Kirin the Hokkaido (photo spam) *Updated 30th July 2017*
29 hours and 1094 miles later, finally my new baby Kirin is home safe and sound here in England! She was such an amazing traveller, did the 12 hour journey with no sickness, no accidents and only a few short talking sessions to let us know she was still there.
She has settled in quite well, she seems to be a pretty confident puppy and although a little intimidated by my four big dogs she isn't afraid to tell them which toys are HERS! She's been clean in the house so far and enjoys dragging all of the toys out of the toybox and onto the hammock bed and refuses to crash for a sleep unless she's in 'her spot' on the sofa.
Sorry all of the photos in this initial post are phone pics so not great quality, but hopefully I'll be able to get the DSLR out in a day or two (the battery was flat
) and get some nicer ones.
She has settled in quite well, she seems to be a pretty confident puppy and although a little intimidated by my four big dogs she isn't afraid to tell them which toys are HERS! She's been clean in the house so far and enjoys dragging all of the toys out of the toybox and onto the hammock bed and refuses to crash for a sleep unless she's in 'her spot' on the sofa.
Sorry all of the photos in this initial post are phone pics so not great quality, but hopefully I'll be able to get the DSLR out in a day or two (the battery was flat
) and get some nicer ones.
Comments
Finally managed to get the DSLR out for some proper photos.
16 - 19 weeks. We started off on a long-line whilst she was still settling in, she's now off lead on the fields with the other four.
Small princess.
With 3/4 of the ASBO Four.
New leather collar
I don't know anyone with Hokkaido, how big is she expected to be? OMG I just wanna snuggle all that foof
@BarkingPup at 16 weeks she was around 8.2kg. So I am guessing maybe 15kg when she's grown...but I'm not entirely sure. I'm used to big dogs growing 1kg a week when they're young so this is all new!
Wink and blep!
Sleepy (sleepy time does not last long, she's much more interested in playing with toys and being naughty than my Inuits were at this age).
She's definitely a 'nose down' dog, whereas my others are 'nose up' dogs, always with their heads raised to the wind, she always has her nose on the floor following a scent that way. So when my others have spotted a deer and are watching it run she is completely oblivious to the fact that it's even there.
Her play is pretty similar but she is picky about who she will play with, my female inuit has become her playmate so they rough and tumble together whereas if the two boys try to play she's more likely to make out like they are killing her but with the shepherd boy she will play zoomies and they will run in circles together.
We are currently going through an excited nippy phase where she decides to grab hold of your trousers or your sleeve - we're still working on that one!
All in all it actually seems easier working with Kirin than it was with any of the Inuits, but I know we still have a long way to go!
Here are a few more photos of my growing baby, just crappy phone pics again since the weather has been generally awful here (just a note - the white box attached to her harness is a GPS tracker)!
Meitou has his nose to the ground a lot, too.
Kirin is so cute!
Had a little photoshoot in the garden today so I could have take pics without harness and collar as I think the harness makes her look younger. What do you guys think?
She's such a funny little puppy, definitely has a mind of her own. She has thankfully now worked out that birds fly and are not all that fun to chase, although she does still give into impulse when they go up right in front of her, crows more so than smaller birds. She came nose-to-nose with a New Forest Pony last weekend, so adorable but alas I had no camera with me!
She seems like a fun dog.
Meitou likes to chase seagulls, ducks, and chickens but he usually ignores other birds. As he got older his prey drive lessened towards some things and intensified with others.
Last weekend Kirin attended her first country show, along with my white NI, Kiba. She had lots of first experiences including her first train journey and first time on the London Underground. She did so well, I am so proud of her. She does love the sound of her own voice and has a habit of 'talking' to people whilst they're petting her but she got lots of attention and, I hope, was a good ambassador for the breed.
Here's a couple of crappy phone pics.
Saying hello to the pony at the petting zoo.
And the sheep too...
Baby Bellini came out to say hi. Kirin just wanted to know what was in the bottle.
At London Waterloo, waiting for our train home. Two super tired dogs!
And some photos from my camera in the garden today. Sadly the sunshine went in just before I went out!
Serious face!
Woo face!
Yoga face.
Up to something face...
Butter wouldn't melt face!
We haven't quite mastered 'wait'...instead we get commando crawl towards the treat!
Silly face!
What are you doing on the other side of the gate face.
So I have a question (and it's probably silly) but what separates a 'red' dog from a 'white' dog? Kirin has red tips on her ears, a red stripe down her back, and a faint red tip on her tail...does this make her red?
Meitou is a white dog with very faint red tips on his ears. He is still a white dog. It seems to be a fairly common occurrence in white Hokkaido (and probably some other white dogs, too). I'm sure people who know more than I do about color genetics can explain it better. :>
My import whites and their offspring are pure white with black nose.
Other whites from different bloodlines are not pure whites, they are light reds or biscuit.
One of my whites: http://i1149.photobucket.com/albums/o586/krisztinailles/seta_nice_new_zpsemxo67f1.jpg
A red dog is genetically wild type at the E locus (Ee or EE) and inherited sable in some form at the A locus.
Sometimes, in Kishu, somewhat yellow or ruddy "white" dogs are called "yogore shiro."