10/31/20 4 Weeks Old!

Happy Halloween! The babies aren’t very spooky but they are VERY VERY cute.  Dog Cindi came today and we had our FIRST new visitor for the official count!  Lana (she has SDB’s littermate sister Emma) came to visit the pupsters this afternoon.  After I made sure she held each puppy, she got in the pen with them and got to choose (or be chosen)

Phoebe decided that was a good time to feed the puppies again and let Lana pet her while she did it.  Phoebe discreetly manages to control interactions with her puppies.  SDB is always available to be ber backup if she needs an enforcer ;-)

Before Lana arrived, I enlarged the pen again.  We needed some more room in there for all of the toys.  They mostly stayed with Cindi while I added the new sections of ex pen but when I was changing the linens, they were all over me and the linens.  One puppy was on my lower legs as I crawled all over the pen and was eventually joined by other puppies as well.  They are really cute and becoming more and more fun.

We wore masks while Lana was here but the pupsters didn’t seem to mind.  We stayed far enough away from Lana that she could take hers off in the puppy pen and get some puppy breath.  Then she helped us with their 4 week old Halloween pictures.  They are too large to fit into some of the props, we’d hoped to get them into the jack o lantern treat buckets but we could barely fit one puppy in each of them (we had 4) so I’m not sure we got a group picture.  They were mostly sleeping when we started but they were all awake before we managed to attempt the group picture.

We’ve done a little cuddling and some resting this evening, it was a big day after all.  I think I’m going to try to take a nap in the bed again when the MSU gets home.  Then I’ll come down and feed the big dogs, try to play a with the little dogs a little (last night, as if on cue, Phoebe came in and fed the puppies moments after I’d gone in to cuddle them) and then go Nighty, Nighty, Nighty.  We have more visitors scheduled for tomorrow.  Puppy Breath to all!

10/30/20 Pupdate

And we’re growing, growing, growing.  After they finish eating, they are playing with the mama’s  face/ears.  I also noticed them doing that with Deja and Great GrammieSammie.

Phoebe left the destuffed caterpillow (originally from when Deja and littermates were babies) hanging on the gate and they were not only grabbing it, they were pulling and tugging.  Didn’t quite mamange to dislodge itt though.  Yet.

If I make an encouraging noise or talk to them, they leave toy to play with me.  I try to remember not to do that every time but I don’t ignore them when they do it because that’s a behavior I like in an adult dog, too.

Have I mentioned that they are Very cuddly.  I need to remember ot take something in to use as a pillow because I need both hands for puppies when I lie down in there with them.

They watch the action through the fence but seem to know where the gates are, maybe I’ll move them again to see. I want to change it around some anyway.  

At least twice today, FauxReal had puppy zoomies, she was the last one awake and she ran over the various things in the pen including  sleeping siblings.

They ‘run’ (ok, maybe it’s often more of a lurch but they obviously intend to run and will as soon as they get coordinated enough) around making viscous (aka vicious) noises while furiously wagging tails.  They are absolutely adorable when they do this.  (I will not teach them to make horrible noises like I did the first puppies, Cindi.  But it WAS cute and the stopped really quickly when I didn’t reward it anymore)

I put 1 side of the spice rack stairs in the pen and they go up and down but I’m not sure there’s room for anyone to sleep on them.   I’m sure we’ll find out before long. In that vein of true PWDs behaviors, they’ve begun sleeping with appendages sticking through the pen

 



We have  big day tomorrow (we’ll be 4 weeks old and it’s Halloween)

Nighty, nighty, nighty, Puppy breath to all!

10/29/20 Pupdate

We’ve been busy little pupsters!  More of us are getting teeth and those of us with teeth yesterday are poking more through.  They are much more coordinated than they were, too.  They are still plenty vocal.

Dog Cindi came today to groom the big dogs (they needed butts and muzzles shaved and it’s good for the puppies to be around it). While she was here to cuddle the puppies, I extended their pen a couple more panels and then changed out part of their linens.  They were a little too helpful as puppies are wont to be but I needed to do it.  I’d already waited until after the grooming (the hair tends to go everywhere so there’s no point doing it and redoing it a few hours later before the washer has even had time to finish the first set). Phoebe was feeding them and Cindi was sitting with her but that wasn’t quite enough to keep them from helping.  Of course, Phoebe wanted to help, too so that was a contributing factor.

Eventually, I managed to get the fleece out without any puppies in it (we counted them, I’ve had nightmares about having puppies in the laundry) and put the new piece down but that was difficult as well with all of the help.  I did notice that they can actually maintain their balance on the blue flooring now, too.  Then I put in some new toys (plus the v tech piano toy, they get that one almost every day) with them.  These were smaller toys and the puppies not only interacted with them, they were carrying/dragging them around.  They were also trying to grab the drawstrings on Dog Cindi’s pants, my sleeves, the hem of my shorts and top, pretty much anything they come across to put into their mouths.  They are really, really cute even if they are going to be mouths full of needle teeth soon.

New things today: they play bow and at least one of them shook it off like a wet grown dog (not sure which puppy or why but Cindi saw it) and they wag their tails when they play, too.  They aren’t the greatest at stalking (they try it but sometimes they lose their balance or get distracted along the way) but they still try it. They pack a LOT of activity into the little bits of the day they are awake though.  And they manage to be adorable even when they aren’t.  

I’m going to hold a weight watcher’s meeting, do some cuddling, feed the Mama again and we’ll all go Nighty, Nighty, Nighty.  Puppy breath to all! 

