8 Weeks Old Today

Afternoon ouside, the pups becoming bolder and bolder about exploring.
Here, they all are 50-60 feet away from me (with Keogh confined in the house.)

Then, Ke had been allowed out with them for a while when a rain storm dropped by unannounced... no thunder or lightning or even cloudiness... and Ke headed for the house, followed closely by the gang. That's Bud-Light bringing up the rear because, as usual, he was the farthest away.


There will be individual pix of the 4 on the website in a little bit.

Weights
Do I know my stuff or what... some times, anyway! From under 2.5 pounds at 4 weeks to 9 (yes, NINE) at 8. The three boys are all right at the 9 pound mark (with Bart and Bud-Light just a tad over) while little Betty stays little. She is only 6.5 pounds.
According to the 10%/every 4 weeks formula, these weights mean the guys will mature around 45 pounds (ideal weight) and Betty will be 30-35. This formula is a fairly good guess enhancer, but not totally accurate.

Shots
All four behaved pretty well when they got their first shot... except Betty wanted to argue a bit. I think she really just wanted down since she'd been in the middle of moving some newspaper out of the pen when I grabbed her. The newspapers have been Shadow's delight for many weeks and now the rest of the gang has joined in. They shred it all over, after rearranging every sheet I put in there.
BUT they ARE using it reliably so if they want it in a different location, that's fine with me!

A night out
Keogh spent the night in the bedroom! In fact, yesterday, once she decided the pups were in a safe place in the dog room and had spent some time playing with them in the yard, she ignored them completely. And THEY didn't seem to mind.
One interesting thing, when the storm rolled in, I took Shadow, Betty and Bud inside but Bart had already found shelter under a bush and I wasn't crawling under there after him! I left the door open and then got busy on the computer, forgetting about him. Ke did too or so I thought. She slept on the floor by my feet for a while... the storm was a short, light one... then eventually, she went back outside. And stayed there for over an hour. When I remembered Bart was still outside, I found them both asleep under the bush. Now THAT is a great mom!
Betty is her mom's favorite, something that became very obvious today. She spent most Of her time with them this afternoon play wrestling and romping with her daughter, getting up and moving off whenever one of the boys jumped in. I often see moms treating their female pups differently than the males.
One last thing...
Considering how mature these babies are, I do not think any of these puppies would have difficulties settling in a new home right now, especially if there was another dog there. And yet, DAILY I see them learning stuff from each other, as well as the rest of the dogs here, which they would not pick up if I let them go at 8 weeks. For one thing, puppies treat puppies differently than dogs treat puppies. Pups are MUCH less tolerant of being bitten too hard, for example, and immediately bite the offender back which is a great teaching/learning technique. Humans tend to NOT bite puppies, relying on voice commands or smacking the biter to correct the behavior. And mature dogs generally just walk away, depriving the pup of its chew toy.

Emy "heat" update
It IS Em the boys are excited about, but, for the life of me, I can't see why. She has NONE of the physical signs of being in season. And yet she is willing to be "friends with benefits" with each and every one of them. Which means, she is NOT going to be with anyone except Sparky, just in case...!

Moving, Moving, Moved

I just moved the pups from the computer room to the dog room (right next door.) For the last couple days, ALL the males in the house have been telling me someone is in heat. I think it is Emy (BUT don't get excited. It's WAAY too soon and if she IS cycling, she's probably not going to "take" if I breed her. BUT I am going to breed her, if it is her and not little Peri, just in case I'm wrong. Again.) However, the problem is the dogs are fussing with each other, even in the middle of the night, and the only really separate pen I have is the one the pups were in in the computer room. So now I'll have to listen to the boys barking at the puppies... until they get used to them (about 24 hours...) but they won't be fighting with each other.

The puppies are a little confused with the move, but not upset. It's good for them! Keogh was NOT pleased and I'm going to let her stay with them all day if she wants... yesterday she was away from them from about 10AM till midnight.

We did not get outside this weekend... partially because of weather but mostly because I was feeling poorly and didn't want to expend the energy. Perhaps this afternoon since I'm feeling better... IF it doesn't pour as usual lately.

Pups will be 8 weeks tomorrow! Hard to believe. They get weighed again AND their first shots. Also have to clip those nails! So if we do get out today, I'll take the camera.

