they're here

As expected, Tuuli delivered her puppies throughout the wee small hours of the morning.  In the end, it was all over so quickly!  Usually the Stage 1 of labour, which involves much digging, ripping up of paper and deep, deep panting, can go on for 24 hours or more.  Or less.  In the past I have had at least a day (or night) of Stage 1 to prepare myself for the big event but Tuuli had other ideas. 

She has been sleeping upstairs in the whelping room for a week now but refused to settle without a crate so we set up a small crate in there for her.  Last night, for the first time I left the door open and the crate uncovered and when she was restless after going to bed, I put it down to her being unhappy with the open door. 

After a couple of hours she called for me, so I went and discovered she had vomited in the whelping box.  Now, that really should have been the clue that things were going to start happening.  After all, each litter of puppies I have had has been preceded by the unfortunate return of the bitch's dinner, whatever it may have been. 

Somehow, without the telltale hours of digging, I missed the hint.  I just cleaned up the mess and went back to bed.  I'm not sure if my eyes had even closed when Tuuli called me again.  This time she needed to go out, so out we went and she had a very hasty poo.  Another clue - every litter of puppies I've had has also been preceded by a hurried poo.  Basically, bitches tend to have a big old clearout - first stomach contents and, er, related things, and then the puppies.

This time I thought I had better stay with Tuuli, as she was obviously unsettled.  So I moved my air mattress, duvet and pillow in and settled down next to her.  I wasn't actually going to get to enjoy much in the way of comfort and relaxation, though, because within 2 hours the first puppy had arrived. 

In her nest of ripped up paper

All of my experiences of bitches giving birth have involved some amount of noise.  There are grunts, little yips during the strongest contractions, even a little howl from Keksi.  None of that prepared me for Tuuli.  During the births of the first two puppies she screeched.  Throughout the 2 or 3 contractions it took to squeeze the puppy out, she emitted a series of loud, panicked shrieks of pain and distress.  It was just awful.  Awful. 

But I couldn't do what I wanted to do (which was, frankly, to cover my ears and run away).  After all, I got her into this mess, so it was my job to see her safely out of it too.  My job during contractions is the same as any birthing partner - encouragement and cheerleading.  So as she squawked and cried, staring at me in confusion and fear, I soothed her and assured her that everything was going to be ok.

I could see that everything was ok - the puppy's head was at her vulva waiting to come out.  All normal.  Her distress was just pain and shock at what was unexpectedly happening to her.  And when I weighed the puppies I wasn't surprised she was in pain because they are all so big and strong.

After the first two were born, everything actually was ok and she grew calm and just knuckled down to the business of giving birth.

Similar to Neka's birthing style, Tuuli popped one out every 20 minutes, so it was all done and dusted very quickly indeed once they started coming.  And I was over the moon when she produced the hoped-for 5 puppies instead of the promised 4. 

So, we have 5 black, tan and white puppies, 2 bitches & 3 dogs.  One of each sex seems to have markings like their mother and one of the dogs has markings like his dad.  The other bitch resembles my Maija with white legs and tan face, and the other dog is a bit more of a mix of his parents with his dad's white socks and tan legs and his mum's tan face.

Individual puppy photos later.  In the meantime, everyone is doing well and I could never have guessed what a good mum Tuuli would turn out to be.

this & that

After the great Tuuli/Taito event, I had a few opportunities to see some other members of the family.

First, there was the Richmond Championship show where Finnish Lapphunds were judged by Valerie Foss.  Taito was 2nd and Kuura was 3rd Limit Dog and Kiittaa was Reserve Postgraduate Bitch.

 Kuura hanging out at the benches

 Kiittaa looking gorgeous - photo Blake Bower

Taito concentrating hard on standing - or on the sausage I'm

holding in front of him - photo Blake Bower

After that there was a brief overnight visit from Taika and Minna and then a visit for me with Neka and Tuuli to Jane and her fur-gang.  Somehow I managed to take no photos of either of these events.  The first one was a very short stay, and we spent most of our time getting everyone walked.  With the second, I spent most of my time trying to keep Neka from all the joyful and embarrassing activities she specialises in when visiting other people's houses, viz running upstairs to investigate the bedrooms, opening cupboards and rummaging around to see what she can find, sticking her head into the rubbish bin for the same reason, breaking and entering into the garage in search of the pussycat ensconced there.  And one or two other things.  Embarrassing, yes, but she does make me laugh.

