Saturday, 26 September 2015
Starting to Get Big
Well Lyric seems to be making up for the poor start and is doing amazingly well. She has almost doubled her birth weight, something that we didn't expect to happen this early. Clearly all signs that we're heading in the right direction.
Thursday, 24 September 2015
Introducing Lyric
Well we thought that it was time to actually name Little Miss Purple, and have given her the name Lyric.
The name has been waiting for a LM puppy for a few years now, and it was funny (or strange) that when she was just born and we were checking her over I asked her is she was the long awaited Lyric.
As the horror of dead and weak one puppies unfolded I never got to ask any of the others, it just didn't seem appropriate at all.
When LMP was the only one left, I couldn't bring myself to give her the name. I wanted to make sure that she was staying with us and not going off with her siblings, on Monday I did start to use the name on her and had planned on sharing the news. However that evening, we were surprised and disappointed to find that she had put on very little weight. This continued the following day, and again we were worried about her.
Well yesterday, she made up for the shortfall in weight gain, gaining around 80 grams that day. This pattern has continued today, and is probably due to Trio being more settled and eating better.
When I got the grooming equipment this afternoon Trio was so excited and came bounding out, she thoroughly enjoyed having a groom. Loads of coat is being lost at the moment, so I think she really did benefit from this. She was even keen to have a trip out to meet the girls from the bus, her first walk since having the pups. She was keen to get back, and made a beeline for Lyric when we returned. So lovely to see a wagging tail again.
The name has been waiting for a LM puppy for a few years now, and it was funny (or strange) that when she was just born and we were checking her over I asked her is she was the long awaited Lyric.
As the horror of dead and weak one puppies unfolded I never got to ask any of the others, it just didn't seem appropriate at all.
When LMP was the only one left, I couldn't bring myself to give her the name. I wanted to make sure that she was staying with us and not going off with her siblings, on Monday I did start to use the name on her and had planned on sharing the news. However that evening, we were surprised and disappointed to find that she had put on very little weight. This continued the following day, and again we were worried about her.
Well yesterday, she made up for the shortfall in weight gain, gaining around 80 grams that day. This pattern has continued today, and is probably due to Trio being more settled and eating better.
When I got the grooming equipment this afternoon Trio was so excited and came bounding out, she thoroughly enjoyed having a groom. Loads of coat is being lost at the moment, so I think she really did benefit from this. She was even keen to have a trip out to meet the girls from the bus, her first walk since having the pups. She was keen to get back, and made a beeline for Lyric when we returned. So lovely to see a wagging tail again.
Tuesday, 22 September 2015
Tentative Steps Forward
We have been inundated with such wonderful support from so many people, we are so lucky and a huge heartfelt thank you from each and everyone of you.
Little Miss Purple is making some tentative progress, she is gaining weight, slowly but we are moving in the right direction. She is even filling the container used to weigh her in, something we couldn't image only a few days ago.
Trio is more settled with her and has come out of the whelping box at time for a cuddle or some attention. We need to keep her eating as she's been off her food and only eating small amounts, but picking up each day now. I'm sure that in a few days she'll have her appetite back, which will have a huge impact on milk production.
It's been rather strange, all of the whelping things surround us however there's so little to do. It is so strange just having LMP.
It is still early days, but we're all feeling much more positive.
Little Miss Purple is making some tentative progress, she is gaining weight, slowly but we are moving in the right direction. She is even filling the container used to weigh her in, something we couldn't image only a few days ago.
Trio is more settled with her and has come out of the whelping box at time for a cuddle or some attention. We need to keep her eating as she's been off her food and only eating small amounts, but picking up each day now. I'm sure that in a few days she'll have her appetite back, which will have a huge impact on milk production.
It's been rather strange, all of the whelping things surround us however there's so little to do. It is so strange just having LMP.
It is still early days, but we're all feeling much more positive.
Sunday, 20 September 2015
Little Miss Purple Holding Her Own
All the days have blended together, with no real sense of when things have happened or what the day is even.
Little Miss Purple had a good night, Trio hasn't been happy with her on the heat mat which was a bit of a worry for us. Clever puppy came up with the perfect compromise of sleeping between Trio's hind legs, laying on one with the other over her and her head resting on Trio's belly. Alternatively she will sleep under her elbow and again rest her head on Trio's belly. This has kept her warm and close to Trio, and suckling well.
Tasha put in some small cuddly toys yesterday to keep her company, Trio wasn't so keen even though pups was cuddling up on them on the heat mat. They have been taken out for now until Trio is more settled, she still goes out of the box and has a quick look around for the missing puppies which is heart breaking to watch.
We have tried to have a balance of being watchful, but not overbearing to Trio, she needs to trust her instinct and we have to show that we are confident in her as a mother. She doesn't like us to handle pup too much, and we're only moving her onto Trio of the heat pad if she's fallen asleep, or to weigh her. Trio doesn't do anything at all, it the look in her eyes, wondering if we're going to remove this pup too.
