We're Available!! Eight Weeks Old!

The time has really flown by...hard to believe the puppies are now eight weeks old and ready for their forever homes! I can honestly say these puppies have been a true joy for me to have the luxury to raise and I will miss them soooo much!

So without further ado, may I formally introduce Spring Creek Aussies of Tennessee's first litter of puppies:

"Lug Nutz"

Lug Nutz is a blue merle male available to an approved show or performance home. He is quite the little character and is the dominant pup of the litter. We should have named him Jell-O as he wiggles from nose to nub! He is both toy and food driven and responds very well to the clicker. This is one high drive little guy! This pup is the total package...he has the looks, attitude, and the structure to back it up! We are expecting awesome things from this kid!

"Donut"

Donut is a black tri female available to an approved performance or pet home. This is one special little girl and I am thinking of keeping her, but for now she is available... :-) She is sweeeeet, so sweet! But don't let that sweet little package fool you, she can more than hold her own with her brothers and sisters! And man is she fast! I think she will also make a wonderful obedience prospect as she has a strong desire to please.

"Scooter"

Scooter is a black tri male available to an approved performance or pet home. He is the runt of the litter and the love of my husband's heart! Although slight of size, he is the police officer of the pack! When things get rowdy, he's there to straigten everyone out! He is very much like his mother...full of attitude! I think with his size he will be an excellent agility competitor. (Janet McLaughlin of Nashville is considering adding this little guy to her pack of all american agility competitors!)

"Chevy" (aka "Wheelie")

Chevy is not available...she is staying here with Mom and Dad! This little puppy is the reason for breeding this litter...I wanted a little blue merle girl like her Mom Harley, and boy did I get what I wished for!!! She has enough attitude and toughness for all of the puppies combined! I can already tell she is going to rock our world!

"Bentley" (aka "Clutch")

Clutch is not available. He is the first puppy to leave the pack! He is now known as Bentley. Today he went to live with his new family. He is now owned and loved by Jill Best and her family in west Nashville. We hope one day to see him competing in any venue as he is one phenomenal little aussie! Another pup with the total package...super structure, great masculine look, and wonderful attitude!

Puppies Are Growing Up! Seven Weeks Old!

The Girls!

Wheelie (reserved)
& Donut
The Boys!

Lug Nutz, Clutch
& Scooter

The puppies are doing great and are on a wonderful schedule. They get playtime outside their nursery at least three times a day to romp and run throughout the house! Harley is wanting to play with them, but they are still too interested in the teat to play with her! They are fully weaned and Harley has dried up almost completely.

Chopper and the pups is another story... We have to crate him when the puppies are out due to his injuries. He worries the whole time they are out playing! He's so concerned they will take "his" toys! He doesn't think too much of sharing with them right now...toys, affection, or food! At this age, as a package, they are a little overwhelming! He liked them much better when their movement was limited to the whelping box!

The pups are very close to being paper trained! Big YAHS!! They still have an accident every now and then, but for the most part, they go to their paper! Last week we worked on introduction to the clicker and this week we will work on the "sit" command. We will also introduce the puppies to the collar and lead.

The puppies will be evaluated next weekend for structure and temperment.

Puppies Are Six Weeks Old!

Wheelie (reserved) Clutch

Lug Nutz

Donut

ScooterThe time is passing so quickly....doesn't seem quite possible for the puppies to be six weeks old! It is exciting for me to see them at this fun and playful stage...but sad too knowing I won't have them very much longer! With the exception of the one I keep!

Puppies went on a trip to the vet today to get their six week checkup and first round of vaccinations. Everyone checked out great and not one puppy cried getting their shot! Brave little babies! And fat too...everyone is now at or over six pounds!

Time to introduce the clicker!!!

Chopper is Home!

Chopper was given solid food on Monday and did very well, and his IV was removed Tuesday. And on Wednesday evening, our boy was able to come home from the hospital! I am so glad to have him back home... Chopper is the love bug and goof ball of the family and when he isn't here, there is a definite void...

