We Don't Wanna Be in the Whelping Box

So the Routine is this at 10:30pm,  I put them to bed back in the whelping room.   I now have piddle pads down for them to use and they spend the night in the Whelping box - there are 6 puppies and the whelping box is 4 x 6 so there is plenty of room for them.

Mom usually checks on them a couple of times through the night but somehow the 5am check up requires them to scream and cry and let me know they are awake and ready for food.  If the weather was better, I would run them all outside to go potty but that is not an option right now.  So instead they then go and piddle kinda close to the pad, hey if the front feet are on it and the back are not - I am pretty impressed for 4 week old puppies to be getting the hang of this is a good thing.  I then turn on the coffee pot because, well life cannot go on without it and make the puppies breakfast.  Gandalf usually has to get a bark in here and there because God forbid at the age of 10.5 he hasn't missed a meal yet and somehow I haven't forgotten to feed him, but this might be the morning that happens so he wants to make sure that I don't forget.  Sorry Gandalf you are going to have to wait until after puppies have eaten.

I take my coffee (again this is a requirement at this time of the morning for me to just function) and the puppy food and we go back to the whelping box.  By now they have all pooped and it is now my job to pick up the poops.  I do that, then put down puppy food.  They are getting more excited about the puppy food and eat, walk away, then stumble in to it, walk away, wipe their heads on each other as they scramble over each other, normal puppy stuff and when they are done, Nevada is ready to come in and do clean up patrol.  She eats whatever they don't and proceeds to clean them from head to toe.  I get a warm wash cloth turn on the scale, wash them off, weigh them and then take them into the big playpen in the living room.  One at a time until they are all done.  Clean up the whelping box, start a load of laundry for the bedding, grab another cup of coffee and sit and watch them play and romp and run in the new area and pick up more poop.

By now Gandalf is practically going to hyper-ventilate for lack of food and I have to leave my puppy TV to feed him and the other dogs.  Pick up dog yards, More coffee, maybe something to eat for me, shower, get ready for work and if I am lucky I will have a little bit of time to play with them before Larena shows up.  Off to work - get home at 5 to 5:30, depending on if I feel I can leave early.  Get home and watch and play with puppies.  Larena has given them Lunch and I feed the dogs at 6pm & then feed the puppies around 9pm to help hold them through the night.  At 10:30 off to bed they go,  I clean up their puppy area, change out all the bedding, put another load in the laundry and crawl into bed.

It is a lot of work, but I love it and the joy these puppies give me on a day to day basis is undeniable.  They also help others too.  Friends now call me and say I am having a bad day can I come play with Puppies.  My son cannot wait to get back home so they can crawl all over him, he is 26 and lives over in Everett.  He called today and is hoping to come this week.  Last night my friend who is the fire chief in Sequim called to come up with his two boys.  Ben is a big guy about 6'4 and it was so funny, he just crawled in the pen, laid down and immediately had 5 puppies on him.  The 6th was in his son's lap.  He just glanced over at me and had the biggest grin on his face and said this is what its all about!  So True!

Who needs a Living Room when You can have a puppy Room instead

My living room has been made into a puppy play room and the puppies are so happy with their new digs.  After the initial howling and screaming wondering why they could see their mom through the x pens but couldn't get to her, they eventually calmed down and started to explore.

Pink girl found the crate that is tucked into the side of the couch, it hasn't been touched since the last set of puppies and one does not realize how much dust can accumulate in one of those things until you have a puppy go and roll around in it and come out looking like a dust ball.  Good thing is she cleaned most of the dust out, bad thing, it was all over her.

I had the TV on most of the day yesterday for extra noise, at some point during a fixer upper show on HGTV - green realized that the TV was going and started barking his head off at it.  He was not happy with the hammering I guess but I just laughed and told him that was nothing, wait until the real handiman shows up hammering and making noise here at the house.

