Happy Mother's Day

Today is Mother's Day and I feel like no one deserves happy wishes more than our Rosie Posie Pudding Pie.  Forgive me for humanizing this experience but.....

In the last 3 1/2 months Rosie.......

...was bread for the first time, an experience that left her traumatized and physically ill.

...carried a litter of 8 pups with a spring in her gait and a ball in her mouth.

...delivered smoothly, quickly, and with only one yelp (during daylight hours and not until Aimee was in the house).

...immediately loved and cared for her babies.

...loved and cared for even a sick baby.

...developed painful mastitis and continued to nurse her pups.

...snuggled her sick baby until the time came.

...alerted her people to impending disaster.

...'s mastitis developed into a severe case, she had surgery and despite drains and stitches STILL continued to nurse those voracious pups without complaint.

...welcomes strangers into the house to love and snuggle her babies, she shows them off with pride.

...continues to be the sweetest, four pawed girl I know.

Happy Mother's Day Rosie,  because of you, 7 more people are going to gain their independence.
Rosie, YOU ROCK!!!  And you are loved!!!!

Seriously....

...how am I supposed to get anything done around here!  The girls and I spent this rainy Friday afternoon just staring at puppies, taking pictures and snuggling.

"Mommy, I think these are lion puppies!", exclaimed Anna, as Miss Purple let out a tremendous growl.  Anna literally does not leave the living room, she is constantly playing with a puppy or two.  I have to remind her that they are babies and she must let them sleep.  

We had a houseful of girls after school as Terry came back with friends Katie, Emily and Abbie .  They took so many pictures, I think they may have to publish a book!  Each puppy had a favorite girl and the feeling was mutual!  Even Rosie posed with them for a photo.  It was a fun visit and we hope they will come again.  

These pups were seriously tired after the girls left!  

Puppy Pile on Mama Rosie's bed!  

We are gearing up for a Saturday of visitors, if you would like to be added to the visitor list, please drop me an email, comment below or on Facebook.   

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I've added music to the blog,  it will start any second.  You may want to adjust the volume accordingly.  Thanks.  

More Questions

Happy Friday.  We have successfully made it through another week, Rosie is healing and the pups are growing.  I thought it might be a good day to answer some more questions and, of course, share more photos.  

Q.  How much longer will the puppies be with you?  

A.  The puppies will be weaned and will move to their foster homes in early June. 

Mr. Red, Seriously, have you ever seen anything cuter?  

Q.  Where will the puppies go next?
A.  They will be fostered in private homes for the next 12-14 months. 

Pink and Green Sisters hold paws while they snooze! 

Q.  Are all the puppies assigned to foster homes?
A.  No.  Five of the pups have been assigned.  Two will stay in the Grand Rapids area.  One will go to Lansing and two will go over to SE Michigan.  Two are still in need of foster homes. 

Hard to believe these little paws will be scooting around Michigan in

their "Future Assistance Dog" capes before too long!

Q.  Do you get to name them?
A.  No.  Each foster family submits 3 names to Paws and one name will be picked by Paws.  So far these "K" pups will be Kosmic, Kismet, Kirby, Kaden and Keely.  


Since Rosie's mom is Hula ("Hot Lips" Houlihan)  and her litter was named for M*A*S*H characters, I am still pulling for Klinger to keep the theme going ;)

M*A*S*H Litter

Parents - Hula and Bubba

Sherman, Hartley, Rosie, Milly and Truman

Hartley, Rosie and Mom Hula.  

Q.  Do you have to live in Michigan to foster a Paws pup?  
A.  No, there are pups being fostered in other states.  if you are interested in learning about fostering a future assistance dog please click Paws with a Cause.

Mr. Orange is a total Snuggle Bug.  Rosie knows it, too.

She often brings a stuffed toy and drops it on top of him.  Too cute!  

Q.  Are you being compensated for what you are doing.  
A.  No, we are volunteering our time to Paws.  It is a great way to combine our love of dogs with a desire to think above ourselves and help provide independence to people who would not otherwise have it.  The life lessons that our children are learning from this experience are priceless.  

Today's visitors were Rob, Allison, Edan and Corbin.

 Edan wished his pocket's were bigger so he could've smuggle Mr. Blue out of here!   It wouldn't have taken too much arm twisting for him to have enlisted his dad's help.  Definitely a dog loving family!  

