Sunday, July 26, 2009

Get your motor runnin'

Age:  12 Months

What more can I say? :)

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

First Birthday!!

Age:  1 Year Old!
Weight:  105 pounds
Height:  29.5 inches

Wow!  Can you believe it?  Piston is 1 year old already!  Time sure has gone by quickly.  We've seen a real change in our boy in the last 6 months, he's starting to mature a little bit.  Maybe the teenage "hearing loss" is almost over.

To celebrate his birthday, we took Piston over to his favourite park and gave him some off leash play time to do some of his favourite activies....sniffing, sniffing, some running, sniffing, sniffing, little more running, and last but not least, a nice dip in the creek to cool off and get a drink!

Enjoy the quick little photo gallery! (The last 2 photos in the gallery are actually movies.  To see them, you'll need to click on the still picture to open up the web gallery.)



Monday, July 13, 2009

Meet Otto-bot!

Age:  11 Months


We went to visit family at a rent cottage for the weekend and unfortunately they do not allow pets.  So Piston got to go stay with a friend and her new 5 month old puppy Otto.  Otto is a recent rescue and at best guess is a German Shepherd/Lab/Great Dane type mix.....FULL of energy and attitude!  Piston was so patient with the pup, despite the non stop requests for play.  They went full out, non stop for the entire 3 days they were together!





Monday, July 6, 2009

Channeling his Wild Side

Age:  11 Months


While visiting family in PA for the Family Reunion, we decided to go for a hike through the State Game Lands behind Grampa's place.  (These are the same woods from our Walkin in a Winter Wonderland blog post.)

With all the shade from the trees, I had a real tough time getting any decent photos they all turned out so dark.  However here are a few that made the cut.  But the green and brown of the forest was such a nice backdrop for his grey coat.  Sure had our wolf-ish boy looking right at home :)





Oh, and of course a video. Doesn't he look wild coming through the woods?  :)

Sunday, July 5, 2009

Little Red Riding Hood

Age:  11 Months


While visit family, 4 year old Emily took quite a shine to Piston and he to her.  I wish I had gotten some better photos as our wolfy pup seemed like such a great match with her red dress :)




Here Emily was trying to give Piston the "wait' hand signal, but
he thought it was the universal sign for "sniff my hands" ;)

Saturday, July 4, 2009

Meeting "cousin" Cloe

Age:  11 Months


During the 4th of July family reunion, Piston got to meet another playmate!  Cloe is a Golden Retriever/Yellow Lab Cross.  She is about 6 months older than Piston and they had a great time playing chase.  She is a great runner!  Piston prefers to trot, but he did kick it into high gear at times to keep up with her.





Click on any of the above photos to see the complete web gallery.

Sunday, June 14, 2009

A/C Vent Hog!

Age:  10 Months

Piston is starting to get a sense that the weather is just going to continue to get warmer.....but fear not, he's found a solution!!

This is Piston crammed between the couch and the wall so that he can rest his head on the Air Conditioner vent!

Sunday, June 7, 2009

Spring Ontario Chapter Meet 'n Greet

Age:  10 Months

Today we drove out to Silver Maple Kennels in Chatham, ON for the Bi-Annual Shiloh Shepherd Get Together of the Ontario Chapter.

We were able to re-introduce ourselves to the folks who helped us decide that Shilohs were the breed for us last fall!  We of course were proud to introduce our own boy, Piston! :)  We also had a chance to meet a few new friends who we knew from the forums but hadn't had the pleasure to meet in person yet.






Click on any of the photos above to be taken to the web gallery.

Sunday, May 31, 2009

Put 'em to work!

Age:  10 Months


After lugging all of the extra brushes, sprays, towels and treats required for the dog shows, we decided it was high time Piston lend a hand!  Shopping at our local pet store, we were happy to find this Shiloh sized doggie backpack.  Below is a photo of Piston modelling his new pack :)

Monday, May 25, 2009

Down and Dirty

Age:  10 Months


We installed a "Doggie Dooly" in the corner of the backyard and Piston was quite sure we needed a hand with the excavation :)


Monday, May 18, 2009

IABCA Show Weekend - Pittsburgh, PA

lAge: Nearly 10 Months
Weight: About 95 pounds

Saturday May 16

Show 1


This was our first show EVER! The judge wasn't particularly impressed with us - in fact he did mention that this isn't something you just naturally do, most people train for it. So what can we say? We did win our Class - but that was easy being as we were the only male Shiloh in that age group. Next round he was up against the other male Shiloh puppies (under 12 months) and Scout took that honor. We knew it was going to be tough having never been to a show ourselves much less competed in one. The judge did provide some nice feed back on our written critique included below.


