Crazy days so far, for summer...

It's been so long and a lot has happened since my last blog!  Lucy and Boogie had their puppies on the 18th of June--to start...  They had two girls and two boys--none blue!!!  So weird to see her with non-blue puppies...  In the past with Chico, she has only had blues and one black tri (but Black, Blue & Chocolate are all the same color/gene) so not to see a single blue, black or choco in her litter is just plain strange.  It's as if she is being a surrogate to these pups that do not look like they belong with her!!! Sorry, kinda of whacky--but that is just me...

All my human kids are off for the summer--and that has been exhausting!  Trying to keep everyone busy and happy.  We are also actively selling our home and showing it--which is also exhausting when you have a house full of kids and dogs--the cleaning can get overwhelming...  To top it off, I have had to sell my beloved horses--which has me broken down, for the moment...  Taja my Arabian Mare went to live with a family that has 11 yr. old girls that show in 4H--and she is doing quite well at their home which is on 5 acres and has other horses...  But, I miss her terribly... India, my older Draft/Tennessee Walker mare is still here and I trying to find her a good home where she will be used very occasionally...  She is an old lady that deserves to be retired for the rest of her life.  It is so sad to see her alone and looking out and calling for Taja, which was her pasture mate.  It's heartbreaking and too much for me at the moment. 

Nini and Chico's mating did not take.  Nini had a very strange heat cycle a couple of months ago.  So, it was sketchy from the get go...  She came into heat immediately after her last boy left our home and he was only a couple of months old???  She usually comes back into heat 4 months after her puppies leave her side--so, it was a questionable mating.  But, she is fine-just a little chunkier from my feeding her as if she were prego...  But, she'll lose the weight now that we know there are no pups...  She may go at it one more time...  We'll see. 

Daisy and Boogie are like two lovebugs--inseperable...  Daisy will be mated with Boogie when she is ready.  That combination will be interesting, no doubt...

The heat in Central Florida has been unbearable!  Honestly, what are looking toward in the future???  Heat index is at an average 106 degrees--crazy... and dangerous... 

Lucy's pups turned 10 days today...  They are chunkers and growing fast!   Soon, they will open their eyes--which is always so exciting!  Have to say they are so interesting in color--they are all tri colored (Red, Black & White) and have black masks, for now...  Lucy is being the phenomenal mom that she always is...  And life is a bit complicated, sad and anxious for us at the moment--but, Life Is Good--nonetheless...

That ohhhh, I am so huge feeling...

Poor Lucy is getting near the end--sometime this coming week...  She is wobbling around like a Weeble Wobble from my childhood.. I am a bit nervous, just thinking there may be quite a few in that big tummy of hers!  I am really hoping it is not too big of a litter--the production of milk takes a lot out of them when there are numerous puppies (meaning 5 or more). We'll see.  To all that read this, please send your good thoughts for her upcoming whelping!!! 

Fleas and HEAT--ughhhhh...

It's amazing to me that Frontline and Advantix are expensive as they are when they really do not eliminate the flea problem!  I mean they may break a fleas reproductive cycle, but honestly, they should also keep them off the dog--at almost $10 a vial--it's the least the medication could do... It's outrageous to me that so many medical products and meds are sooo unaffordable to so many due to ridiculous pricing...  So many more dogs would be saved from Heartworm alone, if only it was a medication that was reasonably priced--but, unfortunately, that isn't the case...  Shame, darn shame... 

Here we are battling this da** heat and fleas to no avail!  Frontline doesn't seem to be doing the full job and the poor dogs are having to stay in most of the day because of the temp. outside...  And it is only the unofficial beginning of summer--blahhhhh....

Fat & Lazy Days...

Lucy is showing tremendously.  She and Boogie have a couple of weeks to go before the big day!  The suspense is too much, at times...  That is the nice thing about Chihuahua unions--they can produce such a grand variety of colors and coats...  Will we get masked ones, blue ones, sable ones, long coated or short coated??? 

She is quite uncomfortable, at the moment, and ravenous!  She would be eating each second of the day if she could!  Have to be careful, overeating and gaining too much weight is not necessarily a good thing...  So, we are keeping her treats down to high protein, low in fat, treats and she is eating her canned food well. 

Nini, on the other hand, is not showing very much.  This makes me think that two things could've happened:  1) Her pregnancy did not take or 2) She was not quite ready, while she did accept, at the very beginning of her mating ritual and so she conceived very late in the process...  She may be as much as a week off, by my calculations.  We'll just have to watch and see...  She did come into heat very quickly after having had her last litter--which is a bit unusual...  This is a different scenario with her this time...  Hoping for the best with her...  After this one--she is off to get spayed.  She has been a phenomenal mother--could not have asked for better...

Summer Haircuts...

