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| Oh what fun we are having! |
“The
Godmother”
She
was born in a small village in Central Europe near the Danube, travelling to
this continent at a very young age. Despite being supplanted, her system of
values was unhindered. In some cultures, it’s all about respect. Respect and
family. And this circumstance was no different. Her stature was one to be loved
and respected, even feared. She was,
after all…..the Godmother. Bailey’s role as “Godmother” to Mango’s litter began
the moment Mango and her pups arrived home from the veterinary hospital after a
C-section. Bailey contributed very generously to the nursing of Mango’s brood,
which outnumbered her own by seven to three. After a few days, her assistance
as a wet nurse was no longer required, however Bailey was so attached to
Mango’s pups that she has taken it upon herself to continue to nurse them even
in Mango’s presence. Mango is a doting mom in her own right, so as a benevolent
demonstration of reciprocity, she has also taken to nursing Bailey’s litter or even
nursing in tandem. Mix and match moms if
you will, or “teat” for tat.
This
week, the gang began to wean and was introduced to mush: a canine smoothie
comprised of moistened puppy food, oatmeal, goat’s milk, supplements,
probiotics and honey. The convention with mush when it’s introduced to a new
group is that the puppies typically sniff at it, shake their heads or walk away
until we dab a little on their mouths to coax them into trying it. And then
there was Mr. Merlot. When the bowl was placed in the whelping box, he made a
bee-line toward it and began to chow down as though he’d done it a hundred
times before. To this day, he’s the first at the dinner table, the last to
leave and ever so focused on the “task” at hand. The girls, who both have
healthy appetites, were quick to follow suit. This is a bit of a reprieve for
Bailey as each of the puppy’s twenty-eight razor sharp teeth are coming in, but
she still dutifully brings her milk truck around several times a day and night
to keep her family topped up.
This
is the beginning of a key socialization period for the puppies and they’re
spending more time playing with one another and with Mango’s progeny. Now that
they’re gaining strength and coordination, they scurry around at top speed and
pounce on each other or play “pretend jousting” where they stand apart from their opponent, take a
couple of steps forward and gently bounce off their sibling. They test each
other’s limits and learn the difference between hard and soft biting. Miss Champagne loves to climb in and out of
the openings of the little mini-den while Miss Chardonnay spends her time with
the new play-station, practicing to bat the ball (and she’s not even Dominican).
And Mr. Merlot….well, he does love to eat.
That’s it for now, but be sure to join us next week for
another heart-warming installment of “Puppy Tales”.
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