Finally! More Pictures...

Double click on the Slideshow at the right to open up the most recent puppy pics!

Too Cute!

Hi All! I'm afraid to say I don't have any pics to post today, but I did want to update you on how everyone is doing. Dave was sick this weekend, but thank goodness, I didn't have to work at the vet's or at the zoo, so I was able to take care of everyone. It even got warm enough that I could finally hose out the kennels - and boy did they need it!

DeeDee is still doing great with the pups and is trying her best to keep the nest box clean, but with puppies who are increasingly mobile and eating like crazy, she's begining to lose the race! One thing that is also beginning to change is that DeeDee is spending less and less time in the box with the puppies. While this weekend that had more to do with the San Juan rabbits I just picked up that are in cages in the barn, the main reason she's spending less time with the pups is little puppy teeth! The pups are teething right now and think Mom is a great chew toy, so she isn't letting them nurse any more than they have to!

The puppies are so enjoyable to watch right now. They are so cute and chubby and active! When they see me, they rush the front of the box to visit, then cry because they want out - we still have a board up to prevent them from wandering out of their safe place. They've begun to wrestle with each other clumsily and bite at each other, but they are still little enough that the wrestling matches last all of about 5 minutes. Then they collapse in a big puppy pile and go to sleep!

Today I clipped little puppy nails (aka "daggers"), which should help Mom's belly from becoming too raw as little paws knead at her. I checked everyone's bites, which look perfect, then just hugged and kissed on each of the puppies one by one. While beagle puppies in general are always cute, I have to say, I think this litter of pups may be the best looking litter yet! I can't wait for them to get bigger and see how their conformation develops!

Well all, as usual, its getting late. I will try to remember my camera in the next day or two. (I just kept forgetting it with the busy weekend.) I'll get picks for all to see as soon as I can! Take care everyone!

Individual Puppy Pics

Hi Everyone! As promised, here are the latest puppy pictures. All of the puppies are color-coded by their collars and will keep these collars so that you can keep track of them as they grow. Everyone is doing great, even little Green boy. All the puppies have chubby round bellies, big noggins, and little ears right now! They're cute, but goofy looking right now! They have opened their eyes and their ears and have begun exploring more now that they can tell where they are going. (Ok, well sorta - their sight still isn't the best!)

White girl (Racing stripe girl, Miss Piggy) - Already full of personality, she never misses a meal! She thinks she is the queen and lounges about the nest box belly up most of the time.

Pink girl - Wiggly, wiggly, and more wiggly!

Purple girl (formerly wore an Orange collar) - Easily contented, she doesn't fuss much...that is, except when she's happily nursing. That's when she starts her happy little cries, which can be a bit confusing to Mom!

Green boy - still the smallest, but not by much! His problem has always been that he wants to check everything out - which means he's always last to dinner!

Red boy (formerly wore a dark green collar) - this guy can move! He's a bit wobbly, but he's already trying to walk and does a pretty good job of it too!

Blue boy - today I'm calling him grumpy! He wasn't happy about his photo shoot and cried for mom til she started to get annoyed with me! Aaah, the price of cuteness!

Yellow boy - last but not least! He nearly fooled us into thinking DeeDee was only having 6 puppies, but better late than never! He's the "baby", but came out bigger than any of the rest of the puppies! This guy was a tough one to photograph because he just kept coming straight towards me. His eyes work just fine!

New Pics Available Through Picasa Slideshow

To see the most recent puppy pics, double click on the slideshow on the right side of the blog. Remember, you can always go back to view older pictures by go to Picasa through the slideshow, then selecting my public albums. The pictures in Picasa are full-size so that you can order them or print them out yourself.

Puppies are growing quickly!

Hi Everyone - Everything continues to be busy on our end of the line this fall, especially with rapidly growing puppies! After a slow start, even the little Green boy is starting to gain quickly. He is now dealing with a bit of diarrhea, which often happens after a change in feeding habits, but having made it past 1 week, I think this little guy will do just fine. All of the puppies are little chubs right now - big round bellies and fat heads (with little ears)! Even though all of the puppies have their eyes closed and can not yet hear, we can already start to see little personalities emerging. Some puppies are more laid back than others, while others are more demanding! We just got new little velcro collars to help with ID'ing the puppies, so we'll start calling the puppies by collar names until each of you selects and names your puppy. I haven't had the chance to take my camera out to the property for pics this week, but will do so tonight, as I'm sure you are all anxious to see more of these little cuties.

