Demonize the responsible?

If you pay attention to the constant rhetoric of some organizations you will hear over and over again that there are too many unwanted puppies in the land and therefore it is irresponsible for a family to aquire a puppy from anywhere but an animal shelter or rescue facility.  I say that one unwanted puppy is one too many and a crying shame!  Too many people jump into getting a puppy without being prepared for the responsibilities that come with it.  I saw a post on Twitter today that said, "A puppy is for life, not just for Christmas!"  How true this is and also how often this truth is ignored to the tragedy of the abandoned puppy or dog.

I admire the work of the animal shelters and rescue organizations.  People who adopt their puppy or grown dog from these organizations have done a wonderful thing in giving these animals good, loving homes and often sparing their lives.  On the other side of the same coin are those who financially contribute to these organization as well as to subsiduzed spay/neuter clinics and the vets and staff that often volunteer their services towards reducing unwanted litters from ever happening.  It takes many responsible people and donors to put a dent in the 'fruit' of the unresponsible people who cause these problems.

Having said all that, there is a  'BUT . . . '  But there seems to be a growing gripe against those who would purchase a dog from responsible breeders . . .  whether the desire is for a 'pure bred' or a fashionable 'designer breed.'  Why is it that a person shouldn't be free to aquire and raise from a puppy the dog of the breed and color and coat of their choosing?  Why is the careful, responsible dog breeder being looked at as the 'demon' because there are many irresponsible breeders flooding the land with pups that will often be abandoned? I think that it is absurd to suggest that the careful, responsible breeders should stop breeding dogs and that the careful, responsible dog buyers should aquire only those dogs that have been abandoned.  The focus needs to be clearly placed back on those who cause the problems. . .  those who breed dogs and sell them indiscriminately to those who clearly are not prepared and responsible enough to take on the sizable task of owning, caring for and keeping for life these precious animals that should become as family members to the owners.

Unfortunately I don't know of any easy or simple solutions to the problem. Education is part of the answer.  Supporting the shelters and rescue operations is another.  Agressively promoting spay/neuter clinics must be a part of the strategy.  But overcoming selfish irresponsibility is an overwhelming objective. Unfortunately it is as an epidemic in our culture and spreads way beyond the realm of pet ownership.  There may not be any hope of restoring healthy responsibility to our culture but I'm pretty sure that 'demonizing' the responsible dog breeder and the responsible dog buyer is 'barking up the wrong tree.'

until next time . . .    Eliot     www.rosehallkennel.com   follow Mia's story of life at the kennel on Twitter . . . find her at MiaRosehall.

Choosing your puppy's doctor . . .

We are very fortunate to have two wonderfully trained, highly skilled, dedicated, experienced, animal loving, veterinarians in our family.  Being family members, I suppose I was obligated to say good stuff about them but in our case we have seen them prove their skills and wisdom over and over again with our dogs.

But if you are not so fortunate as to have competant vets in the family . . .  how do you choose an animal doctor to whom you will entrust the medical care and treatment of your beloved puppy or dog when it is in need?  Dogs need good medical care just keeping up with general health issues and keeping vaccines current.  It is essential that you have a vet who you can communicate well with and who you trust. There are a great many fine and dedicated veterinarians in practice in communities across the nation to choose from.  Unfortunately there are also those who it's best to stay away from. Knowing the difference can be hard without some research on your part.

Your trips to the vet should not be traumatic for your dog (or for you either) so you are looking for a clinic or animal hospital that has a pleasant and calm environment as well as being clean.  Your routine check ups are important so that your dog gets to know and trust the doctor and the staff so that should an emergency arise the people treating the dog are not total strangers.  This will make treatment somewhat easier for both the dog and those caring for him or her.

