Craig reports that Maya's tail is three inches longer than Teaka's. So I had to measure, and found the same thing: Faith's tail is two inches longer than McKenzie's. (Teaka, by the way, is McKenzie's sister, so I've always wondered if Maya (formerly Miss Pink) recognized the resemblance and thought Teaka was kinda McMommy to her.)
It is very strange -- to me, anyway -- raising a puppy who has been here all her life. Faith is so bold and comfortable, a resilient problem-solver who acts as if she owns the place. The only one of the dogs who informs her that she does not is her mother, although in general they are so adorable and sweet with each other, their wild play in the yard punctuated by extremely loud rounds of bitey-face.
OK, the latest pictures. Top: Keen (formerly Miss Purple). Middle: Dooley (formerly Blaze Orange Bob, a/k/a BOB), and Faith, a/k/ FayBee (Faith plus Baby) the former Miss Red with McKenzie.
Got more? Send 'em. I was talking about the puppies to a friend of mind, and how glad I am for the experienced, loving homes they're in, and how I can't help but to wonder how they're doing. She isn't a dog person -- or a pet person at all, really -- and she thought that was somewhat strange. It never occurred to her that the kind of breeders we long to be and to work with NEVER stop caring about the dogs we bring into the world! -- Gina
It true, I'm sorry to report, but I have to be honest with my sibs!
Mom went away on Thursday, after complaining about not getting any breakfast. Very confusing and upsetting to me, especially since I was very worried that the "no food" phenomenon would spread to puppies, too. (It didn't ... whew!)
She comes back the next day, but she smells like that place we visited a couple times, remember? Once with grandma Katie? I've been back there twice by myself since you all left, and the people are still really nice, give me cookies and everything while poking me with a needle. OK, I don't like that last part but everything else is nice.
But it's not just the smell. I go to her and her belly is all shaved, and she says she just wants me to leave her alone because she is in pain. I figure I misunderstand, right? I mean, our mom wouldn't tell me to leave her alone! And maybe with the shaved area the milk bar is open again, never hurts to check I figure.
Oh, was I wrong! I nosed her and before Nice Lady could grab me our mom -- OUR MOM! -- pins me to the floor and screams at me. "I SAID LEAVE ME ALONE!" she barks. "I'VE JUST BEEN SPAYED!"
Whatever. I mean, wow, what a bitch. Seriously.
Now, she is in a crate to protect me from her grumpy self. Serves her right, I say. She also said she was GLAD she was spayed because she doesn't want any more puppies.
That kind of insulting, don't you think?
Yours most sincerely,
Faith
P.S. Nice Lady says Grandma Katie is going to start blog a little soon, as soon as NL has a couple minutes to figure out how to add authors.
Faith doesn't seem to miss her siblings much, probably because she still has plenty of company. I can't wait for the weekend to have more time with the animals. I think Woody and McKutie deserve a river run this weekend. Heather would like one, too, but even with her lifejacket I fear the water's still too cold from Sierra runoff for her to go in.
And the puppy, of course, can't go to the river yet: Too many unknowns until she's completely vaccinated, and too much current for a baby.
Instead, she'll be visiting two of my favorite puppy-socialization sites: The patios at Peet's and Whole Foods.
All the puppies are home with their new families, and I am still sorting through the feelings in the aftermath of their leaving. I'm so happy to have such wonderful families, and heaven knows I don't miss cleaning up after six fast-growing youngsters. But I'm really sad (sometimes even weepy, I have to admit) to think that I may never see them in person again. I mean, thank heavens for social networks like Flickr and Facebook for the news updates and the pictures, but still: I will never forget the ZinKuties, and what it was like to have them be mine for the first nine weeks of their lives.
I'll be wrapping up this blog when I get the first round of pictures from the new families, and all the names for the puppies are set. And then I'll leave it up, frozen, for a few months so all the families can download all the baby pictures they want.
Will I raise a litter again? Probably so, but even now I can think of so many little things I would have done differently, mostly involving ways to keep things better organized, or easier to keep clean. And I would certainly arrange for two weeks of vacation around due date. These pups were fine while I was at work, since I can come home for lunch, but the absence was too hard on me -- the worrying nearly killed me. Next time, I will stay home with them until I'm really sure they're thriving.
I went home and fed Faith at lunch, and she sat happily and eagerly for her dish. She peed while I was at work this morning, but waited until I got home to run outside and complete her business. What a good puppy she is! And she just seems happy, confident, bright and eager to see what's coming next. (She also, I decided at lunch, looks much more like her mother than I had yet realized.)
Yes, I miss her siblings. Very, very much. I miss holding them, snuggling them, watching them and burying my nose in their fur.
But there is joy, too, in knowing that I have put some great babies in some great homes, with the help of Mary and Katie, the other "grandmas." Also, with the help of Judy, Arleen, Pat, Christie, T-Rod, Susan and Rolan, Marty and my veterinarians (Dr. Bill and Dr. Kim) and the great staff at VCA Sacramento Veterinary Referral Center. I've never raised a litter before, and they friends were all with me, every step of the way. We cried together, and we shared the good stuff, too. They were always there with just the right advice.
