Kona's new brother! Visit our website to see pics of Kona's new little brother http://www.silverrunshilohs.com

Stay tuned, he'll have a blog soon too :)

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Kona has had her PennHip evaluation and came up with "Excellent" scores at .29 in both hips. She has cleared her heart certification by a UPenn vet, and we are planning to breed her with Charley this fall. For more information, please visit our website at http://www.silverrunshilohs.com/ Also, check out her photo montage on YouTube here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wc3Jb7TXvGk

Just this morning, Kona decided she wanted something to chew on, and I guess she saw Alex playing Jenga with his friend the other day. She also must have remembered where he put the box, because this morning she brought down the box (which had a string-secured pop off lid), carefully and deliberately opened the box, and choose the Jenga block which she wanted to chew. It was all very calm and well thought out. After I took those away, she proceeded to (calm and deliberately) OPEN, yes OPEN, the door to the pantry and surveyed it's contents as a human would- before she choose the unopened box of cheeze-its (time to lock the pantry). I find myself having to remind myself that she's a dog. When she and Alex are "talking" in the morning, he'll change his tone and inflection to say words, which she'll mimic to the best ability of a dog. Remember- she's only 10 months.

7 1/2 Months Old

In the spirit of Kona having cousins out west- I posted some information about Kona as she is now....

Cool things about Kona (Luna/Phoenix):

- Very smart and willing. She has been so much fun to train. Beyond learning the basic rules and obedience 'commands', she's come up with her own little cute things which were easy to put on que (head in lap, howling, "get daddy", "get Alex", get your ball, open gate) and she's just 7 months old.

- Easy to socialize, does everything that is asked of her- boating, swimming, hanging out at the farm, other dogs, handles well off leash, chill around smaller animals.

- Strong sense of pack. Sticks with us and tries to comply with the house rules.

- Stable- enjoys being with us, but is okay to be left as well. Just hangs out in her crate with her kong and watches animal planet. When we're in a new place she's alert but not anxious and defers for direction. When given direction, she confidently complies.

- Drive- needs one 20 minute walk. Doesn't have to be fast, and if we miss no biggie. She also needs attention in the morning, whether it's a game of fetch, tug, or chase. In the spring and fall I like to be out longer, she'll gladly keep up no problem. Always quiet in the house, and doesn't become restless (well, in the morning she does drag her toys around from person to person during breakfast to try to engage someone in play).

- Always good in a new place- enjoys car rides, travel, and (in the right weather) willingly hangs out in the car when I do errands.

- And, people tell me all the time how beautiful she is. I saved that for last, because I don't think about it as much now. I have tons of pictures on our blog, from 1 day to 7 months. Sometimes when she's sitting on the hill watching the butterflies I remember to appreciate how beautiful she is.

Kona is almost 6 months old.
Fun things she's learned include howling and swimming.
She continues to be Alex's best friend, especially with our recent move, and great company for me. Hu plays with her every morning, and I so enjoy watching a 50 year old man crawl on the floor with her squeaky toy. So, yes, Kona is training us well. We recently had a get together with other Shiloh's in our area. What fun that was. I posted a picture of Kona swimming at the dog beach in Annapolis...

4 Months Old

She sprouted legs overnight and the puppy fuzz is not so fuzzy (she's still really soft thought). Kona is coming into her own now, she is too much fun to work with- but we knew she'd be smart. What we didn't expect was the speed and degree to which she fit into our lives. She's been such a bright addition to our family I can't imagine what we ever did without her. I'm out with her all the time, she goes everywhere, and is really perfect- I couldn't ask of any more from her. I am so grateful to Jessica (breeder) and Tina (breed founder), and hope they check the blog on occasion to watch her grow up- I know they think about all their pups...

Shiloh's and Kids

This weekend, the neighborhood kids were out in force- and played with Kona all weekend. I was concerned about the weensey ones (4 year old twins across the street) playing with her as they're about the same weight- and Kona is sometimes gentle- sometimes playful.

She was soooooo good for them- not just for a couple of minutes but every time they came over to play with her which amounted to several hours over the weekend. They figured out how to get her to sit, lay down, stay, etc. Kona handled fine for them, as if she was showing off for her piers. A couple of times they put a leash on her and walked her around the yards. Kona gladly followed- not a tug- I don't think she even knew she had the leash on. It was particularly impressive because she's past the "baby- follow you anywhere" stage. And, the kids are at different stages- yet she fully adapted to them- gentle with the little ones, playful with the older ones.

Now... I'm just not that good of a trainer.

The things that make her special like this are things she was born with. You can't teach these things, not this young. The fact that at 35 pounds she can be handled by a 35 pound child, gleefully, consistantly, and without incident, is a matter of breeding. She's just born with something special and it's very neat to see. I had to laugh when the kids (4 year old twins) were looking at their mom through the splitrail fence, one on each side of Kona, and Kona sitting in the middle- ears up, tounge hanging out, just like one of them. She was completely in her element. The Mom asked asked how it could be that she's like this "all the time" I said I had no clue... and that's the truth...