In the meantime, beginning next week, I will start asking for deposits to confirm that you are serious about selecting a puppy. Deposits will be $150 and will go towards the total purchase price of the puppies. If you end up not choosing a puppy from this litter, your deposit may be used to go towards selection of a pup from our next litter in the spring/summer and you will be placed at the beginning of the waiting list. More info to follow...

DeeDee's Puppies Are Here!!!

Dam: Ms. Daytona DGO


Sire: FC Willie's Little Boss Man

Hi Everyone! This is the first of my posts to update everyone on what is going on with DeeDee and her newborn puppies. Puppies were born on Tuesday beginning at 1:15am. Based on the X-rays, we were expecting 6 puppies, although the vet thought there might be a seventh, but was leaning toward 6. Somewhat surprising of a number, considering she had had a C-section with her last litter due to the last puppy being too big and getting stuck. Normally, litter sizes are reduced for future litters after a C-section. Considering DeeDee's last litter was 11, which is huge, I guess 6-7 IS a reduction, but still! It is still a relatively large litter on average! DeeDee's delivery went very smoothly with little to no assistance needed. This was her 3rd (and most likely last) litter, and the pups just popped on out with little effort. At 8am, after 6 puppies were born, DeeDee seemed to relax, stop having contractions, and get sleepy. I cleaned up the dirty bedding and got her set up. Puppies were all either nursing or napping, so Dave traded out with me so that I could still go into work for the day. Then at noon, I got a call. Dave went to go move the puppies into their nest box (from the cot I had been sleeping on in the barn and which DeeDee insisted on sleeping on and delivering her puppies on!). He moved 2 puppies into the box, then 2 more, then went to move the last ones and counted...3! He looked back in the box, looked back to the cot, and sure enough, there were now 7 puppies! Sometime between 11am and 12pm, DeeDee delivered one more! Guess the vet was right after all! The breakdown is 4 boys, 3 girls, and all of them are tri-color. They have a lot of white with big black spots, taking after their dad.

All of the puppies are doing well. One little male is being observed carefully, as he has lost a little bit of birth weight. Not unusual, but since the other puppies have all gained, we are taking this as a cue to be watchful. I'm occasionally giving him with subcutaeous (under the skin) fluids to provide him with some extra hydration and am making sure that he gets place in the best nursing spots. If need be, we'll begin supplemental feedings with puppy formula. However, since he is nursing strongly, I doubt we'll need to. Nonetheless, we continue to monitor all of the puppies' weights on a daily basis (using a little kitchen scale), as weight loss is often one of the first signs that a puppy is not thriving.

So I've taken the first puppy pics and placed them in the slideshow to the right. If you double click on the slide show, it will open up the photo album. The pictures are full-size, and you are welcome to save and/or print any pictures you want. I will continue to add album pictures as the puppies grow.

It is getting very late, and I'm already pretty sleep-deprived, so I'm going to get going here. I'll be in touch with everyone shortly to confirm reservations for puppies and explain the process for picking. To check your spot on the waiting list, please go to our website and click on the "Puppies for Sale" page. Talk to you all soon!

I haven't forgotten everyone!

Hi Everyone! Just wanted to let you know that I haven't forgotten about all of you now that you have your puppies. Last week was one of my busiest work weeks ever, and with a lot of deadlines looming, the beagle correspondence suffered. I have not yet scanned all of the contracts to PDF, so expect me to do that in the next day or two! In addition, I hope to follow up individually with everyone. :D

So as an update, all of the puppies who were headed to new homes have made it and are settling in! I have no doubt that each and every pup will be well loved. It's just weird to be down to the two girls, Nina and Rose, who actually have a new play buddy. Dave's dad Larry picked up a puppy from his nephew in East Enterprise, IN (near Rising Sun)... turns out he wanted a puppy of his own. Ths new puppy is approximately the same age as our pups and Larry has named her Della. She was a little uncertain about the new environment, but she and Rose in particular are now best of friends!

Just in case you all were curious, all of the puppies now have their new names:

John & Syliva chose Louie (Blue Boy);

John & Monica (actually, the boys) chose Narrow (Green Boy);

Dave & kids chose Rudi (White Girl);

...and finally...

Wendy & Todd in Columbus chose Luca (Red/Yellow Boy).

For some of the last pictures I took while the puppies were all together, please take a look at the new slide show. Remember you can still look back on old slide shows by double-clicking on the slideshow.