I do like to have my handiman come and do things while I have puppies, I figure the hammering, sawing and general banging and clanging of whatever is good for them and Richard is planning on coming up this week I believe, so we shall how they handle that or if Richard gets any work done or just spends his time playing with puppies, it is a toss up.

Gandalf my 10 1/2 year old berner takes this all in stride.  His dog bed is just outside of the puppy play area.  He was laying there minding his own business when Red boy realized that it wasn't his mom sleeping on that bed.  He looked at him as if to say, you look like mom but you don't smell  like her, who are you then proceeded to bark at him and give him the what for.  Gandi just looked at me as if to say, really mom, I have to put up with this when I am trying to sleep, could you please make it go away.

We had visitors yesterday, of course my dad and Chaz came up, they actually helped me put up the puppy area in the morning and then Jerrod and Chad came bringing some new toys which were a major hit.  I always enjoy meeting my puppy people and talking about the puppies and what to expect from Bernese Mountain Dogs, yesterday was delightful and I look forward to the relationships I am creating with these new babies.    Our visitors for today just called to cancel due to sickness, but I am sure some of my friends will come up sometime during the day.  I believe in pretty much an open door policy, it is good for the puppies to meet as many new people as they can.

Enjoy the pictures, not the best of them and I was hoping that Cindy could help me today but she had to cancel, so this will have to do for a few days.  It is going to be another rainy day, so the pups will be indoors again.

4 Weeks Already

Hard to believe that half my time with these babies has already passed and before I know it they will be going to their new homes.  Each day it continues to amaze me at how much they grow and develop and watching their little minds work is so much fun.

Last week the weather was so nice and the puppies got a taste of the big world, yesterday and of course this weekend when I have time to be home, it is supposed to rain and be typical miserable northwest weather, which means it is still too cold for them to be outside.  I have been looking at my living room as I sit and drink my coffee this morning and I think it is time to turn it into a daytime puppy room at least as long as the weather is crappy.  I think I can roll up my area rug, put down a tarp and use some x pens to protect the couch and then that way they can be part of the day to day, chaos at the house.  They need to have the noise and stimulation so they are well socialized.  The million dollar question is can I get this all done before the next set of visitor's show up at noon today:)  We shall see, if not I may put them to work to help.

Lime girl is still up to her antics, I have a cut out in the whelping box to make it easy for mom to go in and out, as the puppies get bigger and figure out how to escape their confinement we put in 2 inch boards up the opening to make it more difficult to escape.  I have had one board in for the past three days, well Lime girl made her way out last night when Mark and Mary were here visiting.  Apparently she felt that it was her turn to be in Mark's lap and out she went.  So now I have a second 2 inch board in the opening, which makes it really hard for Nevada to get in and out, but she let's me know when she wants in and we play a game of getting all the puppies to come into one corner so she can hop in, then they realize mom is there and all heck breaks out.  They have found their voices that is for sure, but they are sleeping through the night which is very nice.

Well I better get my butt in gear if I am going to rearrange my living room before puppy folks arrive.  I will get pictures today and get those up for you tonight.

Big Day Today

This morning it became very apparent that Nevada didn't want to nurse the puppies, at least not as long or as much as they wanted.  They were crying and hungry so I made up puppy gruel for them and we had our first big meal.  I do mean Big!  I have never had a litter of puppies take to eating so well, they dove in and figured out the concept very fast, they also ate almost every last bit and then topped it off with a visit from Nevada after she had cleaned everyone from head to toe.

I did take some pictures and although it is very late as I am typing this, I will try and get those pictures downloaded from my camera in the morning so you can see them.

Today Charlee's mom and dad came to pick her up, she was very happy and I think Nevada was happy to see her leave.    Monica and Ken had a great visit with the puppies, so they had a big day of socialization with new people and were pretty tired after they left.   Charlee was very happy to see mom and Nevada is happy to have her entire house back without gates to keep Charlee away from the babies, this means that Nevada doesn't have to wait for someone to open a gate and she can come and go into the puppy room as she wants, this makes one very happy momma.

