happy birthday and happy Valentines Day: February 14, 2021
Phoebe & Boaz are the proud parents of four gorgeous new babies: three beautiful girls and one handsome boy. These little ones are absolutely precious. And they’re teeny tiny, not even weighing an entire pound yet. Phoebe does an amazing job caring for her new crew and hardly leaves her puppies’ side. It’s heartwarming to watch her snuggle her little ones under her chin and nestle them close. When puppies are first born, they depend heavily on their mama, so we’re blessed that Phoebe does such a great job caring for them.
How sweet are these faces? Enjoy those little pink noses while you can because they’ll blacken up in no time. And don’t those cute black & pink lips make it look like the puppies have little pouty faces? The pups are less than 24 hours old in these two pictures.
At first puppies can’t yet walk. Their eyes and ears are closed. They can’t go to the bathroom on their own. And they can’t maintain their own body temperature. Fortunately God gave puppies a natural instinct to pile together for warmth, so they snuggle together in a giant puppy heap – and Phoebe snuggles them close too. She loves cuddling with her pups. EEGs have revealed that the brain activity of infant puppies is the same when asleep and awake. But these little pups are busy eating, growing, and developing. Phoebe’s puppies twitch and pop in their sleep, as all healthy newborn puppies should. This activated sleep helps them build muscle tone.
weekly puppy tip: nap time is essential!
Think about a napping place – The puppies spend most of their lives sleeping now, but did you know that your new furbaby is going to need lots of sleep when you bring her home, too? Puppies, just like small children, require naps throughout the day. When your puppy is sleeping, try to allow her to rest untouched (it’s okay for noisy life to carry on around her while she snoozes, but it’s best not to physically disturb her as much as possible). This may mean that you need to guide her to a different spot than the one she’s initially chosen. AKC gives some helpful insight into the importance of puppy sleep:
Although puppies may seem like little bundles of energy, in fact, they sleep 15-20 hours a day. One minute your puppy may be a miniature tornado, and the next he’s fallen soundly asleep, almost mid-activity. Sleep is essential to healthy growth: during sleep his central nervous system, brain, immune system, and muscles are developing. All of that sleep also helps him rest up during growth spurts… household members, especially children, should leave your puppy alone while he is sleeping. Plan his day so that active time is followed by quiet time for sleep. He’ll most likely be ready for a nap after playtime or a walk, sleep for a while and then wake up ready for anything. Your puppy may nap every hour or so, sleeping from 30 minutes to as long as two hours. All of this sleep is perfectly normal.
Jan Reisen from the American Kennel Club (AKC)
You can read the rest of the article here.
four days new
Isn’t it amazing how much the pups have changed in just four days? Their noses are black and their lips don’t have the pink centers that made them look pouty just three days before.
Our kiddos LOVES having puppies. They have been so excited for Phoebe’s puppies to arrive (we’ve been without puppies for more than three months, which is apparently too long for them!). Our toddler named the little boy Firetruck (which also happens to be the name of his chicken – if you find a good name, reuse it). Our preschooler named two of the girls Gingie (aka Ginger) and Star. “Gingie” is another name that is frequently used in our home. Our kindergartener named the last puppy Jay after a special friend.
weekly puppy tip #2: plan positive experiences
Make a puppy experience plan – Compile a list of places you want to take your puppy and experiences you want your puppy to encounter. Any day now, these little eyes will be ready to soak up the sites, and we’ll now start introducing the puppies to items that differ in appearance. We have a thought-out socialization plan, working hard to expose your puppy to as much as possible during her time with us. When you take your puppy home, that responsibility then shifts to you as you continue the socialization process. Exposing your puppy to new people, situations, sounds, smells, textures, etc. is extremely important. Give your new puppy a few days to adjust to her new home and new routine. Then begin giving her short, positive experiences (yummy treats make everything more positive!). Don’t try to do too much in one day, as you don’t want to overwhelm or stress her. Start developing ideas of how to want to socialize your new puppy.
