How We Raise Our Puppies
We take great pride in raising our puppies. Whelping is done in the birthing room in our home, equipped with a sofa and TV for the nights I spend awake waiting for puppies to be born or whelping out a litter. This way I am right there to assist a Mom the moment they start giving birth and can make sure everything goes well. The newborn puppies stay in the birthing room till they are a week old, so that they can be monitored very closely 24 hours a day. When I have large litters (7 or more puppies), I only put half of the puppies with the Mom while, the other half are sleeping on a heating pad in a crate. The puppies are then switched every hour and a half for 2 days (yes, all thru the night as well!), to make sure everyone gets enough to drink and ensure a good, healthy start.
At a week old, I move the puppies to our nursery. Our nursery is a quiet and peaceful environment for Mom to concentrate on taking care of her puppies. There are two cats (Ace & Spade), who watch over the puppies closely and have been caught on many occasions sleeping and playing with the puppies!
At 3 weeks old they start on socialization and are handled and played with constantly. Snowy (one of the stud dogs and my personal pet) is by my side constantly and assists with all chores and loves to play with the puppies as well. The puppies are well socialized with cats and bigger dogs. My nieces and nephews come over from time to time as well and play with all the puppies.
At 4 weeks old, I start the puppies on what my family likes to call “Slop”. This consists of milk powder, ground up puppy food and water. The puppies love it and usually make a big mess out of it. Then at 5 weeks, they are given puppy food soaked in water. I slowly start weaning them from Mom at this time as well. At 6 weeks they are eating dry food well, along with their Nuvet vitamins. Puppies are fed 3 times a day.
At 6 weeks old, they are weaned and get their first puppy vaccination. We are very fussy here about disease control and do not want to risk the health of our young puppies. At this time we bring them into our sunroom, where they can experience the happenings of daily life. Our UPS delivery man loves puppies and takes about 5-10 minutes to play with them before he leaves. We also let them romp and play outside, weather permitting. They get their first bath, nail trimming and ear cleaning.
My vet, Dr. Patrick Maizels, comes to our house and gives all the puppies a health check at 7 weeks old. Puppies are allowed to go into their new homes the weekend after they turn 7 weeks old.
My vets and myself do not believe in early spay/neutering and therefore, puppies are not spayed or neutered before they leave. We feel this should be done at 5-6 months old.
Our puppies are kept on a worming/vaccination schedule as follows:
2 weeks old- Wormed
4 weeks old- Wormed
5 weeks old- Bordetella
6 weeks old- First Puppy Vaccination
6 ½ weeks old- Wormed
We give our puppies countless hours of love and attention to insure they are happy and healthy. My dogs and puppies are my full time commitment. Raising our dogs/puppies, takes 24/7 dedication and we give up a personal life and upset family members and friends from time to time because we just can not go out much. It is all worth it, when you see very happy families with their new family member.
Below is a poem that relates to our house well:
My Dogs Live Here....
My dogs live here, they're here to stay.
You don't like pets? Be on your way.
They share my home, my food, my space.
This is their home, this is their place.
You will find dog hair on the floor,
They will alert you're at the door.
They may request a little pat,
A simple "NO" will settle that.
It gripes me when I hear you say,
"Just how is it you live this way?
They smell, they shed, they're in the way."
WHO ASKED YOU? is all I can say.
They love me more than anyone.
My voice is like the rising sun,
They merely have to hear me say,
"C'mon, time to go and play."
Then tails wag and faces grin,
They bounce and hop and make a den.
They never say, "No time for you,"
They're always there, to GO and DO.
And if I'm sad, they're by my side.
And if I'm mad, they circle wide.
And if I laugh, they laugh with me.
They understand, they always see.
So, once again, I say to you,
"Come visit me," but know this too...
My dogs live here, they're here to stay.
You don't like pets? Be on your way.
They share my home, my food, my space.
This is their home, this is their place.
- Author Unknown