Don't be shy about checking out references for a clinic, animal hospital or individual vet.  Check around with other dog owners . . .  even ask strangers at the dog food store . . . maybe even especially the stranger as you may get more honest answers.  Ask for stories and pay special attention to the more serious treatment needs.  No vet (or people doctor for that matter) will have a perfect 'cure' record.  There will always be losses. There will always be horror stories.  But the cream of the crop have good records and good references.  The best are also willing to get second opinions and do further research on more difficult diagnoses.  People skills are also important.  It doesn't necesarily make for better medical treatment of the condition but you are the one paying the bill and the doctor needs to be able to empathize with your stress and communicate the diagnosis and treatment options in ways that you can understand.  Ask lots of questions.  If the vet isn't able to answer to your satisfaction . . .  consider finding another one who will.

We hear way too many stories about treatments that haven't worked and dogs that have had to be 'put down' that probably could have been saved and lived comfortable lives with better veterinary care.  We also hear way too many stories about outrageous medical treatment costs (yes, competant vet care is costly . . . but price gouging is a practice that warrants you changing vets) and recommendations for extremely costly procedures that are not realistically called for.  PLEASE do some research and check out your vet options carefully. . .  for your pocket book's sake and for the well being of your dog.  The good vets are out there and they are very much worth searching for!

Our vets have a great enthusiasm for what they do and take each pet's condition seriously and personally.  We feel like they fight for each one as if it was their own.  We feel extremely fortunate that we can have such confidence in our dogs' medical professionals.  (It's also great to be part of their family.)  You can check out links to their web site and facebook page below.

until next time . . . .  Eliot    www.rosehallkennel.com

http://animalhospitaltn.com/   
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Anderson-County-Animal-Hospital/127521980595008

The pup is EVERYONE'S business . . .

The puppy in a family envronment must become EVERYONE'S business.  What I mean by that is that the German Shepherd puppy is going to grow up to be a large adult dog and a part of the 'family circle' . . .  or in doggy terms . . .  'the pack.'  While it may become primarily one person's responsibility to see that the puppy (later, the dog) is fed and watered and taken on it's walks, the puppy must learn how to relate to, respond to and . . .  yes . . .  even obey every member of the family's command.

This, of course, means that everyone in the family must be on the same page in terms of dog discipline and, even to some degree, language.  A smart German Shepherd dog is able to learn a fairly large vocabulary so you don't have to be too conscious of everyone using the same exact words or phrases in the training although it is certainly easier for the young puppy not to have to learn too many words for the same task all at once.

Each member of the household should invest one-on-one time everyday with the puppy from the begining.  Younger children should have close supervision but they should still have brief times working with the puppy in training exercises.  Not only are you training the puppy to respond to the child but this is good opportunity for parents to train the young children how to properly work with the puppy.

There is a place for a ONE-PERSON dog . . .  that place is NOT in the family environment.  The dog from a very early age knows and understands 'Pack order'  and that puppy needs to know where it fits in the family (pack.)  The puppy finds it's security in this social order.  If you as a family do not clearly demonstrate the household order to the puppy, the puppy will seek to establish it's own sense of order amongst the humans.  Unwanted behavior on the part of the puppy could be a result and can be difficult to correct.  Don't leave the puppy in charge!

The best time to think through this matter is before your new puppy arrives in the home.  If you already have a pup or young dog but have overlooked this important aspect of your relationship with the pup . . . have a family meeting TODAY and begin to work out your strategy to help the puppy know it's place.  Make a commitment that the pup is EVERYONE'S business. . .  let the puppy become part of the whole family.  The puppy will be easier to handle, much more secure and you will be a happier family for it. . .     Eliot

www.rosehallkennel.com   also find us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/RosehallLargeGermanShepherds

What do you feed your dog?

"What do you feed your dog?" . . .  easy question . . .  right?   Well the question is easy enough but in our situation the answer isn't simple at all.  When you read the instructions (or feeding guidelines) on the back of the bag of dog food many will look like a 'one size fits all' with slight variations for the weight (size) of your dog.  Some lines of dog food will specify that a particular type is for growing puppies, another for active adult and yet another for 'the mature' adult (read old and slowed down dog.)

