The Neonatal Period Day 1-13

Lucky has a full belly and sleeps peacefully.

The puppies were born into this world with very limited sensory ability.  All they had was a keen sense of smell that would direct them immediately to their mama for food.   They looked so scrawny and helpless...not much bigger than a hampster!  Yet they had all the strength and persistence they needed to get their food and warmth.

For the first few weeks the puppies eyes and ears are closed tight.  These senses of sight and hearing are still developing.  Today, at 12 days old, I noticed that the puppies eyes were just beginning to open.  Their eyes will not be fully open for a few days still.

Can you see my eyes are open a tiny bit?

 Their eyes will look dull and without much light at first.  They are still developing and it will be several more days still until they will be seeing forms.  At first they see light and darkness.  Then slowly blurred shapes and then after a few more days, they will see objects.  At the same time their ears are opening and the vibrations of sound will begin to register as well.

During that first week the puppies seemed to be nursing constantly.   They squirmed close to one another for warmth.  I closed the air conditioning vents in the puppy room so the temperature would be nice and warm.  Since newborn puppies do not have the ability to regulate their temperature, chills are the leading cause of puppy mortality.  But rest assured, our puppies are toasty warm!

Dixie's appetite really picked up pace when the puppies were born.  She scarfs down several bowls of food a day...and drinks so much water too.  I let her eat and drink as much as she wants, until we are ready to wean the puppies.  She needs the extra calories to build up her milk supply and keep these puppies growing up healthy and strong.

It is truly amazing how quickly the puppies grow.  I was astonished how quickly they were putting on weight during those first days.   Then, I went away for several days after the 4th of July.   I went up to Manhattan to visit a few friends.  We spent the day sight seeing, and I kept thinking of one of our puppies families, who lives a few blocks from Central Park.  Wouldn't it have been crazy to visit them with a  puppy in my pocket...ha ha!  He would have fit!  But obviously the thought of separating a puppy from his mama is preposterous!
While I was gone, my dear hubby was home to hold down the fort.    When I got home on
Monday, I could visibly see the puppies had grown.  They looked really fat and healthy.  It made me feel happy.

There was one unfortunate problem....my puppy scale disappeared!   Just so you know....we have a Bermuda Triangle in this house.  Things mysteriously escape into another dimension....assisted by a 3 yr old I think.  And so I am sorry to say that I cannot weigh the puppies until another scale arrives in the mail.   Hmmm.  What can I say?  I guess its not the end of the world.  The puppies are still growing, there's no doubt about it:)