Southside Shelties

Southside Shelties At Southside Shelties, our shelties are performance dogs -- they perform as trick dogs and are start

Happy 6 weeks (yesterday) to the Nature Litter! These furballs all got de-wormed for the third time today. They’re all...
07/11/2025

Happy 6 weeks (yesterday) to the Nature Litter!

These furballs all got de-wormed for the third time today. They’re all gaining well and doing great! Weekly pics coming soon!

07/09/2025

All our adult dogs get fed separately - mostly in a crate, but in one way or another, away from another dog that can steal their food. The first step to this, is getting a dog to be comfortable going into a crate to eat. We start this young.

You may have noticed on previous videos that we have had an open crate in the puppy play area, and the puppies do come and go into that crate as they please. Well… now it comes into play. Starting today (a few secs before I started recording actually), we put their puppy mush down inside the crate. Similar to the puppies having to surmount the barrier to get out of the whelping box, now the puppies also have to make it over the lip of the crate in order to eat.

You can see at the beginning how the one pup (Benny) is confused for a second and isn’t quite sure how to get to the food. Quickly though, his frustration turns to joy as he figures out how to get into the food and starts to chow down.

Now today, we started with the bowl towards the front so they’d for-sure notice it right away. Tomorrow it will already be at the back of the crate. We close the door behind them, so they can associate positive things (eating) with being closed into a crate. Currently, we let them out when they are finished. Over time, we’ll allow them more time in the crate with the door closed so as to help get them working on being crate trained. Eventually, this progresses to their own crates as well, with their own bowls, instead of one larger crate.

It’s so amazing watching them learn, develop, and figure things out on their own!

Happy 5 weeks to the Nature Litter!
07/02/2025

Happy 5 weeks to the Nature Litter!

07/01/2025

Occasionally Smokey will come check out the puppies… more interesting to see her come by as they age

and finally, Miss Indigo! This little cutie loves the new toys this week!
06/30/2025

and finally, Miss Indigo!

This little cutie loves the new toys this week!

Here's Miss Daisy. This spunky little girl also found her family this week, so the entire litter has now found their pe...
06/29/2025

Here's Miss Daisy. This spunky little girl also found her family this week, so the entire litter has now found their people! Yay puppies!

Mr. Lennox has now been given a name by his new owners... he is going to be known as Benny!Here's 4 week old Benny being...
06/28/2025

Mr. Lennox has now been given a name by his new owners... he is going to be known as Benny!

Here's 4 week old Benny being his adorable self!

06/27/2025

The most important things to provide for an enrich environment are opportunities for learning and problem-solving. Animals who are giving learning and problem-solving activities (in addition to toys and social interaction) grew up to more stable, less easily stressed, less easily frightened, and have better learning and memory, as compared to animals who were not given the same learning and problem-solving activities.

So how do we do this? In the same way that adult dogs are motivated by treats, we accomplish this with puppies through their food. Initially, we provide the puppies their puppy mush in the whelping box so they learn what it is without having to really “go get it.” Then, we move it outside of the whelping box, where there is a slight barrier that they have to cross in order to go get it. This barrier set them up for frustration (I intentionally did not mute or talk over the video so that you can hear them). It does not take long for them to learn that making noise does not help, and so they have to go get the food on their own. As long as the puppies are physically large enough and physically capable of getting over the barrier, there is absolutely no reason to step in. They have to do it on their own. The reasoning being, if they are helped now, they will forever remember that they don’t have to think for themselves, and that screaming, barking, and whining get results (this sounds an awful lot like the kids that scream in the grocery store for a candy bar, get the candy bar, and then scream the next time, and mom doesn’t quite understand why). With the puppies, if they can overcome their fears and make it over the barrier, they reach the food. This in itself is rewarding, and so, it empowers them. As a result, they become more confident, calmer dogs.

For some litters, we have dogs that take a couple tries/days before they make it over the barrier (they still get fed!). This litter managed this in less than three minutes, which is amazing. Good job pups!

Happy 4 weeks to the Nature Litter! They’re all over 2 pounds now, little chunkers!
06/27/2025

Happy 4 weeks to the Nature Litter! They’re all over 2 pounds now, little chunkers!

...and last but definitely not least, Indigo (formerly Willow)!
06/21/2025

...and last but definitely not least, Indigo (formerly Willow)!

06/21/2025

Week 3 starts the fun for puppies… first up, their introduction to “solid food.” That’s sort of an oxymoron as I’m not sure I’ve ever seen anyone give 3 week old puppies actual puppy chow (versus some sort of mush), but whatever! The thing is this - the pups get introduced to food that isn’t their mom’s milk.

We record these milestones, so you all can come along on the journey with them as they experience all the new things!

Here's 3 week old Little Miss Daisy! Daisy is still looking for her people! This spunky girl is afraid of nothing and ...
06/20/2025

Here's 3 week old Little Miss Daisy!

Daisy is still looking for her people! This spunky girl is afraid of nothing and just loves everyone. Such a sweet girlie!

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Wolcott, IN

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+12197890026

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