Closing the Gap

We weigh all the pups just once a day now. As of Saturday morning, eight of them were four pounds or better, while four were still under four pounds. After leading the pack for quite a while, Paulaner has been overtaken. He's now actually in the lighter end of the litter, while Peroni has surged into the lead with a growth spurt over the past several days.

This is a between meal snack for the four lightest pups.

We obsess over this, but raising 12 pups on 10 nipples is far from a sure thing. Not everyone can eat at once and the milk is not evenly distributed. When they feed all at once it's not always easy or possible to tell who is getting fed and who is getting pushed aside. We want to make sure that everyone is growing. They are, but individual growth spurts seem to be uneven. The lightest pups on each day's weigh in get extra attention at feeding time to make sure they get what they need to thrive.

Chimay is emerging as a big personality pup.

Chimay gives good face.

I think Chimay will be quite photogenic.

Counting pups at feeding time is still a challenge, it make sure no one is trapped under Della.
We've figured out that it's easiest to count tails. When they are feeding, the tails are straight,
stiff, and shake with excitement. Tails are often visible even when most of the pup is not.

This is Peroni checking out a toy. This is new.

Duvel snuggled up to Della's face.

Carlsburg. They don't show here, but teeth
are beginning to come in.

Stella sleeping on Della's head.

Carlsberg has the black sleeve on his right
front leg like Della, but he also has a merle
sleeve on his left front leg. He is styling.

It's hard to see here, but Carlsberg (green collar)
is actually hanging upside down to feed.

We tried the milk replacer feeding bowl again this evening.
They were hungry and most of them took to it this time.

This was more successful than prior attempts, maybe in part
because we put the bowl into the tub so they were in familiar
territory instead of outside it on the floor.

Killian and Della

Giving mom a kiss.