God Speed little Mr Tater

Being a breeder is hard on your heart. There are so many rewards but this week we had a major heartbreak. Perfectly healthy growing puppy that I found deceased in the whelping pen at my 1:00am check. The only thing we can figure is that mom laid on him. Despite the precautions we take by installing a pig rail around the inside edge to prevent a puppy getting caught between Mom and the wall.....in this case she must have unknowingly lay on top of him. They are still so tiny she can't feel it and they aren't strong enough to get out. In last weeks blog I talked about how fragile they are in the beginning and we have so many things to watch. From disease, dehydration, over eating, under eating, breathing properly, the list goes on and any issue can be fatal in a very short time. We are so sad for the loss but I try to believe there is a small child in heaven that needed a puppy more than we needed him here with us.

A puppy protected by the pig rail.

Of the remaining 9 puppies we have little girl Cranberry that is now gaining weight! Still a bit small but she is taking well to supplemental feeding and continuing to nurse. We are having to give her some extra support but are very hopeful she will start catching up soon. She is latching well and hangs on tight. This am she was nursing when Cypress stood up to come outside for a potty break and Cranberry was hanging from her.....holding on tight!!! That is a very good sign she is strong and latching! Sorry, no photo.....had to save a puppy from being lifted out of the pen!

Everyone else is fat and sassy.....I just love their fat little bellies after they have eaten and are fast asleep. They truly do eat, sleep, grow, repeat!

So lets talk about the other part of being a breeder that is NOT hard on my heart but warms it instead! We started Early Neurological Stimulation exercises and this part enlightens my soul every morning and reminds me why we do this!! ENS, or Early Neurological Stimulation, is a puppy-raising program that involves a daily, short period of gentle stressors to improve a puppy's neurological development and stress response. The process includes five simple exercises performed from day 3 to day 16, such as holding the puppy in different positions and exposing its belly to a cool towel for just 5 seconds each. The goal is to create "robustness" and help the puppy cope better with future stressors by strengthening its cardiovascular and adrenal systems.  

And then to the milk bar.....I love the little tails wagging and their suckling noises!

We continue to watch them constantly, keep the pen clean and keep Mom fed and on track. Cypress had a bout of diarrhea that we immediately treated and turned around before it became a problem! Keeping her healthy and nursing is obviously a critical element in the successful raising of her litter. She is a good and diligent Mom, and only leaves the pen for short periods to relieve herself, get a hug from Grampa and then back she goes! This am was the first time she ate her meal in the house with Magnolia and not in the pen. She will enjoy more of her own time after about 3 weeks. I change the towels and clean the pen several times a day right now. Mom goes outside to do her business, I put the puppies in a bucket or my favorite little basket and quickly get my job finished before any of them panic! Neither of these options for temporary containment will work for long, in fact the basket is already not an option!

Just a couple cute pics from the week.......