Whitney and Storm’s Litter – Week Three

Look at how much we have grown!

The Hat Trick

It begins as a tiny little chirp. And then again. It’s followed by a retort, albeit amplified. The little puppies are beginning to find their voices and it’s fun to watch some of them as they seem to startle themselves when they emit a mini-bark. Yes, they’re growing up…but not too quickly yet.

There are three key things that puppies do. They eat and they sleep and they also work out. Their exercise regimen may not be readily apparent but as they lay there asleep, the puppies are constantly twitching. These involuntary actions, referred to as “activated sleep”, help strengthen their leg muscles allowing them to stagger around on all fours like the last guests at a sorority party. We’ve also added numerous stuffed animals to the whelping box which forces the little ones to climb over the obstacles to reach their target (usually the milk bar or a sibling to sleep on) thereby building muscle mass.

Now that the puppies can see and hear, they are beginning to get acquainted with their littermates. They can often be seen standing in a group gently colliding or rubbing their noses and heads against one another. In one episode, Mr. Shining Star, Miss Candy Cane and Mr. Coal were playing atop Mr. Snowball who was not initially not amused since they’d awakened him, but he quickly warmed up to the idea.

In the first two weeks, we reported the misadventures of Mr. Cinnamon Twist and this week was no exception. One afternoon, we heard a great deal of wailing coming from the library where Whitney’s whelping box was located, but in all likelihood it was more like a celebratory chant. Having escaped the confines of the whelping box for the third time now, Mr. Cinnamon Twist was found happily exploring this strange new world known as our library. We can hardly wait to see what happens now that Whitney and her family have now been relocated to the living room with Sierra’s litter as next door neighbours.

That’s it for now, but be sure to join us next week for another chapter in the continuing saga we call “Puppy Tales”.