10/28/20 Pupdate

I don’t know how they keep doing it but the pupsters are even cuter today than they were yesterday. They keep practicing so they are becoming more and more perfect. I got up and fed the big dogs breakfast and then went back to sleep for a little while. I didn’t get to sleep very much because there was a lot of animal activity in the yard and the dogs felt the need to call the alert. I keep neglecting to take naps so I’m pretty tired. I plan to lie down after I feed the big dogs dinner. It’s hard not to get sucked back into the puppy pen but I can play with them a few minutes after the midnight snack for the grown up dogs. The big news in the pen today is that Caly has decided that they aren’t too bad. Caly has historically NOT been interested in puppies. She was decent with hers but nothing like her SDB or Phoebe so it’s pretty interesting that she chose to interact with these puppies. Today, she kept getting into the pen with us and nobody was getting treats. The other big news is they are beginning to get TOOFERS! FauxSure has 2 tiny little sharp canines barely poking through and Fauxcus is working hard (on my fingers) on a couple in the premolar area. The others are generally just gumming on me and each other and probably won’t be far behind. Now I’m wondering if Caly was coming in to see if it was time to start hurling for the puppies. I’m going to be ready to start feeding the puppies in the next day or 2 - especially in case the big girls start hurling for them. It will be interesting (at least to me, I’m well aware that most people probably aren’t as fascinated by every little thing related to the puppies as I am) to see whether Deja joins in with the girls. Jack’s been our only dog when we had puppies and the only time he ever did it was when Jill had our first litter at home so he was around during the whelping and vomited for her. He didn’t do it for the puppies even when the bitches did. I’m going to feed the big dogs now and take the various noisy toys out of the puppy pen and go Nighty Nighty Nappy. Puppy breath to all

10/27/20 Pupdate

Good morning, good morning the little dogs say.  And they are really cute when they say it! They don’t just watch their Mama now, they watch me and the big dogs, too.  But mostly me and the PhoeMama.

She continues to take good care of her offsrping.  She’s been adding toys to their area, apparently, they need a different variety than I am providing.  She also seems to be saying she’ll begin as she means to go on with regards to toys.  Phoebe has no compunction about snatching toys out of the other dogs’ mouths (she did it to Indy, Bela, and when he grew up enough Deja) and, if she wants one that is in their pen when it’s time to parade; she just takes it.  This am, she wanted the long green snake she had given them earlier so she took it.  It took her a little longer because at least 2 puppies were lying on it and she had to dislodge them.  At least she doesn’t send them flying when she wants to parade.

Apparently, I put the little baseball player in on the wrong day.  There wasn’t a game last night - shows how much I keep up with it (I’m only even the slightest interested because my nephew works for the Rays.  Not interested enough to actually listen to a game or the details of any game.)  It’s not important like a dog show ;-)

I’m incredibly anvious to start feeding the puppies so I keep checking for teeth.  They are happy to oblige this inspection by gnawing all over my fingers, toes, clothes, etc.  I suspect the girls will tell me it’s time by hurling for them (invariably, I start checking to see when we started feeding the other litters and the bitches puke for them so I was at least close on when it should happen.  I shouldn’t be so anxious to get started but I am.  Everyone always says that the bitch stops cleaning up after them when they start feeding the puppies but, fortunately, that has not been our experience.

They are being VERY good at hitting the potty area for poop.  Pee is less reliable but they are pretty little, still and it’s a work in process.  Still, not bad for 3 weeks old!

Now that we have the DNA results (and me, being me, has scheduled them all out to make sure I ‘see’ how they came up with the results so I know they are ‘correct’), I need to finish up the cast of characters.  And I think I’ll make a separate post for anyone interested so they know how and why we arrived at the necessity of doing DNA to determine parentage (well, sire.  The dam was not in question)

I have the AKC swabs now but I recalled that I need a sighted person to help me keep them straight after I do them.  I don’t know if I am waiting for the microchips first,  probably not.  I don’t have that kind of patience to wait for the registrations (they AKC will have to process their samples before I can do the litter registration application). Hopefully, we can do those tomorrow.  I’ll have to get out a bunch of ‘containers’ for the puppies again since they have to be separated from each other and the big dogs.  I wonder if they can get out of some of the ones I used last week (probably so but maybe they’ll be sleeping).

This evening, I was talking to the MSU and all of a sudden there was a little brown puppy trotting herself across the floor.  I scooped her up and put her back, if I’d had any idea it was going to happen, I’d have been ready to take a picture.  I have reinforced the defenses by using a couple of sections of the green rabbit pen and wire tying (pronounced as WarTying in the southern part of the state) them across the gate openings.  While i was doing that, she woke up and came over to try it again.  So I set her down on the ‘free’ side while I finished.  She interacted with her daddy and Granddam Caly a little and tried to have a snack while her mother stood watching me work.  Phoebe was nice enough to lie down so she could nurse and stay out of trouble until I was done.  Then I put her back in the pen.  She checked that gate immediately so I’m aftraid she knows what she did because she also tried to do it at the other one (fortunately, I had already secured it). We’re going to do a little cuddling and go Nighty, Nighty, Nighty.  Puppy breath to all!

10/26/20 Pupdate

Hmmm, so much going on with the puppies today.  Aunt Cindi came to play and took some pictures.

I added the singing/dancing baseball player creature to the pen since the World series could possibly end tonight.  I also added a milk crate since they aren’t quite big enough to get in and out of the beverage tub.

We held a weight watcher’s meeting and except for one lacking 0.3 of an ounce - everybody is 3 lbs or more.  They can nurse while their Mama is standing now - but she doesn’t usually stand still for that.  They latch on when she is cleaning up but she doesn’t hold still for them to nurse then.  She lies down or sits when she wants to let them eat.

The big news, which has been occupying MUCH of my time, is that we FINALLY got the results of the DNA tests from VetGen (UC Davis) this evening.  Last Monday, right after the puppies nursed, Cindi took the big dogs other than SDB for a ride and I separated the puppies into different containers for an hour. Then we did 3 cheek swabs on each puppy and CIndi took them to the airport to overnight to California.  I was REALLY hoping to get the results  Friday so it was an extra long weekend for me.  We will still have to submit DNA to  AKC but they take much longer so I did this one.  Y’all should know by now that patience is not my strong suit.

I’ll try to do a better job reporting the happenings with the absolutely adorable puppies tomorrow.  Nighty, nighty, nighty - puppy breath to all!

10/24/2020 3 WEEKS OLD!

How in the world has 3 weeks passed already?  There is certainly a big difference in the pupsters in those 3 weeks, too.  And against all odds, they are even cuter!

Phoebe continues to be a great Mama.  This week is peak nursing load on her so I’ll need to increase her calories again.  She’s a good eater so that shouldn’t be too hard.  She needs some carbs to help with that but I need to make sure her ears don’t get yeasty.  The other dogs are happy enough to eat whenever she does but they don’t get nearly as much at each meal.  The puppies are definitely nursing off every calorie we give to her.

They are quite efficient at nursing, too.  They occasionally manage to latch on while she stands (she’s busy cleaning them and they are opportunistic) but it doesn’t last very long.  They are very vocal in their protests and they are also getting more vocal in their play.

It was getting a little crowded in the pen when she went in to nurse and they all seemed very near to going over the wall so I renovated their area again today.  So now there is room for them and the mama and their toys (and me).  Deja came in to check it all out, too but they were busy nursing and didn’t notice him.  

