• Gah she's beautiful.. looks so much like her brother!


  • She is such a pretty brindle. How big is she now? Kaia stays just shy of 21 lbs, seems so small compared to the boys, but has no problem when it comes to racing and wrestling with them. I'd love to have mine see snow, I think Kaia would play in it and Loki would not want anything to do with it. Kaia still acts like a puppy as well, I think she'll be puppy-ish for years to come. How are things going with miss wild child?


  • Ava thanks you all for the compliments! She's grown into a big girl, TMartin. I try to keep her around 22 lbs, but she's muscular and very strong. Like Kaia, she races and wrestles with the boys and thinks she's the boss of them. She's a tomboy at heart and doesn't mind getting dirty or splashing through water. I have trouble keeping her out of the pond (!) and feel sure she would love the ocean, sand and all. She's still wild, and I think she'll always have that streak. It's just who she is. But I've adapted to her wild and crazy ways and love her, anyway.

    Kaia and Loki are adorable together. They're clearly happy and bonded. Seeing them in your photos makes me think Ava would do so much better with a brother. But I just can't imagine having two Avas!


  • She and Kaia sound similar in their tomboy ways. Kaia's come in from the yard before with four black feet 😞 She is our hyper girl, much more energetic than Loki. I'd be worn out if she was an only dog! We've taken them on 4 mile walks before only to have her nap for 45 mins and wake up ready to play and bouncing on Loki's head. They have disagreements over who is boss and Loki still treats her like a puppy sometimes; it's very amusing to watch them. With the right brother, Ava would probably do well. Having two Kaias would be…interesting...but Loki is more laid back and mellow so they make a perfect pair.


  • Yep… interesting. Ava makes me feel old, trying to keep up with that boundless energy.

    Ava and Kaia are definitely cousins. My late boy was more like Loki-- laid-back, easy and fastidious about his grooming. Not Miss Ava. She's my little Pigpen! When I take her to daycare for a play day, the girl will come out holding a squirming, filthy Ava way out in front to protect her clothes and their floor. Ava rolls and wrestles in mud, like a little pig! I keep towels and babywipes in my car and have learned to wear a lot of black. 😉


  • Seeing them in your photos makes me think Ava would do so much better with a brother. But I just can't imagine having two Avas!

    Amen, I feel the exact same way!!!!! Ava and Oakley are cut from the same cloth for sure!!


  • LOL, Chealsie– I often think about getting Ava a brother... then I think maybe one is juuuuust riiiiight.


  • @CrazySenji:

    Gah she's beautiful.. looks so much like her brother!

    Does she, Becky? You've seen Grant/Vinnie more recently than I have! I haven't seen him since they were babies, but he was a little charmer.


  • Love the face plant photo, sadly all Kaiser has seen is hail but he loves it, he hears it and runs to the door and when we open it he bites mouthfuls of it and then cleans up all the pieces that have fallen inside, think he would love snow. Maybe this winter the weather will go crazy and it will snow here.

    Jolanda and Kaiser


  • @ownedbyspencer:

    Does she, Becky? You've seen Grant/Vinnie more recently than I have! I haven't seen him since they were babies, but he was a little charmer.

    Yes! Check out the Meisterhaus facebook page. Tad posted a picture of him last week.


  • They do look alike… except Ava would never stand still long enough to stack. She won't be still even in her sleep!

    Have Elliot and Vinnie been at any of the same shows? How's Elliot doing?


  • Their other brother Vida is also very spirited! I'm sure Ava would do great once she got the hang of it.. it's harder when you have a dog that show's NO expression or energy in the ring. Tad has been showing his other dog Joey at the show's I've been at. I haven't seen Grant/Vinnie in awhile. Elliot got his first major last week and is up to 9 points :). Unfortunately he picked up a nasty bug at the show and was a very sick boy for awhile. He's on the mend and now we are working on putting some weight on him.. which is fun because he's ultra picky.

    I post pictures from shows on facebook. Becky Parland is my name if you want to follow our adventures 🙂


  • Well, god forbid anything ever happens to me I may just leave Oakley to you- you're the only one
    I know who could probably put up with his antics and not get rid of him! Lol… I often get worried when I think about who I would leave him to...he really is that difficult; each and every time I come
    Up blank and realize- the only thing I can do is that nothing can ever happen to me!!


  • @CrazySenji:

    Their other brother Vida is also very spirited!

    Elliot got his first major last week and is up to 9 points :). Unfortunately he picked up a nasty bug at the show and was a very sick boy for awhile. He's on the mend and now we are working on putting some weight on him.. which is fun because he's ultra picky.

    Oh, well, Vida is red so there goes the theory that being "spirited" is a brindle thing. They're the VV litter, so perhaps they feel they have to be Very, Very Spirited. 😉

    I'm excited for Elliot– wow, 9 points and his first major, already! Sorry to hear he got sick, though. Hope he's all better now!

    I have trouble keeping weight OFF Ava. Too many treat bribes!


  • LOL I hear their father is very spirited but Dara is far more laid back. Elliot gets the zoomies from time to time but is pretty reserved for a 15 mo old!
    I WISH I had trouble getting a little weight off.. ugh.. this picky thing is killing my patience.

    He is feeling better but is skin and bones after all the vomiting/diarrhea. 😞 We are going to try to go to the Louisville shows next month but it will all be up to him!


  • @Chealsie508:

    Well, god forbid anything ever happens to me I may just leave Oakley to you- you're the only one
    I know who could probably put up with his antics and not get rid of him! Lol… I often get worried when I think about who I would leave him to...he really is that difficult; each and every time I come
    Up blank and realize- the only thing I can do is that nothing can ever happen to me!!

    LOL, Chealsie– I know what you mean. My family has owned Basenjis for 25 years and I'm hardpressed to find a single puppysitter! A lot of times, I can't even find Ava a playdate, especially if it's muddy outside. 😉

    Oakley is a good boy. He just loves his mama and is pickier about everybody else. 🙂


  • @CrazySenji:

    LOL I hear their father is very spirited but Dara is far more laid back.
    I WISH I had trouble getting a little weight off.. ugh.. this picky thing is killing my patience.

    Maybe Dara needs a Very Zen baby daddy next year!

    Elliot isn't tempted by chicken, salmon, pumpkin, yogurt– the usual bribes? It's so hard. Near the end, when Spencer got picky, then wouldn't eat, it brought me to tears. It just about killed me, watching him turn away. I don't have that problem with Miss Ava. She's a little brown Dyson!


  • Plain chicken is his ultimate favorite and he would not eat eat when sick. He is eating it now and I have been buying him the good stuff because I'm a sucker for that face!

    I hope he breeds her next year.. I have been hounding him for a brindle dog for months!


  • I hear ya– I love my little brindle tornado and wouldn't trade her for anything. She's my pride and (mostly) joy. 😉

Suggested Topics