Ha! I just received my first puppy kiss; delivered by "Black" and smack on the lips!
Not something I find particularly endearing from an adult or even an older pup but for right now it was sweet. I picked him up because while all the other pups had zonked out after just having a meal he wasn't quite ready. He drew my attention with a sweet little bark and growl. When I looked over I found him happily rolling back and forth, stretching and building those muscles. CUTE! I know you all are jealous! Sorry :-)
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I successfully opened the pups pages... there's not much to them at this point but it's a start. For the most part, in their photos, they're all in various stages of "flat out", with the exception of White who sat up for the occasion! I bought a little monkey that I had planned to use as a prop but in actuality it didn't add too much to the session... Maroon checked to see if it was edible but that was about it. Maybe Mr Monkey will resurface in the weeks ahead. Or not... Lexi apparently approved of it; I left it on the bed just long enough to grab a cup of coffee and when I returned I found it, still in one piece I might add, in the whelping pool. Stuffies don't typically last long around here so I appreciate her gesture. The photos in the slide show are basically just some extras... I threw in one of the earliest photos of all the pups together to demonstrate the growth these guys have experienced in just two short weeks...and a day. I made a decision today to take Precious Purple in for a Vet check. She had a great day yesterday, eagerly nursing and as I mentioned walked across her little habitat with purpose. While I've been spending time with her and Lex individually assuring she gets several meals a day, she just isn't picking up the weight I want to see. And of course I have to continue to work so I can't always be home to monitor her. I believe in my heart of hearts the problem with the pup is simply one of not receiving adequate nutrition. And everyday, every hour, the circle becomes more viscous! The vet was out of the office when I called so I spoke with the tech who has worked there for years. She's knowledgeable and a person I hold a lot of respect for. Long story short, she offered, without seeing the pup, to foster her and to do essentially whatever she felt would be in her best interest. She offered no guarantees but that she would do the best she could. So, for now, I've placed Purple in foster care. Regi, who for many years raised pups herself, will bottle or tube feed her if necessary and call me with daily updates. It was a tough decision to leave her but I know she's in good and capable hands. And I could tell when I dropped her off, Regi was hopeful.... and above all caring. She said she looked a little thin but liked the look of her in general. I'm hopeful too... hopeful that Precious Purple will live to be one of those pups that outgrows her litter mates.
Well, it was nice to be home and get some stuff done but as frequently happens I didn't get quite everything done that needed doing. I did however manage to make some new collars and have retired the old. The pups were weighed again and weights posted. As I suspected our smallest pup is almost exactly 1/2 the weight of the next one up. She continues to do well though. In fact I watched her navigate nearly the whole width of the whelping pool with a pretty brisk and steady gait. It may actually have been the best attempt at walking I've seen from any of them. I also got everyone wormed for the first time and clipped the tips of their little nails. They're getting quite used to being handled and seem to enjoy being scratched and tickled. I spent some time today sitting in the kiddie pool with 'em and they're already attempting to crawl on my lap as they begin to work their magic on me. I developed their pages but unfortunately ran out of time and didn't get every bodies photos taken. Tomorrow is a new day though and hopefully they'll cooperate and I'll get their pages published before I have to head out. I'm anxious to show them off in their new gear! lol
Two weeks down... two to show and six to go!
In other news I bought a bag of puppy chow on my way home from work so I've got it ready for the pups when they're ready. I think I may have mistakenly told someone I planned to feed the pups Pedigree as I did the last litter. I actually meant Iams. As I always do though, I'll supply enough kibble with each pup so everyone can wean them appropriately to whatever food they select to raise them on. If you've not already decided on a brand, I generally recommend people take a look at http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com . It's a good starting point for researching the various foods but another nice service they offer is recall notification. Add your name to the list on their site and you'll promptly be notified whenever recalls occur. I think every brand out there has had recalls at some point or another. Yay! Amazon just updated my tracking info! The scale is scheduled to arrive by 8 pm Tuesday!!! I love Amazon... A great alternative for people that hate shopping and long drives to town.............
Things are going great here! Even for my little half pint, Purple. I was beginning to get a little concerned about her ability to keep up with her siblings but she's gained a tremendous amount of strength over the past few days and seems to have learned how to burrow! Between that and some individualized attention she's thriving. She's determined; I'll give her that. Still quite a bit smaller than her female siblings though and her male siblings are dwarfing her! The males are getting fat, strong and huge! For that reason, this litter is going to keep me busy busy busy... If Lexi only had a couple more jugs on her... Kidding. She's perfect just as she is!!! She continues to be a wonderful mom to her pups.
