Vine Hill Farm
Registered Purebred English Shepherd Farm Dogs and Nubian Dairy Goats
ES Puppies!!
POSTED MONDAY JAN. 4, 2010 ONE AVAILABLE PUPPY
We have ONE intact male B/T puppy left! 
He is the pup on the right in this photo.
He VERY biddable READILY coming when called. He has already been trained BASIC COMMANDS. He is almost totally HOUSEBROKEN.
He is raised with farm animals, helping with chores with our goats. He is showing awesome protection and guarding instincts.
He ignores the chickens and ducks and eats alongside our cats. He plays with our 3 big adult dogs. He accepts visitors when introduced and plays with them.
He has been taught RESPECT by his sire, dam and big sis Nicki. He is VERY smart and loves investigating as he has a very curious nature.
His Puppy vaccinations are completed as well as dewormings. He has already been seen by our vet. He is READY TO GO! to the right home.
BELOW: 9 WEEKS OLD PHOTO
Pup in the left side in this photo available.
Available (This is his 9 week old photo on the left)
CURRENT PHOTO~AGE 14 WEEKS~ 
We have named this pup "VINE HILL'S DO THE HOKEY POKEY" since all of our dogs are named after childrens rhymes or songs. This name is appicable for "OKIE" because he likes to "shake it all about" LOL when he is happy to see you! :^) He will be permanently registered with ESCR and his new owner may also register him with UKC and other registries.
This is an alert pup who will bark at sudden noises or strange people/animals he sees or hears coming on your property. He easily calls off. He is very playful, loves petting, belly rubs and attention and must have the company of a human. He sleeps indoors with us as it has been below zero. He adores having a human around. He is somewhat independent though. He WILL give some lick kisses on your hand but he does not really like being held so he is not a 'lap' dog although he will like to sleep on the floor beside your bed.
"OKIE" can be a bossy dog, especially with other dogs and stock. Again, he does easily call off. He attempts to gain promotion to Alpha position here and will most likely act as Alpha on your farm......however.......he will require an owner that has had prior time with working/herding type breeds preferrably the English Shepherd breed. He also does enforce rules here. This pup's FIRST reaction to new things is a bit fearful although this reaction is less common now as he matures. He will hide behind something in the house but outside he will assume duties and bark. He does get used to new things quickly though. He has been desensitized to all kinds of noises, situations and animals as well as humans and occasionally children and accepts many new things quickly but I do not reccomend he be placed with a family with young children. He has been taught no teeth on humans such as when playing or chewing but still needs to be reminded occasionally at this age. He can also become rambunctious and will jump onto the other dogs here, therefore it wouldnt be wise to put him with a young child at this time until he matures a bit more. He likes to control movement and will make a very good herding dog but will also try to stop other movements such as a bicycle wheel. I reccommend he be introduced to children that are used to dogs and puppies and able to give commands and allowed intervals of play being increased over a period of time with constant supervision but not "thrown into" a situation where there are young children present in the home at all times. That way he will become accustomed to them and know respect. He will also have learned control of his instinct to stop movement of only the things his owner wants stopped! lol He sits or stands but has never jumped up onto any of us including visitors.
He is an awesome little stockdog and needs his own owner, stock and farm to run! Contact me citysplitter@yahoo.com for more info!!!
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BELOW~ PAST LITTER 2009
~ MALE B/T~ "DEVON"~SOLD TO PHIL & MEGAN IN IL.
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~FEMALE B/T "TIFFANY" ~ SOLD to the Howards of OH
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BELOW~ FEMALE B/T "CHRISSY"~ SOLD to RAE JEAN BLACK MOUNTAIN, NC
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BELOW~MALE S/W~ "TEDDIE" ~ SOLD to Carmen and family of OH
BELOW ~ AGE 6 WEEKS~ PLAYING IN THE HOUSE WITH "BIG" SIS NICKIE
(RETAINED FROM FIRST LITTER)
Born Tuesday Sept. 29th! If you read about our sire, Skipper http://www.freewebs.com/vinehillfarm/englishshepherdskipper.htm
then you will understand this! Skippy made sure he had plenty of back up should that nasty old hunter that shot him decide to return! Born ALL in a row, 6 little baby Skippers! All 6 Black & Tan ;^) Of course, they also have half of mama Clemie too ;^)
The 7th pup came 4 hours later, a Clear Sable and White (milk and honey) male 
The "Doggy Den" outside is located under our deck in a sectioned off portion that is enclosed and has a straw dirt floor: 
Clemie dug a hold under the steps before she went into labor. Now the pups enjoy taking a nap in it..lol
Babysitter Nicki and Mom 
Big Sis Nicki checks out the den. Besides the ditch under the steps there are 'cubbies' to climb in and sleep like the basket in the foreground and the bottom half of a big plastic barrel placed on it's side and an old blanket in it. The pups are brought inside at night to sleep for now where it is warmer.
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Featured BELOW: 2008 Litter:
My 'step-children' LOVE coming to the farm especially when there are new puppies to play with!!!
Braden, age 6.
