Thanks To You Mama Marley, We Have A Keeper

As some of you may remember, this pup started out being called, "Brownie" due to the color of yarn used in identifying each of the eight puppies, this is him at 6 days old.

This is he, just alittle over one month old here... Folks, meet "Dunkin"

Look at him now, he is just two month old; actual date of this picture Apr.18, 2009 ( I really need to reset the date on our digital) We have decided (well, that's a royal we, meaning me) we couldn't part with this little guy. Just like our old Lab mix this puppy seemed to be very vocal, he whimpered and whined alot.

Speaking of which, he is calling me to go out for a potty break, BRB...

GOOD BOY!

I'm so impressed at how quickly Dunkin catches on, this is great news. I intend on putting Dunkin through a number of training classes and into agility, for anyone who has owned a retreiver knows they are an energetic breed requiring hours of playtime.

Here you see Marley "helping me out" in the process of calming Dunkin down. Marley loves to show her son the ropes, she is teaching him how to defend himself and it is funny to watch. As, I've mentioned Dunkin catches on very quick. Marley will agitate Dunkin until he is chasing her around the livingroom, grabbing at her tail, chewing on her ear, latching onto Marley's collar, even grabbing hold of her lip. Just when you think they've had enough, a new round starts with a ball the other one wants, or the knotted rope in a game of tug-of-war. Hubby and I sit back a chuckle often saying "Dunkin is going to be a big boy" when he grows up, definately, going to tower over Mama Marley.

Marley's day with the Vet

Today, Marley went to the veterinarians to be altered (spayed) poor girl. She has let herself gain total trust in our family. To the point, that she has become very territorial, if she spots someone walking down the road she goes after them, hair standing on her back, barking furiously. When she is following someone down the road barking and we call to her, she gets closer to the people walking, rather than listening to our calls. Hubby, spoke to the Vet about this today, as Marley having been so afraid of people when she was dropped off in our neighborhood back in August of 2008 seems as if she may bite you out of fear.

I called Hubby earlier to check on how Marley did when they arrived at the Vets office, she was terrified, shaking all over, after explaining to the Veterinarian her past history as we know of it, he was willing to let Marley stay on her leash rather than in a cage, hoping to let her get aquainted with him and his staff members.

It breaks our hearts, to think that Marley had been abused so badly, to the point she trusts no one outside this family. We hope and pray, that our family can and will be able to prove to Marley, not all people are cruel. We'd love to put Marley in class with her son Dunkin, however, with her being this terrified of other people, we must work through that first.

Any dog whisperers out there that would be willing to guide this family and the dog who chose us to a better way of life with strangers...

Who Knew

From assisting in the delivery, to getting up 2 or 3 times each night, dragging Momma Marley with me, into the whelping box we would go. Marley was not keen on getting into the box with a litter of 8 screaming babies, she needed someone to hold her paw, night after night, this became the norm, If I left just for a minute, momma Marley would be out of that whelping box and wedged under the bed. Oh, no ya don't girl, these babies depend on momma's milk, come on now, I'll sit with you. When the pups reached the 16th day they were climbing out of the whelping box. Out to the shop I went in search of plywood to make a wall for the laundry/utility room (a bigger box) just for the puppies. I ran out to the country store and purchased a formula made for babies "Just Born" this was mixed with Iams puppy smart to make a runny mash, which the pups would lap up, then stumble off to their blanket to sleep for a few hours, or until they started screaming for more mash.

As time went on, the mash was less mushy and more like tender kibbles. Then it came down to just Iams puppy smart and warm water to feed the little buggers. Now drinking on their own for a few weeks and eating "very well" at the age of 6 weeks, I've decided to start searching for new puppy parents. Happy to say, half of them have found just that. Four pups were placed with families that had dog breeds of this type, they'd had them anywhere from 12 up to 14 years depending on individual circumstances. Three out of four went to country homes and one went to a home on the lake, all very kind folks, loved their prior pets, saddened by their passings. These are homes all puppy parents should look for, a thorough screening was done with each family to qualify, and to give me a clear conscience of knowing they will be properly cared for.

Little, did I know how difficult it would be to see them all leave. It must be because I had to play the role of their mother for the last 6 weeks. Two more will be going home tomorrow, guess hubby will have to see them off, I'm not good at saying my good~byes. It seems the last ones are the most difficult... (pay no attention to the date) I had to recharge the batteries in my digital and skipped over setting the date. These were taken today April 3,2009 as they all lay sleeping under the stools at the island. Well, they were asleep until they heard me coming...

I pray, that the remaining puppies will get loving families and that each puppy will remain a family member to those who have chosen them for the rest of their precious lives.

Hugs and puppy kisses to all who reads this...