Friday, January 20, 2012

Wow! We've Turned into Puppies!

Though I know well that the third week of a pup's life is marked by huge milestones, I'm still amazed every time (like it's brand new) at the changes I see in each litter during this precious window of development.  It's like they turn into puppies (as most people think of puppies) overnight.

Here it is, Day 19 or 20 (depending on which pup we're talking about), and just look at what's happened:
  • Walking has become the preferred method of ambulation (instead of crawling).  Granted, it's still a drunken-sailor walk, but they're up on all fours!
  • Elimination and voiding (poo-ing and pee-ing) is now something they do on their own. Kenya is cleaning less; the humans are cleaning more. :)
  • The pups get up from where they're sleeping and waddle over to a different part of the whelping box to potty, then waddle back to the puppy pile. They're instinctively pottying in places other than where they sleep.
  • Their vision is becoming usable. When they "see" things now, they react appropriately with sniffs or puzzlement or growls or barks or pounces.
  • They recognize each other (oh boy, litter mates!). 
  • They play with each other. Okay, so it doesn't last very long, but they do "play" for short stretches.
  • They wrassle. :O)   
  • They're feeling secure with their humans, not just with Kenya.
  • They can pant and lap.
  • They have (ouch! for Kenya) teeth!  Their baby teeth are just poking through their gums, and just like human babies, this is uncomfortable for them.  They're beginning to feel the need to chew (look out world!). 
  • They've been introduced to ice cubes (oooo... feels good on sore gums). 
  • They can voluntarily sit, stand, roll over, scratch, paw, wag their tails, chew, investigate objects they "see" (still blurry, but visible), and are just beginning to climb.
  • This morning, I noticed that Master Green might be responding to sound, so I suspect their ears may be starting to unseal.
What follows are a few videos (can't think now exactly what's in each one) taken last night when all were fully 2.5 weeks old (they'll all be 3 weeks old in two days).  In these videos they cannot yet hear, but you'll see they're quite puppy-like otherwise.

One clip is much longer than I usually post (a full five minutes of "play"), but I couldn't resist since the pups were active for the entire time (a new record for them!).  The other two are shorter. :o)

So, here they are, the Plumpty Dumpties a 2.5 weeks old:






3 comments:

Riley and Stella said...

Oh my,that is a whole lot of cuteness! I wanna puppy!

JuliaR said...

The adorableness of it all!

I don't know how your husband could resist picking them up and smooshing them with kisses.

Mary said...

They really are adorable and I'm with JuliaR, how did DH not scoop them up and rub his face all over them?