Dixie's got a 'Puppy Bump"!

You can barely see the bulging belly in this photo.

It is kind of funny.  Whenever I breed Dixie, I get a hold of the "Canine Gestation Calendar" (or What to Expect When You're Expecting Puppies) and mark all the important dates on the calendar.  So it is always kind of cool when things happen just when they are suppose to happen.  My recent post told how Dixie had morning sickness right on cue.  I had to breathe a sigh of relief...a positive pregnancy sign is pretty important when when you have lots of kids and families waiting on it!! 

So here's another interesting milestone.  I have been keeping an eye on Dixie and thinking that she was starting to feel fuller in the tummy, but yesterday when I looked at her, I could really see that her belly was getting round and protruding...just enough that I would say she was 'showing'.  I ran to the puppy calendar and loe and behold, I had written down 'ENLARGED ABDOMEN".  So cool!  She is coming along just as she should!

So Dixie looks well, but she is still finicky with her food.  When we hand her the bowl, she sniffs it and looks up forlornly.  I guess the California Naturals is just a little too healthy right now, to taste good.  So I have been mixing the healthy stuff with canned dog food....you know the kind with lots of meaty gravy!.  She gobbles it up with much gusto then.  I figure its better to spoil her right now, to be sure she gets the nutrition she needs for her growing litter.  

 The photos posted here are current, and yet because of Dixie's winter coat, it is hard to see that she is pregnant.  Believe me, if you look straight down at her from above, there is no denying it now!

At this stage the puppies growing inside of Dixie are a little bigger than a walnut.   Over the next four weeks the pups will grow very rapidly and Dixie will get very large, very quickly.  For my part,  I just want to be sure Dixie has all the nutrition she needs to whelp the healthiest litter possible.

To further assure a healthy Mama, we have been taking Dixie out for off leash runs through the woods whenever the temperature is tolerable.   Dixie cannot  resist the urge to stretch her legs in full gallop as she runs up and down the hills.  But no worries.  She is very safe.  There is nothing but silent woods for as far as the eye can see.  And Dixie is very closely bonded to us.  She always keeps within view....her white coat shines like a beacon against the woodland floor of fallen leaves.   I take great pleasure in seeing her circling back toward me and running up with a big grin as if to say, "Isn't this great!".  And I respond with equal enthusiasm.  "Yes, it is wonderful!"  It is the greatest joy for a dog to run through the woods sniffing all the wonderful fragrances.  And for me, I have the peace of mind in knowing she will be in top physical condition for whelping her puppies.