Day Forty-One 

Nothing much to report today. Trying to let people know what puppies are available. I'm surely going to miss them. This has been a fun litter to watch. Maybe because I am retired or maybe because this will most likely be my last litter. This is a job for much younger people.  I have no problem falling asleep at the end of the day. I can't wait for spring so I can get back to training Tiffin. I miss our one-on-one time. Here are a few pictures from today.

Tiffin wants to play with them if only they wouldn't try to nurse.

They love to make the pig oink.

Day Forty 

Exciting but not surprising news today. I got the DNA results back from VGL (U.C. Davis) and five of the seven puppies are LUA! The LUA pups are Chill, Tundra, Blizzard, Arctic and Shiver.  Polar and Avalanche are HUA like 99% of all Dalmatians in the world. It doesn't mean they are inferior to the LUA Dals but it does mean their owners need to be mindful of what they eat and having ample hydration and opportunities to urinate. Stones aren't the biggest problem in the breed most Dals live long healthy lives with no issue however it is a very big problem for the Dal that is a stone former. That usually happens when people aren't made aware of how to maintain a Dalmatian. 

Linda came to see her grand pups today. They jumped all over her and untied her shoes many, many times. It was a very long drive in blistery cold, but she made the trip and picked her favorite. I have to agree. She picked the one that has had my heart from the beginning. Sweet, sweet Avalanche. Of course, I love them all and my favorite one is the one in my arms at the time. 

Grammy Linda

Day Thirty-Nine 

I woke up to a winter wonderland today. It is so pretty outside but most of the day I stayed inside and was busy, busy, busy. I got a lot of paperwork done for the testing and some things I want to include in the binder. Made arrangement for the blood draw, health checks and first shots. I keep thinking of more things that need to be done. 

I also got a chance to let the puppies experience some new sounds. The first time with the hair dryer. Most were just curious but a couple of them ran for the bed. They came right back when they realized it wasn't scary. I turned it on low and let it blow above them. They didn't mind that at all. I also did nails again. They are getting better at that each week. Then I let them experience the sound of the dremel. I turned it on and while it was on, I threw a handful of kibble on the floor. I let them associate the noisy dremel with something they love and that is food. That worked. They would rather eat than worry about a loud noise. 

Unfortunately, I didn't get many pictures today. Sorry. I forgot to take any when they were out playing and by the time I thought of it they were played out. 

Day Thirty-Eight 

We had no visitors today. Even without visitors it seems like there is not nearly enough hours in the day. I am getting together paperwork that I need to do before the puppies are ready to go to their new homes. That part of the job is not nearly as much fun as playing with the puppies. I need to get all the surveys for each puppy for the OFA blood draw and also the hearing test paperwork. I have part of the information put together for each puppy's take home binder and bag. I am making a checklist of all the things I need to do in the next week or so. I don't know how people do this multiple times a year. 

I think I will take a picture of what the puppy pen looks like first thing in the morning. They hit the potty patches a good bit of the time but not always. It takes me about an hour and a half to get the room back in order. This seemed so much easier 10 years ago.  I let Tiffin in with them for a short time in the morning and a short time in the evening. After the morning chores are done it is play time for the pups. I open the pen and give them run of most of the room and lots of playthings.  They play very hard for about 40 minutes and then they all go take a nap. When they wake up, they are ready to eat, and it starts all over again. Here are some pictures and videos of our day. I try to jam as much in a day as I can because they will only be my babies for a short time, and I have fallen in love with each and every one of them. 

Day Thirty-Seven 

Brrrr It is bitter cold out. I hope no one I know is leaving their dogs outside in this weather. 

The puppies are more fun to watch each day. This evening I removed all the collars. I think most people can tell them apart by now. Nothing much to report on today. They got a new toy. I thought it was time for a noisy pig. Most Dals love them. The puppy of the day is Avalanche. I call him kissy face, huggie bear. Seems he was in most of the pictures today. 

Miss Polar wins the please pick me up sad face award today.

Shiver is just the cutest little patch girl.

Of course, I can't forget Tundra, Chill and Blizzard.

The fish seems to be their favorite toy.

 Day Thirty-Six

Today started off nice but it got cold and windy with a little snow. I guess it's to be expected but I don't have to like it. We had visitors to see the puppies and it was a wonderful visit. My lifelong friend Colleen and her daughter Wendy stopped by. Wendy adopted Tiffin's half-sister Solo who belonged to my very good friend Nanci who passed away recently. So, I guess we could say we are certainly family. I spend a lot of my day playing with the puppies. I love watching them interact with each other and discover everything they can find.

Tiffin reacted much better with these visitors. She barked at them at first but then decided that they were cool, so she took all the back rubs Wendy wanted to give her. So far, the visitors have all been women. It will be interesting to see how she reacts to men. She nor the puppies have seen any children. They are few and far between in my world. 

Here is Blizzard

Blizzard and Polar

Shiver doesn't often ask to be picked up but she did this evening and fell asleep in my arms. She is such a sweet little thing. Here are a couple pictures of her.

I took some videos of them playing. Enjoy!

I put a surgical suit on Tiffin so she could be with the puppies without them nursing. They still tried though.

W eek Five

They are five weeks old already. Time is flying and it won't be long until they can go to their new homes. I am growing more attached to them every day and figuring out who is the best puppy for each home is overwhelming at times. I want to make sure the right puppy goes to the right home. There is much more to consider than spots. Today was weigh in time and they are growing nicely. Tundra is still the biggest at 6.7 pounds and Shiver is still the smallest at 5.7 pounds. All the rest are over 6 pounds. They are getting more playful and much braver. 

They are asking to be picked up by sitting in front of me. It usually works because who could resist this face?

They are getting most of their nourishment from me now as I am only letting Tiffin with them two times a day. I am hoping her milk will start to dry up soon. Like wild dogs she will throw up for them to eat. Not all dogs do this, but it is not uncommon. I hate it though. That is another reason I keep her away from them. She doesn't cry to be with them, so I think she is tired of motherhood. She is only concerned when a person she doesn't know comes in the house. Then she acts like a crazy dog which is so out of character for her. 

I set up a tunnel for them to play with, but it didn't go so well. They wanted to go through it, but others would jump on it and got it so twisted up they couldn't go through it. 

They really enjoyed playing in the wobble disk. They liked it when I spun it around.

I added a scent (anise) for them to find. I just sat and watched them to see if they could find it. It wasn't on the ground so that made it harder as some of them sniffed the ground but couldn't locate where the scent was coming from. Here are some pictures of them finding it and a short video.