Q.  How did you become involved with Paws?
A.  That is a long story and one that I will share on another day.  


Q.  How can I get involved?
A.  Make a donation of money or items from the Paws wish list. Even better, host a party and collect donations, I would be happy to help you with ideas.   You can attend PAWS Events.  

Escape Artists

I really did not expect these pups to be so strong so soon.  I arrived home today to find 5 AWOL puppies.  They were sprawled out all over the puppy romper room (AKA the living room) snoozing away, obviously exhausted from the big adventure.  Thanks to the wood floors, I had the mess cleaned up in no time and the pups back in the box with some extra toys to keep them entertained!    Now for clarification, the whelping box has a hinged flap on it and the flap was left down so the climb was only about 6" but I doubt it will be long until they can scale the full height of the box.  The ex-pen is on deck!

Seriously, these babies are getting CUTER by the minute.  Fluffier, feistier and lots more fun.

And speaking of cute, we had an impromptu visit from the Masek's today.  We had some squirmy puppies for this photo, but isn't it darling anyway?   

Another sweet thing happened today, our friend Amy sent the sweetest Mother's Day card to Rosie and Me.  Her thoughtfulness made our day!!  After all that poor Rosie has been through, she deservse a Mother's Day Party,  hum, that gives me an idea!  

Three Weeks

Happy Three Weeks little "K" pups.  To celebrate, we took them outside for the first time.

So much to discover, the grass, the sunshine, the wind and even a puppy princess!  

OOH, the air smells so good!  

The Boys, Mr. Orange and Mr. Red go exploring.  

Miss Purple thought the sun was a bit bright.  

Miss Green likes to venture out on her own, she is very curious.  

Snuggles in the Sunshine!  

Is it nap time yet?  

Virginia, the Puppy Princess.

The puppies loved her dress, they kept trying to burrow under it, Mr. Red even became tangled in the layers of Tulle!  Not sure who had more fun, the pups or the princess!  

One Step Forward Two Steps Back

Actually, with all the paws around here I guess that would be at least 7 tiny steps forward.  These little pups are getting stronger, cuter and noisier by the hour!  The smallest pup is Mr. Red weighing in at 3 Lbs. 8 Oz. and the Largest is Miss Green at 3 Lbs. 13 oz.  I am having a lot of trouble getting anything done as all I want to do is sit and stare at them.  We moved them upstairs into the living room and they love the sunlight coming through the big window.

Little Miss Pink found herself in the funniest positions during her afternoon nap in the sunshine!  

Now Rosie, seriously, what a trouper.

I was not sure if I should blog about this incident as it clearly shows poor judgement on my part, but now that it has been 24 hours I am more laughing than crying, so here goes....

Sunday night, basement was really cold and damp from the rain we received over the weekend so Andy and I decided to plug in the heat lamp "just for an hour or so", to warn up the puppy area.  Well, I thought he turned it off and he thought I did.  Around 2AM a panicked Rosie woke me up and I smelled smoke.  The rambunctious pups had shifted the box just enough to knock over the still plugged in heat lamp and it had begun to burn the wooden slats and melt the carpeting behind the box.  Panic ensued as I doused the area and swiftly moved the puppies upstairs.  Thanks to Rosie, the damage really is not as bad as it seemed at 2AM and we are all safe.   We have added rescue dog to her list of superhero powers and I am making her a cape.

All of this in spite of her Mastitis.  It's bad, the worst the vet and staff at PAWS have ever seen.  When a dog gets mastitis, there is often a "blowout" where the infection comes to the surface of the skin, erupts through the skin and forms a hole.  I am not going to get too graphic here, suffice it to say, I have never seen anything so gross.  It looked like something straight out of a horror flick.

Yesterday, I took her out to see Dr. Jeanne (along with the pups to be sure they weren't suffering from smoke inhalation, they are all fine!).  Doc decided that there was no way this was going to close up on it's own so she did some surgery and partially closed the wound.   Again, not to be to graphic, Rosie has lots of stitches and two drains.  She came home doped up on pain meds and still managed to nurse her pups.  This morning, again, she nursed like a champ despite the obvious pain.

She is a super mom, I cannot believe how much she has endured and how much she has matured from it.  She is resting in her crate and only coming out to nurse so that she can heal quickly and we can get on with having fun with these pups.

It was joked yesterday that maybe we should change the naming of this litter from the K's to the "disaster" litter.  Well, Katrina does begin with "K"

Really, is there anything  better than Uncle Octo?  