This is Florida--normally 80% humidity with temperatures in the 90's (usually upper 90's) all summer long.  It is not even officially summer time and we have been experiencing that kind of heat for a while now...  ugh...  It has been a rather dry spring time, which means the fleas are unstoppable...  Even with the use of very expensive topical agents, such as Frontline, etc., they do not seem to be letting down.  Poor dogs and, of course, poor humans who have a sensitivity to flea bites!  Luckily, I am not one of those, but one of my daughters and my mother are easily bitten by them...

So, eventhough to some it is a big NO NO, the dogs have gotten a nice shave down.  Fleas are less comfortable traveling the slippery terrain on a dog's body when there is little hair to be secured by.  They don't seem to like bare bodies.  I thought, twice, about shaving Boogie--being he is such a little thing--thought he might look like a rat, hehehe...  But it has been done.  I think he looks even more adorable.  You can really appreciate his diminuitive size without his coat.  He weighs even less, now, I think... 

I couldn't do it to Lucy(shave her)--she is already so smooth coated and tightly so.  But, they all received their baths and applications of Frontline...  (lots of mula $, blahhhh) And this is just the start to what is going to be one boiling summer!!!! 

Feels like an empty house--somehow...

Boogie around 2 months of age...

Our luscious Bingo, now Apollo living with half bro Zeus

Have to say, we miss the pitter pat of small little paws running around...  This departure has been a difficult one to take.  I know that soon, in just under a month, we will have teeny ones again.  But, at the beginning, meaning for the first 3 or 4 weeks, the puppies are not really that active.  So, it will not be until they are about 4 weeks of age that they get going with the playing, walking/running, and rough housing with each other--which is always so fun to watch.  

We are really excited to see what the union of Lucy and Boogie will produce--will be quite interesting as far as color and size...  Nothing is ever predictable, really.  They could be teeny or not;  look like Boogie or not;  look like Lucy or not; and/or be completely different from either parent... Then, of course, Nini and Chico will be having their puppies about two weeks after Lucy.  That will be somewhat more predictable--but we could always be surprised!  We'll just have to wait and see. Ugh..... Waiting is always hard for me.     

Skyla, from Lucy and Chico, Lucy and Boogie top of pic.

What will we get???

The girls have gone to their new home...

So, it has been a sad and exhausting weekend starting with the departure of Lotti & Khloe (our Bella and Lexi).  They have left a void in our home--but filled another in their new home.  We had the privelege of meeting their whole new family, minus the brother/sister canines they will live with.  We are overjoyed that they have gone to a beautiful and wonderful family that drove all the way from Panama City Beach, FL to our town of Winter Springs to pick them up...  It was a long drive here and then they had to head back home after picking them up---had to have been exhausting...

From this...

They could not believe how little Lotti (Bella) was and loved our little fluff ball Khloe (Lexi).  Loved the reaction on their faces when they first walked in--priceless...  That is what I love about what I do.  I will update them on the website and on the blog as soon as they get settled in and some pics are sent my way...  Lotti (Bella) left here weighing 1.6 lbs @ 8 wks & 2 days, Khloe (Lexi) was weighing 2.4 lbs--I swear half of that is fluff!!! haha  They are being loved and spoiled to death, as I type...

To this...

The day is nearly here. And then some more...

Khloe says, "I'm hungry, momma..."

This Friday!!!  Again, don't know where the time has gone !!!  My youngest one, Adriana, is feeling it already.  She has been asking me again and again whether they will be leaving today.  I keep reminding her it won't be until the end of the week....

Isn't that a face to love...

Before we know it, we'll have two new litters on our hands...  Lucy is due around the 16th of June and then, Nini is due around the 25th of June-so, it will be back to back litters...  Lots of pitter patting mid July, when they are up and running.  It will be exciting to see what we have...

Down to the wire!

                                 Lotti says, "My sissy doesn't get the fact that I want to sleep!!!"


Ok, so it's Friday...  Monday the babies are due for their shots, their first DHPP and Corona.  They are scheduled to leave on Friday, the 14th of May.  I can't believe how time has just zoomed by!  It seems like just yesterday we were sitting here in the family room, with Daisy looking very uncomfortable in the puppy pool...  And then, pop!  The first one, our Bella, new name Lotti, was popping her head out!!!  Daisy was screaming her head off, sounding like a human woman!  And then, as I tried to assist her, she bit me out of sheer pain!  That was a new experience, to say the least...

And now, they are running around, following my every footstep.  Playing with Boogie, when they and only they, are in the mood--if not Boogie gets big Bear growls that scare us all!!!!   We are absolutely in love with this pair--but, soon they will part from our home.  They will be very loved, no doubt--their new mommy is counting the minutes...  They are still so tiny--we are new to this size of chi that Daisy has given us... 

