Pix - 2 Days Shy of 5 Weeks

Lolly & Dora /\

Brother & Spider /\

Molasses & Jack /\

Marco & Eastwood /\


Individual pix on the website.

And Then There was One

The last available male pup has been spoken for.

Which leaves just one female.

And here's the deal, folks... there is one I've fallen in love with and if someone doesn't come to her rescue SOON, I'll make up my mind to keep her! With Emy and her daughter, Cotton, there was one female available in each litter and I didn't care which of the girls I "got stuck" with because they were all terrific. And THESE 3 girls are all terrific as well. It's just that one of them speaks to me.

The Final Frontier
The pups have made what is probably the last major discovery of their lives... newspaper! No, I don't mean for potty breaks. They've discovered that newspaper is light, easy to move and makes wonderful noises as it is crumbled up and shredded. Yep, ONE picked up a sheet by the edge yesterday and shook his head. He was absolutely delighted that the paper shook as well... and the sound attracted a couple other pups. And that was all she wrote! Newspaper is now fair game!

What to Talk about Today?

Now that the pups have learned everything there is to know, they aren't doing anything new. They are ALL staying out of the nest most of the time although some of them go back in to sleep and at night 5-6 of them climb back in and stay there. (The 2-3 who don't are usually Molasses and Hungry Jack and one of the blond pups, but never the same one!) I'm going to take the pool out of there and replace it with the bottom of a large airline crate. That way, they'll have some place "safe" they can go for emergencies and they will get used to the feel/smell of the crate plastic. They are wrestling much more often and more actively... Marco got pinned by his sister, Lolly, yesterday and wasn't happy about it, so when she let him up, he tried the same maneuver on little Spider. It didn't work because she planted her feet and refused to go down. None of them have learned, yet, how to use their chests to bowl the other pups over.

Everyone has a name now... the black-n-tan fellow is Brother and the smaller blond guy, who has been the pup with no name for so long, is Eastman after the man with no name. You all realize, I hope, that these are just "call names" or what I am calling them. They can be changed as soon as you get your puppy. My nicknames for them could be anything... I once had a litter of parti-colored Poodles that I called One through Six. Each of them is now Max or Sam or Daisy, whatever, with no ill effects.

Second worming is today. Didn't see any worms the first time... I know, YUCK!... but it is a fact of life with dogs. Just like puppy breath and, dare I say it, humping!

My new puppy

If you haven't been on the Double Doodle page on the website, you haven't met Wombat. Her name is Mountain Summit What's One More and, as with Ost, I'm using her initials for her call name... WOM. She's 7 weeks old in the photo and is a backcross Goldendoodle. Her mom is a Goldendoodle puppy... a sister of my Keogh... I placed with a breeder friend in Georgia. And her dad is the littermate to my standard Poodle girl, Darlin, who now lives in Canada. So, Wombat is going to be moving in with family when she comes here! But that won't be for about 6 weeks. I hope she stays that red (but it's doubtful.)

4 Weeks Yesterday

Happy birthday to us! Things have gone so smoothly with this group, I'm on pins and needles waiting for something to happen! Just to be sure, I took some of the pups to see the vet on Tuesday... which is something I never do unless there is a problem. Just so you know, everyone got a clean bill of health and a big thumbs up. Jane was impressed with their ability to get around at such a young age. The two smallest pups, CURRENTLY, are Spider at 1 pound 7 ounces and the black-n-tan boy at 1 pound 11 ounces. That is actually rather small, but not necessarily a bad thing! Everyone is eating and drinking out of the bowls as well as nursing. If it were a little cooler, they'd be the happiest pups in the world. Because of the high temps, every afternoon I put a wet towel in the nest and all of them plunk their bellies down and sleep for hours. Each of them has figured out how to get out and back in (much harder for some reason) the pool. Interestingly, the new seems to have worn off that activity and 6 of them seldom do it... the two reddish boys, Hungry Jack and Molasses, however, spend as much time OUT as they do in. They are also the pups who are a little more confident on their feet... trying to run, rearing back on their haunches and launching themselves at other pups, climbing up on the sides of the pen, etc. AND they are aware of the dogs on the other side of the pen who are totally intrigued by the pups. Only one has started wagging his tail and he does it every time I touch him... Hungry Jack LOVES to be massaged along his back and down his sides.

