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Day 10 – Is a Puppy Milestone Weight Check

Gold camo boy

The puppies are now 10 days old. This is the day we do a “milestone weight gain evaluation”. Ideally puppies should double their birth weight at the 10-day point. We had one puppy reach this milestone at nine days. Two more puppies achieved this goal today.

Previously with a large litter (more than 8), I have notice it takes a day or two extra to reach this milestone of doubling their birth weight. All of our puppies have been gaining weight daily and are progressing well to achieve this goal in the next couple days.

Ruska has the ability to feed eight puppies at the same time, leaving three puppies “waiting their turn”. During the day at feeding time, I have been rotating the six larger puppies through this “waiting” by putting them in a “waiting box”in the whelping area – three on one feeding, the other three on the next feeding. This was easily done when they were first born but now that they have become more mobile, they have less patients to wait their turn and climb out of the “waiting box” trying to sneak in for a snack! So, I have had to remove them from the whelping box all together and contained them in a larger “Waiting Box” until it is their turn to nurse.

Puppies in the Waiting box waiting their turn to nurse
3 puppies in the”Waiting Box”
VIDEO: Puppies are now moving faster to nurse. You may have noticed the puppies are wearing different ID collars. We were having trouble with the ribbons, so I welcomed the help of my son Robbie and my husband Tom who made the new collars out of parachute cord. Michaels, where we purchased the cord, had limited colour choice so, a few of the puppy’s collar colours have been substituted: Light Pink girl now has a Pink Camo collar, Brown girl now has a Brown Camo collar and Gold boy now has a Gold Camo collar. 

Adorable Faces

Full tummies!
Pink Camo Collar Girl
Gold Camo Collar Boy
Buddies
Snuggle time
Light Blue Boy
VIDEO: Red boy crawling. Notice how he is starting to use his hind legs to push as he moves forward. Initially puppies drag their hind legs, similar to an “army crawl”. Over the next few weeks their hind legs continue to strengthen until they can walk and eventually run. (You can hear Tom doing yard work in the background LOL)
Sleeping puppies are growing puppies
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ELLIE’s puppies ………. the countdown is on

Ellie has about one week until her puppies arrive. She is still eating well, slowed down and is getting lots of rest. I can hear lots of baby heartbeats but cannot determine how many because they are so close together. She has been so interested in Ruska’s puppies and a few days ago Ruska was finally willing to let her see them.

It is now time to prepare for her whelping. Ellie went to the groomers yesterday for a trim and tummy shave. The clean tummy makes it easier for the puppies when they nurse. We now have her whelping box set up so she can spend time getting comfortable in it, and everything else prepared waiting for the babies to arrive..

Ellie checking out her whelping box

Even though this will be her first litter, I know she will be a great mama. She even has experience caring for puppies from Ruska’s last litter in a “nanny role”. Ellie is such a loving dog and always keeps me company. She always wants to be by my side.

Ellie and Ruska keeping watch on Ruska’s previous litter
Ellie with pups from Ruska’s previous litter

Check back later for more of Ruska and her puppies

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ONE WEEK OLD

AUGUST 5TH, 2020 – DAY 7 – 1 WEEK OLD
1 week old

Wow, 7 days have past so quickly and our babies are already one week old! 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. 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.

Ruska is a great mom. 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. For the last few days she has been spending some time away from them but still runs upstairs regularly to check on them. The puppies have become experts at nursing; they can smell when Ruska returns to the whelping box. They wake and make a mad dash to find her and begin their next meal.

VIDEO: Puppies snuggling in for the night
LOOKING AHEAD TO WEEK TWO
  • Much the same as week one – Eat, Sleep, Repeat!
  • Puppies will continue growing and should double their birth weight at around 10 days
  • Puppies still crawl; hind legs will become stronger
  • Eyes should begin to open towards the end the 2nd week – so exciting !!!
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Day 6

(Some content may be missing – to view full post go to the website)

During the first few days of the puppies lives, Ruska would only leave them for bathroom breaks. She would run the perimeter of our yard and then, right back to her puppies.. Ruska like most mothers is very protective of her babies. Our other dogs would wait outside our bedroom to see the puppies, Ruska would give them a quick peak and then made sure they knew who was in charge!

Our other dogs waiting outside the door

Over the last couple days we have fallen into a routine. The puppies are now getting the regular milk and are satisfied for a longer time in-between feedings. Ruska has an around the clock job feeding and cleaning. Newborn puppies spend the first two weeks of life eating, getting cleaned by their mama, and sleeping.

Always hungry puppies
Ruska cleaning a puppy.
When it comes to matters of the potty, puppies need their mothers help at first. For the first few weeks newborn puppies do not instinctively know how to nor do they possess the ability to eliminate themselves without their mother cleaning them.
Puppies sleeping,
Watch closely and you can see the puppies “twitch”.
Twitching in puppies has a very important function and is a sign of healthy development. It is believed that twitching actually helps the puppy develop strong muscles.

Sleeping Puppies

Newborn puppies spend 90% of their time sleeping
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Day 4

We have been busy caring for both Ruska and her new puppies. Ruska is an amazing 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. We give extra attention making sure all the puppies get their share of milk. I continue to be pleased at our morning weigh in ………. everyone is gaining nicely!

