7 Weeks bad...old!

At this age there is a lot of play fighting some more fight than play.

Then there is a peaceful moment while the pups catch their breath.

Don't worry mom will never notice this one is gone. She has another one exactly like this one.

Learning how to go up and down steps.

The First Week

It is hard to believe how much they have changed in a week. When I got them, Mark (now Ottobahn or Otto for short), didn't want to come out of the dog room. He was too timid to venture outside either. Stairs were a barrier for both of the pups the first couple of days but then they managed to do the two stairs down to the living room very carefully. Yesterday they managed 6 brick steps outside to get down off the porch. This morning they took the two steps in the house at a dead run and sometimes skipped the middle step altogether. They were running up and down the long flight of steps outside too. Otto is now happy to explore the rest of the house and chases his brother up and down the hall and happily goes outside. Here are some photos of Otto he is the one with no blaze.

Otto is being adopted by Joe and Shari. They are friends of mine so the brothers will still get to play together. They have been taking Otto to their house for visits for a few hours every night. When he makes the transition from his mom to their home he will already be acclimated to it. They even took my pup last night so he could have a chance to play with other breeds of dogs and be in a new place. Great socialization!

They have had lots of guests of all ages come by to play with them including a 7 week old golden mix puppy named Roo. We got to watch her overnight and all day. Three pups is a LOT more work than two BTW. Has something to do with the number of hands I have. It is hard to pick up dirty newspapers out of their puppy pen with 3 pups leaping on me and pulling on my pant legs. With two I can shoo them away OK but with three there is one more pup than I hands. One is going to either grab the newspaper and shake it or grab my sleeve and shake that or run through the mess. On the same subject they are doing excellent on keeping their crate clean. Not one accident in their crate! They always leave their crate to potty at the other end of the X-pen on the puppy pads. They loved having Roo here and played and played. Mom wasn't quite as thrilled whenever a pup yelped. She thought Roo was hurting them even though Roo was doing as much yelping as the others.




They had their first trip outside this week too. They have been outside every day since. They have been in their puppy pen and even down in the big dog pen in the back. They love playing in the leaves there and followed their mom around and around that pen as fast as they could until they were just exhausted. They are still at the age that they follow their mom or I very closely so we have been able to go on some great walks with the pups trailing us through the tall grass. They will even chase a toy on a string through the grass now as fast as their little legs can carry them.

6 Weeks Old!

The pups have had a lot of firsts since arriving on Saturday. They met their first kids on Sunday.

They had their first bath on Monday and tried their Mom's raw food for the first time.

And wore their first coats. They are playing rougher than when they arrived and running and playing more. It is amazing how much they change in just a few days. My pup was the first to want to follow his mom outside. Mark would rather watch them from inside where it is warm. Mark is the better eater of the two and is eating more puppy food. My pup would rather just nurse.

Finally!

I finally have them! I picked my pup, called Kyle Petty and his brother Mark Martin (race theme litter) along with their mom Sara yesterday in Alabama. It snowed 4 or 5 inches on Friday so we were lucky the roads were clear enough to make the trip over from SC. Several friends went with me Jenny, Ann, and Jann. Made it a fun trip. Here we are picking pups up from the adoption kennel at the Birmingham Race Track.
















































In the van on the trip home



















Got the indoor and outdoor pens done on Thursday and Friday right before the snow storm.

Finally home

Getting Ready for pups

Have been doing a lot of reading on puppy development this week to prepare for their arrival. Jen, who raised the pups, has already done the Super Puppy Early Neurological Stimulation during their first 4 weeks. So they are off to a good start.
http://www.diamondcreeksportingdogs.com/superpuppyprogram.html

Video of exercises
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G31N_gmUkE0

Also re-read Cesar Millan's "Raising the Perfect Dog" and "A Member of the Family". Want to make sure these pups are started off right.

My foster Scooby Doo will be adopted this week. As soon as he is gone I will bleach and steam clean his kennel and the dog room to get it ready for pups. Am planning to move the plants and table out and put an X-pen up there.
















Am borrowing more baby gates to enclose this area for the pups to play in. I have a tunnel, agility stuff, small stairs and toys to put in this area for the pups to play on. My project for today is to get the weeds mowed down and leaves hauled out. Wish the weather would cooperate - it is very cold and windy.

BIrthday Gift

Got a great Birthday gift! Just found out that instead of waiting to get my puppy until he is 10 weeks old like originally planned, I will be able to pick up my puppy on Feb 13 at just over 5 weeks old. I am going to pick up his mom too and some of his littermates so most of the family will remain together until they are 8 to 10 weeks old. The other littermates will remain with Jen who has them now. She has a Saluki that has adopted the pups and is showing more interest in them than their real mom. So her Saluki will raise the pups that are staying in Alabama or headed West and the ones that are being adopted closer to SC will come to me. Can hardly wait for Saturday!

I have hand raised pups before from 1 day old and a couple of greyhound pups that were four and a half weeks old when I got them. I haven't ever had a greyhound mom and pups to raise in my house before. Will be fun but a lot of work I am sure. Am I crazy?

As far as I know all the pups are spoken for but their mom Sara will be available for adoption in a few weeks. She has been in a home before and is very people oriented. Sara loves everyone. She just turned 5 on February 4th. Her sire was the famous Kiowa Sweet Trey. Here is a photo.

Bad News

One of the pups in the litter, Tina, passed away yesterday. Mom had dropped her when jumping up onto a bed. She had broken some ribs. She was back to nursing the next morning so everyone hoped she would pull through. Momma Sara stopped letting her nurse on Jan 30. Jen (the lady raising the pups) nursed her by hand but Tina went down hill quickly. Mel and Jen helped her cross the bridge Jan 31st just shy of four weeks old.

This photo is of my friend Ann holding Tina when she was 12 days old. Tina was the first of the pups to open her eyes.

PUP DATE
The pups were all named for race car drivers. My pup is being called Kyle right now. I probably won't keep the name Kyle. Have several names on the short list right now. Miles is probably at the top - short for Miles Per Hour. My friend Ann came up with that one and it is a good name for a fast dog. JJ was another suggested name - short for Just Junior. My greyhound male that died was JD (Just Dog).

Got an update from Mel and she says she thinks Kyle's coloring is lightening up from a dark almost black brindle to a chocolate brindle. Whatever color he turns out he will be the most beautiful pup ever. Jen sent a video of him toddling around last week. He was standing straight up on all fours. No more crawling around. He looked very grown up for just 3 weeks old.

Am hoping to go visit the pups again soon. The weeks are just creeping by. Can't believe the pups aren't even 4 weeks old it seems like MUCH longer. I am supposed to wait to get Kyle until he is at least 10 weeks old. There is always a chance that the pups will all turn into holy terrors and Jen will decide to let them go a little early to preserve her sanity though. LOL