From this point on, I should be able to just add panels but I figure I’ll have to start closing the gates or rig up a little higher step.  Phoebe can certainly clear it fine.  She jumped in and out of the old puppy pen with hang time.  (She also goes over the gates on my deck to the dog yard at will so I just leave them open when she is here.)  I’ll add crates later as I add space and I had to move the ottobenbed (thankfully, everything out here is on casters so I can move it easily) into a new position since I’m planning to try to take them in and out the deck on that is partially covered when we start going outside. 

I put the traditional vtech piano toy that the sire of our first litter sent for the puppies 13.5 years ago in today.  It’s traditional.  I have several other noisy/moving toys to cycle in and out but that one stays in most of the time.  I’m trying to decide on the best time to put the dancing baseball player furry creature in there.  It plays/sings “Take me out to the ballgame” and since the team my nephew works for is in the World Series, it seems apropos.  I’m sure the puppies will appreciate the symbolism ;-)

Dog Cindi got contaminated by too manyother dogs at FastCast today so she didn’t come help celebrate their 3 week birthday (and take pictures).  She has some extra clothes here (we planned ahead when Bela was still in quarantine for the potential respiratory infection) but she’d had so many dogs all over her that she’d have had to shower first and she was just too tired.  

I’m awfully tired myself.  We had a front move in (our pretty weather is gone) and that is never good for my sinuses so I didn’t sleep much.  I was too busy today to nap (all of that cleaning ‘construction’ time ate into my nap time so I think I’m going to hold a weight watchers meeting and call if a night after I feed the big dogs again.  IF I can maintain it, I think I have a schedule I can keep that is mostly within my ‘regular’ sleep pattern.  I added a snack in today to adjust the times and still work around Caly’s med schedule. So for nowm we’re going to say Nighty, Nighty, Nighty and puppy breath to all!

10/23/20 Pupdate

Oh my goodness, they’ve gotten even cuter and sweeter (and possibly spoiled).  Today I made a conscious effort to pick up each  puppy while they were awake and soothe them to sleep. (Then I cut their nails while they slept). It’s not exactly a new thing, I just made sure I did it when they were still awake (but getting sleepy.).  I also like to pick them up when they are asleep and then lull them back to sleep.  

More and more playing today with me and each other.  I went to scoop up FauxSure (red) because she was ‘turtling’ while sleeping.  FauxPearls was apparently awake and saw me because she launched her little puppy self into my hand!  So I carried her around next.

The cage matches have begun.  They don’t last long but there is a lot of activity while they do.  They are actively lurching (they aren’t quite coordinated to really leap at this point) at one another while vocalizing and mouthing (does it count as biting when they don’t have teeth yet?). Today was that easy button in French and the blue light up ‘Charge’ button in addition to random stuffy toys provided by the mama. I put batteries in the various electronic (noisy/moving) toys today so I can start rotating them through tomorrow.

Progress is being made toward using the potty area, too.  They don’t always get all of the way there (occasionally only front feet are in it) and sometimes they get distracted on the way but they aren’t 3 weeks old yet so I’m pleased.  Have I mentioned that they are ADORABLE?  Nighty, nighty, nighty- Puppy breath to all!

10/22/20 Pupdate

If you notice that I posted yesterday’s pupdate at 2 am, that’s not because the puppies woke me but I’d set an alarm to feed the PhoenoMama.  I had a little trouble going to sleep and then going back to sleep but the puppies were nice and quiet.  After she finsihed feeding the puppies about 5:30, Phoebe sat by me and demanded scratches (just right or she bitch slaps me).  Then she moved over to the couch annexed to the ottobenbed (finally, all 4 of them aren’t insisting on lying  on it with me the whole night) but apparently, she used that time to ‘hunt’ because she sounded the alarm about something she saw and the 3 younger dogs proceeded to bark and then go out the dog door to bark some more.  I think it was a cat judging by the cameras about that time.  The puppies sleep through that nonsense, too.  I should learn to be like a puppy ;-)

The puppies are getting more and more active during their awake times, well when they aren’t nursing.  I witnesses actual play between 2 different set of them more than once today (bitey mouth starts early in PWDs and it’s beyond ADORABLE!) and they are starting to mouth people, too.  I don’t think I feel any teeth coming in but it’s pretty early for that.

Today, I put the crinkly octopus toy in with them today and they are all over that.  So was their mama during several of the feeding sessions.  During one of them, I was sitting in the pen on the stool when she cam in to feed them.  Several of the puppies were using my foot as leverage to get a good position.

Aunt Cindi came by today before she went to set up for the FastCat trial. (Deja and Caly were entered - he’d have finished his title in the first run tomorrow but I just can’t risk it with puppies). She got to see the little monsters playing bitey mouth and attempting to come over the ferret fence.  They can get their elbows up and over and they are doing it with intent.  If they had little tin cups, they’d be rattling them on the bars ;-).  I guess I’ll be redoing their area again very soon.

I missed cuddling puppies during a zoom meeting for the Movers and Shakers PWD Club of the Carolina’s so I’m going to makeup for some of that now.  Nighty, nighty, nighty - puppy breath to all!

10/21/20 Pupdate

Another quiet night by the babies! I could get used to this.  I slept for a while before the MSU got home from work and I fed the big dogs and went back to sleep as Phoebe was feeding the babies.  I sort of woke up around 4:30 and she was feeding them again. I guess she doesn’t clean them and rile them up so much in the middle of the night which is very considerate of her imo.

This am, they are all moving around like little dogs and I’ll swann they are playing with each other a little.  They are at least interacting and not just to get to the milk bar/jockeying for position.  They also interact with me!  If they are fussing, I can soothe them by petting, letting the rest their big ol’ heads in my hand.  I’m going to have to start paying attention to see if they seem to hear me, too.  That’s a little harder since I have to be pretty close to tell.  Maybe their Grandma (Dog) CIndi will be able to watch that for me at her next visit.

I assembled the ‘activity cube’ this am.   I got some small metal cans to use in addition to the pie pans this time and I;m trying to schedule out which things go on at which time.  There’s no real need to schedule it out other than I like to have a plan ‘just in case’ and I can have everything ready to go this way.  

