Maxi whelped a wonderful litter of 5 girls and 3 boys on Monday. We are all still very busy with changing linens, nursing, weighing puppies and feedings for mom but thought we’d post a few photos to get the ball rolling!
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| Yesterday afternoon |
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| Yesterday morning |
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| Tuesday |
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| All nursing well! |
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| Hours old |
We tried a bit of mushy puppy kibble this morning and the puppies really went for it! It has been a busy couple of days. Yesterday, thanks to my daughter Jenny, they got their first pedicure which I am sure Phoebe really appreciated.
I think we’ve decided on a candy theme for this litter. So far we have Snickers, Truffles, Hershey, Peppermint Pattie, Twix, Twizzler, Skittles and Tootsie. If you have any suggestions, drop us a comment!
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| Five puppies getting a taste of mushy kibble |
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| They might have been kissing….but really they are licking each other’s lips! |
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| A closeup |
Puppies are getting very vocal now and moving around a lot though you wouldn’t know it from the video I took this morning. Once I figure out how to load it you can enjoy their little squeaks and wiggles. Meanwhile here are their first individual photos!
Puppies are growing so nicely. They are in my bedroom right now and I love to hear their little squeaks and squiggles! They are one week old today. I can’t believe it has flown by so fast. Still, there is not much new to report so I thought I’d just fill in on what development has taken place at one week.
Typically they double their weight the first 8 to 11 days. For about the first two weeks their eyes and ears are closed. They sense light, though, and they find Phoebe by scent. Sometimes they look for her and she is sleeping outside the whelping box which brings on a series of woeful pleading cries to which she responds immediately. She is such a good mother.
As for Phoebe, I am letting her free feed from 6:30 am until 6:30 pm. She is eating about four times what she normally eats! I watch her closely for signs of mastitis…swollen or hardened teats.
Really, at this stage puppies are a very easy proposition. Phoebe does everything from feeding to rounding them up to cleaning their little poops and pees. She constantly licks the puppies’ tummies to stimulate their bowels and bladders and, believe it or not, she benefits nutritionally from what she ingests.