Lucky
(Jennifer's pup)
Getting a lot of response to his pictures on the website, but no one has decided to give him a chance as yet. He's no trouble and quite likeable, so I'm in no rush to place him.

****

This "o" business is still no fun!

Problem with Old Computer

This time it's the "o" key which isn't working. Yeah, yeah, I know, I've already used several of them. Well, a long time ago, I learned to cut and paste. However, remembering to do every time is problematic! So, insert where needed!

Mountain Summit Peridot
(aka Peri)
This is my Diamond/Brogue girl on her 8 months birthday. She is VERY small, smaller even than her mom who is around 18 pounds. Since I have so many people asking for pups who'll be under 25 pounds, I'm hoping breeding Peri with Sparky will give me some... although, when bred to Peri's FULL older sister, Emy (Emerald) most of his pups have been over that. But, Emy is about twice Peri's weight.




Peri with her mom, Diamond (Di)



Keogh almost over the pups
Ke is spending more and more time WILLINGLY away from the pups who are, after all, almost 8 weeks. AND have teeth. She's following me around (just like the old days) and just listening for the pups to sound off about something important. Come lights out, however, she wants back in the pen with them.

Do you know how many "o"s you use in just one sentence?!

New Freedom

And probably a mistake! The pups are loose in the computer room with full access to the dog room. So far, they have not been brave enough to venture very far into that room where a number of adult dogs are parked, barking every time they see a pup. Together and individually, they've come to me to be picked up and rubbed. Just like when they were outside, Bud has wandered the farthest while Shadow has stuck closest to me. HE has discovered my shoes and like most pups, is tickled to death to have shoe laces to pull on and chew. They are making short work of every electric cord (take this as a warning... put the cords up!) scrap of paper and dust ball in the computer room! They are chewing up the bag of dogfood... not the dogfood, just the bag (which I am now going to have to put in a plastic container to keep it from happening every time the babies are out.) Their mom just came in from outdoors and they all rushed up to her... she looked none too pleased to see them outside their pen and promptly took herself INSIDE the pen. They followed, did a little suckling, then headed back out to see what else they could get into. She's lying there, watching them. I let out Diamond, Emy and Peri who instead of going right out the door, went to inspect the puppies. Diamond and Emy each sniffed a couple and walked away. Peri threw herself on the floor, rolled on her back, jumped up and nuzzled the kids, dropped back to the floor... and made it perfectly plain that she wanted to PLAY! In a week or two, I'll let her go outside with them... she is MUCH more a puppy still than Boon and Lucky*** who are the same age, but I don't want to let her rough house with them until they're a little bigger. She's already counting the days!

These four have been SO terrific... they love it when I'm in the room with them and really pay attention whenever I speak to them... BUT they have been perfectly content to stay in their own area. Now... they'll probably have to be out whenever they see me. Oh the joys of growing up!

***
Jennifer's last pup
I've been calling him Bud but I'm pretty sure he dosen't consider that his name. And since there is a Bud in the Double Doodle litter (who also is telling me that's not his name,) I decided to call him something else. Yesterday, he responded immediately when I called him Lucky, so we're going with that for now.

Tommy Tomato

Pretty good size, I think, for just 4 weeks. And yes, Tommy is confined inside a wire dog crate. The last few years I've lost my tomato plants to critters... I DO live in the country, after all... so the crate is my solution. It is 42 inches tall, by the way, and Tom is hanging out of the top. I'm hoping the coons and possum won't climb....

Pix of Cotton and Boon

Taken this afternoon between showers. Hasn't he grown up quickly!

Pix of the last Jennifer pup

Isn't this a pretty head piece? This guy is 8 months and just got his first haircut.


"Bud" walks on a lead and rides nicely in the car... he even jumps in himself. However, he is NOT fond of being around folks he doesn't know. As he is exposed more and more to strangers, he is relaxing around them, but he is still leery. He has NEVER shown ANY signs of aggression, NO fear biting even at the groomer's. He is sweet and affectionate and LOVES full body massages! (But NOT on the first date!) He gets along well with other dogs. Bud really needs a home.

Award

We've gotten another award for the website, which tickles me to death since I designed and coded it from start to finish and wrote every word myself.

