I noticed today that Sosuke's getting some very handsome brindling on his muzzle. I'm not sure I could get on camera, because it's very faint, but I see where it's getting lighter. I'm excited to see how it will turn out. I think it will be very handsome, to have that all the way down the muzzle.
He's got a pretty reliable schedule now, too. He wakes up, goes out to pee, then plays in the living room until he gets tired. When he gets tired, I put him in his crate (which he doesn't mind at all), then we start the whole thing over again. Now that we're into that groove, it's pretty easy. He also whines when he needs to poop, so that's nice.
And I think the "puppymoon" is over, lol. Sosuke's starting being a punk sometimes, but it's not a big deal. He decided that Naomi was about puppy-sized, and he was going to play with her like a puppy. I just shove a toy in his face and he usually gets distracted by that. If he's persistently trying to jump on Naomi, I just persistently shove the toy in his face. He eventually either becomes interested in the toy, or gets sufficiently annoyed by having something shoved in his face that he stops. I couldn't help but think that this is one of those things that some people might say, "We have to get rid of the dog because he's attacking the baby."
Naomi's got this face that she does all the time, and that's always what she does when Sosuke gets in her space. Check it out.
The big kids came home Sunday evening, and they were really excited to see Sosuke. I've been telling them that he's coming and showing them pictures, so they walked in the recognized him right away. Isaac said, "Sosuke is here in zero days!" because he kept asking me how many days until Sosuke gets here.
Taka can get a little nuts with Chase sometimes too, but she is easy to redirect. It's not mean, its certainly play, but I see what you mean. I could see someone being like "watch that puppy around that baby, she's aggressive."
About the brindle on his muzzle, that's a good thing. KKA Kai Ken shouldn't have masks, but if the brindle develops into the mask, like you are describing, then it's not considered a mask. On the other hand, Shigeru told me that in NIPPO, they actually like the mask - which is odd IMHO.
Haru and Ayu both have the same brindle in their mask. They're masks started very dark and distinct but over time their masks have disappeared into their brindle coloring. I suspect the same will happen with these pups.
^ Reminds me of that great photo of Haru in that magazine which shows the brindle in her mask so well. IMO one of the best aesthetic features of Kai Ken
@Brada1878 it's not necessarily preferred in Nippo, it's just not frowned upon like it is in KKA. Black masking in the other NK breeds in Nippo is a fault, so stands to reason that it's better if it's not present.
I suspect you will soon have the first known-bike riding Kai doggie, the way that Sosuke is stroking that bike of Isaac's! LOL... Sweet pictures, all of them! I love Naomi and her patience with the puppy!
I really messed up on the crate training this morning. Sosuke woke up at 5:30am to go out, and naturally, I wanted to put him back in his crate and get that extra hour of sleep, but he started screaming. I took him back outside to make sure he was done, and he did poop, so I thought that's what the problem was. Then he was still screaming, so I gave him some water. He drank it, so I thought that must have been the problem. He kept screaming, so I gave him some food. He ate some, but kept screaming. Then, I was moving him around the house to find the most sound-proof spot, because everyone else was asleep and I didn't want him waking everyone up. So, I think all this giving him things and moving him around really reinforced the whining, and when I finally did find a relatively sound-proof spot, he kept screaming for half an hour. Probably because I kept giving him things before.
What a smart little guy! Sorry for your crate-training ordeal this morning. Hopefully, it won't be a hard fix!
I really like his (and Haru's) brindling. I normally don't like brindle dogs (which I think... may be the... only reason I've never really SERIOUSLY considered a Kai - shame on me) because the color tends to look "muddy", but he's got a color that really catches my eye. Good luck with him!
Looks like we both had problems this morning! Except Kyuubi didn't cry, he just went in his crate! I was half awake and all I heard was him tinkling! Then he whined to come out and play. After I cleaned his crate I made him go back in to sleep.
Well, if it makes you guys feel any better, Taka will "hold it" all night like a good girl and then as soon as I go to open the crate to let her out she pees (before she comes out)! She's done this for several mornings in a row now. How about that for potty training fail? LOL
Man, I hate it when crate training goes wrong. The first night I had Conker he let out the worst most creepy howl I'd ever heard in my life. When he was done, about 30 seconds later, Fred said "I never want to hear that again." That sound scared us both, and thankfully that was the only time Conker ever did it. He did and still will do these super high-pitched chirps if he wants something though, and I had to hammer it into Fred's head that you DO NOT let the pup out if he's chirping. Ever. Period.
Okay, puppy grunts are so cute. So are little puppy whiskers. Sooo cute!
I keep forgetting certain things about puppies, lol. For instance, I put a leash on Sosuke and tried walking a bit with him and he just plopped down and wouldn't move. I was expecting him to at least walk with me, or walk in some direction, even if with poor leash manners. Then I thought, "Oh yeah, you don't know anything yet." And various other scenarios where I remember, "Oh yeah, I need to teach you that."
