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Ruska’s Puppies

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March 28, 2021 – DAY 56

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LOOKING BACK

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Eight weeks have passed since Ruska’s babies came into the world and filled our days. Remember how tiny they were…..I could hold them in the palm of my hand. They have learned so much over these past eight weeks. I have loved raising them to the point where they are ready to join their forever families. This week Ruska has been working on submission. This comes easier to some puppies than others. I love to watch to see how quickly the puppies will submit to their mama and which ones will need “extra coaxing” LOL. Just like children have different dispositions, so do puppies. As with each week, we have enjoyed our puppy cuddles and during that time we have been working on what is acceptable behaviour – mainly the difference between nipping and kisses. Puppies are not always consistent but, have made great progress in this area. I just love puppy kisses!!!

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LOOKING AHEAD

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Puppies are going to their forever homes. Lots of work lies ahead for your family as you continue teaching your puppy! They are still learning, but the time and work you put into them now pays off when you have a loving well behaved dog that will love you as only a dog can – unconditionally. You will be the most important person in the world to them. 

It is always a bittersweet time when I have to say goodbye to our puppies. I have enjoyed every minute of their care and they have a piece of my heart. Why do I do this? It brings me joy to see their excited families smiles and to know that our puppies are joining such wonderful forever families. I know that our puppies will be loved!

Ellie’s Puppies

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DAY 12 – Sunday March 28, 2021

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Ideally puppies should double their birth weight between ten to fourteen days. We have had three puppies reach this milestone yesterday, three more puppies today with the rest of our puppies on track to double their weight by day fourteen. Ellie is doing a great job feeding her little ones!

We have a daily routine caring for our puppies. We weight each puppy daily and record their weight in the log. This helps us track each puppy’s growth. Healthy puppies should gain weight every day. At this time, we also check their collars and adjust any that have become snug. Puppies grow so fast, so it is important to check them a few times a day. Then we clean and disinfect their whelping box. Finally, we line the bottom of the whelping box with a clean “Vet Bed”, a product that resembles sheepskin. This man-made product is great because it is easy to clean and keeps the puppies dry, warm, comfortable and provides good traction. A puppy moves forward by pushing its hind legs backwards. When a newborn puppy is placed on a surface with inadequate traction, its feet can slide right out from under it and may cause the legs to extend and adduct. By providing a surface with great traction (Vet Bed) when the puppies are moving around and learning to walk helps reduce the stress on their growing joints.

Pics of Ellie’s sweet babies

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Ruska’s Puppies

Today was a rainy day so Ruska’s puppies had to spend most of the day indoors. The sky’s finally brightened and the rain stopped making it possible for the puppies to get outdoor play time and use their built up energy!

It was damp and a little chilly, so I left the sliding door open allowing the puppies to come inside to warm up if they wanted to. They loved the different areas to choose from; running in the fenced enclosure, playing hide & seek on our BBQ deck and, wrestling inside on Ruska’s bed. We even had our sweet grey collar girl find her way beyond the puppy fencing and find the bag of Puppy Food! After a fun time playing, we brought all the puppies in and they settled down for a nap.

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Ellie’s Puppies

Ellie’s puppies are now ten days old. Their fur has grown thicker on their faces and their little pink noses have disappeared – the pigment has now come in. Some of Ellie’s puppies have a black noses and some have brown. What ever colour they are they are adorable. The puppies eyes have also changed too. They are still sealed shut but not as tightly. They now look as if they are just sleeping. Any day now they will begin opening and we will see those beautiful eyes – so exciting!

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Ellie’s Puppies

Yesterday my Daughter-in-law Chelsea was kind enough to come keep an eye on Ellie and her puppies while we took Ruska’s puppies to the Vet. She said there wasn’t much to do. She checked on Ellie every 30 minutes or so and either Ellie was feeding her puppies or they were sleeping. That’s what newborn puppies do, eat and sleep!

This video below shows puppies doing what they do best, yes, eating and sleeping. Look for the progress Ellie’s puppies have made. They are larger, their fur is starting to grow and their hind legs are becoming stronger which makes them faster! When Ellie comes back into the whelping box, the race is on. The puppies are always ready for another meal!

Ellie’s Puppies

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March 23, 2021 – DAY 7 – 1 WEEK OLD

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LOOKING BACK 

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Wow, our precious puppies are one week old today. We have had a busy week! For the first few weeks of life, a puppy cannot regulate their own body temperature. They need a warm space, their mother, and littermates to help keep them warm. We have been blessed with warm sunny days so it helps keep our bedroom where the whelping box full of puppies are, nice and warm.

