Hello again from 2018!

Wow! It has been a long time since we visited this blog, and we decided it was time for a return! Much has happened since we shared about our Wheaten clan and we will work to update you on what are furry friends have been up to these past few years. For now here is a quick run down:

Chrissy- Now 7 and living in Texas with Arley and her husband Corey. Chrissy has grown very sassy and confident over the years. She is most sweet and loving and loves big city life-- she often tours breweries and parks around Houston with A&C. Her hair is also now kept quite short...

Grady- Ah, our old man. As loving, cuddly and patient as ever. Life has changed around him these past few years but Grady has been a constant. He loves his Mom the most, and maybe chicken or ginger snaps follow a close second.

New buddy, Blitz- The biggest change since we last wrote was the addition of Blitz! He is the second Wheatie we got as an actual puppy. Oh, how much we love a Wheaten puppy face! Blitz is now 3, a Champion in the show ring, and the most carefree and happy Wheaten we have ever had. He has lots of loves and quirks we will share with you.

Here is our most recent photo of the clan all together, can't wait to share more with you!

                                           Chrissy, Grady, & Blitz on a walk this December

--Turnercamp

#TBT caregiver

Almost two years ago Arley got a bad ear infection that eventually required surgery at the start of her junior year of college. So the Turners, with Grady and Remora, traveled to Greenville to see Arley. The dogs were great for her, and they loved the constant cuddle buddy! So here is a picture of Arley, just after coming back from surgery, with caregiver Remora. 

Have a great weekend!

-Turnercamp

#TBT summer lovin

Happy #TBT!  The weather today is finally bearable so the dogs seem much happier. In this #TBT Trevor & Sharkie are looking forward to another adventure. 

Next week we are taking the pups camping, so we will look for a good camping throwback to share. We will also post about our Wheaton Wagon (camper) renovations soon! 

-Turnercamp

#flashback Friday

Hello! 

Our apologies for not posting our usual #throwbackThursday post, sometimes we get a bit distracted! To make it up we have decided to do a Flashback Friday post! 

The heat here in Washington has been unbearable and we know we would love to get away to some cool water! Here is a picture of Sharkie enjoying a day on a boat!!

Enjoy your Friday! And look out for a post over the weekend about Chrissy Miss and her mischievous ways!!

-Turnercamp

#TBT- relaxin

Dogs can keep you company and provide endless entertainment. They can also teach you how to lay back and relax. Observe Remora enjoying some r&r (and getting her belly rubbed while she's at it!) 

Happy Thursday!

-Turnercamp

Happy Fourth of July! #TBT

"Yesterday the greatest question was decided which ever was debated in America; and a greater perhaps never was, nor will be, decided among men. A resolution was passed without one dissenting colony, 'that these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States'."
2 July 1776, John Adams in a letter to his wife, Abigail.

We hope you all have a nice holiday and keep your dogs safe from the firework celebrations!

Since today is Thursday we thought we would share an extra adorable throwback Thursday picture with you:

Trevor and 4 month old Sharkie after participating in a 4th of July parade & preparing to cool off in the pool!

The Declaration of Independence states that, "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." In the Turner house we believe happiness is spending time with man's best friend. 

-Turnercamp

Becoming a Turner

Things here at Turnercamp are busy and bustling as usual! Bringing a new dog into your home takes work and patience, especially when they are a bit older and have lived in other homes with different rules. Our newest addition, Chrissy, is such a sweet little girl and we are loving having her in our home but there have been some challenges.

Although she is playful and a gentle dog, Chrissy is less confident than the other dogs we have brought in. It seems she has some anxiety, and we have been working with our wonderful trainer Chelsea who has also been working with us to make Grady a therapy dog. The training is working very well, making her feel more confident. Her anxiety is apparent when she cries at the telephone and how she is very shy in public. Arley has taken her under her wing in the training department. There have also been a few potty issues in the house, though both Chrissy and Grady are guilty in this respect…due to everyone’s new adjustments. Luckily these issues are getting resolved for Mom’s sake! Grady is very fond of Chrissy, and she gets him to play several times a day. Trevor and family friend Nik rough house (gently) with her, which gives Grady a welcome break from her high energy. It is fun having a younger dog in the house but she can be hard to keep up with! However, she is one of the most fun dogs to play with because she is our first wheaten that plays “fetch” (terriers are not very good at this game in general, and her version is the closest we may ever get…) She is a big fan of her toys, peanut butter treats, and of her food. Her appetite has been very good since day one!

           Playing with her elephant toy

With all the playtime Chrissy gets and the training, she is acclimating and adjusting well. She had also been spayed shortly before we picked her up, so she still had stitches and such when we adopted her. At first they bothered her and she used her leg to scratch at them, so we bought her a “dog T-shirt” at our pet store. She looked a bit silly but it was very effective! The area has healed very nicely.

                      Chrissy in her T

We are very thankful for Chrissy (Miss Puddin’) and are enjoying working with her to provide a happy family life.