I guess it really does take a village, for puppies, too!
Today: They got Sentinel, for heartworms, roundworms, etc.
Friday: Dr. Bill!!! First vax (DHPP) and microchips. Health check, flight certs.
Saturday: Final evals and placement decisions.
Sunday: I chew my nails to the bone until everyone is safe on the ground and in the arms of their new families.
You new families will ALL SEND PICTURES IMMEDIATELY.
Also: You will all be getting mail from Embrace pet insurance, to activate your free two-month policy. They don't have a breeder plan, but Laura Bennett at Embrace is a regular follower of the PetConnection.com blog and is trying this as a bit of a pilot program. So take her up on the offer, OK?
Also also: Got an e-mail notification that the litter is registered. The paperwork will be here before the puppies go.
So .... you'd better start thinking of names!
Finally: You know the puppies are tired when they sit and ask to be PUT BACK IN THE PEN FOR THE NIGHT!! Now THAT's a first!
I'm sorry I don't have pictures, but that's because on a whim I threw open the gate to the creekside wasteland outback, very first time. There's about three acres owned by a half-dozen or so different people, the land all fenced off by the backyards of the houses that surround it. I used to take the dogs back there a lot more, but the urban creek gets really nasty from the crap people throw in it upstream, and the land is covered with foxtails all summer long. Basically, once the weather gets hot, we quit going back there.
Spending $4,000 in veterinary costs to find one foxtail is enough foxtails for a lifetime.
But it's that bad back there yet, so out we went. The big dogs went flying, but the puppies stayed pretty much in a group, following me. We walked all around the least foxtailed of areas, avoiding the creek because it's already nasty and brackish. Spent about 20 minutes just walking around, until the puppies started looking tired.
I whistled the big dogs inside the yard, and the puppies followed happily.
After being out back, the dogs get picked over for foxtails and burrs, and then a spraying off with the hose for dirt and whatever chemical crap is floating through the creek on any given day. (Drew the Sheltie skips the spray-off because he won't go near the creek.)
I turned on the hose and started spraying off adult retrievers -- and the puppies stayed in the spray zone!
They eemed to enjoy it, too, getting drenched in the water that was bouncing of the grown-ups and licking the drops off their lips. By the time we were done, everyone (except of course Drew) was sopping wet, and happy about it, too.
Lunch for the puppies and back in the pen. They're angels today, which just confirms my theory that the crazy terrors they've been on the nights after I'm in the office is because they've had nothing to do while I was gone and lots of time to charge up for when I got home. Toys, even the kibble-stuffed kind, just don't compete with lots of fresh air and running when you're a puppy.
This morning each pup was take outside just by himself or herself. I want to start each getting clicker training and time apart from the sibs. Here's how it went:
First the puppy pees, and then he or she would come over to see what I was doing. I had the bowl of treats and the clicker ready.
Treat/click, click/treat to establish the connection … about 30 times. They really started putting the pieces together ... such bright little babies!
Next, I put the bowl and clicker down and picked up and started snuggling the puppy, singing,
“the wheels in the pup go round and round, round and round, round and
round …” while swinging in the chair. This was the best part!
Then, I put the sleepy puppy
down and walk outside the perimeter of the yard, encouraging the puppy
to follow. Two laps, more pee and poop from the puppy. A little more snuggling, lots of praise, then back in the pen.
Repeat for each puppy.
We'll do it again this evening.
***
Ready to start the journey over? Jennifer Stanley has started a puppy blog for Paris' litter, due Friday. She invites us all to read, and writes:
Make your litter guess, win and have the foundation donation
in your name!
The theme word for my litter is life. We almost lost two of
our adult children over the last couple of years. We appreciate anew just how
precious life is. One of the boypups will be named Life In The Fast Lane.
Katie sent six little pup-sized stuffed ducks, and they're great for retrieving. Last night with none of the adult dogs around, we really got to fuss over the puppies and let them play with toys. This weekend: More visitors, more play-with-a-purpose.
Matters of record: Today, worming. Friday June 5, the official vet visit for first shot, microchip and heath certs. And then, they'll be your problemswonderful puppy bundles of love, not mine. (I keed, I keed: I am going to weep copiously when myMcKenzie's babies leave. I can't believe how quickly the weeks have passed! I don't want myMcKenzie's puppies to go! )
She sent me a note telling me that since the puppies have discovered that the yard is great fun, next would come the moment when they realize they don't have to come in from there. Last night, of course, that's exactly what happened.
Previously, a "puppies!puppies! puppies!" croon had them all running in my direction. Last night, I crouched down to pick up one of the puppies to take her in -- and she bolted, spun, play bowed with an evil gleam in her eye and bolted in the other direction. She wanted me to chase her!
Instead, I sat in the swinging chair and let everyone run themselves around a little more until I could see that they were starting to fade. As they tired, they all came to me and flopped nearby. I picked them up in pairs and put them in their pen for the night.
If they're going to be getting bratty, it's clearly time to head for their new homes!
Teresa and Sprint will be arriving this afternoon!
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