BrownStone Chinooks is devoted to fostering the excellent health and wonderful temperament of Chinook dogs. Hard-working Chinooks excel in many activities such as agility, obedience, back yard play, hiking, dog powered sports, search and rescue, and as service dogs. The affectionate Chinook is an excellent family dog matching its activity level to that of its companions - be it strenuous exercise or snuggling on the couch.

Monday, July 28, 2014

Happy First Birthday Luca

"PR" BrownStone Cascade Mt. Klah
Klah (Three Sisters, Ms. Purple) was whelped a 12oz stunning beauty.
By 4 weeks old she weighed 4lb 8oz and...
 had won everyone's hearts.
At 8 weeks old there was no question that she was "first pick" female. She had beauty, movement and personality that really impressed the evaluating judges.
Klah, now Luca moved to Colorado and took first place in her first AKC show at 3 1/2 months. (Sorry, I did manage to import the picture but could not make any of my programs turn it upright then export it to blogspot.)
Luca at 4 months with one up ear experiencing her first snow.
Luca with up ears testing her backpack at 5 months.
 At 6 months showing off her helicopter ears and fast, agile self...
and learning to pull.
Luca's ears decided to go up at 6 1/2 months.
Luca went to her first dogsled race at 7 months.
Hanging with her normal pose at 8 months. 
Poor girl shared the indignity of her first season with her favorite Barred Plymouth Rock chick at 9 months old.
 Guarding the hen house at 10 months.
Luca an 11 month old lap dog with a Nook tongue.
Blue and Purple ribbons from her second dog show at 12 months. Her ears seem to have settled into a helicopter set.
 For this blog, Luca's family wrote: 
Specific behaviors:  Luca howls in her sleep often and we have yet to be quick enough to capture it on video.  We thought we had a serious digger on our hands for awhile, although once her digging companion moved out of state, the digging stopped.  She can be a little shy with strangers and children, especially if not properly introduced, and she is very sensitive to body language and tone of voice.  We call her “the kissing bandit”, as her tongue is always at-the-ready for anyone within reach of it.  We hear that all of these behaviors are common in the Chinook breed.
Titles: None.  Luca has participated in two UKC shows.  She had a practice run in Castle Rock, CO last November as a Novice Puppy, and again in Longmont, CO on July 20 in the Puppy Class.  She shared the ring with Moonshadow from Laughing Mountain and three of the Schillers’ Mountain Thunder Chinooks:  Scarlet, Terra and Bear.  It became immediately apparent that we have a lot to learn about showing.  Luca did well enough, however, and more importantly seemed to enjoy the whole experience despite her inexperienced handler.  So, next is some conformation training to help us with our handling skills and to help her get more comfortable.  We are also entertaining the idea of getting her into agility training as she seems to enjoy navigating the makeshift obstacles we set up in the yard.  We’ll see.
Sweet and Affectionate:  She is such a joyful pup and she brings so much joy to our lives.  Her name means “bringer of light” and morning is her best time of day, which is fitting.  She is a cuddly, snuggly, huggable bundle of love.  We wake up every morning to find her asleep on our bed, lying on her back, nestled against one of us.  When either of us emerges from the bathroom after showering, she celebrates by picking up one of her toys and bringing it to us to look at, but not take.  She wiggles the entire time, her hips swinging to the left and right, and that tail never stops wagging.  We don’t know if she is simply happy to see us again or is trying to say, “thank goodness you made it out of there alive!”  She celebrates similarly whenever either of us returns home from being gone for any length of time.
People- and Dog-friendly:  Luca likes people and LOVES dogs.  She also likes her five chickens and one rooster, and helps us herd them back to their coop after their daily forays into the yard.  “Barr” is her best chicken friend (a Barred Plymouth Rock) and Mojo is NOT her best rooster friend, although she has recently begun trying to engage him in play.  He doesn’t play and he doesn’t find her nearly as adorable as we do…
Active/Playful:  During her first few months with us, we let her spend supervised time with Otter and then we had to put him away for safe-keeping.  As that was her first toy, we wanted to preserve it and she was on track to love Otter to death.  She now has many favorite indoor toys, most of which are stuffed animals: Fox, Squirrel, and Elephant.  She enjoys walking on our treadmill and often sits on it and whines until someone gets it going for her.  Her favorite outdoor toy: a yellow, 5-foot nylon rope that is her special reward after training sessions and off-leash walks, as well as on low-activity days when a little fun between naps is in order.  We swing the rope around and she chases it until she catches it – then it’s a game of tug-o-war.  She loves water and as we don’t have a natural body of water on our property, we keep a baby pool filled for her to play in.  She puts her face all the way in to get treats off the bottom of it and sometimes just dunks her entire face for the heck of it.  In the winter, we attach a rider-less sledding saucer to her harness so she can satisfy her need to pull.  If there is no snow, she pulls it across the grass.  Whether she will ever pull a big sled like her brother Trask and other littermates remains to be seen due to her size.  If she doesn’t get to do that, she will still get to pull her sledding saucer and perhaps we’ll give bikejoring a try.
Great Traveler - Luca is a dog we can take just about anywhere, and we do.  Since her September 2013 plane ride to Colorado from her first home in Eugene, Oregon - during which she never made a peep and no one knew there was a puppy in the cabin - she has been on one multi-state road trip from Colorado to Washington, the national parks of southwestern Utah, and the Grand Canyon.  Everyone she meets comments on how sweet and well-behaved she is.  She is the perfect dog for us and we love her dearly.  Thank you for entrusting her life to us and know that we are committed to her, for life.
Otter sharing a 1 year post birthday celebration with 43 lb Luca .