Shopping is fun!

Puppies Diaries: 13 March 2014

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mom-Karen went shopping today and brought some noisy grocery bags and a box to our play area. At first we were not too sure about the crackly noise of the bag, but our curiosity won and we simply had to check it out!

The box was not that interesting, even when Mom-Karen put us in it, we simply tipped it over and climbed out.

Prepare yourself – here comes Puppy!

Getting ready for the big day when Puppy comes home for the first time is very exciting. However, is your home ready for Puppy? Here are few considerations….

Bowls: Obviously the first things you need to get for Puppy are 2 bowls – one for water and one for food. These should be stable and not easy to tip over. The water bowl should be placed in a ‘permanent’ position, so that Puppy knows exactly where to go when he is thirsty. Food too should be served at the same venue each meal time. The bowls should be cleaned regularly (every day) and food bowls removed after 20 mins so that ants and birds don’t get at Puppy’s left overs. 

Bed: You get to decide what kind of bed Puppy will have. The main point is that Puppy has a place that is his own – a place where he can sleep undisturbed, where he can ‘hide’ when overwhelmed or afraid, a ‘safe’ place that is just his. The regular ‘dog blankets’ that look like they are made of scraps of carpet under-felt, do not wash or wear well.  I recommend a large blanket folded in 2 or 4 as a base and an old towel that he can scuffle up to put on top. GAME stores have large grey single bed size blankets that serve the purpose very well. You can even fold the towel into a circle to make a nest for him to snuggle into – especially as he is used to sleeping in a heap with all his warm siblings. Maybe warm up one of those micro-wave bean bags for him to act as a sibling to cuddle with. Wrap the bean bag snugly into another towel to prevent puppy getting burnt in case it is too warm, and also to prevent him chewing it open. Cushions are nice and comfortable, but make sure they are covered with a durable fabric – something like a thick denim, otherwise you will wake up to find the cushion has been de-stuffed and there is a huge mess and a very happy Puppy who had great fun pulling it all apart. We have experienced several of these ‘snow’ days where the lawn is covered with the white stuffing of a nice soft pillow. Now we just stick to blankets – easy to wash pretty much indestructible. Baskets (wicker or fabric) and/or crates are good options, but expect them to get chewed; and they can be expensive. But they certainly help define the ‘safe’ place for Puppy.

Food: Puppy has been weaned on ROYAL CANIN BABY DOG FOOD – specially designed for 0 -3 month olds. However, if you decide to use a different brand of food, that’s your decision. We recommend the best food that you can afford for the first 2 years while he is growing and developing. (Hills, Eukanuba and Royal Canin are considered the top 3 brands). Thereafter, you can ‘downgrade’ if you choose to do so. If you do want to switch foods we recommend you do it over 5 days. First day 80% Royal Canin + 20 % new food; second day 60% Royal Canin + 40% new food; third day 40% Royal Canin + 60% new food etc for the 5 days. This will help prevent a runny tummy.

Puppy Toilet: We have been working hard to get the pups to “go” on newspaper, so make sure you leave a few pieces lying near his sleep area, again keep them in the same place all the time, so he knows that is his designated toilet area. As he grows older, he will learn better control, and eventually will be ‘potty trained’ to go on the lawn. After each meal, take Puppy outside to where you want him to “go”. Be patient, you may have to stand for a while as he sniffs around and choose the exact spot. Before bedtime, take him again to his toilet spot. He will soon learn that this is where he should “go”. When it is toilet time, don’t pet him or fuss. Just take him on his lead to the “toilet” and wait while he does his business. When it is done, then praise him for being so clever. He’ll soon get the hang of it. Collar and lead: Have a small Puppy-sized size collar and lead for taking him outside and teaching him basic lessons. This will need to be changed once he grows up to an adult size collar and lead. The adult size now will not only be too big, but also too heavy.

Toys:  A largish sibling-size soft toy may be a comfort for the first night away from mom and siblings.