While you can 'get by' with such a feeding program, we work to feed each dog according to it's particular current needs.  A young puppy gets fed different that an adolescent. The adolescent gets fed differently when it's in a growth spurt than it does between growth spurts.  If the young dog is in an extended growth spurt and is growing faster than it's immune system can keep up with it, it gets fed even differently.   The girl preparing for a heat cycle gets fed differently if we're planning on breeding her than if she is in a rest cycle.  A pregnant girl gets fed differently during her pregnancy according to what stage she is in.  As she prepare to whelp the feeding changes again and as she shifts into nursing mode her feeding is adjusted again.  Weaning puppies and recovering from the nursing cycle require different feeding too.  The males are fed differently as they are getting built up for a breeding cycle (although their adjustments are not nearly as complex as the girls require.)   Attention to the current needs of each dog and knowing something about nutrition and supplements is essential to raising quality pups.  We are very fortunate to have excellent vets who are exceptionally knowledgable about animal nutrition and how it plays a very important role in the continuing health of the dogs. We are in frequent contact with our vets and trust their consultations.

So . . . simple question, complex answer.  And notice that I have yet to really answer the question . . . As much as we vary the dogs diets, the basic feeding menu revolves around 4 kinds of dry dog food.  We use Eukanuba Large Breed Adult and Large Breed Puppy kibbles and Diamond brand Large Breed Puppy and their Natural Chicken with Rice kibbles.  We use high quality feeds (expensive) because they are nutritionally dense so the dogs get all the nutrition they need in smaller quantities of food resulting in less waste to clean up.  The down side to that is that these big dogs' tummies may still feel like they want more.  We help that by soaking the Euk Adult in warm water an hour before we feed. The kibbles swell up and the dogs 'feel' like they've eaten more.  Most all the dogs get a base of this soaked food and then one or more of the other kibbles are mixed into the soaked food and then topped with various supplements depending upon their needs. 

When all is going smoothly, it takes about an hour (twice a day) to mix and feed all the adult dogs. (Puppies are a WHOLE different story.) Once everyone is fed then we get to beging cleaning up, providing fresh, clean water and starting the visiting/exercise/training rounds with all of them.   Becasue of the shorter daylight in the winter, the dogs are content to sleep more so our work days are a little shorter.  Generally we spend 10-12 hours a day working with the dogs in the winter and 12-14 hours per day in the summer including puppy care requirements . . .  times two of us! . . .  some days we slack off and some days require more time on the phones and email.  The feeding, cleaning and basic exercise cycles are the first priority on all days.  Some days they get more 'fun time with the peoples' than on other days.  Lots of hours, lots of work but the rewards of the wagging tails and dog kisses ALWAYS makes it worthwhile. . .     until next time . . .  Eliot   www.rosehallkennel.com

"Pick of the Litter"

"I want the 'pick of the litter!'" . . . Yep, we all do. When we purchase a puppy from another kennel, we want the very best of the litter to be our new family member. So let's consider what's involved in picking our puppy from a whole litter of puppies.

First, remember that you have already done a lot of deciding before you get to the picking of the individual puppy. You have done extensive reasearch and narrowed your choices of quality kennels down to one from the many you have checked out. That is a significant process on it's own. You've chosen the kennel for it's blood lines, for it's responsible breeding program, for it's careful animal health regimens, for the love and care that are shown to the dogs and puppies, for it's reputation, for the warranty offered, for the helpful way their information is presented to you and for the respectful way the kennel people have treated you in answering all your questions.

Secondly, within the chosen kennel you have studied the available moms and dads and the breeding options that are coming up in the time frame that you are wanting to add a puppy to your home. You have considered color, coat, size and personality desired and with the help of the kennel people you have picked a particular pair of dogs and have waited patiently (or not so patiently) for the puppies to be born.