Judgement
Overall Impressioncorrect size & good bone
Coatgood texture & length
Headnice size & proportions
Bite, Mouth level & complete
Eyesnice almond shape & dark
Earsnice length
Chestfull to elbows
Front angulation fairly good
Back angulation fairly good
Top line straight & sloping
Tailfairly well placed, good length
Movementgood overall



Show 2



We had been there for a few hours now so Piston was starting to get a little more into the swing of things and this judge was a bit more accepting on Piston's puppiness. We once again won our class and then went on to win best male Shiloh Puppy. Next round, he lost to Molly as overall Shiloh Puppy - but that did give him best of Opposite Sex Puppy as he came out top of the boys. Below you'll find this judges comments.


Judgement
Overall Impressionnoble proud carriage
Coatdouble
Headbroad
Bite, Mouth scissors
Eyesdark, almond
Earserect, equal width at base to height
Chestappropriate for age
Front angulation nice lay back
Back angulation balanced to front
Top line straight
Tailcorrect sit
Movementlovely side gait with good R&D



Sunday May 17



Show 3



Ma told us he needed the puppy fuzz around his ears and head groomed so... even tho we hated to see that last bit of puppy fluff go, Margaret gave him a trim in the motel doing a great job blending it with just some short little sewing shears. We also had a full nights sleep instead of 2 hours and a 6 hour drive prior to the show. LOL. Now this judge really liked our boy. He talked to us afterwards about all the things he likes in this breed and the things he sees missing in GSD that we have. Some of the things he mentioned to me were his Wide solid backend. Broad Typey head, solid structure and just overall balance. He mentioned he has a lot of size and tho that can limit the working ability it is per the breed standard and he does move very well. He commented that he showed some puppyness but that he thought he has alot going for him. then followed that up with "but the handler needs some work."


Awww... not that its any surprise there. I never would've thought i would even TRY showing and suddenly here we are. So at that point I'm feeling like I'm the only thing holding him back... so much for no pressure. LOL. Below you'll find this judges written comments.


JudgementVery good example of young Shiloh - lots of breed type
Overall ImpressionTop Quality dog
Coatgreat condition
Headtype
Bite, Mouth scissors, full dentition
Eyesdark brown
Earsup alert good feathering
Chestgood depth and forechest
Front angulation good balanced
Back angulation good balanced
Top line level
Tailwell set
Movementmoves great although still puppyish



Show 4



Ok at this point I was feeling some confidence and we had already totally exceeded our best expectations. So although i felt our performance was all on me, I was a little looser since we had done it 3 times and tho i knew i wasnt going to be able to get Piston to stand like a perfect statue i felt that we were gettting the hang of it and we had a lot of improvement. I could see around the 2nd and 3rd shows that he understood what was expected of him... tho he wasnt at all into standing around. Some dogs you could see they loved being out there with everyone looking at them and they liked to show their stuff. Well thats not our boy. He wants action... and is always scanning for something more interesting going on over there. But i did feel like he was giving me more of an effort now.


Well when we got in the ring it actually didnt go all that well. He got distracted on our down and back and lagged behind. That got the leash on his ears and he started to grab at it. This was something he hasnt done since like the first week we had him on a leash!! Good timing. Sometimes you just have to laugh tho. and thats pretty funny. There will be more shows and we will do more preparation. This was pretty short notice and we had only worked on mostly the trotting in a circle a few times because I didnt know how he would do going in a left hand turn and he never had a problem. I must say tho, these rings were really cramped for us. He really didnt enjoy the trot in them much.


Below you'll find this judges written comments.