We have weighed her tonight and she has gained 40 grams, almost up to her birth weight! We are delighted and feel so much more confident that she's her to stay, not just a short visit like her brothers and sisters.
Little Miss Purple had a good night, Trio hasn't been happy with her on the heat mat which was a bit of a worry for us. Clever puppy came up with the perfect compromise of sleeping between Trio's hind legs, laying on one with the other over her and her head resting on Trio's belly. Alternatively she will sleep under her elbow and again rest her head on Trio's belly. This has kept her warm and close to Trio, and suckling well.
Tasha put in some small cuddly toys yesterday to keep her company, Trio wasn't so keen even though pups was cuddling up on them on the heat mat. They have been taken out for now until Trio is more settled, she still goes out of the box and has a quick look around for the missing puppies which is heart breaking to watch.
We have tried to have a balance of being watchful, but not overbearing to Trio, she needs to trust her instinct and we have to show that we are confident in her as a mother. She doesn't like us to handle pup too much, and we're only moving her onto Trio of the heat pad if she's fallen asleep, or to weigh her. Trio doesn't do anything at all, it the look in her eyes, wondering if we're going to remove this pup too.
We have weighed her tonight and she has gained 40 grams, almost up to her birth weight! We are delighted and feel so much more confident that she's her to stay, not just a short visit like her brothers and sisters.
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| Little Miss Purple x |
Saturday, 19 September 2015
Heart Break
It is such sadness that I post today, not the joyous news that we anticipated sharing with you all.
Trio had a normal whelping Friday/Saturday am, producing 10 puppies. Sadly 5 of these were born dead and we were unable to revive them. Five puppies born alive, 2 boys and 3 girls. Four of which were much smaller than the one larger girl, all appeared to be strong and suckled well as soon as they were born. This was something that we were relieved about as the colostrum is so important to them and we had hoped that this was a positive sign. Due to the size of these pups we felt it best not to break the news until we felt that all was going in the right direction, which it was at the time. Trio was fine and happy for us to supervise feeding making sure that each of them fed. During Friday afternoon the first puppy showed signs of weakening (Mr Blue), he was followed by one girl (Miss Red) and the remaining boy ( Mr Green). Mrs Yellow was the larger of the little ones and was feeding well, so it was looking more positive for her.
During Friday night, we lost first Mr Blue, and in the early hours Miss Red. By Saturday morning Mrs Yellow was weakening, and we were now concerned for her too. We lost Mr Green mid morning and by lunch time we had lost Mrs Yellow.
We have one remaining puppy, Miss Purple who is almost double the size of the other puppies - we are too frightened to feel optimistic at this stage but do hope that she stays with us.
As you can imagine we are utterly devastated, it has been a heart breaking few days, and sheer exhaustion doesn't help with the emotions. We have shed many tears, and still are and everything is very raw at the moment.
Trio is doing well, poor girl does look for the pups at times and we have found some friends for Miss Purple so she doesn't feel too lonely. She has been an absolute star, not at all bothered when I've spent hours in the box alongside the pups ensured that they have been latched on and suckling. Every bone and muscle in my body is reminding me of this at the moment.
I'm so sorry for all of the expectant puppy owners, for the friendships that would have been forged over the ensuing years of sharing a Trio baby.
It was felt important to inform all of the potential puppy owners prior to posting this, they need to be informed before this becomes public knowledge.
Update this evening;
Trio much more settled, pup feeding independently.
Thank you so much for the lovely messages, sorry for the tears to those who I have spoken to.
Trio had a normal whelping Friday/Saturday am, producing 10 puppies. Sadly 5 of these were born dead and we were unable to revive them. Five puppies born alive, 2 boys and 3 girls. Four of which were much smaller than the one larger girl, all appeared to be strong and suckled well as soon as they were born. This was something that we were relieved about as the colostrum is so important to them and we had hoped that this was a positive sign. Due to the size of these pups we felt it best not to break the news until we felt that all was going in the right direction, which it was at the time. Trio was fine and happy for us to supervise feeding making sure that each of them fed. During Friday afternoon the first puppy showed signs of weakening (Mr Blue), he was followed by one girl (Miss Red) and the remaining boy ( Mr Green). Mrs Yellow was the larger of the little ones and was feeding well, so it was looking more positive for her.
During Friday night, we lost first Mr Blue, and in the early hours Miss Red. By Saturday morning Mrs Yellow was weakening, and we were now concerned for her too. We lost Mr Green mid morning and by lunch time we had lost Mrs Yellow.
We have one remaining puppy, Miss Purple who is almost double the size of the other puppies - we are too frightened to feel optimistic at this stage but do hope that she stays with us.
As you can imagine we are utterly devastated, it has been a heart breaking few days, and sheer exhaustion doesn't help with the emotions. We have shed many tears, and still are and everything is very raw at the moment.