So from all the possible puppies in the world, you have drastically narrowed your choices down to a single litter even before the puppies arrive! But now you are faced with a litter of 6 or 8 or maybe even 10 puppies . . . one of them will be yours but which one? You paid the kennel your deposit early and possibly paid a premium to reserve the "PICK OF THE LITTER" or the first choice from all the pups available in that litter. In the case of Rosehall Kennel you have made an additional choice before making your deposit because you have chosen the puppy's gender as you reserved either the first pick male or the first pick female. So your choices have been narrowed down to possibly one of 3-6 pups (more or less depending upon the gender mix in the litter.) Unless you are fortunate enough to live fairly close to your kennel of choice, you probably won't be able to make weekly visits to the kennel to watch the puppies grow. (Even if you live very close to the kennel, responsible kennels do not allow visitors into the nursery until the pups are old enough develop immunities to potential diseases that they might be exposed to.)

During the first several weeks you eagerly await each new posting of photos of the litter and then photos of the individual pups. You wonder . . . which one shall it be? Some of the choices are easy early on . . . I want a traditional black and tan . . . that eliminates the white one and the sable one. Choices in coat . . . short coat, plush coat, long coat . . . take a little longer to make as sometimes it's not clear what a pup's coat will develop into until several weeks after birth. But the big event you are waiting for is the 'Temperament Test' which is done at 6 weeks of age. It is really remarkable that a fairly simple test of 9 responses can give a very reliable idea about what kind of temperament a puppy will have as it matures. While the temperament test indicates the potential of a puppy, whether the puppy develops that way is dependent upon the environment that the pup is raised in and the discipline of training that the puppy receives.

Once the Temperament Test has been done, the kennel posts a description of the pup's personalitly and potential. The kennel begins consulting with the buyers in the order they appear on the 'Pick List,' helping them with their final decision as to which pup they will take home when the puppy reaches 8 weeks of age. The goal is the perfect match . . . gender, color, coat, size, temperament . . . all perfectly matching the dreams the family has for their neww puppy.

Sound too good to be true? After all, if I don't have 1st pick, I have to take what's left . . . right? Well we have been pleasantly surprised over the years in which we have been buying puppies for the kennel, how many times we ended up having to take 4th pick in a litter from a very popular breeding only to find that the three picks before us were all looking for different qualities than we were . . . in other words . . . we got the pup that we would have chosen if we did have 'Pick of the Litter!' We also have found that to be true most (not all) of the time with people buying puppies from us. Because every family is different from all the others, everyone has a different dream puppy. That is how so many people actually end up with their 'Pick of the Litter.'

Our policy at Rosehall Kennel is that should you not be pleased with any of your available options, you can move your deposit to another upcoming litter . . . you may sacrifice the 'when you want it' but you can have another chance at the 'what you want.' . . .

So 'Pick of the Litter' is really more possible than many people think! . . . Check out our 'Puppy Dream Page' that show our plans for breeding in the near future. Dream along with us of your perfect puppy and get your deposit in for the litter of your choice!

www.rosehallkennel.com/PuppyDreamPage.htm until next time . . . Eliot (find us on Facebook too)

Ears, glorious ears!

  AKC breed strandards for German Shepherd Dogs calls for erect ears. Some GSD's ears have droppy tips and others don't stand erect at all.  They are still German Shepherd Dogs and can be from very fine genetic lines with other great qualities but the fall short in the ear category.  We certainly look for, and in most cases get, fine erect ears as seen in the photo of Nossia.

Getting through the various stages of puppy ears in their journey to the consistantly upright position can prove to be quite frustrating . . .  especially if one doesn't know what to expect.  All GSD puppies are born with their ears DOWN.  As the puppy grows the muscles that hold the ears erect and the cartiledge required for the ears to stand must develop.  As the puppies in the litter begin to rough and tumble with one another (developing coordination, strength, pack order, etc) it is possible for one puppy to enthusiastically grab another puppy's ear. Rarely this can cause what proves to be permanent damage to the ear.  It may not stand at all or it may come part way up and 'droop.'  Children in the puppy's new family could also cause this kind of damage by pulling on or lifting the puppy by the ears.  Various surgical solutions may be available for such damage but use caution when choosing the vet to do the procedure.

