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Previous Litter - Ellen and Logan. Two males and 5 females were born December 22, 2015.
Birthday - December 22, 2015. Ellen showed signs of early labour on Tuesday morning and delivered her first pup at 3:15 pm. She delivered the next six between 3:15 and 6:55 pm.
Update - December 23. Here are 2 pictures taken in the morning of December 23.
One of the female pups is quite small so she is receiving supplemental feeding. All look good at this point. Update - December 24. The pups are doing well. Ellen is feeding them full-time and is keeping them clean. The next 72 hours are important as Ellen settles into motherhood and the pups organs begin to function. We put light-weight collars on the pups so that we can monitor their weight gain. We are tube-feeding the smallest female as this method allows us to be sure that she is getting the correct amount. Although she is active and nursing well, we will still supplement until her weight is at an acceptable level.
Update - January 1, 2016. All is well with Ellen and her pups. Ellen continues to spend almost all of her time with them. nursing and cleaning them throughout the day. The pups are growing well, most having more than doubled their birth weights. The smallest pup (we call her "Pippa") was 7.5 ounces at birth and weighed 14.5 ounces today. She is nursing well and we are still feeding her every 2 hours during the day. She is still the smallest pup but is normal in every other way. We have no concerns about her.
Two weeks old. Ellen and her pups continue to do well. We are still feeding Pippa who is growing slowly but developing normally otherwise. The rest of the pups are chunky and vigorous. Their eyes are opening and they are just beginning to use their legs. Here are pictures taken on January 6.
Three weeks old - January 12, 2016. The
pups continue to do well. Their eyes are open and they are quite
mobile. They will soon begin to play with each other. Ellen still
spends most of her time with the pups and is looking after the
housework but is much more willing to
spend time away from her puppy duties. We are no longer supplementing
Pippa as she is nursing well and her weight gain is acceptable. We began to feed solid food today. The meal consisted of the Royal Canin starter ration soaked in hot water until soft. As is the case with most litters at this age, a few of the pups liked it but most were not yet ready. We'll try again tomorrow. We removed most of the bars from the whelping box as it is unlikely that Ellen will lie on a pup at this stage and because the pups need more room. The laundry basket was the pup's temporary home during this process. Here are a few pictures taken today.
Four weeks old - January 19, 2016. For
the first four weeks of life, the pups have been with Mum in a small
area. That changed today. The whelping box was removed and the area was
reorganized. Ellen will no longer be with them all the time but will
visit a few times each day to nurse them. We will feed them solid food
(Royal Canin starter ration) between nursings. At the end of each week,
the number on nursings will be decreased and the starter feedings
increased until the pups have been completely weaned (usually about 7
weeks of age). As is usual, the pups were concerned about their new surroundings but soon settled in. Here are a few pictures.
What does this mean? This is a picture of what is written on the cabinet door near the dog room:  If you think you know what it means, send an email to setherwoodgoldens@gmail.com . We'll give the answer in a few days. Update - January 25, 2016. The chart above is the nursing and feeding schedule for Ellen's pups for last week. They were nursed at 7 am, 3 pm and 10 pm and fed solid food at 11 am and 6 pm. Congrats (but no prize) to all who figured it out. The schedule for this week is:
This
is designed to gradually eliminate the nursings and reduce the number
of daily feedings so that the pups are completely weaned by the time
they reach about 7 weeks of age and are eating 3 meals of solid food
each day when they go to their new homes. This litter is one of the best at learning to use the shavings, which
makes life easier for us. Also, they are eating the solid food well but
politely, with less pushing than usual. Perhaps they will be intellectuals?
Visitors arrived on January 24. As usual, the pups started with enthusiasm and ended asleep. Here are the pictures.
Update - January 30, 2016. The pups are 5 weeks and 4 days old and all is well. They are outgoing, energetic, curious and perpetually hungry. They are still eating 2 kibble meals and being nursed twice each day. Next week they will have 3 kibble meals and only one nursing as we continue the weaning process. They were given another deworming dose today, which they endured. Later today they will have visitors which will be much more enjoyable.
Miss
Pippa is doing very well. She is still small but is growing and is
quite active and athletic. In fact, she has expressed interest in
becoming an olympic gymnast. Here she is describing her new vault
routine.
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Update - February 6, 2016. The pups are 6 weeks and 4 days old today and are doing very well. They are eating the starter ration with great enthusiasm and are almost completely weaned. They have been matched to their new owners. They are full of energy, are well socialized and are (Pippa excepted) big pups. They will be completely ready to go to their new homes on February 13. The pups had a great time with today's visitors, and as usual raced around then fell asleep. We introduced some new toys as well as a plastic bottle, two plastic cones and a tunnel which was a big hit. Here are a few pictures of the activities.
First time outside - February 7, 2016. Some of the visitors took the pups outside for the first time. While they (the pups, not the visitors) were a bit timid at the start, they gained instant confidence when the tunnel came out. For the following 20 minutes, they abused that tunnel in every way possible and had a great time doing it. When time was up and the tunnel was dragged in, one of the pups was still inside. Here are some of the pictures of the fun.
Vet exam and first shot - February 11. 2016. Dr. Dan of the Uxbridge Veterinary Hospital came today to give each pup a physical exam and first vaccination. Mr. Purple volunteered to give his account of the process.
February 13 - going home. After weeks of waiting, the day to take them home has arrived. The pups have been weaned, vet-checked, vaccinated, micro-chipped, socialized and matched to their new owners. They are completely ready for the next big adventure.
This is always a bitter-sweet time for us as we really enjoy our time with each
group but we know that all the pups are going to people who will give
them the love and care they deserve. Our thanks to yet another group of
great owners. We have enjoyed meeting and getting to know each of you and we
thank you for choosing Setherwood Goldens.
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