In this last stage of pregnancy, Deja is sleeping alot!
So much to do yet… OH BOY! Thank goodness it is almost the weekend! It’s time to get things “set up”!
Twelve days to go and…
We got puppy movement!
We got milk!
Rooster is sniffing Deja’s ear wondering why she is always “resting”?
P.S. ALL the dogs LOVE lying on the concrete floor even though they have more comfortable places to lie/sleep on! The concrete is nice and cool especially when the temps rise!
Definitely a “puppy bump” going on here!
Well actually 2 weeks and 3 days! Miss Deja is definitely carrying more than a few puppies!
Hubby was joking this morning about his new way to “exercise the dogs”. All he has to do is get up from his chair in the study and walk into the bedroom. Or the kitchen. And everyone gets up to follow him! LOL! Sitting at my desk now, I have a sea of gold surrounding me! Goldens definitely like to “hang out” with their people!
We are keeping a very close eye on Deja now (well, we keep a close eye on everyone, really). The “big day” is getting closer!
Our Beanie Baby!
Have I ever written about Beanie? I don’t think so? And I don’t even think I’ve ever put her photos on the web site??
Beanie is our French Bulldog. This is a breed of dog I always thought was so unique. I thought I might look into them more seriously later as perhaps my “old lady dog”? And then one day at dog class, a gal walks in with several Frenchies. Being polite, I inquired about them and to make a long story short… her co-breeder had a litter of two fawn six-week-old girls. Two weeks later, we came home with an 8-week-old fawn French Bulldog!
French Bulldogs, affectionately referred to as “Frenchies”, are a unique breed of dog. They do not melt into you like a Golden does because of their tubular body shape. And with their pushed in faces and bat ears, they are just… CUTE!
Beanie is almost a year old now and she thinks she rules the Goldens. I really wish the Goldens would “put her in her place” but they do not. They tolerate her jumping up at their ears to pull them down to her level. And she keeps up with them so by now, she is incredibly muscular! We have had to make a few fencing changes to keep Beanie OUT of the donkey paddock! I think she would go after them, too, to prove she is in charge! Now that would NOT be a good idea!! Donkeys, in general, do not like dogs!
I always swore that I would teach ANY dog to walk “nice” on lead but because of their throat/trachea issues, Beanie wears a harness when out walking. I swear… It is easier to walk ANY of my Goldens or multiple Goldens than it is to walk Beanie! She pulls like a sled dog!
Our latest endeavor with our little Beanie Baby is to make sure she is crate trained! Ironically, she sleeps with the Goldens snuggling up to them for warmth. She will bark incessantly when they are outside and she insists they come in to lie with her to keep her warm! Now that we are crate training her, she is doing beautifully sleeping through the night in her crate and no longer barks at the Goldens. Bad us for not doing this sooner!
I have had inquiries on whether I will breed Beanie? Hmm… at this point, I do not know? For now she is exactly what we wanted… A little French Bulldog to love. She has fit in well with all of our dogs and with her clown personality, makes us laugh daily at her antics. Cool Beanz!!
2018 Health Testing Done For All The Dogs
Last weekend, we took ALL the dogs to a health clinic sponsored by a local dog club. This health clinic is put on every year and coordinated by a local dog person, Carolyn. Carolyn does a WONDERFUL job organizing it! She even forgives me for changing my last-minute registration which I am sure messes up her timing/organization of all the dogs that attend this clinic. (So sorry for having done that, Carolyn!)
Years ago, we piled all the dogs in our “dog van” that we used to go to dog shows when we didn’t take the RV. Knowing we weren’t going to use it much any longer, we sold the van a few years ago. This makes transporting the dogs to this health clinic a bit tricky!
Fortunately, my son agreed to help us “hold dogs” until it was their turn to be seen by the various specialists. In his car, he took one dog in a crate. I drove taking two crated dogs, and dear hubby drove also with crated dogs.
My changes? While Deja and Doodle were recently at my repro vet having blood drawn for progesterone levels, I had them add-on a heartworm test. Now that I know both of them are negative for heartworm, I can start the heartworm preventative I give throughout the summer. Deja and Doodle still needed their eyes tested though.
And then my very old, very sweet Cavalier had a problem with her anal glands. While not planned to do at this time, we went ahead and had her “senior wellness” done for the year. This included a heartworm test so now she no longer needed to go to the health clinic for this test. It also included a dental where my poor baby had yet another tooth pulled. While under anesthesia for her dental cleaning, we had the vet remove a few lumps and bumps. Cali will be back at the vet this Friday having those stitches removed.