What made Nevada even happier though was the puppies getting to go outside for their first big outdoor adventure.  The weather was lovely this afternoon in the 70's and so I felt it was a good time to take them outside.  We carried them out and Nevada was rolling and lounging in the grass with them, I swear she was smiling from ear to ear, as if to tell me it was about time I took them outside. 

They were curious, ate some grass, sniffed bugs, climbed up and on the small step that goes into the puppy yard and drank milk and played with each other, we even had some piddling and pooping outside, which is always a good thing.  When we brought them back into the whelping box a couple of hours later, they literally all fell asleep exactly where we put them.  Lots of stimulation makes for tired puppies.

Puppy TV

Every day they are changing and getting more and more active.  They are starting to try and run but it doesn't always work out for them, so you see a lot of starting and stopping and crashing into each other.  I call it my puppy T.V. because it's better to watch than anything on TV right now.  They chew on each other, starting to paw each other and are piling up on each other more than they have in the past. 

It seems there is always one that just cannot quite settle down to go to sleep, this last round was lime girl, she pulled up the corner of the whelping pad and moved it half way across the box, then went around and literally pounced on each of the other pups to see if they were awake, then whining when no one responded she put herself into the corner of the box and cried herself to sleep.

I spoke with my mentor this morning to ask her advise about whether or not I should start them on gruel and she agrees with me that they are thriving on momma's milk, they are gaining, growing and as long as they are not hungry no reason to rock the boat, so we are still nursing every two hours and mom is doing an amazing job, the whelping box is spotless and the minute a puppy whines or cries she is in cleaning their bums.  In a way they haven't had to poop on their own, because mom cleans them long before it ever gets to the point of them trying to do it on their own.  So for me I think this is another reason for them to have a few more days on Mom's milk.

Green hit the magic 5 Pound mark this morning and Lime is right behind him, I am sure she will be 5 pounds by tomorrow.  Now I understand why Nevada is eating 9 to 10 cups of food a day.  She is eating three times a day and her bowl is empty after each meal so I am feeling very good about the nutrition they are getting.

More Interactive

Oh how these puppies are changing so fast, every day it is something new or more pronounced.  Yesterday they were three weeks old and now the fun begins.  They are starting to play with each other, are awake for longer after meal times and I introduced a few toys into the whelping box which they are starting to take an interest in.

Pink Girl is definately the most laid back and easy going puppy.  She is content to sleep and doesn't interact much with the others. She is usually the last to get to the milk bar and the first to get her fill and leave, no messing around with her, go in get the job done and sleep, that's her motto.

 Blue Boy for being the smallest holds his own and man when he gets a nipple he doesn't let go, no matter how much jostling the other ones do.  He and Lime Girl play together a lot and chew on each other.  Lime is just a big chunk, although she got outweighed this morning by Green Boy, first time she has been bypassed in the weight department.  Although that doesn't surprise me as Green is usually one of the first to get to the milk bar and the last to leave, he doesn't miss a meal that one 

Yellow is the happiest to be picked up and cuddled, he loves his cuddle time and is super sweet.  Red Boy is the last to settle down, you know the toddler that doesn't want to go to bed and cries because he is so tired - well that is red boy.

Their teeth are starting to poke through and it won't be long before mom decides that nursing is not her thing, right now she is going in every couple of hours and letting them nurse.  I was trying to remember when I started the last litter on gruel and it was today, but they weighed less and were gaining less than these puppies, which is interesting because it is the same breeding.  I think I am going to hold off for a couple of days before starting, but as long as we are getting good weight and mom is willing to let them, I think the more they can get from her the better they will be.

I will get pictures this afternoon and post them as soon as I can.

We can hear now

Well today has been a pretty big day for the puppies, when I left this morning, they were not hearing me, however when I came home from work today, as I walked into the whelping room and asked how my babies were doing, two of them lifted their heads and looked at me.  It became very evident that they were all hearing me this afternoon.

