Archive for October, 2010
More puppy pictures!
Here are some more pictures of the puppies around 2.5 weeks. They are starting to sit up and walk around more frequently and more steadily. And look at how big they’ve gotten! It’s crazy.
Puppy pictures at 2 weeks
pups at 2 weeks
Here’s some new photos of the pups. Each time I come into the puppy room now, they are usually sleeping on their backs, totally at peace. Makes me smile each time I see it. All their eyes are open now and they are walking! It is so cool to see. I’ll get some photos of that soon. Still hesitant to take pictures of them when they’re awake as their eyes are newly opened. Will be able to soon though.
At 2 weeks, they are almost as big as my arm!
Good food and a good deal
This post isn’t about puppies but it is interesting, to me at least. Did you know there is a dog food out there that is reasonably priced (actually, competitively priced) that also delivers to your home? I didn’t. It’s called Nature’s Select and I just ordered my first 50 pound bag, delivered, for $53.45 (that’s including a $5.00 discount since a friend referred me). That is a really good price and the food looks to be a really good food. I did some searching and found it in the same category as the other foods we’re feeding our dogs, Canidae and Blue Buffalo. So am I excited or what? And they were able to deliver within days of my order. AND I called at 7 am on a Monday and someone actually answered to take my order! It was Joseph, the Sales Manager, and we had a long chat about where they get the ingredients for their food (USA) where it’s manufactured (Texas) and why it’s so cheap (good business). I liked him a lot.
Anyway, I didn’t receive anything “free” for writing this post, I just feel it is a good deal and I want to share it with you all. My dogs have only been eating it for a few days now so the impact on their health is unclear. But they did finish it off immediately upon putting it into the bowls. I actually had a few bowls of the new food (Nature’s Select) and a few of the old laid out and they finished off the Nature’s Select first – so that’s a sign that this food may be a winner. We will see. I will keep you posted.
For more information about their company and the foods they offer, check out Nature’s Select Chicago. Or call them at 847-852-1700. Ask for Joseph and tell them you were referred by me, Kristin Anderson, or the CanineFostering site and get $5.00 off too! And let me know about your experiences with the food in the comments below:
Greta’s puppies are 2 weeks old
So, the puppies are two weeks old yesterday. They are huge. I know I haven’t had pups in the house for a year but I don’t remember them being so big so young. And these little ones are already trying to walk! It is so cute to see them wobbling around, bumping their noses on the ground as they toddle about. All of them have their eyes opened to little slits, which is why there are no photos today – the room is too dark to take pictures without using the flash, and the flash isn’t safe for their newly opened eyes. There will be more photos soon though!
On Saturday, I noticed one of the females was sounding really stuffy and coughing. Then by Sunday night all of them had it, but not Greta. By Monday, it seemed one of them was getting better and today, two of them seem to have fought it off. I’ll keep watching them closely but so far it seems they are shaking this on their own, with Greta’s help. I sure would like to avoid of repeat of what happened with Willow‘s pups! She and her 8 pups all had a severe case of kennel cough when the pups were only 3 days old. I had to bring the entire litter into the vet’s office. Once we got home, Willow refused to nurse them. Totally rejected them, didn’t clean them or care for them. It was awful and scary for me. I ended up, I’m sort of embarrassed to say, literally restraining her about 4 times a day to let her pups nurse. It was stressful for both of us but finally, after three days of that her mothering instincts kicked back in and she finished off her duties properly. Never again will I do that though. If a vet needs to see a litter of pups under 5 weeks of age again, I’d make sure they did a house call.
Anyway, it seems that we are out of that particular woods. I’ll keep you posted. Pictures soon, and some video of their wobbly attempts at walking.
And anyone out there have any suggestions for names? One of Chloe’s puppies adoptive moms (Karen with Jackson) suggested the following names: Elsa, Trina, Amelia and Delia for the females and Fritz for the male. I like the October themed German names to go with Greta.