Milestones

The seven days between week 3 and week 4 are chock full of new experiences! I noticed yesterday when I had all the pups out of the nest so I could clean up that two of them stuck their noses in the water bowl. They immediately backed away and then did it again. It's been hot here so I'm sure they've been a little thirsty from time to time when mom has left them for a couple hours. So, I put the water bowl and the food bowl in the nest. They all take a lap or two every now and then. And one of them... the heretofore unnamed lightest red guy... has discovered the food bowl. He's now Hungry Jack. And Jack has been quick to spread the word to the rest of the litter. This morning, 3 blond heads were in the bowl at one time and during the day I've seen every pup get some kibble. So far, this has been a really good bunch!

Genetics
On tv this weekend, I heard a great explanation of how you can make genetic theory work for you. A woman was worried that her unborn child was going to inherit some bad genes and a man told her that according to genetic theory only one in 4 offspring inherits whatever so the trick was to have only 3.
Unfortunately, way too many breeders think that IS the way it works.

More Progress

So we have ears that work! This morning there were a couple barks AND two pups practicing their growls. They sound more like kittens purring, but they'll get better over time!

AND yesterday I lied to Rob... I told him so far none of the pups had gotten out of the nest and that is was very unusual. Of course, just a few minutes after I sent the email, I heard an "I'm lost!" cry which I didn't think much of... and didn't go investigate... because how lost can you be in a plastic pool with a 4' diameter? But the cry continued and started to sound like more than one puppy. Sure enough, there were TWO out of the pool and trapped in the small area between its round side and the corner. AND the bottom of the pool was moving! Dora was underneath the floor. Thank goodness I didn't wait too long to check because she was still on her feet and apparently not having any trouble breathing, but NOW I worry that she could have been smothered. The two in the corner were... wait for it... Lolly and Spider! Yep, all 3 girls! Some hours later, they had escaped again and this time they took their black and tan brother with them! The two smallest pups in the litter have managed to figure out a way over the side but the bigger pups are still happily playing in the nest.

Montana
Speaking of black and tan puppies, this is Montana who lives in Manhattan. She was black and tan when she left here a few months ago. And I mean COAL black. Look what big city pollution has done to her!


Doodle Pups
Cathy, from 4everdoodles.com, sent me this picture of my new grandbabies:

TWELVE, all black, 2nd generation LABRAdoodles. Mom is Lilly who is from Shadow and Ravin's last litter. Just look at how shiny and BLACK those coats are. Know someone interested in a Labradoodle? Have them get in touch with Cathy!

A Day in the Life of a Pup

The day starts out, as all days should, with a hearty breakfast.
Of course, there is always someone who has to sleep in late. (That's the largest red guy.)


After about 10 minutes, the pups are full and fall asleep. Emy sometimes stays in with them, but usually during the day she leaves the pool and sleeps right outside.


An hour or so later, it's time for a snack.


And this is repeated over and over all day... and night.
Sometimes, the pups wake up and mom doesn't bother joining them in the pool so they occupy the time until the dinner bell rings by practicing things like walking and tussling.

This morning, for the first time, one of them barked. That usually means their ears are opening. To test how far along that was, I rattled the pen a little and several of them looked around. Tomorrow, when everyone's ears are open, they'll all be barking at every sound they hear. That usually lasts 24-36 hours and then they just accept noises unless they are extremely loud. Next week, when the grass is being cut right outside the window, they'll all be upset.

And to refresh your memory, this is the way they looked 22-1/2 days ago when they were 12 hours old.

BIG Progress

Monday night I was watching tv and Marco WALKED across the nest. Made all 4 feet just as steady as can be. All day long the gang was practicing being up on all 4s... they are now trying to squat for certain activities... but they couldn't get more than one foot moved before they fell, kerplunk! And then big ol' Marco! Yesterday, most of them were able to move several steps before going down and this morning you'd think they'd been walking all their lives! The interesting thing is Emy gets into the nest and goes to the opposite side from where they've all gathered, so they have to come to her for mothering. She stays a few minutes, then leaves, then does it again. Very smart mama, that Emy.

