All of Käthe's puppies have gone to their new homes and their wonderful new families. We have new friends across the country, and know that the puppies will have great adventures ahead of them. This has been such a wonderful experience for us all, and we look forward to our next litter at some point in the second half of 2024! 

By Easter weekend the gang was down to five. But we still had some fun!

Walmart certainly doesn't need our help, but we have to tell you that the greatest purchase Blackacre made was this shark "cat house" we picked up on a whim. Honestly hoped it would last an afternoon, but it gave us laughs every day. Man, they love this thing. 

Apparently it's International Puppy Day. Luckily we have puppies to celebrate with on this holiday!

And we awoke to a little bit of snow. Here are the puppies in a hovawart's natural environment

And their mother in her natural Sofawart environment

The gang didn't get too crazy on Friday. We did cook cabbage though, so that is now "officially" the source of the stink in our house! We did try to get some shenanigans going though, but it is admittedly a little subdued. If you watch long enough, you'll see me almost lose an eye to the cutest assailant, though.

We always feel special when they fall asleep on on like this.

​Saturday was also the first visit by people from outside our home. Apparently, I was not nearly as special as our visitor. Hovawart pants to a Hovawart scarf! At least she's not Cruella de Vil and seems happy with her own jacket 😅

And here are some more videos of this week's hijinks:

It's been a big week here at Blackacre. We reached four weeks on Wednesday. But the real news is that we started changing their food and they went outside. After sticking with mother's milk and puppy formula for weeks, the gang got puppy gruel on Friday. We soaked puppy kibble overnight in water and pureed the soggy dog food into a smooth mush. As unappealing it may have seemed to us, they all loved it and didn't get too messy.

Saturday was relatively warm at 34° and everyone had their first trip outside. They all, eventually, took to it, though they need brave Yellow to lead the way onto the patio.  Once inside, sleep was immediate!

 We also had our second litter inspection on Saturday. Everyone is looking good and growing well. The HCNA schedules three litter inspections over the first seven weeks of life. It gives us a chance to interact with the breeding committee, show off the dogs, get some tips from some very experienced breeders and judges, and learn we're on the right path -- so far, at least ​😃

Day two outside was good, too. Sunny, not too cold, and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. I know Jaime and I did! 

After some breakfast, the gang got pedicures! Their little talons needed some trimming, for sure. They took it well -- most slept through the spa treatment -- and they look great. Ha. Then everyone got some puppy milk and made a mess.