Off we went to the breeders to decide today.....

We were with all 4 puppies for 3 hours.
We played with them as a group and then did one on one time with the 3 we were considering.

Charlotte, my intial first pick because she was female was VERY quiet and didn't interact much at all. She is sweet but on our 3rd visit there was just no bond.

Then there was Charlie, who on this visit was fun and sweet as can be.
While trying to interact with the 2 other puppies my shoe or my pant leg was being pulled on by this little guy named Houston. Houston is the fiesty alpha of the group & just demanded all our attention! He is the one that stands out most as physically as he is just so handsome. My previous visits I always though he was adorable but his energy kept making me shy away from him but he always ended up in my lap. At the end of our last visit I had a puppy sound asleep upside down in my arms and I said to everyone look at my sweet little guy! The breeder said "that's Houston again!"

Charlie ended up falling alsleep and we picked up Houston and took him away from the rest of the litter and to my great surprise he calmed down a little and just snuggled with each of us. He gave us the sweetest kisses and was really fun!

This was such a surprise turn of events that by the time we had decided on Houston, the battery on or camera died. :sl*p:

We continued to bond a play with him until it was time to go, the day just flew by. As we walked out he followed right on our heels.

So what have a learned from all this, you just never, ever know which puppy will pick you. The one you end up with could be total surprise!
Open you heart and mind to all you have to pick from the the right one will do all the work for you.

WISH US LUCK! LOL!

oh my goodness he is absolutely adorable! can't wait to hear more about houston and his adventures as it sounds like he'll have lots

how much longer do you have to wait to bring him home?

k

Holy crap!!!!!! :rotfl: This is such a surprising turn of events! :lol:

I remember you talking about a puppy who was gnawing on your jacket, shoelaces, etc. and you just thought he was a CRAZY one! Just goes to show how different puppies are when you get them away from their li'l pack. Oh my god - I am soooo nervous for two weeks from now when we see our puppies! :yikes How the heck am I going to decide???

Glad to hear you're feeling 100% confident on your decision. Are you going to keep the name Houston? So cute.

I think he is a VERY good looking boy, I love his looks, his name and I agree with the way you chose him. Go with the one who steals your heart, it's the best way.

KimNIndy: Thanks so much!! We get to bring him home on May 10th but that is Mother's Day weekend and we are going to Kenny Chesney concert that Friday. I want to have a full weekend with him for him to adjust so I will probably arrange for the following weekend.

Julie: :lol: :lol: :lol: That's him! He is just so funny and goofy and adventerous. He just was not letting us pay attention to any of the other puppies, he was screaming "Pick me, pick me"!! I held him up and looked into his sweet face and said Okay you, but we are gonna set down some ground rules!
We won't keep the name Houston, it's cute but we lived there (Houston, TX) and it wasn't the best experience.
I still like the name Charlie and it does fit him.
I'm am very open to suggestions in the name department.

I needed serveral trips to my breeder to decide.
Until today I hadn't had the "Ah Ha" moment I needed to make my decision.

I think one on one time is very important as well as seeing how they interact with each other.
Houston was very different when he was away from the pact and just with us. He was a little cuddle bug.

He's adorable and sounds like he'll be the right match.

I must say though, againt people's sentimental inclinations... :lol: -- that most dog experts say picking 'the puppy that picks you' is often the wrong choice. The most dominant puppy is almost always the one that will 'pick you'. That's a great choice for many people, but the wrong choice for others. A family that actually wants a laid back, easy going dog would not benefit by having 'the puppy pick them' as whatever is the most dominant pup is going to be the one that actively seeks people out. This is a very basic element of the way in which breeders and trainers assess litters. There are no good or bad, better or worse puppies -- there are just a range of personalities that will suit different types of owners (this is true of adults too -- in homing rescues I work with Tara to assess personalities as she is trained to do this and also talk to adopters to assess the home. Some dogs simply are not suited to certain homes and those characteristics would have been clear even as pups to a trained eye).

Many breeders and assessors use a system devised to grade puppies called the Volhard Puppy Aptitude Test (PAT), developed in the 70s and based on a range of earlier aptitude testing from the 1920s onwards. It is considered quite accurate and is widely used for grading personalities for prospective guide dogs, police dogs, and dogs that are desired for various types of competition like agility as well as used by many breeders to match puppies to owners and assess personalities for the show ring. Puppies are graded on how they react etc in 11 different areas and this testing is done around 6-7 weeks to be accurate.

PAT: http://www.volhard.com/puppy/pat.htm

One test is very similar to what people do when they go view prospective pups for pets -- you sit down and attract the puppy over to you. Dominant puppies are the ones that always come right away, tail up. There are also different scores for puppies that come to you, tail down, that hesitate, or that don't come at all. Most litters will have all these personalities. The pup that acts one way around all the other puppies and is very outgoing IS the dominant puppy in the bunch. It also will naturally be calmer when isolated from the others because it isn't trying to prove anything and being alone will be a bit more intimidating as he has lost his group of companions. This IS going to be an outgoing energetic dog and maybe a headstrong independent dog as well, perhaps a bit more of a challenge to train.