And to celebrate being 3 weeks old, they've started wrestling with each other. Now, this is from a lying down position, but there are heads being bumped together and mouths closed around other pups' feet and heads.

They grow up so fast!

Updates - Pups and Preakness

Okay, this is Lolly, the medium size one of the 3 girls. On the website I put that she doesn't have white on her face. Well, this morning, I checked her in the sunlight and I was wrong about that (imagine that!) She is pale blond, like the others, BUT there is the faintest amount of white on her face, just like the photo shows. The picture makes her blond look darker which makes the white more prominent than it actually is BUT as the hair gets longer, the white will probably be more visible to the casual looker. Unless, of course, her blond LIGHTENS up more.... ANYway, that's Lolly!

No Triple Crown Again This Year
I'm beginning to wonder if we'll ever get another one! In case you didn't see the race, Super Saver finished 8th, the same spot he started from. His jockey said he just didn't have the energy to hang in there although he ran in second for most of the way. Looking at Lucky, with a new, very young jockey up, finally won. Here's something interesting... just before the race started I wrote down the names of my 1-4 winners in order (you can only bet on 1-3 but the 4th place horse does win money.) My order started with Super Saver... not because I think he's a super colt but because of wishful thinking... followed, in order, by First Dude, Paddy O'Prado and something-or-other-Twist. I didn't have Lucky in there at all. Paddy I thought would do well after the way he ran the Derby (he finished 5th yesterday;) I've liked First Dude because of his name (I thought he was named after Bill Clinton but it turns out his dam is Run Sarah Run...) and the Twist horse I chose because of Jack Twist from Brokeback. Forget about Paddy O'Prado... Nick Zito (remember him?)'s horse, Jackson Bend, came in third. BUT second place went to Dude and fourth to Twist! Guess I should stick to picking long shots! One other thing... Lucky's jockey, Kent Desormeaux, was taken off him after the Derby and accepted a ride on Dublin (who also ran in the Derby and was running in the Preakness.) Lucky for Dublin and Desormeaux, they were in gate 12, the last one. At the break, Dublin veered sharply right (instead of bearing left toward the rail and the rest of the field.) It was really weird. But his jock got him back under control and although he was dead last for most of the race, he finished 5th or 6th.

So the Belmont is in 3 weeks and it's the last of the Triple Crown races. It's a little longer than the Derby and should be pretty interesting... look for Ice Box, running fresh after 5 weeks off. And that's as far as I'm going with this!

Two Things

New photos on the website
Sorry, but they are far from the greatest ever. They are marginally acceptable. But at least you can see something of the pups individually.
You have to click on the photo of the black puppy (like the pix below) and it will take you to a separate page of just puppy heads.

Second
I've decided Cotton is NOT "with pup" and have removed that info from the website. Maybe next time... and I just hope it's not another year before she comes back into heat!

Another Country Heard From

Ann-Marie sent me some pictures of Hershey and Biscuit. Biscuit (the spraddle legged blond!) is from the last Di/Brogue litter and is Hershey's uncle. Hershey is from Emy and Shadow. They live in the Atlanta area and have 5 (6?) year old triplets to keep them occupied. Ann-Marie said she was ready for another little puppy but the kids (and hubby) put the kabosh on the idea!

My apologies to Nick Zito
Well, guess who doesn't know what she's talking about! I said some harsh things about Nick Zito yesterday and I'm taking them back today. Yes, he HAS won the Belmont with some horses who have not run in the Preakness... but they didn't run in the Derby either. So it's not like he's skipped the Preakness just to be a spoiler in the Belmont. Yes, last year he scratched Miner's Escape from the P and entered him in the B... he finished 10th (last.) In 2008, Zito saddled Da'Tara in the Belmont and he, of course won. (Also of course, Da'Tara stopped Big Brown's Triple Crown bid in its tracks... although BB wouldn't have won that day anyway.) In 2007, Nick put CP West in both the P (finished 4th) and the B (led part of the way and then finished way back) and in 2006 his horse was Hemmingway's Key who finished out of the money in both races. Worthy of note: the 2006 Belmont was won by Jazil and the 2007 was won by the filly, Rags to Riches, who just happens to be Jazil's maternal half-sister. Their mom, Better than Honour, is also the dam of the 2008 humdinger, Casino Drive, but that's another story! ANYWAY, my sincerest apologies to Mr. Nick Zito and next year I'll do my research BEFORE running my mouth!