Trio is doing well, poor girl does look for the pups at times and we have found some friends for Miss Purple so she doesn't feel too lonely. She has been an absolute star, not at all bothered when I've spent hours in the box alongside the pups ensured that they have been latched on and suckling. Every bone and muscle in my body is reminding me of this at the moment.
I'm so sorry for all of the expectant puppy owners, for the friendships that would have been forged over the ensuing years of sharing a Trio baby.
It was felt important to inform all of the potential puppy owners prior to posting this, they need to be informed before this becomes public knowledge.
Update this evening;
Trio much more settled, pup feeding independently.
Thank you so much for the lovely messages, sorry for the tears to those who I have spoken to.
Wednesday, 16 September 2015
The Final Countdown
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| The big clean |
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| Nearly ready! |
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| All set and ready to go |
Saturday, 12 September 2015
Eight Weeks...........................WOW!
Well we've got to the eight week mark, it has gone sooooo... quickly! maybe not for everyone, and we didn't expect it to pass so quickly. Now the countdown begins.
The road work has continued this week, but the last few days she's been reluctant to go too far, or too quickly. Eve is continuing to partner her and we've had some nice quiet walks.
On Thursday she had her second Herpes vaccination, the vets were really pleased with her after giving her the once over.
Administering the wormer is continuing to be difficult, she seems to be able to guess when it's been hidden in her food. Also she's struggling to eat much as she has so little room for food, so she might have a few mouthfuls and then give up. We may have to resort to syringing it in her mouth again - something we miss to avoid if we can.
We will be setting up the whelping box tomorrow. Anything that was needed has now been bought, or we already have so we just need to organise things so that they're at hand when needed. We did nearly have to replace the Nutridrops that came yesterday, it had been put in a cupboard in it's container and in a sealed back. The cupboard wasn't closed properly and we found Tilly in the utility room licking it up off the floor after she had punctured it. It has now been rebottled and is safely out of the way.
The road work has continued this week, but the last few days she's been reluctant to go too far, or too quickly. Eve is continuing to partner her and we've had some nice quiet walks.
On Thursday she had her second Herpes vaccination, the vets were really pleased with her after giving her the once over.
Administering the wormer is continuing to be difficult, she seems to be able to guess when it's been hidden in her food. Also she's struggling to eat much as she has so little room for food, so she might have a few mouthfuls and then give up. We may have to resort to syringing it in her mouth again - something we miss to avoid if we can.
We will be setting up the whelping box tomorrow. Anything that was needed has now been bought, or we already have so we just need to organise things so that they're at hand when needed. We did nearly have to replace the Nutridrops that came yesterday, it had been put in a cupboard in it's container and in a sealed back. The cupboard wasn't closed properly and we found Tilly in the utility room licking it up off the floor after she had punctured it. It has now been rebottled and is safely out of the way.
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| Taken on Wednesday |
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| A ever expanding waistline |
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| Taken today 8 weeks |
Sunday, 6 September 2015
Blooming Gorgeous!
Thought we ought to have another picture of mum to be stacked, this will make it easier (Hope) for people to see the difference is Trio's size and shape. She is looking fantastic.
Friday, 4 September 2015
Nearly Seven Weeks!
Had meant to post earlier in the week, but with school and college restarting I just didn't get around to it.
We started to worm Trio last week, a daily occurrence of a low dosage wormer suitable for pregnancy (Panacur 10%). This is normal practice and helps to minimise the worm burden of the puppies, as encysted larvae are activated during pregnancy. She is rather wily with this, and we have changed tactics every few days as she has become aware of what we have been trying to do. Today was egg, natural yogart and wormer, it worked today but may have to try something different tomorrow.
Walks have now changed in the last few days, she has naturally slowed herself down but not enough for our liking. She is now on daily road work, and one of the highlights for her is collecting the girls from the bus stop in the village after their day at school. Walking buddy has been Eve who will hopefully benefit from the additional work.
She has grown and changed shape and we have the pleasure of feeling the pups move for the first time a few days ago - very exciting!
We started to worm Trio last week, a daily occurrence of a low dosage wormer suitable for pregnancy (Panacur 10%). This is normal practice and helps to minimise the worm burden of the puppies, as encysted larvae are activated during pregnancy. She is rather wily with this, and we have changed tactics every few days as she has become aware of what we have been trying to do. Today was egg, natural yogart and wormer, it worked today but may have to try something different tomorrow.
Walks have now changed in the last few days, she has naturally slowed herself down but not enough for our liking. She is now on daily road work, and one of the highlights for her is collecting the girls from the bus stop in the village after their day at school. Walking buddy has been Eve who will hopefully benefit from the additional work.
She has grown and changed shape and we have the pleasure of feeling the pups move for the first time a few days ago - very exciting!
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| One of Trio's last walks before pups with the others. |
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| Not at all bothered by the new arrivals |
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| Add caption |
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| Looking really fed up. |
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Trio and Eve - walking buddies |
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