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.

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!