Kennel Cough
I was at the vet (again) with another one of my dogs who has caught Williow‘s kennel cough. Now, I am embarrassed to admit this but I have not had my dogs vaccinated for kennel cough. I feel stupid now but had my dogs not gotten it (like they haven’t for the last few times mamas with kennel cough have lived with us) I would be feeling validated. I guess I always knew I was taking a risk but it seemed worth it to avoid over vaccinating them. Anyway, I have changed my mind. I will now vaccinate Hermes and Bella routinely, every 6 months like recommended. They are the two who go everywhere with me and it seems only fair. As for the other two, I may vaccinate them again when we are preparing for another mama. But since I am greatly anticipating a break from puppy rearing that can wait a bit.
Poor dogs, everyone is hacking up a lung over here. All except for Lollie…hmm. She has such a strong immune system I wonder if she’ll succumb? As a puppy, she lived with a littler mate who had Parvo (a very serious case of it, requiring 16 days in intensive care in the hospital to overcome it) and she was fine. Never caught it. We will see.
Puppy update on little Angel
An update on Angel (formerly Violet) of Chloe’s litter:
Wanted to attach some pictures of Angel, she is doing really well and for just being with us for three weeks its like she was always here. She has moments of biting but we always direct her to her toys which she happily goes to.
She is growing quick, and its always fun watching her explore the yard. We have discovered she loves the water as she jumped into the play pool with the girls. She really is precious and loves sitting next to me while I work on the computer.
Thanks for all that you did with her, you have a fantastic gift with animals and I hope everyone appreciates that.
Update on puppy William
An update on William, from Chloe’s litter…
William at 6 weeks old
We had him at the vet Monday (diarrhea for a week after a trip to Pennsylvania; no worms, probably stress.) He’s up to 17.5 pounds and is well on his way to being huge. Now that he’s not pooping all the time, the sleeping has improved. He was in his crate from 9 pm until 6 am last night. He does love his sleep.
Biting continues to be a huge problem. The 8-year olds cannot enjoy him at all because he’s always biting and mounting them. We are in puppy class, but we will need additional training. I have been redirecting, but I must be doing something wrong, because usually he just gets too wound up. I hope we get it figured out soon.
Like Poppy, William went to several baseball games and was such a charmer. We had several comments that he looks like he should be on tv.
I thought we had a handle on potty training, but yesterday he went in the house within a half hour of being out. He does go to the front door when he needs to go, but not every time.
I hope everyone is enjoying their new family members. Most of the time we are, so I’m praying that we resolve the biting issue and get on with enjoying William.
A milky puppy mess
Well, it seems Willow (formerly Daisy, formerly Angel too!) is not at all happy about the puppies teeth coming through their gums. She yelped when they latched on last night. So, since they are very mobile for 3 week olds and since she seems to want to end her mama duties sooner rather than later, I introduced them to some formula and BOY did they ever get into it! They, more than any other litter seem very ready to eat from a bowl. They finished each of the meals I’ve given them, although clean up takes as long as their eating does. They trash the room with milky puppy foot prints. And each of them are literally covered in milk. I am hoping they get better at it soon.
The classic milk mustache!
A training tip that bears repeating
Here is something I said recently to my class at my local dog training club and I think bears repeating here:
When you are training your dog, work with your dog where she or he IS not where you think she or he should be. This is the number one rule in dog training: train the dog you have, not the one you wish you had. Also, if your dog shows any behavior that is particularly difficult for you (jumping, aggression, not listening, barking) realize that for the dog it is simply a behavior – for you it is a whole story about how the dog is “bad” or “mean” or “doesn’t like me” or “doesn’t listen”. Treat the behavior as a behavior and it will be easier to manage. Every behavior works under the same set or principles: Behaviors that are rewarded continue, behaviors that are ignored or “corrected’ go away. But sometimes we are rewarding behaviors when we think we are not, and some behaviors (like barking) are self rewarding, so be careful to really look at what is going on…and this is where the help of a trainer comes in handy as they can see things we can’t when we are right up in something. Never hesitate to ask a question or to seek advice. We’ve all been there!
Puppies learn to walk and play
Today the pups had a busy day…they met a number of new people as we had a minor family party over here. They are alert for longer periods of time (5-10 minutes now instead of 1 or 2) and are actually beginning to play with each other! The “play” consists of licking, biting and climbing on each other but you can see the beginnings of real puppy tussling happening. I was pleased to see that they are comfortable being held by other people and are not alarmed by their different scents. This is the beginning of their socialization, the lessons they need to learn to go out into the world as good dogs.
You can watch this and other CanineFostering.com videos on YouTube.
As I was sitting in the puppy pen a few of the pups nuzzled into my leg and tried to nurse! I can’t describe the emotions that came up for me easily…it was heartwarming is the easiest way to sum it up. It told me that they trust me, they KNOW me, and they think that their mama and I are the same being; the same source of food and comfort. I felt honored to be trusted like that, to be sought after for comfort and nourishment. It is the same feeling I have when, as older pups, they come running to me as a mass sum, tails wagging at the sound of my voice. All of their bodies communicating the same thing: It is YOU! I LIKE YOU! It always makes me feel special to them. I like that feeling.
