It may be my last chance to feel this for a while.

There’s a certain magic to holding a young pup against your chest.

She’s warm, heavy in that sleepy way, the way only something completely safe can be.

You feel her tiny breath hot against your neck.

You breathe in that scent.

Puppy breath, soft fur, the faint whisper of hay from the clean straw in the den.

You don’t think.

You feel.

Like a heart suddenly remembering its own rhythm.

I held one of the Happy Days puppies like that today.

She had just finished her midday play, after stalking her brother with exaggerated tip-toes and a dramatic pounce that would’ve made a saber-tooth jealous.

Then, just as sweetly, she curled up in my lap and let out a sigh so deep it sounded like she’d just conquered the whole Ice Age.

That was when it hit me:

This may be the last time I get to do this… for a long while.

You see, the wind has shifted and we had to make a choice.

Galena and Yeti (both are now in heat), have been separated from the boys this season, and they won’t be bred.

Not because they aren’t worthy (they’re magnificent, trust me), but because we must be wise with our energy… and even wiser with how many puppies we bring into the world.

In fact, we are only pursuing three potential litters this fall.

That’s it.

Corvette and Maggie will both paired with Henry, our fifth-generation American Alsatian male from the Schwarz Kennels.

He represents the finest of our breed in temperament, health, and structure.

Both litters, if they take, will be an amazing opportunity for some outstanding puppies if ever there was one.

And then there’s Gamera with Dell, a pairing that whispers of our Labrador/Shepherd foundation stock, wrapped in a fresh coat of refinement.

But if those litters don’t take, then guess what?

Our current Happy Days Litter puppies will be it for this year.

Not forever.

But long enough that next spring will feel like a whole epoch away.

Which brings me back to that sleepy little pup in my lap…

She’s part of that third-generation magic.

Her DNA test just came in and the results are almost poetic:

• Alaskan Malamute.
  
  
• German Shepherd.
  
  
• Only about 6% Labrador and Irish Wolfhound—a soft echo of her heritage, now refined to its best traits.
  
  

These are American Dirus pups.

The real kind.

The kind we’ve worked over two decades to shape.

And as of today?

Only one person has stepped forward.

Only one has claimed their spot.

So if you’ve ever dreamed of raising a calm, watchful companion with a soul as deep as a glacial lake… now’s the time to look.

Because when fall returns…

These puppies will be taken.

The den will be empty.

And your chance?

Gone, like tracks in melting snow.

See the *NEW* DNA results below:

https://direwolfdogs.com/litters/68/
(Click each pup’s profile to view their DNA results.)

Let yourself feel that sweet puppy love—before the Ice Age closes in again.

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P.S. If you are on our waiting list and want to go active for the Happy Days Litter, simply reply to this email and let me know.

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P.P.S. If you aren’t yet on our waiting list and want to apply, start here:

https://direwolfproject.com/puppy-application/

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.