Playing with the "BIG" dogs! (Skipper and Duffy)
Playing in the rain was much more fun than a bath!!!
Nothing better than watching favorite cartoons with the perfect 'heating pad' resting on your back! lol
Pup's Mama, Clementine, keeps a watchful eye on her babies as well as our children.
Payje, age 8, thinks these pups are even better than her Barbies! LOL
7 month old ES Duffy and his dad, 1 1/2 year old Skipper, listen intently as Payje reminds them "who" is in charge of who!
It's important to teach your ES not to 'herd' your children...lol...and just as important your children let your ES know
that they are higher in 'pack order' than the dogs!
Above: Payje and Braden love to sing and dance with the pups and the pups LOVE the attention!
Above: Payje and Braden are removing all the burrs from Duffy's coat. Skip, not pictured, is waiting his turn in line.
Payje has known Clemie since she was just a pup and Payje was 5 yrs. old.
Clem will take it upon herself to sleep with the children at night. Our ES follow the children around on the farm. It is reassuring to know they are being looked after by the dogs.
You can also view the 'new owner blog' page to read about the previous litter here- http://www.freewebs.com/vinehillfarm/blogfornewpuppyowners.htm The current owners of Clem and Skip's last litter have granted permission for anyone wanting a referral about their pup to contact them. Their emails are listed with their posts on the blog.
and the previous litter puppy photo album page as well here!- http://www.freewebs.com/vinehillfarm/http://www.freewebs.com/vinehillfarm/apps/photos/
APPLICATION
it will save us both time in determining if our pup is right for you and your home is right for one of our puppies!
You can print this out and snail mail this form to me sending it to the address in the Logo above or you can complete it online and email it.
v Your name: ___________________________________________
v Address: _____________________________________________
v Phone: _______________________________________________
v Cell Phone: ____________________________________________
v Ages of family members: _________________________________
v Your current pets, ages and sex: ______________________________________________________
v Farm animals? _____________________________________________________________________
v Is your residence located on a farm, suburban or in-town setting? _________________________
v If you are not located on a farm, do you have fencing and if so, what type? _____________________________________________________________
v Have you ever owned a herding breed type dog before? If so, please elaborate: _____________________________________________________________________________________
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v Why do you want an English Shepherd? _______________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
v What activities or work do you have planned for this pup's future?_____________________________________________________________________________________
v Where have you planned to have this pup sleep at night? _________________________________
v Do you work outside of your home? Does your significant other work outside of the home? _____________________________________________________________________________________
v What arrangements will you have for this pup while you are not at home?_____________________________________________________________________________________
v How do you plan on transporting your puppy after you get one? _____________________________________________________________________________________
v Have you researched this breed? Have you visited the ES websites and read about the ES?
______________________________________________________________________________________
v What is your number 1 reason for wanting this English Shepherd? ______________________________________________________________________________________
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“Live ‘n Learn: The Fine Print!”
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We will only hold a pup beyond 8 weeks for approved special circumstances. Pups not picked up by age 8 weeks accrue a boarding fee and are subject to re-placement unless other arrangements are planned in advance.
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We will not sell more than one puppy to a family.
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We will give first choice of color to those who request but only if the pup is determined to be the ‘correct’ pup for you based on personality and working traits for the environment he is to live in. The same goes for a request for male or female. For example: If there is only ONE female and that is what you requested, and that female is determined not suitable for your environment, you will have a choice of a male that is suitable. If you do not want a male, your deposit will be refunded in full.
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Your puppy will have been dewormed on a regular basis with Nemex 2 and vaccinated with Galaxy DA2PPv at age 6 weeks and again at age 8 weeks. Each pup will be examined by our vet. at around age 6 weeks. I supplement our puppies with a highly nutritious vitamin laden formula in addition to their nursing and continue this until age 8 weeks mixed with gruel, then puppy kibbles.
Airline Transportation
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If you plan to transport your pup via public means, i.e. air flight, you will need to make those arrangements. We will fly our pups but only under certain circumstances. You are responsible for the arrangements and cost. Your pup will also need a health certificate which means he will need to be re-examined by our vet within 7-10 days (depending on the airline) of his departure. This re-examination cost will also be your responsibility. The cost, including transportation to and from the vet and the vet’s charge, will be appx. $50.00.
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I will transport your puppy to the airport on a Saturday or Sunday only. The airport is appx. an hour and a half from our farm. I charge $75.00 to transport your puppy. You must tell me of your tentative plans so I can arrange my schedule.
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Of course, visitors are more than welcome at our farm to see the pups, meet the sire and dam and pick up.
Some Past Puppies
I am often asked questions regarding how we raise our pups here so I have summarized the most commonly voiced concerns for you to read. If you still have any questions I will more than happy to answer them.....just ask!!!
All of our pups are exposed to goats, cats, kittens, other dogs, chickens, chicks, ducks and ducklings on a daily basis! My step children visit for overnight weekends and they also play with the pups. We have family, friends and an occasional visitor here as well.
