Last battle?

A dramatic battle between winter and spring took place yesterday afternoon. Left all my spring flowers buried under heavy snow and miserable. Now the snow is gone and spring seems to be a winner. Hopefully for good!

Time flies and the pups have become 3 weeks old. It´s incredible how much they have changed during last week!

They play with each other after every meal and start to show interest in toys. They growl and bark. I have seen tails wagging. The whelping box had to be divided into two sections: the sleeping bed and walking area covered with absorbing pads as they all can pee and poo by themselves now. Mostly outside the bed. And we started with small meals of chicken soup with some minced meat and egg yolk which is highly appreciated. And they have grown so much!

Here are fresh pics and the names of the little ones.

Lakkebo’s Contra, navy female, 1850 g today

Lakkebo’s Charming, the boy, 2050 g today

Lakkebo’s Carisma, green female, 1600 g today

Lakkebo’s Cabrita, pink female, 1750 g today

Lakkebo’s Carma, blue female, 1700 g today

Lakkebo’s Covira, yellow female, 2300 g today

They start to look like small dogs now. What a privilege to be able to watch them grow!

And what a privilege to live in a house and be able to freely go outside any time we want! I´m not scared of Covid-19 but living as I do I don’t have so much contact with other people except during short visits at grocery store. But I can imagine how hard it must be for people locked in their apartments in the City and being afraid to go out! I do hope this insane situation will end soon! And of course I´m so sorry for all who payed the highest price for this pandemic and their families!

I have puppy buyers for all puppies if people will not change their minds. But 3 of them are going abroad and the borders are closed now…I am prepared these pups will stay here longer anyway, according to EU rules, so we have time. Hope it will be enough!

The proud Mother is rather skinny though she consumes 5 meals per day. I think it´s about what she would eat during a whole week before! And there are treats and left overs from our table and pig ear every day that I do not count. Incredible that her stomach can put up with all that amount of food without being upset!

I did not count how many times she nurses them but must be around 8-10 times a day. They have really hard time finding free teats so they can suck altogether, they have become so big there is no place there. And they are so violent when they search for the best teat! I have seen their small teeth coming up, soon nursing them will be a painful experience. I really cannot imagine how Basqa copes with her 13 babies!

So far she has lots of coat but it starts to come out now so I suppose she will soon look like an old rag. But that´s what motherhood is like , I remember myself LOL

Prima is not allowed to the puppy room yet. Not that she would want to help to nurse them, I do not think she is that stupid. As far as I know her she will stay as far away as possible when they start to move around and try to ignore them. She thinks puppies are disgusting and I cannot blame her for that. Pain in the ass, that’s what they are LOL

Better to stick to a stick!

The rest of the family, both humans and cats are doing well. Rost has been castrated now and his kidneys were checked once again when he was asleep. The changes he had before are still there but no vet can say what they might signify in terms of his future. So far he is a healthy and happy cat, a favourite of the whole family! With one exception (Xenon, always a number one) perhaps LOL

Well, that should be about all for today. Difficult to concentrate here with 2 grown up kids and Alli , the granddaughter around. I cannot blame the puppies, they don’t take so much of my time yet.

This is going to change soon. I am prepared!

Growing fast

Another week has passed.

The biggest achievement of the week must be opening of all the eyes. Otherwise nothing dramatic happens yet. The pups usually just sleep and eat and crawl around the whelping box. First clumsy attempts to play with each other have been noticed. And they gain weight extremely fast!

The mother produces lots of milk and moves around with heavy teats but seems not to be bothered. In a week or so I will start giving them some other food and take some of the responsibility off her.

The collars had to be changed to the bigger size and in one case I had to change the colour as well. I’m trying to figure out which name from the list I made for myself would match each individual . I like short and unpretentious names but somehow reflecting puppies appearance or character. Or times we are living in.

Let me present the pack!

Navy female 1240 g today

Red male 1420 g today

Green female, Lakkebo’s Carisma, 1130 g today

Pink female 1220 g today

Blue female 1160 g

Yellow female (former white), Lakkebo,s Covira ,1630 g (!!!)

As we are in the middle of Corona pandemic I really feel one of the pups should get a name compatible with current situation. The yellow female, growing in such a speedy manner seems to be the best pick ! I hope she will forgive me…

The weather has been spring-like here lately which gives me the urge to be outside and clean the garden after winter. Heavy job but so rewarding! Would love my spine to hold out until all the necessary work is done!

One week has passed

While the world is upside down due to the outbreak of a pandemic Corona virus disease we can enjoy the tranquility of our home and surroundings. Early spring this year adds some colours to our quarantine and, of course, watching puppies grow is a source of immense joy!

And they do grow!

During the very first week of their life they all doubled or nearly tripled their birth weight!

Here comes a little presentation of the little ones.