It was an exciting day today. My daughter-in-law is an amazing photographer and came with her family today to do our singles. It was not an easy feat. Co-operation was not on the puppies agenda but, our photographer has an abundance of patience and she did an superb job! Thank you Eryn!

The Boys

Gold Boy
Red Boy
Light Blue Boy
Dark Blue Boy
Green Boy

The Girls

Black Girl
Orange Girl
Light Pink Girl
Purple Girl
Dark Pink Girl
Brown Girl
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Birth-day Pictures

Now that things have calmed down and we are in a routine, I wanted to share a few pictures from our July 29th Whelp. It was a long week trying to be patient waiting for our puppies to arrive. After a week of disrupted sleep, waking up each night and checking on Ruska, I was not well rested when the main event began. On the afternoon of the 28th, we were certain Ruska was finally in labor, She spent a restless evening between our sofa and floor. Ruska started to deliver puppies early morning just after 2 am and continued for 12 hours until 2 pm when she delivered her 11th puppy. My daughter was a great help to me durning the whelping process and my husband Tom kept the coffee coming and preparing food for us. Ruska, the star of the Whelp, did an amazing job! Each time I see a puppy born I’m reminded of creation, the miracle of birth and am again amazed at the natural instincts animals have been given!.

A newborn puppy stays warm with Ruska after she cleaned him. Pups stay with their mom for awhile after birth. We then examine them, towel dry them, weigh them and record their birth weight. Finally we put collars on – a different coloured ribbon on each puppy to keep track of their progress in the coming days and weeks.
Puppies in our “warming bed” while Ruska delivers another puppy. Newborn puppies must be warm before they can nurse.
We get newborn puppies nursing as soon as possible to get that all important first milk – colostrum. It helps build immunity, as they are born with none. The protein-rich special milk provides passive immunity in dogs. It can last several weeks and protect them from various infections and diseases.
After 12 hours of Whelping, a little girl arrives – Puppy #11. Notice her pink nose. Pigment hasn’t developed yet. Puppies nose and little pink pads on their feet will begin changing in the next few days.
Puppies are born with their eyes and ears sealed shut, not able to see or hear. Only minutes old this puppy has the amazing ability to crawl to her mother and begin to nurse without any help.
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Day 1

We have been busy with little sleep making sure our tiny new arrivals are getting their share of milk. Puppies can loose up to 10% of their birth weight the first day. I was pleased this morning at weigh in. Most of our puppies only lost 2-3% of their birth weight and we even had two puppies gain. Yeah, good job Ruska!

Ruska feeding her babies
Puppies sleeping with full tummies

Puppies nursing; watch green boy crawl to his mama for breakfast

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The Puppies Have Arrived

L.A. Doodles is proud to announce the arrival of Tulo and Ruska’s litter of F2B Goldendoodles

Born July 29, 2020

They welcomed 11 puppies – 5 boys and 6 girls

We are all very tired after over 12 hours of whelping that started with the first puppy arriving at 2 am. It is going to be a full time job making sure everyone is being fed. Ruska did an amazing job!

Check back soon for more photos

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Day 65 and yes, still waiting

We have had many inquires the past couple days from families, so I wanted to give an update on Ruska and her expectant litter of puppies ……. Ruska is doing well, – getting lots of rest, love and pampering. Her tummy continues to expand which I’m sure is making her more uncomfortable with each passing day. I am doing my best to be patient. I get up in the middle of the night just to check on her and when I wake in the morning I’m disappointed that we are still waiting to meet our little ones. It reminds me of my own pregnancies. I was overdue and with each passing day getting more impatient!

The puppies are still very active and when we place our hand on her tummy it is easy to feel them moving. It is always exciting for me when I listen to the puppies heartbeats but Ruska is never keen on the idea. I don’t think she likes the noise from the doppler LOL. I thought you might also enjoy hearing them so I enlisted the help of my daughter and she videoed for me to share. Enjoy!

Listening for puppy heartbeats

Finding Puppy Heartbeats
Listen to hear three different puppy heartbeats


It’s difficult to predict an exact due date with dogs. Ruska’s previous litters of puppies came at the beginning of her “whelping window” but, with this pregnancy it is not the case. We are now on day 65. It is not unheard of that dogs don’t deliver until day 68 -70. She was bred with Tulo three times over a 5 day period. Multiple breedings are done because you’re guessing when your female is ovulating. I believe she did not conceive during the first and second mating. The third mating is when she conceived, making a later whelping date. We will have to continue to be patient! Not easy for me or our families waiting for the news! 

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Still waiting


Everything is ready and we are waiting with anticipation . Ruska has slowed down the last couple days and getting lots of rest. I am sure she is getting uncomfortable as her tummy grows larger with each passing day. Gestation period for puppies is anywhere from 58 day to 65 days; we are on Day 61. Hopefully our whelping box will be full of puppies very soon!  I will post the news when they arrive.

Whelping box set up and waiting
Supplies ready and waiting
Ruska sleeping, resting up for the delivery. What a big tummy!