JudgementDecent example
Overall Impressiongood example of breed
Coatgood thick and texture
Headgood planes
Bite, Mouth good full dent.
Eyesgood shape and color
Earsgood set on
Chesta little narrow in fore
Front angulation good - 2 dew claws
Back angulation good
Top line good
Tailcorrect set on and carriage
Movementgood loping



Best in Show



For our best in show comps I could see he was really mentally fatigued from 2 days of being restrained and he was pretty much done standing around. He was always in the front of the line except for 2 times and that made it super hard for us too. He kept wanting to turn around and check out the other dogs, at one point he was even looking back while running. I just didnt get his best out of him and for that i was dissapointed. I really wanted to represent our breed better and take best in show for all the Shilohs. But in truth we are truly ecstatic with 2 Best in Group and it was an honor to be in Best in Show. Good Job Piston. I am so proud of you boy. :D


We wanted to be there to represent the real deal vs. the slivers and i really wish they had been there like we heard. I'm looking forward to seeing All of Us vs Them someday.


Don't forget to check out the web gallery for more photos - including the rest of the Shilohs that were at the show!


Sunday, May 10, 2009

Tight Fit

Age:  9.5 Months
Weight:  Too heavy to fit on the scale with David!

It is so easy to forget just how big our boy is getting!  But today....as he was trying to lay in his favourite spot in front of the door, it became glaringly obvious that he is not a small puppy :)

Thursday, May 7, 2009

A more refined request to go out

Age:  9.5 Months


Thought we'd show off the much more refined request to go outside.
Be sure to compare the video below to his earlier performance here:  I Think He Wants to Go Outside...

Saturday, May 2, 2009

Visiting the Lake House

Age: Just over 9 Months
Weight:  95 pounds

While visiting family in SC we took a trip out to the lake house where Piston was able to frolic with new friend Maggie who is a hound dog mix and Dawson the Jack Russel.  Okay, Dawson wasn't always the most friendly, but Piston and Maggie had lots of fun and she ran Piston until they were content to take a nap and do it again later!






Click on any of the photos above to go visit the gallery.

Sunday, April 26, 2009

Way South of the Border

Age:  Just over 9 Months
Weight:  95 pounds

This spring we took a trip WAY South of the Border...south of the Canadian border that is!  We all packed into the car and drove 14 hours down to South Carolina to visit with family!  Alright, truth be told we didn't do the whole trip in one shot, we drove about 9 hours and then stopped for the night and finished the rest of the trek in the morning.

Initially we weren't so sure how Piston was going to handle such a long trip, but he traveled like a pro! :)  He very quickly recognized the pattern and would curl up and go to sleep as soon as we hit highway speeds!


One challenge we found however was "potty time".  Every pit stop we made...well, our explorer found all the new sights, sounds and smells to explore were just too much of a distraction!  He'd get out there and completely forget to go.  It wasn't until we'd get back into the car and back on the road would he let out a little whine as if to say "Nuts!  I knew I forgot to do something", but then he'd go right back to sleep.  The next pit stop would be no different either.  It was nearly 36 hours after we left our home before our stubborn boy finally took the time to relieve himself!  Proud to say that not once did he consider going indoors despite the activity level coming to a standstill.


As we traveled further south, it definitely got warm for our furry Canadian dog!  The snow had practically just finished melting back home! ;)  At one of the rest stops in North Carolina, there was a great shaded park that we spent some extra time relaxing in.  We found some neat outdoor taps that Piston could drink from!


Then we played in the water a little bit to try to cool Piston off.



Once we finally arrived at our destination, Piston was happy to greet his extended family :)

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Can I Come Out?

Age: 39 weeks
Weight: 95 pounds

Before Piston is allowed outside, we ask him to sit and wait patiently until we give him the release word of "okay".

I thought he just looked too cute peeking around the door waiting to be released outside.




Thursday, March 19, 2009

Oooooh Deer!

Age: 34 weeks
Weight: 90 pounds

David and Piston went for a walk in the woods this afternoon over in the Doon Heritage Park. The Park is all fenced in and hasn't opened for the tourist season yet. It's like our own private leash free park! Piston had a great time romping around in the grass, big fields, and the woods part.

One time when he was sniffing around the edge of the woods, Piston came back carrying a prize he was VERY proud of!

Can't blame him really, it's quite the impressive antler! David said it looked pretty fresh and figured it probably had been shed within the past few days!
It's bound to be his new favourite toy!