Ellie is truly a wonderful mama. For the first few days of the puppies lives she spent all her time in the whelping box with the them, keeping them warm, clean and making sure they nursed often. She had a good appetite and drank plenty of water from the start which helps make lots of milk for her little ones. She has been spending some time away from her puppies in the yard for a little exercise but Ellie still likes to stay by my side. She soon wants back into the house, runs upstairs to check on her babies. 

Puppies are born with their eyes and ears sealed shut; they cannot see or hear. They have to rely on “smell” and “touch” to find their mother. Puppies are born with a natural instinct to nurse but as the days pass, they have become more proficient at it. The puppies are now experts at nursing; they can smell when Ellie returns to the whelping box. They wake and make a mad dash to find her and begin their next meal. I sometimes have to remove three puppies and put them in the waiting box until it is their turn to nurse

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LOOKING AHEAD TO WEEK TWO

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• 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 !!!

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Ruska’s Puppies

Ruska continues to teach her puppies to listen. This morning after I had cleaned the puppy area she wanted in. Ruska let the puppies start to nurse and with a quick bark, the puppies had to stop and listen. In this little video, look how well the puppies are behaving. Good puppies! (excuse the mess on the window sills. I hadn’t put the toys back on the floor lol)

Ruska’s puppies had a new addition to their puppy area. We introduced the crate. Our little black collar boy went right in and had a sleep. LOL We won’t close the door, I just want them to feel conformable going in and out, playing and sleeping – what ever they choose.

I like to introduce something new to the puppies every couple of days. Today it was a empty water bottle with a odd sock over it and tied at the end. They had a great time playing with it! Look at them playing with it in the video below (it’s a blue sock)

I am definitely very busy with twenty-one puppies to care for but, I love this job. Who could tire of puppy cuddles and looking at those adorable faces? Not me!

Ellie’s Puppies

During the first two weeks of a puppies life, they spend 90% of their time sleeping. Now that Ellies’s milk is in they are satisfied for a longer time in-between feedings. Ellie has started to spend short periods of time away from her puppies

When it comes to matters of the potty, puppies need their mothers help at first. For the first couple of weeks or so, newborn puppies do not instinctively know how to nor do they possess the ability to eliminate themselves without their mother cleaning them. Ellie has an around the clock job feeding and keeping her babies clean.

Puppies have already changed since they were born. Their fur is already growing, they are bigger and their pigmentation is developing. Notice in the photo below the puppy’s nose and pads. When the puppies were born, they had those adorable pink noses. They are now darkening and will soon be black or possibly brown. Elie’s puppies are growing up!

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Pics of those adorable babies

Ruska’s Puppies

Ruska’s puppies are seven weeks old and have an important week of learning. Ruska will continue teaching and disciplining her puppies. This week she will teach her puppies to submit. In the pictures below you can see a couple puppies in the submit position – lying on their backs.

Ruska’s Puppies

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March 21, 2021 – 49 DAYS OLD

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LOOKING BACK

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Our puppies are now seven weeks old. They have grown bigger and are adorable little fur balls that are full of energy. The puppies are curious about everything and love outdoor play time. Our mornings are cold but our puppies still want outside first thing. Ruska takes them out to nurse for a couple minutes and she then begins her discipline. It is very chilly at 7 am so I only let the puppies stay out ten minutes before I bring them in for their breakfast. The puppies have now made the transition to eating dry kibble puppy food. 

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One of the highlights of raising our puppies is Selection Day. We love the excitement in the air as we introduce the puppies to their forever families. With covid restrictions we had no choice but to do selection outdoors, so I have been praying for good weather. I am thankful that God blessed our day with sunny warm weather to welcome the first day of spring and our forever families! Ruska, Tom and I so enjoyed meeting everyone and getting to know the forever families a little better!

The puppies had a busy day with so many families to meet. It was very tiring for them and they were taking naps any chance they could get. When all was said and done, they ate their dinner and settled in for a good long sleep LOL!

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LOOKING AHEAD TO WEEK EIGHT

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• Puppies will continue exploring and playing together inside and outdoors as weather permits
• Puppies will continue learning from their Mama and the rest of our dogs.
• We will continue to encourage puppies to use potty area
• Puppies will be introduced to the crate
• Puppies will visit the vet for their check-ups, Immunizations and micro chips
• Puppies will continue to get lots of cuddle time
• Puppies will start to leave for their forever families

Ellie’s Puppies

We have been busy both day and night taking care of and making sure all is going well with our tiny new arrivals. Puppies can loose up to 10% of their birth weight in the first 24 hours. I am happy to say, half of Ellie’s puppies lost only 2 – 5 % and the rest actually gained weight.

Ellie is an amazing and devoted mama. She is loving and protective and constantly caring for her babies. Because she has 11 puppies, she can not feed everyone at the same time; they have to feed in shifts. Most of the time some puppies are sleeping while the other nurse but, if everyone is awake at the same time, I put three puppies in the “waiting box” to settle and wait for their turn. I continue to be pleased at our daily weigh in – everyone is gaining nicely! Newborn puppies grow and develop so quickly it is no wonder that all they do is eat and sleep.

