The puppies keep growing, and their personalities are becoming more and more individualistic. Silver has learned to sit and stay seated while being petted! A big breakthrough for our 120mph girl! She will only jump now if another puppy is jumping. They all know better, but their enthusiasm sometimes gets the better of them. We gently remind them by holding them in a sit position while petting them, and they quickly remember the drill. Silver loves to play with Face, and they pal around nearly all the time. She has one habit of tipping the trash can first thing when she gets in to the kitchen. So, we have to rush in before her to prevent the potential disaster. She still zooms around the house at top speed, and all the puppies love to give chase. Although with their size, this can be rather dangerous to on-lookers. :D She is a very curious pup and will get in to anything that looks or smells interesting. I know it is a sign of intelligence but shoo can she sure run us in circles! She is always ready to play with something, though, so it is easy to distract her curiosity.
Face isn't as picky with his associations, and will romp with any of the puppies. He's a pretty big boy, so has no fear of any. He is still my little gentleman, and will sit calmly waiting for treats or attention. If he doesn't get them, though, he has the cutest little howl-whine that he employs to melt even the toughest heart. He is so soft and cuddly, it is just so hard to resist. His markings are also very striking, a large white blaze covers most of his forehead, but his eyes have a dark gray mask breaking up his pure white face. The dark gray picks out his startlingly light blue eyes, and makes them almost hypnotic. He loves to follow me around when the other puppies are occupied doing other things. He also whine-howls intermittently when I first get home to try to come and see me, or get me to let him out so he can get some cuddles.
Most of the puppies will let us know now when they need to go out, but a couple still need to learn, and have to be watched while indoors. Cat is one of the pups that is housetrained and will come to me and whine, then run to the enclosure to let me know he needs to go out. He is such a good boy! He loves to cuddle in my lap when I sit down and nothing satisfies him when he wants a cuddle but to be in my lap being hugged. He too has a very soft coat which is a pleasure to pet and hold, so he usually gets his way. Cat is a very big boy though, probably the second biggest after Elvis, but definitely heavier, although he pales in comparisson to Xena. He is all solid where Elvis is more legs. Cat and Flakes are almost always together, and I certainly hope they remain together.
Flakes is a cuddle bug, much more so than Cat, but he is content to be anywhere near me as long as he is getting petted or hugged. Flakes is not quite as good about being indoors as Cat. He will sit at the enclosure for a moment, but if no one lets him out, he will try to find the nearest training pad, but won't always make it. He's still quite young though, and we are still working with him on that. He has a very soft coat and contrary to his stern looking features, he's a happy go-lucky goofball.
Buck is much like Xena in that he doesn't like heights. He loves to be cuddled with all four feet on the ground or in your lap, but goes all stiff when picked up off the floor. Of all the puppies, he looks the most like Yukon except he's tan and white instead of gray. He's a very handsome boy in other words. He is also slowing down on his growth to the point where he is beginning to look very positive for a conformation prospect. Meaning, unlike most of the puppies, he looks like he will be about middle ground on the size standard, and I expect him to reach between 50-55lbs. Him and Brownie/Kirby are the smallest pups in Freya's litter. Though Buck is shorter than Face, he has a heavy bone structure, but a lean whip-like frame like his father. This shape has made Yukon incredibly fast, so I expect that Buck too will be gifted with extraordinary speed for his size. His light color coat and crystal blue eyes make a striking combination, and he is all-around a handsome pup. He's next on my socialization list, so we will see how he is with strangers.
Brownie (nicknamed Kirby because he is our adorable little red puff-ball) is quite the character. Round about 3am every morning, he feels it is his honorbound duty to give me a face-bath. He will stop at nothing to make sure my face gets cleaned at that hour. No matter how many bungee cords, tiewraps, gates, boards, mesh wire, fences, doors, etc that are in his way, he will find some way to get to me. Sometimes I think a better nickname for him would be Houdini. He is always so happy to see me though, I can't even begin to get angry with him, and patiently let him finish his task before rising and playing with him a little before putting him back. I know I'm a sucker sometimes, but he's just so darn cute! He's incredibly intelligent and there is mischief in his eyes 24x7. He is also very curious, even more so than Silver, but he's quicker to figure out what he can and can't get away with. He would be a fantastic obedience/rally pup let alone his conformation as he is so focused on praise as reward. This boy could probably learn more than the 1000 tricks that poodle has. I swear if he could talk, he would, and it would be the best stand up comedy act you have ever heard. He loves to hear laughter, and sometimes I think he does his antics just to hear us laugh.
Xena is our shy child. She startles easily and doesn't like to picked up by anyone but me. She used to not like that until she learned that she was a lot more safe in my arms than on the ground. She still is too afraid to go down the porch stairs, but when it comes to tussling, she has no fear whatsoever. She'll even try to play with Demon and Yukon, even grumpy old G'Kar. She will initially jump up to get my attention, but as soon as I turn to her, she will shyly sit down and nuzzle me for petting. She is also a very smart girl, and I'm hoping she will become more confident as she matures. Thinking about it, it would probably be a good idea to start working obedience with her one-on-one to give her that confidence. Xena will probably be our heftiest pup, as she has the incredibly strong and stocky build of Demon yet the large size of Yukon. For a female, she is going to be close to 60-65lbs or more, which is incredible for a Siberian let alone a female Sibe. Maybe being shy for such a large girl is a good thing?
Elvis is still our side-burn adorned love-bug. He always wants to be out with the people and being held, cuddled or petted is his bread and butter. He would sleep with me if I let him, although I don't think he would find any room between Samantha, Freya and Demon who all like to cuddle up with me. Did I mention I'm a sucker for a pretty Sibe? Elvis has one drawback, he thinks all treats are for him and sometimes takes exception to another puppy eating one near him. I usually separate him from the rest of the pups now when he gets his treats. Elvis is Moon's enforcer. As the largest puppy (as in tallest, not heaviest), he is apparently the most intimidating, and Moon will hang out with him all the time. Any puppy that doesn't respect Moon's authority has to deal with her and Elvis at the same time. Fortunately, Moon's demands are small, she wants to have fun, all the time except when she is eating or sleeping. She is a very happy girl and all the puppies are happy to follow her lead.
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