Zooka Tales
Our most recent posts are shown first.
Zooka intro to the puppy kiddie pool at 10.5 weeks
Zooka was introduced to water with his breeder before he joined us. We wanted to make sure we kept up his exposure to water while he was young so he knows how to handle [...]
10th month / Weeks 40-44: more adolescent antics, humping, advancing our training and continued socialization
This post is part of our series on raising our Vizsla puppy, Zooka. You can use our posts as a guide to help raise your own puppy, regardless of breed. Keep in mind that [...]
Zooka's Happy Place – Jake and Zooka Playdate
Zooka and Jake are good buddies. They love playing together. And there's nothing like another adolescent dog to play with to help burn off that adolescent crazy rowdy energy! They are both [...]
What is your dog's personality? Zooka's personality or temperament examined
How would you describe your dog's personality? If you have ever done a consultation with me, you've probably heard me ask this question. This question tells me a lot. Not just about your dog. Or [...]
Zooka training session – Heel, Fetch & other stuff
Zooka and I have training sessions for most of his meals. At 8 months, he eats two meals per day. (We fed three meals per day up until 7 months old.) So we use [...]
Dealing with your dog's distractions: Zooka on a walk edition
Here's one of those stories about. . . things not going the way you planned, because it became more about dealing with your dog's distractions. I had planned to have Ed take video of [...]
9th month / Weeks 36-39: adolescence in full swing, countersurfing, and other fun things!
This post is part of our series on raising our Vizsla puppy, Zooka. You can use our posts as a guide to help raise your own puppy, regardless of breed. Keep in mind that [...]
Walk the dinosaur – I mean, the dog. Leash manners with Zooka
Remember the song Walk the Dinosaur? You know the song by Was (Not Was) released in 1988. Maybe you don't. I was an 80's girl. Play 80's music for me and I feel right at [...]
Weeks 32 through 35 / 8th month – adolescence, marking, and starting our off leash work
This post is part of our series on raising our Vizsla puppy, Zooka. You can use our posts as a guide to help raise your own puppy, regardless of breed. Keep in mind that [...]
Week 31: turns 7 months old, how did that happen?! Dog adolescence is in full swing
Notes from Week 31: Adolescence is in full swing while we like to think of our dogs as "puppies" for a lot longer sometimes. . . puppyhood really ends by about 6 months Zooka is [...]
Week 30: teaching Zooka to use a scratchboard for nail filing, continue training and play dates
Notes from Week 30: Housetraining Week 16 (8/18) was last time we had an accident in the house Until this week. . . Back home for only a couple of hours, unpacking from our trip, [...]
Week 29: Zooka's big road trip #2! Utah, Nevada, California, Arizona and New Mexico
This post is part of our weekly series on raising our Vizsla puppy, Zooka. You can use our posts as a guide to help raise your own puppy, regardless of breed. Keep in mind [...]
Week 28: a big field trip and a big test of his abilities in public this week!
This post is part of our weekly series on raising our Vizsla puppy, Zooka. You can use our posts as a guide to help raise your own puppy, regardless of breed. Keep in mind [...]
Week 27: 6 months old, vet visit, and an off leash play date!
This post is part of our weekly series on raising our Vizsla puppy, Zooka. You can use our posts as a guide to help raise your own puppy, regardless of breed. Keep in mind [...]
Week 26: focus on ramping up training and expanding field trips; plus more SNOW!
This post is part of our weekly series on raising our Vizsla puppy, Zooka. You can use our posts as a guide to help raise your own puppy, regardless of breed. Keep in mind [...]
Zooka's new game: Full Contact Fetch!
Does your pup have a favorite game? Tug? Wrestling? Fetch? Chase? Zooka LOVES to wrestle. Preferably with like-minded individuals who can handle some rough and tumble play. That usually means larger breed energetic pups of [...]
Week 25: new cues for training, allowing more access in the house, and his puppy teeth are gone!
This post is part of our weekly series on raising our Vizsla puppy, Zooka. You can use our posts as a guide to help raise your own puppy, regardless of breed. Keep in mind [...]
Fear periods or sensitive periods for puppies – Zooka goes through one
Perhaps you have heard that puppies and/or adolescent dogs sometimes go through a "fear period" - though a "sensitive period" might be the more appropriate term. Puppies can go through a more sensitive period in [...]
Week 24: fear/sensitive period, continued work on social skills, and the baby teeth are almost gone!
This post is part of our weekly series on raising our Vizsla puppy, Zooka. You can use our posts as a guide to help raise your own puppy, regardless of breed. Keep in mind [...]
Buried treasure. Does your dog bury things? Zooka does!
Zooka is around 5.5 months old at this writing. This is the stage where we head into adolescence, so we can sometimes see behaviors crop up that we have not previously seen. This past week, [...]
Week 23: continued training w Heel, Fetch, Stay, etc.; first overnight human visitor, lots of play with other dogs
This post is part of our weekly series on raising our Vizsla puppy, Zooka. You can use our posts as a guide to help raise your own puppy, regardless of breed. Keep in mind [...]