Klaus -Whelped 12/23/21

So upon ultrasound with our vet we were told with much certainty that Kiah was not in whelp. As it turns out, she WAS in whelp with one beautiful, black and white wavy boy. He was whelped by C-section on Christmas Eve Eve 🎄His birth weight was 14.7 ozs. Kiah and her boy are both doing well though not without some concerns. Kiah is a first time dam. She’s been amazing in the past with the other girls’ pups but this time – it’s her very own. Not to play with (yet) but to nurse, stimulate, comfort, clean. Problem is…. she went to sleep and woke up with a puppy. No real idea how he got here and no bonding opportunity. Initially, she really wanted nothing to do with him. She would let him nurse if one of us was right next to her with a hand rested on her. Today, she takes notice if he starts moving about (which he’s really great at🙏) and will go into the whelping pen without coaxing (though she still does need coaxed more than not). She will sleep in the pen and allows him to sleep up against her or on her paws.

Puppies eliminate by being stimulated by the licking/cleaning from their mommas. If they do not eliminate, their system shuts down. Kiah is not stimulating him. The couple of times she has is when we put peanut butter on his bum but even that is not working every time. So, we are simulating momma licking/cleaning him by rubbing him with a warm washcloth – works like a charm. She does sniff him a lot which we hope is a precursor to actually stimulating him.

Our most immediate concern though has been getting food into him. We have been supplementing his nursing with a power puppy formula consisting of liver water, raw egg yolks, yogurt, caro syrup and goat’s milk. We supplement his nursing every two hours and get frequent weight checks.

Another issue is the little guy has no littermates to cuddle with for warmth. Puppies cannot regulate their body temps until 3-4 weeks old. If he gets cold, then he cannot digest his food and he would fade quickly. We are simulating littermates with two lambchops and a Rudolph. And, of course, he has constant access to a heat mat. He’s a strong boy – moving all over the pen.

At this point, he is satisfied and taking a nap. Now we’re working on getting momma to eat more though she is drinking and we’re thankful for at least that.

He is just over three days old now though we prefer to take it hour by hour. This is something we’ve never experienced before and we’re definitely learning a lot. We are so, so thankful for his sire’s (SUP CH RULETT SET THSAILS FOROZ (IID SWE) ET) owner Margo Turnbull as despite the time difference in Australia she has been in constant contact with us and a great wealth of information as well as providing great support and encouragement.

Just try not to fall in love with him 😍😍 – one look is all it will take💜🐶 

Klaus is doing amazing! I found a little stuffed dog at Family Dollar (we call him Roger 🤷🏻‍♀️) purely by coincidence. He was the only one and stuck in with other things but he barks and pants and he has floppy ears! Klaus loves him! He climbs over him. He chews on his ears and legs. He sleeps with him. He’s truly a “littermate”. I’ve started every now and again to pull on Roger and have him climb on top of Klaus and when Klaus starts chewing on him I pull Roger away and yelp.  These are things that littermates do. That, and socializing with the big dogs, are how they learn manners (bite inhibition is a big one)!

You may think that having a singleton is easier than say a litter of six or nine… but I would say not necessarily. When there’s even two in a litter they can help provide stimulation, etc to each other but with just one…..   Of course Klaus is getting LOTS of attention🥰 He’s been introduced to mush (he loves goat’s milk and rice cereal more than goat’s milk and kibble – texture thing maybe) and he’s met the puppy pads. Typically, we start off with alfalfa pellets but he did much better with a puppy pad and pretty much goes on it all the time (or right at the edge- and once on one of the cameras🤦🏻‍♀️). We’ve got the slide out for him. He’s not a huge fan yet but they never are the first few times. Again, there’s always that one who takes to it right away and the others follow… but he has no one to follow🥺 So we’re just going to conquer these things in his time. He’s not been fearful of anything yet. He stepped off the carpet onto the hardwood with no coaxing at all. I don’t want him walking on the hardwood right yet as he’s just getting the walking thing down. He moans in his sleep like it’s the best sleep ever lol and his favorite way to sleep is on his back! I’m totally in love with this boy💜

Klaus is not lacking in attention from the big dogs either🥰. While his momma did step up to the plate, she’s grateful for some fostering assistance. Enter Zoey (the ultimate momma), Zach (the big macho guy who seems smitten with his young nephew) and Zyla (our wild child who is a pretty great momma herself). These three will be a huge help in teaching young Klaus doggy manners and socializing. I can’t believe he’s four weeks old!💜

When you have a litter (as opposed to a singleton), there are many things that can be taken for granted. For instance when the puppies nurse/eat, you’ll often see them climbing all over each other and pushing each other out of the way. Same with toys, etc. This helps them to build confidence, work their little bodies, learn how to deal with frustration and think! But, when there’s only one….🥺. So we are providing obstacles for Klaus to work through. In some videos you’ll see us use a stuffed animal or just our hands to push him away or we’ll move something out of his reach. One particular evening we were letting him out of his play pen so we put a wobble board in front of the door. Only way out was over lol. There wasn’t much hesitation – Klaus is a great little guy💜

Klaus, our little salad dodger, is now over five weeks old and over six pounds! He’s truly a pile of sweetness🥰. He loves his crate. He’ll come out of the pen to play with us but when he’s done he’ll just go get in his crate and take a nap! 🤞that he continues that. He had been using puppy pads for pottying and doing great with it but in the last day or two we switched it out for alfalfa. He just doesn’t seem to like the alfalfa so puppy pads went back in today. (Alfalfa is as close as we can get to “grass” inside.) He’s very curious and he has no problem investigating lol. We are going to miss this little dude💜

What a journey! Simply cannot believe we’ve had this boy for over eight weeks🥰Our first experience with a singleton…. and what a joy he has been! He’s also been the boldest, most independent and mouthiest (he’s a master nipper) puppy we’ve ever had. This morning he got his last bath and nail/hair trim with us. Time to meet his new family💜