WEEK 3
10/14/01-(Day 21) The beginning of the week definitely was not as exciting as the later part of the week. Toward the end, all the pups had there eyes open and the were beginning to walk. They started off looking a little like drunken sailors but by Sunday they were moving around pretty well only losing their balance every once in a while. Instead of just eating, sleeping, pooping/peeing, they are now eating, sleeping, PLAYING and pooping and peeing. I think our laundry bill has gone up a few hundred dollars since last month!
We can now see the start of some personalities forming. The are starting to play with each other and bark and growl. Some are the instigators and some are the followers. Even Midget is keeping up with the pack, although she is half the size as some of the big ones. She usually does pretty well at fighting for the prime nipple spots and isn't pushed off easily. Despite her increase in strength and skills, we still give her and the little yellow one some nursing time by themselves. Some have exceeded 70 oz. while Midget is about 35 oz. As you can see she has a lot of catching up to do.
The puppy play was getting more entertaining toward the end of the week. They are growling and barking while they pounce, and try to keep from falling over while they paw at each other. Their teeth are just barely starting to break through and they all have a great desire to suck on each others face, ear, leg, or whatever is available. When the sleep, some wander around the box to find a sleeping buddy to curl up next to or lay on top of, while others are happy just to be stretched out alone. I've noticed some of them, especially the green boy, like to sleep on their back like their daddy.
We just started introducing them to the food bowl. We will fill it with formula and stick their noses in it to let them know where it is. Some of them have gotten the hang of it and some end up sucking on the bowl. Either way, they make quite a mess stepping in it or falling into it. By next week they should be eating fairly well out of this new contraption and we will start adding baby cereal and eventually puppy weaning food. This will take some of the strain off Phoebe. It is a lot of work nursing 11 puppies all the time. She is eating between 5-6 meals a day and she is skinny as a rail.
They now have on collars with colored ric rack to help us identify them more easily since they are a lot more active then they used to be. Next week I promise I will take individual pictures of everybody. However, taking the following pictures was no easy feat!
THE PREGNANCY / JUST BORN / WEEK 1 / WEEK 2 / WEEK 3 / WEEK 4 / WEEK 5 / WEEK 6 /