Puppies are almost 4 weeks old. What Happens Next?
By Jennifer Stoeckl, MAT - Dire Wolf Project CEO, July 1, 2024
On July 4th, the Monster Movie litter puppies will be 4 weeks old.
That’s only THREE DAYS AWAY!
July 4th marks the moment when a few very important things happen.
- We close the waiting list to any further activity for this litter. No one else will be able to be starred as active on the waiting list for this litter. This is because the family’s who have been actively responsible and let us know ahead of time now need to be locked into their position.
- We begin puppy picking. We will begin by bolding the first person on the waiting list. You can follow along with us as we go down the starred active families. All you have to do is what who is bolded.
- We travel down the starred active waiting list in deposit order, one family at a time. There is NO time limit for a family to choose. So, if you are underneath someone, just be patient. Feel free to email and ask all the questions you need, but please extend each family the courtesy of waiting patiently. This is a big 12-14 year decision and some take longer than others to make that final choice. It benefits you to let me know your first and second choices, so if you have a good idea of which puppies you like, email me and I will keep that in mind as I speak with each family.
So, all of that means if you are interested in this litter and are NOT YET starred as active on the waiting list, it’s time to get your keister moving and let me know you want to go active.
If your name has not been starred on the waiting list, I will assume you wish to wait until a different litter to choose your puppy.
To put it another way…
I will pass you by if your name is not starred.
Now that that’s out of the way, I want to speak a little bit about why I priced the puppies as I have.
If you have been following Lois for any length of time, you know that she originated the idea of pricing puppies based on their closeness to the standards.
She says to herself, “What would it take to pry this puppy out of my hands.”
We breed to improve the Dire Wolf Project first.
We assess the puppies based on our strict temperament and outward appearance standards.
Therefore, each puppy’s price reflects my admiration of them based on all of the criteria at my disposal.
Each puppy is priced individually, so here is a run down of why for THIS litter.
Balrog (yellow)
This puppy has an excellent temperament, so his price could have been much higher, except he has a black mask, a significant amount of white spotting, and not a giant size. These are aspects that other puppies have, as well as a great temperament, therefore, he can be sold to a great home and not remain in the breed.
Minilla (purple)
This puppy not only has an excellent temperament, but she is a silver color, with highly slanted eyes, a giant size, and a beautiful medium coat without feathering. She is stunning in outward appearance and has the potential to be an excellent dog. It also doesn’t appear that she has a wolf mask, but instead holds a black mask. If she didn’t have white spotting and/or she had a wolf mask, I would not have put her up for sale. As it is, I debated keeping her in the breed for a long while. Her price reflects her superiority toward our standards.
King Kong (green)
This puppy is a giant male with a wolf mask, a medium coat length, no white spotting, and no feathering. His best feature is his consistent temperament, though; an even-tempered male that doesn’t complain. His only flaw is his gold color. I don’t want to keep two golds in the breed (as gold is more reminiscent of a German Shepherd Dog), therefore he is for sale. But, I could keep him despite this minor flaw, so therefore, his price reflects his greatness toward our standards.
Rodan (orange)
This puppy is a German Shepherd dog throwback in appearance, just like his mother. So, because he has a gold color with a short coat and round eyes, he will not have as much of the wild look that we desire to capture in the Dire Wolf Project. He does have a wolf mask, though, so that is a wonderful feature. His lower temperament score reflects a slightly more sensitive soul that will benefit from a family who wants an introverted dog that requires confidence building. This is only a slight diversion from the temperament standards.
Ghidorah (pink)
This puppy is the lightest puppy in the litter. She is a silver female with a long coat and likely feathering. She is vocal and will complain or talk if she is uncomfortable or needs something. I suppose that means she has a big personality. She is a girl who knows what she wants. She does have a wolf mask with no white spotting and will be vey wolf-like in appearance as an adult. For this reason she is slightly higher in price.
Mothra (lt. blue)
I had a very difficult time placing the price on this puppy. She is worth much more than this, but I do not want her to be left behind here at the Dire Wolf Project. This puppy is a hidden gem. Do not discount her because she has a black mask and a tri-gold coloring. Her consistently solid American Dirus temperament is worth its weight in gold. Yes, she will resemble a wonderful structured German Shepherd Dog, but she has highly slanted eyes, which will give her a wild shadow of the wolf.
Godzilla (gray)
This puppy is a giant silver male with long hair, feathering, and white spotting. Unlike his sister, Ghidorah, he has a black mask. This male is a big baby and will be emotionally needy. Be a kind leader who can understand his need to take things at his own pace, and he will be a wonderful boy, but he is not one to be kept in the breed.
If you are interested in a puppy from this litter and you are NOT yet starred on our waiting list, reply “INTERESTED” to this email and we’ll talk about your next steps.
Here is the link to the waiting list to check your status:
https://direwolfproject.com/direwolf-dogs/waiting-list/
Here is the link to the Monster Movie litter page:
https://direwolfdogs.com/litters/64/
And don’t forget MOVIE MONDAY!
Check out how the puppies handled their first day outside their whelping pen.
Jennifer Stoeckl is the co-founder of the Dire Wolf Project, founder of the DireWolf Guardians American Dirus Dog Training Program, and owner/operator of DireWolf Dogs of Vallecito. She lives in the beautiful inland northwest among the Ponderosa pine forests with her pack of American Dirus dogs.