Puppies grow so quickly, as you can see from the newborn photo of Willow’s puppies compared to their photo at three weeks of age. Willow has done a fantastic job caring for her babies. Feeding, cleaning and keeping the puppies warm is a full-time job.
Willow is a mama who is loving but strict. In the past, she hadn’t babied her puppies. This litter is no exception. On Sunday morning, right on cue, she showed me it was time to start weaning. After breakfast, she returned to her whelping box, and as usual, the puppies were excited to see Mama. Instead of lying down to nurse them, she regurgitated breakfast for her puppies. They were not too interested and wanted Mama’s milk, so I went into the whelping box with Willow and got her to nurse her puppies.
This is not unusual, as some dogs start weaning at three weeks. They know that those sharp baby teeth will soon be in—ouch! 😬
Puppy Culture
This week, the puppies were in the Transitional Period. We continued our ENS exercises, which introduced tiny stresses to the puppies.These stresses benefit our puppies by increasing their tolerance to disease, speeding up their adrenal system, and strengthening their heart rate and heartbeat. Sunday, Day 16, was the final day for our ENS exercises.
Critical Socialization Period (weeks 3 – 12)
The next period for Willow’s three-week-old 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 by exposing them to as many new experiences as possible to raise the best possible companion for their forever families.
Three Weeks Old
This video shows each puppy and its markings.
Note: In the video, I omitted the collar colour of some puppies and made a mistake on the Red Boy. Below, I have the collar colour of each puppy in order of appearance.
THE BOYS: Red, Black, and Blue collars
THE GIRLS: Yellow, Orange, Pink, Purple, Light Green, and Dark Green Collars
A Look Back At week Three
This past week, the puppies have spent most of their time eating and sleeping. They are now starting to interact with their littermates.
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
- Solids will be introduced
- Potty training will begin
