Great thread! I do not feel so bad about Janka's puppyhood and missing out on the cuddles when she was cotton-candy soft & smelled like puppy muskiness.
At 5 years old, Janka is very loyal and attached to me. She still isn't a cuddly dog and can be quite independent, with that gung-ho attitude that borders on crazy. But she is very affectionate in her own way.
When we first saw her at 6 weeks old, she was a hellion. When the breeder separated her from her litter so we could spend one-on-one time, Janka did not miss a beat. She was dominant & brave (she was the only pup in the litter who stood her ground and looked around when a Harley Davidson rumbled by) with a lot of confidence. She was also very alert and curious.
In terms of birth order, she was the youngest of a litter of 11. In terms of personality, she could have been #1 out of the 11.
When we picked her up at 8 weeks, she was a hellion.. with more intensity. I remembered she tried to suckle a nursing bitch (not her dam) that was relaxing in the office, away from her nearly weaned pups. She tottered up to the black female and reached up for a drink. The bitch dealt a swift correction, and was Janka cowed? Nope. She skipped off, tail in the air and started gnawing & tugging on my husband's shoe lace.
I could not cuddle her w/o her protesting vehemently. When I tried to stroke or pet her lightly, she would either nip or drive herself into an excited frenzy where she completely shuts down... it was quite incredible to see. I could not even verbally praise her lavishly w/o turning her into the Tazmanian Devil. Everything had to be very mellow, because she will take whatever energy you exude and multiply it infinitely. And this was with appropriate and frequent exercise!
The only time she will be picked up was when I carried her down the stairs (I did not let her go down the stairs on her own till she was older), but when we got to the bottom, she would immediately wiggle free.
We keep in touch with her littermate (Klaus) and his owner.You might be interested to know that he is the polar opposite of Janka. Even at 8 weeks old, he was soulful with a devotion and love that seemed mature beyond his age. He cuddled and needed to touch his owner at all times: paw on foot, lap snuggles.. that sorta thing. He would stare at his owner for periods of time, and mirrored his owner's energy.. very mellow and sweet.
I wanted a SchH prospect & yea... there I have it. Not 100% DDR line, but the Force is definitely strong with that one. In the end, I couldn't commit to the sport after a while but raising Janka is definitely a valuable experience that I treasure very much.
~ Rei