And away they go!

The adventure continues! The D pups turned in today to CCI in Santa Rosa. Tomorrow many of them will be winging their way around the country. The pups will be all over the country north, south, east and west.

Here is the beginning of the journey into the next phase of their lives. Off to puppy raisers!

Into our crates, in the car


Out of the crates at CCI, into the transport bin


Off to Puppy Park!


Puppy Park!!







Bye, bye D pups!! Mama Tamlyn and your BCs wish you all the best on your journeys into the future! You've been a "D"elight start to finish. Have a great time, puppy raisers! We'd love to hear about your adventures with the D's. You can reach us at tamlyn@knkweb.net

Because of the storm!

The pups spent their last evening with us playing in a makeshift "outdoors" in our family room since the storm made it impossible to be outside. A large tarp became the floor and a couple of x-pens created the boundaries. We added some toys but the pups most favorite toy of the evening was Tamlyn...

Before the storm....

The remnant of a typhoon has travelled across the Pacific and will apparently slam into our area tomorrow with an unusually heavy October storm. So, no "great outdoors" for the pups on their last full day with us. They got their final experience of outdoors with us today. Afterwards, we need to tear down the pen and tie down what's left--strong gusty winds come with the rain tomorrow.

Downside: no outdoor time for the pups on Tuesday. Upside: the storm will clean the patio for us!




Next outdoor time will be at Puppy Park!

Gettin' ready to go...

The pups are spending time each day getting used to crates in preparation for their first great CCI adventure: turn-in to Santa Rosa and then off to puppy raisers. The pups will be taken to the CCI campus on Wednesday, 10/14, and, as best we know, will be off to puppy raisers far and wide the very next day. Some of these pups will head north, others east, others to the mountain center, others to the southwest and still others to points unknown (to us that is! :-) ). These pups will be raised all over the country!

Here are the pups practicing their "traveling digs":






As always, the pups are under the watchful eye of Mom!

Starring.........The D Pups!

The pups have been growing like crazy and are developing into their own little persons (dogs?). To give a bit of a sense of each one individually... Lights, camera, lots of action...

Presenting the D Pups on Parade!

Tunnel Away, Daya!!

Rock and Roll, Dre!!


Juggling Jugs, Dan!!


Big Chew, Dionne!!


Go for the Ring, Doreen!!


Climb, Climb, Climb, Delight!!


Stretch, Desmond!!

Special note: Desmond was the last pup recorded and all of them had been playing for quite a while. So you'll find him stretching for a snooze--much like the other pups about the same time. He's a lot more active as a co-star in some of the other videos...


Center of the Action, Delmar!!


Have a Ball, Diamond!!

Litter Picture

Today the D's had their litter picture taken. It's quite an extravaganza! Here's an unofficial copy--the names are not official until after the litter turns in and may still be changed. The "official" picture won't have names.

Many thanks to Peggy Keefe, the photographer extraordinaire!


Of course, nothing is as easy as it seems. For a shot with nine puppies, step one is to spend vast amounts of puppy energy playing before the picture. The pups played in the great outdoors and on the lawn for about an hour before the picture was attempted.






Even getting the picture is an adventure! The most favorite spot besides in the cart is.... on the move... and out of the cart...



So, it takes many puppy wranglers to get a litter picture. Many, many thanks to the D Litter wranglers: Doreen Contes, Teresa Hart and Kristin Shahan!


And, just like everything else puppy, this adventure ends with a snooze...

The Great Outdoors, Continued

The pups continue to have fun playing outside. Every day they get a bit bigger. We introduce new toys and other object for them to check. Here's part of the great outdoors on Saturday.

The Great Outdoors!

The weather in the Sacramento region has finally dropped below 100 and the pups now have some new outdoor digs. They'll be getting a chance to play outside some every day. Here is their first excursion into the great outdoors!

After the adventure, the pups slept and slept and slept and slept and ....zzzzz

Playing and Power Struggles...

The pups are very active these days, when they're not eating or sleeping. They're enjoying many different toys as they explore their environment. They are also engaged in the tussles that are part of figuring out a pack hierarchy--perfectly normal behavior for these pups. They're learning from each other, from mom, and from us the signals for acceptable and unwanted behavior. Mostly, they're just having a LOT of fun!

Collars!!

For the last week or so, the pups have been wearing cat collars.


Tonight, the pups "graduated" to puppy collars!

Is It Food?

The pups have a very cute habit. They wait patiently at the front of the pen when they think you might be coming in, particularly if it might mean food...


