Eli x Penny: Puppy Number Three -- Foxglove Ashburton Bottoms Up ("Jigger")

Eli x Penny: Puppy Number Three Grows Up

Evaluation of Puppy Number Three at 11 weeks:

Puppy Number Three is our little male. We were really excited about the possibility of having a nice, tri-factored male with this pedigree and so relieved when the last-born puppy was, in fact, a boy. At 11 weeks, we still like this puppy a lot; it's a little hard to see outline under all that fuzz, but he's really a neat little package. He's smaller overall than either of his sisters and maybe just a bit cobbier. But he's built like a little tank and, more importantly, he's measuring slightly taller than his older half-brother, "Nick" (Ashburton Foxglove Nickelodeon, pts.), at the same age. Don't get us wrong -- we LOVE Nick... we're just not sure we'll be able to afford to finish another 14-3/8-inch "major-reserve king." This one might not make 15 inches either, but we think he'll come closer than Nick!

We especially like the rear on this puppy. He has good angulation (but not too much), nice short little hocks, and he looks beautiful going away. Cute buns there, little man!

Six weeks

Eleven weeks

Evaluation of Puppy Number Three at 11 weeks:

Puppy Number Three is our little male. We were really excited about the possibility of having a nice, tri-factored male with this pedigree and so relieved when the last-born puppy was, in fact, a boy. At 11 weeks, we still like this puppy a lot; it's a little hard to see outline under all that fuzz, but he's really a neat little package. He's smaller overall than either of his sisters and maybe just a bit cobbier. But he's built like a little tank and, more importantly, he's measuring slightly taller than his older half-brother, "Nick" (Ashburton Foxglove Nickelodeon, pts.), at the same age. Don't get us wrong -- we LOVE Nick... we're just not sure we'll be able to afford to finish another 14-3/8-inch "major-reserve king." This one might not make 15 inches either, but we think he'll come closer than Nick!

We especially like the rear on this puppy. He has good angulation (but not too much), nice short little hocks, and he looks beautiful going away. Cute buns there, little man!
Six weeks	Eleven weeks

Evaluation of Puppy Number Three at 19 weeks:

At four and a half months, Puppy Number Three seems to be living up to his early promise. We love his outline and balance -- even at this age. His front and rear angulation is similar to that of Puppy Number Two and, like Number Two, he moves extremely well in all directions. We love his sweet expression and continue to marvel at his beautiful muzzle and underjaw.

He continues to measure a quarter of an inch bigger than half brother "Nick" (Ashburton Foxglove Nickelodeon, pts.) at the same age. We remain optimistic that he will reach an adult height of close to 15 inches.

Evaluation of Puppy Number Three at 24 weeks:

What a difference a few weeks and a little hair can make! And the hair is the only real difference between the photo at upper left and the 19-week photo taken from the same angle. Otherwise, this puppy's outline and basic bodily proportions remain the same and are probably unlikely to change significantly between now and the time he reaches his mature height -- around seven to eight months. However, we would expect him to continue to fill out and mature in head and body until the age of two or three years, maybe longer.

We can see a real change in his expression at 24 weeks compared with the photos taken just five weeks earlier. In the 19-week head shot, this puppy looks like a puppy. In the more recent head shot (above), a mature dog is beginning to emerge.

This puppy is still very "pretty." Although he is not "bitchy," neither is he distinctly masculine. This lack of masculinity would be a serious fault in an older dog; however, in our experience, very masculine males of this age -- the ones that look mature enough to finish from the puppy classes -- are likely to become coarse and overdone as mature adults. In other words, this boy may not be a "puppy flyer," but he looks exactly as we would want him to look at this age.

Evaluation of Puppy Number Three at 13 months:

This puppy can "use himself" better than he is doing in the photo at left -- pulling himself up and showing his neck and outline -- but it was a hot afternoon and he was not about to put a great deal of effort into posing for the camera. Oh well, so we won't put that photo in a "Sheltie Pacesetter" ad... it's still good enough for the purposes of this webpage.

Like his sisters, we expect this puppy to mature into a very nice adult. We do not expect him to be competitive until he is two and a half or three, and he will not be shown until he is ready.

At just over a year of age, Puppy Number Three is still very physically immature. Typical of Penny kids his age, Puppy Three lacks bone and body; but we think both will come in time. Otherwise, this puppy has all the right pieces. We love his head and expression; we love his front and rear angulation; we love his movement and showmanship (okay, well, maybe not on hot afternoons). So now we just have to wait for all those pieces to come together in a more mature male. Stay tuned!

His mature height turned out to be around 14-5/8 inches -- somewhat less than the 15 inches we'd hoped for. (But he's still bigger than Nick!)

Eli x Penny: Puppy Number Three Grows Up

Evaluation of Puppy Number Three at 11 weeks:

Evaluation of Puppy Number Three at 19 weeks:

Evaluation of Puppy Number Three at 24 weeks:

Evaluation of Puppy Number Three at 13 months:

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