November 19, 2006: 5 weeks old today!!! The girls all weighed in at right about 7 lbs, and the boys ranged from 7.5 to 8.5 lbs this morning. In other words, they are being well fed... Fuji is still nursing them several times a day, plus they are eating almost 8 cups total of Eukanuba Large Breed Puppy food in a semi softened state per day (roughly a cup a piece). This morning they were all given their first vaccine, a "Neopar" high titer parvo vaccine. Parvo has been bad in the valley the past few years, and I'd just as soon play it safe. Not one acted like they felt it.
Personalities continue to develop and they are starting to play much harder and for longer periods before crashing. Potty training is progressing well. I'm taking each one into the adjacent family room by itself every now and then to see how they act when away from the others. They all seem to enjoy this quiet time with "Nanny". Today they are learning a new game-- chase the quail wing on the string/pole. The big girls found a dead California quail near the house last night; it was most likely left behind by one of the resident red-tailed hawks. As the week progresses, they will be introduced to a number of items from the bird freezer... quail, chukar, and pheasant and duck wings. Hunting and performance homes dominate my puppy lists so I'd be remiss not to get those senses developed! In about 2 weeks, they'll even get to chase and retrieve a live pigeon--- that's the most fun game of all...!
Monday was a gorgeous sunny day, so all of the pups got some outdoor time (2 at a time) with the big girls. Some of them were a little too fast to photograph though.
November 26, 2006: Whew, another week older today, and they continue to pack on the pounds. Weights are now ranging from 8 to 10 lbs. Mama Fuji has had to tell the little needle-toothed savages that the milk bar is closed (well, not totally-- she will let the nicer ones that don't bite have a drink to help ease the drying up process).
Mother Nature treated us to our first big snowfall of the season this morning! The pretty green grass is now buried under 6" or so of snow. That was fun for the puppies as you'll see below (pups did sleep well after that romp!!!). First though, a friend helped me take some "stacked" photos of the pups so I can follow structural development from here on thru 8 weeks. All did quite well at their modelling debuts, and for 6 wks, they look pretty good!!!
Monday, 11/27 (a gorgeous but chilly day!): More fun in the snow....
What a busy week it was. On Tues, 11/28 (that was Fuji's and Jazz's birthday, btw!), all the pups got microchipped so that is done!!! Always a relief in my mind to have the litter permanently identified and trackable back to me 24 hrs/day.... just in case! I got a bit of work done this week but lordy lordy, I think some puppies are a bit spoiled.. they were a sure noisy when I returned home after being gone just a few hours. Looks like we will need to work on that a bit!
On Friday, I swore they were trying to get me back as they sure pulled a good one! See what I saw lying in the "potty pool"... my stomach and its contents nearly came up... it looked like a TAIL of a Chocolate puppy (and what was worse, was there was a red tinge to the one end)!!!! I started counting tails... they were all there, thank doG. Well, what WAS it then???
Thursday, Dec 7: The pups were 7 wks old on Sunday, but what a week! This is our final week all together. The pups got their first combination vaccine on Saturday. Each pup is getting individual time in the house more often and for longer (now that potty control is improving!). On Wednesday, all went to visit Dr. Sandy at Tieton Drive Vet Clinic where they got a good general going over from stem to stern, including a poopy (fecal) check. They all got the "all clear" status to blow this pop stand this coming weekend! Woohoo! As a reward, they got to chase and retrieve a couple live pigeons around the garage to prove their birdiness... now that was a hoot! All the pups thoroughly enjoyed themselves and slept great that night!
On Thursday, we all travelled to Kennewick so Dr. Collier could do a thorough CERF (eye) exam. That came off w/o a hitch except that Tar played his best class clown/ADD act with her :o) Always have to have at least one troublemaker in the crowd... After that, they had their first structural evaluation with 3 breeders. On Friday and Saturday, we'll do 2 more sets of structural evaluations-- so far, so good. I'm very happy with the litter. But I also am very much aware that it's time to make those decisions on who goes where--- many puppy families are impatiently counting down their days til they get to claim their wee ones from me!.
It will be a bittersweet day... but I've been preparing to cut those apron strings as I also need to decide on who will stay!!! Here are a few shots from this week:
Saturday, December 9, 2006: Well, all the data are in and boy oh boy, it was really a close race!!!. My keeper is.... Sonya (see purple chocolate girl pictured below, far right)!!! Four pups departed with their new families on Saturday, and the remaining 2 will stay for an extra 10 days.
This has been such a fun litter! I hope everyone is as happy w/ their babies as I think they will be, and I know I'm just excited as all get out for my new "extended family" members to share with me lots of photos and experiences as they grow up :o)
