Finding Inspiration in my Dogs, in Every Turn
My passion, my dogs, my life; it is not just about competing, trialing, or winning trophies, or breeding multiple litters, it is about a lifestyle, values, morals, a way of life that I lead with my pack of beloved dogs, from how we live, to how they eat, and how we spend our days here at home, as a team, as a family, from beginning, to the time we must cross the "Rainbow" bridge.
Diet
​I feed a raw diet 85% of the time, however, in between acquiring raw food, there is always a wait time, during this time, I feed my dogs Inukshuk, Original Formula. For my raw food diet, I purchase raw food from Carnivora, a Canadian company based in Saskatchewan.
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Option 1: Inukshuk + White Rice + Camelina Oil + Kelp + Diatomaceous Earth
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Option 2: Raw Ground + White Rice + Camelina Oil + Kelp + Diatomaceous Earth
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Both options MUST supplement with feeding daily raw knuckle bones, big end bones from cattle, bison, pork or lamb for DAILY chewing from 8 weeks old to 8 months old! (Soft stuffy toys, or other commercial chew toys DO NOT COUNT nor are they an acceptable alternative to real, raw bones.) ***Chewing raw bones on a daily basis ensures your puppy's ears stand up, and their jaw and teeth develop correctly.
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We live on approximately ten acres, near a beautiful Heritage town called Fort Steele. Surrounded by nature, the Kootenay river, and Hoodoos. The dogs enjoy free rein on the property without a visible fence line, never leaving the property boundary lines. How do I accomplish this? We do a boundary pack walk, in the morning, the afternoon, and in the evening. The classical conditioning of the dogs to the property perimeter, is a natural, positive way of establishing where they can roam. When outside, I am always outside with them, to supervise, and to work on outdoor chores. When outdoor activities are completed, we go inside. I never allow my pack, to roam for more than 15 minutes outside, unsupervised.
Daily life
How does one live with multiple power dogs in their home? When I bought my first working line dog, Ossa, the best thing I could have done is taken the following course, linked below. Now, I have adjusted my techniques based on my experience, the age of my dogs, and their current training, however, the root of my management strategies comes from Ed Frawley, who offers this free course on Leerburg. This course is NOT recommended, it is a MUST DO, for first time owners, or for owners adding additional canines to their pack, or simply to grow in knowledge and experience.
My Whelping Box
Every litter, I prepare my litter box in my living room, where the puppies are born, and spend their first 3 weeks of life in. At 4 weeks, I open the litter box, expand their area using exercise pen enclosures until 6 weeks of age. At six weeks old, the puppies go outside into one of my outdoor kennels for the day time ONLY, and come back inside at dinner time. At the six week old mark, I further expand my living room, and simply puppy proof the main room. The litter, starting at 4-5 weeks, is exposed to, and meets the other adult dogs, from here on, they play and learn the rules of pack life with all of my adult dogs.
Ice
Ossa
Delsi
Fin
Puppy picking
The question everyone wants to know right away, and the answer I cannot give until all my notes, and tests are concluded. Puppy picking is a test of human patience, and the handler and breeder relationship here, requires the utmost trust.
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Many people ask, is birth order important when picking a puppy? Is size of the puppy in comparison to the rest of the litter important? Can I select my own puppy? No, no, and no, are my answers. Puppies who are going to serious IGP, PSA, RING, and SAR homes are selected first, based on their aptitude for the work involved. Then, puppies that are going to companion homes, are selected.
Birth order does not guarantee the best puppy, if the size of the puppy is a healthy weight, that is what is most important, and when the time comes to choosing your puppy, you have not been the person, looking after, caring for, observing, and testing the litter; I am the person that spent the most time with the puppies, and most capable of predicting the suitability of the puppy for their new home.
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My litter test comprises of three parts, part one: Birth to 8 weeks anecdotal notes on, rank drive, prey drive, pack drive, food drive, aggression, and nerve strength. These notes are made daily, via hours of observation time, spent closely watching the litter interact and play inside my home.
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Part two: At 6-7 weeks old, our first visit to a brand new environment, the veterinary clinic takes place. Here, I observe for nerve strength, by observing the confidence of each puppy as it is released from the kennel to explore the veterinary room for the first time during their first check up.