They're Two Weeks Old!

And still sleeping soundly! Generally there's not a peep out of this group... unless... someone is lost or being sat on by Mom. Emy has them pretty much divided into a group of 5 and one of 3. Yesterday, the same pups stayed in the same group all day, but this morning the groups were different. A couple puppies have their eyes open... Molasses, for one. He's the darkest red and, since he has a black face right now, I can barely see his eyes. Marco, the larger blond guy, also has his open. Several others have slits and the rest are still tightly shut. Marco and the lighter red boy are getting up and standing, spraddle-legged, on all 4s... but they collapse as soon as they try to move a foot. ALL of them are trying to get up and walk; they just aren't quite there yet. They are all 8 pretty much where I expect them to be at this age.

Pictures in the next day or two.

One reminder: pups are picked in the order deposits are received. This usually happens around 4-8 weeks of age, depending on what exactly the earlier pickers are looking for. Unless the families who purchased first tell me they are definitely NOT interested in a particular puppy, I can't allow someone else to choose it. You'll just have to wait your turn.

Preakness
Can't say that I'm particularly excited about this week's Preakness. For one thing, Zito is not running Icebox. You'll remember Icebox was 2nd in the Derby and running down Super Saver even though he had probably the worse run of all 20 horses. Zito has a habit of skipping the Preakness so he can enter a fresh horse in the Belmont 3 weeks later and spoil any chance of a Derby-Preakness winner taking the Triple Crown. It may bring in some dough for Zito and his owner(s) but it really ticks me off that that is more important to them than a real test of their horse's ability. It's just not good sportsmanship. Paddy O'Prado is also entered... he finished 3rd in the Derby and was still running at the finish line, so that might be interesting. Looking at Lucky is in... can hardly wait to see if he finally gets a good trip.

Was sad to learn today that Eskendereya, who had to be scratched from the Derby, has been retired from racing. He showed a lot of promise.

Still Can't Say about Cotton

I know many of you are frustrated with the Cotton situation. SHE is about the only one who seems perfectly comfortable right now. Just so you know I haven't forgotten about it, she has some MINOR mammary swelling but hasn't gained an ounce! IF she is pregnant, it's just a pup or two.

Update on Emy's babies
Looks like there are 2 males and 1 female still available in the Emy/Sparky litter. Picks have not been made as yet, although several people have indicated an initial preference. Just a reminder... picks are made in the order deposits were received.

Dora has an explorer brother... Marco Polo, the lightest blond (with the back dewclaw.) ALL weekend long I've had to go retrieve him from where he'd gotten lost in the nest. The pups are in a blow-up swimming pool (my favorite whelping box, although I never let moms actually whelp in them as they tear them to shreds.) The blown up sides act as a pig rail (which gives the pups some escape room, preventing them from being smashed by their mom... well, it buys them enough time to scream their heads off and I go to the rescue!) and the lack of corners means a lost puppy will eventually make it all the way around and back to the litter. That's the theory anyway. Haven't seen that happen... maybe I don't wait long enough! The "I've wandered away and can't get back" cries are too much for me to handle, especially in the middle of the night. Sometimes, Emy gets tired of listening to it before I do and retrieves the rover, but they're getting bigger... most over a pound now... and I really don't want her picking them up. She scoops them INTO her mouth... I've never seen a mom carry a pup by the scruff of the neck... as far as I can tell, that's a cat thing. By the way, pups can't back up; they can only go forward. Which makes hard sides, especially with corners, rather trying for them. I expect, now that the eyes are beginning to open, more and more babies will be wandering around.

A couple others have gotten nicknames this weekend... as they've gotten larger and stronger, their suction powers have increased. When I go in and ask Em if she'd like a potty break, she bounces up. She used to shed pups when she rose, but now three of them hang on for dear life and she'll make it almost out of the nest before they all finally let go. SO they are Molasses (the darkest red boy,) Spider (as in web... ever try to get one of those off you?) and Lolly (pop, an all day sucker!) The last two are Dora's sisters. I don't usually name pups unless I'm planning to keep them so it just shows you there is a lot of personality in this litter!