I have to say though, that he is confused about the whole crate issue... In our house, the crate is the time out area when puppies misbehave... So when I went to crate him shortly after arriving home, he gave me a look that seemed to say, "Mom, I haven't been bad...whatever it was, I didn't do it....I haven't even been home!!"

Right now his rehab consists of several short walks each day. He must be on lead whenever he is not crated. This is also very confusing to him as we haven't used the leash in the house in a long time! We will meet with his physical therapist next week to start the full rehab regime. Dr. Newman is very optomistic that he will regain full function of the leg as long as we are diligent with his physical therapy and rehab.... so that is wonderful news!

Puppies Are Five Weeks Old!

Clutch Wheelie (Reserved)

Donut

Scooter

Lug Nutz

The puppies are now five weeks old and are bundles of pure energy! They are a joy to me and have been a wonderful distraction to Chopper being hospitalized. They are constantly exploring and pushing the boundaries of their play area...in other words, they like to escape! It's hard to get pictures now unless they are asleep so this week's pictures are sleeping pictures!

Chopper's Surgery

On Saturday morning, we met with the orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Paul Newman. He ordered a new set of X-rays and developed a plan of care. They brought all of their equipment to us...and I'm talking an operating room load of equipment! Dr. Amy's techs gave Chopper a knockout haircut (balls and all) and prepped him for an epidural for surgery. We were allowed to be with Chopper through all of this.

Chopper was in surgery for two hours. After surgery, they did another series of x-rays to make sure the plate, screws, etc. were all in the proper place, then closed him up. We were able to be with him immediately after as he came out of the anesthesia. This meant so much to us to be able to be with him instead of waiting, worrying, and pacing in the waiting area!

Dr. Newman repaired his leg with a rod (which runs the length of the tibia), a pin, a 13-hole plate, 13 screws, and wire. Chopper will have to stay at the clinic five days of initial recovery.

We are so appreciative to Kinslow Veterinary Clinic and their staff for their open-door policy and for the extraordinary care shown to Chopper and to our family. Huge thanks to Dr. Paul Newman and his staff for coming to our rescue and saving Chopper's leg!

Our Boy Chopper - Tragic Accident

This past Friday, January 2, 2008, our boy Chopper was struck by a car in front of our home. The driver never stopped. I do not blame the driver for the accident, but am appalled that someone could hit any animal, and especially such a beautiful boy, and not stop. I still can't believe that he went out to the road as both he and Harley have been trained to stay away. This is something I train/re-inforce daily when I check the mail. Unfortunately, it only took him being out of my sight for a couple of minutes for him to be hit. Thankfully, I was able to get to him immediately and take him to Kinslow Veternarian Clinic here in Lebanon. I could tell his back left leg was broken badly but didn't know what else could be damaged.

For the first five hours it was touch and go. Dr. Amy Hastings was afraid that his bladder had been ruptured or that he might have other internal injuries. She didn't want to X-ray until he coule urinate. Dr. Amy and her staff hooked him up to an IV, gave him a little pain meds, and crated him. All we could do was wait to see if he could pee. I tell you I have never prayed for pee before! I called our friend Billy Murphy and asked if he would please post to our Leaps and Bounds Agility group list for prayers and positive thoughts. By 2 pm, we had pee! They immediately sedated him and took X-rays.

The breaks were really bad. The fibula was broken in several places but they were relatively clean breaks. The tibia was another story. It was broken into shards lengthwise, split to the crown on each end. Dr. Amy informed me that they were not equipped to repair this kind of damage, but could call in an orthopedic surgeon. They sent pictures of Chopper's x-rays to Dr. Paul Newman in Franklin, Tennessee, and within a few minutes he called back and said he thought he could repair and save the leg. We scheduled surgery for 8:30 the next morning, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2008.

Puppies Are Four Weeks Old!

The puppies turned four weeks old yesterday! Harley has began to wean them and they are eating softened Merrick's Puppy Plate kibble. Boy are they getting fat!