-Turnercamp 

Happy Summer!!

Another Throwback Thursday! Hope you all have enjoyed the first official week of summer. One of our favorite summer activities is going to the beach, and whenever we can we bring our dogs! Here's a pic of Jess & Grady from a dog beach in Venice, FL.

Hope you guys have a great weekend and remember to do something fun with your own puppies! Last weekend we took ours on a walk to see the super moon! 

-Turnercamp 

#TBT- napping addition.

Happy Thursday friends!

Today we thought we would share a favorite pastime of all our puppies: napping. 

Grady is our king of naps. Ever since he joined our family he has loved to curl up for a nap. 

Remora would often cuddle up with Grady for a good afternoon nap, though she loved to go play in our garden and was frequently spotted napping near her favorite plant in the yard. 

Chrissy naps much less than Grady, but she thinks the couch is pretty comfy too!

Enjoy our sleeping beauties and have a great Thursday! 

-turnercamp

Stormy Thursday

It is #TBT! 

Since they are predicting a very stormy Thursday here in DC we thought we'd share our frog-dog with you guys. 

Despite the frog pose Grady would rather take his daily nap than go jump in puddles. Hope you all are safe if a big storm hits and (try) to stay dry!

-Turnercamp

Counting our blessings- A very special announcement!

As my brother so perfectly stated a few weeks ago, “life is an adventure. We have experiences that evoke the best of emotions. We cherish these experiences, smile, laugh, and enjoy the incredible life we live.” This week we are feeling yet again thankful for the lives we get to live. Even though we still think of Gracie everyday, we were given the opportunity to expand our camp again. It just so happened that our wonderful breeder Alice took back a young dog from a family whose situation changed and they felt their work requirements were unfair to the dog. We knew in out hearts that this little girl deserved a loving family home, one we knew we could provide.

So earlier this week we traveled to Savannah, gave Alice big hugs, and returned with our newest family member. Her AKC name is Conventry Farm’s Christmas Blessing, or Chrissy for short (Mom is also fond of her nickname, Figgy Puddin). Though her name is Christmas Blessing, we are really feeling like she is just a blessing in general. At 2 & ½ Chrissy is lively and attentive and has brought a ray of sunshine into our home. Though she is still adjusting to our home, she and Grady have bonded already and she has already picked out her favorite spot to relax! It has been fun to see what funny traits she has that are similar to the other Wheaties we have had. We were a bit worried at first because Chrissy is one of Gracie’s daughters, but alas no two dogs are ever the same, and each adds something different to our family pack.

We look forward as the days progress to see what Chrissy brings to our family and to keep you updated as we help her adjust to our home!

-Turnercamp

It is #TBT!

Happy Thursday everyone! With the weekend just around the corner and summer weather finally here we thought we would share a picture of Sharkie on our old boat. Sharkie loved the boat and would stick his head up in the wind!

Have a great day and check back this evening for our SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT!!!

-Turnercamp

Presidential Pups

   Last Saturday we took Grady to Mount Vernon to join some canine friends on the President’s Pups tour. It was a bit of a hot day so Grady loved the time spent relaxing in the shade and visited with his friends Finn and Quimby. The tour itself was full of fun facts but the “behind the scenes” tour was a bit disappointing. We felt more like we were walking on service roads than actually seeing history. There was also quite a bit of stopping, during which Grady was more than happy to lay down and relax, but most of the other canines on the walk seemed a bit restless. Finn had more interesting things to say than the guide and Quimby was more polished. Although we were not totally sold on the sightseeing, we learned lots of interesting facts about George Washington and his dogs!

Grady and Finn

Here are a few of our favorite facts:

• George Washington was a big dog lover and had dogs from just about every one of the AKC’s categories of dogs (Sporting, Hounds, Working, Terrier, Toy, Non-sporting, & Herding).
• As a Wheaten Terrier Grady was excited to learn that his true terrier instincts would have been much appreciated at Mount Vernon. Washington used terriers like our Wheaties to keep vermin out of the food that was stored. This food was kept in a basement area underneath the main house and the terriers were rotated throughout the day to keep the unwanted critters from eating the food!
• Washington had Dalmatians on his plantation. The only true coaching dogs, Dalmatians were used as pace setters for the carriage horses as they traveled.
• In addition to being known as the “father of our country,” Washington is also the father of the American Foxhound! His passion for dogs and breeding led him to develop the breed while living at Mount Vernon. According to the AKC the American Foxhound is a blend of the Walker, Trigg, and Goodman foxhounds, all of which Washington kept at Mount Vernon.

Arley & Grady on the tour

After the tour Grady and I explored the grounds of Mount Vernon some more on our own. Dogs are allowed to walk the grounds, they just are not allowed inside the house for a tour. They keep dog bowls full of water at a few locations on the grounds, making them a great place to take your dog for a lovely walk. You do have to pay the admission fees though, so if you plan to make this a reoccurring habit we suggest investing in an annual pass!