And I've had some new photos of Bo enjoying her new hobby of haystack climbing.

Bo on a haystack - photo John Dobbie

Finally, the belly update.  We are now about 2-and-a-bit weeks from puppy arrival day.  Tuuli is starting to slow down on her walks - i.e. she doesn't do quite so much flat-out running.  And for a week now she has been on daily worming.

You can see she's a bit dubious about all this posing malarkey this morning.

The other newsworthy event in relation to all things puppy is that the new whelping box has arrived.  That width equals half of the floor dimensions.  I wasn't happy with the recommended "Border Collie" size as I remember how little space the litter of 9 had in a "medium-sized" whelping box by the time they were 3 and 4 weeks old.  So I went for the size up and it is going to be enormous!  Lots of space for mum to stretch out and excellent for growing puppies to exercise.  But it will take up approximately half of Jay's office in the back bedroom so he will be needing some kind of rope and pulley system to hoist himself from the doorway to his desk.  Rest assured I will have the camera at the ready.

 Neka is hoping the whelping box isn't for her benefit

Keksi update

Daniel reports that Keksi is enjoying her pregnancy, and is her normal happy, chilled self.  Here is the Lady of the Growing Belly relaxing ... in front of the fire?  Surely it wasn't lit.  At any rate, I'd say she's blooming.

She has been on slightly more food for a week now and has just started daily worming so that the puppies have the best possible start.  In a week she will come back down to us to settle in and have her puppies and she will stay until they are weaned.

I've been busy compiling all the stuff we'll be needing like the disposable whelping box, rubber gloves, round-tipped surgical scissors and clean towels.  And newspapers?  You may recall that I ran out of them last time and had to send out requests to my neighbours for emergency supplies.  This time I've got plenty.  I'm quite sure it will be plenty.  Well, plenty for a normal sized litter, anyway.  Daniel is threatening me with 11, though, based on the rapidly expanding girth.  Shhh - don't even think it!

Then there is the small matter of cleaning out the puppy room - a mammoth chore each and every time.

In the meantime, I've been told that Keksi performed another expert and impressive bin raid and that Daniel had a hard time retrieving all the bits of ripped up cardboard before she scooped them up.  Between the wood and the cardboard, I'm beginning to wonder if she's planning to have a litter of beaver pups. 

Not long now and we'll find out.  Tiny pointed tails?  Or tiny flat tails?

You get an idea of her changing shape from the photo above, but here is a belly update too.

progress

Yesterday was a lovely day at the beach. No, really. While the rest of the UK was labouring under snow like I didn't even know was possible in this country, south Devon remained blissfully frosty and flake-free. Lapphunds, needless to say, adore cold weather, and I've lost count of the number of cute-Lappy-playing-in-the-snow photos I've seen. But I've kept them secret from our dogs who would be very jealous if they knew what fun their relatives were having.

Shhh! - here's Lana (formerly Jonna/Jaana) being a meerdog and gazing longingly out at the winter wonderland beyond her window.





Oh, pleeeeeeease can't I go out and play in the snow?














So to make up for what they are missing out on, we took advantage of a conveniently timed low tide for a quick run on the beach before work.

Keksi has mere days - nay, hours! - left and so has officially passed the "running" stage and will now even take a pass on "playing". "Sitting" is her favorite activity these days (after eating, obviously).















Keskiyo playing his favorite game: chasing stuff thrown into the water











Maija chilling out waiting for the 'photo' bit of the walk to be over with











And chilling a bit too much when she gets caught out - oops!