Of course, then there's the "happy puppy dance" when they realize that you are coming in, particularly if it is with food! (About one second later...)

Shhhh..... Babies Sleeping!

The pups are well on their way to eating solid food. After a good meal and some play, it's time to settle down for a nice long nap. Lights out!

Gruel, glorious gruel!!

The pups began the adventure of weaning today. The whole process will take a couple of weeks. But they were certainly "with the program" on their first taste of "non-mom" food.

More space for the puppies...

The pups were rapidly outgrowing the whelping pool. No escapees but several peering well over the edge of the pool and pulling themselves most of the way up the side. Time for a bigger space. After a full morning's work (BC work, not puppy work, that is...), the pups are now settled in their new space. A large outdoor play area will be coming when they're just a bit bigger. Stay tuned.

Ready for some new digs!

The "D"s are having quite a bit of fun playing with each other these days. As you'll see, they're also getting pretty big for their original home--the whelping pool. New "D"igs are coming soon pups! (The sound you hear in the background of the video is Mama Tamlyn enjoying a good chew on one of her bones.)

Drumroll, please........ "D" Names!!!!!

We're thrilled to present the names of the D litter! CCI provided them today. As always, these are tentative and subject to change until after the pups are turned in:

Red...........Black.....Female...DIAMOND III..!
Blue...........Black....Male.......DRE..!
Purple.........Black....Female....DELIGHT II..!
Neon Green...Yellow...Female...DOREEN III..!
Neon Pink.....Yellow...Female...DAYA..!
Brown..........Yellow...Male......DAN V..!
Light Pink.....Yellow...Female...DIONNE..!
Turquoise.....Yellow...Male......DELMAR III..!
Orange.........Yellow...Male.....DESMOND II..!

Daddies are Lawrence II and Lamont. Individual pictures with names to follow...

Hungry! (That says it all....)

What a difference a week makes!

The pups are really growing now. In just a week they've gone from:


to:

Such big puppies are often HUNGRY!

Romp and Rest

The pups are more active these days. It's a lot of work being a busy puppy. Puppies at work:



And after all that work, here's the very best place to rest:

Look Ma, I'm walking.....?

I can't believe I ate the whole thing!

The "D"s are packing it on these days! Here's what happens after a particularly wonderful dinner!

Wee Wags for One Week!

The D pups have reached their "first" birthday. They're one week old today. In honor of the occasion, we noticed that they're beginning to work on wagging tails. Happy tails, week old pups!!

Pooped!

The pups have "exercises" to try each week. Each one is tailored to their age and developmental level. The first one is about crawling. Each of the puppies had a chance to play. It is a very short crawl for these small pups. And now they're all pooped!!

Naps and Noses

Nothing like a full tummy....


Or mom...

D Dog Days

Ah... the life of a puppy.

To the tune of "Pick a Little, Talk a Little" from the Music Man (Meredith Willson)

Eat a little, poop a little
Eat a little, poop a little
Squeek, squeek, squeek
Sleep a lot, eat a little more...

Eat a little, poop a little
Eat a little, poop a little
Squeek, squeek, squeek
Sleep a lot, eat a little more...

Squeek, squeek, squeek, squeek, squeek, squeek, squeek, squeek,
Sleep, sleep, sleep, sleep, sleep, sleep, sleep, sleep

Eat a little, poop a little
Eat a little, poop a little
Squeek, squeek, squeek
Sleep a lot, eat a little more...

Squeek, squeek, squeek, squeek, squeek, squeek, squeek, squeek,
Sleep, sleep, sleep, sleep, sleep, sleep, sleep, sleep
Eat!

Reprise, at least 20 times a day!!

The D Pup Diet and Exercise Program

The arrival of the D’s has created a whole new approach to weight loss for Tam’s B/Cs. Here are a few of the highlights:

Day 0
Exercise:
SQUAT near pool to catch arriving puppy, hold while cleaning off pup, hold more while umbilical cord is clamped and cut. Release, squat and give pup to mom. Release, bend to clean out and replace newspapers. Repeat for next pup until finished.

KNEEL next to pool to help mom lie down relaxed so that she exposes all nipples for hungry puppies. Hold until mom is convinced she needs to stay put and relax. Release. Repeat 2 min later when mom moves. (She does the DOWN part of the process easily and quickly, of course. It's the "lay on your side and relax right now" part that she's still getting used to...)

STRETCH into pool to move puppy who is hungry and can’t find mom. Repeat 8x. Repeat sequence several times when pups move.