Checking out Mount Vernon

Our Mount Vernon escapades were Grady’s first major outing since passing his good citizen test, aside from walks around the neighborhood and trips to the pet store. Of course he behaved wonderfully, and loves spending time with his friends! He came home and spent the rest of his afternoon napping on our cool tile floors!

As always thanks for reading, check back tomorrow for #TBT and a special announcement in the evening!

~Turnercamp

#TBT

It is #ThrowBackThursday! Sorry for not posting last week, as you may expect we were a bit distracted and grieving. We cannot thank all of our wonderful friends and family enough for all of their love and support they have sent our way! For this throwback Thursday we thought it would be fun to share a picture of Sharkie and Remora.

This is from a Christmas vacation with our extended family several years ago. In typical Wheatie fashion Sharkie and Remora were always willing to be part of the "pack" and lend a paw, but mostly they were making sure they didn't get left behind!

-Turnercamp

Trusting when it's hard

As we continue to grieve the loss of Miss. Gracie we wanted to reach out and thank everyone for the love and support. You have no idea how much it means to us. Our breeder Alice sent us this beautiful note that we found gave us strength and thought we would share it with you all. 
-Turnercamp

I am still shocked by the news and my heart is so heavy for you all.  I wish I could be there and hug and cry with you.  This is so hard to go through especially the first time you were going to whelp a litter.  You did not get to experience the joy but started with the heartache.  One of my favorite Bible verses is Romans 8:28,

"And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose."Over the years this verse and others have comforted me though all of life's trials and heartaches.  He gives me peace when I give Him my tears and I trust that He will redeem this tragedy.  I am praying for peace and comfort for you all.  Gracie had a wonderful life with your family and she will great us again when we meet in Heaven. Thank you for your loving care for her and her pups.  

Much love,  

Alice 

Day 53

Life is an adventure. We have experiences that evoke the best of emotions. We cherish these experiences, smile, laugh, and enjoy the incredible life we live. Gracie provided my family with an amazing experience. She came into my life in sunny Venice, FL, a pleasant surprise. I enjoyed the vacation with my family in Florida and will remember the walks with Gracie and the alligators forever. Gracie had a spark to her despite the below average size, and without a doubt a huge heart. Gracie was a proud mother of two litters, and our vacation my father said that we were going to care for her during another pregnancy. At first I thought this was by far the best joke my father has ever told.

Fifty-three days ago my family began the adventure, led by the experience of Gracie, our close friend and Wheaten breeder Alice, our incredible vet Sunny, and the stud named Romeo. This was another Turner family adventure. We joined forces to start this blog, construct a whelping box, and prepare ourselves for a spectacular event. It became another experience to share with our friends and laugh about.

Unfortunately life has misfortunes. Happily cuddled in my father’s lap Gracie passed away. We rushed to an emergency care veterinary clinic but their efforts were unsuccessful to save Gracie or her pups. We will always be grateful for Gracie’s contributions to our family, and we will always have our memories of Gracie. We will remember Gracie and share the stories of her snuggling up in laundry baskets, being a companion, roughhousing with Grady, and avidly loving camping with her family.

The Turner family would like to recognize all who helped us during the process. We will continue to share stories on our Wheaten Wag’n blog, sharing the process of renovating our trailer, cleverly named the Wheaten Wag’n.
-Trevor Turner

Sympathy Pregnancy

While Gracie has been growing puppies in her belly our boy Grady has not been sitting idly. At first he was totally jealous of her being fed more often in the day and packed on a few pounds himself as a result of sympathy treats. At this point, however, Gracie has been eating so often that Grady is even a bit taken aback. Grady has since focused on taking AKC’s Canine Good Citizen Test.

When we got Grady we immediately noticed his pure love of people and snuggling. In general, this is a strong trait in Wheaties, but more than any other dog we have had Grady REALLY wants to be petted as often as possible. With his extra loving temperament we (and our breeder) thought Grady could be a really excellent therapy dog. Visiting people in need to help them feel better would give him so much joy. So, we started training Grady just over a year ago, and just this week he passed the Good Citizens Test! This is the first major step towards becoming a certified therapy dog. Several places near us will now allow him to come visit since he has passed this step and we are really excited to see how he likes it. You can learn more about the Good Citizens test on the AKC website, but it essentially means that Grady is good with strangers, behaves on a leash, is calm around other dogs, and is happy to be pet/brushed anywhere.

Grady really is a good boy and is thrilled to be in the spotlight. Whenever we take him out in public places many people admire him, we can tell he really enjoys this because he is totally an attention seeker. When we were in Savannah to pick up Gracie we took a trolley tour of the city and Grady was allowed to ride along with us. He loved snuggling with us on the trolley benches and made lots of human friends, especially girls. He is such a babe magnet.

We cannot wait to start taking Grady to share his love with the world and will continue to keep you all updated as we proceed to get him fully certified!

-Turnercamp