Dalry Duck Tollers

Crate Training Night 2

2011-04-12T20:26:00.001-07:00

Second night of crate training for the remaining three puppies. Each has a puppy crate in the pen, and after a couple of hours of running around outside, a short training session for Morley and then a meal, they're pretty tired. Tonight has gone really well, with less than 10 minutes fussing from one of them (probably Orange), and now they're all asleep. This should really help get them ready for next week's big roadtrips.

One Gone

2011-04-11T17:48:00.000-07:00

Wow, where has the time gone? Can't believe the puppies are 8 weeks old today and one left here already. Dana Gallagher flew up from Richmond on Saturday evening and left this morning with Miss Red, new name pending!!! Miss Red apparently travelled like a little trouper and is now learning the ropes at Dana's house. Dana and I had yet another great visit...nothing like two total "dog geeks" hanging together for hours! We stayed up until 2 am Sunday morning after Dana arrived, drinking wine and talking dogs. Next puppy leaves next weekend, then the last will go later the following week. Blue stays here, her name will be "Morley", after Dave's long-suffering wife from Stuart McLean's Vinyl Cafe series.

New Digs

2011-04-03T21:13:00.000-07:00

We started today by shoveling two feet of snow out of the kennel run so that we could install the puppies outside. I have to work two full days tomorrow and Tuesday...sigh. We put the old boards from my a-frame into the run to provide ramps and a platform to play on. Red was the first to explore the ramp and platform and then she promptly fell off the platform. Yellow was next, Blue and Orange were busy exploring the snow we didn't shovel out.

The puppies also had a huge group of visitors this afternoon, including the six small children who came to visit last weekend. We all trooped down to the bush on the north side of the front field, and then we sat in the sun and cuddled puppies. Puppies ate a meal at the kennel in the late afternoon and then slept for hours. They're awake right now, Red and Yellow have been playing like maniacs for the last half hour. I thought they were done for the evening.

New pictures on Webshots.

Josh News

2011-04-03T07:20:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I received an email from Josh's owner, Sue Kish, letting me know that Josh had received his third qualifying score in Utility (top obedience class) to earn his Obedience Trial Championship. He is the first Toller in Canada to have a conformation championship, obedience trial championship and Master Hunter title. All this and he's not yet 4 years old...and Sue didn't get him until he was about six months old. This team has accomplished an awful lot at a very high level, in an extremely short time. He's a beautiful and amazing dog and I'm thrilled to have puppies sired by him.

Like Big Dogs

2011-04-01T22:05:00.000-07:00

Tonight, in an effort to have some peace and quiet, the crew got "big dog bones". Each was given a big piece of rib with some meat attached....they were quiet, except for the whining that went on while they chewed. They were a very contented group of puppies. This week they've been down to the brush along our north fenceline. There they can jump over logs, dig holes, push through the brush and chase each other. It's a great spot to foster coordination and brave behaviour. There are a few pictures from this week posted on the Webshots page.

New stuff

2011-03-30T15:38:00.001-07:00

I've just had the puppies outside for the better part of an hour. And this time, I introduced treats for showing up....my precursor to teaching a formal recall. To be honest, I was getting tired of trying to get the crew to follow me around the yard in a semi-orderly fashion, so I figured if I started treating them for staying close, they'd be more inclined to do so...and it worked really well. I paired the clicker with the treats most of the time and they were actually following me around a lot better. Some of them were even able to haul themselves onto the lid of the well, so got CT for that, too! Now, they're outside in an x-pen learning to cool their jets a bit. This is a really smart, motivated group of puppies. In the last four days, there has only been one poop outside the potty box, they're still not all that great about remembering to pee in it, but at least the pee cleanup is really easy.

Busy Weekend

2011-03-27T09:39:00.000-07:00

Puppies had two groups of visitors yesterday, two groups scheduled for today. I'm also taking them outside to hear the diesel tractor run, as well as one of the pickups. They've been outside every day for about 10 days now. I'm pretty sure they've been on at least 15 different surfaces, so far.