SUN SALUTATION to stretch sore back muscles. Repeat multiple times as it hardly seems to be working.

Diet:
DO eat breakfast while waiting for mom to go into stage 2 labor.
DON’T eat lunch (busy delivering pups) .
DO cheer when Vicki and Robert offer to bring dinner. (Yummy lasagna!)

Day 1
SQUAT’s modified from Day 0 to move puppies and attach them to mom.
KNEEL multiple x .
BEND to rearrange bedding as mom moves it when cleaning pups or nesting.
STRETCH after pups move, mom gets out to get a drink etc.

DO eat a high protein breakfast to compensate for sleep deprivation.
DO order groceries focusing on healthy, quickly prepared foods
DON’T panic when you realize you’re running out of caffeinated soda or milk for coffee.
DO send the rested person off to get the caffeine.

Day 2
Repeat SQUAT, KNEEL, BEND and STRETCH from Day 1.
Add BEND while cleaning up bedding and multiple loads of laundry.
Add LEG STRETCHES due to sitting cross-legged for extended periods.
Add (gentle) HAND CLENCHES to help with holding pups who wiggle during nail cutting.
Repeat SUN SALUTATION from Day 0.

DO repeat high protein breakfast.
DO pick up those healthy groceries.
DON’T spend too much time in the kitchen making dinner when needed with the puppies.
DO eat in shifts so someone can move the pup who’s crawling behind mom’s back.

Day 3
SQUAT to get pups in the right general direction to nurse.
SQUAT to pick pups up for weighing.
Repeat KNEEL, BEND and STRETCH from Day 1.


And so on……. So the pups gain weight and thrive and if we’re lucky the B/Cs lose weight. :-)

D Duties

Tam has been busy practicing her new job since the pups arrived two days ago. She took to the cleaning task with her usual enthusuasm and is now an expert poop cleaner.

It's taken a little more work to teach her that laying still in the right position for the pups to nurse is part of the mom job too, but she's starting to get the idea. Eight of nine pups are slurping happily in the picture--Brown is not pictured because he is happily slurping underneath his sisters and brothers.

Most evident is how happy Tamlyn is, delighted with her little D's. When she's not sleeping, feeding or cleaning pups, she's smiling!

D Day - 8/21/09

We are delighted to announce that the "D" s were delivered on Friday 8/21 beginning about 11:07 AM. Tamlyn lived up to her athletic nature and popped out her first 4 of 9 pups in about an hour. The remaining five followed at a slightly more leisurely pace, ending about 3:20. There were 4 boys and 5 girls, 6 yellow and 3 black.

Tam and her B/Cs want to thank Pam Flanagan for phone coaching and hands on assistance with the whelp, especially as the number went a little past the predicted "6-8".

Mom and pups can be seen resting after their hard work. Stay tuned for future adventures.

Waiting for puppies

and waiting and waiting......

Tam has been restless and nesting for several days now. She seems huge to us and it looks like today will be the day. Of course we thought that yesterday and the day before too. :-)
But her physical signs (temperature, panting and more restlessness) do seem to indicate we'll see those pups today. Both Tam and her people would really appreciate that, as the pups have been kicking vigorously for a while now.

All is Ready

The whelping room is ready and Tam thinks the pool is a great place. Today she got to get some exercise and see a bunch of her (human) friends, who are all rooting for her to have strong healthy pups.

Tam is AWESOME!!

We just got back from getting her "pre-whelp" x-ray. This is used to get a pretty good count of the litter size. All along, ever since Tamlyn became a breeder, we've looked her in her very intense eyes and said "Six to eight, Tam, six to eight". It's our understanding that Tam's mom Tiffi had pretty large litters, and being first time breeder caretakers, it was pretty daunting to think about caring for 11 to 14 or so puppies... So, Tam, six to eight...

After her xray, the vet returned to review them with us. To quote her "I can count six but there may be as many as eight." What an AWESOME dog!! Of course, only the whelp will tell for sure but the vet was certain that this was not a really large litter.


Tamlyn hanging out in her whelping pool

Pups on Board

It's Official! We took Tam up for her ultrasound today and Dr. Daniels said "Oh good, she's pregnant!" She was a little concerned when we told her that Tamlyn had been having more than her usual excellent appetite but those little sacs with growing puppies showed up in the very first spot she checked.

Tam thought the best part of the trip was that she got to play in the wonderful CCI play yard, and that now she gets to eat more. Of course we came home with a car full of Mom & puppy stuff. Chelan came home tonight and will be helping Tam keep in shape as she continues to learn about being a first time mom.