Princess Sparkle...

[tanza]

@jengosmonkey - Very cool!... and once their eyes are open Sparkle will let Logan talk to them... totally normal... And how funny that you post that you Know who is who... many have asked that question... when you raise a litter you know who is who... LOL...

[JENGOSMonkey]

Just weighed them all, adjusted collars and slimed tails... 5 of 6 are above 2 pounds! Little one is a just few ounces shy, but she had a pretty good weight gain day. Checked eyes gain. Still need three pups to open up. Hopefully tomorrow. It's interesting watching them. They all seem to have about the same mobility, but the ones whose eyes opened today have better targeting e.g., they see Sparkle sooner and make a b-line straight to her instead of wondering around and bouncing off of pig rails first. Newborn collars have about another one, two days at most of adjustment left, then time to switch to the bigger ones. Have everything ready for solid food introduction this weekend.

I love seeing their little eyes open so I can say hello. It's obvious though that they're still pretty light sensitive. Not sure if I'm just a blur or just a big ugly monkey, but at least they can associate the big ol’paw that picks 'em up, kisses 'em, weighs 'em and stuff like that. I keep showing them to Logan, but he seems scared to get too close to them. Not sure if he's afraid of Sparkle, or he just doesn't want to be the meat head that breaks one. Who knows?

Hopefully it won't be long now till everyone has eyes open, gains some confidence and I can start setting them loose on me on the floor. I slept on a cot next to the whelping box for almost the first two weeks, but have moved to the couch in the same room. Kinda looking forward to sleeping in a real bed again soon.

[JENGOSMonkey]

Ok... you've waited long enough. Here's a few...

I call this Neck Nap...

This one is Eyes...

This is "I'm Good"

[JENGOSMonkey]

This is Spike and PW...

[elbrant]

@jengosmonkey said in Princess Sparkle...:

Kinda looking forward to sleeping in a real bed again soon.

Probably a bit late to mention this, but.... Walmart sells inflatable mattresses in the camping area. The last time I checked twins were under $10 (plus the battery operated inflation pump, which I recommend). I'm sure other places sell them also -- just thinking it might be more comfortable than a sofa.

[Zande]

@jengosmonkey Sparkle will get fed up with these little balls of energy and allow Logan full access once the eyes are fully open. But you don't tell us what his reaction is to the one pup at a time ? How does he feel about the new-comers ?

And no real need to sleep close to them on a sofa - I was only that conscientious the first night and then it was back to my own bed for me !

[JENGOSMonkey]

@zande Yeah, well, ya know... first time nervous puppy dad. Gotta make certain everything is perfect and nothing bad happens, so closer is better. But I agree... I think we're passed a good part of the danger. Just so worried something might go wrong along the way, and I wouldn't be near enough to unscrew a screwed-up situation. I will say this! Pig rails are awesome! Hard for momma to squish a puppy when it's protected by a pig rail.

Logan is cautious. He gets close and sniffs their noses. Part of the issue is protective momma. When she sees me remove a puppy from the whelping box, she follows. As I'm showing it to Logan she will stick her snout between his and the pups to back him away. She's not nasty to him, but definitely assertive. He usually backs away. I think next week will be better once everyone's eyes are open as you say. The ones whose eyes are open are already much more playful than the ones whose eyes are still closed. That should change soon.

My plan is to more a coffee table out of the family room and set down a large blanket, then put all the pups on the blanket so we can all play together. I'm hoping Sparkle relaxes and Logan perks up.

[Zande]

Shame you don't have a granny Basenji. Our older ladies lactated and helped Mom at mealtimes. I have lovely pics of Grandma Tuppy feeding one pup while daughter Ziggy fed the other two. Ziggy only had 3 to nurse, Sparkle has a lot bigger family.
Chezz developed milk for Troubles pups too.
It is a Basenji habit in a pack.

[Kembe]

@zande
How wonderful the grandmother helping out w/ the pups - Nature @ it’s best! ❤️

[tanza]

@zande - Funny you should talk about bitches sharing.... my Maggii let Mickii "mother" the babies, but she didn't get milk and C-Me let Franie play Mom with her babies, but she didn't get milk either. GOOD THING since I was still showing both of them... LOL

[Zande]

@tanza My grandmothers have always had milk to help Mom with the babies. Its hilarious to see two bitches feeding in the same whelping box !

[elbrant]

@zande said in Princess Sparkle...:

My grandmothers have always had milk to help Mom with the babies

grateful that human females don't share this trait ;)

[JENGOSMonkey]

I saw a thread today where someone was upset about getting to many email updates. I respect that. I'm kinda at the other end of the spectrum in that I don't get enough. I love seeing the new guys like @jamesmw. What an awesome long legged big footed lil' dude he is. More Please!

So... a Sparkle puppy update. EVERYBODIES EYES ARE OPEN! YAY!!! So, what does that mean? It means play time! Puppies are playing with one another. Climbing one another with purpose, gnawing one another... and me! I'm not certain, but I think I may have felt a tooth.

This is the other weird thing... Momma walks in, and she won't lie down. She stands to clean everyone first. She doesn't abide a dirty bed. While she's doing this the strong one's move beneath her and crane their necks to find a tap (nipple). I'm sorry. Makes me laugh every time.

Several pups have learned to sit, scratch ears and other dog things at less than 3 weeks old. It's silly, but they're so small still that it cracks me up. PUPPIES!

They're getting really mobile. WOW! Tank (Blugee) is vocal too. He growls already. I like him.

Puppy breath... yes. I can smell it now. Wish I could bottle it and send to everyone.

Everyone has moved from newborn collars to bigger puppy collars. I'm saving the little ones for the the new monkeys if they want them along with birthing day pictures.

The family room smells like a kennel! And we keep it really clean! Dogs still smell like dogs. I have to say though... I love it so much. I really do.

I still can't believe that I have a pack of Basenjis. I have the Grand Champion Mom, a Champion Dad and six puppies at my house since breeding and birth. What a privilege. Ya, it's been work and will continue to be more. I get that. Still... I get why people do this.

[JENGOSMonkey]

[Kembe]

@jengosmonkey Greg - I love ❤️your updates and photos - keep them coming! The puppies are gorgeous and it sounds like you’re having a BLAST! 🐾🐾 Puppy Power! 👊

[Zande]

You should keep up the updates, Greg. At least then we can check that you are going the right things !!! LOL

Sparkle will stand up to feed more and more and you will get used to seeing a positive skirt of puppies being dragged along as she tries to indicate "ENOUGH ! Bar is closing now !" and move away ! And she will probably start to nose them out of the bed-box to empty.

[eeeefarm]

@elbrant said in Princess Sparkle...:

grateful that human females don't share this trait

They used to. Ever hear of a "wet nurse"?

[elbrant]

@eeeefarm Yes, but I never thought that was "Grandma", a wet nurse was another woman who had given birth relatively recently in relation to when the need arose.

[Zande]

@eeeefarm and @elbrant I think that is probably correct. A wet-nurse was normally someone who had given birth recently and either had milk to spare or was subservient to Madame and often fed her employers' children before her own !

In the case of Basenji Grandmothers, they lactate 'on demand' to assist other members of the pack.

[eeeefarm]

@zande Mares sometimes do this as well. I have seen a barren mare come into milk when she "mothered" someone else's foal. One of my friends had a mare that did this more than once, she was a solution for someone with an orphaned foal. As far as humans are concerned, this article is interesting.

With horses, many people collect and bank colostrum from early milking, in case of need. Do dog breeders do that?