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Part three: At 7 and 8 weeks old, I transport the puppies to a brand new facility, with strange smells, new sounds, strange dogs, new people, slippery floors etc. I get a completely strange person, who has never interacted with the litter, to test each and every puppy individually. I simply stand off in the corner, observe and record my findings. Here he puppies are tested for: entrance into a new building, reaction to new surfaces, reaction to strange dog, reaction to strange person, reaction to new sounds, prey drive via play with the new handler, food drive via play with the new handler, genetic grip via play with the new handler, and overall nerve strength.
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The scores that I assign to each puppy is on a scale of 1 to 3. 1 being Good & Drive Medium, 2 being Very Good & Drive High, 3 being Excellent with Drive being Extreme. Puppies who do not show the aptitude to score a 1, are not a part of my program, nor a part of my breeding lines. Based on these scores, I am able to recommend puppies best suitable for SAR, Sport, Protection, Companion, and Family.
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*All puppies must, go to experienced companion and or family homes only! Even as a companion, or family dog, these puppies will come with a lot more drive than one is aware of. A medium drive working line puppy, is comparable to a high drive Golden Retriever that wants to play all day long, except, it ALSO bites! Occasionally, I will let my puppies go to NEW handlers, however, knowing that they have a support system in place, and or a training program that will ensure their success.
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**All KVG puppies cannot be resold, or rehomed without my knowledge. Both parties are in agreement to return the said puppy or grown adult to the breeder should the owner be unable to raise, train, or continue to give the quality of life that the dog deserves.
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E.H. Gorka
From Cute, to Naughty
Puppies at 8 to 16 weeks old are cute, and fairly easy to handle, however, once they start teething, and undergoing development post 16 weeks old, GSD puppies turn into little prehistoric dinosaurs. Please read this beautiful article that I found on social media, written by 'Behavior Vets' and I encourage you to follow their page.
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"Adolescence occurs between six months and 18 months of age—a time when guardians typically struggle the most with their dogs. Some guardians are so overwhelmed and underprepared for this developmental stage of their dog’s life, they choose to surrender the dog to a local shelter or rescue group. In a recent study published in the Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science found that the majority of the surrendered dogs (47.7 percent) ) were between 5 months and 3 years of age (M.D. Salman,John G. New, Jr.,Janet M. Scarlett,Philip H. Kass,Rebecca Ruch-Gallie &Suzanne Hetts, 2010)
The neurobiology of adolescence is fascinating, with some key events that alter both the structure and function of the brain.
During canine adolescence, changing sex hormones effect the animals stress responses. Adolescent dogs have a decreased ability to process information they are receiving from the environment including the presence of dogs, vehicles, people, or really anything around them. They behave in ways that might feel frustrating or upsetting for the dog’s person.
The connectivity between the frontal cortex (responsible for decision making) and amygdala (responsible for emotional processing) decreases, resulting in less behavioral control. We see increased risk taking and more sensitivity to fear.
So what does this mean? This could mean that what was once no big deal to the dog now feels scary; what was once easy to do is now stressful; what once made sense is now confusing. At times, the world can feel like ‘too much’ for the adolescent dog.
As your puppy undergoes this transition into adulthood their inner world is intense, even chaotic. Many pet owners experience an increase in undesirable behavior and find themselves becoming increasingly frustrated. In turn, our own frustration and impatience can cause us to act unpredictably. This adds to our puppy’s inner turmoil. When the inside and the outside are both unpredictable it can be difficult for our dogs to adjust.
If you have an adolescent dog, what can you do? You can give your dog the time and space to observe what is going on around them when on leash at a distance away from the activity when possible. You can give your dog long walks to sniff and explore in nature, giving their brain time to decompress. You can offer your dog a quiet space to sleep so that they can consolidate memories effectively. You can continue training various skills, breaking them down into easier steps that can be generously reinforced.
By understanding what our adolescent dog is experiencing we gain greater compassion and understanding. When we approach adolescence with patience we create a world that is predictable and gentle so our puppies grow up to be their best adult selves. " Behavior Vets
Often, it is difficult to find a trainer that one likes to work with, and or that one trusts!
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I highly recommend, taking an online 'puppy package' course to help you raise your German shepherd.
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Shield K9 & EMPOWERED Canine are two of my favorite dog training professionals for anyone that is just getting started, or looking to enrich their knowledge.
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