| Eyes and ears are taking in the world now! This has been a very busy week for them
because they are now learning to integrate their senses with the world. Personalities
emerging now. I'm handling them daily, introducing them to solid foods. Zor is less interested in round the clock nursing now. Their toenails had become cat-like needle sharp, so I have trimmed the tips on all. Teeth are emerging and they are learning to handle gloppy, semisolid foods. Taking them outside during the day when it is nice, I am able to evaluate their responses to the world around them. Handling each pup alone is important in discovering its ability to handle new stresses without the influence of the puppy mob. Up to about now, the puppies tend to notice if something is new (a loud sound), they focus on the sound but do not always react. Sometimes when the pup is more awake, it advances to the sound (keys, crumpling paper, cap gun), and other times the same puppy completely ignores it, or startles and backs up a few wobbles and stares or whimpers. Each puppy has given a range of responses, probably more attuned to their waking state at the moment. :) |
 They are three weeks old in this photo.
This is their first day outside since their eyes and ears have opened. Each puppy was
brought out and put on the straw. I sat nearby. Initially the pups were uncertain and
protested the change in their environment. Zor checks on the protesting pups to be sure
they are okay. |
 Yay for Mom! This works for the pups!
Their tails come up and they walk around more boldly since the world as they know it
hasn't really changed as much as they first thought. |
 All the pups! After a few
more minutes, all the puppies come to my lap. I later placed them into the doghouse that
Zor whelped them in. They explored the cavernous doghouse, deeply bedded with straw, then
curled up in the straw and went to sleep til Zor brought them some lunch. |
 Blanket and liner in the house all
freshened up - same day of the pics above, they are brought back into the house to sleep
for the night. The photo here is at an angle so the pups closest and further away seem to
have a great difference in size. They are actually very closely sized. The pinto female is
at the bottom of the pic, and the darkest fawn female (bright pink collar, not visible) is
at the top of the heap, with her paws on one of her sisters (black collar, yellow female).
The puppy on the far right with the long white sox is the greyish female (blue collar).
Collars are not visible. |
 January 27, 2003 photo. Foreground then
Left to Right: Black Collar, yellow female. Pinto male. Fawn male. Blue Collar, greyish
female. Pinto female. Pink collar, dark fawn female.Puppy meals are currently varied as I get them weaned to puppy chow. Zor is feeding them still (but she's starting to go on strike). Their first glop was goat milk-cottage cheese and rice cereal mixture. I'm now increasing mashed-softened Iam's Large puppy growth formula. They haven't totally yet gotten the hang of drinking water on demand, it's sort of a novelty still but water is available. |
|
 MOM! So outside they go into the doghouse.
Zor's being very patient as some very exuberant competition takes place for the best seats
(teats?) in the house! |
 Puppies look pretty huge in this picture,
but I thought you'd enjoy seeing. The fawn male in the back is probably contemplating his
next move. |
 It's possible that Zor will kill any
chicken that comes into the house because her mothering instincts are very strong.
Normally chickens can nest in the house next to her and she ignores them but any eggs left
behind become hers. :) |
 Pups and Zor are getting relaxed as some
of the competition drops as a few pups start feeling pretty content. Later in the day,
they may try to venture out of the house but they will not go far. Zor is likely to take a
break and stay for periods of time with Aslan (my retired service dog) who hangs out in
the doghouse next to this one. |
 Puppy's doghouse - on the left. The
doghouse inside of the dilapidated dog run (door is always open) has Aslan sleeping
inside. We've put some cement bricks in front of the house so pups can step back in easily
if they step out. (That's the pinto female peering out of the house). We initially
purchased the dog run to house/isolate a rescued wolf hyrid before our Anatolian days - he
ate through quite a bit of the kennel mesh during the time we had him. The run still comes
in handy when we have a rescue to separate from the others or a non-breeding female in
heat. |
 Aslan loves his house! He's now too
arthritic to spend his days on top of dog houses, but he really enjoys the comfort of the
straw. Zor is sometimes curled up next to him, watchful eyes on the pups next door. |
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