Miss Mighty Hunter

Note to self .... Make sure to pack some benadryl for camping trips!

Stella has strong birding instincts which is true to her breed and also to her bloodlines.  Both her parents are accomplished dogs in the field.  I may in the future look into field trials but it is very hard to find positive based training methods in that area of dog sports.   For now we have lots to work on with rally and obedience and possibly agility in the future.

Her hunting instincts are not limited to birds.  She loves to hunt, stalk, chase anything she can which includes bugs, flies and the cats when they want to participate.  When we have been camping she amuses herself in the campground by playing with any of the bugs or flies she can find.  She stalks, pounces, repeats until eventually she catches her prey.  I'm sure that this is eventually going to result in her being bitten by something so hence the benadryl comment above.  If there is a spider or fly in the house she and the cats compete to chase it down. 

She loves to chase the cats which I stop as much as possible.  The cats know that she isn't going to hurt them but they still provide her with some chase opportunities.  Desi will just jump up on to the nearest higher ground to end the chase.  Fred almost enjoys the games and runs for a minute and then just stops and looks at her which brings her to to a screeching halt where she waits wagging her tail hoping for the game to start again.  Desi tends to mostly ignore the dogs but Fred is quite comfortable with them around.  Stella cracks me up offering all sorts of play bows to Fred but her best play moves just cause him to flick his tail and walk away from her.  She hasn't given up hope yet that he will someday romp and wrestle with her. 

Here is a picture of her pointing a bird in a bush on a recent hike.

Like a Cat

I currently have two cats in my house and have owned one other as well as had a number of cats while growing up.  My first cat (Bud) was a siamese cat who was Mr. Personality.  He would walk on leash, loved car rides and never met a lap he didn't love.  One of my current cats (Fred) is a Maine Coone mix and is very dog like.  He lines up for dog cookies, comes when he is called and is very comfortable with the dogs.  The other cat (Desi) is a female tortie and she is all "cat" but very lovable in her own way.  

The dogs is my life have been Labrador Retrievers which has also been the favourite breed in my family.  Family Christmas a few years ago had a total of six dogs and five of those were labradors.  When Lucy passed and it was time to add another dog back to our home I researched the Vizsla breed before deciding to add one to our home.  I have met quite a number of them over the past few years in our dog classes and around the city.  I am very much in love with a lot of things about this breed and especially my puppy.  What has surprised me is how many feline personality quirks are present in my new vizsla puppy.  

Stella's "cat like" behaviours include sun worshipping, sleeping curled up, play behaviour that involves using her front legs to box and masterful levels of cuddling.  She also doesn't like getting her paws wet but that is changing as she gets more used to living life on the west coast.  Lucy was never much of a snuggler but Riley is quite fond of a good cuddle especially if it is on my bed.  Stella takes that a few steps further and plasters up against me in bed and even heads down under the covers if she thinks it isn't warm enough.   She has resigned herself to sleeping mainly in her dog bed in our tv room (see entry - Battle of the Bed) but when I invite her up for a couch cuddle I swear I can almost hear her purring :o).  My cats usually sleep the night cuddled against me (one on each side and the territories never change).   Stella is crated overnight but in the morning when I open her crate she bounds over to the bed and wants up for a good long snuggle and possibly some more sleeping. 

I suppose that these behaviours aren't really "cat" but they are different from my rough and tumble labs and very similar to my cats.  She really is a very fun and happy puppy and I look forward to learning even more about this new breed in my life!

 Stella worshipping the sun in August

Bud never met a warm source he didn't love, even a light bulb!