Remember how I placed those grass-potty-stations in the whelping box as soon as their eyes were open around Day 11? I spoke about how using bioenzymatic cleaner, changing up their environment daily and giving them a specific “potty place” would pay off. Here we are. Day 27 and I can show you multiple puppies making decisions about where to do their business. It’s fascinating. It’s fabulous. And I am super happy to have caught these examples on video today for you. Make no mistake, they have been using them all along it is just that I had not made a point of recording the evidence! This progress made in the first month of their lives will continue to grow over the next five weeks while they are still here with me but more importantly once they are in their homes.
Peaches is such a sweet, tolerant and patient Mama. Super proud of her for the way she has taken to motherhood as a maiden-bitch. Breeders value good mamas like Peaches because when you have one who is not really into their puppies, it puts A LOT more pressure on the breeder to fill the role where the mama lacks. And no matter how much experience we have or how many litters we have whelped, we cannot replace a good puppy mama.
Many canine rescue organizations force wean at 3 weeks and remove the dam in order to spay and place her. In that scenario those puppies will be missing this early relationship which will result in them being less balanced adult canines. What you will see Peaches instilling in her puppies through her consistent engagement and Jungle-Gym-Mama behaviour in the first nine weeks of their lives will be paid forward into these boys as mature adults for many years to come.