Puppy-proof your home: Pretend you are Puppy and go down on your hands and knees and find all the lovely dangly, tempting things to tug on and chew on. Look particularly for cables and cords – lamps, computers,television,  etc are wonderful chew-things for Puppy to tackle. Low-hanging table cloths are begging to be pulled down, often with dire consequences for any ornaments on top. Look for any ant traps / roach traps that may be hidden in places you can’t reach but Puppy can. Keep plastic bags out of his reach. If there is trouble to be found, Puppy will find it. Check all perimeters for holes, sharp objects, bits of wire poking up, etc. Watch out for any sharp stones or dangerous objects on the ground. Don’t leave any dangerous tools standing around outside, eg spades. And please be aware of poisonous plants – Puppy chews anything. What you miss, he will find. Think like a puppy. Try to imagine all his needs. And do your best to make his home as safe for him as you can.

Our big adventure to the vet

PUPPIES DIARY: 12 March 2014

Today we had a wonderful adventure! Mom-Karen and Foster took us for a ride in the back of Foster’s bakkie to go visit the vet! The doctors were all very nice and gave us lots of cuddles and loves. We each had a turn to get weighed (we vary between 3.7kg and 5.4kg); and then we got a full examination – even our privates got checked out! After that the doctor gave us an injection which wasn’t too bad. The worst was the micro-chip needle, which was not fun at all! However, Mom-Karen distracted us by playing with our ears and so we didn’t notice the micro-chipping so much. We each had a bit of our coat snipped away so that everyone would know who had which micro-chip. The doctor wanted to give us treats, but Mom-Karen said we would throw them up in the car coming home, so we didn’t get any. But we enjoyed our cuddles and gave the vets licks and kisses in return!

We finally caught it!

 

PUPPIES DIARY: 11 March 2014

Every morning Mom-Karen comes into our room and lets us out into our yard to play. While we are out, she scoops up all our yukky night mess and washes down the floor with a very busy cloth and Milton. Every day she ends up chasing that elusive cloth all over the floor.  The cloth makes a soft shooshing noise at it tries to get away from her hand. So, if we see what she’d doing,  we try to help her catch it. Well, today we got it! One of our siblings got into some kind of trouble outside and let off a huge wailing noise, to which Mom-Karen ran outside to see what was happening. The cloth got a fright and stopped moving which immediately allowed us to attack and catch it! Two of us got it and as we tried to bring it to Mom-Karen at kept trying to move between us. It was hard work to keep our teeth on it until Mom-Karen came back. We are going to be great hunters when we are big!

Our new favourite toy – please get one!

PUPPIES DIARY: 10 March 2014

Today during a break between all the rain, we got to go on the grass and play. It was really good to be out on the grass! We ran and played for nearly an hour before the rain started again and we had to go back inside. Mom-Karen brought out a new toy for us to play with – the “rope-on-a-rope”. Basically it is a ski-rope which has been cut to about 1.5 meter length and tied onto a knotted rope (available from Builders Warehouse between R23 – R32). Mom-Karen then makes a loop on her end as a handle and then drags the knotted rope in front of our noses. Well, our instinct kicks in and we simply HAVE TO chase it. What fun!!!

After a hard day’s play

The pups still take naps often – interspersed with eating and playing…. what a life!

Mom and babies

My joy in the morning

Ever wanted to stay in bed knowing that what’s waiting for you is really not ‘lekka’? This is what I face every morning – a poopy, smelly, pee-pee mess with bits of shredded kakky newspaper spread all over the puppy room.  Some days are worse than others. Some days I just want to stay in bed and ignore the smells. After rolling up and shoving all the ‘stuff’ in a black bag, a good wash down with Milton and water, fresh blankets and fresh newspapers and we are ready to start the day.

The umbrella

The umbrella was just another new ‘thing’ to smell, paw and taste. No issues with a flappy umbrella. No issues with a wrapped up walking stick umbrella. All good. Little did we know that shortly a week of rainy weather would follow!

Help….help..

The pups had their first contact with the big dogs today. Two of the aunties (Abigail and Cherry) went to be with the babies while the uncles kept a safe distance. Shamus didn’t venture near, knowing how needle sharp the little teeth are. Radley, Rusty and Blessing tried, but soon danced their way out of the puppy area when the little ones started to nibble their toes! The pups were interested to see who had teats and milk – which the adult boys did NOT appreciate. Rusty jumped up on the bench to get away from the razor  teeth.