National Puppy Day: A Time For Celebration!

National Puppy Day is celebrated on March 23 and has been since 2006! There are many ways to celebrate and we would like to share those ways with you.

We would like to start National Puppy Day by thanking its founder, Colleen Paige, a Celebrity Pet & Home Lifestyle Expert and Author.

Due to Colleen’s efforts and the willingness of others to embrace her cause, this day has become an international celebration.

Colleen lists 50 ways to celebrate on the National Puppy Day website.

Once a Puppy: Always a Puppy on National Puppy Day

No matter what age my puppy is, I like to call them puppy to keep us both young in spirit.  In this video, Gusto and I talk about National Puppy Day and what it means to us:

 

 

They say a picture is worth 1000 words. That’s wonderful because now I am going to share Gusto’s first year with you in pictures as our way of celebrating National Puppy Day!

 

National Puppy Day: Selecting A Puppy

 

I sought out a reputable American Eskimo breeder after my other Eskie, Schatzi, passed away from brain cancer at the age of 13.

It was important to me to find a breeder that has an excellent reputation with other breeders in the American Eskimo world…

There is a waiting list for Eskies that are bred to meet the standards of the breed.  My top concerns included temperament and the health/longevity of the other family members.

Fortunately, my referrals led me to Miracle Eskimos and I patiently waited for Miracle Living With Gusto to be born…and then weaned.

 

 

National Puppy Day: Puppy Care

Gusto would wake up from these contortions and hop around lame until he stretched his body back out.  At first, it didn’t concern me because all puppies go through these stages.

However, as he got older and it was still happening, off to the vet we went.

A few chiropractic adjustments at Ellwood Animal Hospital have put him back in alignment.

Holistic veterinary care is very important. In our case, it includes carefully selected food and supplements, NAET, chiropractic adjustments and limited vaccines spaced out for safety.

 

I was never able to find all of Gusto’s baby teeth.  That teething process is brutal to the skin, toys, shoes and anything else that helps loosen those sharp little daggers!

Thankfully, all of Gusto’s adult teeth were in by the age of 6 months. He has learned to be very gentle with his adult teeth.

 

 

Although Gusto gets a variety of foods and treats, home cooked and raw, his other premium foods come from a privately-owned company. Gusto is my business partner in this company. This is his way of being able to support his lifestyle.

 

 

 

 

I took a Snuggle Puppy and Pillow Puppy with me to the breeders so that his mother and siblings could leave their scent on it.  Gusto still likes to snuggle with his puppyhood friends.

 

 

 

 

 

National Puppy Day: Enrichment

 

 

Gusto loves the water and graduated from the hose to the baby pool to a very large community swimming pool where he helped to raise funds for the Frostburg Dog Park in Frostburg, Maryland.

 

Schatzi and I along with others raised funds for 8 years before a suitable piece of land was available for this dog park.  It does my heart good knowing that it has been open to the Frostburg community since 2010.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gusto loved to play with his rubber duckies in the baby pool.

 

At the large community pool in Frostburg, he learned to swim in the deeper water and retrieve tennis balls.

 

 

 

National Puppy Day: Toy Time

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gusto thought he could get away with adopting one of my house shoes as a new toy and hid it in his mouth with his snake.  Those shoes have since bit the dust…along with the snake.

All puppies seem to love to unroll the toilet paper to get to the cardboard rolls that they can toss around and shred.  Where do they all get this idea?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This feral church kitty taught Gusto to respect all cats…Gusto had his nose swiped a couple of times after the cat deceived him into thinking he was a nice, friendly kitty.

Now we feed the kitty treats whenever we have to pass through the church parking lot on our walks.

After an encounter with the church kitty, Gusto likes to snuggle up with his Rescue Dog.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gusto likes to be independent…and that includes taking himself for a walk!

 

 

 

 

 

 

National Puppy Day: Capturing Moments

 

 

 

 

Gusto surprised me with his willingness to pose this well for the first time in a strange place.  I think he is a natural ham!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gusto winged his time in the ring in the 4 – 6 month old puppy classes.  He enjoyed watching other dogs as much as being in the ring with other puppies.

This winter, we learned more about showing in the conformation ring under the tutelage of Susan Fithian at the Youngstown All Breed Training Club.

Gusto has come along way and I’ve enjoyed being along for the ride!

Before that, we had been attending obedience classes at DogSmartz Unleashed. Gusto earned his AKC S.T.A.R. puppy medallion.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

National Puppy Day: Finishing Out The Year

 

 

Gusto loves the snow and we are sad to see it go…the last storms really gave us a one-two-three punch.

However, I am not looking forward to the Spring rains and mud and keeping this long, furry white coat clean…lol

 

 

 

 

A New Year Begins…

 

Gusto celebrated his one year old birthday on March 16th.

 

 

 

 

 

So that is Gusto’s First Year… he will always be a puppy in my heart.

I am looking forward to a future of fun…and Gusto is always ready for fun!

 

 

 

 

Come back for more Miracle Living With Gusto!

Amelia

P.S. How Do You Celebrate National Puppy Day?  Join in the conversation by leaving your comment 🙂