Today will be stuffed full of chores as I scramble to get ready for the newcomers. It's been a hectic couple of weeks; I can and do work a great deal from home, but much of my work can only be done at work, so I've been trying to get ahead for when I can't leave the puppies.

Progress to date: precious little

Jay once again inherited the job of clearing out the puppy room and although I was too embarrassed to post a photo like I did last time, it started out looking remarkably the same. So today the whelping box is in place and... well, that's about it. As for where all the stuff from the puppy room went, let's just say my lounge looks like a junk room exploded in it. And there's a reason for that: a junk room exploded in it.

Progress to date: a little

I've been shamefully slow in compiling the rest of the puppy whelping stuff. I have my "puppy kit" box that contains the latex gloves, syringes, thermometer, etc. But I haven't yet located the hot water bottle, set up my holding box or sterilised all the necessaries. I have purchased new tiny nail clippers for the puppies' new tiny nails, but I can't quite remember where I've put them. Even more serious, I haven't yet laundered all the dog towels in readiness.

What I have done, though, is collected enough newspaper. Or, perhaps I should say that Jay's parents have collected enough. They've been brilliant and now we have enough newspaper for 2 litters. Or one litter of 9 (I remember it well, how much newspaper we went through that time.)




We have 8 or 10 stacks like this one. Isn't it good to see real recycling in action.








Progress to date: newspaper fully loaded & good to go!

Where visitors to the last litter were not welcome to cross the threshold until they had crossed my palm with newsprint, I am pleased to say that we will subject our visitors to nothing more intrusive than a full pocket and bag search as they leave (to ensure we are left with the full complement of puppies after the visitors have gone).

random photos

Pretty Taika today with her HUGE babies - just look how they've grown!



















You can see just how much bigger Dino is than 2-Tone, but they are clearly very close nonetheless:

















After sorting out the puppies, Taika wastes no time in completely trashing the newspaper stash and then flaking out to enjoy a job well done:

we have puppies

Yesterday was a tough day.  The book says that "the most skilled part of whelping is deciding how long it is safe ... before asking veterinary assistance and assessing whether the bitch is in trouble or if she is just having a rest."  Well, the sum total of my experience of whelping puppies was gleaned during 2 litters of puppies prior to this one.  Kittens don't count.  So my experience was severely restricted to what I've read, what other, more experienced people have told me, and what I have witnessed with Neka.  Cue much wondering, weighing up alternatives, phoning for backup verbal support, etc.

Taika & I had 2 sleepness nights together on Fri & Sat, and all day Saturday I was completely convinced she would have her puppies that night.  She kept moving in and out of Stage 1.  By 'Stage 1' I mean heavy panting, restlessness, digging and shredding paper.  This is the stage during which the puppies are getting ready for action.  When the bitch is lying on her side, you can even see the puppies moving.  So there was plenty of all this starting Friday night and continuing through Saturday and then Saturday night.  Here she is happy as a clam in her box doing her digging and panting.

I wasn't too worried at this point, because this stage can come and go for a few days, really.  And then at about 4 am on Sunday, Taika stopped panting and settled down.  I braced myself for the contractions to begin signalling the beginning of labour & arrival of the first puppy.  Instead, Taika went to sleep.  Huh.  So I did too.

Sunday morning she was acting as if she had no intentions of giving birth for another week or so.  She had her breakfast then asked to go out so we had a little stroll down the park.  She did all her business, including 2 unusually large poos then dragged me back into the house and straight upstairs.  Within an hour the first tentative contractions started.

At noon, following a few strong contractions, her 'waters broke' (for want of a better term) and she threw up her breakfast.  5 minutes after that there was another rush of fluid and the strong contractions continued regularly.  Based on my experience with Neka, and what the books say, I was expecting a puppy before 1pm.  Nothing.  Then I was expecting the first puppy by 2 pm.  At 1:30 Taika threw up again.  I got my surgical gloves and Vaseline out and had a little root around but couldn't feel anything.  And, frankly, I was nervous of sticking my fingers too far inside since I didn't really know what I was doing!  The thing is, if you can gently grasp a puppy and very slightly shift its position during a contraction, that might be all that is required to get things moving.  But I couldn't feel anything.  I called Toni who has a wealth of experience and has always been on hand with great advice during each of my whelping experiences.

