Regalgoldens Golden Retrievers

“The Mother of the Year Award goes to…….” Of course the winner is Surrey. She’s truly demonstrated her prowess as Supermom. Not only has she continued to nurse her puppies well beyond the “don’t touch me stage”, but she’s become their ultimate playmate. On one occasion, Surrey was outside to look after her personal plumbing needs. Afterward, she returned to the living room door, pushed it open, stole into the whelping box and removed a toy to take outside. Then she beckoned us to bring the puppies outside to play with her! We oblige her whenever possible and when the weather doesn’t cooperate, she catapults herself into the whelping box and plays with her little ones for impossibly long sessions.  What a gal! Surrey is the ultimate playmate! Of course, mom is the young puppies’ first teacher and she frequently held group tutorials. Surrey’s new hobby is to watch for wild turkeys as they enjoy their morning work-outs by walking around the property and bark to chase the...

Mr. Mashed Potatoes on the lookout! “The Steak Out” Surrey usually sets a good example but not this time. It was Sunday night and we were looking forward to a nice quiet dinner after a long, hard week. The puppies had their dinner and everyone in the household was winding down. It only took a moment, but Surrey who in her defense is still nursing occasionally and needs copious amounts of food to maintain that initiative, absconded with a large slab of tenderloin that was resting on the kitchen island waiting to be grilled. Fortunately the culprit was quickly apprehended and dinner went on as planned. Throughout the week, we managed to get the group outside frequently for playtime. There is never any hesitation as they all scurry off in all directions in search of treasures. 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...

Loving the great outdoors! “On Your Marks, Get Set, Go, Go, Go!” Some litters can be a little tentative during their inaugural outing. Many puppies will stand there and tremble for several moments while they take in the vastness of a new universe outside their whelping box. Not this bunch. It took mere seconds for them to take it all in and make a quick decision as to which direction to take off in. They embraced it as though they’d been playing outside their entire lives! They chased their mom around, they chased us around and they chased each other as well. They explored a great deal of this giant space known as “the puppy run”. In fact, Mr. Pilgrim dutifully followed us to the far reaches of the yard appearing very content and proud of himself. Many of the others tried their “hand” at rock climbing, wrestling with their siblings or just meandered around. When she wasn’t directly engaging with the pups, Surrey hung out nearby just to keep a watchful eye on her flock. Since...

  Our new interactive play centre. “Port-a-Gym” Today we added an extension to the whelping box which has doubled its size. Now that the puppies are growing, they need a bit more space to allow them to pick up speed to scramble from end to end. In addition, the puppies now have gym memberships and an elaborate play station at their disposal as well as numerous plush toys. The little ones are developing their strength, co-ordination and cognitive skills as well as learning how to engage in an activity with a littermate, even if it’s just bumping heads. Since their hunting and chasing instincts are emerging, they practice with their siblings or their plush toys. When the play station was first introduced, Surrey wasted no time to investigate it as did her mini-pack. They scrambled to try out the various activities while Surrey curled up inside the box to watch. When the puppies drifted off to sleep, Surrey went to take a closer look at the activity centre and when she go...

Breakfast is served! “Does This Fur Coat Make Me Look Fat?” We’ve already placed the call to Jenny Craig....just in case. Surrey’s pups are doing very well and are gaining weight as expected. They all have plump little fur-lined bellies, but those will all taper off as they grow. If they’re anything like their mom, it will be quite soon as Surrey is a latent Olympian. Since the mini-pack’s move from the bedroom to the living room, we spend a good amount of our time in the adjoining kitchen and dining room. Despite the presence of a barrier, Surrey, who’s normally quite laid back, will catapult her body over the barrier just to be able to spend time with us - up close and personal. The puppies’ growth isn’t limited to their bellies. They now require weekly pedicures to keep both mom and their siblings safe from scratches. The benefit of Surrey and her crew moving into the living room is that Surrey now has something akin to a V.I.P. lounge at her disposal. She has both a so...

This is how mom sleeps and while we feast! “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” As if the expectations for Surrey’s brood weren’t high enough! Surrey now spends her nights in the whelping box getting as comfortable as she possibly can. This entails sleeping on her back. Not only did Surrey’s little ones need to learn to stagger along on all fours, they also had to hone their climbing skills if they wanted a late night snack from the inverted milk bar. The main attraction this week is that the puppies’ eyes have opened. Puppies are born with their eyelids tightly shut because the eye itself is still developing and is extremely fragile. The closed eyelids serve as a barrier to protect the eyes from potential damage. Many of their critical organs including their brain are not fully formed and they will spend several weeks developing rapidly. The same is true of the eyes. Now that their eyes are open, it will take a couple of weeks before their eyes mature and their eyesight be...

Proud Surrey with her puppies. “Choir Practice” There are certainly many reasons to be thankful at Thanksgiving and Surrey gave us six more. The first to make his debut was Mr. Turkey, followed by Mr. Pumpkin Pie, Mr. Pilgrim and Mr. Corn.  Mr. Mashed Potatoes must have been a little anxious to catch up with the other “dishes” as he exited like a torpedo. We were perplexed about the abundance of boys but were happy when Miss Cranberry arrived. All went well and Surrey enjoyed a few bowls of ice cream between deliveries. The puppies are a bit damp when they’re born so we do our utmost to towel them dry to keep them warm and put them with their mom to nurse. It never ceases to amaze us how the little ones know exactly what to do from the first minute onward. Of course, while they’re nursing, Surrey does her part in overzealously stimulating them with her tongue and so we have to dry them off all over again. Apart from nourishment, a mom’s milk contai...