Skoki's Page

Skoki was born February 1, 2003 - one of Lovina and Joseph Burkhart's puppies. His mother is Crystal (a beautiful 50-lb. apricot-coloured standard poodle) and his father is Dandy (a very handsome 65-lb. golden retriever). He now resides in Calgary, Alberta.

Skoki has been a total joy to our family. He's about 95% fun, fantastic, loving and delightful, and about 5% 'hellion'. I liken him to a baby, having a 'fussy hour'. Skoki's 'fussy hour' is a 'crazy hour' - always in the early evening. He is totally goofy, and sometimes 'right out of control'. It's like someone 'spiked his drink' - mostly very funny but sometimes drives us crazy too. We have learned to schedule long walks, major exercise & physical playtime while he works through his 'crazy hour', but sometimes, we must finally resort to using a 'time out' to settle him down (at this point in his puppyhood). He seems relieved when we do this.

He's very smart, with a little stubborn streak when he feels like it. He's starting to get some golden retriever-like feathers on his tail now, which we find very attractive (6 months). He was very easy to house train, and loves his puppy classes.

I chose to fly to Toronto and drive to the Burkhart farm to pick up Skoki at 8 weeks of age. As a result, he loves car travel (because his first car trip was not traumatic for him as he was cuddled on my lap while my brother drove the car). The next day, Skoki was in a carry-on bag for his plane trip to Calgary. He was secure and comfortable. Consequently, Skoki loves to travel now. In fact, he became an international traveller before 3 months of age. "Skoki" is an Indian name, and also the name of a favourite, remote and historis lodge in the Canadian Rockies. Our family enjoys hiking and cross country skiing there.