Four weeks has passed so quickly! It always amazes me how quickly the puppies go from the helpless newborns that crawl, can’t see or hear to the active four-week-old puppies they are today. Echo’s puppies have grown so much and are experiencing and learning each day. It has been another busy week for sure!
Potty Training Started
The puppies are now able to void without the help of their mother, so it is important to begin potty training. Because puppies have a natural instinct to move away from their sleeping area when they need to go, I want the puppies to begin learning “where to go” before they start on solids.
It is important that puppies start learning that they cannot “go” just anywhere. So, we teach them “there is an acceptable place to go potty”. Teaching them this at a young age will prevent them from developing bad habits that later need to be broken. This effort on our part will benefit forever families by making housebreaking easier for them when they go to their forever homes.
New Whelping Box
Recently we purchased a New Whelping box from PetTech Solutions . This was another big investment but well worth the money. The Whelping box is made in Canada with extremely durable and safe HDPE 2 food-grade plastic. HDPE 2 is a durable, non-toxic material that is commonly used for food preparation items, such as cutting boards and food storage containers.
What I loved about this whelping box was the ability to enlarge it with an extension box.
On Thursday we set up the extension box. Then we added the potty boxes with pine pellets to the extension which now becomes the puppies potty training area.
Next it was time to remove the door that separates the two areas. Soon after, Echo’s puppies were curious and one by one checked things out.
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The puppies are doing well with their potty training. When they are kept in a small area (their whelping box) their success rate is higher because they don’t want to soil the area they play and sleep. This will be the same when they go to their forever homes. Too much room to roam equals more accidents.
Moving to the Main Floor
Saturday was a big day for our puppies because they left their warm quiet room where they have been since birth and moved to the main floor.
When we moved the puppies, we put the puppies into a Laundry Basket and made three trips to the main floor where their whelping box was set up waiting.
This move was a less stressful for Echo’s litter than my other litters. This is because the puppies had already been using the potty box extension for a few days. But unfortunately not for Echo as she was the one that was a little stressed. Soon Echo’s puppies settled into their new area and started experiencing living in a home with all the noises that go on in a busy household.
Puppies Start Solids
The puppies started solids on Monday. We usually start our litters on solids. when they are four weeks old but, with such a large litter it can take its toll on Echo. I gave her a hand by supplementing formula the last of couple days, Saturday and Sunday. The puppies did a great job and lapped it up eagerly.
On Monday I added ground kibble to their puppy formula. They ate it up but not before putting their paws in it. When they were done, we had very dirty puppies with full tummy’s.
Oops….not Willow
Oops, Credit goes to Echo, not Willow as I mistakenly said in the video. Sorry Echo, you have done an amazing job and deserve all the credit!!! I was tired and I had Willow on my mind after whelping her litter – 😂
Exploring Outside the Whelping Box
The puppies experience new things daily which helps build their confidence. I always find it interesting to watch how the puppies approach new things. When you observe you see some puppies are more outgoing and dive in while others stay back and need extra encouragement.
When it was time for the puppies to go to the play area I removed the door and let the puppies come out on their own. Notice in the video two of the puppies took longer to come out and explore. Without a doubt, Dark Blue Boy and Dark Green Boy were less adventurous. It took them awhile before they joined their littermates outside the whelping box.
The puppies had a great first adventure and Echo loved interacting with her babies! When play time was over, we had some tire puppies so, back to the whelping box for a nap.
Puppy Monitor
Now that the puppies have left the upstairs where we have cameras on the Whelping Box, we have a monitor set up to keep an eye on the puppies when we go outside.
Looking Ahead to Week Five
- Puppies will continue learning to use potty area
- Awake time will increase
- The puppies will continue to socialize with each other through play
- Toys will be added to our whelping box for puppies to explore
- Enlarging the puppy area, giving puppies room to play and explore
- Mama will now add the invaluable teaching phase to her caring & protecting responsibilities over the next weeks.