Ruska’s Puppies

Yay – It’s Visitation day!

Ellie’s Puppies

The excitement of whelping day has been building since Sunday when Ellie’s whelping window week began. Everything is prepared in advance. The whelping box is cleaned and set up in our bedroom and all the tools needed are ready and waiting for the arrival of the puppies.

Ellie had started digging the past couple of days – on the carpet, on the couch and in her whelping box.; a sign that labor would begin any day. Ellie was following us everywhere we would go but, that is not different than usual – she is my “velcro” dog.

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Tuesday afternoon she started digging again on our corner sectional and my husband Tom informed me she was panting. I decided to take her upstairs to my bedroom and sat with her in the Whelping Box so she could labor their in peace, away from our other dogs. It wasn’t long before her first baby came into the world.

After a puppy is born the mother dog removes the puppy from its sac, severs the umbilical cord and begins the cleaning process. This is when the puppy begins taking their first breath. The pups stay with their mom for awhile after birth to keep warm.

After the newborn puppy has nursed, we then towel dry them, examine them, weigh them, and record their birth weight. Finally we put collars on – a different colour for each puppy – to keep track of their progress in the coming days and weeks.

When Ellie whelped her final puppy, number eleven, she settled in and began caring for her new tiny babies. Well done Ellie!

The miracle of a new life is so precious and I never tire of watching these helpless tiny puppies come into the world. Again I am in awe at the instincts God has given animals; they just know what to do!

Ruska’s Puppies

Ruska’s puppies are almost seven weeks old and have an abundance of energy. My summer litters of puppies start getting the run of our yard at this age. With the melting snow and rain that spring brings, my yard is too muddy to let the puppies play in. So, when it is time for outdoor play, Ruska leads her puppies out the door and into the fenced enclosure on our deck. This doesn’t always work because Ruska wants her puppies to run in the yard with her. Sometimes instead of going into the enclosure she tries to lead them off the deck and into the yard. I have to call her back and reminder her to take the puppies into the fenced enclosure on our deck. Most of the puppies go in but we always get one or two that try to run and discover what’s beyond the deck. Our other dogs run after them barking and the explorers quickly come to me and join the rest of their littermates.

I have tried to challenge our puppies by introducing something new every few days. When I add new toys to our indoor play area, the puppies notice right away and suddenly they all have a new favourite toy – what smart puppies to have such good observation skills!

The past couple days during outside play we introduced a tunnel for the puppies. They were so curious and took to it right away. The puppies have so much fun running through the tunnel, playing hide-n-seek in it and chasing each other through it. It is so much fun to watch them!

One more sleep until the puppies meet their forever families!

Ruska’s Puppies

Today it’s raining, so the puppies had indoor play this morning. Willow is still fascinated with the puppies and loves to watch them play. They are becoming more active with each passing day! When they wake they have so much energy – they run, wrestle and play and then, quickly drop off for a nap to recharge. This afternoon’s weather forecast is calling for the rain to stop so, I’m sure our puppies will enjoy going outside and playing in a the larger outdoor area.

Saturday is approaching quickly and the weather forecast looks promising for our Selection Day – sunny and warm with a high of 12 _^c – Yeah! We are looking forward to introducing our puppies to their forever families!

Ellie’s Puppies

Ellie is such an attentive mama. Since the puppies were born, I have had to drag her out of her whelping box by her collar to go outside for a potty break. Yesterday afternoon when I took her outside for her break, I thought she needed a little exercise. We played her favourite game – Fetch with her Kong ‘squeaky’ tennis ball. She loves to run after it and then she will ‘squeak’ it all the way back, drop it at my feet and wait for me to throw it again. Usually Ellie never tires of this game but, yesterday after about five minutes, she headed to the door and wanted to go back inside. She headed right back upstairs to our bedroom, and back into her whelping box to care for her tiny babies.

A Few Pics Of Our Newborn Puppies

L.A. Doodles Is Excited To Announce Ellie and Brinkley’s Puppies Have Arrived

Born March 16, 2021

They Welcomed 11 Puppies

6 Boys And 5 Girls

Yesterday evening was a busy time and a night of little sleep. Eleven puppies – WOW! Ellie did an amazing job! Whelping is hard work!. Over the next few days and nights, we will be staying right by Ellie’s side making sure things are going smoothly. Ellie now has a “round the clock job”. She will spend her days and nights cleaning, feeding, and keeping her babies warm. She doesn’t want to leave their side – It’s hard for me to get Ellie to leave the whelping box for a potty break – She is a such an amazing mama!