Kingston and Whitney Litter – Week Six

Mommy comforting Miss Strawberry.

“The hills are alive with the sound of music”

Well the music is actually the chirping and chanting sounds made by the mini-pack who have finally found their voices. They can be heard off in the distance expressing their opinions or tempting a littermate to play. The hills in this case are the snow-covered ruts in the backyard, which at the size of a six week old puppy, must resemble mountains. This notwithstanding, the group embraced the great outdoors as though they’d been doing it for years. They were completely comfortable and at ease considering the terrain was a far cry from the bunched up towels and shredding they were used to in the whelping box. These new mountaineers were content to explore a good portion of the yard and some even found twigs to munch on. It’s as though gathering up sticks and chewing them is part of a puppy’s DNA.

Their mom Whitney always escorts her brood outside and keeps a watchful eye on them. She begins by mingling with them, offering a quick snack of a milkshake and then she retires to a little mound of snow from which she keeps her vigil. Before long, pups scamper off in search of their littermates or to check up on what the humans are doing. This group is really tight and they most certainly enjoy their playtime together, not to mention naptime. But now that they’ve had a taste of the great outdoors with the crisp Caledon air, there can be no substitute. Even on days when the weather doesn’t lend itself to an outing, the puppies lean up on the whelping box by the door in the hopes that we’ve reconsidered.

This bunch is extremely affectionate and they have a sense of urgency to be picked up and cuddled. They’re friendly too and welcome seven month old puppy Skye on her way past the whelping box as she does her routine inspection of its inhabitants. When the puppies hear or see us approaching, the rustling in the whelping box begins. They’re always hopeful that it will mark the beginning of a new adventure.

That’s it for now, but be sure to join us next week for another stimulating installment of “Puppy Tales”.