Wanna see puppies being born?

[KurtNYC]

Okay.....

We shot these without flash to avoid any additional stress on momma so they are a bit dark and less than sharp. The first six pups had come one every 15 minutes or so. Momma went into another state of mind as the first pup was born. Occipitase (sp?) is a hormone released in the body which inhibits panic and it certainly seemed to be working on momma. She seemed pretty relaxed, perhaps even oblivious. Enya played softly on the boombox in the delivery room.

Here we are waiting for number 7 to emerge. The first sign would be a significant contraction:


It had been about 20 minutes since #6, so we got her up for a quick walk and a pee break. When she came back to the whelping box, number 7 emerged pretty quickly. My friend caught the pup and broke the sack, cleared the mouth and returned the pup to momma. We put a different colored band around each pup's neck to track the birth order.



She went back to x-ray to make sure we had counted spines correctly during the pregnancy. Sure enough number 8 was still in there. He decided to join his siblings and was born about 3-1/2 hours after the first pup. All were healthy and mom had no complications. Here is the family on day 2:



They emerge with only their nose in good working order which may explain why dogs are so scent oriented. About 2 weeks until their eyes open:



And lastly their hearing begins to be apparent. This order: nose - eyes - ears is exactly the opposite of humans. When I hear people say their dog won't listen to them I am always reminded that WE are the ones who are noise oriented, while dogs can be completely absorbed or distracted by smells.

A more recent picture:

[malta blue]

1. Wow - that's awesome.

I will show this to little MB tonight.

Thanks for sharing!:hi:

[MountainLaurel]

2. Golden newborns!

Pardon me while I die of the cute.

[calico1]

3. So all the puppies survivied?

That is fantastic. Mom looks good too. How are they all doing now? Thank you for sharing!

[KurtNYC]

5. Her first litter - all are healthy and doing well

They are in training to become assistance dogs. Here is the same litter getting used to being around wheelchairs (by sleeping on a platform on the back of one):



The neck scarf lets them know they are working. At this point, sleeping on the job is a good thing; shows just how comfortable they are with the chair.

[Karenca]

4. You're very lucky to have so many Goldens.

I adore them.

Question; How do you manage all the pups in NYC?

[KurtNYC]

6. These guys are in Santa Rosa

I went out there for the births. They are all named with names beginning with "Q". They are:
Quiz (M)
Quintino (M)
Quality (M)
Quinn (M)
QT (F)
Quisha (F)
Quesadilla (M)
Quixote (M)

They live with many other Goldens (about 40 - 50) and spend most of their time socializing, romping through the grass, chewing each others' ears and sleeping.

[CottonBear]

7. Wow! Wonderful photos! And, they'll be service dogs too! Awesome!

I love Goldens! I had a fabulous male Golden named Ben. He was so beautiful! :)

[KurtNYC]

8. I had a rabbit named Ben

A red satin. Gorgeous and very mellow but I think that all dog lovers have a breed which has especially touched their heart and for me it would be goldens, with Labs running a close second. Labs I have met have a little bit more assertive personality than goldens, which is fun. Otherwise I find them to be very similar breeds.

These golden pups are from English lines btw.

[CottonBear]

10. Ben must have been so very beautiful! I've never had a rabbit.

There are many wild bunnies at the horse farm where I board my filly. I've been watching a very cute baby bunny grow up this summer!

Goldens are so special! I adopted mine from some friends who had just had a baby. He came to live with me in the country. He loved his Nylabone frisbee more than anything! He was an American Golden, bred in Griffin, GA and he was pedigreed: Big Ben XVII. He was so smart but goofy and loving too! He was light golden in color and about 75 pounds. He was a good boy. My ex took him from me in the divorce and I never saw him again. :cry: I lost my white shepherd and my cats too. :cry:
The best dog that I ever had was a half lab-half golden named Samantha. She was a black Golden! She was the best dog ever!

It was years before I had another pet in my life. Now I have three cats, a horse and a turtle but no dogs. Maybe someday...

I hope all of the pups grow strong and healthy and that they become wonderful service dogs! :)

Peaace. CB

[idgiehkt]

9. as cute as bunnies, they are.

but in answer, no, I hope never again to see puppies being born, because I worked for a vet that raised beagles and they whelped there and all I did was raise beaglets. I'll never forget when one female was whelping and one puppy got stuck and I had to chase her around the back part of the building because it was hanging out. She ran til he baby plopped out and luckinly I caught up with her just in time to catch it, placenta and all, before it hit the floor. Had my fill.

[Deja Q]

11. Better born than conceived...

:wow:

In seriousness: Awesome pics, thank you much for sharing. :thumbsup:

[greatauntoftriplets]

12. Wow, what great photos....

Back in the 1930s (and long before I was born), my aunt had an Irish setter that had 8 puppies in a single litter. It was considered a phenemenon at the time and the litter was written about in the Chicago Tribune. Damn, I love dogs! And I get to see my sister's dog tomorrow, and he loves me!

Note: I live in a condo where dogs are not allowed.

[judaspriestess]

13. How beautiful, is she going to get spayed now?

[KurtNYC]

14. Good question - I'm not sure about that

If this litter is excellent they want one more before spaying but I'm not sure how they make that determination.