Fun with feathers

Pups now back to normal (almost) and are starting to show true cocker traits, ie: carrying anything they can. So just a couple more piccies.

Just the black and tan boy looking for a home now (4th picture down)

Upset tums

It was all going a bit too well, so I decided to make it harder for myself by worming with the pups with panacur liquid (a product I don't usualy use) and within 12 hours I had 8 pups with very runny tummies! This was not too much of a problem for the first few hours but when I came down to the pups first thimg in the morning the smell almost knocked me out and I wanted tongs to get the pups out :-).

Fortunatly the pups appear to have stayed well throughout, although a little quieter than normal. They are being treated with a combination of slippery elm and probiotics which are starting to improve things although we are not yet home and dry.

Due to the smell the pups had a bath and blow dry this morning which has made us all feel more comfortable, so they are all looking very pretty this morning.

Most of the pups have super homes waiting for them now, mainly to agility and shooting homes (they were introduced to wing feathers of woodcock, snipe and pheasant this morning courtesy of their fathers owner). We have 3 boys left, although we have someone interested in 2 of them who is just waiting to arrange a visit, so possibly just 1 little boy to go.

Puppies at christmas

Pups were 4 weeks old on Christmas day. They have had socialisation in bucket loads these last few days, although now they have got into the idea of solid food, there are times when you wouldn't want to pick up and cuddle a puppy who is wearing more of his dinner than he has eaten! (anyone who thinks breeding pups is easy money, ought to come and see how much effort is required just to keep them clean, let alone everything else that the pups and mum require)
Unfortunatly Bella has almost given up on the pups, I think it is a combination of her wanting to be with us and the fact that she is finding 8 strong pups too much.
Depending on the weather over the next week or so, I intend to start introducing them to the great outdoors soon, which should start to give them an idea of what housetraining is about.

I don't normally update this often, but yesterday I spent ages waiting to get a photo of the pups when they were awake, but they chose to have a very sleepy day. Then lo and behold at 11:30pm they decided it was playtime. Of course by the time I got the camera I had missed most of it , but I got a couple of shots.

Back to the subject of rehoming my poodles :-). I started the bathing and clipping, ready for christmas, yesterday. Safe in the knowledge that everywhere is frozen so the girls should stay fairly clean. Dollar was the first for a spruce up. Guess who found the only defrosted part of "the bog of eternal stench!"

Nearly three weeks old

Just an excuse to put a couple more photos up really. Still not much to say other than the pups are continuing to thrive, for the last couple of days they have started to get up onto unsteady legs and make a very good attempt to get off their bed and onto the paper to have a wee.
Went shopping for puppy toys yesterday so in about a week they can start having some toys in with them.
The messy part starts just in time for Christmas as I am planning to introduce them to their 1st solid meals this weekend.

On a different note, after bogging off twice in two days, (45mins and 1hr 40mins) after deer, does anyone want a pair of very deaf apricot standard poodles? - only joking!

More puppy pictures

Pups have started to open their eyes today, they are all fat as butter and totally gorgeous. They sleep as much as any other pups I've had, but when they are on the go they are very fast and determined, a sign of good working dogs perhaps? they certainly get around the whelping box more than the poodle pups do.

Puppy pictures

Mum and babies doing very well, although Bella is torn between looking after her babies and greeting everyone who comes to visit.