The puppies took a road trip this past weekend.  They travelled the 3 1/2 hours to the big city of Austin.  They had an appointment on Monday morning with the vet opthamologist.  They all had good checks and he confirmed that there is no signs of Collie Eye Anomoly thanks to King’s non-carrier status. (This means that none of King’s kids can ever develop CEA!)

They did amazingly well on the trip, but we were all glad to get out of the car when we made it home!  This was a very good preparation step to get them ready to ride to their new homes!

It is so important that puppies start getting training early in life.  This will help them more quickly adapt to their new family and home.  As soon as their eyes and ears are open, we move our pups out to our family room.  This allows them to get used to seeing the many comings and goings of the family.  They also experience the smells, sights and sounds of the kitchen a few yards off.  Right around 4 weeks, we start taking them for short trips outside.  This serves several purposes.  First is the new experience of the sights and sounds of being outside.  They also get to experience wind, different temperatures and different textures of grass and dirt.  Second is the introduction to our other adult dogs who will assist Honey in teaching them doggie manners.  Third is this begins their first steps in house training.   Lastly, this allows for more room to run and play.  I love to watch them trying to pounce on each other!

Here is a picture of them the first day they went out.  Honey decided to let them have their first “picnic”.

Once they come inside, they are ready to crash! 

Honey's Pups First Outing

Honey's Pups First Outing (2) Honey's Pups First Outing (1) Click Here To View Entire Gallery

Honey’s puppies are 12 days old now.  Whenever Honey leaves to eat or take a break from the pups, I can always know that at least one of our 3 children will be in with them.  We have trained them how to gently pick the puppies up and hold them.  They love having them cuddle on their laps and tonight I slipped in and got a couple of shots of our two daughters with their laps full. 

Needless to say, we work very hard to make sure that our puppies will do well with families with small children.  By introducing them to small hands and voices from the very beginning, it trains them that little people are okay and are a constant source of love and activity!

Sara and pups Christen and pups Click Here To View Entire Gallery

Check out more pictures of the collie puppy litter here

The first of our puppies from our two litters is going to a wonderful home out of state.  He is getting ready to fly to PA on Wednesday!  To help ensure that he is comfortable and not too stressed out, we are introducing him to his traveling crate for short periods of time that we are slowly increasing so it will be a safe and comfortable place for him.  We will also start feeding him tonight in the crate so he will eat and drink while he is traveling and arrive in the best possible shape for his wonderful new family!

Braveheart’s Prayer, one of Wrap’s boys, went home today.  They are considering obedience and/or agility competitions for him and may him enter him in some confirmation shows.  That was all cool to me, but I got even more excited when I found out that he will also go to therapy training.  They visit nursing homes with their church regularly and want him to be able to go with them to encourage the people they visit with.  I am so excited to know that another of our babies will be doing their part to make the world a better place!