Puppy no 1, dark blue female, weight at birth 270 g, weights 720 g today

Puppy no 2, red male, weight at birth 365 g, weights 900 g today

Puppy no 3, green female, weight at birth 230 g weights 640 g today

Puppy no 4, purple female, weight at birth 300 g, weights 740 g today

Puppy no 5, light blue female, weight at birth 260 g, weights 680 g today

Puppy no 6, white female, weight at birth 360 g, weights 970 g today

All the pups are healthy and strong despite differences in body size. The white female is really big and growing even faster than the only male although they had the same weight at birth. Sometimes I think I should look after the smallest ones more, maybe they are being pushed away from the best teats?

But I do not like to interfere, Ruda is being such a clever mother and besides, they are only 6. And they gain weight every day so it should be OK.

From being a bit anxious in the beginning Ruda has transformed to a balanced and confident mother. After the delivery she had to be dragged outside for a pee on leash. She would not leave the whelping box for a second and chased away both cats and Prima while they were passing by my bedroom door.

She looked very suspiciously at any family member, except me, trying to come into the room. First 2 days she ate very little and only special food, made by me.

Now she just goes in there to nurse the babies and comes out to see what I am doing. She goes out for short walks in the woods totally relaxed and eats 4 times a day, everything I give her, even dry puppy food. The appetite is back and I am happy for that! It means her body understands the need of extra nourishment now and she cannot afford being fussy eater anymore. The rest of the pack is allowed to move freely around the house unless they stay away from the whelping box.

Prima has adjusted to sleeping outside my bedroom and going for short walks. As long as she has somebody who would throw a stick or a ball life is quite good. My son, who moved back home temporarily, takes her for long walk once a day. It has to be enough. We do not train either, maybe it is good with a short break? I will certainly get the answer for that question in the nearest future. Time flies!

We usually have one of the cats following us on our walks, today it was Rost. He is a really joyful fellow, always near me and if not, always coming in full gallop when I call. More like a dog actually! Love that!

Well, that´s all for today. The whelping box is calling. I must enjoy watching the pups and listening to the sounds they make. Best meditation in the world!

Girlpower

Well, well, what a wonderful mum Ruda is! I never thought she would manage to give birth to 7 puppies during just 5 hours and as she started at 6 o´clock pm everything was done before it was time to go to bed!

And with only one boy and all the others girls she gave me a great chance to make a best choice. Because one girl is going to stay here!

I wouldn´t say we had a quiet night as the whelping box is placed in my bedroom and the pups were very noisy. But I love all the noises they make! And today, when all the bellies are full the silence reigns in the room.

The delivery went very smooth with one exception. Puppy number 5 was very late and when it came out I discovered it was deformed. Its little skull was not closed properly and we had to put the puppy down. It was a little girl, otherwise very well shaped and lively…Such a sad moment! But, of course Ruda is not a young mother and developing abnormalities can happen anytime, anywhere. I understand that, as so many things have to go right to create a perfect baby but it´s still hard to say farewell to such a young and lovely creature. RIP little baby girl!

Let´s hope all the others will thrive and grow nicely!

Waiting

I the end of February we had some snow on the ground. It stayed for a couple of days and melted away. The weather does not behave winter-like, some trees are about to bloom and spring flowers peep out here and there. Must be at least a month earlier than usual! It has been raining and raining but I do prefer that as there are no risk of breaking legs while walking the dogs.

Prima enjoys life as usual. Training goes well, though she has some problems with speed and stopping before command. But I have decided to wait with competition in 3rd class until fall. I want to be sure she will make a 100% start according to her ability.

Last week we have taken it very easy. Ruda has become heavy and slower than usual. She still wants to perform but I am not sure what I can do with her without taking a risk of some kind of injury. The babies should be born very soon, her temperature started to drop down this morning. It´s all about waiting now.

I´m a bit concerned but try to think positively. She is in good condition though she has been eating poorly, I had to use lots of different tricks to make her interested in food. She wouldn´t even look at dry dog food! Hope she will start eating normally when puppies are born.

There has been no problems for Basqa, now called Shadow, to give birth to 13 (!!!) puppies in Belgium. So Ruda is a grandmother now! All pups and the proud mother are doing fine and I am very happy! I have been worried about my little baby but she once again proved to be a real, native dog with strong instincts.

Christines pic of resting Basqa after delivery

Now lets hope all the puppies will grow nicely as they will certainly need some kind of milk replacement to support the mother. Though the chance is big that she will produce enough milk for all of them. She is a tough lady!

Both cats are doing fine. They like to spend time together but Rost is much more tied to people and our dogs, loves to be near us while Xenon prefers to keep some distance. He has been following us on our walks in the woods lately, which I find very charming. Hope Rost will follow the example!

Now back to waiting. I see that Ruda started to tremble. The delivery is on its way and we are prepared!

Puppies on the way

Yes, yes, yes! The pregnancy has been confirmed!

