Month: April 2026

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Luna’s adorable three week old puppies

Luna’s adorable three-week-old puppies have been developing quickly this week. The puppies are becoming more aware of their surroundings and have started to play with each other during their brief “awake” periods. They have discovered their voices and are practising vocalizing when they are awake. Whether they are waiting for Luna to finish cleaning each puppy before their next meal or playing with their littermates, we have a very noisy whelping box.

Puppy Culture

This week, the puppies were in the Transitional Period. We continued our ENS exercises, which cause tiny stresses to benefit our puppies by increasing their tolerance to stress and disease resistance, speeding up their adrenal system, and strengthening their heart rate and heartbeat. Saturday was Day 16 of the puppies’ lives and the final day for our ENS exercises.

Critical Socialization Period (weeks 3 – 12)

The next period for the puppies is the Critical Socialization Period. We know that puppies have entered this period when they react to sounds. We raise our puppies following many of the Puppy Culture protocols. Following these protocols helps us reach our goal of “Raise Healthy, Calm, Confident, Well-Adjusted Puppies.”

Over the remaining weeks, we will be working on new experiences for the puppies, exposing them to as many new experiences as possible to raise the best possible companions for their forever families.

Emotional Intelligence

Because Goldendoodles are companion dogs, teaching emotional intelligence to young puppies and starting them with a great beginning is essential. With this intention, we follow seven key things to nurture a puppy’s emotional intelligence.

  1. Communication – giving a puppy his voice, i.e. Communication manding and attention/distraction protocols
  2. Emotional stability – the ability to recover quickly from fear as well as stress, i.e., startle recovery, barrier challenges, etc
  3. Habituation – familiarize the puppies with the maximum number of things during their Critical Development Period—in particular, Puppy Parties, sound protocols, household noises, and meeting different people and dogs.
  4. Enrichment—Teach the puppies that novelty and challenges are enrichment opportunities, not to be feared or avoided. For example, they can be introduced to new novelty items on an ongoing basis at an activity centre, car ride, outdoors, etc.
  5. Health – physical wellness and motor skills that will allow the puppy to develop neurologically and physically soundly. For instance, daily weight checks, grooming, proper nutrition, fecal checks, and deworming, if necessary, vet health checks and vaccinations)
  6. Skills – learned behaviours that teach the puppy to function in human society, i.e., recall, manding, simple commands, potty box training, crate introduction, resource guarding, bite inhibition, etc.
  7. Love – teach puppies to seek out the company of dogs and humans as emotionally positive experiences, i.e., Daily cuddles with humans and the puppy’s mom.
  8. Shaping emotional responses: happy and calm CER (Conditioned Emotional Responses). For instance, treats and encouragement during puppy training.

Three weeks old

The Girls
  • Black colar blonde abstract with brown points
  • Red colar blonde abstract with black points
  • Purple colar blonde abstract with brown points
  • Brown colar apricot abstract with brown points
  • Orange colar chocolate Merle abstract with brown points
  • Neon green colar blue merle abstract with black points
  • Yelow colar black abstract with black points
The one and Only Boy
  • Blue colar apricot abstract with brown points

Correction: Chocolate merle not Chocolate abstract as I mistakenly said in the video

A look back at week three

Notice that the puppies are making use of the pig rails. Although a few puppies still try to go underneath and only manage to get their heads under, many are climbing on top to lounge, and some use it as a headrest. This week, we will say goodbye to the pig rails as we divide our whelping box into a potty area and a play/sleep area, adding bolster beds.

Looking Ahead to Week Four

  • Puppies will still sleep much of the day/night as they continue to grow rapidly
  • Interact with littermates through play, which will help develop essential social skills
  • Practicing walking on all fours strengthening their hind legs
  • Becoming steadier on their feet
  • Hearing will improve 
  • Puppy milk teeth will erupt
  • Puppies will begin potty training
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Luna’s Two Week Old Pups Are Growing Like Weeds

Two Weeks Old

Luna’s puppies are now two weeks old and growing like weeds. They have entred the Transitional Period, which usually begins around day 14 and lasts until day 21.