The weather is beautiful, 60 degrees in January! Decided it was time for a trip to play outside in the leaves so we headed out with Mom and Dad. Harley, who has been demonstrating an indifferent attitude toward the pups since she is weaning them, suddenly became the over-protective first time mom again! Too many dangers lurking out here in the great outdoors! Within a couple of minutes though, she relaxed and let the pups venture out, explore, and have a little fun chasing Chopper!

I have a really cute video of the pups playing in the leaves with Mom and Dad but can't get it uploaded to this site or You Tube....technical difficulties...need a copy of uploading video for dummies!

Harley - Road Trip

The road trip was really great for Harley. As I had mentioned in an earlier post, she was experiencing a little cabin fever being stuck in the house with the pups all the time! She was pepped and acting like a puppy herself the whole trip!

She doesn't believe in sleeping on a road-trip (unlike her partner Chopper who falls asleep the minute we hit the interstate)! Harley is hyper alert when travelling. One of her favorite past times in the truck is looking for cows and motorcyles!

When we got home, Harley decided she was ready to wean the pups! They are four weeks old now so with them getting those sharp little teeth I guess it's time! They are also making their first big move...from the whelping box to the nursery!

Merry Christmas! Time For A Road Trip!

Merry Christmas and Happy holidays to all! Sorry it's belated! The puppies were three weeks old on the 21st! I decided they were old enough now to take a little road trip to see family in northwest Alabama. Johnny wasn't able to go so he took Chopper with him to work the weekend in Manchester.

So, the Saturday after Christmas, we woke up early and made sure the babies were full to the brim, loaded them up in a crate in the truck and headed out. They slept the whole way...almost four hours! Harley and Chopper both travel very well and I was hoping the pups would as well. We arrived just in time to unload and they were ready to nurse! Good timing!

We stayed three days giving them plenty of time to explore and socialize with a whole range of people...from one to eighty years old! They seemed to have a blast checking out their new surroundings. They are all very social and inquisitive, not afraid at all! They even got to meet my sister's little year old maltese, Tipsy. Harley wasn't real hip on that though!

The ride home was uneventful with the puppies sleeping the entire way. I think the puppies were all were glad to be back home in the whelping box though!

Two Weeks Old!

Lug Nutz
Scooter

Wheelie (reserved)

Clutch

Donut

The puppies are now two weeks old and are growing at an amazing pace...they have all tripled their birth weight and then some! Almost everyone's eyes are fully open and taking in the world. They have found their legs and are now walking all over the whelping box. I think Harley was a little overwhelmed the first time she got in the box and they all came "running" for her! At this point, they litterly attack her when she enters the box!

Harley has done a wonderful job of being a first-time Mom. We are very proud of her! I do not envy her job as every day gets messier! YUCK!! I've been showering her with goodies to make up for certain, shall I say, unpleasant tasks she must face every day!

I believe she is experiencing a little "whelping box fever" though.... For those of you who know Harley, she goes everywhere I go; she absolutely loves our Chevy truck and going anywhere! But, since the pups were born she really hasn't been interested in leaving them. All that has changed now! She is not appreciating being left home! She looks at me as if to say, "They'll be fine...I just fed them and they're all asleep....Chopper can watch them 'til we get back home!".

Puppies - One Week Old!

Clutch
Wheelie

Lug Nutz

Donut

Scooter

We are happy to report that all five puppies are doing wonderful. This past Friday, Harley and the puppies went to the vet for a check up and to crop tails and dew claws. All made it through the procedure without any problems. It was really strange to see five little tails of varying lengths laying on the table when we left! Makes me think of that poem, "What Are Little Boys Made Of"! snips, and snails and puppy dog tails!

I have started early neurological stimulation exercises with the puppies. Exercises are done once daily between the ages of three and sixteen days. These exercises have proven to have important and lasting effects and has been adopted by the U.S. military in their dog training programs.

All of the puppies have more than doubled their birth weight this first week. Puppies now weigh between 19 and 24 ounces. You can almost see them grow!

Puppies Are Here!

