Reine (in the middle, above) arrived from Arizona on Saturday.  The boys have checked her out and confirmed that she’s not “in season” yet, but we expect her to be in about a week.  Everyone’s getting along well.  They race around outside, chasing each other and then they lay all over the house napping for a few hours before it’s time to get up and play again.

About 6 inches of snow fell last night. Outdoor time today has been pretty clean with only wet paws and fur, but this dumping of snow means that there will be mud to contend with as it melts, one of the nuisances of living in the country.

Biff’s been hustling to finish the kennel area of the barn.  Yesterday he moved a few pieces of furniture in so we’ll be able to house the boys (and one of us) over there when Reine’s season begins.  Everything is almost in place for it to be a comfy place for canines and humans!

Biff’s been taking each of our Griffs out grouse hunting this week, one dog each day while two reluctantlly stay back with me (stuck at home with a badly broken wrist).  There are good grouse in the Minnesota woods – not easy to get to, but they’re out there.

We’re planning a repeat breeding of Chev to Agassiz’s Reine in 2015.  The breeding will likely take place in early spring (March) with pups born in late May and ready for homes in late July.  We’ve included some photos of puppies from Chev and Reine’s first litter (2012). This breeding earned Agassiz a NAVHDA Breeder’s Award.

That’s Chev on the right and Reine on the left in the above photo.  In the shot below, that’s Chev lying down and Reine sitting up.

More photos of puppies from that first breeding…

Contact Biff if you’re interested in this litter.  His phone is 612 382-3060 and his email is biffsgriffs@gmail.com

We just received these photos of Barley who lives in New York but was photographed vacationing in North Carolina’s Outer Banks:

An excerpt from the note we received about Barley:

“We cannot even comprehend how sweet this boy is. It is unfathomable.
Such a joy, it cannot be put into words.  A terrific amount of work,
absolutely inexhaustible, requires tons of running out of the house,
but what he really wants, all he really needs, is absolute and
constant attention in the house.  Lately, really just over the past
two weeks, he has become very chatty, making all kinds of noises at us
as we go about doing the busy-ness of housework. He is has always been
growly, but it seems he now has a whole new language at his disposal.
It’s hilarious.”

His reference to a “talking” Griff certainly resonated with Biff and me.  Finley has always talked to us and Xupe does, too.  It’s a vocalizing that can only be described as talking, and we suspect that others from this litter do the same.

Although it’s looking and feeling more like January, these shots were taken this morning, November 15th, as Xupe was racing around the backyard.  That’s Chev in the background of the first photo.  We love our goof-ball boy who is clearly part Chev and part Finley.  He’s a delight.

Biff and I have been recalling the one year anniversary of the puppies’ arrival.  Sleep deprivation began the night they were whelped and didn’t end until after the last puppy left for his “forever” home.  I recall living on Triscuits for quite a while as we spent evenings weighing, recording their growth and bottle feeding them, cleaning their sleep space, keeping Finley fed and hydrated throughout and non-stop laundering the towels and blankets used to keep the puppies clean and dry.  I won’t even try to describe the hustle and mess of the wood shavings that we kept scooping out and replacing when we moved the growing and rambunctious litter downstairs to the puppy room after they were weaned.

The best memories are the times when visitors came to hold and snuggle the puppies and seeing the families who came to check out the litter even before knowing which pup would be theirs.

Now, one year later, it seems we’ve all incorporated these 12 canine beings into our families and can’t imagine not having them in our lives.  One family has even suggested they might be ready for their second Griff!  Best to all of you.  I’ll keep posting photos as they arrive.  No pressure, but we’d love to see your photos and hear your stories, whenever you send them.

Continuing with the parade of photos of the “puppies” at 1 year old, here’s Woody, who lives in Minnesota…

Happy Birthday to Aya, Xupe, Dutch, Gracie, Riggins, Jazzy, Barley, Woody, Stache, Arlo, Chezny and Atz

Thanks to all of you who have sent in photos of your puppies (from Chev and Finley’s 11/14/13 litter).  Biff and I have been delighted in hearing how you’re all doing.  Every pup sounds happy, healthy and within the breed standard for height and weight.  They all look a lot like either Chev or Finley and their personalities are uniquely “Griffish”.

Here are the photos we’ve received so far.  I’ll post more as I receive them. (I’m fighting with some of the spacing in part of this post.  The photos are below the pups’ names.)

Gracie (Minnesota)

Dutch (MInnesota)

Arlo (Wisconsin)

Chezny (Manitoba, Canada)

Stache (Minnesota)

Biff threw some quail out today.  Finley pointed and Chev and Xupe came in and honored her point, backing her up quite nicely.  They all held long enough for Biff to get some shots, too.

We just got news that stud-boy Chev’s latest litter has arrive.  Chev was bred to Agassiz’s Samantha in late August.  “Sammy” returned home to Arizona for her pregnancy and whelped her litter in Phoenix on Friday, 10/24.

Photos of Samantha (“Sammy”) when she was here during the summer.

The litter is just about an even split of boys and girls.  Most of the puppies have been reserved but there are two males as yet unspoken for.  Contact Jim at 602 397-5759 if you are interested in one of the puppies from this litter.