Goodbye week one, hello week two!
- Posted on 27th April 2014
- in Jory Banner 2014
- by jvfairbanks
So, here we are. The first week the litter basically sleeps and eats, depending fully on Jory to Survive. They have all gained weight and are being handled daily, stroked and handled. Their suckling mouths have gained strength and they are now eager at the milk bar. Jory has also settled into her routine and leaves them for longer periods where at first, she would not leave at all. Everything is settling in.
Over the years we have found it beneficial to introduce the litter to handling and slight stress which we increase as the weeks go on. This allows the puppy to develop with better problem solving abilities along with less emotional issues. Studies show that very slight stress at this age releases a hormonal reaction that will help in resisting disease and in turn make them better at handling stress as they get older. Holding is first, then holding upside down, with their tummy in the air followed near the end of this next week with putting their feet on a cold floor for a short time. This allows their body to sense a temperature fall, causing their adrenal system to briefing release corticosteroid hormones, which helps the pups resist disease when older. The early handling allows the litter to feel a variety of sensations early on.
As the week progresses, we should see near the end of this week eyes open, although their ears will still be closed. I always enjoy the “Hello World” week, as to me, that is the introduction of the puppy to the world. Although their eyes will open, it will be a while until they truly see. We will also see a bit of a wobble try at standing, where currently they just scoot. There will also be more climbing on and over each other as they develop. This is the week where the basic building blocks are being laid towards the making of a puppy. They are still considered “whelp” or newborn, and their development stage is called “neonatal” but will change to the “transitional” stage at 13-14 days. I will discuss that period next week.
Yesterday Jeff and I planted 25 blueberry bushes in the garden. We had to knock off many of the flowers to make the bushes grow stronger by not letting them produce berries, which takes energy from the plant. This will produce a much stronger plant for a lifetime and give us more blue berries in future years. It is the same with introducing the puppy to slight stress, varying the stress as they develop produces a better dog. So I will post a little about this as we go along as well.
Grow, Nuture, Bloom is my favorite garden saying. It is also my favorite whelp saying. 🙂 More to come.
