From leeches to vampires

The puppies are growing, oh my how they are growing! Weights are 3 - 4 X birth-weight, and watching them drain Tigress dry is something to behold. She enters the whelping box fully "bagged up" (a horse term for full udders), and exits an hour or so later trim and svelte, cute waist and proper tuck-up restored. The puppies' appetites are so voracious they remind me of vampires, though the life-giving body fluid is puppy-appropriate. Tigress's appetite is correspondingly voracious; I couldn't calculate the number of calories required to support 800-1,000 grams of puppy-weight increase every day.

Today, 11 days old, eyes are opening. So pardon the fewer photos, but the use of flash isn't allowed for several days.

What is allowed, in spades, is visitors. The puppies have met 11 people so far, men and women, ranging in age from 19 years to early 70's. I can't begin to imagine how many smells they've encountered, as everyone I know has dogs or horses or both. Some basic sanitation precautions are strictly enforced (shoes stay outside, anti-microbial soap, a towel over the lap) and volia! socialization in spades. Anthony and I are routinely around clients' dogs, and have perfected the strip-in-the-garage-mad-dash-to-the-shower relay; cooties just aren't allowed into the house. Thankfully we have no neighbors to terrorize with our streaking.

Tigress also has a routine - beginning with proper greeting and fawning over her before her offspring can be handled:

Sarah pays respects to mama Tigress for raising such excellent babies.

Doug and Sarah cuddle Dulce and Chip.









Becky and Diana will be regulars, they come by our ranchero every couple of weeks:

As the puppies eyes open, seeing people with hats will be as normal as those without.

Vanna (L) and Ripple (R)

Throughout, Tigress keeps a polite eye on everyone.










Our other dogs quite got a nice compliment this week, as some visitors want to meet the other adult borzoi we have. "Your dogs are always so friendly and well-behaved!" While I may not always agree, I do greatly appreciate the compliment. It is worrisome however to think that not all borzoi - indeed, not all dogs! - can be described that way. Socialization must start as early as possible and continue for life, and I think that is especially true for a large and powerful predator. We live in what can accurately be described as "the boonies" and work hard to ensure our puppies meet a huge number of people and are exposed to as many things as possible while they are young and impressionable. Actually, work is the wrong word... we make it a form of play!

Meanwhile the puppies just know what is normal: plenty of love and attention from their mother and a parade of kind people, with lots of smells and tender cuddles. They open their eyes and find their legs and are entirely too much fun to watch.

Tigress carefully cleans her babies and tends to their needs.

Followed by a very long night

The puppies are five days old, and I have resumed breathing.

Call me paranoid - everybody does - I just didn't want to jinx anything. Puppies are at their most vulnerable during the first five days after whelping; tempting fate goes against my nature. So a self imposed information embargo was much more "no news is good news" and not so much "the rapture came and took us." Not that I am rapture-eligible material, mind you... even my mother knows that.

Tigress's temperature was noticeably lower for the 48 hrs. before she went into labor, though it never took a 2* plunge. Or rather, I didn't measure it when it took a big drop. Regardless, there was no question whelping was imminent; her appetite vanished, her personality changed. Labor started shortly before midnight Thursday, and the first puppy appeared at a quarter past. By 4 a.m. we had seven puppies - they came so fast and furious I was grateful to have my husband's help taking notes (sex, color, weight, Biotinus score) and replacing pads in the whelping box before POP! here was the next one. After a short break the last two arrived (x-ray count of 9 was correct); one was stillborn.

So we have eight puppies, five in shades of black&tan/black&brindle. Thankfully their markings are enough different I can keep them straight; Tigress brooked no discussion of neck bands. Three are uniquely colored, so easy to keep sorted out.

Meet the Dva "deadly weapons" litter:

on Monday

Like all changes, a new routine quickly emerges. First thing in the mornings, Tigress takes a trip outside to her private yard. While she's out I weigh each puppy and move it to a "hot box" (basically a plastic sweater box with a crate pad over the warming disc), remove the bedding, sanitize the whelping box, scrub out her water bowl, and prepare her breakfast.

