More happy families meeting their happy pups today.
Mr. Orange (AKA Bauer) will be flying with us to Newfoundland in a few days, and Mr. Black joined the service training program at #autismdogservices
It's getting pretty quiet here with just a few puppies remaining and will meet their families very soon 🐾
If you think that organizing & individually feeding 2 litters of pups, 3x/day is a lot more work than just putting food down for them to all eat together ... you're absolutely right !!!
But feeding them as a group automatically creates tension because they don't understand manners or that there is enough for everyone. Some are fast and others are slow eaters. We don't want to create a hardwired reaction in the pups that meal time is a competition.
Instead, each meal is a lot of work but also very important teaching opportunities. Sometimes they eat inside in a crate, or in the living room where I sit and pet them, or on the lawn, or even in the sink (creates a happy association with bath time !!), and today they had lunch on the go ...
Eating in the car is a 2 for 1 deal 😉 They are in a crate ✔️ and they are eating which makes them happy ✔️which causes them to not care so much that they're in a crate or moving as we drive up the road ✔️ ... even better than 2 for 1 !!!
A-LOT of work yes, but totally worth the extra time and effort 🐾
7 WEEKS & COUNTING 🐾
We're on the homestretch!! These little fluffs will start joining their families late in the weekend & into early next week.
I'm thrilled to say they're almost ready 🤍 They have been introduced to everything I intend to, except our vet visit which will be later in the week.
That doesn't mean our work is done - quite the contrary. Our days are full of car rides, individual meals, sharing is caring exchanges, play time with Tilley, individual handling, playing, car rides and napping (in case you're wondering, they nap, I don't 😋) and some visits thrown in too.
Get ready, reserved Glenannon families, your new family members will be arriving soon & there is still so much for them to see, hear and experience with all of you !!
Tilley is our puppy nanny 🤍🐾 It is important that the pups continue to be imprinted by a mother figure even when their own moms are beyond done with them 😋
Once the biological moms have weaned, it can be difficult to convince them to spend time with the pups, as even with their weaning shirts on, the pups are persistent in trying (& often succeed) with nursing.
So Maggie & Peach have moved on to relaxation and Tilley is happily taking their spots. She knows our routine: playtime (gentle), then lead them up and back down a short set of steps). They happily follow her lead, and have no idea they're also learning valuable lessons about appropriate play, bite inhibition and confidence in trying new things.
#glenannonstation #goldenpups #puppynanny #goldenpuppy #puppyimprinting
Upcoming Glenannon Puppy Families ... I'm going to share tidbits over the next week or so, to add to your tool box of knowledge and skills for bringing puppy home.
Puppy jumping is a natural habit that only we, the humans can help them change ...
#empoweredpuppyprogram
6 Weeks Old
We're a day late but it's been extremely busy here with visits. The pups have met 3/4 of their new families over the past few days. We're down to the final 2 weeks together. Lots of work to do yet, with so many experiences & activities left to get them ready to leave here and start the rest of their lives.
While I'm working hard here, the main theme of our visits have been to remind their new families of all the hard work they need to do to be completely prepared for their puppy's arrival. It's exciting, the puppies are adorable, but they are also life changing and can be very challenging to keep up with all they need. Being prepared and setting aside the first week to spend at home, getting the pup and new family used to their new normal is the ideal way for everyone to make the transition. I have definitely disappointed some families when I ask that they don't have guests over until the pups have had time to settle in, but in the big picture it's only a few days compared with having to spend a lifetime undoing all the negative imprinting that taking that time too fast caused. Trust the process, everyone ... it's well worth the time and effort spent 🤍🐾
4 weeks old and loving exploring life over here. They've been outside for a wagon ride and a play in the puppy yard this morning and now back in their respective living areas, checking out some more new additions to their play time.Peach's room has a wobble board and low barrier to figure out, and Maggie's room has a slide & swing. Lots of learning going on, figuring out to get on, over, up and down !! Not to mention the stimulation their brains are getting just trying to figure it all out. They're spending temporary chunks of time separated from their moms as we slowly work through the weaning process. It's a mix of physical separation and time spent together while moms are wearing pj's so the pups can't access a snack. Slow & steady is the theme for everyone 🤍#goldenpups #glenannonstation #goldenretriever #goldenpuppy #4weeksoldpuppy
(Pardon the re-try on Maggie's litter, FB and I are not getting along tonite 😉
3rd time is the charm I hope but if all else fails, go to our Instagram it's working perfectly there)
We've all been waiting for the puppy play time footage to begin. I'm happy to tell you that Maggie's litter decided this afternoon was the time to start the assignment 🤍🐾
So adorable to watch the uncoordinated play time, but also interesting to know that what looks like play is also teaching them and helping them grow. Just like our little humans, the best form of learning is through play !