On top of that they are also starting to interact with each other more now, whether or not that is smelling milk on each other and trying to determine if they can get it by biting each other's noses, who knows.  What I do know is that is is very fun to watch them and see them starting to play with each other.  Now the fun begins

They are also gaining nicely,  Lime Girl is still the largest at 4 lbs 2 oz and Blue Boy hit the three pound mark this morning.

Weekends just are not Long Enough

I hated having to go back to work this morning, getting to hang out with puppies all weekend was the absolute best and it was just not in my wheelhouse to go to the office this morning, but it had to be done.  Larena is staying at the house now, so I know they are in excellent hands while I am at work, she adores them, loves on them and makes sure that Nevada doesn't step on one when coming in and out of the whelping box, but I doubt that will ever happen. 

Some girls are not very careful around their babies, that is not the case with Nevada, she is so good, so careful, she comes into the whelping box as if walking on egg shells, gently and carefully putting down each and every foot,  Now that they are getting more active, their sense of smell is getting better and they are up and scurrying in seconds when she is in, she usually stands at the front, lets them all scurry towards her, then she hops over to the other side and quickly lays down.  Sometimes she cannot get down fast enough and then we remove the puppies from her and give her the chance to lay down and they immediately attach themselves to her once again.

The Puppies are all gaining in leaps and bounds.  They are moving around better by the hour and are now pretty much all walking and there is still some wobbeling with the movement but for the most part they are going in a forward direction.  All of their eyes are open and I have to say that these pups have the darkest eyes I think I have yet to see on any of my pups.  I am fortunate that my lines have nice dark eyes, which I believe comes from my foundation bitch Ivie (Nevada's mom).  Usually when puppies eyes are just opening their is a film and they look kind of grey, not these guys, they look black so I am thinking they are all going to have nice dark eyes, which is much prettier and pleasing to the eye than yellow or light brown eyes.

Nevada was very happy to have me home from work today and the first place I needed to be was in the whelping box with her and her babies.  I got puppy kisses and could just smell the puppy breath, I know that is mean, but I swear it is the best feeling in the world and nothing can make you happier than cuddling and loving on the babies.

2 Week Pictures Up

I know you will all be happy to see the new pictures of the babies.  They are changing by the hour, I swear.  They are getting stronger on their feet, Red is really scooting around the box.  Pink is always the first one to raise her head when Mom comes in as if to say the milk wagon is here and then the scurrying goes on.   Blue always makes his way to the best teat, Yellow usually tracks right behind pink and Green & Lime always get lost on the way.

Having Larena here is so nice, she has been such a help in just a short period of time.  This morning just having her hold puppies so I can trim toenails on the back feet was a huge help and for once I don't think I got any to the quick.  That extra set of hands is so nice. 

This morning the sun was shining and I was able to go out and pick up the dog yards, and I decided I would try and mow before the rain came back,  I got all of the dog yards done, the side yard and started on the front when I ran out of gas for the lawn mower.  Getting this done before the rain started was so nice.  This time of year, I swear the lawn can grow 3 inches in a day, so getting a head start on it before it gets too big to mow was a very nice feeling and of course knowing the puppies were being watched allowed me the ability to get some outside chores done.

This afternoon we tackled the pictures.  She understands what is needed to get the pictures and is patient enough to get it done right.  Puppies on the other hand were kind of squirmy and not all that cooperative.

2 Weeks

Where has the time gone - hard to believe they are already two weeks old.  I swear they are changing and getting stronger by the hour.  Eyes are opening, yesterday they were little slits, today they are a little more open than yesterday and I am sure by Sunday they should be open all the way.  They are getting up on all fours and walking, this morning it was more like a wobble, this afternoon Red was making more progress and by tonight I swear they are almost running to mom when she comes in the box.

