Home Sweet Home

Well it has come to that part in the timeline when I have to give up my puppies to their new owners. It is never easy as we do develop a special bond with them. The puppies know that bc months later when they come to visit- I am always greeted with puppy kisses. It makes my job a little easier knowing that they at least recognise my efforts for taking care of them their first 8 weeks of life. Lots of people ask about Rose and I know it is hard to let go- but knowing that we will have puppies again someday in the future and start all over again makes her smile.

In a few days my newest puppy parents will receive an invitation to join our Moondrop Gardens Google Group. Here they can introduce themselves to past parents and share pictures and stories of their Moondrop Gardens Puppy. It not public and is only open to our family members.

Sometimes people say- "I have never had an experience like this before getting a new puppy". And the reason for this is because I have had the experience to get a new puppy 4 times. Each and every time it was very different. I will not say it was a bad experience- but I just knew I would do it differently.

Part of the joy of actually doing this is the joy you can see on the faces of the families when they hold their puppy and know they are going home with it. I know that feeling and I love to watch others experience that.

They say every litter is a new experience. And "they(whoever they are)" are right. This litter woke me up to the fact that not everything is always going to be perfect. Breeders have issues that challenge their emotions of being human, being a mother, being realistic, and being a breeder. Its hard to be all those things at once. This was a learning experience as I am sure it will always be. I don't think I know it all- I just convince my daughter I do..LOL!

I am very happy to have met and welcome our new families. I know we will keep in touch for a long time and I know that all my puppies will be spoiled. Some of my friends who are not animal lovers think I am totally bazaar- but I have made alot of friends along the way that have shown me I am not the only bazaar person out there in the world- and for that I am thankful.

Send us your pictures and stories- we love to hear about the puppies. Congratulations again- and know I am always here.

7 weeks and Counting....

Under no circumstance is this last week ever easy because the puppies have all developed their own personality and are all so playful and it is now that we prepare Daphne (and Rose, nad Myself) for the separation. She is not longer allowed to nurse them- and she does not sleep with them anymore. As a mother I can only feel for her as she whimpers and whines and wonders where her little babies are? Sometimes I think she doesn't realize that the big puppies are her little babies. They smell different and act different. We actually put a shirt on her to cover her teats so they are unreachable. Because if it were up to Daphne- she would hold on forever.

We went to the vet and I apologize for not having any pics from the event- but I almost threw my back out trying to carry all the puppies in + Dillon. I don't know what I was thinking when I made that appointment- but next time someone remind me to hire a personal assistant. The puppies all took their shots like champs and got a clean bill of health.

Last week Jasper took a ride with me to pick up Rose and he got a chance to meet a few kids. He did also poop in my car right on top of Rose's library book bag- she was so mad at him and gave him a lecture he would not forget....

The weather has been beautiful here and we are all welcoming spring; getting a chance to go outside a little. The puppies LOVE it!!!! I thought a winter litter would be quite boring- but turns out the are just in time to go home with the Easter Bunny and training will be much easier now than if it was much colder......

BTW- Dillon has learned to go in and out of the doggie door....which reminds me that when I took them outside Petunia decided she would learn in 3 minutes to go up and down the ramp what it took Dillon 3 weeks to learn...Speaking of Petunia; a few days ago I woke up said good morning to the puppies and proceeded to let my dogs out on the deck for a little running.. as they all exited one by one behind the gate: First Dempsey, Daphne, Delilah, Dillon (always waits his turn or he will be scolded by the elders) then a little puppy not in the usual line up cane hurrying out. It was Petunia!!!!!!!!!! She had escaped from the puppy pen and squeezed through the gate to party with the big boys (and girls). I hope Carl and Margaret have prepared their home - bc she is a trip- always ready to go and with an oh so innocent smile.

It gets harder and harder to take an pics- but here are some good ones...

6 Weeks in the Garden

Happy St. Patricks Day to all!
Th corned beef is boiling and the dogs are all savoring the aroma!
Saturday I decided that Jasper needed a haircut and after I was through I decided that he was so good I should try another. To my surprise everyone was doing so good- so I groomed them all. They look so cocker now- and soooo big. I am starting to get that lump in my throught when I think that it is less than 2 weeks they will be leaving me. I don't think about it tooo much when I have 8 weeks to go- but it stars to hit me right about now. Tomorrow they will go to the doctor and get their shots- and everyone is really doing well. Sunday they celebrated my birthday with me! I felt so loved and recieved a ton of puppy kisses!

They are eating their food dry now and everyone seems to have adjusted well. Here are some of my favorite pictures of our big and little puppies this week.
Dillon fitting right in and making his way in fetch..

Princess Delilah sits back and refuses to get slobber on her!






Mamma & petunia play together...