Your goal is for your puppy to meet a minimum of 100 different people by the time she’s six months old. Dr. Ian Dunbar, a puppy socialization expert, raises the bar even higher by recommending that puppies meet 100+ people during the first month at home. BUT THERE’S A PANDEMIC RIGHT NOW! How do you socialize your puppy during a pandemic? AviDog has some great ideas about different ways to creatively and safely socialize your puppy during these unique times. So make a plan about how you will start introducing your puppy to new experiences. Since your puppy can’t meet tons of people right now, YOU might be the one donning different hats, hoods, and sunglasses. If you hope to visit a local nursing home or hospital when your puppy gets older, secure some crutches, walkers or wheelchairs to expose your puppy to at home. Meeting people is just one component of socialization. Think about outdoor experiences that you and your puppy can safely enjoy together. Consider what predictable dogs you can introduce your puppy to (dogs who are predictable, friendly, healthy, and will model good behavior for your pup). Remember, adult dogs aren’t always fond of puppies so be sure to monitor them together. Do you know anyone with a woods or creek where you can take your puppy for a short romp? Remember, you want every experience to be POSITIVE. Making a plan now, before you bring your puppy home, will help ensure that you follow through with a variety of positive exposures once you have your new little fluff ball at your side.
Check out AviDog’s free e-book for more ideas about what to add to your puppy experience plan.
10 days
Just look at those sweet faces! It amazing how much older and bigger these puppies look in just one short week. They’re growing like crazy! Now scroll back up and look at the newborn pictures – can you believe how chunky these little sausages have gotten in just two short weeks?!
Everyone has passed over the 1 pound mark and they’re heading towards 2 pounds rapidly. All of that dedicated sleeping, eating, and growing is paying off. Their chunky bellies are adorable. It’s truly amazing how much they’ve grown in just two short weeks. These little sausages still spend most of the day sleeping and continue to have activated sleep, building their muscles in preparation for the running and exploring they’ll be doing shortly. We intentionally have the floor of their whelping box covered with a surface that gives them good traction to aid their developing muscles and bones. The puppies already take wobbly steps around their whelping area and crawl all over each other as they attempt to find the coziest sleeping nook in the puppy pile. They’ve started the transition from the tiny guinea pigs they were at birth to beginning to look like little dogs. We continue to hold, cuddle, and pet them daily – and we love every minute of it. And Phoebe also loves lounging with her puppies. It’s so cute to watch her snuggle in close with them like a mother hen.
weekly puppy tip #3: exercise guidelines
Glance over Puppy Culture’s exercise chart. Familiarize yourself with what sorts of activities are appropriate for your puppy at different stages of development. You want to give your puppy a variety of unique positive experiences, but your puppy is still growing & developing, so you don’t want to push your puppy too far. For instance, climbing up one to two stairs is an appropriate challenge but climbing a flight of stairs is not a good idea for a young puppy (a study done on 500 dogs showed that puppies allowed to climb a flight of stairs before 3 months old were more likely to develop hip dysplasia). Remember, free running and playing is a great option because your puppy can rest whenever she feels the need to do so. If you’d like to read more about puppy exercise, check out AviDog’s puppy exercise guidelines. This article from AKC also gives some helpful puppy exercise tips.
3 weeks
Well, the puppies aren’t actually 3 weeks yet, but my awesome sister-in-law helps take puppy pictures mid-week, so we’re going to call them 3 week pictures even though the puppies are more like 2 1/2 weeks! Taking puppy pictures becomes increasingly difficult with each week that goes by because the puppies become more and more mobile (and less inclined to sit still), so I am very grateful to have an assistant. The best part since the puppy photoshoot last week is that these cuties have opened their eyes!! Eye opening is a process that doesn’t happen all in one day.
Aren’t they getting cuter and cuter each week?! These sweet dumplings are getting so big! The puppies continue to enjoy nursing regularly. It’s a crazy, active puppy pile as they all search for the perfect milk tap. Once the milk starts flowing, they all settle down and enjoy the delicious warmness filling their chunky bellies.
weekly puppy tip #4: learning can be fun!
Get ready to play educational games with your puppy! – Did you know that there are fun games you can play with your puppy that teach her beneficial skills? It’s great to incorporate regular educational games into your puppy’s routine, so read through these suggestions, add any needed supplies to your puppy shopping list, and get ready for puppy playtime!
- Ball On The Wall – Encourages retrieving
- Supplies: A ball that your puppy can carry in her mouth
- How to play: Sit on the floor about 1-5’ from a wall. Put your legs in a “V” and sit facing the wall with your puppy between you and the wall. Toss the ball at the wall, encouraging your puppy to go after it. Give your puppy lots of praise when she brings the ball back!
