Messing with the Puppies

That's Modelo snuggled up to Della.

Erika brought over a set of DVDs about puppy culture. Basically it's Dr. Spock for puppies, what do to with your pup during its first 12 weeks to set it up for a lifetime as a dog with a stable temperament. We've had enough crazy shepherds around here that didn't get the early childhood development and enrichment that they needed. The result can be a stressed out, high strung, fearful, even aggressive dog. Being with their mother and litter mates during this period goes a long way. I swear that a lot of bad dog behavior we've seen in rescue is the result of a breeder who wanted a fast buck and sold them out the door at the first possible moment. We do not intend to do that.

Killian touching one of Della's paws.

Anyway, during the second week the Puppy Culture program suggests introducing mild stressors, such as holding the pup upright, then on its back, and even upside down for five seconds each. That's easy to do and it doesn't seem to bother them. With this size litter we've seen them laying upside down and in all possible positions in order to reach a nipple to feed. As they grow there's less elbow room in the dining room so everyone just crowds in and reaches for anything they can get. Table manners must come along in a later lesson.

They have been in their wading pool pretty much all the time since birth. It's cozy and comfortable, but we are introducing them to new surfaces and new textures under their feet. We've also been touching and messing around with their feet, hopefully conditioning them to accept that. Adopters, vets, and vet techs will thank us later on.

Clay holding Sierra on her back.

I'm finally learning the puppies' names now
that they have new nylon collars. That cowdog
with the green collar is Carlsberg. 

Della has always let us do whatever we want
or need to do with her puppies, but she does
keep an eye on it.

This is Stella getting the upside down treatment.

That's Guinness, climbing to the top of Mt. Della.

 Carlsberg experiencing a new surface.

Counting puppies is a constant around here. There are five blacks, four merles, and
and three harlequins. The tricky part is that various parts of Della are often mistaken for
either the black puppies or the harlequins. You can see all 12 fairly easily in this picture,
but sometimes you have to lift a leg or two and check behind her to find them all.

Chimay on bubble wrap

Sierra on a cold, wet towel

Della and Serena in the shade of the birch
trees in the back yard where I plan to put in
a new shed and fenced yard for the pups when
they are older.

I envision the shed in the back left corner, which is adjacent
to the dog yard. The fenced area will be ~ 25' x 50' under the
two birch trees to the right of the new shed.

Duvel at the evening weigh in.

This is Sierra getting weighed.

Della keeping a watchful eye.

Killian falling asleep on the scale.

This is the growth chart that Clay created and updates twice each day. The big jump at day
five was when we changed scales. We may drop back to once daily weigh-ins in another
week or so. The biggest reason for doing it is to make sure that lightest two or three pups
get some extra feeding time. She's got 12 pups and only 10 nipples even if all of them
were in use at the same time, which usually is not the case. Some are pushier than others,
and some will always be smaller than others, but we want to make sure that they all
have a chance to grow and thrive.

Della enjoying the summertime pasture.

Being a puppy is hard and tiring work.