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| Miss Daisy |
“The Dormitory”
We
heard the cry in the wee hours of the morning. It was faint at first, but growing in urgency.
Shaking off our sleep to listen, it appeared to be a sole puppy voice off in
the distance; summoning, very tiny, somewhat muted and a wee bit lonely. We
sprang out of bed to investigate. After an inspection of the whelping box and performing
a head-count, we learned that Miss Daisy had scaled the barrier of their
enclosure and gone on a solo expedition to the nether reaches of the living
room. We found her on the far side of the room examining the fireplace tools. She
was promptly returned to the warm comfort of the whelping box to snuggle with
her littermates - another happy ending.
The gang
began to wean this week and was introduced to mush: a canine smoothie comprised
of moistened puppy food, oatmeal, goat’s milk, supplements, probiotics and
honey. It only took minimal coaxing, but the group heartily embraced this
newfound source of nourishment. This is the first step toward Mango’s
liberation from the one hundred and ninety-six razor sharp teeth (twenty-eight
per puppy) that tear away at her flesh several times a day. The new buffet has
been such a big hit that some of the puppies actually fall asleep right in the
food bowl. On one such occasion, while Miss Lily was fast asleep with her head
in the bowl, the very determined Mr. Ivy simply rolled her out of the way to
continue his dining experience. The introduction of this food source has also
allowed the mini-pack to bond…..in a way. They spend as much time after a meal as
with the meal itself, just licking the sticky mess off of each other.
When
they’re not sleeping or eating, the puppies spend more time playing with one
another. With this being the beginning of a key socialization period for the
puppies, they are testing each other’s limits and learning the difference
between hard and soft biting. They also
take turns sleeping at the top and bottom of the sibling pile. Since their
hunting and chasing instincts are kicking in, they practice with their siblings
or their plush toys (unless mom has absconded with them). Their new play
station helps them to develop their strength, co-ordination and cognitive
skills. We’re not sure whether this stimulation is what had them howling like a
pack of miniature wolves last week, but this week they’ve progressed to emulating
sounds akin to a flock of seagulls. And yes, of course they were hungry.
Since
it was becoming hard to keep track of which mom was nursing which litter, we
now have both Mango & Bailey’s pups bunking together in one dormitory.
It’s
interesting to witness a silent, but polite exchange between the moms who are steadfast
friends, as they pause before entering the whelping box for a milk delivery.
They have somehow worked out their own system of rotation. This is
truly a “win / win” for all, in that it promotes the pups’ socialization
skills, it results in an equitable division of labour between the moms and did
we mention: it cuts down on the amount
of laundry we have to do?
That’s it for now, but be sure to join us next week for
another tantalizing installment of “Puppy Tales”.
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