Meals are served three times a day, consisting of high-quality kibble mixed with a rotating assortment of goodies: canned tripe, boiled egg, sliced roll, cottage cheese, yogurt, or ice cream. Once a day she gets salmon oil and primrose oil. Fresh water and a pail of kibble are always out - feeding eight and hanging on to some body condition of her own will require countless calories over the next month.

Tigress shows her sense of humor is intact.

Then I bring Tigress in from her morning constitutional, and take her temperature. She does a "drive by" the hot box to count her brood and dives into her breakfast. When she's eaten her fill and goes to her whelping box, I give her two puppies: whichever have gained the least amount of weight in the last 24 hrs. They get a 10-minute head start on their siblings, then the rest go in. When the puppies decide it's time for a nosh, the swarm is a cross between a rugby scrum and bar fight - a no holds barred rush with competition over nipples barely more civilized than a riot. For critters that can't see or hear, they are a noisy and ruthless bunch, climbing over and knocking into each, forcing each other off teats, jockeying for position. This competition is normal puppy behavior and essential for muscle and neurological development. In short order all eight are installed at the milk bar, all happy grunting noises and plump tummies.

Busy nursing... and sometimes this is a good sleeping position, too.

Tigress gets trips outside every few hours, puppies are handled regularly and have already met 6 people (half of them men!). Neuro stimulation exercises started on Day 3 and are in the early afternoon (when Tigress gets lunch and another temperature check); much of the day I spend either watching from my computer desk (my foot is resting on the edge of the whelping box at this moment) or sitting in the box cuddling puppies. At night I have been sleeping on the cot next to the whelping box, but the last two nights Tigress hasn't needed to go out so I will be moving back to the bedroom tonight. (I can really endorse this cot - it's very comfortable and I've had no trouble with my back!) The whelping box gets another bedding change while Tigress has dinner. Lots 'o laundry!

Tomorrow they get their nails trimmed for the first time... and we'll try and figure out litter names. In the meantime, a few pictures to keep you amused.

I think we're gonna need a bigger box soon.

Cuddling with Mama

The Longest Day

Today is day 63.

Well, it is if you count from presumed ovulation, which Py seems to have a preference for as a breeding date. And that means the puppies should arrive today.

But Tigress sez, not yet.

I'm not allowed to panic until sixty-three days after that last tie (which will be Saturday), as long as everything continues in a boring fashion. Which it is. Interesting, but boring.

But I'm an Olympic-class worry wart. Yesterday she went a bit off her feed, and her temperature took a dip. This morning, it was back to normal. I'm anticipating seeing a huge drop... hasn't happened yet. She's nesting, burying food, digging, and is absurdly clingy. In a great mood, taking naps, and generally acting like I'm a nut. Except, last night she tried to climb on my cot with me, so the door to the whelping box went up to keep her confined.

Not that either one of us slept, oh no. Her restlessness had me turning on the light and checking on her every few minutes (or so it seemed). By the time the alarm went off, I'd been up for an hour.

Our routine for a couple of weeks now has included a daily walk. This morning there was no reason to do it differently, so out we went. Just the two of us - and Mr. Winter.

mmmmm - snow is delicious!

Yes, snow on May 19th. Crazy, eh?

On the other hand, it's pretty great weather if you're a borzoi.

Tigress out for a stroll, enjoying the unseasonable weather.

Silly bitch has no respect for my feelings, at all. I'm a wreck, she wants to party.

Silly human, relax already!! Let's have a snowball fight.

Day 58

Five days to go, give or take, until whelping. Two days to the x-ray for a puppy count.

So. Time to start the pool...

Take a guess at:
1 - day/time of first puppy to whelp
2 - day/time of last puppy to whelp
3 - number of puppies
4 - division of sexes
5 - bonus points for division of colors
6 - double-bonus points for division of white markings

Put your guess in Comments or just send me an e-mail.

So we're all more or less on the same playing field, here's some detail.

A - Tigress's first litter had 8 puppies in it. See photo from this afternoon and see if the visual helps you with your guess:

It's in the mid 60's but the cool tile is her choice for napping.