Greta and her week old puppies
- Greta and her pups
Greta‘s pups are getting so big. It’s been over a week since they were born and small enough to hold in the palm of my hands. Now they overflow, wriggling and squirming their way out. Just a day ago I noticed a lot of squeaking and practice barking. I wondered to myself what was up and realized that their ears were starting to open. To test this I gently but clearly tapped on the side of their whelping pen (the green wading pool you see in the pictures) and sure enough, they all startled! So cool to see their bodies right on target developmentally.
Greta has been sick but is finally getting better. I counted and she was having a loose, runny, large volume poop every two hours! You know what fun that is? I can’t even begin to tell you. The vet thinks her whipworm or hookworm infections may not have cleared with the first round of Panacur so we are doing a second three day dose. She also included a general antibiotic just in case in was something bacterial. It seems to have done the trick as she pooped three times today, just like a normal dog. Hopefully we’ll be out of that particular woods soon.
Pile of puppies!
I feel so bad for Greta. Until the foster mamas are given a clean bill of health I have to keep them quarantined, which basically means she spends the majority of the day and night by herself (with her pups of course) in a room. She does get frequent short potty walks (and is keeping her room clean!) and at least two long walks (45 minutes) each day, but still, she is bored and wants to hang out with me and the other dogs. Poor girl. Hopefully soon she’ll be able to get out and about more.
As you see from the pictures, the puppies mostly sleep. Lately I have been catching them sleeping on their backs with their little mouths open! So cute. They are clearly feeling safe and happy. When they are hungry and hear and smell Greta, they “walk” (more like a seal like of waddle thing than a really doggy walk) around their whelping pen crying their heads off, “looking” for her. Their eyes are still closed so mostly they snuffle around, bumping into one another. eventually they give up and just huddle together in a lump. Very cute.
See? Way bigger than a week ago!!
another puppy pile
Greta, getting away from it all
Greta and her 5 new puppies
Greta & her 8-hour old puppies
Well, another cycle begins! On Monday night around 9:30 I was sure that Greta was going to have her pups…she hadn’t eaten since noon, was peeing frequently and hiding out in her crate. I sat with her and watched the pups wriggling around under her skin. I could see bodies pass by, a head graze the surface, then a leg. It was intense and it seemed clear that they were readying themselves for action. But Greta, after grunting and looking at her back end with a startled look on a few occasions fell into a deep, deep sleep. I left after watching the scene for an hour, convinced there would be puppies by morning.
However, when I left for work at 8am, no one had arrived. I figured she’d wait until tonight, as most of the mama’s we’ve had deliver in the evenings. Was I surprised when I got home in the afternoon to find 6 dogs where originally there had been one! There are two white ones with black markings (a male and a female), one white one with brown markings, one solid brown one who looks like Greta, and one almost dark gray one, all females. Five in all and only one male. They are strong and healthy – no ribs showing at all! This is by far the healthiest litter we’ve had, and it further supports my belief that Greta was an owner surrender. Makes me sad, as she was clearly loved and cared for. She is the sweetest, friendliest and most easy going dog we’ve had. I have really grown attached to her and am a bit sad to have to share her now with her puppies.
Greta's 8-hour old puppy
Dogs change when they have their litters to care for – they become more serious, and far less “needy” of my attention. Where just a day ago Greta tried everything in her power to get me to pet her and pay attention to her, happily wagging her tail anytime I was in her line of vision, now she just looks at me with a calm gaze, suggesting that my presence, while benign, is slightly annoying. I actually feel out of place around her! She has it all together and my attempts to help feel clumsy and unnecessary. It really felt good to see her reaction when I opened a can of wet food. She didn’t need the wet food, I just opened it to see that look again – her joy at my abilities to provide her with something she wanted. I know that this will change, as she gets tired of her role, she’ll want to be a dog again, but for now, I feel left out.