On December 1, 2008, our Harley went into labor around 9:00 a.m. At 9:58 a.m. she delivered puppy #1, a black tri boy with a full collar. An hour and a half later, she delivered puppy #2, a black tri girl, with a full collar and a white lozenge on top of her head. Puppy #3 came at 12:55 p.m., a blue merle boy with a full collar and blaze. Puppy #4 came exactly and hour later, a little blue merle girl with a full collar and blaze almost to the collar. After puppy #4, we had no further action. After a couple of hours passed, I called the vet and asked them to pull the X-ray and re-count to make sure we had seen five. The vet confirmed five puppies. They told us if she didn't deliver by 5 p.m., bring her in. So at 5 p.m. we headed to the vet with four babies and a nervous mom! They X-rayed her, saw the puppy, and gave her a shot to help her labor progress. Twelve minutes later, Harley delivered puppy #5 at the vet's office, a black tri boy with a full collar and full blaze. We were home by 6 p.m. with five beautiful healthy puppies!

Harley is being a great mom. It is so remarkable how natural instincts take control. She did not require any assistance (other than the shot) with any of the deliveries, cord care, etc. The puppies' birth weights ranged from 9 to 11 ounces.

We are so excited about the potential of this litter!

Puppies Are On The Way

When Harley heated in late September, we decided now was the time if we were going to breed. So at the end of September we began progesterone testing and the first days of October we had three natural breedings. We did an ultrasound October 27, and saw 4-5 puppies! We X-rayed on November 26, and got an official count of 5 puppies! Now we just had to wait...the hardest part.

Our Decision to Breed

When we bought Chopper in 2006, we did so knowing that one day we would like to breed him to our Harley girl. Let me say first and foremost, I am not a breeder. Chopper's breeder, Shelly Gordon of Stargate Aussies, agreed to be a mentor to me. After evaluating the qualities of both, I decided I did want a puppy from this cross.

Our guys are CERF'd annually and both are normal. This summer we had hips and elbows X-rayed and both are OFA excellent.

We decided to breed when she went through her heat cycle in September 2008.

Our Boy Chopper

As I said in my post about our girl Harley, we started looking for a companion for her in the fall of 2005. In addition to being a companion to Harley, I wanted an aussie puppy who would be versatile and was especially interested in a line that competed in agility. In December, I contacted Shelly Gordon of Stargate Aussies in Indiana to ask if she had any litters planned for 2006. She did! She was expecting a litter of all black tri's the first of the year, and both parents compete in agility!

On April 1, 2006, we drove to Indiana to meet Shelly with our new black tri puppy, Chopper. Talk about a little butterball! He was such a beautiful little guy! We packed him in his new soft crate and headed for home. Within an hour he had chewed his way through the mesh of the crate door! This was a premonition of things to come!

Chopper attended his puppy obedience classes and did very well. But at home, WHEW! All the rules went out the door! He just had soooo much energy; hence his registered name: Stargate's All Fired Up! He tore up every toy we gave him, and those we did not! Harley was not a very happy girl during this time. I guess in her opinion we had brought home a little cyclone who would not leave her or her toys alone! He was terrible about stealling food, counter-surfing, robbing the trash! When he was about seven months old, I decided then that I'd have to enlist some help....enter Johnny!

Up until this time, Johnny had never participated in agility but came to watch Harley and me at the trials. I convinced him to start puppy agility classes with Chopper to build a bond, let off some energy, and have a little fun together. We all went to his first agility class, and man did he have fun! Nancy wanted him to do the tunnel first, and he was so excited he ran it on top of the tunnel instead of through it! And I mean he was sooo FAST! I just prayed that Johnny would like it half as much as Chopper did!

Chopper is now 2 1/2 years old and has matured beautifully. He is as gorgeous inside as he is outside. He has a very loving and happy disposition towards everyone. Chopper is definitely all boy but is also a very sensitive soul needing his hugs and kisses everyday. We are also happy to report that in regards to his food stealing, he has been rehabilitated!

Chopper turned out to be the perfect pup for us. He is extremely versatile. Chopper loves to swim, herd, and run agility. He currently competes in AKC agility and we hope to work on herding, tracking, and conformation in the coming year.

