Puppy Personal Ads

The puppies are four weeks old today (we're halfway home - woohoo!), and everyone is doing great. They're eating puppy food (which I must mix with water to make it mushy), walking well, playing like crazy and generally acting like little goofy puppies.

And even though they must still stay with me for another month, FIVE of them already have homes waiting on them. So now the goal is to place the other three girls and Mama Penny.

You can read all about Penny in one of the posts below. For the other three, they asked me to post their personal ads that they wrote about themselves. So here they are:

Ruby

Single, black, white and tan female looking for companionship... Supposedly I'm the runt of the litter (ok, in all honesty, I'm MUCH smaller than everyone else), but don't let that fool you. I have just as much personality as any of the others. I love to eat, go for long walks and watch America's Next Top Model. I kind of look a little like a beagle, but since my dad's a deadbeat, there's really no way to tell exactly what my pedigree might be. I'm fearless and scrappy and ready to take on whatever gets thrown at me. Please consider bringing me home with you!

Petunia

Hi! I'm Petunia, but you can call me Petey if you'd like. I am the girly-girl of the bunch. When everyone else is diving and swimming through their food, I am delicately and neatly munching away... I also love bubble baths and pearls, and I can't WAIT for the new Sex and the City movie - Charlotte is my favorite! Oh, and my foster mom told me to make sure and mention this: Apparently I can't hear very well (or at all, actually). It's no big deal to me at all, but just thought everyone should know. My foster mom says that it's no big deal either - in fact, because dogs learn visual cues easier than audible cues, deaf dogs learn their commands very easily. So I'd still make a great little dog! But mom says that she'll only let me go to someone who is dog-experienced and understands how important it will be to train me with sign language. Please take me into your heart and home...

Hazel

Gosh, Petey - pearls? And bubble baths?? Oh, um, sorry - Hi... I'm Hazel, and I am NOT the girly-girl of the bunch. I'm more of a hiking in the woods, going for a run, taking in a baseball game kind of girl. And, oh gosh, I'm so embarrassed about this, but my foster mom is making me tell you this... she says I'm one of the smartest in the litter. Man! That is so embarrassing! I mean, it is true that I was the first to figure out how to escape our pen. And I was also one of the first to start walking, but I just don't like bragging about myself, ya know? So if you're looking for a sporty, fun, no-nonsense kind of dog then I'm your girl!

Cute new dog beds from Pottery Barn

So you may know that Pottery Barn is a great source for furniture, bedding and home accessories... but have you seen the cute new dog beds they're offering for spring?

I just ordered the adorable navy polka dot bed above for my three dogs. They have all different colors, shapes and styles.

Clockwise from top: Pottery Barn's Organic Rectangular Dog Bed, Bolster Dog Bed, Sherpa Dog Bed


And for those of you who might want to splurge on your pooch, Pottery Barn also offers some furniture options. If I had the space for it, I would totally order this Dog Cubby. It might seem extravagant, but when you have three dogs like I do, you somehow end up with TONS of doggie "stuff," and this would be great to keep it all organized.



And finally - if you have a dog that likes to enjoy the great outdoors, you might want to buy them this for the summer... My dogs would probably think I was crazy, but if you have a pooch that likes the shade, they'd love this little doggie cabana:

First Meal

In order to get the puppies ready for real food, I gave them puppy formula to lap from a bowl this weekend. You can see from the video that they weren't sure whether they should drink it or swim in it! They started to get the hang of it, but one look at the "After" picture of Lulu tells you exactly how much of the formula they ended up wearing...

Please Adopt Penny!

Penny was rescued from Greenville County Animal Services 2 days before she was scheduled to be put to sleep. At that time, she was VERY pregnant and has since given birth to her seven beautiful puppies. Of course, everyone wants the puppies, but no one wants little Penny. Penny is a sweet, gentle dog about 2 years old who loves to play in the backyard with the other dogs. She’s had a rough time so far, but has bonded quickly with me and just loves to follow me around the house when she’s not watching over her puppies. She is housetrained and although she’s not currently crated due to the puppies, she would crate very well because her favorite spot is a small closet where she can curl up in the dark. She is fine with my cat, and absolutely loves the other dogs.

No one is quite sure what breeds make up this sweet girl – in fact, our best guess is a cross between a mouse and a giraffe... but she’s most likely some kind of Hound/Australian Cattle Dog mix. She’s a little shy at first (wouldn’t you be too if you’d been through everything she has?), but warms up quickly and is a very loving dog.

She’ll be ready to go to a new home at the beginning of May once her puppies are old enough to leave her, and will be up-to-date on shots and spayed prior to adoption. Please consider giving this little mom a good home.

Lightweight

Ruby on the scale... so small!

Instructional Video: How to Fall Asleep Puppy-Style

An instructional video starring Georgia...
Step 1: Big yawn...
Step 2: PLOP!

Nursing Again??

