Week 1

3-27-20
DAY 1

Today the puppies decided to arrive starting at 10pm on the 26th, but all but two were born on the 27th, so we will stick with that date as their birthday!

In birth order they are:

Taurus – Red Boy
Smith – Blue Boy
Glock – Lime Boy
Astra – Yellow Girl
Wesson – Cobalt Boy
Colt – Teal Boy
Tula – Orange Girl
Ruger – Green Boy
Raven – Pink Girl (Left Patch Ear)
Remington – Purple Girl (Right Patch Girl)

For more pictures be sure to check out our Facebook Page, but in the mean time enjoy this video of wiggly puppies!

3-28-20
DAY 2

Not too much going on today, other than some visitors that Kimber is very comfortable with as she has known them since she came home from her breeder’s house. (LaDonna King: Kingdom Dalmatians) Once Kimber is more comfortable with strangers coming to visit her babies, we can have outside visitors too, which usually start around 3-4 weeks old depending on when they start to wean.

Here is Colt with Colton, Payton’s boyfriend.

We took some headshots today of each puppy. Here they are in birth order.

3-29-20
DAY 3

Late last night and all through the day today, we have found the umbilical stumps of the pups. Two fell off yesterday and the other 8 were found in the box through out the day today. Taurus was the first to lose his and Wesson was the last.

We started early neurological stimulation (commonly referred as ENS) today. We do this on days 3-16 of the puppies lives to improve cardio vascular performance (heart rate), stronger heart beats, stronger adrenal glands, more tolerance to stress, and greater resistance to disease. Everyone did fine with some wiggly puppies, which I expected. Astra and Raven were the two most wiggly puppies, but I think Astra wins the prize.

The five exercises are as follows. The duration of each of the five exercises is 5-10 seconds and done for 16 days.

	1. Tactical stimulation (between toes) Holding the pup in one hand, the handler gently stimulates (tickles) the pup between the toes on any one foot using a Q-tip. It is not necessary to see that the pup is feeling the tickle. Also pinching the toes and paws gently.Time of stimulation 5-10 seconds
	2. Head held erect Using both hands, the pup is held perpendicular to the ground, (straight up), so that its head is directly above its tail. This is in an upwards position. Time of stimulation 5-10 seconds
	3. Head pointed down Holding the pup firmly with both hands the head is reversed and is pointed downward so that it is pointing towards the ground. Time of stimulation 5-10 seconds
	4. Supine position Hold the pup so that its back is resting in the palm of both hands with its muzzle facing the ceiling. The pup while on its back is allowed to struggle. While also rubbing all parts of the pups body with your fingers. Time of stimulation 5-10 seconds
	5. Thermal stimulation Use a damp towel that has been cooled in a refrigerator for at least five minutes. Place the pup on the towel, feet down. Do not restrain it from moving. Time of stimulation 5-10 seconds

This is the typical for these puppies. She even got up there herself. I had anticipated that something like this would happen, so after watching her make her way up I sat and watched patiently with my camera.

3-30-20
DAY 4

Today the puppies went for their first vet visit to get checked and to have their dew claws removed. Kimber went along to provide the milk bar as always and get the usual post whelp check. All is good with Kimber and the pups, so we are beyond thrilled! Since they had their dew claws removed, you might notice that their paws look a little different over the next couple of days.

Kimber has been accepting the other dogs to be in the kitchen with her and her babies, but I must say that this was pleasantly surprising. As you can see in this video, Kimber even let Tripp (Who is the half brother to these pups: Biscotti from the Brady – Kimber Litter) sit in the box with me and Payton. He is going to be an excellent big brother and is just waiting patiently until these babies are big enough for him to play with.

3-31-20
DAY 5

Today the puppies had their first nail trim..and yes, I am weird like that and counted exactly how many tiny nails that I clipped. 160 small nails on very wiggly puppies took a lot of patience, but we got the job done in about 40 minutes. Just to give an idea of how big these tiny nails are, at this age they are about a millimeter or two in width and two – three millimeters in length.

I asked for some pictures of Jasper to share of him, since he lives all the way down in Florida. He is a very loving boy who likes to play with his housemate, Erik, and loves to meet new people. Just a very very friendly boy that has the perfect temperament. Being able to meet him in person makes for me to be able to say that he is one of the friendliest dogs that I have met…just a very easy going guy.

Here are some pictures of him just hanging out!

4-1-20
DAY 6

Not too many changes today. ENS went well and I still have to say that Raven is by far the most active puppy. We did see some of the pups up on all fours and will try to get a better video. I couldn’t get a good picture because they were a bit wiggly. Here is Glock going collarless for a few hours tonight.

Glock (Lime Green) Taking an afternoon nap

I wanted to mention that you can comment on the pictures that are posted to this blog. All you have to do is click the pictures to open them up, and then write away. I do have to approve all comments, so don’t worry if they don’t show up right away.

At this point in the puppies lives, there is not much going on.

EAT, SLEEP, EAT, SLEEP

Once there is more going on, the posts will start to get longer.