Weight watcher’s meeting today was pretty exciting.  Phoebe and DejaView were both too interested and I had to keep moving their big ol heads out of the way to get the puppies in the milk crate to put on the scale.  Each puppy is now big enough that the scale will recognize them without the milk crate weight!  I won’t need the extra columns in the spreadsheet to subtract out the milk crate anymore but the app thinks all of my babies lost almost 3 lbs between the first and second weighings today just minutes apart.  

Phoebe is letting me carry individual puppies around more.  She still likes to check them out and back in like some sort of  puppy library but I’ll take what I can get.  Puppy breath to all, Nighty, Nighty, Nighty!

10/20/20 Pupdate

Good morning, good morning the little dogs say.  They didn’t wake me up at all last night.  I assume Phoebe fed them but I didn’t hear it sleeping right beside them.  I DID hear her sound the alert at something she saw out the window (I’m guessing deer going through the yard) beside the ottobenbed.  Even Caly barked at it (loud though she is while playing, Caly VERY VERY rarely feels the need to join in the defense. I think I can count on one hand the times she has) so it must’ve been startling.  It certainly startled me.  The pupsters slept right through it.

They are definitely developing more vision.  They watch where Phoebe and the other big dogs go and seem to notice when I’m there, too.

Today, I gave them one of the caterpillow stuffies. Phoebe has used it as a pillow during feeding time more than once.  The puppies usually lie on them as well, hence caterpillow instead of caterpillar.  I think they are starting to move to the potty spot when it’s time to go, at least when their mother isn’t right there making it happen (she still cleans it up - good girl! But I’m also glad she isn’t so much a kiss giver)

I’m about to have to change out their collars again.  These puppies are big enough that I probably could’ve use the velcro collars but the last set rubbed little spots on the neck/shoulder of the puppies so I’m not risking it again.  I’ll just keep cutting and tying rickrack.  Although, I think I may have to get a difference package of red rickrack or something for FauxReal because hers will NOT stay tied so she’s streaking AGAIN. Fortunately, she’s easy to tell from the others (I think I can tell all of them apart by now even without the collars but I spend close to 24 hours a day with them.)

We’re going to do puppy yoga (the scent of the day is Blackberries) and have a cuddle before I try to take a nap until it’s time to feed the big dogs again.  Then we’ll all go Nighty, nighty, nighty.  Puppy breath to all.

!0/19/20 Pupdate

Oh my, I don’t know how it’s possible but they’ve gotten even cuter!  Louder, too at times ;-)  I’m pretty sure they are looking around, too.  They are definitely moving around like little dogs.

I don’t know where this day went but it’s dark again.  In my defense, there’s more dark than daylight these days but it was rather warm outside.  I carried each puppy out onto the deck for a few minutes and let them sniff the air/look around.  I kind of doubt that they see a whole lot better than I do at this point but I know they can smell things better.

PhoenoMama continues to live up to her nickname.  But I think she’s getting another shower tomorrow.  I like that she cleans the puppies so well but poop on her muzzle is still kind of gross.  I washed it off with a washcloth but it’s still icky to know it was there.

They are being pretty cooperative for having their toenails trimmed.  If they’d just not grow them so quickly, we wouldn’t get so much practice.  I have noticed that the hair on their feet is getting long enough to interfere with the clipping, too.  I can’t wait until they are old enough to put them into little lion butts!

They are quite efficient little eaters.  Not very polite, but very efficient.  They’re pretty adept at eating while the Mama sits and, this evening, while she was trying to clean them up, FauxReal made some serious attempts at nursing while she stood.  She didn’t quite succeed but I don’t think it will be too much longer - and she’s the ‘smallest’ puppy ;-) Nighty, nighty nighty and puppy breath to all

10/18/20 Pupdate

The MSU had to work all night Fri and Sat so I am even more confused about what happened when than usual with puppies.  I get some sleep beside them but I wake up when they are too quiet and when they are noisy.  (I’m not quite as bad as Aurora Greenway; I don’t wake them/make them cry  but I still wonder/worry constantly). Now that he’s awake, I can  at least go take a nap where I can’t hear them but know he’s watching them before he needs to go to sleep tonight.

Their eyes are opening more and more and they get up to walk around (unless they are headed to the Mama, that usually means they need to go potty so I’ll put them on the pad if I beast Phoebe to them.  She still cleans it up wherever they go but her preference seems to be to get it straight from the source.  Pottying seems to be her cue to fill them back up as well.  I try to make sure the ones who are smaller/not gaining as quickly get prime locations but it’s not necessary.  Nobody is tiny or failing to thrive; they are all plenty strong and active but not worrying is not in my wheelhouse.

Caly, Deja’s Mama/SDB’s daughter/Phoebe’s half cousin and who knows what else to the puppies right now, has decided that the puppies aren’t too bad.  She occasionally looks over into the pen but seems plenty satisfied not to have to provide for them in any way.  Good parenting must have skipped a generation because SDB was great and Deja is very good with them, too.  She is ALL about the extra meals, especially the chicken with bone and skin (she could slide into a weight issue so she gets mostly bone and meat; her mama eats the skin and most of the meat since at 13.5, I’m not sure she should have a lot of bone that she has to chew herself)

It’s also a little difficult to sleep when 3-4 of the dogs are trying to sleep with me on the ottobenbed (it’s the size of a twin x/l) and nobody seems interested in sleeping on the couch I roll over as an annex.  When Phoebe comes up for her cuddle time (she generally lies with or right beside the puppies), she smacks me in the face if I am not alert enough to pet her the way she wants (she inherited that from her mother B.)

Speaking of her mother B, she is now done with her 2 weeks of quarantine for the respiratory infection that was going around while she stayed with Debbie when we were in North Olmsted waiting for puppies.  Fortunately, she did not develop any symptoms.  So Dog Cindi was allowed to wear her quarantine clothes home yesterday (since it was going around before the puppies were born, she brought a couple of outfits here before she picked up Bela.  I just washed them with the puppy laundry and she’d wash and change when she got here.  Bet that makes the rest of you visitors happy that you only have to wear clean clothes; take off shoes/wear covers/dip shoes; wash your hands and put on a smock when you start coming to see puppies ;-)

Dog Cindi brought us some fruit so we can add those scents each day to puppy yoga so yesterday we added banana peel.  Only Phoebe would eat any of the banana (she she was only willing to eat half) but it was a fairly ripe one.  I’m not sure which one we’ll use tonight.

I aaded brushing the babies to our cuddle time today.  I used the butt/muzzle brush (it’s a small boar bristle paddle brush.). Followed, of course, with their dab of probiotic.  They open their little mouths pretty consistenly when they are being cuddled (the better to get a hit of puppy breath).  They also have a really good start on a chin rest and are pretty good at following a hand (at least my hand) back to the group.