Once we all arrived at the clinic held at a local vet office, all the dogs have their eyes dilated for their appointment with the veterinarian ophthalmologist. As they say, “the eyes are the windows to the soul”. Believe it or not, these eye exams can pick up other problems the dog may have. Last year at this health clinic, my beautiful grand-champion boy, Tazo, had retinal bleeds. He passed his eye certification but we were advised to have him seen by our vet sooner than later. At that vet appointment, Tazo was diagnosed to be in renal failure! We “lost” him four months later when his renal failure became apparent; they don’t do dialysis on dogs which is what he would have needed. It was so hard to believe he had such a serious health problem that was diagnosed from an eye exam!
As you can imagine, all the dogs stayed OUT of the sunlight for the rest of the day after having their eyes dilated. The eye forms filled out by the eye doc are then sent to OFA (Orthopedic Foundation for Animals) that adds my dogs to their registry of dogs with eye clearances. This is done every year with Golden Retrievers.
Golden Retrievers also need a heart clearance done by a veterinarian cardiologist. They need to be over a year of age for this health clearance. My sweet “puppy”, Pixel, turned one year last August! Time for her to have her heart checked! That form also filled out by the specialist is also sent off to OFA. Pixel still needs her hips and elbows x-rays to be done but they need to be over two for these permanent clearances. She will have them done this August.
And then there is “Beanie”, my little French Bulldog. Beanie had her eyes dilated and was seen by the ophthalmologist also. Having all the Goldens at this clinic was easy compared to having one French Bulldog! Beanie lunged and barked at every dog coming and going; I can’t begin to tell you how embarrassed I was! In true bulldog fashion, Beanie was “running the show”! Now Beanie has had a LOT of socialization so that wasn’t it. She just wanted to let everyone know she was there! OMGosh! It was hilarious! French Bulldogs also need hip x-rays and patella clearances. And hearts after a year. We’ll go back next year to get the rest of her health clearances when she is older. Fortunately, there were other Frenchies at this health clinic that acted just like Beanie; it MUST be a Frenchie thing?
2018 Health Clinic is now in the books. My forms are all scanned that my dogs were seen by the specialists and soon, I will receive the official forms from OFA that they were health tested this year. I am very grateful that this health clinic is put on annually so my dogs can get their health testing. Thank you, Carolyn!! And thank you to my son for helping “hold dogs” as well as helping to transport dogs to the clinic. While it IS a bit chaotic, to get all the dogs to the clinic, it is so important to do this health testing for each and every dog!
Time for the ultrasound to confirm pregnancy. LOVE those tiny heart beats!
It’s finally time to get the girls, Deja and Doodle, in to have their ultrasound to confirm pregnancy. I/we are THRILLED that Deja is pregnant with more than a few puppies! Sadly, Doodle is NOT pregnant 😦
It is such a bittersweet moment when you can be so happy yet so sad at the same time. And then I think… This is EXACTLY why we bred both girls. No matter how much we might try to “control” things, Mother Nature will always have the last say in what will happen. I guess I don’t need to worry about borrowing another whelping box or making a second separate area for both girls. Still sad about Doodle, we are very excited about the upcoming Journey x Deja puppies! I had hoped we would receive an ultrasound photo but unfortunately, due to technical problems, I didn’t get one. Still, watching those little (very little!) heart beats was such a thrill!
Deja will now be started on a maternity diet to help her help the growing puppies. Deja’s due date is June 12, give or take a day on either side of that date. We will have a maternity x-ray done a few days before her due date to count “skulls and spines” to know exactly how many puppies to expect on the big day. I keep whispering in Deja’s ear, PLEASE have these puppies during the day! Alas, it is most common to have puppies in the wee hours of the morning. Still, I will keep whispering in Deja’s ear! One can hope, right?!
I hope everyone had a great Mother’s Day weekend! Whether you may be celebrating your mother or be a mother yourself, all mothers should be celebrated! That is exactly what we did for Deja; celebrated her as a Mother-To-Be! We can’t wait to meet her babies!
Breeding puppies to the conformation standard is more than just “pretty dogs”.
I saw this illustration today and knew I just needed to SHARE it! It so perfectly shows how “purebred” dogs can look so different from well-bred dogs!
Ahhh… My very first golden looked like the dog in the lower left hand corner. We loved her dearly and she was a very sweet dog but… She just wasn’t “pretty”. Fortunately, she had a wonderful temperament and lived a long, happy life with us. This dog started my life-long love for this breed and helped convince me I wanted not just “pretty” dogs but also dogs that were health tested (long before they were ever bred!)
Health testing is major event here held every year at a local health clinic put on by the Cavaliers of The West breed club. Why do I go to this particular clinic? I just love how organized and competent the gal that organizes and works so diligently every year to provide this service for the dog community. Every year, ALL of my dogs have their eyes dilated and are seen by a veterinarian ophthalmologist. They say “the eyes are the windows to the soul”. They can also be the first indicators of other disease processes!