Em's Pups at 1 Week

And here they are, early this morning... well, early for THEM... on their 8th day. First, the girls

Girly info... the two forming the "L" are slightly smaller and just a smidge darker the the one by herself (who happens to be Dora the Explorer, the pup I wrote about previously.) It's really too soon to see what their noses are going to do, but if I had to venture a guess today, I'd say they're going to stay fairly light.

These are the two already blond boys

Don't try to judge size by this shot. They ARE bigger than the girls but not as much as this picture makes them look. The one on the left is a scoch darker than the other guy and the other guy is the one with the single back dewclaw.

Then, the black (and tan with white) and the two wheaten red (will lighten up to some shade of blond, maybe with lace) boys

You can't see it in this photo but all 3 have tan on their lower legs. The two "reds" are about the same size as the blond boys and the black fella is the smallest in the litter AT THIS TIME. Also, his black has somewhat of a "dusty" look to it which often means it is going to change... either turn silver or blue or get highlights throughout.

They are all doing well (knock on wood, fingers crossed) and have finished their precautionary antibiotics. They are strong as little oxen... I really have to hang on to them when I pick one up. Right now, they don't particularly like being disturbed and think any time they're awake, they're supposed to be at the buffet table. Emy has her own dinner schedule and will often get back in the nest and wake up 3 or 4 to eat. I am still amazed that dogs are smart enough to assign meal times to particular pups! Emy's not the first one I've had do this and she does, occasionally, feed all of them at once. But more often than not, half of them will be snoozing and the other half sucking it in!

I'm going to have similar but different shots of the gang on the website later today.

Fine, We're All Fine

We have no flooding or other rain issues where I am. In fact, my "road" has dried out so much today, my neighbor up the hill has already graded it to smooth out the ruts. The nice thing about living toward the bottom of the hill is I don't have much of a way to go to reach the county road, so even when my road is really bad, I can just take my time and not do any damage to my car. And the other nice thing is, the guy above me who takes care of the road... on his own, I might add... has to go right passed my house when he's grading!

The Pups
are doing well. They're really growing and all of them have some solid weight to them when I pick them up (unlike kittens who always feel like air!) The smallest, RIGHT NOW, is the black boy (who is actually black and tan) and the largest are the dark blond boy and the wheaten red guy. The rest are all clumped in the middle. BUT there is really just a little difference in their individual weights.

The largest of the 3 girls is an explorer. Twice yesterday she moved far enough away from the pack to get lost. It is hot and the pups are sleeping sprawled out (Emy is sleeping outside the nest whenever feeding and cleaning chores allow.) Dora the explorer crawls away, finds a cool spot and takes a nap. But when she wakes up... where's MOM!?

I'm going to take a couple new photos... by gender... in the next day or two and will post right away.

One female is still available and the boys, of course.

Derby Day
I was not particularly pleased with network coverage of the Derby... maybe they just didin't have that many interesting stories to tell this year, but I thought it was a little heavy on cooking, mint julips, fashion and hats. (Note: fashion and hats were two different subjects.) Then we got to the actual race... it was nice Todd Pletcher finally got a win. And it was nice it was Super Saver, one of the ones I liked. Yeah, okay, so I picked 5 and he was the only one in the money. Actually, he was the only one in the top NINE. The filly, Devil May Care, was 10th and my others were back... way back!

Personally I'm REALLY tired of the excuse Looking at Lucky's camp has every time he doesn't win... he had a bad trip. Well he's had a few of those recently. That was the excuse for him in the Derby. However, it turns out the horse that finished second, Icebox, had an even worse trip and he still made up the distance. In fact, if this had been the Belmont (which is longer than the Derby,) Icebox might have caught Super Saver... and Lucky would still have been running behind them.

You don't hear me... or her people... making excuses for Rachel Alexandra who is 2 for 2 this year. She's just getting outrun, even if it is by a nose. Maybe her time has come and gone or maybe she's matured/changed physically over the last few months and hasn't gotten it under control as yet. She's still my girl!