I think that’s about it for today.  Puppy breath to all,  Nighty, nighty, nighty

October 17, 2020 Pupdate: 2 Weeks Old!

I can’t believe the babies are 2 weeks old today!  They all have their eyes opening and they are doing some walking around like real (very little) dogs.  More often than not, they are more like drunken sailors though.  They make more sounds, too.  In addition to the singing and baby alligator in distress noise, they also purr, grrrr and occasionally bark.  They are more and more like little dogs every day.

Cindi discovered today that we have already ‘trained’ a chin rest in most of the puppies ;-). LeAnne teased that she didn’t know why they congregated at the ‘fence’ when she sat there.  I have NO idea, it coudn’t possibly be because I spend my days and nights cuddling and coddling them.  

While LeAnne took Deja and Caly for a small hill romp  and pre-rinse, Cindi guarded the puppies in the pool (they could easily go over the wall) and I renovated their pen to include the small potty pan.  Phoebe was interested in what was happening elsewhere until I carried a puppy away from the pool and then she told me clearly, she wanted it back.  I let her lick it and then she was ready to get back in and feed the puppies.  I thought we’d be able to do cheek swabs by now but Phoebe won’t let me have a puppy for an hour so we are still waiting.  

I bathed Caly and Deja while Phoebe tended to her babies like the good mama she is.  Eventually, we did the 2 week photo shoot (my contribution was setting up the props and then cuddling puppies after they were done.) After each puppy was done, LeAnne had to show it to Phoebe, Deja and SDB (Caly was in the crate because she wanted to play loud and rowdy with Deja) then handed it to me to cuddle.  It’s a rough life.  As we cuddled puppies, Deja reminded LeAnne that he is just a slightly older puppy and laid in her lap for a cuddle.  Pretty much anything I do with the puppies, he is very close by and he’s really interested every time I change the pen (he had to get in and check the potty area today).  I’m not sure whether he remembers the scents from when he was a baby or if he’s just nosy.  Or maybe a combination of things.

I had to loosen several collars again today and I tied FauxReal’s red collar on for her photos but it has already come untied again.  It must be the red rickrack. Good little puppies are growing nicely.  Puppy breath to all!  Nighty, nighty, nighty

October 15, 2020 Pupdate

I forgot to mention another new occurrence in the puppy pen yesterday:  we have definite tail wagging while they are nursing.  They are such adorable pupsters.

They are becoming more mobile but so far, I still only think I see little peepers opening on FauxMo (purple).  Obviously, I’m not the most reliable witness for that though.  I think Dog CIndi might come visit them tomorrow and we’ll check (the MSU went back to work today so he hasn’t had time to look closely for me)

I’ve spent most of the day cuddling puppies (and the big dogs, too) so that kind of makes up for it being more obvoiusly autumn.  The puplets are already obviously PWDs as they consider people to be pillows.  I make no promises that they won’t be spoiled by the time they go to their new homes.  One of my times of kneeling with my hands and forearms in the pen, they held me hostage.  I had 5 puppies sleeping on my arms and hands (they other 2 were getting nuzzled) so obviously, I couldn’t move and disturb them.  Rather than dislodge them, I asked Phoebe to hop back in and they swarmed her so I could move a little ;-)

Collars are tight/having to be replaced with larger ones again so they are indeed growing.  I need to hold the weight watcher’s meeting before we all go Nighty, nighty, nighty.  Puppy breath to all! 

10/14/20 Pupdate

It’s been an eventful day here in the puppy room.  First I moved everything around again to clean and prepare but that doesn’t affect the youngsters too much at this stage other than the possible change in scents.

The MSU had to go for a follow up with the arm surgeon to get released to go back to work (and hopefully find out why it hurt so much - conclusions: tendonitis and an infection in the surgical site; presumably medications will improve both) and Aunt LeAnne and Aunt Cindi came to see the pupsters.  LeAnne brought Caly so she could take the non-mama dogs for a romp.

While they took a mini romp back on the hill, Dog Cindi sat with the puppies and I set up a new area for the puppies.  I’ll add a potty area soon but right now it’s a larger rectangle with the ferret ex pen in the front and one side and real ex pen sections on the back and one side.  They have a nice big fluffy section of fleece and the PhoenoMama (Phoebe/Phenominal Mama) has more room to stretch out with all of them.

We cuddled puppies a while and Deja checked out the new puppy area.  Until just before puppies, that was his spot (he was a puppy here too and I kept his pen then crate there) He was very cute wallering and digging it up and then he kept lying on the big tote for storing the fleece pieces (I’m a little surprised it held him so well but he very much remembered the all of the times I had him up on various ones to practice groming, etc.  I’m putting a dog bed on it so he can be more comfortable). As I hoped, he got it out of his system and was very gentle looking over the ferret pen at the babies when we moved them.  Phoebe seems very pleased with the new digs.

The other big news for the day is that one of the times I was cuddling the puppies and giving them little bits of probiotics, I noticed that FauxMo is tired of missing out and is opening his eyes (driver’s side first). I was reminded again how happy I am not to have to worry about Puppy Eye Syndrome (PES) any more.  Now I’ll have to resist the impulse to check their eyes every time I wake tonight.

Puppy breath to all! Nighty, nighty, nighty  

10/13/20 Pupdate

Another day and they are even cuter.  They’ve grown a LOT in the last 10 days.  I thought maybe they just seemed a lot larger to me but Cindi thought so, too.  So while they were nursing, she took a picture and compared them to the picture from when they were born.  They are MUCH larger.  They are almost ready to start going over the side of the pool and it’s getting a little crowded when Phoebe goes in with them.  I think I’ll switch them over to the little pen soon.

I tried to sleep by the puppies part of last night.  The MSU’s arm was hurting a lot so we needed to switch.  I slept a little but mostly kept listening to their little puppy noises, they are so very cute.  

Phoebe had a shower today.  Cindi sat with the puppies (it’s a tough job but someone has to do it) and put an extra piece of fleece in so they wouldn’t get cold from her being damp.  They recognized their mama pretty quickly even though she smelled clean. Then we cuddled puppies.  Phoebe accepted her payment frequently early on (she’s very good at showing us where the squirty cheese is kept) but then she relaxed more and we went to a less frequent reward schedule.  There’s nothing quite like a puppy sleeping on you.