#glenannonstation #goldenretriever #goldenpuppy #puppyplaytime #playingislearning #puppyimprinting #goldenpupsquad2
Monkey(s) see, monkey(s) do 🤍🐾
Peach's gang is on the play time antics just as much as Maggie's are. These 2 litters are almost developmentally identical !
#glenannonstation #goldenpuppies #goldenpupsquad2 #playtime #puppyplaytime #puppyimprinting
3 WEEKS OLD
WE ARE IN THE SOCIALIZATION PERIOD
(For all the videos attached to this post, visit our Instagram page)
Literally overnight our nuggets turned into puppies. Walking, seeing, hearing, playing, mouthing, lapping & eliminating independently.
Their brains are in ready mode - so easily influenced. They have no fear yet. Yet. This potential is right around the corner, but right now we have the opportunity to make positive connections so they can easily recover from fear down the road. No, this doesn't mean we scare the pups at this age (or any age!!) , but it does mean we can do little activities that shape their brains to handle it.
This is the week that mouthing their siblings and toys begins. Besides being adorable to see them attempting to fit whole heads in their mouths, it is teaching them how to play ! And as teeth start to emerge it naturally teaches them what is an appropriate amount of force and what is way too much.
We've also moved out of the whelping box and added a litter box. It will take several weeks before they're consistently making their way to the litter, but we've started the process so they learn there is a place to play, to eat, and to potty !
This is the week when we begin introducing them to all sorts of sounds so they develop that "so what" response.
Even with the big changes and new introductions this week, we still make lots of time to sit with the pups, hold the pups, handle the pups. Our days with them are getting fuller...more interactive... and definitely more fun 🐾
#glenannonstation #goldenretriever #goldenpuppy #goldenpupsquad
2 WEEKS OLD 🐾
(For more videos part of this post, check us out in Instagram. FB is only letting me post 1 !!)
We have left behind the period known as the neonate stage and moving into the transitional period. As you would expect by the name, this is a period of change. Eyes are opening, ears will soon unseal, belly crawling turns into walking, the inability to regulate their own body temperatures will turn into panting and temperature control.
Even our interactions with the pups are changing - we are (and will continue to be) handling the pups more each day and getting them used to touch from head to toe.
I was speaking with someone earlier and I called this the honeymoon stage. Pups are finally old enough that I can take my eyes off them for short periods & even get a restful nights sleep in my own bed (with live puppy feed beside me) - but they aren't social yet, and still mostly confined to their whelping box so interactions are simple & low key.
This is the week for me to get caught up from the newborn stage & organized for the remaining 5 weeks.
