Day 33 and Beyond

Hello Teapot Lab Lovers…it is April 29^th, day 33 in this litter’s 56 day stay with us and at this writing my best conclusion is thus; these pups are friggin’ cute. They are just into the stage of becoming little dogs. They see and hear with acuity, play with each other and us, bark and wag their tails in perfect miniature of what they will soon be and are seeming to outgrow their box environment by the minute. They have begun eating puppy food (soaked in water for many hours) though they do not miss a chance to latch onto Stella should she enter their space and tarry a bit too long. They poop like they mean it now and Stella seems less inclined to pick up after them so our “dooties” as higher species as the pooper scooper are starting as well. They are coming into their own physically, mentally (and spiritually). The now four pups are all of relatively equal size (Cindy guesses about 6 lbs. per) with varying degrees of difference in their specific physical forms.

Mosey is unofficially renamed Mr. Pumpkinhead with a very solid melon on top of what looks to be a good chest and shoulders (to be anyway). His build reads solid and stocky and his movements, so far, reflect that body type. He chugs around the box like a tractor in low gear just looking for something to plow. Lest I lead you astray with this description, let me say that his temperament seems very calm and easygoing from what we can tell at this stage. He is not very vocal, seems to play with us and the other pups just enough then goes off to his spot to crash for the next hour or so. He does some grabbing and tugging on the others but takes his share as well. Overall, we like this guy very much and hope he continues down his path.

Bide is a bit more of an enigma as yet. She is, of course, very cute. Sits like her ma Stella and looks up at you with those little Labrador eyes and just melts your heart…then you reach down to pet her and she lunges in grabs a hold with her little (but quite sharp) teeth, lets go and then runs around the box as if she’s got a burr under her saddle. She can be vocal at times, wanting to be on whatever other side of the box that is not available at that moment. She likes to be in cooler spots within the box, laying on tiles or just plain floor and not so much on the softer stuff. She is progressing physically, has all her feet and legs under her and can move around pretty good when she wants to. She has a big old back end and has already shown the propensity of rolling on her back and showing her belly for inspection (and a quick rub while you’re there, thank you very much).By and large, she is coming along just fine. We certainly think she will be a nice dog…will she be Stella 2? Definite maybe.

Ever is the classic middle (child) puppy. He tends to get lost in the attention shuffle more often than not. He is not the big headed male (yet), not the prodigal female (never will be) and does not elicit attention sweetly like his little brother Wait does. He tends to sit back away from the action of the moment, take in the situation and then make his choice as to whether to come over and join in or not. My guess is that this “personality” profile could lead to him being the best dog to have when all is said and done. He could be mellow, easy to handle, does not dove headlong into everything and anything like some goofy labs we all know. Of course, all this speculation might turn out to be wrong as rain and he could end up being a regular old good dog. For now, he is physically sound; he may be the biggest of the batch and while his head is not as blocky as Mosey’s, he is still put together just fine. He is a talker; big vocal windup to his poops, can be heard sitting off by himself in the corner of the box, singin’ the puppy pad blues. He is a complicated dude and I for one like him.

But my favorite would have to be Wait. Last born and littlest (still but only by a bit now), he has shown an endearing quality of really enjoying human contact and touch. He is the one who not only comes over to you when you visit the box, but stays there, pressed up against your hand, luxuriating in the contact. He licks more than he bites (though he is learning to bite just fine through his play with his mates) when we are petting him and when we are sitting outside with the group, he is the one who will find his way onto the lap, curl up and go to sleep. As I said, he bites, he poops, he cries the blues too but all in all he is a nice little pup who wants someone to love for the next 13+ years.

We're Puppies After All

The puppies have emerged from their larvae stage and are now fully formed puppies. They have eyes, distinct faces, they can walk and squawk. Much to Stella’s chagrin they also have teeth. Momma has not been dissuaded yet, she still spends every night in the box with the pups, keeping them clean, fed and warm. It was fun coming home and putting on shorts and a tshirt, but since the puppies are now able to generate their own heat, we no longer maintain the apartment at 78 degrees.

With the pups eyes and ears open we have begun socializing in earnest. We try to put small obstacles in the box every day. We also make strange noises, though that is nothing unusual. The puppies have all responded bravely to their rapidly expanding world. They now stay awake and interact for a full 10 minutes before crashing for several hours.

This week was full of milestones for the puppies. They all had their first taste of puppy food and (surprise!) found it agreeable. They scarfed it all down and immediately began looking for more. I know these puppies are supposed to be on the small side when they grow up, but right now they are large and round, AKA fat.

All in all the pups have graduated to interesting. We can spend long periods of time watching them play and explore their world. Cross your fingers for warm weather this weekend so the pups can learn about the great outdoors! We’ll keep you posted.

The pups are starting to crawl all over Stella. They nibble on her ears, face and paws while she feigns sleep. She is so patient with them, never a cross word. I think that may change as they get older.

This is probably my favorite age with the puppies. They are big enough to have personalities and play, yet small enough that they are not making too big a mess. That will change soon, but I'm going to enjoy it while it lasts.

