Opal x Laddie pups are 16 days old today. We've had a very busy week, so a little late in posting. It's raining today, so outside work has slowed enough to sit at the computer for a while to write this.
A quick overview of the past 9 days; it's amazing how fast pups go from being sleeping sausages to larger wiggle warts, lol
**with all videos, click on the link, then click on the thumbnail to open fully**
Puppy Vid from Jul 14 little pups snoozing.
Jul 15:
Jul 16 In the basket again for nest cleaning:
Jul 17: Mama dogs have to be flexible!
Jul 18 - At 2 weeks of age - still sleeping lots. But eyes open and active in between... didn't capture it in this vid, tho!
Jul 19
Opal has attempted to both sit and stand to nurse her pups this week. (In the vid she didn't lay down - it appeared she wasn't sure how to do so with everyone underneath her, lol). However, she did eventually end up doing so. With so many pups, she's discovering here & here that more often than not the only way that works is lying down since they're not quite tall enough to reach the smaller teats yet.
Quite a bit more activity going on Jul 19, 2021 here & here
And lastly, today Jul 20 - just after I brought Mama Opal in from her morning constitutional... and prior to bedding change, weighing & stimulation protocols. Today was the 16th and last day of the ENS (Early Neurological Stimulation) and ESI (Early Scent Introduction) protocols. We started 4 days late on ESI because of the craziness of the first week, but got into it full swing July 13th. Even still, they were intentionally exposed to 40 new smells. (Some protocols only call for one scent per day - we do 5).
More info on the protocols we do here. I got my dh to take a quick vid of Purple on one of the days. She was the only pup that liked any of the scents - the artificial vanilla extract. Normally I'd let her continue to sniff since she was so interested, but I was concerned that she might actually lick some of it - which contains alcohol - off the edge of the glass, so removed it.
Here they are after completing their final day of ESI / ENS.
Pink gave me a chuckle the other day... miles of room in the nest, but, nope, had to extend beyond, lol.
We went to get a cow / calf pair on Sunday, so borrowed a rig to do so from a helpful friend. Mama Opal noticed that we had a new vehicle in the driveway when I took her out for one of her potty breaks. She woofed and had to go check it out. Took me too long to get my camera out of my pocket to catch that part tho. Here she's politely waiting for me to get to bottom of stairs.
And then she has helped me supervise the bucks a few times. This was yesterday, Jul 19.
All puppies got weighed daily, their nails trimmed a couple of times this week, and collars changed at least once.
Puppy weights Jul 11, 2021:
VS
Puppy weights Jul 20, 2021:
Top of the charts is still Blue at 3 lbs, 1.4 oz, followed closely by Pearl at 3 lbs 1.2 oz. Bronze is the runt, so will likely be the smallest throughout, but he's feisty, so we'll see!
And we now have peepers!! :) Pink was the first pup to start on Jul 15, followed by Blue, Pearl, Red on Jul 16. As of Jul 19, everyone has eyes fully open. Yay!
Pics of individual pups. Some of the tri colors are highly likely to become saddleback sables like Opal as they get older.
PLEASE NOTE: Any temperament observations are EXTREMELY preliminary and fluid at this young age.
1) Pink (f) Tri color - Please excuse the Tag / Search text overtop of Pink's pics. It only shows up on the published post; it does NOT show up on my editor, so still researching how to remove it.
2) Purple (f) Shaded sable Video clip
3) Red (m) Tri color
Startled a bit today when I clunked a spice jar against the cast iron tub. So... appears to be the first pup with hearing.
4) Pearl (f) Tri color or saddleback sable
5) Peach (m) Tri color
6) Sable (f) Sable color with some shading
7) Diamond (f) Tri color
8) Bronze (m) Tri color - He is the smallest pup in the litter, and naturally has a 3/4 tail. Video Clip
9) Blue (m) Tri color This chunk is still reminding me a LOT of his dam at this age - she was a laid back, fat sausage, lol
10) Silver (m) Either a saddleback sable or very dark shaded sable
We currently have 4 puppy spots left available. Anyone interested in reserving a spot for this litter, or being on our wait list for future litters, please contact us & fill out our application form.
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