Puppies develop at differing rates and there is no 'standard' age at which you can know if a puppy's ears are up 'for good.'  During the growing stages it is not uncommon for ears to begin to come up and then droop again.  In many cases ears will be standing erect and during the time when they loose their puppy teeth the ears will drop back down again.  A very precocious pup might have it's ears standing erect by 8 weeks.  More common (especially with the larger, slower maturing GSD's who have larger ears) would be ears coming up and dropping back down through a period of 10-20 weeks (after the adult teeth are in).  Some pups won't have their ears consistently erect until about 1 year old (which is when the AKC standards say the ears should be erect).  If the ears are not standing erect consistently after the adult teeth are in at about 5 months of age, the owner should begin working to assist the ears to stand. There are several methods that have proven helpful in doing this and you should consult with your breeder for specific recommendations for your puppy.  A quality breeder will be glad to assist you and be able to coach you through the process. 

The classic look of the German Shepherd with ears standing is a beautiful sight.  The German Shepherd whose ears aren't perfect will still have the great personality and intelligence and make a valuable addition to the family to which it belongs.

More helpful information is coming soon on our web site at www.rosehallkennel.com    . . .  Eliot

Questions, questions, questions . . . why all the questions?

When you begin seriously communicating with Rosehall Kennel about adding one of our pups to your family there will be LOTS of questions that you will have for us . . .  and rightly so.  As a prospective buyer of a Rosehall puppy you should want to be assured that we are indeed a quality breeder taking great care in not only our breeding program and facilities but also devoting quality time and attention to the parent dogs and the pups to assure that they are well socialized and ready to easily become part of your family.

But you may be curious as to why we have so many questions for you!  As a quality breeder, it is very important to us (and our pups) that you have a successful experience with us and your new puppy.  Since we obviously know our dogs better than you do, we make efforts to find out from you about your lifestyles, personal preferences, etc. so as to make a good puppy match with you.  By getting to know you through email and phone calls (and your visits to our farm when possible) we can help guide you to a puppy that will be a great part of your family.  We can also steer you away from poor matches.  You may really like the looks of a particular puppy but you must live with more than just the puppy's appearance. . .  cute only goes so far!

As a quality breeder, we are also concerned that our pups go to homes that are well suited and prepared for the large German Shepherd dog that the puppy will become.  We ask questions to get an idea of what kind of conditions the puppy will be raised in, how much time and attention the puppy will get in training and socializing within the family and what kind of exercise options will be available, especially as the dog becomes full grown.

Questions, questions, questions . . .  your questions and our questions.  Together they work for your benefit and ours as well as the puppy and the dog it shall soon become.  We love to answer your questions . . .  it's how you get to know us.  We hope that you will be pleased to answer our questions so that we can get to know you too.

Eliot . . .  find more photos and information on our web site and our Facebook fanpage.

 www.rosehallkennel.com   and    https://www.facebook.com/RosehallLargeGermanShepherds

Airline changes mean changes for Puppy flying

About 75% of people who purchase Rosehall puppies travel to the farm to pick up their pup. Most by car, some by commercial air travel and some by private plane.  However you get here we encourage buyers to come and see us and the dogs and get a better sense of what we do here. We also understand that not everyone can make the journey to the Highland Rim of the Cumberland Plateau in east Tennessee. . . so the remaining 25% of the puppies travel to their new homes via special handling shipping with one of the major airlines.