Awarded to top quality dog and puppies for sale sites.

And, yes, I am well aware these awards are given as a way of promoting the site that gives them. But I like them anyway!

Puppies are 7 weeks old today
and still the most amazing pups I've ever had. People who have known me for years tell me it's the most excited they've ever seen me about a litter. And they're growing like weeds! Must be the abundance of rain we've been having. Tomato plants and puppies! I'm planning to get them outside again this weekend, since it is supposed to be dry and normal temps (mid 80s.) Will take more pix then.

Two Days of Rain

HEAVY rain. 2 inches in less than 48 hours. And more to come.
And I'm fine with it (so far.)
The only problem is the thunder which is disturbing the dogs and, quite frankly, has been a little scary for me at times. It is the LOUDEST, WEIRDEST thunder I've ever hear... like a bomb going off. No warning (ie: no lightning preceding it, no lead in thunder, just a huge [HUGE] BOOM!) And then there is the more common, easy to take rolling thunder which starts in the distance, approaches like a freight train and then rolls on by until you can't hear it any more, all one continuous sound. The dogs aren't having any problem with that. Yesterday afternoon and this afternoon, the storms were over and the dogs got to go outside and STAY out there for a while. And even though the mornings have been really stormy, no one has "gone" in the house... well, except Keogh's pups but that's to be expected and she is still cleaning up after them. Don't know how long THAT is going to last!

Haven't had to water Tommy Tomato... my sole tomato plant... seems to have grown at least a foot since Saturday. There are a number of little yellow blooms, which I think is pretty good for a plant that is only about a month old. Going to have some really nice tomatoes very soon!

No Ill Effects

The pups seem to be just as happy today in their pen in the tv/computer room as they were yesterday BEFORE they discovered the great outdoors. Thank goodness! Usually, once puppies are exposed to outside, that's where they want to be. Maybe because these are only 6 weeks old (and there are only FOUR of them,) they have more than enough room to romp and play indoors, so they don't mind. They DO all attempt to get out every time I open the pen so their mom can leave, but they don't whine and try climbing the wire when they can't. Have I mentioned how much I'm liking this group?!

Toby in MA


Vicki reports that after 4 weeks in his new home, Toby has settled in nicely. He LOVES other dogs and is adjusting to meeting new people on his daily walks around the neighborhood. This is an Emy/Shadow pup. And judging by his coloring, I'm going to have to stop calling them "black and tans" and start calling them "blacks and SILVERS."
Black and tan is the name of the PATTERN (like in Dobies, Rotties, Bernese, etc.) and doesn't mean that's the only color combinations they come in, but that is probably confusing for people not versed in doggy color speak.

Pictures as Promised

A day late, but blame it on the weather!


Above is Bud and below is Betty


These are Bart and Shadow


These are the boldest pups I've ever had. They were not the least bit intimidated at being outside for the first time. In fact, Betty discovered the steps and got half way up them! Keogh came in and out and every time she showed up, they all went galloping over to her which complicated picture taking (as if I need another problem with that!) When she was in the house, Shadow and Betty hung around my feet, moving whenever I did but Bart and Bud wandered quite a distance from me.

More photos... LOTS of them... on the puppy photo page.

Outside - Briefly

Was forced out of bed VERY early this AM by the guys who were here to work on the yard. They wanted to get it... and a number of others... done before the temp went up and the thunderstorms got here. As a result, all the dogs had to go out into the puppy yard, which is all gravel hence no men working, and because their barking drives me crazy, they made quick work of it. Which meant... it was cool and nice and I thought I'd take the pups out for some pictures. They've never been outside before and, with all the noise of lawn mowers and weed eaters, I expected them to be really spooked. HA! The first ones out were the two partis... and as it turned out, they were the only ones who got out today. I got a couple quick shots of those two and the camera died. And, of course, I don't have any more batteries. So here's what there is for today...

Gravel smells different than tile

Bart on the left and Betty on the right. You can see he is bigger than she is.

Keeping an eye on the noisy intruders...


I love Bart's rear. It looks like he has one leg in his pants.

When I go up to town, I'll get some batteries and if the weather isn't too awful, will take Shadow and Bud out for some photos.