Just another day with puppies ;-) Nighty, nighty, nighty and puppy breath to all! 

10/12/20 Pupdate

I came downstairs to a streaking little Miss Red AGAIN!  The MSU doesn’t know how she keeps doing it but I hope she doesn’t grow into a Houdini puppy.  (She’s not sliding it off, it’s untied)

Against all odds, the pupsters are even cuter today than last night.  I might have to stop sleeping so I don’t miss anything.  They’re even adorable when they sleep (good thing because they sleep a lot.). 

I had to pay for the privilege with squirty cheese but the dogs let me carry puppies around for a few minutes today.  Deja is as bad as Phoebe about wanting to check on the puppy as I’m holding it.  SammieDoodlebug just checks on them as I pick them up; put them down; or she comes back in from outside.  I have lots of expert supervision ;-)

Weight watchers meeting confirms that everyone is growing, growing, growing.  Since that’s the only thing they’ve been tasked to do, they are obedient little pupsters ;-). We have almost 12% more puppy than yesterday.  Pure puppy goodness!

New noises happen more frequently now, too.  They’ve very occasionally done little barks here and there but now that happens a few times a day.  I’m pretty sure their little eyes are growing in there and we get some funny little ear flapping, too.  Nice not to have to worry about PES as those things develop, I’m thankful we have the genetic test for that now.  One less thing to worry about

Nighty, nighty, nighty and Puppy Breath to all!

10/11/20 Pupdate

Phoebe and the puppies had another good night.  It’s another riny fall day here but a the MSU said yesterday: the sun always shines on the puppy pool.  Little Red FauxSho was streaking again this morning when I came downstairs.  I’m not sure how she’s managing to get it untied but at least she’s easier to tell from the others.

I wanted to weigh everyone first thing this morning, it’s exciting to have a working scale again. I might start weighing the grown dogs, too since it goes up to 66 lbs.  Actually, I have 2 working scales right now and am trying to choose between them.  One of them is easier to tell when it is on/off, etc. because it beeps but the other one was more willing to record the low weights (although it is comaring it to humans and tells me that they are below weight for their age.) I figured out how to add multiple puppies (babies) in both of the apps as both work with VoiceOver so Yay for me (it’s almost like being a grown up).  Since I have to put the puppies in something anyway to keep them from escaping, I think I’ll keep the beeping scale and just subtract the weight of the milk crate from the number returned (they both have a tare button but this one then won’t acknowledge something as light as the puppies via bluetooth). SInce I use a spreadsheet anyway, it’s not too difficult to just add a formula for subtracting out the weight of the crate/blanket. 

I had to loosen everyone’s collar again today so I know they are growing even before holding the weight watcher’s meeting. It should come as no surprise that I still held the meeting.  

We have 10.85lbs of adorable little wavy cuteness.  2 have doubled their birth rate and 2 others are at 198% of theirs. Although she insists that we aren’t supposed to discuss a lady’s weight, Faux Real (red girl) is no longer the smallest (by 0.1 oz).  Even as I type, they are nursing away to grow, grow, grow like the good little puppies they are.  I haven’t sent the results to LeAnne yet so we don’t have a pretty graph to put in here today.

I’m preparing to sleep down here after the MSU goes back to the surgeon and gets released to return to work (hopefully, he’ll stop having the shooting pain going down into his hand) later this week.  I brought out a lamp and we are setting up a bulb that works on the wifi via an app.  We had a lot of lights, etc. automated on our old x-10 system many moons ago but it’s easier right now to use the bulbs that came with the robotic vacuum.  I LOVE that thing, I’ll have to make sure that the puppies see it running.  The one in the adjoining room is white and this one is black.  When I puppysat our friend’s GSD, she was fine with the one running out here (even when they inadvertently started it up under it’s protective trug) but she felt that one posed an imminent threat of a high level.  So I’ll make sure the puppies see both of them, running and just sitting.

I’m already getting antsy to do their little lion butts (I’ll wait a few more weeks but I think puppy lion butts are beyond adorable.). And that reminds me to start looking for puppy whiskers (spoiler alert, it’s too early for that, too).  While I love to do the little lion trim on the rear, I don’t like to do their faces because they never have whiskers again (even if I left them in the dreaded Schnauzer muzzle - in case you can’t tell by my description, I do NOT do that - their whiskers aren’t longer than the other hair) and it’s an adorable puppy thing to me.  I will use an electric toothbrush on their muzzles to simulate shaving since they’ll need to have that done throughout their lives.  Too bad Amazon can’t ship me some patience - preferably Prime next day delivery of course ;-)

Several of them don’t wait for me to stroke their cheek to yawn for me when I pick them up.  They usually quiet if they are fussing and I put my hand over/stroke them.  Additionally (I really like to start sentences with And, then I have to delete and retype to correct it), they have some really good puppy breath going.  Between that and their hive of bees sounds, there’s some serious adorableness going on here.

I’m going to do some more cuddling before it’s my bedtime.  Nighty, nighty, nighty and puppy breath to all!

10/10/20 1 Week Old!

How has is it been a week already?  It’s been an eventful week, too. I finally have a working scale again.  The app is a little tricky so far but I think we’ve got it working.  So we are finally ready for some fun with numbers: we now have over 10 lbs of puppies.  The last puppy went over a pound on Thursday. None have doubled their birth rate but Orange boy and Teal Girl are close at 1.93%. The Red girl is smallest but is still 1.5% of her birth rate (and none of them are truly small at this point either) and Orange boy is the largest at 25.4.  Here’s a pretty graph courtesy of Aunt LeAnne:



We are all pretty well settled in to the routines now.  Phoebe continues to be a really good mother but is willing to accept remuneration for her cooperation (i.e. not making the puppy holler for her). For example, as we did the one week photoshoot of the puppies in ‘the box’ (we’ve used this same box since our first litter); after each puppy was done, she was waiting between the box and the pool for me to hold the puppy while she licked it.  

I made a Facebook page for the pictures of the puppies since other Villagers are usually the ones doing the photography.  If you are interested, you can ogle puppies here: https://www.facebook.com/Phoebe-puppies-103192248233701

The one week old photo shoot pictures are being posted there.