Today my house sitter has moved in for the rest of the duration.  Lorena loves the dogs and they love her, she is moving back to Sequim and  her new apartment won't be ready until the end of the month, so I told her she could stay with me until it is ready.  It is a big help for me and I worry about my dad and his ability to get around as the pups get busier, last thing I need is for him to lose his balance and fall and break something.  Lorena has a cat named Tigger and he is also great with the dogs.  I think it will be good for the pups to see a cat and this morning he climbed in the whelping box and checked them all out, they all sniffed and realized he wasn't mom and Nevada was just fine with him being there.  My cat used to teach all the pups about cats, but she crossed the rainbow bridge last winter at 17 1/2 years of age, so having Tigger here is nice.

Tomorrow we will take new pictures and get them up on the blog for you.

Good Morning

This morning I am moving on the slow side.  Last night, I was rushing down the hall to let Charlee in the house, one of my rugs slipped out from under me and I came crashing down on my left hip and wrist.  Nothing broken, but I am sure the bruise when it pops up in a couple of days is going to be all kinds of pretty.  Of course this is my left hip, which is the side I lay on to watch the puppies from the day bed, so last night was a rough night for sure.  Aleve is my best friend right now and waiting for it to kick in so that I can make my way into the office, at least for a little while.

The puppies are all doing what I like to call the drunken sailor walk, they get up on all fours and totter around trying to figure out how to put one foot in front of the other and move in a forward direction, it is quite cute.  Green and Red Boys this morning are starting to show a sliver of an eyeball peeping out, so the others should follow suit and I would expect by this weekend they should all be open.

Green boy is the talker, he barks and growls, it is quite hilarious to listen to him tell his momma that he is hungry and she should be making her way into the whelping box.  He is a smart one.  He knows that when he talks she comes, not too bad for a puppy that is 12 days old.

Nevada is being an incredible mom, I wouldn't expect less, she was good with her last litter and her mom was an amazing mom so it runs in the genes.  Yesterday, dad said she was in the whelping box from about 11am to 3pm he kept trying to coax her out but she was perfectly content to be with her babies.  They are super clean and I have yet to see a wet pee spot or poop from them as she cleans them long before they can do it on their own, which at this point they should be able to do, I just haven't been able to witness it, because she takes such good care of them.

New Pictures

Today Dad helped me take pictures of the puppies.  At this age, getting pictures is never easy.  They move around and of course every time I try to take a picture they have to turn away from the camera.  So not the best of pictures but I am sure you will agree they are better than none.

First day back at work went well, although I had to come home early.  A good friend of mine had planned on using Dallas as a Stud Dog and her girl wasn't scheduled to come into season for a couple of months.    Well Charlee didn't get that message and mom and dad have a trip to Hawaii planned, leaving tomorrow.  So we have a guest for a couple of weeks.  Charlee is a great girl and I have her in my bedroom where she can go out the side door to a yard of her own.  Nevada has let her know that she is in charge, Charlee backed off and they are getting along quite well, which makes me very happy.

Rolly Pollies

I have now started calling them the Rolly Pollies because they are all very fat little puppies.  When mom comes into the whelping box their little noses go up in the air and they air scent mom, then the boot, scoot and boogie to the milk bar happens, they usually all end up there at the same time and then scramble on top of each other for a nipple, one or two will get knocked off and they roll down the remaining puppies with their little feet up in the air, two fat to get right side up and scream and make a ruckus, then they right themselves, climb back up and roll back down.  It really is quite hilarious and I know I am a mean mom, but it's always good for a chuckle. 

Green boy likes to come in through the back door, between momma's back legs but half the time he doesn't make it all the way and then screams bloody murder that their's no milk - no green boy there is no milk at the back of your momma's legs.  I always find Blue boy and put him on the best nipple while the others are all scrambling, that is because he is the smallest, not because I am playing favorites.  Eventually they all find a nipple, drink until they are comatose and fall asleep.  That pretty much sums up life around here.  Eat, Sleep and be Happy.

