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| The little white one on the right, facing away from the camera, is Ren |
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| Driving home from Minnesota |
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| First car ride |
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| 8 or 9 weeks |
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| Quiet time during the no-sleep early days |
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| Very first snow |
Although Ren is Leon's puppy and he is doing the bulk of the work, I have never had a puppy myself, so this is my first experience with raising a dog, and Leon and I are learning everything about puppy development together - including the many ways they can get themselves into trouble, and how much fun they are.
My husband Chris grew up with dogs, and has a strong instinct for training and handling them, which I do not posses. But under Roxanne's care, I'm beginning to understand so much about puppy behavior and development, pack learning and dynamics, and how to raise, well, a Well Mannered Puppy instead of an obnoxious, rambunctious, out of control beast. Because make no mistake, Ren is an amazing puppy with lots of athletic potential and fantastic breeding, but she could also be a complete terror if she didn't have the daily structure of long walks, challenging mental training, and Roxanne's wisdom and experience. Through this training, we're shaping her strength, curiosity and drive into a well trained puppy dog who is a lot of fun to be around.
I didn't expect how much fun she would be, and how much we all love her. I wanted Leon to do this training for what he would get out of the experience in terms of developing his leadership skills and getting to understand himself better, and I expected Leon to love her, but she's become a wonderful part of the family for all of us. Even Benny, whom she torments, seems to think life is better with a puppy.
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| Very first pack run |
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| First puppy class with Roxanne. Leon is more tired than Ren. |
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| Puppy stack! |
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| Meeting horses |
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| Playing with the farm dog pack at 14 weeks |
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| 14 weeks |
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| Place |
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