Dangerous Mulch

Our friend Patty (Bacardi's Mom) sent us this e-mail and thought we should share:

Over the weekend the doting owner of two young lab mixes purchased Cocoa Mulch from Target to use in their garden. They loved the way it smelled and it was advertised to keep cats away from their garden. Their dog Calypso decided that the mulch smelled good enough to eat and devoured a large helping. She vomited a few times which was typical when she eats something new but wasn't acting lethargic in any way. The next day, Mom woke up and took Calypso out for her morning walk . Half way through the walk, she had a seizure and died instantly. Although the mulch had NO warnings printed on the label, upon further investigation on the company's website, this product is HIGHLY toxic to dogs and cats. Cocoa Mulch is manufactured by Hershey's, and they claim that 'It is true that studies have shown that 50% of the dogs that eat Cocoa Mulch can suffer physical harm to a variety of degrees (depending on each individual dog). However, 98% of all dogs won't eat it.' This Snopes site gives the following information:http://www.snopes.com/critters/crusader/cocoamulch.asp Cocoa Mulch, which is sold by Home Depot, Foreman's Garden Supply and other Garden supply stores, contains a lethal ingredient called ' Theobromine'. It is lethal to dogs and cats. It smells like chocolate and it really attracts dogs. They will ingest this stuff and die. Several deaths already occurred in the last 2-3 weeks. Theobromine is in all chocolate, especially dark or baker's chocolate which is toxic to dogs. Cocoa bean shells contain potentially toxic quantities of theobromine, a xanthine compound similar in effects to caffeine and theophylline. A dog that ingested a lethal quantity of garden mulch made from cacao bean shells developed severe convulsions and died 17 hours later. Analysis of the stomach contents and the ingested cacao bean shells revealed the presence of lethal amounts of theobromine. "

Puppy Day 3/8/09

We were so happy to have the opportunity to meet some of our families this week. It will be a day that will stand out in my mind for a long time. Jim told me that the driveway was going to be a problem for people without 4 wheel drive- because the mud was unbearable. But I did not believe him until Quince's family showed up with their shoes in hand and had to walk the 700 foot driveway without sinking. I was totally embarrassed and really felt terrible.... Lucky for me when they met quince- it seemed like they had forgotten about it...(or I was probably just trying to make myself feel better.) Thank you all for being great sports and thank you for the cookies!!! Lucky enough I was able to get in touch with the remaining families and escort them to and from the mailbox with my car. With all the chaos -everyone was unable to meet my dogs- and I was really sorry for that because I spent like 7 hours grooming them all up for the occasion. Hopefully they will look as good in 3 weeks when you will definately meet them... Here are some pictures from the day. Thank you all for the pictures that you sent and again- it was a PLEASURE to meet you. I now know for sure that the puppies will be going to wonderful homes where they will be well taken care of and completely spoiled. Hope you enjoyed the day as much as I did...(MIKE?>>LOL)

Running Around at 5 Weeks Old

On the RUN!!!!!!!!

What a week- it was like overnight they all turned into big puppies running and jumping all over the place. They spend most of the day upstairs hanging out with us and the other dogs. They are transported by laundry basket- and I do not know how much longer I will be able to make 1 trip---they are getting sooo heavy! Each day- 1 puppy gets to spend an entire evening after dinner int he den with us playing and exporing by themselves. This gives them a chance to have some alone time and get used to being away from their sisters and brothers. Another weeek and they will be really groomed. Some received little trims- but they really could use a full treatment.

They started eating solids with Rice cereal

and then a few days later their CANIDAE CHICKEN & RICE DOG FOOD; but it is soaked in water so it is not too hard for them.

They play hard and sleep alot.

Quince and Big Daddy Dempsey

Kaley at Attention

Here are some of my favorite pictures from the week...With all the ecxcitement of the puppy visit we did not really get a change for portraits this week- but I took some cute candids...

Rose gives an etiquette class .....and Dillon assists.

Rose sponge bathing the pups for Puppy Day!

This video is for Melissa (LOL)- she says her dogwas terrified of the vaccuum- so we made sure to adapt the puppies to vaccuuming - as you can see they remain sleeping and seem unfased- this is not thte first time I vaccuumed around them- so they are used to it..

This hilarious video (maybe it makes me a bad mom for thinking it is sooo funny) is Rose getting puppy ambushed in the morning. When they get to this age- all the puppies want to do is play- and it is a little overwhelming for a 4 year old to be ambushed by 7 puppies at once. I thought it was funny...but my poor baby Rose did not..lol...

Why did the chicken cross the road---Because QUINCE was determined to carry him there...sooo cute!

Jasper Learns to sit at 5 weeks old....

Morning line up....good morning!

Marjoram Gives a high Five...ps - that is not all poop on the bottom of the crate- they turned over their food bowl and all the food fell through the grate...just wanted you to know...I wish they pooped little rabbit pellets- BUT THEY DO NOT>

Lilly: Lilly gets the spotlight bc Melissa and family could not come to puppy day...only a few more weeks KIDS!!!!!