About a year after construction began, the barn is now completely livable for dogs, puppies-to-be and the humans that care for them.  The interior details are substantially finished and it’s partially furnished.  Here are some shots of the exterior and interior, upstairs and downstairs.

It’s about 50 steps from the house to the barn.

 There are just 4 kennels, each with a doorway flap to the inside.

There’s a ‘frig and microwave and a good stash of dog food and treats.

The door under the steps leads to a composting toilet.

Our old, old sofa makes a perfect dog sofa.

This is the “lounge” upstairs.  There’s even a big bed in the left corner.

Composting toilet

Reine’s at 4 weeks and 2 days in our 63 day count from breeding to the expected arrival of puppies.  We’ve noticed nipple changes in her as well as some feeding changes, both signs of pregnancy.  I politely refrained from photographing her underside so there’s no photo to accompany this post.  Signs are looking good!

We’re still a little over 4 weeks away from Chev and Reine’s puppies arriving but it’s never too early to start thinking about life with a new pup.  For those who like to get ahead of the game, here’s a link to a post from our last litter with lots of tips.

https://www.norlingrise.com/news/pre-puppy-preparation/

On Tuesday this week it will be 3 weeks since Reine and Chev were deep into their breeding.  It’s too early to see any signs of pregnancy, but we’re confident that there are puppies developing in there.  For now, life is leisurely with bursts of running and hunting down the various smells that come with the season.  These two shots are our mother-to-be Reine.

How many Griffs do you see?  There are four – Reine standing, Chev and Xupe snoozing and Finley in the background keeping an eye on the ponds.  All four of them chased down ducks this morning, following them from the ponds to the wetland.

Now that Reine’s “season” has passed, life is back to normal with all of us living back in the house. Gorgeous weather has arrived, a great time for hanging out on the porch and spending even more time outside.  Spring wild flowers are in the woods and our garden has emerging tulip bulbs along with asparagus, columbine, astilbe and peonies. It’s all so welcome after winter’s cold and dark.

A puppy family visited this afternoon and they asked about our dog collars.  We LOVE the collars that Bob Tunkun from Parker, Colorado, makes.  Here are some of ours:

They come in many colors and styles, and an ID plate can be incorporated into the collar. The quality is beyond anything we’ve seen.  His prices are reasonable. Bob’s email is: royalbirddogs@yahoo.com and his phone number is 720 438-0300.

Bob has been willing to customize some of the collars we’ve ordered to reverse the direction of the fold so the “loose” end would come to the outside instead of being up against the dog’s neck.  See the yellow collar just above for this detail.

Today’s young visitor wore them as crowns!

We don’t get anything from promoting these dog collars, we just love the quality of the product.

Reine’s breeding to Chev is now finished and they have just returned to hanging out in the house together without the frenzy of breeding on their brains. Breeding canines is an amazing (and intense) process to be party to.  For about five days, both dogs’ natural instincts kick into high gear and they do what needs to be done, when it needs to be done and then they’re DONE!

Now we count the 63 days to mid-June and keep treating Reine like the “queen” she is.

Chev and Reine have been bred (twice so far) and will likely “connect” another time or two before their interest in each other fades.  This photo is Chev “after”.  Reine rolled happily in the grass but we didn’t photograph her.  If we count 63 days of gestation from today, that puts us at June 16th (give or take a day) for puppies to arrive, if all goes as expected.

We’re having an incredible weekend, weather-wise.  It’s sunny, warm and breezy. Biff took Chev and Xupe out to the pond this morning to retrieve dummies.  One got to swim for the dummy while the other waited for his next turn.  The girls stayed in with me.  It nearly drove Finley crazy as she watched them through the window.

Reine’s in season and breeding is imminent.  The couple has been courting, always a good sign, and Chev is a “gentleman” as he pursues her.  They’ve been through this with each other once before and signs are looking favorable.  All good things take time, right?

We’ll post again when they’ve been bred.

The snow’s gone, the ponds have opened up and Reine’s officially “in season”.  We’re anticipating that she’ll be ready to breed in about a week.

That’s Xupe on the left, Reine in the middle and Chev on the right.  There are lots of sounds and smells outside to entertain dogs – wood ducks, sandhill cranes, geese and other migrating birds.  It’s a great time for humans, too.  I planted bulbs last fall and have been looking every afternoon, waiting to see something come up.  Today was the first day that anything’s been visible.  Not much to see yet, but a joy nonetheless.