of the afterglow.

A potential date for whelping is the 28th of July – that’s figuring a 62 day gestation. If so, that would mean the 22nd of September they could come home to your family, just in time for autumn Solstice.

Get in touch if your family is looking for a life friend and companion! Email, call or download the application!