Kingston and Whitney Litter – Week Three

We are spending more time awake these days!

“It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time”

He was the first at everything and this was no exception. But was it really a good idea? There was Mr. Jet Black, Whitney’s first born in the middle of the bedroom carpet in what was surely seemed to him like puppy-sized mile away from the whelping box. He showed no fear as he stood there surveying the room in search of his mom, or at least that’s our theory. We’re not sure how he was able to accomplish his feat but the little lad managed to escape from the whelping box by some means that involved maneuvering his body over a couple of slats at its entrance that were twice his height. He never did connect with his mom who was fast asleep behind the other end of the whelping box. She was on her break!

Now that their vision is established beyond simply being able to detect light, dark and movement, the puppies are becoming increasingly curious about their surroundings and each other. As they are beginning to get acquainted with their littermates, they can often be observed standing in a group gently colliding or rubbing their noses and heads against one another. It is not essential for the recipient to actually be awake. This is the beginning of a key period for the puppies as they are developing rudimentary social skills. They are testing each other’s limits and learning the difference between hard and soft biting and they also take turns sleeping at the top and bottom of the sibling pile. To further enhance their experience, we’ve put stuffed animals in the whelping box as an obstacle course of sorts as well as fluffy playmates to cuddle with.

This week saw the introduction of the puppies to gruel or mush:  a healthy concoction of puréed kibble, oatmeal, honey, goat’s milk and vitamins, all fit for a king, to supplement the feedings they get from their mom. The charge was led by none other than Mr. Jet Black but the rest quickly followed. Mr. Mint demonstrated how to skate through the food dish. Miss Chiffon and Mr. Tangerine also thought that was a swell idea quickly diminishing any semblance of etiquette there may have been. Whitney is delighted by the enhanced menu that her brood have at their disposal as she’s entitled to the leftovers. Unfortunately for Whitney, that’s only every happened once to date.

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