This is an ideal personality for competitive dog sports and someone who enjoys training an outgoing dog -- but on the other hand, is likely the wrong dog for a quiet home, an elderly couple, a home with very small children or a home that doesn't feel confident training a dog. An outgoing dog in such a home, without adequate training, is going to be a problem dog because it will delight in testing boundaries and also will get bored easily and will want to be kept active and busy.

Many breeders do not allow people to come pick a puppy out of concern that the wrong puppy will go to the wrong home. Cavaliers are generally so even tempered anyway that this is probably less an issue, but you can imagine with larger, stronger breeds, the wrong match can at times be a real difficulty for both dog and owners. Testing is useful but an experienced breeder who has been observing his/her litter for several weeks will also be great at telling you the personality of the puppy you are interested in. .

For anyone buying a puppy, it is worth talking in depth to the breeder about what kind of adult that puppy is likely to make and to be very clear to the breeder what type of personality you'd like for your family. Then have the breeder recommend puppies that are the right match -- unless the personality will truly make little difference and people feel ready for anything from a quiet to a challenging dog.

I would have picked Houston too. I just adore the feisty, dominant ones :lol: Like Kalin said though, the dominant ones are not for everyone, but sounds like you have a good match there.

I actually deliberately avoided the most outgoing puppy in Jaspar's litter -- both because he was a tri and I wanted a blenheim, but also because I didn't necessarily want a really outgoing pushy dog in a small indoor environment -- I share walls with my neighbours.

The funny thing about Jaspar is that he has turned out to be quite outgoing in the right areas generally -- but he is very submissive around other dogs. He typically is the dog who rolls on his back when he meets certain types of dogs. He is also quite shy around people -- he doesn't really like meeting strangers much, especially not small children. But he is very outgoing and confident and focused in other ways and quite an intense dog. He has exactly the personality for agility and is so smart -- a joy to train.

It's like he has two personalities depending on the situation. I only saw him at 3.5 weeks then again at 8.5 when I collected him -- but I would guess he might have been the medium one in his litter, had I seen them all together at the later age.

My problem now would be picking out just one from a group -- each would have its attractions! :lol:

Karlin,

We did the apittude test to the best of our recolection.
Do you know how the scoring works?

He's absolutely adorable! You put a great deal of thought into your decision. Houston/Charlie/Chesney will be a splendid addition to your family! Mother's Day is just around the corner! I can't wait to hear about his first days with you!

Oh is he ever beautiful, so cute!! I love how he just wasn't going to take No for an answer and he just picked you and he wasn't giving up, it was fate!

:flwr:

Thanks guys!

We are very excited and anxious!!

Bronte said:

We won't keep the name Houston, it's cute but we lived there (Houston, TX) and it wasn't the best experience.
I still like the name Charlie and it does fit him.

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Well, that's true. :lol: Names have different connotations for different people.

Charlie fits him so well. I say call him that!!!!

Now that you said that it took you 3 visits to decide ... I am freaking out about deciding in 1 visit!!!!!!!! :yikes :yikes :yikes

Although ... how can you REALLY go wrong w/ any of them? icon_whistling

Hahaha I love that everytime you go you decide on another one Im sure Id be the exact same way and on the day we went to pick them up Ill ask my husband if we could just have all 3! Houston is adorable!

Thanks, I like Charlie alot too.

He really is a sweetie and the more I think about it a playful puppy is a much better fit for my household then a shy quiet one. He reminded me alot of Griffin when we first met him.

Don't freak out, hopefully one will just bond with you right away and you will be all set. Do you think you will be able to stay there an hour or two to really feel out each puppy?

Ellie's Mommy said:

Hahaha I love that everytime you go you decide on another one Im sure Id be the exact same way and on the day we went to pick them up Ill ask my husband if we could just have all 3! Houston is adorable!

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:lol: :lol: :lol:

Okay, but in my defense I had only picked Charlotte in pictures because I really thought I wanted a girl. When we met her there was just no bond.


That is when we met the boys.
They were both adorable and I really didn't know if Houston was to rambunctious so I didn't spend time with him and I was too busy trying to form a bond with Charlotte.
:sl*p:

This time we spent an hour with each one and Houston just stole our hearts.
Yep, I'm going out there again in 2 weeks and I'm excited to see how much they have grown!

Awww, what a gorgeous puppy, I wanted a tri girl and am getting a b&t boy, they steal your heart.

Do you have any new photos of your little boy yet??

Congratulations for your election. Houston is a cutie! We can't wait to see more pics of your new little boy!!!
OMG is precious!

The names I always liked for male dogs are Basil, Otto and Pluto :flwr: