Willow is ready for adoption
Willow is a sweetheart! The vet has her age at 2 years but I strongly feel she is under 1 year of age. Either way she is full of playful puppy energy. She looks to be a golden/yellow lab mixed with some sort of setter or hound – she has a long nose and droopy ears that she has to get from one of these breeds. She walks beautifully on a leash with only a buckle collar, is house trained, and is one of the most patient dogs I have ever come across. She will wait for me to clean up the puppy room for nearly an hour just standing quietly, watching me. She loves everyone she meets, especially children. She would love a family who has time to spend with her as she really likes being with people. She would also like an active family but she deeply appreciates cuddle time as well. Willow has is up to date on all her shots and has been microchipped.
Willow is ready for adoption from H.E.L.P. via HelpingAnimals.org
Winding down with Chloe and her pups
Well, this puppy group is finally ready to move on. I know it as I see them play more and more with each other and less with Chloe. They still try to nurse but their attempts are half hearted and easily redirected. For her part Chloe is continuing to show herself to be a sweet, loving mother. I will miss watching her mother these little guys. She is so gentle as she tells them to stop nursing, carefully biting their muzzles away growling under her breath. They respond by climbing on all over her, chewing her ears and tail and nuzzling up to her and drifting off to sleep. It is a wonderful, heartwarming thing to see.
calling in the puppies
They come to me now as I call them into the puppy room in the afternoon. I clap and say in a high pitched voice “Pup pup pup pup pup” and they come running. Last night after I walked into the puppy room and woke everyone up I put them outside to potty. Usually after dark I just let them pee in the room on the newspaper covered floor but I’m trying to get them ready to be house trained by their new families. They did great! First they were a bit disoriented but after a bit they all spread out to do their business. The adoptive families will have an easy time of training them I think.
Chloe’s puppies ready for their new homes
So the end of Chloe‘s group is upon us…the puppies have all been spoken for and I am so thrilled by our group of adoptive families. They are a special group and I feel like I’ve made some good friends in the process – I’m that comfortable with them! One family even watched the pups for me while I walked the dogs! Everyone’s willingness to be supportive of me has meant a lot too. So, to all of you I say thank you and LOVE your puppies forever. That will make my work worth it.
Now, deep breath, on to more puppies!
This will be the first time we’ve done a group of pups back to back and I must say that I’m feeling a little hint of anxiety about it. Chloe’s group has been SO easy and has gone so fast yet the last two weeks of every litter, weeks 6-8, are always SO much work. I literally fill two large garbage bags full of wet and poopy newspapers each DAY now. Two bags a day – think about it! It is crazy. Our garbage man must think we are so odd. So anyway, the end of the process is always so much work that I usually relish the quiet house, the clean puppy room and the grass growing back in the puppy yard, not to mention all my free time! I was looking forward to it, I must admit. But these things have a life and a process of their own. I have said “no” to taking on a litter before and I will again but this time I just sort of knew that another one was coming. I wasn’t surprised to see Michelle from H.E.L.P.‘s email saying that there were not one but two pregnant dogs needing a foster home. We can’t take more than one…can one of you? Let us know.
The puppies are piled up by the door crying to be let in so I must answer their calls…
Pups getting the hang of it
Today Annie got to show off her stuff to an interested family. She did great and I was very impressed by her easy going nature. Now if we can just figure out this Kong obsession! Really, though, she was friendly, open and happy to let them interact with her. I couldn’t have asked for more.
The puppies have really gotten the hang of eating, as the photos show. They just put their heads down and lap it up. It’s funny, but they lap for a bit and then get distracted and wander off. But if you put them back to the bowl they react like, “Say! Where’d this come from? Food! Yahoo!” and start lapping again, only to get distracted and wander off again. They have mastered the ins and outs of climbing the board that separates their bedding area and now when I enter the room it isn’t unusual to see one or two pups out wandering around, exploring the space. However, the room (more…)
Part Lab Perhaps
I was at work last night and saw a magazine all about Lab puppies and stopped and stared…the cover had a line of three puppies and I swear that the middle one looked exactly like Annie’s cream pups! So, they are likely Lab mixes! What fun. So many people want a Lab puppy, this will surely help with their adoption. Although I doubt there will be much trouble adopting them out, they are adorable.
They are really starting to show their personalities now. After feeding them they have about 30 minutes of rough-housing in them before the crash. They play fight, stalk their toys and run in little circles barking. They are getting more steady on their feet too, and are more able to actually accomplish a pounce. Before they would just think about pouncing and instead just (more…)