Every puppy is different so “Behavioural Markers” are used to identify the beginning and end of each developmental period. These timelines are simply guidelines. The transitional period begins when the puppy’s eyes open and ends when they first startle upon hearing sounds. When this happens, they enter the next stage, the Critical Socialization Period.

Attentive Mama

We’ve had a busy week caring for Luna and keeping her company in the whelping room while she tends to her little ones. A mama of newborn puppies has a round-the-clock job of feeding and cleaning her puppies. I am always amazed at the instincts God has given animals; they just instinctively know how to care for their young.

Luna is an active dog, and I wondered how she would manage spending so much time focused on caring for her puppies. I am very impressed. She is a caring mother who has done a wonderful job. Mama and puppies are doing well! 

Puppies need to be “cleaned” by their mama to help them “void.” By three weeks of age, they will be able to void on their own, and we will introduce a potty area to their whelping box.

Luna now leaves the puppies sleeping in the whelping box and rests outside on a bed or the floor. 

When she returns to check on her puppies, she first cleans them, and after all the puppies have been cleaned, she settles down to nurse.

Milestones

When raising puppies, we watch for milestones to gauge their progress. I am pleased to say that Luna’s puppies reached both milestones this past week.

Weigh-In: The first milestone the puppies reached this week was doubling their birth weight. We are happy to say all of Luna’s puppies have doubled their birth weight and more. Luna has done a wonderful job caring for her babies!

Eyes Opening: When puppies are born, their eyes are sealed shut as they continue to develop. Puppy’s eyes open somewhere between day 10 and day 14. On Sunday — day 10, Luna’s Red Collar girl was the first puppy to open her eyes. Over the next few days, the rest of the puppies also opened their eyes. It is always exciting when I see the puppies look back at me! 

Keeping puppy area clean

Newborn puppies are vulnerable to disease, so it is crucial to keep their area clean. We clean and disinfect their whelping box daily. We also replace their vet bedding daily or more often when needed, which results in a lot of laundry.

What is Vet Bedding? At first glance, you might think it is sheepskin. It is a synthetic version of sheepskin, made from artificial fibres, with two layers: first, a mesh base similar to the “skin” part of a sheepskin, and second, the comfortable, soft, springy artificial fleece attached on top. Puppies need proper grip while nursing, moving around the whelping box, and learning to walk, as this traction helps protect their developing joints. We change this bedding daily. A couple of Luna’s puppies have escaped from the whelping box, so it is time to add a panel to the entrance of their whelping box to keep them safe

Early Neurological Stimulation

ENS (Early Neurological Stimulation) begins on day 3 and continues through day 16. Research shows that small doses of tiny struggles and stresses are beneficial for puppies and help them develop into strong, healthy, well-adjusted adults. Benefits include increased stress tolerance, higher resistance to disease, quicker adrenal system development, and a stronger heart rate and heartbeat.

This video show ENS exercises on one of Luna’s ten-day-old puppy.

Five second of each:

  1. Touch each paw
  2. Hold upright with feet hanging loose
  3. Hold upside down
  4. Lay in palm of hands on their back
  5. Place on cold cloth

Walking on all fours

The hind legs are becoming stronger. The puppies are learning to walk on all fours. As time passes, they will learn to walk on various surfaces and eventually run.

Sleeping Puppies

Newborn puppies sleep 90% of the time, and I love watching them snooze. They have many sleep positions. Sometimes they rest in the puppy huddle, with a buddy, or alone, tucked snugly under the pigtails in their whelping box. This week, I’ve noticed many of the puppies using the pigrail as a headrest—so adorable.

A Look Back at Week Two

Looking Ahead to Week Three

  • ENS exercises will end on day 16
  • Puppies will continue to eat and sleep most of their day
  • The puppies vision will become clearer
  • Ears will open and they will begin to hear.
  • Puppies will practice walking on all fours, strengthening their hind legs
  • They will become more aware of their littermates and start to interact
  • Puppies will start to vocalize

COMING SOON—Look for puppy two week single pics

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Luna’s Adorable Puppies’ First Week

Luna’s precious puppies are one week old today. When caring for puppies, our days are always busy, and each week brings its own challenges. During the first week, we focus on looking after our mama and her babies, making sure everyone is doing well.

