Author Archive
Pups Getting Stronger
The puppies are really starting to become little doggies now. They are playing more and more. Each time I enter the puppy room I’m greeted by at least 2 or 3 little heads looking at me. They are getting stronger too, and are able to lie with their heads up and some are even practicing sitting and walking! And they continue to interact more and more. Today I saw more play fighting. It is sort of like watching it in slow motion though as the pups still don’t have very good muscle control. One will try to bite his brother’s ear and miss, try again and make contact and then bark and fall over. Once he’s righted himself he’s forgotten what he is doing and crawls around wagging his tail and growling until he bumps into another brother and the whole thing starts all over again. Sometimes two will “fight” each other. Have you ever seen those nature shows about walruses fighting by waving their heads back and forth in front of each other? It’s kinda like that, but with fur.
Day ten update
Annie is becoming a part of our family like our summer mama, Sweetie, never could. Sweetie was so sick the entire time we had her, only really getting over her giardia and coccidea near the end of her time with us.
Annie loves to chew her Kongs. She loves you to throw them and she loves to chase them and then to chew chew chew them. She is surprisingly good with all people. Even though her pups are only 10 days old today she allowed my friend Cathy into her puppy room to look at her babies! This is unheard of. Of course Cathy knows dogs and loves bully breeds so that was probably part of it. But Annie has been friendly to anyone she’s met. If she gets a sniff first then she is all tail and butt wags! She especially loves all the kids she’s met, showing immediate friendliness toward them. She loves to run, she walks well on a leash and she loves cuddling. When it is her time for a forever family, she will make someone a great companion.
About the puppies – they are 10 days old so their eyes are ready to open any day now. They are still all closed but I suspect that soon they will open. The ears follow a few days later. Once eyes and ears are open puppies get really noisy! These puppies are getting really big, but there are two who are smaller then the rest. I’d call them the “runts” but they are thriving along with the rest of the litter.
Ravenous Mama Dog
Annie’s cold is getting better – finally. Have I mentioned that yet? She came to us with the beginnings of kennel cough and has been on antibiotics since. She has stopped coughing and now just sneezes huge amounts of snot everywhere. It’s gross but I’m glad she’s getting better.
She continues to gain weight. I was talking with a friend and when I mentioned how much she is eating she was shocked…so I thought I’d let you all know. Normally, a lactating female dog needs 3 to 4 times their regular food intake. Annie is eating the following each day – 2 cups puppy formula, 6 cups dry puppy food, and two cans of puppy food. I guess that is a lot. She is still ravenous at each feeding so I haven’t noticed how much she is actually eating until I listed it out. It is sort of crazy. But she is trying to make up for her lean times before coming to us and in addition she’s feeding 8 pups.
Annie nursing pups
Nursing takes a lot out of a mama! It gives a lot too, though. The hormones, prolactin and oxytocin, that are released help mellow out the mama dog and make her more attached to her pups. And the immunity that is transferred during nursing is invaluable. Even though Annie is sneezing all over her pups (and then dutifully licking them clean) they are not getting her cold. The antibodies her body is creating to fight her cold are going directly to her pups as well, keeping them safe. And don’t think that because we have puppy formula we will be using it with the pups – it is simply a fast way to get a high quality balanced meal into Annie. I strongly believe in letting nature take its course and letting mama wean her pups. It happens easily enough because at 3 weeks the pups get their sharp little teeth and start using them on everything. That shortens the nursing sessions abruptly!
(more…)
Mommy instincts kick in
sleeping puppies
Annie is finally looking like a normal dog. Her ribs are receding and her hip bones don’t stick out any more. And her pups are getting FAT! Good for her! When they were born you could see all of their ribs. But now, three days later they look fat and happy – just like pups born to healthy moms. It is amazing how little it takes to help these doggie families along. She’s been with us just two weeks and already her health troubles are becoming a thing of the past. For anyone who wonders if they can help these sorts of dogs, don’t question it – the question is absolutely, yes you can. It takes so very little – just clean water, nutritious food, a warm bed, a clean place to live and medical care if necessary. Just stuff you’d provide for your own dogs. Please, if your heart moves you, help out in any way you can. Ok, public service announcement over.
Annie is also becoming more trusting. She greets me with wags and allows me to pet her. This morning, for the first time since I met her, she put her head into me and just relaxed as I scratched her neck and head. It was good to see her opening up. She also seems happy to see my son. But she is wary of people she hasn’t met before.
(more…)
Annie’s Pups: Day 3
I decided that enough is enough and that I had to change that dirty bedding she’d been nursing on for the last 24 hours. Normally I like to change the bedding twice a day but since she has seemed more shy around me I wanted to give her some space. But it was getting gross so when Mike pottied her tonight I quickly changed the soiled bedding for fresh and got a good look at the pups.
Looks like we have 7 males and one female! And three with stubby little tails! Australian shepherds?? Time will tell. At this age all pups from all breeds look alike. Their size and breed characteristics don’t start to show until a few weeks later. All seem to be getting enough milk and are quieter now, telling me that they are feeling happy and full. Good work Annie. She is doing well too, still skinny but looking better than she did last week when she came to us.
Eight Pups for Annie
Annie & pups on day 2
Finally, she emerges!! She refused to leave that tiny crate all night. But at 9am she needed to potty badly enough to go out with me. And then she was starving. As she ate I moved the pups from the crate where she whelped them to the plastic turtle sandbox where there’s more room to nurse.
I gave each pup a cursory look over to make sure all was normal. We have four cream pups, three black pups, and one brown one. Eight pups…sigh. We were hoping for less. But at least there are fewer than Bella’s eleven. That was INSANE.
Annie is starving and her pups look really skinny for pups. It is so hard for stray dogs to get the nutrition they need. I’m amazed she did as well as she did. All were born alive, alert, and so far seemingly healthy. Had she delivered this group outside they would all be dead shortly I fear. The cold temperature and her depleted condition would have been too much of a stress. It is so sad. PLEASE SPAY AND NEUTER YOUR DOGS! Don’t keep letting this sort of thing go on.