Yesterday, I gave them a bunch of jingly little cat toys that I picked up at the Dollar Store....they were so cute...thought I was doing video, but apparently not. I'll try to get some video up shortly. Red, in particular, really liked those toys.

They sleep for less and less time now, making things even busier around here than before.

New pictures on Webshots this morning, so go check them out.

Wet feet

2011-03-25T15:42:00.000-07:00

Regrettably no pictures of the puppies getting wet feet this afternoon. I took them to the driveway, to experience gravel, and not only did they get dry gravel, but they also went into a big puddle on the driveway. Their faces were pretty funny....a little dismay, a little wonderment...and paws held up, dripping with water.

They have company again tonight, and then tomorrow as well. Busy, busy babies!

New Stuff

2011-03-24T20:56:00.000-07:00

There's a new video, and a bunch of new photos taken today. The puppies had a pretty busy day, with visitors this afternoon, a couple of trips outside and a good play session with Darryl. They're all asleep under the couch right now. OK....five minutes ago they were asleep....now they're up playing "Trash Monkeys" again.

They have lots of visitors lined up for this weekend, so there will be more pictures.

Five weeks old - already!

2011-03-22T20:52:00.000-07:00

A bunch of new pictures uploaded tonight, from the entire past week. Puppies went outside again this afternoon. It was a beautiful, sunny day and they played in the wet grass and explored the snow. They have a very busy social calendar this week, with two sets of visitors planned for tomorrow night and another group on Saturday morning.

They are a lot of fun, playing with each other, with toys and interacting with everyone they meet. I'm really enjoying them a lot.

5 weeks old!

2011-03-21T20:13:00.000-07:00

Holy smoke....where is the time going? Puppies are 5 weeks old today, and they have become a lot of fun since the beginning of the weekend. They're very interactive, coming willingly when I call them. They're playing a lot more with each other and with toys. They've been outside a couple of times again, to a new area of the yard, where they could walk on dirt, grass and snow. I figure they've now been on at least a dozen different surfaces.

Dana and Vicki were here for a quick trip, Dana brought a great bag full of the best dog toys! We played with puppies, cuddled puppies and talked about puppies for hours and hours. Great fun!

I'll try to post some pictures tomorrow night, I've been trying to catch up on some other stuff tonight and don't have time to sort through the pictures I've taken.

The Latest

2011-03-16T19:17:00.000-07:00

Sorry, three whole days since an update! I had to work a full day yesterday....groan...and it was really busy, so I was totally wiped last night.

The puppies have been really busy today, playing with their toys, hanging in my lap in a pile o' puppies and beating each other up. Tonight I took them for their second trip to Darryl's wood shop, where they heard the table saw, big shop vac, chop saw and belt sander. I had a little more reaction, in the form of tenseness, from the girls, very little reaction from the boys. These kids, so far, aren't much bothered by noises.

I'm uploading some more pictures tonight, so make sure you check the Webshots page.

Busy Puppies

2011-03-13T18:36:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was a very busy day for the puppies, with four sets of visitors in to see them. They got lots of cuddles and showed off their new play skills. They now engage in mouth wrestling, tail chewing and a couple have even picked up some soft toys, carried them and shaken them. There's barking and growling going on as well. They're pretty darn cute. Waking time is only about 15-20 minutes, followed by 3-4 hours of sleep.

I've kicked Chime out with the other dogs. She slept at the kennel with everyone else last night, the puppies slept right through from 10:30-7....lovely! Momma has come in to give them a snack about half a dozen times today, which makes everyone happy.

Some new pictures posted, and there will be a video or two later on.

Another Video

2011-03-09T18:13:00.001-08:00

Video taken last night after Miss Red indicated she'd like to try chicken! See the links at the side.

And, now that Webshots is in a cooperative mood again, some pictures from yesterday's first meal of ground chicken have now been uploaded.

Puppies had another visitor this afternoon, and they were really cute and social. I can see more and more of their individual personalities coming through and I'm trying to keep notes as I see something.

Holy Cow (er, chicken!)

