1 week old

The pups were 1 week old today.  All have very nearly doubled their weight.  Several are thinking about walking--they are trying to get up.  It won't be long. They think it is great fun to crawl under Sadie's elbows in order to get to the milk bar. Trim is coming in nicely.

Red girl says "Got Milk?"

Therapy visit

I got a call from a friend this evening.  She wanted to tell me that the pups had done a therapy visit today. She works in a school in the Denver area.  She had the live stream going on her desktop computer  (she says watching the puppies helps her get through the day.)  She spied a teacher walking down the hallway toward her office.  With the teacher were 4 deaf children.  She asked the teacher if she would like to take her students on a virtual tour.  The kids came in and had a great time watching the puppies.  The pups 'passsed' this visit with flying colors.

The pups are also being viewed from 'down under' as a friend of mine has friends in Australia.  We have friends in Holland who are also watching.  These pups are really getting around--and they aren't even a week old yet!

nail day

Today the puppies all had their first nail clipping.  All were very cooperative!  Sure was nice. If you look at the picture of the 2 pups at the bottom, you can see why I had to do nails today--they were getting very long. They are now nice and short. Their dew claw sites all look good.  We are doing the Early Neurological Stimulation exercises (also known as "Developing High Achievers").  We began these exercises on the 3rd day of life and will continue them through day 16.  These exercises were developed and researched by Carman L. Battaglia, PhD.  You can read about these exercises at http://www.boomerangkennels.com/NeuroStim.pdf  or Google Early Stimulation Exercises by Carmen L. Battagliz PhD.  I think  you will the informmation interesting.  If you ware watching the live stream, you will notice the pups are really enjoying the Lectro Kennel.  It is like a heating pad, but  has a solid surface (it is covered with green polar tech.)

Dew Claws

Today the pups went to the Vet to have their dew claws removed.  They were very good puppies.  Everyone at the clinic who saw them thought they were very cute--of course!  They were tired after that ordeal, so slept all the way home--nice for me.  Once home they were sure they hadn't eaten for days!  They are so much fun to watch.  The Vet who did their dew claws was great and so gentle with them as was the tech who was holding them.  I told her she could come hold them when I had to do nails

First visitor

Auntie Cora, our friend and one of the whelping partners, was our first puppy visitor today.  Sadie was happy to see her and to show off her pups as well as her expertise in nursing pups.  These pups will have lots of visitors before they leave our home.

Dad Slade

Dad Slade has been in shock since he heard the news that he and Sadie have 10 pups.  He's been studying his check book and trying to do the math to see what the puppy support checks are going to do to his bank account.  Evidently it was just too much for him to take--I think he's fainted!!

Live puppy web stream

Go to http://www.ustream.tv/.
In the upper right hand search box, type in 'Monumental" (no quotes), hit enter, and click on the tkrugg stream (usually the first one.  You will see an ad first--have to wait that out.
BJ

Pups have arrived!

The pups were whelped starting yesterday afternoon at 1:38.  We have 10 very active puppies. (1 was stillborn)  There are 3 boys and 7 girls (3 of the girls have patches--2  eye patches-(1 liver, 1 black), 1 black ear)  We are not yet sure about all the colors--but will be able to tell livers from blacks in a few days--especially when I recover and can see straight.. All have made substantial gains in weight in less than 24 hours.  They are nursing constantly--well they do take a bit of a rest now and then. Not one needs any help in finding the food source.  Sadie was exhausted after whelping, but she is dong well today.  She does like to take a good nap when they are nursing.  These pups are active, and very vocal--good signs.  All 10 are in the group picture-however a couple may be hard to see as they do pile on top of on another.  We  think Sadie and Slade did good work!!

Reaction of Slade's sister,Scandal, and Uncle Leroy

“Did ya hear the latest? Sadie is having 11 or 12 puppies!! HAHAHAHAHA! Slade will be SO broke. He thinks he’s such a stud muffin!”

Sadie's x-ray results

Sadie told me when we were in NC that she was really 'High on a Rockstar'.  Hmmmm--I thought she just really liked Slade (BISS CH ROCKSTAR'S RECONSIDER ME ROM TDInc).  Evidently Sadie and Slade did get along very well, and the result is that the x-ray today showed that Sadie has 11 maybe 12 puppies.  So much for my guess of 7 or 8! Now I'm anxious to see the end result.  Sadie seems to be in no hurry to whelp as she is resting comfortably, eating well, and still trotting around after Mackie and Jordi, although a bit slower than a few days ago.  I'm also curious about Slade's reaction to hearing the news.  Stay tuned--I'm sure he'll have a comment or two.

Sadie at 8 weeks+

The pups are on the move!  We can feel and hear them.  They are quite busy these days.  Sadie is still feeling great. She does spend quite a lot of time on the tile floors as they are very cool.  Photos are from today.  Nice that she can rest her tummy on the table when she sits.  X-rays will be taken tomorrow morning.  We are hoping we will be able to get a good count.  Will post when we get back from the Vets'. Anyone want to change their guess as to how many or which day?  I'm thinking 7 or 8 on Tues (maybe Wed.).  I know-I should settle on one day and one number. Sadie just says "a bunch! And they are heavy."  It will also be interesting to see how much weight she has gained.  I can still feel ribs--so most of her weight is caused by the pups and liquids.  Feels like I'm lifting an extra 20 pounds when I help her get up on the table.  She still puts her front feet on it, then I lift her from behind.

Sadie loves nosework

On Saturday I met with a couple friends to do some nosework with our dogs. This particulr activity is new to my guys, but being tracking dogs, they immediately took to this game. We placed 14 boxes outside; one of them has a very small piece of chicken in it. The dogs need to find and indicate that box. The pictures show Sadie coming in the gate (think she is excited?), then searching, and finding that piece of chicken. I also give her a jackpot once she indicates the right box. This is really fun. I do plan to do some of this work with the puppies.

7 weeks and still growing!

Here is Sadie at 7 weeks give or take a couple days.  She is still feeling great even though her body has had a major expansion since last week!  We are getting anxious to see what Sadie and Slade will produce.  We have high expections for these puppies. They have some big pawsteps to follow for the Dals in their pedigree and several of their other relatives have some pretty impressive accomplishments: multiple BIS & BISS, many titles in Agility (including a MACH),Tracking (including Champion Trackers), Obedience, Rally obedience, and therapy certifications.  These pups have behind them outstanding Dalmatians from the US, Holland, and Norway.  You can see the puppy pedigree at:

http://home.comcast.net/~b.j.rugg/index_files/Page533.htm.

Sadie loves the feel of cool tiles almost as much as she enjoys eating several small meals each day.

Sadie is at 6 weeks today. She is feeling great although she did get Tana up 3 times last night. Seems as though she had gone upstairs sometime yesterday to visit with Friday, the cat. Friday 'invited' Sadie to have a little snack with her. Sadie got into a bag of cat food and had more than a snack. The cat food was way too rich for her system, thus the need to go out several times during the night. She is feeling great today, but still wants to pay Friday another visit for afternoon snacks. The cat food has been locked up. We've included photos from today. Friends here think she looks huge. I think she looks just fine.

Watch for more photos coming soon

Sadie is blossoming as the puppies are really beginning to grow.  More photos of her will be posted Thurs., Aug. 5.

Monumental pups on the way

On June 22-24 Sadie was bred to BISS CH Rockstar's Reconsider Me TDInc.  Puppies are on the way-confirmed by an ultrasound.  Pups are due on Aug. 25-26.  Photo above: Sadie and Slade.