Saturday, March 14, 2009

Piston Power Forged in Zion

Age: 33 weeks
Weight: 88 pounds

We received the form to get our Puppy Registration papers this week so it was time to finalize a registered name to go along with his call name. After much deliberation and lots of time with the thesaurus...we've decided on Piston Power Forged in Zion. I don't think we should have any problems with it not being unique enough! ;)

When we send in our Puppy Registration request we have to include a few photos...so here are some of the "glamour" shots we took over the weekend.




Ooops....blinked!


Awww...such good focus! Good "look" Piston!


My favourite shot ever! :)


Friday, March 13, 2009

Piston Tugs Daisy - Round 2

Age: 33 weeks
Weight: 88 pounds

Okay so it was Dylan who started the Tug-o-War...but Daisy thought she better get in there and see if she can't teach Piston a lesson this time!




Wednesday, March 4, 2009

New Bed!

Age: 32 weeks
Weight: 86 pounds

Looking quite regal on his new bed from Costco

Sunday, March 1, 2009

I Think He Wants to Go Outside...

Age: 31 weeks
Weight: 84 pounds
We're trying to use "Show me" to encourage Piston to give us an idea of what it is he wants. So tonight when he went and sat in front of the back door and started whining we asked if he wanted to go outside, and to "show me". Not what we were expecting...but I think he got his point across! :)


Sunday, February 22, 2009

Dog, Cat and a Pigs Ear

Age: 30 weeks
Weight: 83 pounds

I gave Piston a pigs ear tonight to chew on and Boosh decided that it was far too interesting to not stick her nose in there and check it out.




Minxi even steps in to give things a little sniff. Tho she quickly decided she had no interest in such things...well, at least not enough interest to want to stick around that close to the dog!

Saturday, February 21, 2009

7 Months Old

Boy time sure does fly!

Sunday, February 15, 2009

Trunk Bed

Age: 29 weeks
Weight: 81 pounds

Riding in the trunk on the way down to Port Allegany to visit with Gramp for David's birthday. He looked really comfortable....but then I got out the camera and he suddenly started looking quite pouty. I still thought it was cute enough to share...


The bed is from Costco (we "won" it from the SSDCA Ontario Chapter Meet) and it fits perfectly into the trunk space!

On the way home, with the back seat back up, he was more inclined to give smiles for the camera :)

Thursday, February 12, 2009

Power Steering

Age: 29 weeks
Weight: 81 pounds

We haven't really mentioned on here the difficulty we've had trying to get Piston to walk in a heel - but those on the Shiloh Forums or those who talk to us regularly have heard about it.  He is independent and has a lot of drive to go explore.  He wouldn't take treats or a toy either. No interest in them compared to all the fun he "could" be having.

It was difficult when we go out to keep his focus - he was too busy with his nose to the ground or watching everything else to get any guidance from us. He is never nervous about anything, he just thinks he is a kid in a candy store, or at Disney World!!  We would try "loose leash walking", but he was always walking too far ahead and would take up all of the slack in the leash. He just was not getting where he was supposed to be.

Several other Shiloh owners on the forums told us to buy a prong collar. It was Sarah who said it was like power steering with her Nero. I had heard her talk about the wonders of the prong before...but to hear from other owners too was a great sign.

So we did it....we bought a prong collar....and you know what....THEY WERE RIGHT!!!

What a difference! He actually pays attention to the guides and corrections. He notices when he is getting near the end of the lead and he slows down a touch to prevent the collar from tightening! Its wonderful!! He has a really high pain tolerance so most corrections don't even phase him, but this seems to work on a different level. Its not pain, its more of a surprise because its different. The prong now gets his attention without having to yank him first! (The martingale collar we were using before just didn't phase him.)

We still aren't in a good heel position, but we are worlds better! This collar has really helped give us hope for gettin Piston to walk politely all the time!

Friday, February 6, 2009

Doggie Play at Bechtel

Age: 28 weeks
Weight: 81 pounds

Rompin with some other dogs at the park...






Loaded up in the car to head home...good thing he tends to lay down in the car! Otherwise, we might outgrow the Magnum!


We got back to the house, he didn't even want go in...just wanted to flop in the snow out front. Our silly "little" snow puppy!