And so it goes...

I've been gone for the last week (GSP National Specialty) and although my mind knows that it's too soon to see any changes in Pekoe, I'd swear she's a bit rounder and a bit fuller. She's going tomorrow morning to get the staples from the surgical incision removed. I'll try to post a photo of the "port of entry" for the new little NZ pups before we go.

If I Didn't Know....

she was pregnant and had 8 staples in her belly, I'd hardly know.  The only thing that she has not resumed is her usual tree climbing.  We have a castor tree in the dog paddock that the squirrels are quite fond of.  This tree is a little boy's dream tree with wonderful wide, forked branches for easy climbing.  Apparently too easy because Pekoe climbs this tree on a regular basis; going up about 10 feet to the third fork in the branches.  It's really something to see.  When she first started this, I asked Julie (who owns Pekoe's father Happy) if she'd sent me the wrong semen from the UK (Julie also breeds Siamese cats! LOL)

Here's a photo of Pekoe's arboreal adventures.

And We're Off

After spending a week at Dr. B's, Pekoe was inseminated today and has come home.  Since today was the prime day for breeding (hence the insemination today), she must still smell pretty sexy because Cheddar is being a total idiot!  Hopefully this will not last more than a day or two.

Boyfriend in a Bottle

Even through Gill said that she and Paddy (Rhys' co-owner) would love to come visit Florida on holiday, plans were made to ship semen.  Pekoe, being ever cooperative, promptly came into season early.  Although the semen would have been shipped overnight regardless, Pekoe's being in season added a time constraint that we hadn't counted on.  What should have been a simple leave New Zealand on Monday and be in Miami by Wed and to Lakeland by Thursday turned into a nightmare.  The semen was two days late leaving the Glenbred facility in Matamata, New Zealand and then got hung up overnight in customs in Miami. Then problems with the paperwork that was sent with Rhys and Glen (we decided to import semen from a second boy at the same time since the shipping costs (huge) were the same whether we shipped one dog or ten.) created another day's delay.  That brought us to Saturday morning.  It appeared that the semen would sit over the weekend in a Fed Ex warehouse in Miami and I began to panic, but Lina from Elemar International (call them if you ever need anything shipped in or out of the country) personally drove it from Miami to Dr. Brimacomb's office in Lakeland on Saturday morning.

A Plan Begins

Once again, I fell in love with a dog through the Internet.  This time he was even farther away than the UK.... he was in New Zealand.  But he had everything that I was looking for in a boy for Pekoe's next litter.  Pekoe was my keeper from the litter sired by Happy, the last dog that I loved long distance, so I guess it was only appropriate that her next boyfriend come from abroad.  Here's Pekoe and then Rhys.

Did I mention that I LOVE this dog!?

For more photos of Pekoe and Rhys check out the Woodwynd Dals website at www.woodwynd.com/rhyspekoe.html