Astra at Eight Months!

Astra is turning into a lovely young lady, so the other day her owners and I took her out to a scenic spot near us for a photo shoot! Below are the photos. Thanks so much for looking and hope you enjoy them!

Jax at Six Months!

We visited Jax in October and I've only just now managed to get the photos up. Here's Jax at six months! He has darkened in color quite a bit (fitting, since he was born almost black!) and we love his markings!

Above is a size comparison. Cassie, the golden sable smooth, is from Strauss Haus's Jessie/Siri breedings, and she is a very tall Shiloh girl!

Jax is very alert and loves to play ball! His ears have not gone up, but his owners decided not to try to brace them. They told me they love him the way he is. :)

We hope you've enjoyed our little Jax gallery! He has definitely filled out a bit, too, and is getting stockier like his dad. We can't wait to see him at a year old!

Thanks for looking, everyone!

Saber at Six Months!

Whew! Time to catch up! Saber's owners were nice enough to send me two new pictures of him at 6 months, and silly me didn't find time to put 'em up here until now. Isn't he handsome??

Thanks so much to Jeff for the photos! I'm hoping to get out and visit this boy this coming March. :)

Astra at Six Months!

I finally got some time to update the blog with some photos of Astra! She is almost six months in these pictures, and is turning into a very pretty young lady!

Astra came for a visit and we practiced her show stack and also her trot! Jarrad and Kristin have given her the registered name "Astra First Star of Sparta".

Astra is a very happy girl. She always has a smile for everyone. It's a pleasure to have her come for a visit!

We hope you enjoyed her photos, and we hope to put up a couple of her at her very first dog show soon!

Saber at Four and Five Months!

Over the last couple months, Saber's new owners have been nice enough to send us photo updates! They've given us permission to post their photos of Saber (previously Andros) on the blog. Many thanks to Jeff and his family for giving our super-friendly boy a fantastic home!

Here is Saber with one of his new owners, Abigail! They tell us she keeps him on his toes. ;)

Saber playing out in the field with older daughter Corinne:

Handsome face!

Somebody loves their Saber. :)

Shaking off after a swim in the pool!

Swimming with Corinne...

...and Zach! Best way to beat that Arizona heat!

Rounding the bend after a swim! Thanks for reading, everyone!

Jax Visits!

This weekend Sparta Shilohs had a visitor! Jax (formerly Ajax) came to stay with us while his new family was on a short vacation.


Jax has grown into a handsome pup! Some of our friends said he looked most like his dad, but I see a lot of Kyrie in his markings. However, I am betting he will end up looking a lot like a plush version of his grandma, Holly, Leo's mom. Here she is below.


Now look at her face, and look at his. Do you see? Our Breed Founder Tina always did tell us that most often, pups resemble their grandparents more than their parents.


Either way, Jax has a nice smile!



While he was here he got a lot of outside time with the family--at least while it was cool out in the mornings and evenings.



Jax liked his mom but he LOVED playing with his dad, Leo!


We were amazed at how well they got along. They hung out together outside and inside. Jax is a very calm, well-behaved boy--his new family has taught him well!





As his owner Mark put it, Jax's ears "go up and down faster than a rabbit on a fire ant hill!" Here's one up:


And another one up! Never both at once, though!


The best thing about our house, as far as Jax was concerned, was our tile. Cool tile on a hot day is the best thing ever for a puppy! Except maybe for a bowl of ice cubes...


And speaking of a bowl of ice cubes...Jax got to share one with his sister, Astra!


She visited for a play date, and we took a lot of photos. You can find them on Zak's Picasa album, here:

The Sparta Family Play-Date!

Thanks for looking, everyone! We hope you are enjoying the photos of the Sparta pups as they grow!!

Astra and Saber update!

We have a few new photos of Saber and Astra from twelve to sixteen weeks!

Thanks to Jeff and his family for shooting a couple new photos of Saber, previously Andros. :) He is growing like crazy and Jeff told me his vet thinks Saber will top out at 120 pounds! He loves to play with the kids, is the hit of his neighborhood and loves to swim in their pool (I've requested photos of the latter!).




We love that Astra's people don't live very far from us at all--it means we get to see her grow every week! Here are some new photos of our "little" buff girl from twelve to sixteen weeks. What a puffball! At sixteen weeks Astra weighed in at a hair under 42 pounds. Sometimes the ears are up...but most of the time these days, since she's teething, she's having a Bad Ear Day!







Thanks for checking in, all! Next week...new Jax (previously Ajax) photos!