Yesterday my dad and Chaz came and watched the puppies so I could go to the dog food and regular food store.  Nevada has decided that she likes raw food and so that is what she is getting, along with some other stuff, I just keep trying to get as much food into her as I possibly can these days.  While it was nasty and wet all over the rest of Washington, it was actually not too bad here.  After feeding the pups, Nevada likes to go outside to cool off.  I have to keep the house warmer than normal for the puppies, especially at night, so the dogs are wanting to be outside more than they normally would.  She goes and lays on the puppy deck next to my home office and if she wants in she can give me the look and I can let her in.  We seem to have a good routine down and I am not looking forward to going to work next week, but I have to.  Pups will be watched by my dad, who has helped me raise the last 5 litters.  He loves the puppies and is a tremendous help. 

1 Week Birthday

Gosh hard to believe a week has already gone by.  The puppies are all doing great, gaining weight, getting fat and are very content and happy babies.  Mom has lot's of milk and they are basically thriving.  I am starting to see black pigment on the noses and red boy has been trying to stand up and walk rather than doing what I like to call the boot, scoot & boogie, he was doing that when the others were sleeping for the picture above.

As of this morning  - little miss lime girl is the biggest, weighing 1 lb 14 ounces so she is practically knocking on the two pound door.  Red & Green, Pink & Yellow are 1 lb 12 ounces and Blue boy is 1 lb 8 ounces.  He is always happily sleeping when the Milk Wagon comes in and I have to wake him up and put him on the best nipple.  He has been steadily gaining so I am not concerned about his weight at all.

It is interesting watching the puppies when Nevada comes into the box, they can all be sound asleep and pretty soon you can see their noses start to twitch, heads lift and then it is off to the races, they scurry around scooting here and there trying to find her.  Someone always seems to get lost and starts crying and screaming bloody murder that they cannot find their next meal and I have to rescue them and then they are all happy.

Life is otherwise good, Nevada is still being picky at eating, but she is at least acting like I am not trying to poison her with each meal.  French toast is her favorite so far, but yesterday she had some raw turkey, raw cut up chuck roast, some stella and chewys dehydrated raw duck, goats milk, vanilla ice cream  and two sliders.  Yes she is spoiled and pretty soon she is going to have to not be hand fed, but I am hoping we are making headway.

I am hoping I will have a helper come and take one week pictures today, if not we will get them tomorrow for sure.

Heaven Has a New Angel - Peanut

This has been a tough morning - during the night she continued to thrive, I fed her twice and she was doing great.  This morning I put her on the heating pad, which is what I have been doing whenever I leave her alone and let Nevada out to do her business and feed the other dogs.  I then throw towels in the dryer to warm them up and fix her food and go and feed her, when I got back to the whelping room, she didn't look right, her body was limp and lifeless.  I tried and tried to revive her, Nevada tried to nudge her, licked her and after about a half an hour I knew she was gone and there was nothing more I could do.   I really thought she would make it, but my vet told me today, that sometimes with little ones like this we really don't know if their internal parts are working correctly and more than likely there was something else going on that we couldn't see.  I know I did everything I could and I knew it would be a struggle but I wasn't about to give up on her.

I also didn't realize until she was gone, how much of my focus had been on her and how much time she took.  Nevada and I both crashed this afternoon, her snoring put me out for the count and I think that was the most sleep I have gotten in one session since they were born.  She required constant watching, making she she didn't get squished, was warm, was eating and she cried and moaned a lot, I didn't realize how much until she was no longer with us.

Today I was able to really focus on the other puppies, I did take pictures, not the best, but I haven't had anyone come over to help and we will get better ones on Friday for sure for their one week photo's.  As you can see some of the pigment is coming in on noses.  I had to put a different color collar on flower girl, that ribbon was just not good - so she is now Lime girl.  Green boy likes to bark and it is so cute to hear.  All of the babies are gaining weight and doing well. 