Whelping Day

When we woke on Thursday morning, it was clear Luna’s labour had begun. Sometimes labour takes a long time, but Luna progressed quickly. She delivered her first puppy at 3:10 in the afternoon, with the last puppy delivered at 7:00 pm I was thankful that our delivery was in the afternoon and not in the middle of the night like most whelps. 

Luna and Brinkley had eight adorable puppies; seven girls and one boy. 

Puppy Care 

It is important to watch each puppy’s development and compare to littermates to confirm that the puppies are developing normally and meeting milestones. Some of our daily chores include:

  • Cleaning – Whelping box is cleaned and disinfected regularly. 
  • Vet bedding is replaced with a clean one. 
  • Each puppy is weighed daily, and a record is kept to track their progress. 
  • Puppies are handled and cuddled often throughout the day. 
  • ENS begins on Day 3. 
  • Always plenty of laundry to do.

Mama Care 

It is important that our mama receives exceptional care both physically and emotionally, before whelping as well as after whelping.

  • We feed our mama’s high-quality food, plenty of fresh water, and special postnatal vitamins, all of which help them recover quickly after the whelp.
  • Luna gets the emotional support she needs, and I spend most of my time keeping Luna company in her whelping room. When she nurses, I often join her in her whelping box, giving her pats and massages.
  • At night, I sleep in the whelping room so I can check on things during the night. 
  • Puppies, like human babies, can sense their mothers’ emotions, which influences the newborns. A healthy, calm, and loving mother who is well cared for is in turn passed on to her puppies. This helps us achieve our goal – to raise healthy, calm, confident, and well-adjusted puppies!
Special Postnatal Vitamins
Boiled Chicken
Luna eats her chicken in the whelping box

Dedicated Mama

Luna is a dedicated mama who has been taking wonderful care of her puppies. Newborn puppies cannot regulate their own body temperature. They need a warm space, their mother, and littermates to help keep them warm. During the first few days of the puppies’ lives, Luna spent all her time in the whelping box with her babies, keeping them warm, clean, and ensuring they nursed often.

In the past few days, she has been spending more time away from her puppies in the yard to get some exercise. This break from her puppies is only short. After a bit of exercise, Luna wants to go back inside, running upstairs to check on her babies. As the days pass, her time away from her puppies will gradually increase.

Day 7 Luna now spends time resting outside the whelping box and checks in on her babies

Puppy Development

Puppies are born with their eyes and ears sealed shut; they cannot see or hear. They must rely on “smell” and “touch” to find their mother. Newborn puppies are not able to void without help from their mother. For the first two weeks of life, puppies are stimulated by their mother licking them, which encourages urination and defecation. This “cleaning” by the mother not only helps the puppies void but also benefits them in other ways, such as promoting bonding, grooming, and accelerating the development of the nervous system. 

Neonatal Period

The puppies are in the Neonatal Period which is from day 0 to day 14. During this period, puppies spend their time eating and sleeping.

ENS Exercises

On day 3, we began ENS (Early Neurological Stimulation) exercises, which will continue until day 16. Research indicates that these small doses of gentle stress and stimulation benefit puppies. The advantages of ENS include increased stress tolerance, better resistance to illness, faster adrenal response, and a stronger, healthier heartbeat. This is a unique opportunity that a breeder can only provide during the 3 to 16-day window. Puppies will also be handled regularly to help them get used to human touch. 

One of the stresses the puppies are exposed to is lying for five seconds on a cold pack wrapped in a blanket.

Cold Gel Pack
ENS
Cold Pack wrapped in blanket

Expert Nursers

The puppies have become expert nursers and are all gaining weight and growing quickly. Good job, Luna!

Sleep, Sleep, Seep

Newborn puppies spend about 90% of their time sleeping… eat, sleep, repeat. Whether they sleep cuddled with their mama, littermates, or alone, they enjoy many adorable sleeping positions. 

LOOKING AHEAD TO WEEK TWO

  • Much the same as week one – Eat, Sleep, Repeat!
  • Puppies will continue growing
  • Puppies still crawl; hind legs will become stronger
  • Eyes should begin to open towards the end the week – so exciting !!!