We did manage to have some fun with the Conway's while Rosie was at the vet.  They are our neighbors,  and really, everyone should be lucky enough to have neighbors like the Conways!  When I told Amy that it was ok to come for a visit, Jack bolted across the street and was at my door before I even hung up the phone.  Terry is my girls' favorite babysitter, they beg for us to go out so they can play with Terry!  Their family raised a foster puppy for PAWS many years ago.  Obsessed with tennis balls, she was CC'd and became a drug detection dog at Logan Airport.  Amy is on the PAWS foster puppy sitter list and comes highly recommended by Rosie and Jackson.

  

Sunday Funday

I'm looking at a pen of exhausted pups!  It has been an exciting day of visitors.  The fun has definitely begun and the puppies are getting cuter and more rambunctious each day.

First, we had the Milne family, Ken, Ellen and Erin.  I know, our names are really close.  We laugh at the confusion we cause around the PAWS headquarters and the times we have received mail intended for the other.  Now the confusion will continue as the Milne's are fostering one of the puppies whelped by the Milnes'!  They will be getting one of the boys and naming him Kaden (meaning beloved friend or companion in Aribic).  Kaden will be the Milne's 8th foster puppy and we are excited!

Erin and the boys

The second visitors were Grandma Fae and Dale.  They came to snuggle the pups and grandkids.  As you can see, they enjoyed themselves.  

Third were the Syrba family, Lauren, Rachel and Natalie along with friend Constance.  They know a few things about PAWS puppies, they are currently fostering their 9th.  The pups and Rosie ate up the attention.  

The evening was capped off by a visit from two of Caroline's dear friends Addie and Reagan.   Can you guess what they want for their birthdays?  

If you are interested in coming to visit our little golden nuggets please let me know and we will try to work out a time.  

Things are looking up

This was an exhausting week both physically and emotionally.  All three of my girls participated in the school's variety show and I was the coordinator for Caroline's group.  My Father-in-law and his wife paid us a visit from Minnesota.  I completed a volunteer project for the twins' Kindergarten class (with some help, thanks H).  Rosie got Mastitis and we lost little Miss Yellow. 

 Jackson Checks out Miss Green

Tomorrow begins a new week and I have the utmost confidence that things are looking up.  


Rosie is on the mend and the puppies are big, strong and healthy. 

Today we set up the puppy "romper room" and brought the pups up from the basement for some playtime.  Thanks to my garage sale-ing friend Michelle P.,  
the pups have some fun new toys.  They love the stuffed dog, thanks Michelle!!!  

Caroline and Mr. Red

The Millwood family paid us a visit today.  They were the winners of the "Puppy Pool" contest, so they were awarded the privilege of being the first visitors.   

 Spencer and Mr. Blue were big time buds!   

Lucy thought that chubby Miss Purple was pretty great!

I think you can tell by the smile that Amanda was as smitten by these golden nuggets as the kids were.   Thanks for coming! 

heartbreak

Tonight our Little Miss Yellow lost her fight.   We are all so very sad, including Rosie.  Rest in piece little angle pup, we will miss you.  

Bonding

I had quite a day with Rosie yesterday.  I guess in an experienced raiser's perspective, it probably wasn't too major, but from my inexperienced perspective, it seemed monumental.  My sweet girl was totally normal when I checked in on her and the pups around noon, but by 3pm,  I knew something was not right.

Rosie wanted nothing to do with the bowl of vanilla yogurt I had brought for her.  Right there, a retriever refusing food, I knew something was up.  When she finally looked up at me, I was greeted by a big belch and the remains of her lunch.  Yuck!  Upon further examination, I realized that she had developed mastitis and she looked to be in much pain.  A trip to PAWS to see Dr. Jeanne, 3 shots, oral antibiotic and I feel confident that she will be feeling better very quickly.  She still feels pretty awful today and I hope that tomorrow will be a better day!

The first time we saw Rosie and her litter mates!  

This whole experience lead me to think about the bond I have with Rosie.  I am not ashamed to admit that my bond with Rosie initially was weak.  After all this darling fuzzball that came to us at 7 weeks was only to be with us for a short time in her path to become an assistance dog.  I put up a wall reminding myself often, "Don't get too attached, she is not yours"

Rosie's first day at our house.