Dogs over a year of age are also “heart tested” by a veterinarian cardiologist. Genetic heart diseases such as “SAS” (sub-aortic stenosis) along with other heart anomalies can be ruled out.
Then, all the paperwork is sent to OFA (Orthopedic Foundation of American); the registration organization that provides online access to health clearances.
The other big health clearances done in Golden Retrievers are x-rays of hips and elbows. I usually have my regular vet, who is adept at positioning for these x-rays, do them. Again, that information is sent to OFA. For a permanent “clearance”, dogs must be over two years of age. Another registration organization for hips is PennHip. These x-rays measure slightly differently than OFA x-rays; I usually have these done also. You can’t get too much information regarding “hip health” when considering a future breeding.
Copies of these health clearances are always given to new puppy owners. I just believe in total transparency in puppies I’ve bred.
Other factors to consider when considering breeding a litter of puppies: Temperament! I live with what I breed and “good temperament” is a hallmark trait for this breed! By following the pedigree of any litter, I can generally predict the temperament of each puppy. Other factors of good temperament is socialization of puppies. We work hard here providing a LOT of early puppy socialization and send home information to new owners on how to continue that socialization for the benefit of that puppy as it grows into adulthood.
Last but not least is Longevity! Sadly, “man’s best friend” is never with us long enough. But through genetic research of ancestors, hopefully they live a long life for this breed. This is a big goal for us in any litter also.
“Looks”, by this time, that is almost icing on the cake! But by breeding to the Golden Retriever standard and after being evaluated by judges through dog shows, our goal is always to produce the next conformationally correct dogs! Do all of our dogs end up in the show ring? No! But many could be shown! And many live in “pet homes” pampered and loved that attract attention and praise when walking down the street! They are “pretty”!
Lofty goals for any breeding/litter of puppies, huh? This is what we’ve done over our thirty years being involved in this breed. Generation after generation, staying true to the golden retriever standard, improving each generation as we continue our life-long love for this breed.
JEnnifer & MArk ~ Jema Golden Retrievers
Rooster x Trevi pup out field training with his committed owners!
So happy to receive photos of Gaddy, a Rooster x Trevi puppy, who has been out field training! Now I imagine the water is still cold yet this pup is swimming away!
I give all the credit for this puppy’s abilities to his owners; their commitment in training will make this boy a great field dog!
All Goldens have this ability but it takes perseverance and consistency in training to teach a dog (any animal) exactly what you want him or her to do. Kudos go to Gaddy’s owners!
Happy six-month birthday, Gaddy, and to all the puppies in this litter! You are growing up into such a beautiful boy! You make your daddy, Rooster, proud as well as all the dogs in your beautiful pedigree! HUGS to you!!
JEnnifer & MArk ~ Jema Golden Retrievers
Breeding plans and puppies excitedly anticpated this summer!
I think the actual breeding of two dogs is always the most stressful! Many think the most stressful time is the actual delivery/whelping of puppies but to me, that has always been fairly straight forward. It is the actual breeding of the two dogs centered around timing, testing, and trips to the vet that stress me out!
After much consideration, we’ve decided to breed our two girls now. CH Deja is being bred to CH Journey who lives in Las Vegas, NV. Journey’s owner and vet have been wonderful to work with to make this breeding happen. So far, we have had one breeding done and are watching Deja’s progesterone level to time the second breeding that will mostly happen this Friday.
We have also decided to breed our “almost champion” girl, Doodle. We are going to use frozen semen from our Grand Champion boy, Tazo, who is no longer with us. Doodle’s cycle, like Deja’s, seems to be a quick rise in progesterone (ovulates early in her cycle) and it is only by chance that after taking her in for a progesterone test to see where she was at that we realized she had already ovulated! Because we are using frozen semen, we can successfully breed Doodle a bit later in her cycle so we haven’t “missed” with her breeding. Doodle’s first breeding will be this afternoon.
Now I had hoped the girls would be a week or more apart of each other in their cycles but that is not the case. We potentially could have them deliver their puppies on or close to same days! Oh boy! In truth, they will likely whelp their puppies, if they actually conceive, a few days apart! I’m already thinking exactly how I will manage two litters of puppies at one time? Hmm??
The reason for breeding both girls is simple. In case either of them have problems, the other can “foster” any of the other puppies. I don’t expect any problems but you just never know. And if I’m going to be home with puppies, I will be home with puppies! It does seem like a good use of my time to give both litters the time and attention they will need to be the most well-adjusted, healthy puppies as possible!
