My Personal Puppy Milestones…
Written by Pam on October 11, 2014
As a breeder, I evaluate our pups constantly. We actually keep a growth charts with graphs etc – to document each puppy’s growth cycle. (Please ask to see them when you come to our pick-a-puppy weekend.) Our pups just passed their first week with us and everyone on average is 1.5 lbs already!
My personal puppy milestones help guide me and they help satisfy that desire to make absolutely certain all the pups are okay. We are 2/3’s through my personal puppy milestones. Very basic, but meaningful to me, the milestones are “3 hours, 3 days and 3 weeks.” I feel that once each puppy passes these time-driven hurdles, all will be just fine for them …and for me! The milestones of “3” first start in hours. Having newborn pups, the pups need to latch on correctly – almost immediately after birth and one never knows if the lungs are totally clear – so there is always that element of risk. This is part of the reason why I have our vet look and listen to each puppy 1 or 2 days after birth. The second milestone of “3” is the mother dogs nurturing. Some females are better mothers than others and we need to pay special attention to the dam especially when she is new at motherhood. The last milestone of “3”, we obviously have not hit this milestone yet, but to me this milestone starts at the 3rd week of life and really continues throughout the dog’s life – At 3-weeks the puppies can hear and their eyes are open. They realize there is much more to explore than what they have experienced in their whelping box, so they become very curious and want to do what the breed inner drive promotes them to do – explore! The 3 week mark is to place even more emphasis on the puppy’s safety. Further the puppies are not yet vaccinated so their need to explore still needs to be inside the house where they are safe from germs, safe from other animals, safe from getting lost. At the 3-week mark, we allow the pups room to explore the full length of our mudroom that is filled with many – many many interactive & training toys, puppy cushions and of course, us!
Here are some pictures that show how the pups have changed somewhat from earlier pictures on the website. Within a week or so, they will be able to hear and see us! CLICK ON THE WORDS – PUPS LEARNING TO LAP – AND YOU WILL SEE A SHORT VIDEO!!! -Today we introduced Esbilac to our puppies and they were all curious and tasted a little!
Pups learning to lap