Puppies training begins as soon as they're eyes are open and they begin walking well. By the time they are 8 weeks old they have already heard the words repeatedly and even learned a couple of the 'easy' basic commands like: Sit, Come, Leave it!, No!, Off!, Down and Stay. They will be familiar with these words and obey some of them for what is realistic for their age. When teaching commands I use hand signals to teach the eye as well. I also use a police whistle with the command "Come!" When you get your pup you should continue emphasizing all of the commands with positive reinforcement daily and continue using the whistle.
The only 'negative' reinforcement used on this farm is removal of the pup/dog away from the rest for a time out where they can still see and hear all the fun but are not allowed to participate for awhile. On a RARE occasion, a pup or mature dog will be firmly 'scruffed' as a serious reminder of danger. If you have ever trained a dog then you are familiar with these reinforcements. We never 'hit' any of our dogs and these dogs tend to be sensitive to raised voices or being 'shamed' so one must keep this in mind when interacting with the ES.
Your pup will be desensitized to knowing what a leash feels like around his neck before he leaves here. There will be times when you may need to leash him so it's best to have them familiar with it. However, keep in mind that ES do not do well at all tied outside on a lead for any length of time over a couple hours nor do they do well at all in a kennel. You should have a large fenced area for your ES to run and play in or free to roam your farm. I prefer not selling any of our pups to a home that will keep them under the constraints of a tie out or kennel. What you are going to end up with is a pup/dog with bad behaviors as they are way too curious and intelligent to restrain like that. They also are guard dogs and live to walk the property lines to mark or bark warn potential predators, mingle with the farm animals and follow you around too!
All the pups are also given a baby pool to accustom them to water and are encouraged to play in the water each day depending on the time of year and weather. Many of our new pup owners appreciate that as they are avid boaters and swimmers and like to swim with their dogs in the ponds and rivers.
We feel that the sooner the pups are given some time and attention in all these areas then the more comfortable they will be on your farm and have an easier time adjusting when they leave.
They will also be familiarized with a vehicle when traveling to and from the vet office one or two times and we also make an effort to drive them around the farm. Besides 'goat' noises, other dogs barking, cat's meowing, roosters crowing and hens cackling...lol...and night sounds of owls and other wild animals like coyote howling, 'other' noises here consist daily of the generator, the tractor/mower, weedeaters, hammers pounding, bushwhacker and our ATV.
What they will NOT be familiar with are city or suburban sounds. Although there are some ES that are highly successful agility dogs and others that do not live on farms, we prefer these lines we raise here remain farm collies as our lines have proven to be farm 'workers'.
The pups are raised indoors in the winter on an enclosed porch (brought in randomly to play inside with us) and allowed outside to play as tolerated depending on how cold it is and how old they are. I begin house training them too and some of our pups have left here have been reported as almost completely house trained in their new homes! Pups born in the summer are also born inside our home however after the first few weeks of life they spend the majority of time outside with their mom sleeping under our porch and with the other ES watching over them as well.
Because they are also raised part of the time indoors they are accustomed to 'indoor' sounds like the TV, music, the phone ringing, the vaccume and various other kitchen appliances. Time with the ES has taught us that although they like to think that they are 'all that' they have a tendency to bark madly at mechanical objects. Because they are innately 'herding dogs' they like to 'stop motion' so sometimes there is a tendency (depending on how strong that trait is) to bark at and even attempt to bite the vaccume or wheels on a cart outside as an attempt to control or stop it. The more we familiarize your pup with those objects the more they become part of 'the norm' for them and the less likely they will be fearful of those objects.
Socializing and familiarizing ES pups is ongoing though and in order to prevent having a 'fearful' dog, you will need to keep this up on your end too!
One thing that I do not practice here is 'crate training' the pups. We do not use crates here unless it is to transport. If you would like for me to introduce your pup to the crate, I will make an effort to help acclamate him/her to it so that their transition will be less traumatic.
In the BLOG section are some mature photos and descriptions from their owners of these pups and the other litter!
1. Solid Sable male aka "Hercules" and the largest pup of the litter:
SOLD! to Keith McKinney family near Cincinnati, Ohio!
2. Tri-female- known as the "singer" ;^) 
SOLD to Shelley Hoschstetter in MI!
3.Sable and white female~ SOLD!!! to Jim and Teresa Rust of Indiana! Meet "Rust's Miss Sophia"
named after her grandmother CC's grandmother Sophie, 3 generations back (Anderson's Sophie ll )
4. Tri color male- SOLD to Kelly in KY!!
5. Tri color male- SOLD to Gene and family farm in WV!!
6. Tri color female 
SOLD!! to Jake Levi in MI!!!
7. Black and Tan Male~the smallest pup! This little guy is just precious :^)
Sold! to Tony and Jennifer Johnson
and their four children in Litchfield, OH!
8. Sable and White female.
SOLD !!!to the Abel family
of Cedar Rapids, Iowa! Meet "Lily of the Valley"!
9.Black and Tan female- Sold! to Willie Matthews!
10. Black and Tan Male~
SOLD! to Clay in Johnstown, OH
11. Tri-color male~ also the smallest pup ;^) 
SOLD!! to Steve Allen of MI!
