New mama dog and pups

new pupsChloe the mama dog is beautiful and so even tempered. For some reason she was barking like crazy the first night so we nipped that in the bud and she’s been an angel ever since. I was torn about using the “bark collar” as we call it. An electronic collar that gives a “correction” when the dog’s bark sets it off. As it was her first night I expected a bit of a struggle for her to acclimate but I am someone who NEEDS sleep so I gave into my need and strapped the collar on. It took her about 10 minutes to figure out that her barking caused the shock and then she stopped. She has been quiet since. I think barking is self reinforcing – meaning I don’t need to do anything but let her bark to get her to bark more often. For that reason I am a user of electronic shock collars to stop barking. In my own dogs I have trained them to quiet on command. Franklin the bird has even learned to yell “QUIET” when the dogs start to bark. It’s crazy how fast he learned that! Anyway, back to the puppies.

such a cute puppy!They have just started to cut their baby teeth, putting them at about 3 and 1/2 weeks old. So I will now officially set their birthday at April 22, 2009. Luckily for us the home that had Chloe (our name for the sweet Irish setter looking mama) kept her until Friday because if we had gotten her while she was still pregnant it would have interrupted some important family birthday celebrations! See, everything works out as it should.

So, after settling Chloe in the first order of business is always a bath. She did not seem to like the whole idea of bathing but allowed it. She is a very willing and submissive dog. Her coat is beautiful and full, reminding me of a Chow Chow’s coat. She also looks like an Irish Setter to my untrained eye and does “point” with her front leg when interested in something. And of course, she also looks like a golden retriever. A very pretty girl.

puppy pile!

a puppy pile!

Her puppies are so cute! They look like they’re going to have their mama’s thick beautiful coat. Their are some interesting color markings on them all and the one boy who is mostly white seems to have sky blue eyes! Wow, that will make for a stunning dog. They seem to have been handled and aren’t afraid of me, wagging their tails as they explore my hand. They are just starting to walk and talk and like I said, their little baby teeth are just coming in. I introduced them to “formula” in a saucer today and about half of them took to it. We’ll keep presenting it once a day for a bit, there is no rush. But when the mama’s are as thin as Chloe is, it is good to start supplementing them sooner rather than later. For now, everyone seems to be doing good. Chloe is eating well but not overly ravenously, the pups seem active and happy and I am relieved. Another fostering experience seems to be off to a good start.

She really is quite thin, as they all are, and her puppies seem weaker than I remember 4 week old puppies being. More Chole & pups coming to CanineFostering.com ~ stay tuned!!!

May 19, 2009 • Tags: , , , • Posted in: Chloe, pups, recommended products

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