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April 20, 2009 - 5 Weeks Old At
5 weeks old, the puppies are now play-wrestling like big dogs and have mastered the art of "the pounce". They can
see things a little better and can associate sounds with "what happens next". I made the mistake of grinding
up their moistened dog kibble while they were taking a morning nap. Once they heard the food processor, they all jumped up
and pleaded for another feeding. At other times as Margo walks by, sometimes she shakes her head and the jingle
of her collar brings an arousing uproar in the x-pen. Whether it's the anticipation of food or Margo, the result is a
mob of excited puppy bodies stumbling over each other as they clammer to be the first one by the x-pen door. Bill and I decided the puppies have out-grown their whelping box so they spend their days and nights in the larger x-pen area. This works out very well as they have so much more room to romp around and we do not have to transport them back and forth. We set up a nice little corner in the x-pen area with a doggie bed where they all snuggle up together to take naps and snooze at night. This has eliminated any potty spots on their towel-covered bedding and they all use the newspapers as their bathroom area. Yay!!!! The puppies are eating mushed up dog kibble and drinking out of a water dish. They really don't need to get their nourishment from Margo anymore but we will leave it up to Margo to decide when she wants to wean them. It seems Margo still needs that "together time" with her puppies and nursing them gives her that satisfaction. She nurses them standing up as they have grown too big for her to do this laying down. She may nurse them as little as twice a day or if she feels like it, she will nurse them periodically throughout the day. This motherly job makes her extremely happy. This together time is always after I feed them so that they do not think they are getting their main meal from Margo. The puppies are pacified by nursing on Margo, which results in them being very calm and happy. The puppies sleep through the night much to my delight. Dyna has taken to the puppies and is proving to be a watchful and loving big sister. She is concerned when one of them cries out and will engage them in play even though she is on the outside and they are are the inside of the x-pen. She will slowly run around the outside as they "chase" her in pursuit. When she stops, kisses are given as the little tongues reach out to her through the enclosure. I can see her smiling and she will "talk" to them in her own doggie voice. This past week also provided a major adventure for them. The puppies had their first experience of the great outdoors. Bill and I set up a temporary 8' by 8' enclosure made out of vinyl lattice panels. We put a warm fleece blanket on the grass along with a few toys and took the puppies out for a breath of fresh air. The sun was shining and the temperature was nice and warm. The puppies were somewhat surprised at the feel of the grass but took to being outside as they played and relaxed in the lawn. They were exposed to different sounds such as a motorcycle roaring by and I was thrilled to see that none of the new sounds startled the puppies in any way. Dyna wanted to play with the puppies and she ran around the outside of the enclosure as they "chased" her from within just like they do indoors. Margo watched nearby from a straw-covered patch in my flower bed.
I
can't believe the puppies are 6 weeks old already. They are acting like small little dogs now running and chasing each
other while learning not to bite too hard! Physically, their muzzles are starting to elongate and their legs are lengthening
as well. Of course the ears are growing larger everyday! With all of the rain we have had recently, the backyard grass hasn't had a chance to dry out but that didn't stop us from taking the puppies outside on the nice, warm days. Bill and I set up the outdoor enclosure on our concrete agregate patio. This exposed the puppies to something very different to play on. None of them had any beef about it and played just as well here as on the grass. They heard many different sounds like fire engines, mowers and thunder. Bill and I had the puppies out one day and the clouds turned dark. Thunder was heard in the sky and then it started raining. We were all protected under our large patio canopy and it came down in buckets. The puppies didn't even flinch at the thunder and rain and continued on with their merry play. Margo is not feeding her babies anymore but does continue to watch over them and has taken to giving each and everyone of them a morning bath. She knows exactly how many puppies she has and cleans them one by one as I hold them in my lap. When she finishes with the last puppy, she lays down in her comfy area and is quite content in completing her motherly duties. The puppies are eating almost dry dog food as I still have to moisten it a little to aid in grinding it up in my food processor. To this they each get a dollop of plain yogurt to enhance the transition from moistened mush to dry chopped kibble.
This
past week gave the puppies their first taste of freedom from their inside enclosure. I opened up the kitchen and diningroom
to the puppies so that they could explore new surroundings and also stretch those growing legs. They had a blast running like
a herd of tiny elephants all around the x-pen area. I also exposed them to new toys one of which proved to be a huge hit.
The favorite by far was the cat tunnel with its crinkly sounding fabric and dangling toys inside. They immediately would run
to it, climb in and out, and roll it across the kitchen floor while several pups were inside tumbling like they were in a
washing machine! Of course, with all the toys I had for them, they always found the things they were NOT supposed to
play with like my window blinds, scapebooks, kitchen rug, etc......
The
weather finally cooperated to where our persistant rain stopped long enough for the backyard to finally dry
out. The puppies had their first taste of "freedom" as they ventured all over the yard. Surprisingly, instead of
staying in a group, half when one way while the others went another. At 8-weeks-old, the puppies have become as curious
as ever and have learned to play nicely without biting too hard. Margo and Dyna were very happy to finally interact with them
and also have the puppies enjoy the backyard as well. This taste of freedom had its downside as my ornamental plants got quite
a beating and my emerging flowers became budless. The puppies also discovered the sandbox. Sand is fun to jump in and run in. But the best part was digging. From my vantage point on the patio, all I could see were tiny doggy butts in the air as they dug their way to China. 8 weeks also marked their first visit to the vet for an initial exam and 1st shots. All the pups got a great report and are very healthy. They took their shots in stride with only a few giving a little yelp and these cry-babies turned out to be our biggest boys! Name change note: Danny Boy's new owners have choosen the name Simba and he will be referred to that name from now on.
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