So, after a few months Teddy was quite the “teddy bear”. His face had grown a bit so he finally had the look we wanted. He has taken over the house too, it's definitely “his house”, protecting us from the doorbell when it rings and strange noises he may hear. It was so funny when he barked for the first time. We both looked at each other like “did that big bark come from our little guy?” He was just about 3 months old when he found his voice. When people come over though it’s quite a different story, he loves people and other dogs for that matter too. We got a wonderful trainer named Deb and she helps us out when we go on long trips and other training trips to help us with the behaviour side of things. 

Teddy’s favorite thing to do is play catch with a squeaky ball. Deb taught him to go between our legs and sit to chase the ball. It's his routine now. I taught him to place the ball next to me when I'm sitting down so depending on whether we are sitting or standing he places the ball properly for each. He likes to change up who throws it to him too, so he’s equal opportunity for all. He also changes up the chase with catching it in the air. He likes to mix it up, I guess. Usually when I take him out to do his business, he’ll grab a ball to have a few rounds outside before we go in. This winter when it was 25 degrees out and snowing, he grabbed the ball. Yes it snows sometimes in Las Vegas. I tried my best to accommodate him, but it was cold out lol. Just a few tosses buddy then we can do it inside.

Now that I've given a little background on my passion for dogs I want to share info on the many different breeds. In my other blog about my footwear career at: https://solemanstudios.com, I write to educate people about leadership and developing teams. I hope to share some educational info here too. I pull information from many different sites but use Wikipedia for fast information. here's a little history on the Mini Poodle:

Due to their intelligence, obedient nature, athleticism and looks, Poodles were frequently employed in circuses, particularly in France. In French circuses poodles were selectively bred down in size to create what is now known as the Miniature Poodle, which was known as the Toy Poodle until 1907, as a smaller sized dog is easier to handle and transport in a travelling circus. As circus performers the variety was frequently seen performing all manner of tricks including walking tightropes, acting out comedies and even performing magic and card tricks.

The Toy Poodle was created at the beginning of the 20th century when breeders again bred Miniature Poodles down in size to create a popular companion dog. Initially, these efforts resulted in disfigured or misshapen pups, as well as pups with behavioural problems, as a result of irresponsible breeding for dwarfed size only. As new breeding practices were adopted, the variety became set as a toy-sized replica of the original. Later attempts to create an even smaller variety, the Teacup Poodle, were unable to overcome serious genetic abnormalities and were abandoned.

We have over 90 different breeds to choose from now and growing. I just added puppy mugs and have a lot more to add there too. The collection will continue to grow in other categories as well. Join the email list to be notified of new styles. Here is an example of the Poodle Puppy mug we just added: