...and Puppy Dog Tails

This is the cutest line up of tails. As they nurse their tails go up and you can hear the gulping while the tails jiggle. Well, today was nail cutting day again. That is 128 little nails to cut. We are nearing our weight doubling time and 2 have already reached that goal this morning. One was little Leprechaun! Other news - this is the "O" litter.

Juile and Cheeto Day 6

Julie gave Cheeto a good-by kiss as she left to return to NYC. She flew in just to see Cheeto and the pups. Julie is a new field trainer for Paws in NYC and hopes to raise one of these pups. She is holding "Leprechaun" the littlest pup that was only 10.65 oz. at birth. She was given the green collar thus the name. She is on target to double her weight at one week old. Cheeto is doing wonderful. The pups are not constantly nursing and she is in and out of the pool hurring back at the slightest wimper. She has her bed next to the pups where she watches them and then gently returns to them when they need her. It is pure joy to watch all this.

Day 4 Everyone growing

This little guy we call Lucky. He was the second to last to be born and had some real problems. Bonnie and Bob worked hard to bring him around. He has just taken the lead in weight at 24.9 oz.! (Don't worry all camera shots are taken without flash just not to disturb these little ones)

Cheeto in the News

http://www.ludingtondailynews.com/news.php?story_id=35106
Cheeto's story makes the news. A little over the top and not enough said about Paws, but sweet. The pictures in the newspaper article are great although they do not show up on the link above. One is of Morgan and Cheeto that is now on the second entry here and the other is the first picture of Cheeto and the litter I believe. Everyone is doing fine and some have gained over 2 oz today. That's like gaining 8% of your body weight in one day!

Ice Cream Anne

Anne, my daughter, Cheeto's ice cream lady stopped by to see her again and of course brought some ice cream. That's one way to eat- in the pool, puppies attached - kibble and ice cream yum.

Day 2 napping with pups

Cheeto has turned into super mom. From a pup that turned her head from the placenta, "Do you want me to eat THAT?" to a really good mom. This fleece has been there all day and is still clean and so are the pups. She is so careful when she moves or gets in or out. She actually looks behind herself to make sure there is not a pup there. Getting her to eat is a challenge because she does not want to leave her pups. So she gets chicken baby food in her kibble and a little chicken broth to make the food more appealing. She just need encouragement to leave the pups.

Day 2 Puppies growing

There is nothing like a full tummy and a nice nap. All puppies are growing well. It is amazing how they can scoot around the pool. They go from one side to the other. They are so active.

Cheeto and all the pups

Here is mom and the crew day one. I can't believe how much energy she has. She has recovered so quickly. She loves her pups. I need to rest. Thanks for my helpers: my husband, Bonnie who was invaluable with pup number 8. Teresa whose sense of humor kept us awake and my daughter Anne who was in charge of keeping Cheeto happy with ice cream.

Cheeto and the pups

She really was a trooper. My daughter Anne made sure she got her Ben and Jerry Vanilla ice cream after every pup. Cheeto would look for it. "Pups out where's the ice cream?"

Piles of puppes

Some of the puppies just slid out. One was delivered outside on a potty break. Luckily we were prepared with towels and a flashlight.

All of Cheeto's puppies are here

The puppies are here. The one on the left was the first and checked in at 16.5 oz. There were 3 girls and 5 boys. There is one sad note the ninth boy presented head first and dry, without the sac. Labor was long and after consulting with the vet we met her at her office and she manually delivered the pup. He was 17 oz and did not survive. Cheeto did great and the other pups are growing already.

They're HERE!!

Puppies puppies puppies...

first one was born just before 11:00pm on Wednesday and then by 12:25am 3 boys, 2 girls...all yellow. We're waiting on a few more to make their entrance into the world, and Cheeto has been an angel.

more to come...

We are getting close

We are ready. Her temperature is a little lower and we have seen two short little dips but nothing prolonged. If you click on the lower picture milk is starting to drip from her nipples. She is still eating well. Her actual due date is tomorrow. I want to thank Kathy Fisher for her detailed emails. They have been so helpful. She did have a pup whose milk came in well before she whelped so it is a sign but.... Eating can go both ways too. Some moms eat well all the way through the whelping. We are hoping for a prolonged temperature drop but most dogs don't read the books. I have tried to get her interested in them but its not as much fun as Sweet Potato Pie. (A special Hi to the students in the READ program at Meadowview school in Woodridge.)

Cheeto and Keith

Cheeto still fits in the cage with Keith but she really can't lay down in there with him. If she is not at our feet this is where she is right next to her buddy. Click on the picture and see Keith's sleepy head. Really he does move.

Keith and Simcoe and Sergio

This is the picture Teresa was referring to in her comments. Keith is my keeper pup and the little guys are Simcoe and Sergio, 8 weeks old. Teresa and I puppy raised brothers a few years ago. Sergio is now a service dog and Simcoe died over a year ago of liver tumors. They were great dogs to raise and Keith watched over them and played so sweetly.

