Can I get A Whoof??

As promised here is a video of at least one puppy (IRIS; my sister's favorite) walking. I think I got a little too in her face- cause she gave me a WHOOF! The first, most adorable whoof ever! But I did not push it - just bc I did not want to scare her. LOL!

Just for Fun

Vote for us:)

Week 2 in the Garden...Open Your Eyes Sleepy Heads..

This week was a little crazy. Lots of fun things starting to happen in the nursery. At day 14 they all started to open their eyes. Chamomile was first, so i thought I would give her the courtesy of recognition. Then the rest followed one by one. Then I noticed that their ears started getting a little more droopy and started to open up.

I cut all their nails for Daphne's comfort. She is really surprising me with her mothering skills. My poor girl has diarrhea since these little critters arrived. I have a call into the vet- just waiting for a callback. I am making sure she has plenty of food and liquids as I am a little fearful of dehydration- but she seems OK. For those of you that do not know; Usually if you lift the skin on a back of an animals neck and it stays tented and does not return to normal right away that means they are more than likely dehydrated.

I have to say my little puppies are growing nicely and we do have some reserved.
Azalea will be adopted by Lisa in Texas,
Erica will be adopted my Rosina and CJ in Yorktown Heights, NY
Ginger will be going to live with the Cummins in Upstate, NY
and we have a few visitors coming to see the rest of the puppies at the end of the month when they are a little more active.
I noticed yesterday that they are trying to sturdy themselves to walk a bit and then they use each other for support. It will be any day that they will be off and running and then my job begins. I have had it easy for the past 2 weeks as Daphne tends to them diligently. I handle each one every day for weighing and some lovin' and occasionally bring a cat or other dog in for some sniffing. Rose also gets her chance on a daily basis to hold her pick for the day.
Dempsey is the absolute cutest. He seems so enamoured by them as if he knows they are his puppies. I have a cute video of him sniffing away and wagging his tail in pure delight. I will try and posted soon. I will also try to post the wobbly puppies starting to walk. I am trying to get the web cam going. It is just a matter of moving yet another computer into the kitchen...bc my mac is a little to elderly to handle the task...sorry mac.

I was in fact not 100 percent sure that my brown girls were sable until this week. I am pleased to say that time has told that their beautiful chocolate covered caramel and toffee coats (some of them also marshmallow dipped)..YUMMY!!!! are definitely sable. Yes- i know that is totally over the top- but that is the best way to describe the colors if you can't see them in person. Plus they are just scrumptious. I knew that the genetic compilation was factored properly for sable...but this is nature we are dealing with- so one never can be sure. Hooray for sable! For those that so not know...sable is a beautifully rare color in cockers that has a rare percent of happening with the the most precise genetics and allot of LUCK!

On a personal note, this week was very sad for me- and i thank my friends, puppies, daughter and dogs for keeping me busy enough not to overly ponder the death of one of my dearest friends, Ron. He was my past employer, mentor, confidant and most importantly dear friend. He lost a battle with leukemia on Saturday and passed away. He was fond of animals and they were always fond of him. I write this small tribute to him because he was more than a wonderful human being. I thank him for sharing laughter, tears and just life with me. I loved you - and I will miss you Ron and their will always be a piece of my heart for you. Thank you for everything.

What to do when you BFF is always taking care of her Puppies...

Play ball........................ and lounge in the sun ...........

Oh- this is CRAZY!>???

Of course they say a picture is worth 1000 words. My poor Daphne enduring the 85 degree nursery temperature and being "drunk" by nine little puppies....Only a few more weeks girl.

1 Week Old

The puppies turned a week old and have almost doubled in size since their birth. Daphne is taking such great care of them and although she has always been a very laid back dog- with newcomers she is very protective- bowing down atop them and barking at a stranger. But that is all Mother Natures way. Their little whining has become more pronounced as a little bark. I have updated their pictures on the website and will add them here too....in order: Azalea, Buttercup, Chamomile, Dogwood, Erica, Fern, Ginger, Herb & Iris.... They are filling out nicely and I can not wait to see what next week brings as their eyes will finally open and they will even get up and walk....:)

Tail Docking Day

Today was tail docking day. This morning I did the usual weigh in and everyone is right on track. I was preparing myself to have to alternate with pups on the boob bc there were so many= but Mother Nature is taking care of it and everyone is getting their fair share. They have become very familiar with how they are suppose to latch on to and have become slightly aggressive about it. So amazing. Its also so amazing how Daphne gets them all lined up and so orderly. She seemed to be in a great mood today...

Until we got to the vet and they took her 1/2 her puppies away at a time- she just knew, and she was whimpering and whining the whole time. Dr. Spaccarelli of Hudson Highland Vet was great and did it as quickly and efficiently as he could --- thanks you too Erin!

Here is a pic of the puppies with their docked tails.

It is illegal in the UK to dock tails anymore. I really do not have a radical opinion on it. It is the breed standard and I am used to seeing them like that- so anything else would seem unusual. Especially on Demspey bc his tail is a little longer and when he winds it up and gets it going sometimes it seems as if he is going to propel off the ground..... but if they were to outlaw it here in the US- it would not bother me. One less stress for an animal to have. It was originally a practice because cocker spaniels are hunting dogs- but they do not sport nearly as much today as in the past so maybe it is unnecessary.

Anyway- they really did not seem to be in any discomfort. When they got home they went to sleep with their mama. She was more effected by it than they were....

I wonder if the vet sends the remainder of the tails to the person who makes little boys...bc i heard boys are made of snakes and snails and puppy dogs tails...LOL! Just a thought.