Need I say anything else? I think Penny's face says it all :)

Lovable Lulu

Lulu was the first-born and she happens to be my favorite. She is so pretty (the camera doesn't do her justice) and has the sweetest, most laid-back temperament. She's the largest puppy in the bunch, but still hasn't opened her eyes or started walking.

In case you're wondering about the tape on her back legs... here's the story. Lulu was born with a slight hump in her back. At about 4 days old, the veterinarian took x-rays of her and discovered that she has two malformed vertebrae. She determined that at this point, Lulu is perfectly sound and the vertebrae are NOT affecting her mobility or spinal cord. Another great thing is that as she's grown, the hump has gotten smaller so that it is now barely noticeable. But as she's gotten older, it seems that her legs are a little weaker than the other pup's. The tape is an attempt to "hobble" her back legs so that they get strong enough to push her up so that she can walk.

I'll keep everyone posted on her progress, but if we can get her up and walking, she should be able to lead a perfectly normal doggie life!

Sweet Georgia

Georgia's nickname is "Lil' Pistol." She was the first one to open her eyes, and the first one to walk. She's constantly running wide-open. She is, by far, the most active puppy of the bunch. In fact, she is always attempting things that are just a little beyond her reach. For example, she's just started walking, but she gets going so fast that she'll just tumble over and start rolling. Her coordination isn't quite up to speed yet. She's also the most vocal of the bunch and will let you know if she's hungry or cold.

Hazel... the Little Bulldog

This is not the best picture of Hazel, but it's the best I could do considering the fact that she was absolutely intent on staying curled up asleep. I call her "Hoss" even though she's a girl because she is SOLID. She's not all that much bigger than everyone else in actual size, but she feels like a little brick. She also has the cutest little wrinkles up her snout. I'm very excited to see what she looks like as she gets older. She's started walking and her eyes are opening up as well.

Ruby

Meet Ruby - also known as Ruby Sue - the runt of the litter. But whatever she lacks in size, she more than makes up for it in attitude. If she's not sleeping, she's moving. Even when she's nursing, she somehow manages to wiggle. It took me forever to get a picture of the little mouse because she wouldn't sit still. She's starting to walk (as you can see from her attempted escape below), and is already a little comedian.

Tough Little Tillman

Tillman's first week of life wasn't easy. He was dehydrated and had trouble nursing, but with lots of bottle feeding, care and prayer, he's doing much better. He's super cute... and has a coat that is totally different from all the others. It's very wavy and that leads me to believe it will be similar to a Cocker Spaniel's coat. He's super huggable due to the fact that he was held so much early on for his bottle feedings.

Famous Amos

Little Amos is such a sweetheart. Both boys seem to have more mellow temperaments than most of the girls. He loves to be held and will settle in for a little nap if you hug him close. I've noticed that he does have a tendency to scoot away from the rest of the pack on a regular basis. I say scoot because he's not walking yet either. And his eyes are locked shut. I'm not sure why some puppies have progressed more quickly than others, but I'm sure it won't be long before he's catching up. He has been affectionately dubbed "Teddy Bear" because, well... just look at him!

Pretty Petunia

It's been a while since I've posted pictures of everyone so that's what I'll do today and give everyone an update on each puppy. First up... Petunia! She is so incredibly cute. Her nickname is Miss Piggy because with her little pink nose and ears, she looks like a pig! About half the puppies have a very short, terrier-like coat like hers. So far she's not walking or opening her eyes, but that should change soon. She's been relatively active so far, although she's definitely NOT as crazy as a couple of her sisters.

And the winner is...

I had expected the puppies to start opening their eyes over the weekend, but so far the only one that has done so is Georgia. This isn't surprising actually - she's only a week old, but I can tell this one is going to be a little pistol. She's constantly on the move, crawling over her brothers and sisters, squeaking like crazy. She has one eye open all the way and the other is only open a little, so she kind of looks like Popeye!

Penny Wants Some Time to Herself...

Penny has been an amazing mom so far... she's with the puppies constantly and is taking exceptional care of the babies. But I guess sometimes even the best mom just needs to get away. I walked in the puppy room last night and this is what I saw:

And then this:

Can I just point out the fact that she is a 50 lb. dog, and she has managed to curl herself up in a basket that is approximately 18 in. x 30 in.! I guess she really wanted to get away from those pups!

So it seems that Penny can now add "contortionist" to her resume. Just one more benefit for anyone who decides to adopt this beautiful girl.

One week old today!

The puppies are one week old today... their eyes should start opening any day now. How cute is this new photo?

Who's Your Daddy?

For those of you reading this who might be interested in adopting one of these little guys, please know that the following is not intended to guarantee anything. If I've learned anything about mutts through the years, it's that you can never be 100% certain what you're getting.

