I don't know either...I'm not familiar with plants of the Pacific Northwest. But if your puppy is exhibiting any unusual symptoms, you may want to bring her to the vet to be examined, just in case... I agree with FataMorgana that you may want to try GardenWeb's "Name That Plant" forum (see link at the bottom os this post) and see if someone there can help identify the plant. A photo would definitely help. Here's a link for GardenWeb's Northwestern Gardening Forum...maybe someone on that forum may know what the plant is. NORTHWESTERN GARDENING FORUM: http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/nwest/ You can also try bringing or e-mailing a photo of the plant to your local Cooperative Extension if you are still concerned. They may be able to help identify it. Try "googling" the name of your county plus the words "Cooperative Extension" to find yours. Sometimes state park employees or people who work at nature preserves can be helpful in identifying plants if there is a state park or nature preserve near you. You can also try contacting your local chapter of the Washington State Native Plant Society and see if they can help you identify the plant. WASHINGTON NATIVE PLANT SOCIETY: http://www.wnps.org/ There is also always a chance it is a non-native plant that has escaped from someone's garden, perhaps by birds or mammals distributing the seeds inside the pods/fruits via their droppings. Good luck & best wishes for your new puppy. Here is a link that might be useful: Name That Plant forum

Thank you, cynthia and holligator for your reading tips! I appreciate those so very, very much. mazer, you continue to be a font of information! lily316, the way I found our breeder is by first visiting the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel Club USA site, the American Cavalier King Charles Spaniel Club site, and, to a lesser extent, the AKC site. I looked for breeders only listed on those sites. I did NOT use search engines to find breeders. There may absolutely be reputable, ethical breeders out there not associated with the above-mentioned organizations (although why they wouldn't be I don't know), but for me this was a "safety net." I then e-mailed to them a long list of questions, asking if they'd be willing to talk with me and answer these questions: 1) What are the registered names of the puppy's parents and may we have copies of the registration certificates for both parents? 2) What are the birth dates of the puppy's parents? 3) Have you complied with the MVD Breeding Protocol? 4) Have you complied with the SM Breeding Protocol? 5) Have both parents' hips been x-rayed after age two years, and have those x-rays been evaluated and cleared of HD by the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA)? 6) Have both parents' patellas been examined and cleared by qualified veterinarians within a year before the date of birth of the puppy we may adopt? 7) Have both parents' eyes been examined and cleared of serious genetic eye disorders by board certified veterinary ophthalmologists within a year before the date of birth of the puppy we may adopt? 8) Have both parents' hearing been tested and cleared of hereditary hearing deficiencies, preferably by the Brainstem Auditory Evoked Response (BAER) test, no earlier than at age 2.5 years? 9) Has either parents exhibited the symptoms of episodic falling syndrome? 10) Have both parents' blood been tested and cleared for diabetes mellitus and hypothyroidism within a year before the date of birth of the puppy we may adopt? (see here for information regarding the above diseases / syndromes) I was both surprised and disappointed at how many breeders did not want to answer these questions. They were immediately crossed off my list. To my absolute delight the breeder to whom our little girl was born answered every one of my questions at great length. They also had a long list of questions for me, which thrilled me. This led me to believe they don't let their puppies be adopted willy-nilly -- they wanted to check us out as well! Our breeders are in Wyoming, and they got started breeding Cavs because they'd each (they are two friends) had a heartbreak with a sick Cav. They vowed they would help "clean up" the system and they take fastidious care of their dogs and have all the paperwork / registrations for it. Anyway, this is how I found a reputable, ethical breeder in our part of the country (I'm in Colorado). I was heartsick reading about the Greyhounds dying of bone cancer -- I never knew about that! When I was a little girl living in England the caretaker of my parents' "farm" (more like a weekend house -- as if my parents farmed!) had a multitude of Greyhounds. I loved them. Beautiful, gentle creatures. Fast, and then a couch potato! This is a picture of our little girl from last Thursday, on her seven week birthday. We're naming her Genki-chan. "Genki" is Japanese for "healthy," "peppy," "lively" (although she is a mellow girl -- the breeders decided only two of their litters would be suitable for us [with such small children] -- gentle with their teeth, but still "sturdy" for play with toddlers), and "chan" is the feminine diminutive. My husband is Japanese and our children speak Japlish. Well, more English than Japanese at this point, but we keep it up. My 3.5 year-old refers to Genki-chan as Genki-grill; "grill" is how he says "girl." Our 19 month-old merely says "Genki." One of the breeders gave the laddies a little stuffed Cav doll whom the 3.5 year-old named CiCi-inu -- "inu" is dog in Japanese. I have no idea from where the "CiCi" came!

Hey sorry I haven't gotten back sooner I was having computer issues. We considered the possibility that she would be better in another home but decided, together, to keep her. We put her on her old food and she's not been throwing up since. We're mixing it with new food, IAMS (vet said to go with Hills but I educated my mom on who trains vets in nutrition). I was giving her the milk we drink but not to sustain her, just a small bit to keep hydrated when throwing up. Now she drinks water. Having three 8 week old puppies was too much at the time but now that Peanut and Punkin are almost two years old they are not as dependent and are house trained (well Peanut still goes inside if you don't see her heading to the back door) and have taken more to the puppy now. They play together a lot especially outside and there is harmony in the kitchen at meal times. I've read up on the breeds and know that early socializing and discipline are needed to have this dog's respect. I believe that she will need a long walk in the morning and evening (45 mins each time at least) and I can challenge her more if I get her a backpack when she's older. She had her first shots two weeks ago and I really want to get her walking but beegood mentioned about sidewalks and Parvo so I was wondering if anyone knows how long before I can take her outside and when she can meet other dogs? Also she has really short soft fur and seems to get cold very easily. I bought a small jacket but its light and goes over her back mostly. Should I wait until the weather gets warmer?

Well once again THANK YOU everyone for all the helpful, supportive advice and comments! The dry bathtub idea is great and the DREMEL has my dh smiling because he always wanted one to play with, now it will have a duel purpose! Mazer you took Lucy's name to Lucyfer, and I think I am going to use LucyFUR!!! My daughter will be so pleased that the name is so well used! Though again, she is a darling puppy and really has an amazing disposition! Those little puppy bursts of energy just hit a minute or two before she sacks out for a snooze! Roobear ~ are there any foods, puppy ones, that do not contain Menadione Sodium Bisulfite? I thought we were doing a healthy choice with the Nutro, Natural Choice which had Lamb meal, Rice Flour, Rice Bran and ground rice as the first 4 ingredients, compared to the puppy chow that starts with Ground yellow corn, poultry bi-product meal, corn gluten meal, and brewers rice? The puppy chow also has those aweful red 40 yellow 5 and blue 2 food colorings in it? Again, any suggestions are appreciated! I will post her again in a few weeks, with some weight gain and changes in her features and we may just get her breed figured out! (Not that important to know, or we could get a dna test done, but just to see how she turns out will be fun!) **Lab/Pitt/Boxer/Terrier You have all been so great, thanks again :o) Rosie