They had their dew claws removed yesterday, so that is behind us and now we can start to focus and move forward.  Nevada has decided she likes raw meat.  I spent $75 at the store today on Meat and hoping this gets me through until a raw food order I made comes to the house on Friday.  Whatever it takes:)

Looking forward to hopefully a good night sleep.

Peanut has gained an ounce

I know that doesn't seem like much but when she has been steadily losing weight since birth, any gain is a gain and I will take it.  I think we have a game plan that seems to be working.  Every two hours I pull out a warm towel from the dryer that has been warming it up and then I wrap her in it and get her good and warm for 20 minutes, usually this is me laying on the cot with her resting against my heart.  Then I tube feed her and another 20 minutes resting in the warm towels against me.  At that time her taste buds have kicked into gear and I put her on momma for as long as she wants and I have been watching like a hawk that she doesn't get kicked away by her siblings and sitting out in the whelping box all alone.   When Nevada's milk lets down, I have to literally hold her head to a nipple so that she doesn't get pushed aside by the other pups.

Her vocal cords are working well and if she does get pushed out, she lets me know.  Last night in the middle of the night I heard one of them barking, I couldn't figure out who it was but this morning I heard it again, green boy has learned how to use his vocal cords as well.  Cracks me up hearing this little teeny bark coming out of these puppies.

Nevada still doesn't want to eat, I have been trying everything, she will eat a little bit of something and then turn up her nose at it - We go into the vets office this afternoon at 2pm to have dew claws removed.  All but little wee one - I will not do hers, it is just two stressful on her little body, so she will have all of her dew claws.    When we go in, I am going to see if Linda has any ideas about what I can do for Nevada.  Not sure if she is still nauseated and if so, can I give her pepcid or what is going on.  I am going to order some raw food and see if that gets her taste buds moving again.  If anyone has any ideas, I am all for it.  She  won't touch chicken or anything to do with chicken,  I have tried bone broth, cottage cheese, eggs, potatoes, she ate a little bit of canned rabbit yesterday.  She didn't like oatmeal.  She was eating Satin balls, but then those lost their enticement, goats milk.  She will still eat vanilla ice cream.  Like I said, open to ideas, so if you have any - let me know.

He is a She

So apparently my friends Mona, Linda, Terri & Susan don't know the difference between a boy and a girl.  During the c section they were on one table and I asked them what they all had and they all said four boys - I am going to call out Linda who was taking care of the wee little one in question.  So I was busy trying to revive the one puppy that didn't make it and later taking care of mom, never looked at the sex of the puppies.  I have been a little bit busy at home, trying to keep wee little one alive and hadn't checked the sex of this puppy until this morning when I was on a phone call with Anne and she asked me to check something, when I noticed that Stuart Little's plumbing was all wrong, he is a she.

She has not been doing so well, I have been tube feeding her every two hours throughout the night - to say I am tired is an understatement, but more concerned for her well being than mine at this point.  We just got back from meeting my vet at her clinic - bless her for coming in on Easter Sunday and she gave her some sub q fluids and sent me home with some showing me what to do throughout the day.  I was able to talk with a good breeder friend of mine, that had a similiar type of a situation a couple of years ago.  She gave me some very valuable advise and for right now, I am seeing a turn around and she has already gained 1/2 an ounce since this morning.  Considering she kept on losing weight, this is the first gain since she has been born, so I am super happy about that. 

The remaining puppies are all doing great!  Momma's milk has come in and they are all gaining weight.  I like to weigh my puppies twice a day for the first two weeks, I find it really is the only way to know for sure that they are doing well and if one isn't doing as well as the others, you can give that puppy a little more TLC or make sure they are on the good nipple.  Nice thing about 7 puppies is that they are all pretty much good nipples, although some are always better than others.

I will keep you posted on the peanut's progress, but for now, I am hopeful that we have turned things around.