But at their vet visit the other day, the veterinarian ventured a guess as to what the father might be for these little ones. Her personal thought was that there might have been two dads (yes, it is indeed possible and yes, it does make Penny sound like a tart). Her guess was that some might be Cocker Spaniel mixes and some might have Jack Russell running through their veins.

But the only way you can ever know for sure what you're getting with a mutt is to purchase one of these unbelievable new DNA test kits. You can purchase them through Orvis (or a variety of other doggie stores online). The basic idea is that you rub the inside of your dog's mouth with the swab provided and then package it up and send it off to a lab. In about 6 weeks, you get a report back that tells you the different breeds that make up your beloved mutt.

Mama Penny Goes to the Vet

As if I didn't have enough to worry about with all the puppies, Penny has developed a cough and she's sneezing all over the place. So we took a little trip to the vet this morning. It turns out she has an upper respiratory infection AND an ear infection. Lovely. So now she'll be on cough medicine and antibiotics for the next couple of weeks.

She's been a little shy as she's adjusted to my household of craziness, but she's beginning to come around. So I was expecting her to be very upset about the vet visit. Surprisingly, as you can see from her photo, she was rather chill. Everyone who meets her just falls in love with her gentle disposition.

Sad News

Sorry for the lack of posts lately... it's been a rough few days. Little baby Huck passed away on Tuesday this week. The vet says it's very common to lose a puppy in a litter this large, but that certainly doesn't make it any easier. So I've done a little crying this week. They've only been here a few days, but it still seems strange to look in on them and see only seven. How does losing something you've had only four days break your heart?

They all had their first check-up yesterday... Tillman hadn't been doing very well either. The vet said that he was extremely dehydrated. I've been incredibly worried about him because he wasn't nursing very well. I've been feeding him by hand with puppy formula and Pedialyte. As of this morning, I think we've turned a corner. He seems much better and is nursing with the rest of the pups. Hopefully he'll continue to improve.

Young Republicans

So it's never too early to teach these little guys about right and wrong, huh? How cute would they all look in these little tees from Barker and Meowsky?

And just in case there happen to be some folks out there who have other political affiliations, they make them with donkeys too.

In Demand

So apparently Amos is one cute little puppy. I've already had three people ask about him... and he's only three days old! So it looks like I won't have to worry about finding him a good home.

Here he is with a friend of mine and his future owner... don't they make a cute couple??

Leap Year Puppies

Penny's puppies were born on February 29th which makes them leap year babies! I think it's so funny that these guys will have to wait until 2012 before they have their first birthdays... So in honor of Leap Day and in celebration of the Gang of Eight, here are some interesting Leap Year facts:

1. Julius Caesar proclaimed the last day of February as Leap Year Day, skipping it three out of four years. Back then, February 30th was the last day of the last month of the year, which is why he picked it.

2. If you're a "Leaper," you will have beaten the 1,506 odds against being born on Leap Day.

3. Leap Year was the traditional time that women could propose marriage. When the rules of courtship were stricter, women were only allowed to pop the question on one day every four years - February 29th.

4. There are currently around 4.1 million ‘Leapers’ in the world today.

5. Ja Rule is a Leap Year Baby born on February 29, 1976.

They're Here!

So Penny surprised me on Friday morning... with puppies! I had no idea to expect them so soon. The vet had told me it would probably be mid-week THIS week, not last. She went into labor around 4:00 am, and then had her last puppy around 11:00 am.

She had a litter of EIGHT puppies - five girls and three boys. They're all super cute and no one looks exactly alike.

We had a scary moment with the first puppy... I was asleep and heard Penny moaning from the back corner of my closet Friday morning. I jumped up and called her, and she came tumbling out - perhaps from excitement or perhaps from nervousness. I took her out into the backyard so she could do her business before we came back and started having those puppies... We were out there for a couple of minutes, came back in, and there was a puppy on the floor of my bedroom! I guess during the excitement of everyone running out the door in the dark neither she nor I realized that a puppy had popped out. How crazy, right? Luckily, the poor little thing turned out to be ok.

So, here they are... the fantastic eight, in order of appearance :)

Lulu

Amos

Hazel

Georgia

Tillman

Petunia

Ruby

Huck

New Life, New Name

I picked up the little mom-to-be on Thursday afternoon from the Greenville County Animal Services. She was so scared that she refused to walk so someone who works at the shelter had to help me carry her to the car.

She arrived at my house safe and sound that night and was introduced to the whole gang. She seems to get along fine with the other dogs. And of course, they don't mind her - they're so used to me dragging different dogs through there that they hardly bat an eye.

My friend Kati came over to meet her, and while we were talking, we decided that she didn't really look like an "Ellie." So we took inspiration from the copper dot on the top of her head and renamed her "Penny." She didn't respond to Ellie at all anyway (they had given her that name only three days ago at the shelter) so it shouldn't be a problem for her.

So now we wait... the vet who saw her Thursday afternoon predicted that we'd have puppies before the week was out!