Canadian Litter - We are growing!
Posted by Delores Smith on Sunday, December 14, 2014
The puppies' senses have heightened during this past week. With eyes open they are noticing more things, including me....Mr. Orange likes to find me and snuggle once he sees/senses I'm close by. When I hold them close to my face I love how they look back in total wonder. Of course they try to sneak in a few licks on my chin and nose.
I've mentioned in several posts in the past year that I always learn or experience something new with each litter. With this one, the plugged teat on Dion has happened twice...first time in the first few days after birth and now again this week. Was able to soften things for her again and the milk is flowing again. The other new thing is the discoloration that is happening with most of the pups. It started a few days after birth...noticed that the back end and back legs of Ms Purple were turning a rusty brown color....my initial thought was "Oh, Romeo is throwing some color with his pups" as this is the first time he has sired a litter for me. Ms Green also was sporting some brown coloring....because they are under the red heat lamp it can distort the coloring also. I took a close look at all the puppies and see that they all have some light brown coloring under their chins.....the areas that have color are all areas that Dion would clean. So some google research and breeder forum posts have helped me understand what is happening. It's Dion's saliva that has something that is causing color...she is a vigorous licker so that is why all puppies are showing color. I am feeding a high quality food which I think is what is responsible for the saliva having the properties it does. Dion's eye is also showing some staining under it. I am told that as soon as the puppies spend less time with her and after they leave at 8 weeks this coloring will disappear or be replaced by new hair growth....it is not a permanent condition. For peace of mind I will also be calling my vet this week to make sure I'm not missing any other possibility.
So, if you see color in the pictures....that is why, or they have laid in some poop that hasn't been cleaned up by mom. For those of you who do not know, as long as the puppies are nursing only, the mom will eat every bit of poop from the whelping box....if that isn't unconditional love, I don't know what is! I change blankets frequently but as you can imagine, 8 puppies pee and poop a lot!
The two smallest puppies Ms Purple and Ms Green continue to be the smallest....I am still giving them their own time on mom several times a day. It will be when I am feeding the puppy mush that they will make their big gains....my experience is that the small ones have the biggest percentage of gain between 4-8 weeks.
Puppies have been dewormed for the first time...I will repeat this at 4,6, and 8 weeks. By next weekend, teeth will start poking through...they will be much steadier on their feet also and they will start looking like beautiful puppies, instead of the cute little pups they are now. Their coats are coming in nicely - Dion has a fabulous full long coat....Romeo's isn't quite as full. Some very nice heads on the puppies and beautiful profiles - nice short snouts with a broader forehead. Will take individual head shots next week and post on the website.
I've mentioned in several posts in the past year that I always learn or experience something new with each litter. With this one, the plugged teat on Dion has happened twice...first time in the first few days after birth and now again this week. Was able to soften things for her again and the milk is flowing again. The other new thing is the discoloration that is happening with most of the pups. It started a few days after birth...noticed that the back end and back legs of Ms Purple were turning a rusty brown color....my initial thought was "Oh, Romeo is throwing some color with his pups" as this is the first time he has sired a litter for me. Ms Green also was sporting some brown coloring....because they are under the red heat lamp it can distort the coloring also. I took a close look at all the puppies and see that they all have some light brown coloring under their chins.....the areas that have color are all areas that Dion would clean. So some google research and breeder forum posts have helped me understand what is happening. It's Dion's saliva that has something that is causing color...she is a vigorous licker so that is why all puppies are showing color. I am feeding a high quality food which I think is what is responsible for the saliva having the properties it does. Dion's eye is also showing some staining under it. I am told that as soon as the puppies spend less time with her and after they leave at 8 weeks this coloring will disappear or be replaced by new hair growth....it is not a permanent condition. For peace of mind I will also be calling my vet this week to make sure I'm not missing any other possibility.
So, if you see color in the pictures....that is why, or they have laid in some poop that hasn't been cleaned up by mom. For those of you who do not know, as long as the puppies are nursing only, the mom will eat every bit of poop from the whelping box....if that isn't unconditional love, I don't know what is! I change blankets frequently but as you can imagine, 8 puppies pee and poop a lot!
The two smallest puppies Ms Purple and Ms Green continue to be the smallest....I am still giving them their own time on mom several times a day. It will be when I am feeding the puppy mush that they will make their big gains....my experience is that the small ones have the biggest percentage of gain between 4-8 weeks.
Puppies have been dewormed for the first time...I will repeat this at 4,6, and 8 weeks. By next weekend, teeth will start poking through...they will be much steadier on their feet also and they will start looking like beautiful puppies, instead of the cute little pups they are now. Their coats are coming in nicely - Dion has a fabulous full long coat....Romeo's isn't quite as full. Some very nice heads on the puppies and beautiful profiles - nice short snouts with a broader forehead. Will take individual head shots next week and post on the website.
