Though I know well that the third week of a pup’s life is marked by huge milestones. It’s like they turn into puppies (as most people think of puppies) overnight.
This litter was born on January 4, 2013! There are adorable, chocolate, fleece-coated, medium-sized Australian Labradoodles. There are 7 puppies in this litter-6 boys and 1 girl. They are all THREE WEEKS OLD NOW!
Here it is, Day 21 or Week 3, and just look at what’s happened:
- Walking has become the preferred method of ambulation (instead of crawling). Granted, it’s still a drunken-sailor walk, but they’re up on all fours!
- Elimination and voiding is now something they do on their own. Fiona is cleaning less; the humans are cleaning more.
- The pups get up from where they’re sleeping and waddle over to a different part of the whelping box to potty, then waddle back to the puppy pile. They’re instinctively pottying in places other than where they sleep.
- Their vision is becoming usable. When they “see” things now, they react appropriately with sniffs or puzzlement or growls or barks or pounces.
- They recognize each other (oh boy, litter mates!).
- They play with each other. Okay, so it doesn’t last very long, but they do “play” for short stretches.
- They wrassle. :O)
- They’re feeling secure with their humans, not just with Fiona.
- They can pant and lap.
- They have started to grow in (ouch! for Fiona) teeth! Their baby teeth are just poking through their gums, and just like human babies, this is uncomfortable for them. They’re beginning to feel the need to chew (look out world!)
- They can voluntarily sit, stand, roll over, scratch, paw, wag their tails, chew, investigate objects they “see” (still blurry, but visible), and are just beginning to climb.
- This morning, I noticed that the puppies might be responding to sound, so I suspect their ears may be starting to unseal.
- We will be giving the puppies their litter names this weeks also!
We are accepting deposits for this litter now!
Here are some pictures of the adorable puppies!
