mirapuppies

Friday, August 18, 2006

Pups are 6 Weeks Old Today

They have grown & developed so much in the past 6 weeks. Milestones thus far passed (in no particular order):
  • eating solid food (okay, softened, water-soaked food, but close!)
  • drinking water from a bowl
  • sleeping away from mom
  • pretty much giving up on nursing Mira (the gang of 13 still sometimes catches her and latches on with their sharp puppy teeth--much to Mira's dismay)
  • having not 1, but 2, nannies fussing over them (that would be Nanny Kit & Nanny Ursa, who have both doted on the pups since they were born and who compete to be with them now that Mira lets the nannies visit)
  • being outside and hearing all the city noises
  • not being worried about all the loud and sudden city noises, including a neighbor's outdoor, live rock concert last weekend!!! Amazing pups!
  • playing outside in their pup-nasium (they even have tunnels!)
  • meeting and playing with children and adult strangers
  • meeting and playing with the adult and teenage Chimera dogs
  • meeting and playing with dogs not part of the Chimera pack (including the gorgeous & huge 11 week old Great Dane, Greta!)
  • surviving having their toenails trimmed every week
  • surviving getting their puppy teeth
  • biting another puppy and hearing it scream
  • being bitten and screaming in shock and pain (& then turning around and biting someone else ... naturally!)
  • going up and down stairs
  • riding in one crate in the van
  • growing enough for riding in two crates in the van
  • being separated from some of their siblings for a time
  • 5 pups being in a crate at Brooke's office
  • 5 pups playing with staff members and racing around an office
  • gaming balled up paper (paper product play is a schnauzer favorite, esp. shredding paper!)
  • light bathing to remove food bits and food grease and yard soil that has become wet and turned to mud
  • full bathing to remove food bits and food grease and yard soil that has become wet and turned to mud
  • being dried with towels
  • being hand-fed tiny bits of shredded, chicken breast (pups say they will never eat kibble again--until, that is, the next meal!!!)
  • being hand-fed tiny bits of shredded, beef (pups again say they will never eat kibble again--oops! puppy resolve being the fickle thing that it is, the next kibble meal came and they gobbled it up ...)

Tomorrow the pups face another couple of milestones:
  • the clippers on their rears, perhaps on their ears, cheeks and necks
  • & being stacked like little show dogs for photographs for their official 6 week portraits. Breeders use these stacked shots to help evaluate the whole litter and then select which pups will go to show homes. Final selections will not be made until a week or two later when the pups have grown more.

We'll see how they do with these things. I will post the stacked photos if they turn out nicely.

Also coming, more playdates this weekend!! Stay tuned!