They will be 5 months in one week and it has been a long time since I've had time to write. This is in part due to Maia's recovery from her tibia fracture which required some individual and very gradual exercise. Fortunately she is healing very well now and we expect her to have normal use of the leg soon. She does not have any exercise restrictions any more and is running around and playing with the other puppies. She still tires a little faster than the other puppies because her leg muscles are not fully built up again yet.
All of the puppies are physically mostly grown. Abby is 18 in and 23 lbs., Mulan is 18 in and 23 lbs., Maia is 18 in and 21.6 lbs. and Strider is 19 in and 30 lbs. But emotionally these guys are still babies. They are sweet, affectionate, very playful and looking to the adults (dogs and people) for guidance. Today they were running in a large field with high grass and instinctively stayed within about 100 yards of me. They must be able to smell the coyotes as well as the deer everywhere.
4 puppies is just enough, together with our other 5 dogs, to have a pack and it is a lot of fun to see them develop their relationships. Unlike what many people think, puppies do not develop a clear hierarchy but rather take turns in holding leadership roles. Strider, because he is significantly bigger, tends to push all the girls around and while Maia welcomes any confrontations and stands up to him, Mulan and Abby rather avoid getting beat up and retreat to a crate or run to me for protection on walks. All of the puppies love to chase and retrieve balls and a soft dog frisbee but because of the cold and wet weather we have not had much of a chance to get them used to a lure. The one time we tried there happened to be large seed pods under the trees that made much better toys.
We continue to experiment with new foods. After Thanksgiving we were able to get a good deal and turkey backs and fed them raw. While they all liked them they got cold eating outside fairly quickly so we will probably discontinue any further whole prey feeding until the weather gets warmer again. I just can't see myself serving raw meat on the kitchen floor.
At least once a week we visit wit a nice group of dogs at a local off-leash park that is big enough for dogs of different sizes and play styles to have a chance to play and socialize but also to have space to move away if necessary. This is by far the best off-leash dog park situation we have encountered and I have yet to see an aggressive dog there. It helps that the park is not fenced in so dogs that don't listen to their owners call are not usually taken there. During the last few weeks all the puppies have gained enough confidence and social skills to be comfortable with most dogs that look and act very different from them.
We have also spent some more time at our favorite coffee house and taken one puppy at a time, gradually introducing them to quietly lie down while we read or talk. We use frequent food treats to reward quiet and relaxed behaviors and keep the sessions short at first. Mulan and Abby seems naturals in this environment, Maia and Strider don't want to sit still for very long.
Buddy, our black pointer-mix is 9 years old but he continues to act like a puppy, inviting the puppies to play with him and letting them climb all over him in a way that the adult whippets would not tolerate.
The pictures are from when the puppies were about 4 months old, shortly after Maia's cast was removed.
All of the puppies are physically mostly grown. Abby is 18 in and 23 lbs., Mulan is 18 in and 23 lbs., Maia is 18 in and 21.6 lbs. and Strider is 19 in and 30 lbs. But emotionally these guys are still babies. They are sweet, affectionate, very playful and looking to the adults (dogs and people) for guidance. Today they were running in a large field with high grass and instinctively stayed within about 100 yards of me. They must be able to smell the coyotes as well as the deer everywhere.
4 puppies is just enough, together with our other 5 dogs, to have a pack and it is a lot of fun to see them develop their relationships. Unlike what many people think, puppies do not develop a clear hierarchy but rather take turns in holding leadership roles. Strider, because he is significantly bigger, tends to push all the girls around and while Maia welcomes any confrontations and stands up to him, Mulan and Abby rather avoid getting beat up and retreat to a crate or run to me for protection on walks. All of the puppies love to chase and retrieve balls and a soft dog frisbee but because of the cold and wet weather we have not had much of a chance to get them used to a lure. The one time we tried there happened to be large seed pods under the trees that made much better toys.
We continue to experiment with new foods. After Thanksgiving we were able to get a good deal and turkey backs and fed them raw. While they all liked them they got cold eating outside fairly quickly so we will probably discontinue any further whole prey feeding until the weather gets warmer again. I just can't see myself serving raw meat on the kitchen floor.
At least once a week we visit wit a nice group of dogs at a local off-leash park that is big enough for dogs of different sizes and play styles to have a chance to play and socialize but also to have space to move away if necessary. This is by far the best off-leash dog park situation we have encountered and I have yet to see an aggressive dog there. It helps that the park is not fenced in so dogs that don't listen to their owners call are not usually taken there. During the last few weeks all the puppies have gained enough confidence and social skills to be comfortable with most dogs that look and act very different from them.
We have also spent some more time at our favorite coffee house and taken one puppy at a time, gradually introducing them to quietly lie down while we read or talk. We use frequent food treats to reward quiet and relaxed behaviors and keep the sessions short at first. Mulan and Abby seems naturals in this environment, Maia and Strider don't want to sit still for very long.
Buddy, our black pointer-mix is 9 years old but he continues to act like a puppy, inviting the puppies to play with him and letting them climb all over him in a way that the adult whippets would not tolerate.
The pictures are from when the puppies were about 4 months old, shortly after Maia's cast was removed.