I added some more pictures to Puppy Album II and I have a ton more to upload as well. So much has been going on. Today I set up a pen on the grass in our backyard. The puppies first time playing in the grass was priceless. (I have videos and pictures to share.) Yesterday they spent some time in the dog kennel on the other side of the yard - that was their first real introduction to being outside, but today was the real deal, feet in the grass experience. I want them to experience as many new things, smells, sounds, sights, etc as possible so that they are prepared to face the challenge of leaving the comfort of all they've ever known as home.
I just can't get enough of these baby pictures. They are just so cute - and as I know our time with these puppies is coming closer to an end, I suppose I'm extra committed to capturing the memories in photos right now. A few more photos from today: Some of the pups were asleep in their crate/den so I didn't get shots of everybody, but a few were out and about in the puppy pen...
Lentil
Lentil (who now looks more like his daddy, Pali II's namesake, then Pali II does!)
The puppies turned 6 weeks old yesterday!It’s amazing how time flies.The weeks are just zipping by and I’m happy to report that all is well in puppyland. Several of the pups have been spoken for by outer island folks. I can’t believe we haven’t found any new homes on Oahu yet!Oh well, it will make our island hops that much more fun if we get to visit the outer island pups after they’ve grown JI’m hoping we can all stay in touch and grow a community of borzoi lovers & owners, giving each other advice, sharing stories, pictures, etc.I’d like to keep the blog going even after the pups leave us...
I have been too busy and too tired to blog lately, but finally had some spare time today to organize some pictures and an update. The pups are just wonderful. They are growing so much - eating solid foods, playing, bouncing off the walls of their pen, and just generally being lovable and charming. Little personalities are budding and showing through. The babies are about 5 1/2 weeks old now. Amazing.
We've re-done the puppy room - took out the whelping box, set up a sleepy/play area and a potty area. The pups are learning to go potty in the right place, and clean-up has become much easier. Thank goodness!
Feeding has evolved quite a bit too...the pups are now eating a mixture of ground-up kibble, puppy formula/2nd Step formula, and water. They LOVE the new food - mowing it down with great enthusiasm.
Cocoa and Kidney both have new homes lined up... Cocoa's destined for Maui and Kidney is going to the Big Island. There are a few other pup/potential owner matches that are almost set as well. It's going to be so sad saying goodbye to these babies. They have captured our hearts.
A few pictures and videos from today...
Jelly
Jelly
Cocoa
Kidney on her new bed
Garbanzo, it's almost sleepytime
Kidney - hamming it up for the camera
Soy
Cocoa
Kidney - being silly again
Lima looking sheepish
Cocoa
Cocoa
Kidney
Kidney
Lentil
Adzuki
Lentil and Kidney having a drink of water, Soy fell asleep in the process
The puppies are now a month (and a few days) old! It's amazing how much has happened since they were born. It's a bit of a blur, but so many milestones have been reached. This morning we fed all nine puppies at once. They are eating out of bowls, a mixture now of Esbilac milk-replacer with 2nd Step to thicken it up. The pups LOVE the 2nd Step addition! We sure don't miss bottle feeding!
All of the pups have received de-worming treatment twice so far, and all have had their first parvovirus vaccination. I know if may sound young to start, but we obtained a breed-specific recommendation on the vaccinations, straight from the DVM who developed the (NeoTech) vaccines, which are specially formulated to be capable of inducing immunity in younger puppies. We plan three rounds of NeoPar to protect against parvo, and two rounds of NeoVac to protect against distemper-adenovirus. By the time these pups go to their new homes, they will have strong immunity!
The pup's teeth are coming in, and they are starting to play with toys and play rough-and-tumble with eachother. I have loads of videos that I will get around to editing and uploading soon (I hope).
Colors are still gradually changing. Garbanzo is lightening up, Pali II and Lentil are becoming hard to tell apart as Lentil is gaining weight and his color is lightening up to closely match Pali II's. Adzuki's markings are really striking - he's got little light colored eyebrow areas that really bring out his eyes. Soy is lightening up a bit too, as are Cocoa's legs. Kidney is still our little red stunner, and Lima's tortoise shell pattern is oh so pretty. Pali II's white muzzle and freckles are just too cute. Sigh...such beautiful babies.
I have another new batch of photos to share...here are some highlights...
Garbanzo
Kidney
Pali II
Kidney's got Pali-II's tail!
Cocoa
Soy
Pali II
Adzuki
I've posted the rest of the pictures from today in Puppy Album II and on the puppies' individual pages.