The pups eyes have opened and we'll start to see some big changes within the next week or so. For the most part they remain flat out, sound asleep between feedings. They're just beginning to walk but remain very wobbly, fall after a few steps, give up and return to sleep where the land. The males seem to be doing a little better in the walking department than the females. If history repeats itself, and it seems it will, somebody will manage to make it out of the whelping pool in about a week and a half... I'll put them back in and within a day or two they'll all be out. I'll get some photos of each pup Monday, open up their individual puppy pages and begin their weekly photo shoots from there. And of course we'll have lots of photos and slide shows here on the blog throughout the weeks ahead. I'll also get them weighed again Monday if my scale will cooperate one more time. Not having a good feeling about the ability to weigh though. The scale wasn't working again Friday when I had intended to weigh Purple. Technical difficulties! I hate them :-( I had some brief computer issues with the last litter and let me tell ya that was aggravating. So in comparison, if I can't get it to work I guess I can deal with a week of not having the scale I had counted on. I ordered another one, however it's not scheduled to arrive till sometime between the 17th and 20th. Well, I guess that's about it for tonight... Ah... one more thing! And this is directed @ Jenny and Jenny. While I don't know any of you personally, I've developed the beginnings of a relationship with each of you through emails and phone conversations. The problem is, and it's not really a problem because I love reading the comments to the posts but because I've got two Jenny's I never know for sure which one I'm replying to. I've noticed that Jenny and Marc sometimes comment together and I've noticed that Jenny comments but don't know if that's consistent. Sooo, maybe if the Jenny's out there would include the first letter of their last name with their comments??? That would work ;-) So that wraps up my rambling for the evening. Your pups are doing great. I hope all of you are too and that you're getting things in place for your new family members. I understand several of you have already been shopping! ;-) Yes, I'm officially ready to say it. We have a runt. Purple's collar fell off several days back and I never bothered to put it back on because at that time it was obvious she was smaller than the other pups. She remains smaller today; quite a bit smaller. I'll weigh them again on Monday but I don't need a scale to tell me she's most definitely the lightweight. In watching the litter, it's pretty obvious she's getting pushed away as I feared. And that of course creates the proverbial vicious circle. I've been making sure she gets some alone time with mom several times a day but she's most certainly not getting the opportunity to eat as well as the others. In general she's doing well. Although she feels more fragile and doesn't have the "fat puppy" look to her she isn't ribby either. Her mobility seems up to par with the others and when she's eating she seems eager but not frantic. Since I've never had what I would call a runt in a litter I've been goggling like mad. I've heard wives tales over the years regarding runts and what I've been reading doesn't conflict with what I've always heard. Sometimes the runts end up outgrowing their litter mates; sometimes they stay smaller. Sometimes they end up with health issues down the road but that is usually the case when the "runt" is also a "sickly" pup or a pup that mom herself may have pushed away. That fortunately doesn't describe Purple.
Even so, I've got a watchful eye on her and my job as her breeder is to make sure she stays healthy until she is able to eat from a bowl. Fortunately that time is nearing. Sorry if any of you have been checking for updates... There just aren't really any updates to share yet. All is well. The pups are growing and Lexi continues to take great care of them. I'm taking the short time I have left to try and get the rest of my life in order before she lets me take over and the pups leave me with barely a moment to myself... or to anything else. I'm kind of hoping one more mow will do it for the season. Had to take a little time today to freshen the horses stalls and run in and the morning brings the farrier for their pedicures. Gotta get the Affies groomed and Majestic to Rally tomorrow night... Then there's the house that seems to always be in some sort of disarray. It comes last... lol That's my life though; the one I chose and the one I love. The animals get theirs and I get what's left. Photos tomorrow; that's a promise. Then it's back to work Friday. Things in the land of pups will pick up soon. That's also a promise :-)
Just when everyone else is about to head to work, I've got my week wrapped up! Tonight I'm right back where I love to be, with my critters and a pack of pups!
I took the time last night to weigh everybody and will get them posted tonight. Once again Lexi has taken fabulous care of her babies their first few days of life. Each is growing appropriately and at about the same rate with the larger pups in general gaining a bit more than the others. If history repeats itself that trend will change a bit in the not too distant future and we'll see some of the larger pups gaining less from one week to the next and some of the smaller ones gaining more. I'll take some photos to share throughout the week though it's hard to tell in photos what can be seen and heard in person. These pups change so rapidly! They're plumping up, their scoot is quicker, their whimpers stronger and I occasionally hear what sounds like a bark! lol Mid week their eyes should begin to open and they'll begin to move with more purpose. Hard to believe they'll be playing with toys, running with pretty decent speed and begging for attention in as little as 7 weeks! ..... I have secured two appointments for Cropping. 4 pups will be done November 20th and 6 will be done November 25th. I will obtain all Health Certificates on the 25th and, if all goes according to plan, those that were Cropped on the 20th will be ready to join their families the 25th. The others will be ready the 26th just in time to join you for your Thanksgiving feasts! In order for everything to fall into place, Nick, Brian and Allison... in that order will have to select their pups prior to cropping. Scheduling and such can get a little hairy toward the end but things should fall into place fairly easily. Five Males and one Female, likely my own will be included in round two. It's along way off yet, but a good time to start planning.
Weights Are Posted This morning was a busy one here @ GMBD's. First up; get all resident critters fed and out to potty then back to the job at hand. The pups! I started my online search for a new scale then as I walked by mine on my way for a cup of coffee I decided to give it one last try. I hit the button and Vuala! Lights.... Just a flash but it gave me hope and with a fresh set of batteries I'm back in business. I was able to get all the pups weighed and as I suspected Purple is officially our lightweight but not by much. She as well as Mr Blue lost an ounce since birth. The other pup weighed Monday, Maroon, gained one. No worries though. It's typical for pups to loose a bit of weight during their first 24 hours but should gain steadily thereafter. Because she's the smallest, Purple will receive a token of extra attention over the next few days. She's active and eating well and I have no concerns. I just don't want her to fall behind and get powered out by anothers few extra ounces. I've found in previous litters the smallest pups starting out don't necessarily hold that position when they're ready to join their new families. And often the smaller pups turn out to be the feisty ones. We'll soon see what Purple's made of. One thing's for certain; she's a Doberman and their no such thing as a bad one. Enough said. I'll develop a page later tonight or in the morning and get started posting weights. I'll weigh again in a few days to make sure everyone is gaining appropriately and then weekly thereafter.
Next on the list of chores we checked off today; our first Vet visit which included docks and dewclaws. It's the one aspect of rearing Dobies that I in fact dread. Fortunately, it's a quick procedure and the pups are just as quick to settle when returned to the comfort of their siblings. Nevertheless, I'm glad it's behind me and the pups are once again content and at ease with mom. Next up... clean sheets and a goodnight. |
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December 2014
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