Two Weeks Old Today
Our puppies are now two-weeks-old and are progressing very well. We have had another busy week caring for Willow and her puppies. There is lots keep us busy while raising puppies such as ENS, cleaning, weighing, and laundry just to name a few.
Willow is a great mama because she continues to be protective and attentive as she cares for her little ones.
Puppy Socialization
Experiencing Love
One of our goals while raising puppies it to teach them to seek out the company of both dogs and humans as emotionally positive experiences.
This is why we handle our puppies as soon as their mamas feel comfortable along with giving them all daily cuddles. At two weeks old, our puppies have already experienced much socialization. In addition to me personally handling the puppies, on Sunday some of my grandchildren helped me cuddle he puppy. Not only did my grandchildren get their puppy fix but the puppies are also getting accustomed to different people holding them. As a result, the puppies were tired from all the interactions.
Introduction of Other Dogs
Part of our puppy raising process is to involve our other dogs in the process. This is done slowly because we must look to the mother to know when she is comfortable to let her babies have visitors.
On Thursday morning Willow allowed our dogs to have a peak at her babies while she was having some breakfast in the Whelping Room. Ellie who is Willow’s bestie, was able to come right over to the whelping box for a close up look in but Ruska, Maui and Nova had to look from afar. Eventually Willow also allowed Maui a closer look too.
MILESTONES REACHED BY TWO WEEKS OLD
During the first two weeks of a puppy’s life, it is important to look for milestones to confirm that they are doing well. So, as you can imagine, Monday was an exciting day for us because Willow’s puppies reached two milestones on the same day.
Doubling Birthweight
On Monday, some of the puppies reached their first milestone because they doubled their birthweight. Although puppies usually double their birthweight between day 10 and day 14, with a larger litter sometimes it makes it a little more challenging to reach this milestone. Everything considered, Willow is doing an amazing job feeding her babies because four of the puppies doubled their birthweight on day ten with the rest of the litter doubling over the next couple days. With all that eating and sleeping they puppies can’t help but grow.
Puppies Eyes Open
In addition to the weight milestone, we were excited to see one of Willow’s puppies reach another milestone on Monday. I look forward to this milestone from whelping day. Since puppy’s eyes open between day 10 and day 14, I started looking for this on Monday which was Day 10. This litter didn’t keep me waiting because when I checked each puppy out that morning, I could see our cream-coloured puppy’s eyes beginning to open. It is always so exciting when I see the puppies looking back at me!
Even though we had one puppy open their eyes on day 10, I had to wait a couple more days for some of the other puppies’ eye’s starting to open. By day 13, all the puppies’ eyes had started to open except our bigger Apricot Parti Boy. Today, Day 14, our last puppy’s eyes started to open.
Our Cream-Coloured Girl was the first puppy to open her eyes. See the difference from Monday to Tuesday.
Neonatal Period: Day 0-14
The first 12 weeks of a puppy’s life are incredibly important. This is an almost magical time when a breeder has the power to change the outcome of a puppy’s life by what we choose to teach them. Consequently, by doing just the right things at just the right time, we can give the puppies the best start possible.
Early Neurological Stimulation
This week we continued our ENS Exercises with the puppies. As we have previously mentioned, ENS begins on day 3 and continues through day 16. Research shows that tiny struggles and stresses in small doses are good for puppies and will help them grow into strong, healthy well-adjusted adults. The benefits include greater tolerance to stress, greater resistance to disease, faster adrenal system, stronger heart rate and stronger heartbeat. This is a gift that a breeder can only give their puppies during the 3 – 16-day window.
Transitional Period @ Two weeks old
Now that the puppies’ eyes have opened, they have entered the Transitional Period. 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 (approximately Day 14 – 21) begins when the puppy’s eyes open and ends when they first startle upon hearing sounds.
GROWING STRONGER
Becoming More Active
The puppies have gained strength in their hind legs and are moving around the whelping box faster. This was quite apparent when I went to check on the puppies and found one puppy on the floor. He had climb out of the whelping box and was now lost and crying. So, the time had come to add a panel to the entrance of the whelping box.
Learning to Walk on All Fours
When puppies are born, they move around the whelping box doing an army crawl because their hind legs need to gain strength before they can support their body weight.
Looking Ahead to Week Three
- Puppies will continue to eat and sleep most of their day
- Sight will slowly improve
- Vision will become clearer
- Ears will start to open and they will begin to hear
- Practice walking on all fours, strengthening their hind legs
- Grow stronger and more mobile
- Become more aware and start to interact with their litter-mates
- Start to vocalize