Jennifer's last pup
is still here. Jane, who has his unhappy brother, Jackson, was going to bring Jackson back yesterday and take Bud. But she's decided she is too attached to J and is going to give him more time to adjust. I can't believe he's being so stubborn and advised her to FORCE him to make up with her. It's been 6 weeks and so far, he's had it all his way. It's time he HAS to deal with his new situation. We'll see how THAT goes.

Which means, there is still a pup available.

Anyone..?

Whiny Pups

Noisy, crabby pups today. They're even getting on their mom's nerves. She just told Bud in no uncertain terms to get out of her face. That's the first time I've seen or heard her get on them about anything. Now she's as far away from them as she can get, lying on her belly so they can't nurse and will leave her alone for a while. They've played in her food and have pieces scattered all over the pen... which she will clean up when she gets hungry. I gave them a sock monkey to play with... it has a long body, a tail and 4 legs so there are places each of them can grab while playing tug of war. Every one of them has separately picked it up and shaken it. Some show on sheep herding I was watching last week said that was a sign that the dog being trained would kill the sheep... guess it's a good thing I don't have any! Seriously, I've never had a dog of ANY kind that wouldn't pick some things up and shake them so I don't think the trainer was correct about the killing bit... although it IS the way dogs kill vermin and small animals.

Jennifer's Pups
The last one is leaving this afternoon. I've gotten quite attached to this guy and am sorry to see him go. Well, sort of. He's a fairly big boy... not quite as big as Boon, my Wheaten pup who is about 3 weeks older... but big enough. And he HAD a TREMENDOUS coat. I had all his hair clipped off last week and he looks like a totally different fella!

Cooper Doodle


This is Cooper who lives in the Atlanta area. He is 7 years old.
Cooper has just had surgery for an ACL problem (Cruciate
ligament)... the first one of my dogs (that I know of) to have it although the article I read says it is a fairly common problem and can happen with any dog, any size, age or breed. Doesn't sound like a pleasant thing to go through especially as it involves lots of quiet time... months... after the surgery.

Belmont Day

Heavy rain in New York, wet track... maybe sloppy by race time. Animal Kingdom (Derby winner) and Shackleford (Preakness winner) are entered. An interesting fact: for the first time EVER, the first SEVEN finishers in the Derby are entered, among them the guy I've liked all season, Mucho Macho Man.

Belmont is the ONLY 1-1/2 mile track in the country. There are 4-5 mile and a half races each year and three of those are at Belmont (one was yesterday.)

The Breeders Cup Marathon is one and three-fourths miles!

And in today's race, I'm going to go with Animal Kingdom because he has been a strong runner after a mile. He didn't like all the dirt in his face in the Preakness... he's gonna HATE mud in his face today, so he'd better be close to the front. Even with a good trip, I don't think Shackleford can go the mile and a half. So my second place horse is Master of Hounds. Another horse I'm placing in the top 4 is Nehro even though he seems to spend a lot of energy fighting his jockey rather than concentrating on running. MMM is questionable since he seems to have a "problem" every race. I love his name and if he can manage to keep his shoes on... well who knows. (Maybe his people should run him shoeless on all 4 feet!)

IF today's race goes the way the ENTIRE rest of the season has, the winner will be someone who has NOT won anything worth mentioning so far this year!

UPDATE (post race)
I refer you to the last paragraph above. Fourteen 3 year old stakes races, THIRTEEN DIFFERENT winners.
Kudos to Ruler on Ice! (Stay Thirsty was 2nd with Brilliant Speed 3rd.)
This was Ruler's FIRST graded stakes victory and the FIRST time ever a gelding has won the Belmont. Ruler has run in 7 races, on 7 different tracks, at 6 different distances. Talented kid!
The horses I liked finished:
Nehro, 4th
Shackleford, 5th
Animal Kingdom, 6th
Mucho Macho Man, 7th
and Master of Hounds, 10th
And once again, MY horses are all clumped together... just not in front.

On to the Breeders Cup!