It seems that Lotti, has surprised us and not turned into the longcoat that we thought she would be.  While, on the other hand, Khloe is sporting a really thick coat, which we think will beautiful in thickness and in color... They are so very different in appearance, but so special in their individual ways...  Lotti is the hard playing and tough little cookie, which fits in your palm, who will not take any crap from anyone...  Khloe, is the sweet eyed, plumper,  ever forgiving, melts your heart with her gaze chi chi...  It's so funny to watch this pair of sisters...

Lotti, trying hard to sleep...

It will be so interesting and awesome to see what they end up at in the future...  I will look forward to updating their status as the months pass... I know that they will always hold a special spot in my heart, for sure...

Khloe ready to play...

Please let me be... Lotti

Uneventful times, for the most part...

Everything is status quo--no real change or huge news to report on. Lexi and Bella, which will now be Khloe and Lotti--have to get used to calling them those names! are doing great.  They have now come out of their puppy pool and joined the whole family in the family room, with it's TV, traffic of kids, adults and other dogs.  They are now exploring the area and playing with their choice of dog, at an given time...  Lexi (Khloe) is a total fluff ball--she reminds us of a mink coat, with the mink coloring and all!  And little Bella (Lotti) is a little spitfire full of play and fun.  Her coat is not turning out as long as I thought it would be, by this point.  She may just end up a rough coat--short coat with a thicker and bit longer coat--but not quite the true longcoat...  They're going home the weekend of the 14th of May to Cottondale, FL which is on the panhandle of FL.  They will have a Shitzu and a Schnauzer sister and brother waiting for their arrival, as well as a human sister and brother...  The family is very excited...

The only news we do have is that Lucy and Boogie did the deed.  They will be expecting puppies around the 16th of June--give or take a few days.  We are excited to see what that union produces, being that Boogie is a 3.6 lb. adult...  Nini, was not going to be bred again this time--but, with the slip of a door, Chico got her.  I have to decide what to do with that situation.  She is and has always been in excellent health.  Her 5th birthday was this past December.  I will consult with our vet before making the decision to either let her continue with the pregnancy or to have her spayed at this point...  We'll see. 

And so, all is well and normal as usual here at our Zoo. 

Going as usual...

Nothing new or exciting to report on...  The girls, Bella and Lexi, are doing well, as is usual at this point.  They are now becoming very interested when Mom's wet food is in the pool...  They scramble over to it as fast as they can...  Daisy is not too convinced she should be sharing it, yet.  She growls a little at the fact that they have their noses in her food.  After all, she is ravenous at this point being that she is a small female and providing milk for two little girls who love to drink!  But, hey, that is motherhood for you.  Anyway, the girls had crisscrossed their heads this morning--which I love to see.  So, here are a few pics of crisscrossed heads...

too precious...

Playing like the boys!

The two girls Daisy had will be 4 weeks old on Wed--hard to believe time gets by you at such a fast rate!  But, yeah, they are now moving around so much more.  They tend to be a little unsteady at times.  It's so funny to see them play together, actually grabbing at each other or trying to bite each other's ears, etc... 

Bella, our teeny princess, is not looking to be as longcoated as Lexi.  She may just end up a short long coat, referred to as a rough coat, sometimes.  But, Lexi has the softest coat ever...  It's like cashmere to my touch and is quite long.  They depend on one another for comfort when momma is not in the pool with them.  That is touching to watch. Time is flying and sooner than not, they will be gone.  That is the sad part of this...

Home after Spring Breaking...

We took a little family trip to South Florida, Miami Beach to be exact...  Needed it so badly.  Sorry for the lack of updates, but that is the reason why.  The babies are doing great--funny how they change in just 3 nights of not being with them constantly...  They are growing their legs--meaning walking around a lot more.  Lexi's coloration is still awesome and getting a bit on the lighter side--she still has a lot of the ashy blue in her coat, though.  Bella is a teeny little princess that is just so "china doll" perfect...  Both are different, yet so beautiful in their individual ways... 

The only pics I could get of them this morning was when they were snoozing.  So beautiful to watch them rest so peacefully--if only humans could attain that level of instant rest, such as they do...  I certainly can't--if a mosquito buzzes--I am up and erect in bed wondering where that noise came from--very annoying...

Here are the Sleeping Beauties...

Open up or open not...

Lexi has decided it's time she sees the world around her.  She started to peek out yesterday and today they were full blown open...  Bella has decided it is not her time yet.  But, it marvels me to think that Lexi had such a bleak prognosis that first night. I can't believe that I had started to prepare myself for the worst with her!  She fought to prove me wrong and I soooo love her for that...

Bella is doing great, just taking her sweet time. They are both nursing and sleeping and now moving a whole lot more in the pool area...  Life is good...