- Variation: Once you’ve mastered Ball On The Wall, try playing retrieve in a hallway with all the doors closed (so your puppy can’t run away from you with the ball).
- Toy Trade – Prevents resource guarding
- Supplies: A toy that your puppy likes but doesn’t highly value and a high value treat
- How to play: Briefly play with your puppy using the toy. Ask your puppy for the toy by offering her a high value treat. Reward & praise her for giving you the toy, and give the toy back to her as soon as she finishes chewing. Gradually work on having her give you objects of higher value (i.e. a bone).
- Variation: Work on teaching your puppy the command “give” and ask her to drop the toy/bone on command in exchange for the high value treat.
- Hide & Seek – Encourages recall
- Supplies: Yummy treats
- How to play: Run away from your puppy, hide behind a corner, tree, couch or other object, and call your puppy to encourage her to find you. When she does, give her lots of praise and a yummy treat.
- Variation: Have a partner play with you and take turns hiding. While the first person is rewarding the puppy for coming, the second person hides.
three and a half weeks
Well, posed group pictures are basically impossible at this point! These puppies are up and moving – and they have no desire to sit still in a cute little line! They are quite happy to snuggle on our laps though, which we love. And they also like showering us with sweet puppy kisses.
The puppies are really beginning to look and act like little dogs. The puppies enjoy lapping fresh goat milk from a bowl and licking it off each other for the first time today. Shout out to D & L Meadows for supplying us with fresh, local goat milk for these little pups to enjoy. The pups will start enjoying soften kibble before too long. But right now the pups think warm goat milk is AMAZING, but they’re not completely sure which end actually does the eating. They kept sticking various body parts in the bowls of milk this morning! Phoebe is quite happy to help lap up any mess the puppies make during their mealtimes and she lovingly licked the goat milk off of each puppy once they finished filling their little round bellies. It’s adorable to watch the puppies lick the milk mustaches off of each other! Sweet little puppies kissing their littermates! The sound they make when eating is precious, too.
We give the puppies a new item each day to look at and investigate. It’s so fun to see their little eyes taking in the sights. The pups are starting to let out little barks (much to my kids’ delight). They’ve added a variety of little squeaks and squeals to their repertoire. Sometimes the sounds that come out of their mouths seems to surprise the puppies themselves! The puppies are having fun playing with each other now, as Jay & Gingie are doing in the picture below.
These cute puppers have also been on their first road trip. We know they each have a lifetime of car rides ahead of them, so we want to make sure they’re familiar with the feeling of being in a moving automobile. The pups all piled together into a crate and cruised around town. The road in the car for an hour twice this past week. While neither Phoebe or Boaz struggle with car sickness, we want to do everything we can to set these sweet puppies up for success. There is some thought that early exposure to car rides helps decrease the risk of a dog being prone to car sick as an adult.
weekly puppy tip #5: be the leader your puppy wants you to be
It’s essential that you establish yourself as the pack leader. Your puppy doesn’t want to be in charge – that’s a scary place to be! Your puppy wants to look to you as the leader, but you have to show yourself as the worth of the role by being the leader. Some easy ways to establish your leadership include:
- Do bonding exercises each night with your puppy (see below) to establish that you’re allowed to touch your puppy anywhere and everywhere.
- Set boundaries so there is at least one place in your home that your puppy isn’t allowed to go in your home (i.e. not allowed to jump on your bed, not allowed to sit on a particular couch or not allowed into a certain room).
- Teach you puppy to sit and wait for you to walk out the front door before her and give her the “okay” before she is permitted to walk through it. When she’s old enough to start walking freely up and down stairs, teach her to wait for you to finish climbing/descending the stairs before she comes.
- Encourage your puppy sit and wait for you to give her the “okay” before she is allowed to approach her food bowl. Periodically pick up your puppy’s food bowl while she’s eating, reward her with a yummy treat, and return the food bowl. See the Toy Trade Game from last week’s puppy tips.
- Teach your puppy to do a long down during meal times. Buy a soft rug or bed and teach your puppy to go lay on it on command. We have our own adult dogs lay on a rug in a down stay during dinner. Maple was doing a down stay along side them at 6 months old for the entire length of our meal – which means your puppy can do it at a young age, too!
