First Ladies, Grace and Ellie

We are going to call these two sweet gals Grace and Ellie. We’ve been calling them Peanut and Pudgy or Half-pint and Whole Milk. lol. I know–isn’t that terrible!? We better get the temporary litter names in use.

So, Grace is officially a week old, now. She was born Saturday night at 9:00 pm. She weighed 12.2 ounces at birth and tonight weighs 1lb., 7 oz. She is doing fantastic. She is a very aggressive eater for sure!  Grace is on the upper end of a larger male pup for Shay’s previous litters, although this litter is to a different sire.

Ellie was born via c-section Monday morning–about 36 hours after Grace. (Shay’s labor stopped completely after Grace was born Saturday night and she was not showing any distress whatsoever. No contractions, no pushing, no blood, no abnormal discharge. Everyone thought she was just done–no more pups (except me). Feathering did not produce contractions again and there was no pup “stuck” in the birth canal. Finally, early Monday morning one of the vets called me back and agreed to see Shay. An x-ray showed more pups, none in the birth canal but one sideways, blocking it. You know the rest of the story…) Ellie weighed a very healthy 10.2 ounces (very in-line for Shay’s previous litters) when I weighed her Monday evening and is gaining steadily now, after losing quite a bit the first two days. She now weighs 11.2 ounces–which is only 1 ounce more than she was at birth, but is 2 ounces more than her lowest weight Wednesday. She is gaining, but I would like to see her gaining more than that and be more in-line with Grace’s gain! I try to put Ellie on a teat whenever I can just to be sure she is getting enough. I’ve tried some bottle feeding, but Ellie would have no part of that nasty stuff! A call to the vet yesterday afternoon says she’s fine and that c-section babies can just take a little longer to get going, but then they quickly catch up and we won’t be able to tell any difference within a few weeks. I am admittedly out of my element with a c-section, but think Ellie should be gaining much more weight–she is nursing though, so I guess we will see.

Both are doing well in stimulation exercises (Super Dog program) and their are no differences in reactions to stimulation. Neither are fussy pups at all–I hardly hear a peep from them–a good indication that the girls are very content. But also very different from a box full of 8 or 10 puppies!  We have an appointment at the vet this week to get Shay’s stitches taken out and the pups will receive a good going-over at the same time.

Shay is doing fantastic. She is eating somewhat better, but is being very picky about what she will eat. She never is like this, but I’m sure she is being gentle on her system. She is producing milk just fine for two pups. Sometimes she seems quite uncomfortable if the pups get their little nails near her incision and stitches. I have to keep those very sharp nails trimmed constantly–you can’t believe how much the nails grow everyday!

Also, if possible this week or early next, I am going to try to have a sonogram done on Santana to confirm her pregnancy. I’m not sure I will be able to do it, but I am hoping and striving to make that happen. I feel quite certain she is pregnant, but being her first litter and having so many folks waiting on pups, I want to have a confirmation as soon as possible for them.

I really want to thank everyone for the kind notes of support–it has really helped! I had a very invigorating brisk walk in the frigid temperatures this morning in the company of one of my daughters–it felt fantastic! Then, even though I was supposed to be working, I just had to spend some time with my “boys” in the kennels. They heal my soul–just brushing them, trimming nails, cleaning and repacking the kennels and boxes full of new straw and hanging out with them getting lots of kisses. They look fantastic and are very happy boys (I hate that they have to be outside, but they love it–really, I’ve never seen them happier or healthier. When let out to run, or even to come inside for a visit, they go straight back to their kennels on their own–I rarely have to tell them to kennel. Still, I hope I can someday remodel a huge barn and they can all live inside! I have the most amazing plan for this barn/house I dream of all the time.) I absolutely adore these “men” in my life! So majestic, take your breath away handsome and stylish, powerful, and athletic, and gentle kisses too! Ahhhh…. a girl’s dream, isn’t it? 🙂  Oh–and not to slight my adoration for the girls, but I needed some special quality time with the boys as I feel I have neglected them being so rushed with the chores for a week! I love these dogs and can’t imagine life without all my Llews.

That’s all for tonight folks. I’ll get back to some good photos and articles soon.