National Parks Litter

All puppies have opened their eyes which means we are entering the Transitional Period together!

I am starting to hear a variety of noises from the whelping box- beyond those of the neonatal puppy murmurs. A few are now growling/grumbling, howling, and barking.

The next change to notice is when each puppy begins to show signs of hearing.

Acadia is the first to show some ear picking towards the direction of sounds.

Next week I will start playing music and sound CDs on a low volume to begin desensitization to noises like traffic, sirens, barking dogs, and all the sounds at dog sports trials and show grounds.

I set up two 18x24x2.5 deep pans along one side of the whelping box. At this point in time, the puppies are mobile enough to crawl in and out.

Whenever I notice a puppy about to potty, I move them to litter pan. I will also move them to the pan after they drop off nursing or upon waking from naps. This is to impress on them that the pine pellets/pans are for pottying. I don’t expect them to make it there on their own quite yet; though, I have observed some baby steps. Acadia put his front feet in the pan and started peeing. Close enough, haha!

Irene took issue with the pans so I took one out for a couple days to ease her transition. I have since re-added the second pan. Usually the ‘clean’ sleeping area to potty area ratio is 1:4 but since Irene is very sensitive to mess, we are making due with ~2:1 and changing bedding more frequently.

Side note, I raise Rex rabbits so I happened to have pans and pine pellets on hand. Most breeders start with potty pads at this age.

At exactly three weeks old, the entire litter is exhibiting the startle reflex. This marks the end of the Transitional Period and the beginning of Socialization Period aka the really fun part!