Puppy Breath

We have puppy breath again!

Itsy and Bitsy (whom I now realize I should have named "Spot" and "Puff," since Bitsy has one brown spot on her head and Itsy is as puffy as a cotton ball--but their original names have stuck) came back again on Tuesday night. Ashley decided that they were big enough to wean and they had kind of licked at solid food, but preferred to nurse from Xena...but she thought Xena was ready for a break and the puppies were ready to switch to solid food.

So Xena stayed with her and the puppies came here, turning this already chaotic house into a three ring circus. All I need is balloons and cotton candy and I'd be in hog heaven.

They certainly have grown in the short time they've been away!

Sheila and Lizzie have given their usual "ho-hum, another puppy" look, but Polly and Emmy are trying to figure out what to do with these little guys.

The puppies learned quickly that under the playpen was a good place to go if the play of the older dogs got too scary!

As for eating, at first they really weren't interested in the puppy mash I mixed up for them, but eventually they started to get hungry. They still gave passing interest to the baby food, but Itsy found something that he liked better.

With barely teeth in, they discoered they liked to crunch on the big dog food. But eventually they started eating their own food and seem to be doing OK now.

It is a bit of a challenge trying to figure out which dog goes where, especially when Valerie comes to work with Polly. Big dogs outside, Emmy on my lap, puppies in the cage, whining and trying to get out. Or where to put whom when it's time to eat to make sure that the puppies get something. At least they are sleeping at night, once I discovered that if they go in the crate where they lived with Xena and I cover the door with a towel so they can't see out.

So we're starting a new adventure watching these little guys get to the age where they can go up for adoption. Best of all, there is puppy breath. How I've missed it!