Our Girl Harley

In the fall of 2003, I began the search for our next australian shepherd puppy. It had been a year since we lost Freckles and it felt as though the time was right. Around the middle of December, I saw an ad for a litter of aussies and called to make an appointment to see them. Jessy, my daughter, and I rode out to see the pups with the intention of puchasing one as a Christmas present for Johnny since Freckles had been "his" dog. It didn't take but a second for one little girl in particular to single me out: a little blue merle fuzzball with one brown eye and one blue/brown marbled eye! I sat with the litter for a couple of hours trying to engage one, then another, but the little merle girl was persistent, "pick me!"! So I did! I took her home and presented her to Johnny for Christmas. He was so surprised! And surprising him is no easy feat!

After the first of the year Johnny asked me to take her to obedience training class. I was hesitant; I was afraid she would bond more with me and I had bought her for Johnny. However, our business was booming and he couldn't make every class, so I agreed to take her. She just loved going to class and quickly became the star pupil! She was always the demo dog for her group and you could tell she just ate that up! And within just a couple of weeks, she was my dog! We were, and continue to be, inseperable.

Harley is without exception the most intelligent dog I have ever had the pleasure of spending time with. Now I know I'm prejudiced, but she really is sooo smart! She progressed rapidly through the series of puppy classes, and by seven months old I knew she needed something else; I just didn't know what. Our puppy instructor, James, suggested agility and gave us a name to contact, Nancy Walker. Little did I know how this would forever change my life.

I finally managed to contact Nancy and found out she ran an agility training group called Leaps and Bounds. We showed up for our first class and I was overwhelmed! A class for "excellent" dogs was being held and man were they good! And talk about excited....Harley was about "out of her mind" wanting to get out there with them! I never even knew a sport like this existed. We started lessons that day and haven't looked back!

In 2004, we moved from subdivision living to a small home on seven acres in Lebanon, Tennessee. Harley was in dog heaven! Plenty of room to run, play and explore! Only one thing was missing.....a playmate. In the fall of 2005, I started looking for our next aussie puppy!

Our First Aussie

We purchased our first australian shepherd after the death of our beloved golden retriever, Toby, in 1995. We looked for several months before we found our little girl Freckles. She was one of 13 puppies born on Halloween night. She was a little split-face red merle and what an imp! Always into something!

Although she loved us all, she thought my husband Johnny hung the moon! She went to work with us everyday and felt it was her job to supervise the crew! Every morning she would make her rounds, saying hello to everyone, getting little bites of breakfast from her "friends" on the crew! Within a few minutes, she'd be back and ready to trail us from room to room, making sure the job was done right!

At the time we had Freckles, we lived in a subdivision with a fenced in backyard. Freckles was an escape artist of the highest quality when it came to exiting the backyard! When the kids got too rambuctious for her, she became the "fun police"; barking and herding the kids! So we'd send them to the front yard to play but within just a minute, she'd be in the front with them. Climbing over the fence was kids' play for her!

Our daughter loved to play dress-up and Freckles was a willing model! She also had several starring roles in the productions our kids put on for us! What a great little girl!

Unfortunately, we lost Freckles when she was seven years old. My husband and I went to the Smoky Mountains for our anniversary leaving our two kids and Freckles at home with my sister. On the third day of our trip, we got a call saying she had let Freckles out into the backyard and thirty minutes later she was gone. We spent a year looking for her, running ads, checking shelters, but never found her.

It is our belief that someone picked her up since she had spent all of her seven years in that neighborhood, knew the area well from our daily walks, and all the neighbors knew and loved her. It's our hope that whoever has her will love her and cherish her as we did.

About Us

We live outside of Nashville, Tennessee, on a small seven-acre (former) dairy farm. Our property is bordered front and back by Spring Creek; hence the name Spring Creek Aussies! Our aussies live in our home and are our daily companions. Their health and well-being are our first and foremost concern.


We have been involved in aussies for the last twelve years and have definitely fallen head over heels in love with this wonderful breed. They have an uncanny ability to come into our lives and change it forever for the better. I know they have changed my life!



We currently compete in AKC agility and look forward to competing in confirmation, herding, and possibly tracking.