At 1:50 I called the vet and while waiting for him to return my call, what appeared to be a puppy head presented itself at Taika' vulva.  Spoke to the vet, we agreed if the head was there everything would probably go normally from now on.  When there was still no progress after a couple more contractions, I got busy with my Vaseline again but there was actually no puppy in reach - just the bag, unbroken and sticking out like a balloon.  At 2:45, almost 3 hours after the start of labour, I called the vet and told him we were on our way in.  We arrived there at 3:10 pm with Taika no further along and with our hot water bottle box to collect born puppies.

I won't even go into the stress of getting Taika out of the box, down the stairs, into and out of the car.  She's heavy.

After an hour of observation, the vet decided the puppy wasn't moving further down the birth canal in spite of Taika's strong contractions and the fact that it didn't feel like a particularly big puppy, so at 4pm Taika went off for a Caesarian section.  Jay & I stood by in the recovery room and resusitated the puppies as the nurse passed them through.

So, we made it.  Taika & puppies were back home by 6 pm and while the babies settled down for a feed, Taika caught up on some much-needed sleep.















C-section births are notorious because the bitch can reject her puppies, since she has no idea where on earth they came from and does not have the experience of ripping the sacs, stimulating them to breathe & cry, etc.  So, while Taika is not exactly being the absolute best mum ever just yet, she's doing a great job.  At first she did glare at the puppies as if to say "What the %&£!  Last thing I remember I was trying to have a big old poo, the next thing I know my box is full of these strange wiggling, squeaking things that smell funny."  I still can't quite convince her she has to clean them and to lick them to stimulate expulsion of waste, but all in all it's going well.  She's happy to let them nurse, she rushes back to them when she's been out for a wee, and she hasn't tried to kill them - well, not on purpose anyway.  Phew!

And even Neka, amazingly good mum that she turned out to be, chucked her first 2 puppies out of the box when they were born, one of which was Taika herself.

Here is Taika today, much brighter, with the babies gathered around.


















Tomorrow individual pics, birth weights and stuff.  Oh, and how Neka came to the rescue when Taika lay on the puppies and squished them.

mama has arrived

I collected Taika yesterday and brought her to Devon and she settled right in. Unfortunately Keskiyo thinks she's just about ready to be mated and Maija thinks she is muscling in and trying to take over the position of top dog. However, Keskiyo will calm down when the puppies arrive and Taika moves completely upstairs. At the moment she is only going up to her whelping room to sleep. As for Maija, a couple of walks together will sort out her nose joint.

As you can see, the whelping room has improved enormously. All that's missing now is a bit more cardboard and newspaper for the floor.






And here is Taika showing off her belly. It looks remarkably small here, although if you double click to get a closeup view, you can see her teats which appear fit for function & ready to go. In the second photo you get a better sense of just how chunky she is.

puppy shopping 1

Or should I say, shopping for puppies? No, that's not it either. Shopping for puppy things. That's it!

Last night I wrote a loooong email about the first few essentials one needs when thinking about bringing one's puppy home. This is the same info blog-style.

Crates If you're planning to show your Lappy, then the size crate you need for shows is approx 31ins x 21ins x 24in because that is the size that will fit on the benches. At many shows that won't matter because you can set up your crate in lots of different places, but it's best to stick to that size for 2 main reasons:

1. You have no choice but to set up on the bench at Crufts, and there's no spare room so it's gotta fit.
2. Metal crates are heavy to carry around & who wants to carry more than necessary.

When your dog has grown out of the chewing-through-everything stage (somewhere around 2 years, I find), then it's safe to graduate to a cloth crate which is MUCH easier to carry around. Here's a selection for example. There are a lot of different types with various features & at one time or another I've tried all the ones illustrated. My favorite is the Croft Classic. Like most of them, it has a carrying bag with handy outside pockets. It also comes with metal pegs for pinning the crate to the ground in case of high wind. It has a lightweight metal frame inside which means it's strong enough to put stuff on top, and it has "blinds" over the windows. An excellent product all round.