We’ve sort of settled on their nicknames (but we also refer to them as their collar color).   Since Phoebe is a mini me of her mother Bela (aka B) and someone mis-pronounced her name as FoeBee, we’ve used Faux B as one of her nicknames.  In that vein, they are: IndigoBlue is FauxCus; Green is Infaux; Purple is FauxMo; Teal is FauxSho’; Yellow is (Faux) Pearl; Red is Faux Real; and Orange is (Faux) Aidan since they were born on the date he crossed the Rainbow Bridge and was a wannabe PWD.  

The puppies are catching on to yawning for me (so I can sniff some puppy breath) and getting a little probiotic dabbed onto their tongues.  (Phoebe gets her cut, too of course.  Today, Deja finally ate it too but he prefers squirty cheese.)

And before we all go Nighty, nighty, nighty: the puppies say congratulations to Aunt Colleen and Uncle Jeremy on their marriage today! Puppy breath to all

10/09/20 Pupdate

Good morning, good morning the little dogs say.  The big dogs said it too when I came downstairs this am.  The MSU took the night shift since he was up with his arm hurting anyway. I woke up several times but just texted to make sure everything was ok and went back to sleep. That doesn’t wake me as much as getting up and coming down to check.

Phoebe continues to be a really good mother to her puppies and e are getting accustomed to the routines.  During  linen change this am, she demonstrated that she knew the drill and was happy enough about the system by getting into the new pool before I finished putting the linens in it.  

When the dogs go outside to potty and we come back inside, they all check in on the puppies and she’s fine with that (yesterday, she wanted to get there before SammieDoodlebug). 

Pupsters have graduated to being able to find Phoebe and nurse while she sits up in the pool.  They’ve mastered the scrum and frequently sound like I’ve got a hive of bees.  I love hearing the noises puppies make.  And they’re starting to give me yawns when I gently rub their cheeks (so I can get a whiff of puppy breath). Phoebe still isn’t keen on me taking them out of the pool.  

Today I tried to convince her to sit with me on the ottobenbed while I held a puppy but she didn’t like that happening too long.  (She’s perfectly happy to use my opposable thumbs to take that opportunity to make them potty but not long after that, she wants the puppy put back.  I’m also welcome to hang out in with them in the pool.) She’s got the drill down for puppy yoga and is patient.  She watches me closely but she isn’t demanding that I return the puppy immediately.  

I’m going to weigh the puppies and get a few more snuggles before we all try to go Nighty nighty nighty.  Puppy breath to you all!

Oct 8. 2020 Pupdate

I’m not sure how it is possible but the puppies are even cuter today than yesterday.  Maybe because there is more of them than there was yesterday.  I have scales!  They don’t talk but at the worst, we’ll have weight watcher’s meeting via Zoom.  (I haven’t tried to get the apps working for either of them yet to see if they work with voiceover.)

Phoebe - I haven’t decided what her mama nickname will be, but I’m ready for when she becomes a grandmother - my great grandmother was Grandma Phoebe so that’s in my mouth already ;-) - had a very diggy night.  I was sleeping the early part and the MSU was on puppywatch and when I got up at 3am (the puppy fomo is real), he’d blocked the dog door off and had things piled up on the couches to stop her from digging in them.  She tries to sneak in some den building whenever we go out for a potty trip but is being forced to content herself with going in the crates and digging up the blankets.

The aunties (Dog Cindi and LeAnne) came today and brought SammieDoodlebug home.  Cindi puppysat while we took Deja, Caly and SDB out for a mini-romp with a little swimming in the pond (for them, not us) followed by showers.  That helped them blow out a little carbon before bringing everyone back together. At 13.5 and fairly deaf, I’m not sure how involved the Bug is going to be with this litter.  Guess we’ll see what they all decide (under close supervision). 

Dog Cindi managed to clip some of the nails on some of the puppies while she was in charge, too.  And, as usual, she took lots of pictures with her phone (they are on facebook and I am tagged).  We did forget to take posed pictures of the puppies (again)

Phoebe is getting better about letting us hold the puppies (we managed to have a whole weight watchers meeting on the new scales - some of the puppies were weighed on both). I just pay her with squirty cheese for letting me take her puppies and I’ve started counting down during ENS, too.  I do it for other duration behaviors so I might as well use something she already knows to see if it helps (and it might be helping)

The puppies have started really singing, especially while they nurse.  They occasionally make little bark noises, too but they still don’t hesitate to make the baby alligator in distress noise if they want their mama.  Amazing how everything they do is adorable.

   

Oct 7 2020 Pupdate

Hello from the puppy pool.  I went to bed at 4 am (the MSU took over resting by the puppies so I could sleep) and when I came back down at 8:30 (I’d set my alarm for 9:30 so I could feed the big dogs but I woke up and my FOMO kicked in too much to go back to sleep.  That’s a problem with having puppies, there’s a lot of cute to miss at any given moment), Phoebe was lying on the floor outside the pool.  She even got a toy to parade for me.

Apparently, it is apparently Time to Renovate and prepare a potential new site by digging.  She has at least 2 REALLY good dens dug at Cindi’s house but we need one here too.  The MSU blocked off the dog door and the spots she’d started (mind you, she hadn’t left the pool unless I made her up until them) to try to limit her projects.  I’ve tried a couple of times today to set up a spot inside that she’ll be willing to dig instead.  So far, she’s chosen Deja’s crate more than any of the other options.

And in those few hours of sleep, all of the puppies’ collars got tight again so I guess they are growing. (I hope I have a working scale tomorrow, though.) 

Their little nails keep growing, too.  They always need clipped often, especially since we just tip them with the human nail clippers but I don’t usually have to do them IN the pool.  During one of Phoebe’s short forays out of the pool today,  I tried to clip their nails so while they slept.  I didn’t take them out of the pool or even pick them up, but that wasn’t good enough for their Mama.  She climbed back in and let everyone nurse so I only managed to clip the front nails of each puppy WHILE they nursed.  Moments after I finished, so did she.  I’ll swann she is still laughing at me. 

The puppies are getting really good at quickly swarming to Phoebe when she moves to the other side or comes back into the pool.  They are even fast after the linen changes.  Phoebe seems to approve the new system and waits in the new pool for me to hand her babies over now.  It’s nice to have the approval of the dog ;-). 

Now I’m going back to seeking the approval of the tiny ones again.  Even if they still prefer their Mama, they’re awfully cute and I need more puppy breath and snuggles before I go Nighty, nighty, nighty.  Puppy breath to all!

