Three weeks marks a real turning point for puppies. Mama begins to wean slowly, leaving the box more and more frequently. And so it’s time to start introducing puppy food. The first several weeks it’s puppy mush. Since their little teeth have just barely come in, we puree up a mixture of puppy food, pumpkin, goat’s milk and diatomaceous earth. Pumpkin helps settle the tummy when acclimating to something new, goat’s milk boosts the nutritional value, and DE is a natural dewormer. It looks atrocious, but the puppy’s literally dive right in. After weeks on milk alone, they really are ready for something a bit more solid to grow on. And it's super cute when they help clean each other off :).
We also give pups their first round of dewormer - it is super common for most puppies to have worms. Unpleasant, but true. Especially in a farm environment where we have had animals of all kinds, parasites are everywhere. Puppies are wormed every 2 weeks.
Now that all of their eyes and ears are opened we also begin a new level of desensitization. One is Novelty Items. We place one new item each day in the pen for the puppies to explore. These items are intended to give the puppies a chance to experience a bit of the outside world from the safety of the whelping box, instead of being bombarded with it all at once. The first few weeks are “safe” items like an apple or a box of crackers. Things that won’t unsettle or upset the puppies. Later on we’ll add things that move and make noise. These items aren’t meant to scare the puppies but rather to bolster their ability to handle a variety of encounters, hopefully with confidence and curiosity. And if there is some hesitation and fear, those signs would indicate to us that we have a few things to work on before the puppy heads to its new home. Each puppy is different in how they handle these little encounters but it tells us a lot about the puppy.
We also begin Noise Desensitization. Every day I will pick a new noise to sort of “startle” the puppies with. Nothing terrifying. At first what’s naturally available in their room now that their ears have opened has sufficed: the washer, slamming the door, flushing toilet, running water. But as the weeks go on we’ll make sure they hear a vacuum cleaner, blender, hair dryer and other such things. Again, in the safety of their current environment, exposure to all kinds of things right now is crucial in getting the puppies acclimated to any and everything they may encounter in real life one day. The ultimate goal is to produce confident and stable dogs that will be able to quickly and and naturally recover from any surprise encounters down the road.
The puppies were also moved to a new location this week! They need a little more room to stretch their legs and explore so they have been moved to a new part of our house so we can double the size of the box. Their little legs are still not quite ready for slippery surfaces so we keep them on the whelping pads, but the new space also gives them more interaction with the life and noises of a busy household.
And last but not least, we ran genetic testing this week! It really was a big week, phew. It’ll be interesting to see where everyone falls with those genetic markers.
Overall, these pups are happy, healthy and resilient and I can’t wait to put them into the arms of their new forever people. We have found something unique and special to love about each and every single one of them. One of my favorite parts about doing this with a houseful of interested kids is the feedback I get from them about each puppy. The draw to the puppy pen is irresistible so I get reports all the time from all of my kids about what this puppy just did, why this puppy is so sweet, why they love that puppy so much. It’s like having my own personal data analysis group lol. Love it.
As always, please email us at bramblymountainfarm@gmail.com come if you have any questions or are interested in our last two puppy placements!
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