This post started as a very simple idea. Most of them do but this was an opportunity to have a fun post and gain a few brownie points with my wife. You see it was Mother’s day and five weeks earlier my wife had acquired Ronin. Strictly speaking, a puppy doesn’t qualify you for recognition on Mother’s Day but Ronin has a special persistence and my wife certainly deserves recognition. Had I managed to pull it off I would have made my wife very happy. Obviously I missed that date.

I have to warn you this post is very picture intensive and will load slowly.

Before Ronin joined us we had a balanced pack of four Australian Shepherds. Naming them off by age it would be Shelby at fifteen, Bryce, Cajun and the youngest at five, Sundae.

Each dog had their own way of welcoming Ronin to the pack and teaching him what it is to be a dog. Well, maybe Shelby is an exception. Shelby still enjoys playing but values her quiet time and wants nothing to do with a youngster that doesn’t look where he’s going.

Bryce is part of the “traveling squad” meaning he competes in Agility on a regular basis and is the quintessential athlete. He lives to compete in Agility. He plays with Ronin but only on his terms. From Bryce, Ronin picks up the excitement of playing as a pack. Bryce makes sure everyone plays just so he can compete against all of them. Ronin is gaining fast.

Bryce also came to us as a puppy and I’ve added a few pictures of him as he grew into adulthood.

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Cajun is our other rescue dog and had been used to produce puppies for a puppy mill before she came to us. Having raised several litters of puppies herself, Cajun’s mother instincts came out and she spent a lot of time watching over and playing with Ronin.

Sundae is the other member of the traveling squad. She enjoys a good workout especially if a tennis ball is involved. As Ronin grows, she spends her time playing chase with him until he wears out. I can’t tell you how grateful my wife and I are to Sundae for all this exercise. A bored Australian Shepherd puppy is a destructive puppy and I’m not sure the rest of us have the energy needed to wear him out.

I don’t want you to think I’m biased but Sundae’s picture is often the one I use for the header on this blog and the picture I use for my Twitter ID. It goes without saying that I have a few baby pictures of her too.

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That’s the pack. As I said it was a simple idea. I wanted to show how much Ronin has grown and developed in the last six weeks then I realized that I had puppy pictures of both Bryce and Sundae. You try to pick a few special pictures from over ten years. You’re a better person than I am if you can limit yourself to just a few.

As I look at these pictures, I noticed one other thing. The puppy pictures of Bryce are not nearly as clear as the puppy pictures of Sundae and those are not as clear as the pictures of Ronin. Digital cameras have improved a lot over the last 10 years.

I assure you I haven’t forgotten the star of today’s blog, Ronin. Here he is, just starting to show what kind of champion he will be as he joins the traveling squad.

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Having seen how well Sundae’s treat incentive worked. I decided to try out a new feature for this blog. Those of you who subscribe to this blog will have to go to my website to participate.

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