Regalgoldens Golden Retrievers

Less than 24 hours old. “Roulette” We knew last Wednesday would be the big day. Olivia affirmed this when her water broke at around 1:00 that afternoon. We were hoping to get a bit of rest beforehand and have some time to finish getting everything prepped however Olivia had other plans. At 1:40 pm, she promptly plopped Mr. Ruby out on the bedroom carpet. Nearly two hours later, she squeezed Mr. Rose Quartz out atop a snowbank in the yard. Twenty minutes later Mr. Citrine was born on our bed and so it continued like a game of roulette. We never really knew when or where this mom was going to deliver a puppy as her contractions were not very pronounced. We typically have the moms up on our bed where it’s easier for us to deal with the process, but Olivia would alternate between the whelping box, the bed, the snow, the carpet and to mix things up even further, she deposited Miss Topaz on the deck outside our bedroom. After more than twelve hours, Olivia finally completed her task having g...

Pepper watching over her puppies. “A Mother’s Love” The gang went for a car ride this week to visit our friendly veterinarian and received great reviews as expected. They were even well-behaved in the car, but no doubt relieved to return to the safety and comfort of their whelping box with their mom anxiously awaiting their arrival. In fact, Pepper was on her break when the pups were loaded up to go on their road trip. After a while, she went to check up on them and began to whimper when she discovered they were absent. Once the whelping box was cleaned up and stocked with fresh towels, she lay down in the box to play with a toy until they returned. Pepper then escorted each puppy as it was carried from the garage back to the whelping box. Only then would this supermom relax. Over the weekend, we caught a break in the weather that allowed us to get the pups outside for their inaugural outing. Pepper could not contain her excitement in the least. She barked and howled with delight as sh...

  We're growing by the minute and cute as ever! “The Amusement Park” This has been a very well-behaved litter. They’re pretty quiet, play nicely with others and are very smart. Their ability to hit the mark in the restroom (the potty tray filled with shredded paper) is unprecedented. Sooner or later, it was bound to happen that some little culprits broke rank and marred their stellar reputation. The other day we found a little stuffed chick floating in the water bowl – the victim of an apparent hazing incident. We have no idea who instigated it and no one’s talking! Mother Nature has been less than cooperative with the weather which has ranged from snowy/slushy rain to an extreme deep freeze. Normally, we’d have had a litter this age outside, so under the circumstances we had to be a bit creative, so we set up a fully decked out amusement park in the kitchen. The floor was lined with mats and towels. There were many stuffies, balls, a giant play station and a maze of tunnels. The f...

Olivia hasn’t skipped a beat with her pregnancy. She continues to play in the yard with the pack but sneaks away to seek out and/or excavate a den where she intends her puppies to be born. But not to worry, she’ll actually have them in a nice warm and sterile environment known as a whelping box.  Her appetite certainly hasn’t suffered as she polishes off her meals and looks for more! She is receiving fresh food with fruits, veggies, Omega oils, Folic Acid and vitamins. This week we’ll increase the frequency of her meals to three daily as there is less room for food given the size of the puppies. Olivia’s waistline has expanded from 27.5 inches to 32.5 inches or 82.5 cm. She is becoming increasingly more affectionate, demanding more belly rubs as you can see from the photo above.  Her activity level has remained about the same but over the next week we expect she will be slowing down. Golden Retriever puppy fetus Towards the 50th day of gestation, the fetuses’ skeletons are oss...

    We're growing like weeds! “All You Need is Love”   Dogs are pack animals and their emotional well-being relies on the presence of their pack-mates, whether other dogs or humans. It underscores the need for love that we all experience.  The dynamic in the whelping box is evolving.  This is the beginning of the most influential socialization period for the puppies. They’re learning to communicate with each other and with us by wagging their tails. With the increased control over their facial muscles, they are making expressions and are beginning to reveal their personalities and communicate their opinions. They spend longer periods of time awake and they use it to engage in some manner of play with their siblings whether head butting or wrestling, awake or asleep. They’re also craving a lot of attention and affection and fortunately that’s something that’s not hard to provide.   This week we removed the pig rails from the main part of the whelping box . N...

  It's all about playing this week! “School is in Session” Pepper and her crew have moved out of the bedroom and relocated into the living room which is like a V.I.P. room for moms. She has a sofa to stretch out on for her ultimate relaxation while being able to keep a watchful eye and ear on her brood. What’s more, she has a private yard for a little walkabout which her puppies will eventually use as their playground.  The puppies now have numerous plush toys at their disposal and in order to accommodate their rapid growth and increased mobility, we’ve added an extension to the whelping box. This has doubled its size giving the gang lots more room to play in, so they are now able to pick up speed to scramble from end to end.  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. They typically congregate in groups ranging in size from two to fo...

  Ain't No Mountain High enough..... “The Hoover” The pups reside in what’s called a whelping box: a 4 ft. square enclosure which we’ve lined with mats and towels, not to mention that nasty rolled-up towel that now serves as a headrest or leaning post for the little ones. There is an opening at one end of the whelping box that allows mom to get in and out at will to deal with her mini-pack or venture out on her well-deserved breaks. There are 4” high removable slats at the opening which serve to contain the pups. We start with one when they’re born and insert additional ones as they grow so that now we’re up to three so the pups can’t get out on their own. That said, the other day we discovered Miss Mars on the bedroom floor some distance from the whelping box. Apparently, she was latched onto Pepper’s milk receptacle with a super-vacuum, so she was whisked away and deposited onto the carpet where we had to rescue her. To accommodate the puppies’ rapid growth, we’ve had to raise th...