Anyone who travels by air knows that there have been quite drastic changes in the airlines' operations in the past decade.  Lower demand for air travel and outrageous increases in fuel costs are causing the airlines to 'tighten their financial belts.'  We expect to continue to see airlines cutting service to smaller markets . . .  in cases abandoning some smaller cities altogether and in other cases reducing the number of flights to many destinations.  The small communter jets that were efficient ways to service small markets when fuel was less expensive are now proving to have higher operating costs per seat than the big planes.  Wherever possible, airlines will consolodate service to fewer flights to a destination hoping to make use of fewer bigger planes replacing more of the smaller planes.

What this means for puppy travel (in addition to higher costs for priority/special handling service) is that we will have fewer options of flights to put the puppies on.  People who live near smaller cities may have to drive greater distances to get to an airport that offers pet transportation services. (Not all airports that have commercial passenger service will offer priority pet cargo service.)  The small markets that continue to have puppy flight service available will find that with fewer flights available, we'll be fighting greater competition for the very few puppy slots available in the cargo space so in more and more cases we will find that we must ship when we can, not when it's convenient.

Higher costs, increasing travel to meet the flights and less convenient scheduling might make it more attractive for some people to come and pick up their puppies from the farm.  For those who still can't travel to us, be assured that we will continue working with buyers who want us to arrange safe air travel for their puppy. Let's all hope that it won't become too frustrating an endeavor!

Check out our web site at www.rosehallkennel.com  Look for us on Facebook too! . . .   Eliot

Life in the country . . . with the dogs.

We live on 52 acres out in the country . . .  way out in the country.  Not like you folks in Montana or Texas or Alaska . . .  but out in the country none the less.  It's a 20 minute drive in each direction to the nearest town of any size (even a small size.)  And yet we are blessed with great utility services that have gotten better and better over the years.  It is now rare for us to be without electric power for more than a few minutes at a time.  It has also become rare for our land line phone service to be down for any length of time.  That is why this past weekend was so traumatic for us.  Our phone and internet service crashed Saturday afternoon and it wasn't restored until mid afternoon on Monday.  No phones . . .  no email . . .  no Facebook . . . no web site updates . . .  no blog posts.  Writing this after the service has been restored it seems rather trite and yet it the midst of it we were surprised at how adicted to and dependent on we've become to these forms of communication with our kennel's puppy owners, prospects and fans.  It was stressful for us knowing that we had people expecting us to air ship puppies to them this coming week and we couldn't communicate with them in the manner that we were so accustomed to. . .  BUT THE DOGS NEVER NOTICED!  Kennel life continued unchanged.  The day to day routine with all our precious dogs was the same as always and the dogs were content.  I'm sure there are profound lessons to be learned from this  ; - )  but I'm guessing that it will take at least a few days for that to come to the surface.  Right now I'm just glad that I can post this blog entry!

Take a llok at our web site:  www.rosehallkennel.com   . . .  we're on Facebook too . . . .  Eliot

Introduction to Rosehall

Rosehall Kennel is located on the Highland Rim of the Cumberland Plateau in the western foothills of the Appalacian Mountains in East Tennessee. The kennel is part of Rosehall Farm which is now a 2nd generation farm with 3rd & 4th generation participation.  We breed the large frame, straight back, family friendly AKC German Shepherds that were more common in the 1950's & '60's. About 1/3 of our puppies are purchased by families with young children, about 1/3 are purchased by recently retired couples and the remaining 1/3 are engaged in some form of service work.  The service dogs are used for hearing assistance, therepy dogs, physical assistance dogs, law enforcement, seizure alert dogs and search and rescue work.  Our parent dogs are tested with OFA for sound hips and elbows and also are tested for DM (degenrative spinal myelopathy) to reduce some of the more common risks especially associated with the German Shepherd dog.

It is our hope that through this blog we can make posts that are both informative and entertaining for the German Shepherd owner in particular, dog owners in general and especially for those who are considering the purchase of a fine German Shepherd dog.  While we are seriously engaged with the care of our dogs and puppies, we hope to carve a little time out of our days to post on this blog 2-3 times a week (and more often when feeling especially creative or 'wordy.')

Until next time . . .   Eliot   www.rosehallkennel.com