On the natural side of life, we heard loon calling this morning for the first time this year. Spring is on the way!

Sad News

I am sorry to have to report that one of the pups from Stella’s current litter has passed on. The smallest boy (we named him “Ready” and he wore a green rickrack) failed to wake up on Tuesday morning and just like that was gone from this world and onto his next journey. It all happened very quickly and with little warning.

Upon arriving from a weekend away, I noted to Cindy how much smaller he looked from the other four. He was always the smallest in the litter but, up to this point, was gaining weight and seeming just fine. We checked the weight chart, weighed him again and decided he would get special time with Stella without the other pups present. Having decided this made us feel better. That night was normal, Stella in and out of the box, in and out of the house, puppies alternately nursing, crying, piling up and then spreading out. The next day, Monday, I was working at the house and was trying to keep to the plan of giving Ready time with Stella…I would come up to the box every couple of hours, put Stella in the unoccupied side and settle him in with her. He would start nursing and when I returned a half hour later he was sleeping by her side. The day went like this but at some point later on I had the sense he was not nursing with much gusto and upon examining him noticed he was dehydrated. Cindy arrived home and we went to work on a more aggressive plan for him; hydrating and supplemental feeding every 2-4 hours. We had a feeding tube and a DVD and felt we could bring him around as we had done with a puppy from the last litter. We seemed to be getting the hang of the feedings, got the tube into the stomach, pumped in some good stuff, etc. One time he tossed a bunch of it back up and we felt disappointed but by and large, he was taking this fluid/food concoction in and keeping it in. He was showing no signs of an infection, nor did he have diarrhea or was he vomiting. He even had a normal bowel movement that evening. All in all, we did not feel the need to call the vet at 9:30 at night, did not choose to give a dose of antibiotics that we have in the kit, thinking, again, that we could rehydrate him, supplement his feeding and keep him warm and he’d be right in no time.

Cindy and I performed the tube feeding at 5 pm, 9 pm, midnight and then at 3 am. I could not get back to sleep so I stayed up with him lying on my chest, snuggled up in a fleece towel while I stroked his back. He made a soft sound with each stroke and I felt like we were going to be okay. I fell asleep like this and upon waking at 5:30, I returned him to the warming box, believe I heard another bit of puppy protest then went into the bedroom to wake my crew. I slid into bed and promptly conked out for another 45 minutes. We woke together and came out to take care of our boy. We found he had died sometime that morning. He was non-responsive and already beginning to stiffen up. We felt weird…sad, angry, sleep deprived, unsure if we’d done all we could have, etc.

We could not bring him back so we wrapped him up and laid him to rest looking out over the open water of Oseetah Lake. We think he’d like the view and maybe it helps him on his journey into the next. Peace.

Five is Just Fine with Me and My Stella.

As a Labrador litter, the size of five is certainly on the lower end of the spectrum. From a lover of Labs perspective, we might wish to have more pups so we can provide as many good people with these good dogs. From a breeder perspective, we’d want as much genetic material to choose from in regards to bettering our line. And from the breadwinner’s perspective, more puppies (might) mean better margins. From the only perspective that really matters, Stella’s, five is just fine thank you very much…

There is plenty of milk, lots of spigots to choose from and just enough backsides to sample to keep variety in her diet (breeder can explain this one). As a result, these pups are coming along just fine. They are all gaining weight steadily with the lone female playing leapfrog daily with two males for the top spot in the weight class. The two remaining males are both solid and gaining fine but definitely smaller than the other three. It is difficult to discern any conclusive tendencies or traits at this early stage but the speculation goes on anyways. We would love to have this female become the next Stella so our eyes are showing us what we wish to see (I think she just sat…honey she can’t walk yet, how can she sit…yes, she definitely knows sit, she’s brilliant).

Beyond this wishful, wistful watchfulness, all the pups are getting great attention and care. The box is clean, the room is warm and Stella is proving to be extraordinary in her care for this second litter. She came around pretty quickly on the first litter but I don’t know that she ever really “got” it that first time. This time around she is on the ball from day one, watching, warming, feeding and cleaning her fab five to such a very high level. Our biggest job right now is to make sure that Stella comes away from the box enough and has some downtime in cooler climes. We are feeding her large amounts of good food so it is not too difficult to “coax” her out but she is certainly spending most of her time either in the box or next to it. Apart from feeding Stella and the little woodstove that heats the space to its mildly oppressive 75 degrees, we are weighing daily, clipping nails and also handling the pups in many weird and twisted variations to help stimulate their various mechanisms for coping. Fear not, we are mostly just hugging the heck out of the little buggers and calling it high science. So far, the pups have entertained some local visitors and have done just fine.

At this writing they have almost tripled their birth weights at 11 days of age. They are moving around the box by pulling themselves along still mostly with the front legs but we are seeing the early signs of them attempting to use/stand on the back ones. They are certainly making some noise with coos, trills, chirps and mini barks as the repertoire so far. Eyes and ears remain closed with only the good old sniffer orienting them to the world around them.

All in all they are very cool and we are smitten with them all. Stella seems to like them too (at least until their teeth come in).