The 31-inch metal crate can also double as a car crate if you don't want to go down the route of those designed especially for cars or the very desirable and very expensive made-to-measure dog guard.

At home, however, you will need something bigger than the 31-inch size. That one will be ok for a few weeks, but by the time a puppy is 5 or 6 months old they will need more space if spending nights in there and time when you're out. For a home crate, the bigger the better, once puppy is fully grown. I would say certainly no smaller than 94 x 63 x 69cm (37 x 25 x 27in), especially for a male. This Croft one is the sort of minimum size.

Croft are good quality but quite expensive. In my experience you don't really need a great quality metal crate. They all last & last and they don't usually fall apart - although you might need to be careful with cheaper ones if you have a bouncy puppy who jumps at the sides when excited. The more sturdy they are, the heavier and the more expensive, but I would always go for mid-price rather than the most expensive. I would also say that whichever crate, be sure it has a plastic tray in the bottom. Some come with metal trays (very heavy & likely to rust) and some come with no tray at all.

Here's another good site for crates, and they also do a good fabric crate.


* * * *

This weekend Taika moves in. I'm still working on Jay & the whelping room.

shopping

No, not for clothes and makeup, alas.

Where the 30-ish days post-mating always grind by in an infuriatingly leisurely manner while everyone plays the is-she-isn't-she game, the 30-ish days pre-whelping zip by quite smartly. In the meantime, I've been procrastinating over clearing out and preparing the whelping room - otherwise known as the back bedroom, or more frequently, the junk room. But I've decided it's best to delegate that job to Jay.

Before you judge me too harshly, consider the fact that I don't even know the names of some of the things in there, let alone what they're for or where a likely alternative good home would be for them. (Um, bin?)

Witness:


Now what am I going to do with all that xmas wrapping paper? And I don't foresee much call for an electric fan anytime soon. Does that fan even work?

No, that pile of abandoned shoes is not mine, as it happens.

And those little electronic thingies? No idea.



Apart from that job, there's all the stuff that needs money thrown at it, and now, with just over 3 weeks left to go, there's no time to waste. So, today I've ordered the whelping box. I never know which size to get. The first year I ordered the one recommended for Border Collie size dogs. It was exceedingly spacious and is fitted with 2 large washable mats (with 2 extra for washing & swapping) and side rails to provide a little escape channel for the puppies to stop them getting squashed under their mum against the walls.

The second year I ordered what I thought was the same size but got a slightly smaller version. Still plenty of space for Neka & her brood of 9 but the rails and mats didn't fit - 1 mat was too small but 2 were too large. So I ordered new mats and Jay made the rails fit. Well, they still didn't fit, as such, but they accomplished their purpose nonetheless.

This year I didn't know whether to buy the larger or smaller size. In the end I opted for the smaller so that I'd have only one mat to wash at a time instead of 2. I guess I should also have ordered new rails, but I'm sure Jay will want to participate in some small way in the setting up again this time around. I'm hoping the rails will miraculously appear when some of the stuff starts moving out of the room. Perhaps they're hiding under the wrapping paper.

Other jobs to do / things to buy:

Puppy food for Taika, starting next week
Wormer for Taika & puppies, ditto
Puppy-holding contraption for the postage scales
Holding box (bigger than last year's!)
Lactol milk
Find hot water bottle
Clean & disinfect all the just-in-case tools - thermometer, scissors, tiny nursing bottles, syringes
New batteries for clock/room thermometer combo
Chicken soup for new mum

And if you're one of the people who is planning to be visiting the puppies when they're 4 weeks old, then start saving your newspapers now. It is no exaggeration to say that I will not be able to get my hands on enough newspaper when the puppies arrive. So, save your own and if you can also get all the papers from your friends and neighbours, then so much the better. No one will be given entrance without a newspaper offering.

It's not much to ask for the chance of cuddles with 1-month-old pups, really.