Oct 6, 2020 Pupdate

Another day in the puppy pool.  And other than the time I am sleeping, we are pretty much all in the pool as Phoebe has OPINIONS about taking her puppies out.  I can barely accomplish puppy yoga - and I have to do everything except the wet cloth without actually takng the puppy out and she still grabs my arm with her paw and pulls it back.  Then she cleans each puppy very meticulously because, apparently, I’m getting her children dirty ;-). Pretty certain JillyBean and SammieDoodlebug didn’t do that.

I attempted a weight watcher’s meeting this evening.  It wasn’t wildly successful what with her OPINION (they are strong enought that all of the letter require upper case treatment) about me taking; Deja helping because Phoebe wasn’t happy and neither were the puppies; and then the talking scale decided first that it wasn’t going to work so I ordered replacements (talking scales are not available for next day delivery so I ordered a couple of baby scales that I might be able to get to work either with the apps or maybe get a picture that the screen reader can read for when the MSU isn’t around.  They are supposed to arrive Thursday.  4 of the puppies are over a pound and the others are very close plus I had to loosen everyone’s collar again so I think it’s safe to assume they are gaining.  I’d prefer the exact weight but I am TRYING to be reasonable (or as reasonable as someone who orders 2 baby scales immediately can be considered)

            Have I mentioned that these puppies are adorable?  You might as well get used to reading that.  It’s likely to be a recurring theme.  So adorable that I actually turned on my camera and included them for a few seconds in a Zoom meeting of our kennel club (I’ve never done that before and I am unlikely to continue the practice)

Phoebe went out to potty 3 times today.  Each of those time, I had to get the leash but didn’t actually put it on her.  She seemed happy enough to go (but that girl would attend the opening of an envelope, she’s excited to walk out to the vehicle and come right back inside as a general rule) but she hurried to potty and came right back into her babies.  She makes sure they are lined up just right and then arranges herself and gathers them in again.

I’d like to pick up a puppy and snuggle it but Phoebe is sleeping and that would likely wake her, the puppy, Deja and, possibly, the dead.  Everyone is VERY concerned with the babies. Deja did find one of the toys dog Cindi took to Cleveland for Phoebe and he played with it some.  Then we traded before it met an untimely demise - right now it doesn’t compare with her puppies but she still might not want to see if gutted (at least not when she can’t take part)

We’ve developed a system for changing the linens in the whelping pool that seems to satisfy all of us.  I get the new pool set up; drag the one she and the puppies are in out enough to put the new one behind and then transfer each puppy over and she follows.  Being me, I do manage to get a tiny snuggle and kiss in with each puppy on the way but Phoebe doesn’t brook much delay on my part.  She is the Mother, I am just here to help her.  She continues to be served her meals and drinks in the pool as befits her position ;-). As usual, I have puppies to cuddle so Nighty, nighty, nighty to all!

Oct 5, 2020 We have puppies!

I’m a couple of days behind but I will try to keep on top ofit now that I’ve begun. 

Around 9 am Saturday (October 3), Phoebe had  puppies via (planned) c-section.  She held out to her due date (established by lh and progesterone testing) but just barely as one was starting down the canal.

There are 5 boys (1 brown, 4 black) and 3 girls (2 brown and 1 black). All are wavy!  Very little white (and most of that should diminish as they grow).  Weight range was 11.9-13.6 oz so no wonder she was so big.  (For a variety of reasons, we thought she was having 5 puppies until the xray when we knew there were several but still couldn’t get a good count)

Everything was even more of a whirlwind this time because the pandemic is causing limits to how many people can accompany each dog (I accompanied Phoebe and was allowed a human guide.  LeAnne was on the phone with us from the vehicle). I should’ve had her write this post fromt he van but we were already over busy (and she wastaking care of getting Deja a little exercise as well)

I had a rather rough trip home - late afternoon Friday, dog Cindi noticed something leaking from underneath the back of the van.  Semi-controlled panic calling of various male spousal units ensued, DejaView was loaded into dog Cindi’s minivan and driven up to us.  Aunt Debbie (Tootsie’s human. For those of you new to the blog/my strange ways: she’s the dogs’ Auntie, not one of the human’s) lives somewhat nearby so we had her on alert in case Phoebe didn’t hold out until the MSU arrived with the other van for the whelping.  (He’s still attempting to heal from a nerve relocation surgery so he couldn’t do do more than drive this time. Otherwise, I suspect he’d have brought tools and worked on it ) Meanwhile, we unpacked a big chunk of the prepacking we had done and restaged it for taking necessities (including the large order from the bakery for the people at home) home in Cindi’s minivan.  The traveling puppy pool fits on B’s (Phoebe’s mother) princess bed so I just had to ride with my legs crossed in the seat (the tote with the pre/whelping/first days in front of my seat; leaning sideways from the waist with one hand petting/reassuring a post surgical Phoebe and the other hand ensuring that the puppy (she was a little nervous of overlying them so I did it one at a time) stayed latched.  I’m always obsessed about making sure the puppies get enough colostrum before their gut closes so in addition to the nursing they do at the vet, I like them to keep at it on the way home (it’s a several hour drive under ideal circumstances and since I am not a good traveler under the best of circumstances, it always takes a long time) so they get the maternal antibodies and the nomograph is more accurate about when to do first vaccines.

Eventually, we made it home and took the puppies in to the whelping pool area (I’d set it up and blocked it off before we left).  Phoebe took about 5 minutes to check it all out; insist that I take down the screen (ex pen covered with sheets) so that Deja could be properly greeted (he rode home in the crate behind the pool) and then climbed into the pool and began nursing her family.

She is doing her Granddam Jill (the Mama’s Mama, at the Rainbow Bridge since Phoebe was a few months old) and her Aunt SammieDoodlebug proud with her mothering skills.  He mother, B was a good enough mother but the force (or hormones) is strong in Phoebe!  She’s barely left the pool since we’ve been home (it took a leash to get her to come out for a potty trip Sunday) and is feeding, cleaning, and cuddling her babies.

We’ve only held one weight watcher’s meeting because she will reach over and pull my arm back when I take a puppy and my talking scale won’t work great on the whelping fleece surface).  I do know they are gaining because I had to loosen collars and I need to do it again soon.  

Puppy yoga (Early neruological stimulation aka Super puppy exercises) began today and I had to do the first 4 exercises holding them in the pool and the cold, wet washcloth part RIGHT beside where she could still see. I need to do toenails (they needed clipped on the  way home)

There are puppies to cuddle, so Nighty, nighty nighty for now.

(I’ll attempt to edit the cast of characters soon)