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All pups are doing great. It seems they are sleeping a great deal as pups do but I made sure each had a good appetite by separating them into two groups in order to observe the sucking activity and abilities of each. I had intended to weight them this evening but when I turned on the scale it wasn't cooperating. I thought maybe I had inadvertently left it on killing the batteries but unfortunately it wouldn't work plugged in either. I see a new scale in the not too distant future but for now I'll have to rely on the old tried and true method of observation and feel to assure each pup is gaining as it should. They are scheduled for dewclaws and docking in the morning and I'll have the vet weigh each of them while we're there to get a baseline. I
managed to get a few of them weighed yesterday while the scale was working. I decided to put the rest off when Lexi started to get a bit antsy with the idea. Purple, a girl, was the lightest weighing in at 13 ounces. Next up was Pink, another girl at 15 ounces and Blue, a boy at 1 pound. Again, I see no obvious runt in the mix and if I had to guess, I'd say purple is likely the smallest of the bunch. The photos above were taken both today and last evening and if you look closely it's pretty evident these pups are already getting around well under their own steam. I was shocked to see a pup had already managed to climb on top of Lexi to rest against the pool wall.... All is well but I'm exhausted and I'm sure my poor girl is doubly exhausted. As previously posted Lexi whelped her first pup @ 6:18. The last one came @ 5:45 this evening. As I write this, two hours later, she's had a chance to rest, has recovered well and is being an awesome mom to her pups. The only thing left to do is place everybody on some clean bedding, fix my girl and I some dinner and call it a night! I'm very happy to report Lexi came through for everyone on the list. We had a total of 12 pups and an even mix of 6 Boys and 6 Girls. I'm sad to report however, we lost a female at birth. She was a long time coming, breech and stillborn. The remaining pups are healthy, thriving and doing what pups are supposed to do; squirm, squeak, eat and sleep. I snapped a few shots along the way and will try and get some posted tomorrow. I hope everyone has a great night!
And we are getting close to satisfying everyone's request....
0930: A Girl and A Boy... One right after the other. I was beginning to get worried with the long stretch between these and the first but both seem to be doing well
Nothing yet other than a big "no not tonight" to dinner. She was still willing and eager to share my chicken with me however. We've got some intermittent panting going on but in general Lex is still very calm. No pacing, and no nesting though she rarely does much of either so that doesn't tell me much. Hope we all get some sleep.
Well, it looks like I took the day off needlessly. I didn't really expect pups today but I also didn't want to have to worry about my girl while working. An extra day off or two never hurt me anyway! Lex isn't acting like she's ready to show us what she's got anytime real soon though... Maybe she'll hold out till Monday. Maybe later. No nesting behavior as of yet and she still has a great appetite as long as I spice things up a little. I expect to see a change on both fronts a day or two before I see any pups...
I had an interesting development today... I added a family to the list giving me two families from the "Big City of Gotha"... what a coincidence! I had never heard of the place until about a week ago. With that said, both families are aware of Lexi's history of producing considerably more females than males and are waiting, fingers crossed, for boys.... My fingers are crossed for these two families as well... I absolutely hate disappointing people in general, but in this particular case I really want this to happen. I see potential for, and love the idea of future puppy play dates!!! :-) Figured it was time to revisit the blog for an update. I've had my computer in the shop for a couple weeks and have been limping along with my old Dell. Fortunately my powerhouse of an HP was returned to me late last week!
Lexi is doing well, relatively huge and already preparing lots of milk for the job ahead of her. The developing pups are actively kicking away, building strength in preparation for what will be their grand entrance! So with today marking the start of the one week countdown it appears everything's a go!!! I'll be preparing the whelping box which will essentially remain unchanged from that which I used with my last litter. The pups will be whelped in my bedroom, along side my bed within a blanket lined kiddie pool. I have been lucky enough to be present and awake for the delivery of Lexi's last two litters and I'm doing my best not to miss the one coming up. While the pups aren't due to arrive until Monday, I've scheduled myself off from work this weekend. I've received a few photos of pups from previous litters over the past few weeks and when I get a free moment, I'll post them to their individual pages. I'll make note of where to find them here once done. Another Awesome shot of Remi, compliments of Nicole!
Pretty quiet around here lately so not much to update. Lexi is doing well and is just beginning to show her condition with a bit of thickness around the middle. The change in her personality is always the first thing I notice telling me we've had a successful breeding though. Lex continues to stick close and is becoming reluctant to engage in play with the other Dobes. She's spending the bulk of her time in the companionship of the Affies leaving the youngsters to roughhouse on their own. From here on out she will be protected from their antics.
I received an update on Remi , pictured below, who will be 6 months old tomorrow. Remi is a good representation of the type of pups we produce here at GMBD complete with the ear crop provided by my Vet should you decide to have me arrange your cropping for you. Remi is finally finished with her Post and Tape and the tape you see on the inside of her ear is referred to Tip Taping. Many people with pups from Remi's litter report they quit taping long ago and their pups ears are standing beautifully. Dr McBride is a perfectionist though, being a show breeder herself, and continues to tape and post until the pups adult teeth are in. With my own dogs, I continued to tape and post until they were deemed done. Remi's ears, to me, are absolutely perfect and the type of crop I prefer. To a certain degree the type of crop one chooses and how long people continue to post is a personal decision. All I ask is that if you opt to choose your own Vet to perform the procedure, that you are assured that it's a procedure your Vet does fairly often and that they are able to share some photos of crops they've done. If you'd like to see a few more picture of Remi @ 6 months, please venture over to the Blog associated with the February 2014 litter. You'll find a few more there. |
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December 2014
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