Not Much New

I've come to expect these Double pups are going to be ahead of the game and things now seem perfectly normal, even though they usually wouldn't be happening for another week or two. One thing which is pretty exciting... they are using the newspaper fairly often instead of just doing the usual 5 weeks old puppy stop-drop-poop/pee routine. They have what is for them a HUGE area (with newspaper covering a small 2' x 3' area) and they have already started to figure out there are places better suited for some things than others. And Keogh is still cleaning up after them as well as keeping their bottoms clean, so that is a pretty big concept. I caught myself planning to take them outside yesterday morning... but stopped when I remembered how young they are!

Smart Puppy

So it's hot here. I don't think we've had more than one day below 90 in the last two weeks... and that one was 88 or 89. Lucky for us, humidity has been fairly low. But it's hot. ALL the dogs are parked in front of fans... yes, I have a LOT of fans going. It would probably be cheaper to turn off the fans and turn ON the AC. But that would mean closing the windows and, frankly, I get tired of the house and everything in it smelling like dog all the time.

Now, for the smart puppy...
today's award goes to Shadow who has discovered lying in water as a way to aid the cooling process. Thankfully, he has NOT discovered playing in the water bowl as a way of splashing water on the ground to lie in. I'm sure that thought is roaming around in the back of his mind....

Of This and That

What I am seeing in individual puppies...
the "quiet" ones are Bart and Bud
the "instigator" is Betty
and the one who is most interested in activities outside the pen is Shadow.
Betty and Shadow are the most aware of me when I'm around.
Bud is really into the other dogs
while Bart is going through a mommy's boy stage.
They are all running, quite steady on their feet, and actually play fighting... I've even heard a couple of complaints from whatever puppy is "it" at the time.
(Please understand, this is what I'm seeing at 4-1/2 weeks and in a couple days, each pup will be doing something different.)
And I'm almost tempted to weigh them again because they feel like they've packed on at least a pound each since meeting puppy chow!
AND they're all getting hair. It's easier to see the fluffier coats on the partis but Shadow and Bud are puffing up as well.

(For anyone just dropping by the blog, these pups are Double Doodles. The next Whoodle litter won't be until Fall.)

Double Doodle puppy weights

It's Wednesday and the pups are 4 weeks old AND I weighed them first thing this morning.
Bart -- 2.4 pounds
Betty - 2.3
Bob - - 2.0
Bud - - 2.1
I expect there is going to be a dramatic increase in the next 4 weeks as the pups will be starting on "real" food later today. Right now, their mom's food is elevated but I am putting a bowl of puppy food (Royal Canin) on the floor as soon as I get back from Petsmart with it. They've been a little crabby the last 24-36 hours which probably means they're hungry. Of course, with temps in the mid 90s, it could mean they're hot! But I'm going with hungry. Usually, my pups are sticking their noses in mom's food and at least licking and sucking on the kibble between 3 and 4 weeks, so I know these babies are READY.

Bob's new name
Bob's friend Josh has decided to call him SHADOW. I'm sure that is a sign of things to come. Shadow's grandpa is my standard Poodle by the same name and he is MY shadow.

Sad puppy
Jennifer's pup that has been so unhappy in his new home is coming back here in the next week or two. The general consensus is that he is homesick and very VERY sad. I'm thinking he'll be here a couple days and be back to his old self. And we'll go from there.

Solid food update
When I'm right, I'm REALLY right! I put a bowl full of small kibble puppy food in the pen with 4 sleeping pups. Of course, as soon as I went to step over them to leave, they all woke up. It was EXACTLY 12:30 (a new program was just coming on on tv.) Fifteen minutes later, 3 of the 4 were STILL non stop eating... and I mean taking bites and chewing them up. The fourth, Betty, walked over to the bowl when I first put it down, sniffed, took a mouthful and went to the other side of the pen to eat in private. Then, she sprawled on her tummy and went back to sleep. Shadow stopped eating just long enough to get a drink of water before trying to climb inside the bowl. There just wasn't room enough with Bart and Bud's heads in there, so he went back to feet on the floor. At 10 minutes to 1, I took the bowl out since there was no sign the boys were going to quit any time soon. Now, a few minutes later, they are in 4 separate spots in the pen, sound asleep and Mom (Keogh mom!) has licked all the kibble off the floor and is stretched out in front of the fan, a huge grin of relief on her face. She's one smart dog and that's a terrific idea. Think I'm going to follow her lead!