This week has been hectic; we will be at our vet’s office every day this week! Between progesterone tests and inseminations, we will have one or both girls at the vets. Thankfully, dear hubby is available to help most of the days. Other days, I will take the girls to the vet. The “plan” has been outlined, based on testing, so at least I have the support of my wonderful vet and her staff to help make all of this possible!
I’m looking forward to having puppies again! It has been almost two years since we’ve had puppies! It seems so much has happened in those two years… we’ve lost our wonderful boy, Tazo and his daughter, Deja has now become a champion in that time. We are looking forward to the next generation of champions in the making! Crossing our fingers as we move forward here at Jema Golden Retrievers!
CH Deja wins Top Conformation trophy for 2017! I am so proud to be not only her owner but also her breeder!
Dog names generally originate from a deep meaningful place no matter what a puppy’s future may hold. In my litters, I usually have a “theme” to help folks think of a registered name for their future puppy. The “call name”, of course, is whatever the person or family wishes to call their puppy/dog. In the dog show world, the call names usually include some part of the registered name. This is true with “Deja”. Her “call name” is in her registered name.
Deja’s litter theme was “coffee”. All the pups from that litter have names that relate to coffee in one form or another. This is a repeat litter theme; one I did for Deja’s sire, Tazo (GCH CH Jema’s Mocha Kiss, BISS), many years ago although his litter included both coffee and tea. Hence Deja is a repeat of her sire or Deja Vu or… Deja Brew!
Deja, like her dad, Tazo, is a happy dog! She exudes confidence in everything she does. They both can be a bit “bouncy”; all that energy needs to go someplace! I remember showing her once and as I did a courtesy turn getting her lined up to do the down and back, she jumped almost six feet straight up in the air, landed and was ready to gait down the diagonal! The funny thing about this is that I never felt her feet leave the ground! If it wasn’t for a friend who took a cell phone shot of her doing this, I would never have believed it!
Almost ALL of my puppies have won Best in Specialty Sweepstakes or BISS! Deja did not being a bit slower to mature to be competitive in the ring. She did, however, take Best Puppy in Show not once but twice when she was young! Those memories will stay with me forever not only for the recognition of this puppy amongst many other puppies but also as a proud breeder moment!
Deja finished her AKC Champion title with a professional handler. Finding (and winning) those bigger shows meant more travel than I could do at the time. But I believed in her and so did her handler. Deja won her second major fall of 2017 needing one single point to finish this title. Because I had not entered her in any shows after that major show, I had to wait two weeks after entering her in a local show where she won that last point needed. YEAH! Deja now sports the coveted “CH” before her name! Her sire, Tazo, would be so proud! And so would her paternal grandmother, Saga; a puppy I purchased so many years ago!
On a lark (and because I was asked), I sent in Deja’s show record and points accumulated throughout her show career. Our dog club does an Awards Banquet every year where high-achieving dogs are recognized. I had not made plans to attend the Awards Banquet this year and in fact, completely forgot about it until a friend notified me that Deja had won “Top Conformation Bitch From The Classes”! I’m very grateful that my friend at the banquet accept this trophy on my behalf! WooHoo for Deja!!
As my sweet girl lies here at my feet being the completely calm, well-mannered house dog she is, I remember her energy whenever anything is asked of her. I remember that enthusiasm whether being in the show ring or chasing a tennis ball in my backyard. Trophy or not, she is my perfect dog! I need only look at her for her to wag her tail ready for the next game we can play together! And I look at her daughter, Pixel and think… It is almost time to have Pixel shown. She will be my next winning dog; the fourth generation of Jema Golden Retrievers!
Time flies… Never take it for granted!
As the Rooster X Avery puppies go to their new homes, it made me think of Rooster when he was younger (he is 6 years old now). Going through old photos always brings mixed feelings… Some wonderful memories but also some sad ones thinking of dogs no longer with me. But seeing the 8 week old pups sired by Rooster… Just DARLING!
Rooster is ALWAYS ready for a game of “fetch” or “tug”. I found this old photo of Rooster as a young pup playing tug with my old girl, Luna. Luna was always very patient with puppies and young dogs but she wasn’t going to just give up a toy either! I miss Luna very much; she was my constant shadow.
It is hard looking back on old photos. They always bring to mind so many memories. Here, Rooster is only two years old or so out in our pasture waiting for me to throw that ball. His natural stance is practically perfect! Now like back then, he looks better with less handling. It is hard to imagine that 7-8 week-old puppy has now grown up into the champion (almost grand champion) I believed he would be when he was just a pup.
Time flies for all of us! Remember to hug your doggies and never take them for granted. If I was to find a fault with “(wo)man’s best friend”, it would be they are never with us long enough.
Jema Golden Retrievers 