Just plain UGLY

Ok, so Molly's umm.....nipples (my mother is wincing right now) are pretty ugly. They started getting these little dark spots on them, kind of like big freckles. Then they started getting bigger. On one of them, there aren't any freckles but instead a big black ring right around the nipple (like a black bull's-eye with pink nipple in the middle). They've kind of looked odd since the very beginning of whelping and at about 1 week, I had the vet look at them and she started her on Orbax (antibiotic) for 10 days. She wouldn't call it mastitis but they were certainly not healthy looking. I mean, she didn't really fit the profile for mastitis- no fever, no lethargy, still eating well and the puppies were gaining weight. But again, they didn't look quite healthy. Well, she finished her antibiotics 4 days ago and it was time for the puppies to be dewormed anyway. So, off to the vet we went- where they now know us by name :-) The bottom line....just bruising. It even looks like the blackness is spreading (kind of like spider veins) but we've decided not to be concerned. It has been my suspicion all along that it was just bruising/blood flow/hickies. But, now I have some peace of mind. Whew!

Like I said, the puppies got dewormed today. They are 3 weeks 1 day old today. Recommended first deworming is between 2-3 weeks. Since Molly had been on antibiotics lately, I waited until 3 weeks because the poor puppies bellies were obviously upset (evidenced by mild diarrhea) and I didn't want to add insult to injury. Dr. Burdette also said they they looked great and their hearts sounded good. :-) Yeay!

Everyone at the vet's office goes crazy when we come in. Now that they are older, everyone wants to hold them and love on them. I have no problem with it. They more socialized, the better! They also keep asking what my plans for selling them are. I so hate thinking about that day! But it is a must. I was encouraged to list them now because Christmas is coming and the people who are planners (and possibly a little bit more responsible pet owners) are looking now. Oh boy. So, I guess I need to place my add this Sunday and touch base with people who have expressed interest already. I can't believe it's time to plan their departure already!!!

Yesterday everyone got a toy of their own. They are so curious! They love the little stuffed animals and have started chewing on things already. They also got an introduction to milk in a saucer yesterday. Purple and white showed the most initiative (the fat ones....go figure). They would suckle the edge of the plate and also suckle and lick it off my finger. They definitely have the licking action down, they just need to get more comfortable with it. Purple walked over to the dish and did take a lick or two but that was about it. Then she proceeded to take a little bath in it. Her whole left side was nice and sticky. lol. She got a little sponge bath after that. Blue had some milk on his face a purple was nice enough to clean that up for him. Too cute!

See the milk experiment in the new video. Pics of puppies with toys also posted.

Puppy Play

Today is a rainy day with not much to do so the pups have decided to start playing with each other. White and green seem to"get it" the most and are nibbling and pestering their littler mates. Blue ventured over to the water dish today and took a sip. It's so amazing how fast they start to wean themselves. Speaking of weaning, by the end of this week we will have officially started that process. The first step was to watch for the pups to become curious about Molly's food and water dish. We are definitely there! Last night white, purple, and pink were taking turns gumming a piece of kibble that they found next to the food bowl. It was pretty cute....wish I got a picture of it. Oh well, there's plenty more eating in their futures :-). Another sign that they are getting ready to wean is the eruption of their teeth. Today I felt little nubs along their gum lines so teeth are not far off now. I had forgotten how yummy puppy breath is. Oh my, I love that smell!  I will introduce a dish of puppy formula first and see how well they are lapping it up. After they are good with that (usually about 2 days) I will introduce a formula/puppy chow gruel. They should be ready for this at about the 3 1/2-4 week mark.

They are also making lots of progress in the walking department. White is doing the best, followed by pink and then maybe green. Green, purple, and blue still flop over on their sides quite a bit but there is genuine determination to get where they want to go. White can take about 3 steps before getting off balance. I think purple is just too darn fat to support her body weight. :-) Not really, she's keeping up with everyone just fine.

Molly is loving the pups independence. She has found her way back to our bed the last couple weeks and I realized how much I had been missing her company. She was pretty devoted to the pups the first week to 10 days. Yesterday Will cleaned the garage and she spent the whole time down there with him wandering around investigating what he was doing. She's still really great about keeping the pups fed though. She seems to just have this timer in her head that goes off every few hours and she knows she needs to spend some QT with the pups. She disappears upstairs and you'll find her flopped over on her back in the whelping pool with the puppies greedily attacking her belly. At about the 2 week mark I really noticed an increase in their feeding time intensity. I guess part of it has to do with the pups increased mobility and ability to navigate, but oh my goodness, they are greedy little buggers! They practically swarm Molly and are constantly changing nipples and pushing others out of the way. They will eventually settle down and start to fall asleep after about 10 minutes (which is a good sign they are getting enough milk) but those first few minutes are pretty serious. I've been keeping their nails trimmed about once a week because I don't want them to scratch each other or Molly too badly. They seem to tolerate it really well and Molly's belly looks really good so far.

The Bio-sensor training is going really well. So is the submission exercises. Pink and green remain the most resistant to being turned on their backs but they are starting to calm down more quickly every day. Green has really made a lot of progress just in the last 48 hours. Blue remains the most passive followed by purple. White is in the middle.

Weights continue to increase by about 15-40 grams a day. Fatties purple and white remain in the lead. Pink is slowing down a bit but still doing well. Blue to really doing well and has increased from a usual gain of about 10-15 grams a day to 20-30 grams. Green has been pretty consistent lately and putting on about 15-20 grams a day. I'm extremely pleased with their weight trends and Molly's milk production.

Today I will introduce some toys for increased stimulation. I will throw in some of Molly's (cleaned first) for now, but I will buy each of them their own toy soon and it will go with them to their new homes. It will help increase their comfort level when the Big Day comes.....totally dreading it by the way. :-(

What I'm about

My name is Monica and I have been a nurse for 3 years. In nursing, there is a strong emphasis on research and using evidence-based practices.  I have tried to use this same philosophy when it comes to breeding. I have quickly realized how similar the birth process of humans is to that of dogs and I have exerted a great amount of effort to ensure that my methods are safe, humane, and will results in the most healthy and happy puppies possible. With those goals in mind, I bravely venture into this new world of breeding.

I may be new at this, but you will find that my puppies are incredibly well cared for, well adjusted, and very trainable. This is because I have dedicated much of my time researching training techniques and whelping practices. I have invested an unmeasurable amount of time handling and nurturing each and every puppy born in our home.

Below are some of the things that you should know about my puppies:

-Handled daily
-Exposed to Bio-sensor (Super Dog) training from an early age
-Professional vet care from the dam's prenatal appointments all the way to puppy deworming and vaccine administration
-Mom and pups are fed super high quality Arcana puppy food
-Raised in our home
-Well socialized
-Started in pre-potty training habits/routines
-Will only be sold to approved homes