2011-03-08T21:04:00.000-08:00

When Darryl got home from work tonight we were watching the puppies, and noticed that Mr. Orange had his nose buried deep in the bowl of Orijen kibble that I keep available for Chime right now. Right after that, Miss Red toddled over to a bowl of chicken bits that Chime had been nibbling at, and she started licking. So, we dumped the bowl on the mats, and all four puppies did some licking and nibbling. I've uploaded a bunch of pictures to Webshots.

The puppies also had their first official visitors tonight....lots of cuddling, grooming and snuggling for all involved.

I'm thawing some ground chicken for them now, and will give them a taste tomorrow. I'm hoping by the weekend they'll be eating enough that Chime can start spending less time in the house and more time with the rest of the dogs. I think she's had enough, and if she hasn't, the teeth that are fast coming in will change her mind!

OK, so ground chicken for breakfast....once again, there is no doubt in my mind what dogs (read: carnivores) should be eating. They all chowed down for a good 20 minutes and are sound asleep with full bellies. Pics to follow.

Goat Milk & New PIcs

2011-03-07T21:20:00.000-08:00

I'm officially working only 4 hours a day now (at my real job!), so I have more time to give both the puppies and my big dogs. This afternoon I tried goat milk with the puppies again, and had much more success. They actually lapped at the milk and kept going back to the pan for more. So, getting them on the milk this week and then introducing some ground stuff this weekend will take the burden off Chime.

The gang was much more interactive this afternoon, it always amazes me what a difference even a few hours can make in development. After they had their milk, they were climbing all over me. They're also becoming much, much more vocal.

There are some pictures on Webshots of today's milk-fest.

A Day Early

2011-03-06T22:09:00.000-08:00

Three week portraits are on the Webshots page tonight....a day early, but I had Darryl to give me a hand.

This morning I took out the whelping box and installed a barrier to separate the sleeping area from the play area. Orange was the first to go through the opening.

Oh, and while we were doing toenails last night, we felt the beginning of teeth! They'll be at the ankle-biter stage in no time.

Beyond Cute!

2011-03-05T20:30:00.000-08:00

I've just uploaded a new video, taken a couple of hours ago. It's always amazing to me how quickly things change in the puppy pen. Tonight some mouth wrestling started, and a little playing. The biggest "bully" in the box was Yellow....the smallest of the group. Everything is very slow-motion, but it's pretty fun to watch. And as fast as they start to do stuff, they all fall asleep. Sorry for the red hue...we were finally able to shut the furnace down today, so I've got the heat lamp on for the puppies.

The link is to the right in the Video and Photos section.

New Video

2011-03-04T22:06:00.000-08:00

New video loaded, taken tonight. You can see how much more the puppies are walking. This morning they were sweet, mewling like little seagulls. By the time I got home for lunch they were a bunch of screaming banshees, screeching and barking at the top of their lungs if Miss Milkbar wandered past them without stopping.

Tonight I introduced "grooming", using a soft bristle brush while they were sleeping. I have also started putting a puppy pee pad in their sleeping area, and pretty much all of them have toddled over to use it.

New Photos

2011-03-02T19:22:00.000-08:00

Check out the Webshots today....and notice the new photo to the right!

Puppy Cam

2011-03-01T21:58:00.001-08:00

Sorry everyone....the puppy cam will be going offline. I got hit $90 today for running it. I was very much over my allotted bandwidth. It was worth it just for the peace of mind, knowing everyone was OK over the last 2 weeks, though.

New video uploaded tonight, see the links at the side. I took it when I was home for lunch today. There was decidedly more action in the box today as the puppies become more aware of their surroundings and can move about more. The weekend should be "interesting"!

I've added a listing for interesting links on the side. First one up is a link on the bordatella vaccine (kennel cough). KC is, in most cases, very short-lived and rarely poses much of a threat. Keep your dog quiet, warm and well-hydrated and KC will run its course in a matter of days.

New Digs

2011-02-28T20:33:00.000-08:00

Tonight we installed the box for potty training, in anticipation of the little beasties being up on their feet and taking care of their own elimination needs. It's meant a rearranging of the pen, which you can see on the puppy cam. BTW, puppy cam runs 7:30-5 on weekdays, while I'm working. Next week I will start working half days and then the puppy cam will be on shorter hours.

