The parents have the traditional rounded ear crop of the Azores Cattle Dog. You can tell because the edges are not furred. There's only a scarce handful of vets that know to leave a longer bit of skin from the back of the ear and stitch it forward so the ear edge is fully furred.
His parents are imports, so the ears were probably done over there. The breeder's wife is from the Azores and her husband is from Brazil. They brought the dogs over to work their cattle and then fell in love with the breed and decided to breed. They have house dogs and working dogs.
We will not be cropping his ears.
As for his job, well he is to be my off-lead hiker. Originally that was gonna be one of Blue's jobs. Blue's jobs were to guard in summer, be a PPD for Jen, and to be an off-lead hiker with me. Blue is so aggressive toward strange dogs it makes it impossible to hike him on or off lead.
So I got Chupa to be my off-lead hiker, and if he wants to guard with Blue at home, that's cool too. Two summer guardians would be good, the COs get a seista in the summer to keep them out of the high-heat times, so I hope that Chupa will step-up to that role and work with Blue on it... but his focus is hiking first, the guarding is a nice to have. If Chupa doesn't work out for hiking, he will go back to the breeder to work his cattle and I may explore the SAB route for summer guarding and give up on the off-lead hiker bit.
Hi Brad, as if having the nine newborn pups and the Kai cutie were not enough --- congrats on your new cutie doggie! Chupa is really adorable! I'm glad to hear there will no ear-cropping -- I'm sure there is some utilitarian reason behind it, but really.... Enjoy him!!! He looks like he will be a fun dog to have around!
From the video I'm guessing his full-grown size will be bigger than your Kai's, or is he a bit older? Love the video of the two puppies having the time of their life together. Seems like they will grow up to be great buddies!
In that video he is playing with Nori. Nori and Chupa were the same age (just a few days apart), Tai is about 3 weeks older than Chupa. Tai and Chupa do well together, tho Tai is very nasty around food and has picked on Chupa a few times over food... So we have to manage that closely so it doesn't go bad. Tai is a bit of a bully, he will not be nasty to the larger dogs about food, but he will pick on the smaller dogs, so we need to watch it closely until Chupa is larger than Tai - then the tables will turn for Mr. Bully Pants (Tai).
Chupa should grow to be around 60lb - 70lb and be roughly the height of Ahi, maybe a bit taller (like Lani or Fuji).
Chupa has got to be one of the smartest pup we've owned, maybe the smartest... Maybe even smarter than Ahi, which is setting the bar very high.
Chupa, at 11 weeks, already has a solid sit, down, and down-stay! 11 weeks! Can you believe that? We can put him in a stay and walk across the room! His impulse control is a lot better than Blue's was at this age (or the age he is now. LOL).
Chupa also has figured out how to unscrew the top of his busy buddy, so it doesn't keep him very busy anymore. :oT He also knows how to open the other dog's crates and let them out, so he is always letting Maui out of his crate and then taking his food! LOL
He's creepy smart, its pretty amazing. I need to get some videos of him doing these things.
Looks like you're gonna have to teach him some useful tricks to keep him busy! Hey, maybe he can help Jen with the chores around the house? Seriously though...put him to work! Start working on those retrieves and he can do the laundry and take out the trash.
So, today I took Chupa on an off-lead "practice hike", a 15 minute off-lead walk on a trail... He did GREAT. He was literally on my heals the whole time, checking in constantly. You could tell he was in his element on trail. I don't want to jinx it, but, for my needs, I think I may have picked a winner! )
He can be a real drivey pain in the ass at home tho. wow can he be an ass. LOL
Yea, Chupa! You go! Hey Brad, give him a break on all that puppy frivolity and maneuvers around the house... he is just a baby, after all! Enjoy him --- sounds like he is going to be delight, if a little mischievous now and then...
I missed Chupa. He is too too cute! His brindle is amazing, and I like his parents ears cropped that way. It's cute, and I usually don't like cropped ears. Now I will have to Google the breed.
I'm glad that he seems to be working out well for you. I'm so into off leash hiking. It's the best not to have to have them attached to you. Have you ever tried Kona off leash?
Comments
Can't wait to see what he'll look like as he grows. Do you have any pics of his parents Brad? ~
Here is dad:
Yes caps were needed.
We will not be cropping his ears.
As for his job, well he is to be my off-lead hiker. Originally that was gonna be one of Blue's jobs. Blue's jobs were to guard in summer, be a PPD for Jen, and to be an off-lead hiker with me. Blue is so aggressive toward strange dogs it makes it impossible to hike him on or off lead.
So I got Chupa to be my off-lead hiker, and if he wants to guard with Blue at home, that's cool too. Two summer guardians would be good, the COs get a seista in the summer to keep them out of the high-heat times, so I hope that Chupa will step-up to that role and work with Blue on it... but his focus is hiking first, the guarding is a nice to have. If Chupa doesn't work out for hiking, he will go back to the breeder to work his cattle and I may explore the SAB route for summer guarding and give up on the off-lead hiker bit.
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From the video I'm guessing his full-grown size will be bigger than your Kai's, or is he a bit older? Love the video of the two puppies having the time of their life together. Seems like they will grow up to be great buddies!
Chupa should grow to be around 60lb - 70lb and be roughly the height of Ahi, maybe a bit taller (like Lani or Fuji).
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I like the parents' names, Bomb and Ant :-P
Chupa, at 11 weeks, already has a solid sit, down, and down-stay! 11 weeks! Can you believe that? We can put him in a stay and walk across the room! His impulse control is a lot better than Blue's was at this age (or the age he is now. LOL).
Chupa also has figured out how to unscrew the top of his busy buddy, so it doesn't keep him very busy anymore. :oT He also knows how to open the other dog's crates and let them out, so he is always letting Maui out of his crate and then taking his food! LOL
He's creepy smart, its pretty amazing. I need to get some videos of him doing these things.
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LOL!!! :-P
So, today I took Chupa on an off-lead "practice hike", a 15 minute off-lead walk on a trail... He did GREAT. He was literally on my heals the whole time, checking in constantly. You could tell he was in his element on trail. I don't want to jinx it, but, for my needs, I think I may have picked a winner!
He can be a real drivey pain in the ass at home tho. wow can he be an ass. LOL
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I'm glad that he seems to be working out well for you. I'm so into off leash hiking. It's the best not to have to have them attached to you. Have you ever tried Kona off leash?