Puppy Update and Other Things

Christmas has definitely "hit" our house. The tree finally managed to get up and decorated. The presents made it from shopping bags and delivery boxes into "piles by person" on the bed and floor of one of the bedrooms, then into wrapping paper or gift bags and finally under the tree. The office Christmas party—complete with white elephant gift exchange, an annual event that all of us at my office look forward to, is now a fond memory. We have a bunch of great cooks around here who outdid themselves again this year.

Boris, our Russian Blue cat, is confused by all the changes in our routine and in his house. He dislikes change to his environment and routine so he is upset a lot lately. Being a cat, he is interested in the tree and packages and evidently fancies himself a present because we often see him nestled among the gifts napping. He leaves the tree and ornaments alone, thank goodness. He leaves the majority of gifts alone except for the ones in gift bags. He is fascinated by the tissue paper and has managed to "fringe" the edges of all the tissue paper he can sink his teeth into. I decided it was a losing battle, so wrapped most gifts instead of going the easy route and sticking them in gift bags. As a friend at the office is fond of saying, "That ain't the hill I'm dyin' on."

So, this has been a crazy week. Getting information about puppies posted kept getting pushed to the bottom of the list! The most recent pictures are posted at the top of this narrative. The puppies were 4 weeks and 3 days when the picture was taken on Monday.

So here is what's new with the babies: First, they've been moved from the 3x3 puppy pen into a 3x6 puppy pen. Now those of you who know about such things might be raising eyebrows and asking, "3x6?? Never heard of it." Well, I had not either until I had a wild idea in the middle of the night. (That happens to me frequently as my subconscious ponders a problem). Anyway, I decided to see if I could put two 3x3's together into a 3x6 by removing a side panel from each 3x3 then attaching the two pens back together. Note that I say "I" but really it was a "we" thing as my husband did the heavy work while I mostly watched and directed!

Cutting lumber as center reinforcements for the floor grates was necessary, as was a bag of large zip ties.

Now the puppies have a large area to play in. Their piddle pads are at one end and blankets for sleeping at the other. Best of all, they are off the floor, which in spite of the efforts of our furnace, seemed way too cold for puppies, no matter how many layers of newspapers and blankets we used. If anyone who reads this wants to try it with a couple of 3x3's, let me know and I'll send a picture and a description of what we did.

I started weaning the puppies today. It's sooner than I generally begin weaning, but Secret is getting tired of them. They are getting curious about the food in her bowl, and she is getting protective of her food and not wanting to share, so... today she got a break and the pups got some mushy looking stuff that evidently tasted great because they dug in and ate with a passion! They were still excited to see mom when she came back to spend the day with them! They mauled poor Secret and she gave me a look that said, "And this will be over when???"

As Christmas approaches, so does Belle's first birthday! She and her litter mates were born on Christmas morning last year. Oh my, what a mess that was as we prepared for company and took turns delivering puppies. What beautiful little gifts Flame gave us that day. The girls: Holly, Spirit, and Belle. The boys: Nicky and Decker. Holly and Belle are the only two whose owners kept their Christmas-y names. I know all 5 of these puppies continue to be blessings to their people.

As 2009 nears its end and we get ready to greet 2010, I wish you all the best. In case I don't get back to you until after Christmas (in spite of my good intentions), I'll share a New Year sentiment that a friend sent me this morning in an email message:
"May peace break into your home and may thieves come to steal your debts. 

 


May the pockets of your jeans become a magnet for $100 bills. 

 


May love stick to your face like Vaseline and may laughter assault your lips!

 


May happiness slap you across the face and may your tears be those of joy.

 


May the problems you had forget your home address.
May 2010 be the best year ever!"

And if I don't get back to you next week, have a joyous Christmas with friends and family!

Life is good when you have a Lhasa to love you!

Joyce