There was much more wobbling about today, and when I was doing the Biosensor exercises tonight, eyes were much more than slits and their ears are opening, too. That will be the end of peace and quiet around here, as they'll be able to track Chime and us with both eyes and ears!

Let the games begin!

New Video & Photos

2011-02-27T09:54:00.000-08:00

So, this morning I had to change the bedding. Took puppies out of the box while I did so. This gave the puppies a chance to try out their sealegs. I took video. The link is Puppies Day 13, to the right. If you look closely you can see eyes on Blue and Yellow.

I just posted new head shots on the Webshots album as well. Link is also on the right. Loving the new camera!

You'll also notice how much space the "little ones" are now taking up at the milkbar! Sometimes Chime finds it easier to sit up to feed them now.

Almost Dogs

2011-02-25T06:20:00.000-08:00

There have been some fairly dramatic changes over the last couple of days. All four puppies are starting to spend some time "walking" rather than dragging themselves across the blanket. It's very "drunken", but they are actually wobbling on all fours. What this results in, though are puppies scattered all over the box, and then upset because they're not with the pack, especially if they feel a little cold. So, the noise level is sometimes up a bit until they join back up.

I expect eyes will open over the next 3-4 days, already their eyes are looking a little different, as they usually do.

A few new photos posted tonight. Go to the Webshots page from the link to the right.

Tonight's novel scent was "Eau du cat". Vinny generously volunteered his fur for puppy sniffing....and like with the last litter, each puppy vacuumed Vinny from stem to stern. They were very interested. Pretty neat to watch.

Sniff, Sniff

2011-02-23T11:59:00.001-08:00

So, as part of the Early Neurological Stimulation exercises the puppies are currently getting, I also introduce a novel scent each night. Thanks very much to Dana for her list of scent suggestions. On Monday night they smelled tripe...that made them very "still". Last night was strawberry tea leaves. Each puppy stopped moving and put its nose inside the bag and breathed very deeply. Right now touch and scent are the only senses they have, so they are very heightened. We get good puppy cuddling in each night, and the puppies are very happy to just snuggle right in.

New photos

2011-02-21T20:26:00.000-08:00

Just for Dana.....despite my ongoing camera issues....I'm going to have to do some shopping...puppies are expensive!

Anyway, go to the Webshots album (see the link at the side of the page) and there are individual head shots of each puppy, taken tonight.

They're all starting to bark and growl in their sleep, which never fails to make me giggle. We're fully into puppy cuddle mode at night now, too.

Toenails & Inspiration

2011-02-20T10:40:00.000-08:00

Today was the first cutting of toenails....I didn't do the dew claws (they all have front dew claws, which I don't remove), so we had a total of 64 toenails to do. The girls were far more squirmy and vocal about it than the boys, and Miss Red put up the biggest protest. Darryl holds them while I clip the nails. We'll clip with nail clippers until they're about 4 weeks old, then we'll start using the Dremel instead.

Chime has been a mite picky about eating since the puppies were born, and at this point, I'm happy with her eating just about anything, since she had a very bad episode of eclampsia with her first litter, and I don't want to go through that again. She needs to eat, so I decided if I could convince her to eat Orijen grain-free kibble, I'd be ahead of anything. But, she really didn't want that either....until this morning. I got out my clicker, some treats and filled my long unused Buster Cube with Orijen. She quickly figured out that she needed to push the Buster Cube with her nose for a pay-off and emptied it. We'll do a couple more sessions with the clicker and I'm certain she'll get it. The upside: she eats, she gets some exercise and she gets some entertainment value.

2011-02-18T19:18:00.000-08:00

Sorry for not updating more often....my life feels a little disorganized at present. I'm working full-time for the next couple of weeks. Then I'll go to working half days, so I'll have more time with puppies.

We have very cold weather, which means the other dogs can't spend any time outside. But, Chime is still in puppy-protective mode, so getting the other dogs in and her hidden away while that's happening is a feat in itself. She also doesn't like the cats very much. So, it's a little like a small armed camp in our basement right now to accommodate everyone. With the cold weather we have the furnace running and poor Chime is really feeling the heat.

