Four Weeks Old

Playful puppies

The puppies are four weeks old today. They have become much more playful in the past three or four days and are much more active. They have discovered the joy of chewing on things and it has become necessary to wear shoes when sitting with them as they seem to enjoy biting toes and pant legs. They have also become much more alert, they hear us coming and are eager for attention.

Today was also a day of first for the puppies. In addition to their normal routine of the weigh-in, the puppies had their first pedicures. Their nails had been getting long and were very sharp so we clipped off the sharp edges. All the puppies did fantastic, there was some wiggling but I'm not convinced it wasn't just because they wanted to play with everyone else. We also gave each puppy their first dose of wormer today. We have been fortunate to find a wormer that has a good taste which makes the task a whole lot simpler, even Maddie willingly drinks hers from a cup.

The puppies all gained a lot of weight this week and seem so much bigger than they did a week ago. The puppies have been eating puppy food with warm milk in the morning and again in the afternoon. They also have free access to dry food throughout the day and have begun eating it as well. Maddie is still willing to nurse them but only for limited amounts of time. She doesn't like to be far away from the puppies for long periods of time but seems to enjoy watching them from the top of the step or behind the closed door of her room.

It is hard to capture the personalities of the puppies in a picture, I hope to take some more video over the weekend but for today these will have to do.


Boy - spot on head - 6 lbs 3oz

Boy - spot on shoulder - 6 lbs 5oz

Boy - spot on back - 6 lbs 2oz

Girl - spot on head - 5 lbs 4oz

Girl - spot on shoulder - 5 lbs 7oz

Girl - spot on back - 5 lbs 8oz

Girl - spot on bum - 5 lbs 8oz

Girl - spot on tail - 5 lbs 9oz

Girl - spot on ear - 6 lbs 6oz



Girl - no spot - 6 lbs 2oz

The puppies just don't understand why Maddie wants some alone time.

We love our Chuck-It!!

The girls are not willing to take their eyes off the balls
as they wait for them to be thrown

We LOVE our chuck-it. The girls even know the word and get super excited when asked it they want to play chuck-it. While playing with the girls this evening we decided to take a few pictures.

 

Bringing their balls back so they can play again.

If you have never used a chuck-it, it is a long handle that a tennis-sized ball fits in that allows the ball to throw farther, but the best part is that it allows the thrower to not need to touch a wet ball! We are blessed to live next to large fields and have lots of space for the dogs to run and play freely.

 

It sometimes takes a while but they usually stop bringing to balls back.

I usually need to throw two or three balls because the girls don't like to share when we play fetch. I actually have two chuck-its and can throw two balls at a time and I'm not sure how they do it but they usually bring back the same ball each time.

Maddie protectively watches over her ball.

Maurie with her ball.

Miley doesn't even like to put her ball down, either because
she really likes it or she is afraid someone will steal it, I'm not sure.

 I also really love the chuck-it balls. Our girls quickly chew through regular tennis balls but the rubber of the chuck-it is durable enough that the balls usually last four or five months before they need to be replaced. I'm not sure what it is about them but the girls just love to chew on them even if they are not being thrown.

After we played  they sat and intently watched us hang Christmas lights.



Twenty Seven Days Old

The puppies continue to grow and change daily. In the last two days they have become much more playful. They are much more mobile and quickly come to the door when they hear it open. They have also begun to wrestle and play with each other, which is so fun to watch.

Yesterday, while they were playing in the garage, two of the puppies crawled into a cardboard box and decided it was a great place to take a nap. It was really cute so I decided to put the box into their room so they could continue sleeping in it. This morning when I went to put Maddie outside I found all ten of the puppies sleeping inside the box. It is hardly big enough for them all but they had found a way to fix, a bit like puzzle pieces. I am not sure how long the box will last but for now they are enjoying to cozy space.



You can see the side of the box is beginning to bow.



This is female spot on the shoulder who decided
she didn't want to be squished in the box.

Twenty Four Days Old

Sleeping in the kitchen

This afternoon we brought the puppies into the kitchen again to play. After about twenty minutes they were all tired and crawled under the table and onto Maurie's pillow to sleep.



 

Maddie and the girls had been playing outside and when they came into the house they immediately went to the garage to check on the puppies. When they didn't find them in their usual spot they searched and found them in the kitchen and proceeded to wake them all. Miley and Maurie love to play with the puppies but do need to be reminded to be gentle with them. 

Three Week Old

 

 

The puppies continue to grow and are gaining weight at a good rate. The are all walking well and have started exploring their surroundings. They continue to drink their milk in the morning and afternoon and have even started eating dry food from Maddie's dish. 

 

Male - spot on head - 3 lbs 12.25oz



Male - spot on shoulder - 4 lbs 1.25oz



Male - spot on back - 3 lbs 14.5oz



Female - spot on head - 3 lbs 10.25oz



Female - spot on shoulder - 3 lbs 12.75oz



Female - spot on back - 3 lbs .7oz



Female - spot on bum - 3 lbs 13.75oz



Female - spot on tail - 3 lbs 9.75oz



Female - spot on ear - 4 lbs 5.75oz



Female - no spot - 4 lbs 4.25oz

 

The whole litter

 

They are still a bit unsteady on the smooth kitchen floor but seem to enjoy their time in the house and love the extra attention they receive from everyone who comes in the door.

 



Happy Thanksgiving!

Obviously, they are still learning their table manners.

As the smell of roasting turkey and mashed potatoes fills the house the puppies are enjoying a bowl of warm milk over puppy food. They have all mastered how to drink from a dish and seem to enjoy the milk although they don't seem to have a real strong interest in the puppy food. Maddie doesn't seem to mind when they leave some food for her to clean up.

The milk is not limited to just the bowl, the puppies
are usually covered in milk until they have eaten their fill.

 

The puppies are still getting milk from Maddie
and therefore don't always have much interest in the milk.

Miley and Maurie also wanted their pictures taken today.

Miley

Maurie

Sixteen Days Old

The puppies are continuing to grow and develop well. They still spend most of their time sleeping and when they are awake it is mostly just to eat. I am still slowly introducing them to milk and puppy food, they seem to enjoy the new foods but would still prefer to get their milk from Maddie.

Here are a few pictures from this afternoon as the puppies slept while Maddie was outside playing with Maurie and Miley. All three of the older dogs love playing outside, but are always excited to come in a see the puppies after any significant time spent away from them.