I'm also starting to wonder if Sosuke wants any kind of blanket or bed in his crate. At first, he had some cushy fleece in there, but he was always digging it out of the crate, so I switched it with just a folded towel, because I thought maybe the fleece was too hot. But, now he just digs the towel to one end and sleeps on the bare plastic. It just doesn't seem right not to have something on there, lol.
The brindle on his muzzle looks really nice. I really should try to get a picture, although I may have to just wait until it's lighter.
I took some pictures of his muzzle and I think they'll show up well, but I need to let my sd drive dry out. The sd card will only read for a few seconds at a time, and when I pulled it out it was really moist. I guess it's from when the kids dumped water on my computer. Whoops.
I'll also have to take pictures of his nesting material. Since he likes digging around his bedding so much, I cut strips of fleece so he'd have something he could dig around in more and make a proper nest for himself. He seems to really like it!
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He's got a pretty reliable schedule now, too. He wakes up, goes out to pee, then plays in the living room until he gets tired. When he gets tired, I put him in his crate (which he doesn't mind at all), then we start the whole thing over again. Now that we're into that groove, it's pretty easy. He also whines when he needs to poop, so that's nice.
And I think the "puppymoon" is over, lol. Sosuke's starting being a punk sometimes, but it's not a big deal. He decided that Naomi was about puppy-sized, and he was going to play with her like a puppy. I just shove a toy in his face and he usually gets distracted by that. If he's persistently trying to jump on Naomi, I just persistently shove the toy in his face. He eventually either becomes interested in the toy, or gets sufficiently annoyed by having something shoved in his face that he stops. I couldn't help but think that this is one of those things that some people might say, "We have to get rid of the dog because he's attacking the baby."
Naomi's got this face that she does all the time, and that's always what she does when Sosuke gets in her space. Check it out.
The big kids came home Sunday evening, and they were really excited to see Sosuke. I've been telling them that he's coming and showing them pictures, so they walked in the recognized him right away. Isaac said, "Sosuke is here in zero days!" because he kept asking me how many days until Sosuke gets here.
And, some Rakka on Sosuke action:
Sosuke really likes Isaac's bike:
About the brindle on his muzzle, that's a good thing. KKA Kai Ken shouldn't have masks, but if the brindle develops into the mask, like you are describing, then it's not considered a mask. On the other hand, Shigeru told me that in NIPPO, they actually like the mask - which is odd IMHO.
Haru and Ayu both have the same brindle in their mask. They're masks started very dark and distinct but over time their masks have disappeared into their brindle coloring. I suspect the same will happen with these pups.
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Hopefully I can nip that in the bud.
I really like his (and Haru's) brindling. I normally don't like brindle dogs (which I think... may be the... only reason I've never really SERIOUSLY considered a Kai - shame on me) because the color tends to look "muddy", but he's got a color that really catches my eye. Good luck with him!
Juno tinkled in her crate when I had her in a large crate, but since I put her back in the little cozy crate for bedtime, she's batting 1000!
Love the picture of Sosuke and Naomi!
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She used to whine thinking a different approach would work. lol
The first night I had Conker he let out the worst most creepy howl I'd ever heard in my life. When he was done, about 30 seconds later, Fred said "I never want to hear that again." That sound scared us both, and thankfully that was the only time Conker ever did it.
He did and still will do these super high-pitched chirps if he wants something though, and I had to hammer it into Fred's head that you DO NOT let the pup out if he's chirping. Ever. Period.
Oh, the joys of potty/crate training....feel for you all!
Puppies are hard work, Kagome was difficult with crate and potting training, "shy pooper."
I bet Rakka is pretty happy, Christmas come early.
Good thing he is super adorable.
I keep forgetting certain things about puppies, lol. For instance, I put a leash on Sosuke and tried walking a bit with him and he just plopped down and wouldn't move. I was expecting him to at least walk with me, or walk in some direction, even if with poor leash manners. Then I thought, "Oh yeah, you don't know anything yet." And various other scenarios where I remember, "Oh yeah, I need to teach you that."
I'm also starting to wonder if Sosuke wants any kind of blanket or bed in his crate. At first, he had some cushy fleece in there, but he was always digging it out of the crate, so I switched it with just a folded towel, because I thought maybe the fleece was too hot. But, now he just digs the towel to one end and sleeps on the bare plastic. It just doesn't seem right not to have something on there, lol.
The brindle on his muzzle looks really nice. I really should try to get a picture, although I may have to just wait until it's lighter.
I'll also have to take pictures of his nesting material. Since he likes digging around his bedding so much, I cut strips of fleece so he'd have something he could dig around in more and make a proper nest for himself. He seems to really like it!
Sosuke sounds so cute.