B - Sex is determined by the sperm; Py's first litter had 2 bitches and 3 dogs (one stillborn).

C - For a crash course in borzoi color inheritance, click here. The Dva litter is Py bred to Tigress. Py is a self-gold, carries black&tan. He may be a double-chinchilla. Both Py's parents carried white spotting; his sire an IM red brindle, his dam a self red brindle. Tigress is an irish marked black&tan with brindle; she has to carry spotting and probably carries chinchilla. Click to see her sire and dam's coloring. Both Py and Tigress are ticked.


I will post the x-ray picture when I get it, then we can all have fun trying to count skulls and spines and see what we come up with!

In the meantime, Tigress would like more bon-bons served, so I have to go...

Countdown....

Two weeks from today, give or take, I hope to be welcoming a much-anticipated litter of puppies. Mama-in-waiting, Tigress, spends most of her time dreaming of bon-bon's served to her in the whelping box. She eats three meals a day now, and has to be cajoled into a daily walk.

Tigress breaks in the whelping box, earlier this week.

Papa-to-be is, no surprise, pretty oblivious to the upcoming madness. His routine continues as usual, which on Thursdays means visiting "his" kids. Today was all about reading... I am so lucky to just sit back and watch the magic as a child too shy to read in front of people boldly sounds out difficult words for Mr. Py.

Mr. Py gives his full attention.

I blogged about our litter last year, and plan to for this litter as well. So everyone please keep your fingers crossed that all goes well for Tigress and her babies, I'll keep you posted.
   

On the road again

Not traveling; road work.

Today was day-two for Tigress to have a little roadwork. Yesterday I took Py out with her, this morning Gin got her crack at it. Gin is 20 months old, she took to roadwork like a trotter to the track.

Yesterday I was sorry I didn't have a camera with me, as there were some lovely little birds flitting from fencepost to fencepost and an assortment of summer flowers in bloom. Today I took the camera but it's much cooler (mid 50's) and overcast, so no birds.

But here are some flowers for your viewing pleasure:

When I was little, we called this a "zuni squash". It's correct name will be added later (I can not find it in my book to save my life) but the amazing thing about them is that the edible part is the flowers.
Gorgeous jewelry pieces are named in honor of this flower.


These enormous plants spread 20' or more along the ground; I've seen them climbing fences and choking cholla plants.

Here's the fruit part:

Note how it forms between the base of the flower and the stem, allowing the removal (and consumption) of the flower without damaging the gourd. MMMMMMMMM, delicious.

Speaking of cholla... they are now blooming at our elevation. Anywhere up to 7' or taller, sometimes an entire field of these - acres and acres - bloom simultaneously. Spectacular.



And here are some other little flowers: sadly I don't know what any of them are, but they do dress up the ditches on the side of the road:


And finally, even though it is off-topic, last night's sunset was so spectacular I must share:


This view is why I will never live anywhere else.

Where'd they go?

The prickly pear have started to bloom; as promised here's a picture of one in bloom: This was taken early in the morning, after the sun has hit but before the blooms fully opened. They are a pale cream inside, shown here is the peachy reverse of the petals.





I've been taking twice-daily walks around the entire property with the visiting Tigress, and have noticed a couple of things. One, the cholla are of two minds: growing new parts and fixin' to bloom:

new growth; very dark and soft.

pending blooms; note the new growth is curving away from the buds.

The other is that there is no sign of rabbits of any kind at all anywhere. "Sign" in OFC parlance means fresh poop (also known as borzoi M&M's), urine stains, or nibbled cactus. All the cactus I have inspected are free of teeth marks. And the only rabbit I've seen was the remnants the Py and Gin shared several weeks ago (and jack or cottontail I could not tell) - all the bunnies seemed to have moved on to less hostile pastures. I do hope they have simply moved on, and are not actually diminished in population numbers. Last season was a tough one, hare were hard to find.

It has been my hope that our relatively mild winter and decent snowfall, combined with the early spring rains, would provide ample fodder for the rabbits to have productive bunny-making spring. As Elmer Fudd said, be wery wery quiet...