Bonding Exercises – Do this every night with your puppy just before putting her in her crate for bed. Puppies benefit from a routine plus everyone benefits from a puppy learning that you’re the leader and that you are allowed to touch her anywhere and everywhere. The this video shows bonding exercises being done for the first time with a new puppy. Yes, your puppy will resist and squirm at first. Eventually, your puppy will come to LOVE and EXPECT you doing bonding exercises with her. Take 30 seconds each night and do it. You’ll be thankful that you did (and so will your vet and groomer!). There’s a second video of bonding exercises being done with an older pup here at the bottom of the post (notice how much he has grown to enjoy doing bonding exercises). It’s easy to periodically incorporate parts of grooming into bonding exercise time, trimming nails one night and cleaning ears a different night.
four and a half weeks
This is such a fun age! These puppies are cuter every day! Their individual personalities are showing through. They’ve transformed from little guinea pigs who can’t see or hear to actual miniature dogs who run around and play. Hopefully you’ve enjoyed the short video clips on our Instagram story. The puppies are walking about, exploring the world around them. They enjoy playing with the different toys in their pen, and they enjoy playing with each other, too. In between their short bursts of energy, they still spend much of their time sleeping. If you sit on the floor, you’re sure to have a lap full of puppies! The pups were able to experience the great outdoors for the first time! It’s fun to watch them pick up leaves, explore behind plants, and trot around the yard after our kiddos. The pups don’t sit still for long, except for when they’re on your lap or sleeping, so pictures are challenging!
The puppies have transitioned from milk to a softened kibble/goat milk blend. Your little one will be accustomed to eating TLC puppy food. You should be receiving an email directly from TLC in the next week.
Remember that trade game in weekly puppy tip #4? Once your new fluffball is adjusted to your home, you can periodically use your puppy’s dinner bowl to play the game, working on preventing resource guarding. Neither Phoebe or Boaz display food aggression and neither one greedily inhale their food (in fact, it’s not uncommon for them to leave some kibble in their bowls after eating their fill), so likely your puppy naturally won’t either. Even so, taking a few minutes to work with your puppy while she’s young can go a long way in preventing unwanted behavior. Pick up a pack of hot dogs or other delicious treat and occasionally pick up your pup’s bowl while she’s eating, exchanging her kibble for a sliver of hot dog, and then returning her food bowl to her (see the trade game from weekly puppy tip #4).
Weekly Puppy Tip #6
Pick out and sign up for a puppy class – A puppy class is essential both for socialization and manners. Look for a class that emphasizes positive reinforcement, as learning & training should be a fun game at this point. Clicker training is a plus. This article from AKC gives some pointers about what to look for in a puppy class. Many dog training facilities will allow your new friend to join their puppy class around 12 weeks of age, once she has received her second set of immunizations. Allison Camp from Pups Unleashed offers a local puppy class. She’ll be temperament testing the puppies in a little over 2 weeks and assisting with matching. Temperament testing is always an exciting day!
We prefer in-person puppy classes over virtual hands down. But we certainly understand that these aren’t ordinary times! Timberidge Goldendoodles is excited to be partnering with Baxter & Bella. In a time when it’s challenging to attend an in-person puppy class, Baxter & Bella’s online resources, virtual classes, and video training tips are an amazing option for every puppy owner. Plus membership is for a lifetime, so you can access Baxter & Bella’s tools repeatedly over the years ahead for each and every furry child that joins your family. Even if you participate in an in-person class, I think you’ll find Baxter & Bella is an amazingly helpful resource.
Use the discount code TIMBERIDGE to save 25% when you join Baxter & Bella!
Here’s a short video from Baxter & Bella’s about how to train your puppy to respond positively the someone ringing your doorbell.
six weeks (almost)
It’s been another busy week for Phoebe’s puppies! They’ve played outside A LOT! They LOVE the great outdoors! It’s fun to watch the pups pick up leaves, size up big sticks, squeeze under bushes, and frolic through the grass. They’re so lively!
The puppies have had their bottoms shaved for the second time. If you wish to spread out how often your pup goes for professional grooming, a pair of dog clippers to enable you to trim your dog between grooming appointments. Goldendoodles have such thick coats that you’ll burn through your pair of human clippers, so a pair of dog clippers is well worth the investment.