The vet, an ultrasound specialist, saw 8 puppies in Rudas belly!

Well, it´s good she does not know anything about it, it will be quite a job to take care of so many!

Now I just hope that everything will be OK. In the meanwhile she feels very well but the embryos are very little so far.

We train almost every day and she is very active and focused.

So there is something to hope for and be happy about.

But life usually offers a bitter side as well to balance the sweet.

Basqa, who is now called Shadow as she follows Christine everywhere, has been mated as well and the pregnancy has been confirmed.

I went through all kind of feelings when I found out she was left unattended with a young Laekenois male, indeed behind a fence but... Mother Nature is powerful. Basqa was on heat and he found a way to her somehow.

And I am both angry and sorry and bitter and my conscience is not clean. I should not have trusted Christine, she has had few so called oops-litters earlier and I should have known better…

But what´s done is done. I have had some time to think it over and I have made peace with myself.

Basqa is going to have the babies as Christine, being afraid of side effects, did not want to give her an injection to get rid of the unwanted pregnancy. In my eyes she is a baby herself but physically she is old enough to be a mother.

So Ruda and her daughter are going to deliver probably on exactly the same day!

Let´s hope for the best!

New year, new hopes and big changes

Christmas time and beginning of a new year are behind us. It was a family reunion with quite a lot of dog training too. The winter has been very kind to us so far. We have temperatures on the plus side most of the time which allows training outside.

I have just arrived home after a long journey to Germany. The main cause was an arranged meeting between Ruda and her fiancé Monty. The meeting was successful but knowing my bad luck when it comes to breeding I will not make any official statement until we check Rudas belly with ultrasound.

This was a part of the journey that gives a positive and hopeful feeling.

But I have also done something that makes me very miserable - I took Basqa with me and gave her over to Christine on a parking place somewhere in South Germany. So now my baby is in Belgium and, according to what Christine says and the pics she sends me she is doing great. Which I have guessed she would all the time. She did not behave well with my dogs as she has developed some bad habits that had become a part of her life from early puppy age. Difficult to change, I really tried! But now she is in new home with new dogs and bad habits do not belong there.

Christine is an experienced Laekenois owner and breeder and she has time for Basqa. I suppose this is the best I could do.

Except that I strongly feel I have betrayed her somehow, gave up on her and my conscience is not clean. I’m sorry I had to make such a painful decision and I miss my little girl with my whole heart! Right now even her bad habits!

But I suppose Ruda and Prima are very grateful and our life is really quiet and relaxed again. And Ruda has the right to go through her pregnancy in the best conditions. So my common sense says the decision was right. Why doesn’t my heart share the same feeling?

Here is Basqa in her new home

First snow

After lots of rain the first snow arrived lighting up our dark environment for some days. It´s gone now but I enjoyed its first visit. It always awakes childish joy in me for a while before I get tired of all the annoying sides of the fact. Like for example that snow tends to turn into ice and makes every days training outside difficult or impossible. Or that temperature drops much below my comfort zone.

But first days were wonderful and it was delightful to see the sun after such a long absence. Long walks in beautiful scenery worked well and first training in the hired training hall was nice.

Ruda has been stripped now and is easy to keep dry and clean. I know some Laekenois breeders and owners being against stripping but for me and Ruda this is the best solution. Both during the summer when she swims a lot and during rainy winter when she is about to rot and never dries.

Prima is making progress learning her new exercises for the new obedience class. The best reward for her work is a stick from a forest. Very convenient and cheap toy one would say. But not always safe! Few weeks ago we had to put some stitches under her tongue where a stick had caused a big wound. Just few hours after the treatment she walked in the forest, still unsteady on her feet after anaesthetics, with a stick in her mouth…She will never learn…

Basqas furnishings has become more visible while frozen LOL

She is still here, I do not know when Christine can come and collect her but I hope it will be soon. Better for her to get to know her new family as soon as possible. I know dogs have wonderful ability to adjust to new people and new conditions but I feel sorry for her and guilty about my decision of letting her go…Fortunately she does not know anything about it!

Even Xenon enjoyed first snow. I thought he was not even thinking of going out but he just run around there and was happy as a little puppy!

In the middle of November a new family member arrived to our place. A red tabby Maine Coon kitten called Rost ( rust in English) a happy, brave and social creature that has soon become a whole family sweetheart. And Xenons best pal!

But our joy is being destroyed by the fact that we quickly noticed there was something wrong with little Rost. He has very good appetite and is very playful and does seem to be perfectly well but his belly is swollen and he is too little for his age. There is a terrible, lethal disease among cats that is called FIP. We are afraid he has got it. It is impossible to test directly but the indirect tests seem to confirm it. There is nothing that can be done except to wait and see if this develops. Or hopefully not!

I watch him closely with a heavy heart and really hope he will survive!