Because by the end of this week we have official puppies and all the activities and imprinting that brings 🐾
#2weekoldpups #glenannonstation #goldenpuppies #goldenpupsquad2 #smartpups #puppyimprinting
O.N.E. WEEK 🐾 We officially made it !!! Just kidding, we've still got 7 more to go and each week gets bigger & busier. But the first week is the most daunting for me, as pups are so helpless & fragile. In one week, both moms delivered their litters via c-sections, the pups drank the liquid gold known as colostrum, and are now nursing on mom's full milk 24/7. One week later, they've almost doubled their birthweights and moms have bounced back from surgery like it never happened. The pups arrive underdeveloped at birth, their eyes & ears are sealed, can't pee or poop on their own and they can't regulate their own body temperature. While those things haven't changed yet, it's going to start. Over the upcoming week we will see their eyes, followed in short by their ears unsealing. Their moms will continue to lick them to stimulate elimination & they will rely on her and our due diligence to ensure they remain warm for another couple weeks. They won't walk until closer to week 3, but they are getting stronger everyday. There is already a big change in their movement over the past 7 days. We started Early Neurological Stimulation & Scent Intro and this will continue until almost week 2. Right on time, as the period for Early Neurological Stimulation draws to end, the pups will be entering their next period of development, bringing more daily activities and responsibilities for us. Be sure to follow along, it's going to become cuter, fluffier and more entertaining each day 🐾#goldenpuppies #goldenpupsquad #week1 #glenannonstationgoldens
"Is It OK that the pups are twitching ?" Of all the private messages I have gotten this week, this is the top one. The answer is YES !! In fact, it's not only ok, it's necessary !!! If they didn't have these jerks & twitches, their bodies wouldn't be building muscle, and we all know that without muscle they would never be able to stand or walk. One of my favorite quotes from a very reputable and experienced puppy expert is "they are working out while they sleep". (I wish I could find a way to do the same 😉)The more technical term for these twitches is Activated Sleep. Watching closely, we see these movements from head to toe, over & over again. Just another tick on the daily checklist ✅ ensuring everyone is on the up & up. #glenannonstation #goldenpups #goldenretriever #goldenpuppy #goldenpuppies #growingpups
Glenannon math is arriving at the clinic with 2 Goldens and leaving with ... 20 🙈🤭
Not to be outdone by each other, both Peach & Maggie delivered 9 puppies each, within approximately 2 hours.
Special thanks to #almastreetanimalhospital for their professionalism and expertise, bringing more little paws safely into our world.
It's official, the puppy spam is about to get very real, very soon 🐾
As much as we want to keep ALL the puppies in our program, our home just isn't big enough. Since we only raise our Goldens within home environments, we rely heavily on forever fosters to bring our pups into their hearts & homes.
Asher has a joined a very experienced dog family and he is the luckiest boy to have a committed forever family including a little girl to grow up with. It's easy to see they're going to be the best of friends forever 🐾🩷
For everyone who has been missing our puppy spam while we've been on a little break; here's Asher & his adorable antics ...
Here is an example of the "startle-recovery exercise" we do daily currently. Now that puppies can all hear, we want to shape their responses to noise & sudden sounds in a positive manner.
If you watch the video closely, you'll see the 1st time I drop the tin, there is a definite, immediate "startle in the pups". As soon as they recover, I drop the tin again, and repeat until there is no startle reaction from the pups.
Please note, I am NOT SCARING the pups. They recover immediately, they aren't backing away or trying to hide. And they are truly interested in the tin, as seen at the end of the video.
#gsrbelmore #glenannonstation #puppypreschool #smartpuppy #puppyimprinting #goldenretriever #goldenpupsquad2 #goldenpuppy
Eyes open ✔️
Ears open ✔️
Start Puppy Pre-school ✔️
Now that they can hear, the pups are practicing their barks and howls. Sometimes they sound like a little wolf pack. This is completely normal, similar to human babies when they figure out they have a voice.
Stay tuned ... we have lots of fun & adorable up and coming as we work with these little ones 🐾
#gsrbelmore #glenannonstation #goldenretriever #goldenpuppy #puppypreschool #smartpuppies
UPDATE: We have a wonderful family for our 3rd boy 🤍
One little boy in Maggie x Fletch's litter has become available. This is very rare for us to have a puppy available from a current litter.
If you are interested in bringing him into your family, please read the details below & only contact us if you are truly interested and we will email you our introduction package, including our Puppy Agreement and arrange to meet you over Zoom consult or phone.
🐾Our website is gsrbelmore.com where you will find more information on our Goldens and puppy program.
🐾 There are 3 boys in this litter and their collar colours are Grey, Light Blue, & Dark Blue
🐾 We don't know yet which boy is available. We help our pet pup families choose their pups after the Volhard Evaluations are complete, along with our knowledge of each family's unique structure & comfort with puppy raising.
🐾If reserved, all our families are invited to come & meet all of the puppies in a few weeks, and pick up day is Dec 11 or 12th.
🐾 We absolutely will not ship our puppies. Our families are required to come to us to pick up your puppy, and if flying, the pup must travel in cabin with you, no exceptions. We can help navigate this process.
🐾I won't be responding to questions in the comments section or DM in Instagram or Facebook. If you are truly interested please email [email protected] and tell us a bit about yourself, along with your interest in this pup. From there our introduction package will be emailed to you and we will schedule a zoom consult or phone call.