Cheeto getting ready

We have been getting Cheeto used to pool and the set up. As you can see she loves it. We have some things she is used to in there and she seems very comfortable. We have checked out the temperature in the room. We are lucky the heat actually comes from the floor in this room so it is a great spot.

Side view of Cheeto

Kari asked how big she is so I took two side views of her. She looks great. She is a little wider but mostly her abdomen is larger and lower. She still romps in the yard and loves her jolly ball. We have fresh snow almost daily. Click on the image and it will enlarge.

There are 9 puppies!

Well we had the x-ray and there are 9 little heads in there. Four puppies are very close together near the bottom. The images do not look like much but if you click on the image it will enlarge and you can see the little heads.

Cheeto is doing fine. She was playing in the snow today. She would really rather not run after the ball and leaves that to Keith. She is eating fine at 4.5 cups a day and weighed in at 69.2 pounds. The vet said she looked perfect. Her instructions were to begin taking her temperature 3 X per day so we do not miss the dip in temperature that signals the onset of labor. There is only one more week left.

Happy Valentines Day

Cheeto and her pups send you hugs for Valentines Day. She is doing great. We have now started to take her temperature twice a day. She is such a good girl but has got the whole procedure down and holds very still till it beeps. Then the wiggle girl is ready for her treat. She is a dream to care for and now really does not want to leave my side.

We are getting things set up and ready so she is familiar with the area and we are sure we have the things we will need. The cart has the rick-rack for the puppies to color code them and other supplies. There are of course a supply of towels, newspapers and chucks. I have checked and rechecked the lists but I wonder what I have forgotten? We are going to have a "dry or puppyless run" this week to see what else we might need. Tomorrow is the vet visit. I hope to have a number.

Cheeto continues to grow

Well, its Sunday and Meadow is leaving. Meadow is the pup on the left in the group shot and the one by herself. It is always fun to have all three dogs together. Interesting to see how they play and interact. It is also a real pleasure to have such a well behaved dog. Julie is training Meadow for search and rescue so she is learning to climb ladders and find people among other things. Meadow has visited since she was a puppy so she knows us and is right at home. Cheeto is getting bigger by the moment. A dog that usually does not drink during the day visits the water in the kitchen now. She is slow to lay down. Almost like she is trying to figure how to move this belly around. She is so sweet.

Yesterday Meadow (on the left, in the middle) and Julie, my daughter, came to visit. All the dogs get along great and just have so much fun in the snow. Cheeto is looking a little pregnant as you can see by her little belly. She is active but seems to be slowing down just a little. The games of keep-away just don't last as long. It's sunny but cold so our play times are short. (If you click on any of the images you can get a bigger picture and see how pregnant Cheeto looks!)

Cheeto is pregnant

On January 18, 2007 we visited Dr. Meiser's office and she confirmed that Cheeto was indeed pregnant! On January 31 we visited Bob's office to do an ultrasound of Cheeto's tummy. In each little black space you see is a pup swimming around in their little sac. In this section there are 5 different pups. You could easily see their heads and paws moving. We just wish we were better at getting a still shot. X-rays are scheduled for February 15. This should help us make a better guess at the number of pups.

Keith and Cheeto

This is Cheeto with our keeper dog Keith. Keith is also a Delta Pet Therapy dog and will take over Cheeto's visits when she is goes on maternity leave. As you can see they have become very close. Cheeto loves to cuddle in this cage or on any of the number of beds we have throughout our home. Their favorite game in the yard if keep-away. Cheeto can out maneuver Keith and she loves it.

Laker

The dad of Cheeto's pups is Laker. A beautiful yellow lab. I wish I knew more about him. Some of you are welcome to add information. He is a handsome guy and we all can't wait to see the sweet puppies from this pair.

In December just before Christmas Cheeto returned to Paws to meet the father of her future puppies. She got the job done quickly and returned to us just before Christmas.

Cheeto's new life as a breeder

When Cheeto came to live with us she became a Certified Delta Pet Therapy dog, She is a member of Pets for Vets. www.pawsitivetherapy.com/ This is an organization that visits hospitals, schools and nursing homes to provide pet therapy. Hines Veterans Hospital and Loyola University (pediatrics and burn unit) are two hospitals they currently visit. We get calls to visit a child when a child had missed the visit that week and is going home. It means a lot to these kids. Spending months in the burn unit is not uncommon so a visit from a sweet cuddly pup is something they look forward to all week. It's not only fun for the patient but studies have shown that patients who have regular pet visits use less pain medication. The power of dog. Cheeto has also participated in the READ program which is a program that allows children to who are having difficulty with reading read to therapy dogs. In this picture is Cheeto is listening to Morgan. Student's ability to read incease 3 times faster when a dog is involved in the process. Cheeto also visits for St. Thomas Hospice and is a favorite of many of my clients who are in hospice care. Since she loves people this is such a great use of her talents.

Kari was Cheeto's puppy raiser. She took her from the little 8 week old pup to the beautiful well behaved dog she is today. Kari did a tremendous job with her and is hoping to raise a Cheeto puppy one day soon. As you can see Cheeto has always been a sweet cuddly pup. On the right is Cheeto on one of her trips to Colorado.