Puppies are doing well, tonight they all look like they've done a big growth spurt, including Little Miss Red, who is quite a bit smaller than everyone else at present. But, she more than makes up for her small size with her activity level. She was the first born, and basically came out hunting down a meal! Mr. Orange apparently doesn't like to be by himself and will do some pretty pitiful crying if he wakes up alone. Mr. Yellow and Ms. Blue are very easy going puppies so far.

Last night I started the Super Puppy exercises (Early Neurological Stimulation). These are designed to slightly stress the puppies and therefore stimulate both their endocrine systems and their hearts. I've added to it with a "novel scent" each night. Last night was a leather glove, tonight, a rubber toy.

Puppies are here!

2011-02-15T20:42:00.000-08:00

So, in a marathon time yesterday, Chime delivered her puppies. We have two males, and two females. In the picture to the right the boys have the orange and yellow collars, the girls are sporting red and blue. We were a little surprised at how small the litter was, but everyone is doing well, with small weight gains the first day.

Closer and Closer!

2011-02-11T14:04:00.000-08:00

I noticed last night that the puppies have "moved down" in Chime's belly. She has definition in her waist again, and her spine is more prominent. She's gotten a little picky about food and definitely doesn't have room for food and puppies. She sleeps very, very deeply. Chime is now spending nights in the house, as girls are more likely to whelp overnight than during the day. I'm taking her temperature multiple times a day to catch the temp drop that signals whelping. The temp drop generally happens 24-48 hours beforehand.

Movement!

2011-02-05T21:08:00.000-08:00

Was hanging with Chime on the couch downstairs, she is actually tired enough to lie still....and I felt puppies moving around! She's so big. Still managed to go snowshoeing with us this afternoon for a couple of kilometres. We're going to install the puppy pen tomorrow, time to get ready!

Just over 2 weeks

2011-01-30T12:52:00.000-08:00

Well, just over 2 weeks to go. Seems like forever! I've posted a picture of Chime taken this morning. She's a little "pot-bellied" and if you look closely you can see a nipple peeking through her coat. She's still got plenty of "go" and will be out on our snowshoe trail this afternoon. We'll move the puppy pen in next weekend and get it kitted out.

Time Goes By

2011-01-25T20:18:00.000-08:00

Well, Chime has definitely lost her waistline, she's become more convex than concave through her entire body. And she is positively ravenous....she just ate two pork riblets and sounded like a wild animal, gnashing her teeth and smacking her lips! Her energy level is still good and so far, she can still squish her body into the small cat basket in the garage. I doubt she'll be able to do that for much longer.

We have a little less than 3 weeks to go. Darryl and I will probably bring the puppy pen down to the house in the next week or so, so that Chime gets used to hanging around in it.

2011-01-16T12:43:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone

Welcome to the Josh x Chime puppy blog. Chime was bred to Josh in mid-December and we are now anxiously awaiting puppies. I will not be doing an ultrasound to confirm pregnancy.

Friday was a very long day for both of us. The airline live cargo embargoes ended on Tuesday, and due to Donna's work schedule Friday was the first day available to try to fly Chime home. Once the flights were booked, we had to keep our fingers crossed for semi-decent weather at both ends of the country. Chime's flight from Vancouver to Prince George was delayed by about 45 minutes, so I didn't get her until nearly 10 pm! We stayed with my friends the Zapotichnys (Tosser Kennels) and came home Saturday morning.

The first breeding took place on December 13, so puppies should be due mid-February, from about the 14th onward, depending on when ovulation took place. This page gives you an idea of what is happening on a nearly daily basis: www.coronadoyorkies.com/pregnancycalendar.htm

I'm pretty certain Chime is pregnant. Her waistline does not look as svelte as it did before she went to Ontario, and her nipples are all very bright pink. I'm in the process of carving out our snowshoe trail around the perimeter of the property so that I can ensure that Chime continues to get some exercise, as her condition when she whelps will directly affect how difficult the whelping might be.

I'll try to update here weekly.