Besides, I have lots of attachments to keep me busy, great husband, three darling girls and my first born, my four pawed baby, Jackson.  Jackson is the first dog that has ever been mine.  Andy and I bought him the weekend after we closed on our first house more than 10 years ago.  I am so incredibly bonded to him in a way that no other animal will ever compare.

Now, don't get me wrong, I love Rosie to pieces and I am glad that her path has lead her to live with us but our bond is different, at least it was  up until this experience.

My favorite pic of Rosie

As Rosie's belly grew and her temp dropped, I became so much more aware of her.  As labor started, I felt very connected to her and as I watched those puppies come into this world, our bond was changed forever.  She made motherhood seem so easy, almost effortless.  I love watching her care for these babies and as they grow, I am so proud of her.

To see her in so much pain has been difficult.  To see her struggle and wince as she lets her babies nurse is heartbreaking.  I worry about her and she cannot get better quickly enough.  My bond with my sweet fluffer-nutter has changed since she has become a mama dog and I totally adore her.

Pregnant Rosie and her buddy Jackson

Poop

What is not to love about a tiny golden puppy?  Well, in one word, poop.  Rosie does a great job keeping them clean, but this weekend all 8 babies were struck with diarrhea and it was more than Rosie cared to deal with.  So please forgive my lack of updates, but I have been busy cleaning.  


Not all was stinky this weekend, though.  We do have some milestones to report.


On Friday Miss Pink and Mr. Orange began to open their eyes.  By saturday evening all eight were peeking out at us.  It is so awesome to see them looking back.  


On Sunday morning, Miss Green, Mr. Red and Mr. Blue were all trying to get up on all fours and walk.  They are all trying it today, we should have some mobile pups in a few days.  


Miss Yellow is just shy of 2 pounds, Yippee!!  Miss Pink and Mr. Blue have each hit the 3# mark this morning, I cannot believe how fast they are growing!  


Looks like we are getting closer to visitors, I will let you know just as soon as we are ready.  


I am off to take some pictures and maybe some video of our little nuggets.  Happy Monday!  

Miss Purple shares a snuggle with her Mama

Caroline and Mr. Orange

Caroline has a special fondness for Mr. Orange, look at his eyes!!  

The Proud Mama stands watch over her snoozing brood.  

Patience

You might think that having 3 babies in 18 months (yes, twins) would have made me a patient person but, you would be wrong.  I work hard every day to have patience with my children, my dogs and the person in front of me in the check out line.  I realize that sometimes my impatience leads me to miss important subtleties of my environment.  So my goal each day is to have patience and to take in the world around me and notice the smallest details.  Lately the small details include the puppies.

Today, I cannot wait for these little golden nuggets to open their tiny eyes and take in their world for the first time.  How amazing it will be to watch them as they begin to see what is around them.  On this beautiful day, it is so hard not to take the little pups out to crawl in the grass.  Instead, I sit and I watch them as they snooze.  Some are silent and still, some are twitching and cooing.  They are only 8 days old and how much they have already grown.  Most have doubled in size since birth and they have so far to go.

Last night, I watched a PBS documentary showing assistance dogs and the jobs they do for clients.  What these special heros do is so much more than picking up a pencil or turning on a light.  Dogs like these change lives and I hope and pray that all eight of Rosie's babies will go on to have that kind of profound impact on their forever person.

I will just have to be patient!

I think I had better find a bigger box!!!  

If you want to watch the documentary on PBS, you can click Through A Dog's Eyes  

Mr. Blue

I really wanted to update you all today, but I literally have nothing to write about.  Everything is status quo and that is excellent news here in Puppy world!

I thought I would introduce you to Mr. Blue, our second born pup, but even he is pretty boring.  He is sleeping, eating and growing contently.   He is over 2# now as are all the pups except Yellow.  He loves to snuggle up to Miss Pink, but is most likely to be hiding under the whelping box railing all by himself.  I can't get this song out of my head, if you grew up in the 80's you may know the song and now you will have it stuck in your head, too!

....i'm mr blue
i'm here to stay with you
and no matter what you do
when you're lonely - i'll be lonely too, i'm mr blue....

So now photos of darling Mr. Blue, thanks for prayers for Miss Yellow (who is getting bigger and stronger) and a bid for a wonderful sunny Wednesday!

Oh, if you are a PAWS person and are wondering about the ribbons and the lack of order to the colors, ask Aimee :-)