Today Cubby is 14 weeks. He is 14 inches and 12-1/4 pounds (more or less). He has figured out how to get off the couch (and promptly had an accident -- however, my dramatic lament catching him in the act appeared to have really made him think.) We are signed up for school starting Oct. 2nd (basic) and more than likely NOT going to kinder because I don't want off-leash play. He has Melli and Shay for that. Melli still lets him maul her. Shay is starting to play a bit with him. The bigger he gets the more comfortable Shay gets -- or maybe it's just the time factor. We are now working on stay and leash walking. He won't walk on anything around the neck but will walk on a harness just great. We will NOT allow pulling and train right through that to loose lead and heeling. I know where my trainer wants us to be and to go during the course of classes, and we will be there. I think ultimately, I want to focus on scent work. We have 3 classes and after those one is pretty well ready for competition/certification. If he is really good, we will track. Urban tracking. I would like to track pets who have escaped. I met a lady years ago that did that and I wanted to get into it but I moved. As of now we have one ear tipped and one ear almost completely up. I have no idea where they will ultimately land, but it really doesn't matter. The two vet exams have shown him healthy and in just a couple weeks he and I really get to hit the highways and byways free and fearless. I can't wait!
So, Cubby is going to be the pet-est quality of the year. While his daddy is of a good family, his momma is of average stock unless you go back 4-5 generations where there are some old and defunct well-known kennel names -- Cubby is ginormous, bizarrely colored with a dorsal stripe, ears up or mismatched, too long a tail (almost drags the ground), very narrow head, unusual dark blaze, raccoon eyes. But you know what, he will be magnificent because in the last week or so, he has really gotten in those beady little eyes "the look", the one that says I love you with all my soul and I will do anything for you. THAT is all that matters.