The puppies also went on two adventures to new places this week. We want puppies to ride in the car numerous times during their time with us for two reasons: 1) to help them become used to the sensation of being in a moving vehicle and 2) so that they can experience new places, sights, sounds, etc. The puppies cruised around town in contently lounging plastic crates alongside a buddy. When your puppy joins your family, continue to take your puppy on car rides to fun places. If your puppy only rides in the car when she’s going to the vet or groomer, she’ll learn to associate the car with those things and won’t want to go on rides. Remember, puppies are highly impressionable at a young age, so a few “bad” trips can give them a distaste for the car. Make sure the good, fun trips outnumber the bad trips. Our parent dogs LOVE the car because they go to the park, to the nature center, to the homes of friends and family, to dog-friendly stores, and so forth. Sometimes they even ride in the car to pick up our ClickList order with us. Our dogs associate the car with fun and always eagerly hop in whenever we tell them to “go for a ride.”
weekly puppy tip #7
Get ready to groom! – Your puppy has had her nails clipped and hair trimmed during her time with us, so she has already had her initial introduction to her lifetime of being groomed. Take her to the groomer for a puppy clip after her 16-week immunizations. The groomer will bathe her, trim the hair out of her eyes, give her a sanitary clip, and trim her nails. Since she will need regular grooming throughout her life, both she and her groomer will benefit if she becomes accustomed to being groomed from a young age, even before she’s ready for a full haircut.
When should she have her first big girl haircut? The wavy, curly adult coat will start replacing the soft, fluffy puppy coat around 5-6 months of age. You’ll notice the new hair coming in is kinkier than the pure fluff on top. Waiting to cut the hair until the adult coat makes its debut beneath the layers of puppy plush helps ensure that the adult coat remains soft. Many poodle groomers and poodle fanciers claim that shaving a poodle or goldendoodle down before her adult coat starts coming in could damage the adult coat, affecting the texture. While there isn’t any substantiated evidence that this is true, it’s worth avoiding just in case. That doesn’t mean that your puppy might not benefit from a puppy clip in the meantime! Don’t let your puppy’s hair get out of control! As aforementioned, take her to the groomer for a puppy clip after her 16-week immunizations. When the time comes, check out the grooming section on our website for a variety of goldendoodle haircut pictures. Learn more about your Goldendoodle puppy’s first trip to the groomer.
Waiting until 6 months for the first full big girl clip does not mean you’re off the hook for grooming at home! You should regularly groom your puppy: brushing her hair, cleaning her ears, brushing her teeth, clipping her toenails, and checking her for any anomalies (i.e. ticks, cuts, etc.). You want your puppy to become accustomed to being brushed and handled all over from a young age. It’s easy to incorporate different parts of grooming into your nightly bonding exercises. We have a plethora of haircut resources under the “grooming” tab in the main menu bar.
seven weeks
The puppies are so much fun! They bound around outside, finding things to chew and places to explore. They also sneak around the house, trying to investigate new places. The pups have discovered the big dogs’ crates and go in them hunting for food. The puppies have transitioned to dry kibble, and think it great fun whenever they discover a stray kibble that belongs to the big dogs.
We have started closing the puppies briefly in crates individually with a pig ear to chew, as you saw in the Instagram story video a few days ago. The puppies sleep in larger crates, two puppies per crate. While we strive to give them positive crate experiences during their time with us, they aren’t crate trained and will still take time to adjust when you bring them home. Be sure to pick up a special extra yummy chew that your puppy only gets during (daytime) crate time.
The puppies continue to enjoy going to road trips to explore new places. Hopefully you saw the Instagram video of them meeting their first goats! It’s enjoyable to watch them bound around exploring new places and eagerly greeting new people.
weekly puppy tip #8
Fostering the children/dog relationship – Goldendoodles are family dogs by nature, but there are a few steps you can take to help set your puppy and your kids up for a lifetime of friendship:
- When your puppy is sleeping, let her sleep – your puppy is growing & developing and she NEEDS that sleep. Teach your children to respect a sleeping puppy by not interrupting her. Your puppy’s crate should be her safe retreat. When she’s in her crate, allow her to enjoy safe, undisturbed quiet time- this doesn’t mean that you all need to tip toe quietly around when the puppies napping! It just means that when the puppy is napping, let her enjoy that peaceful sleep untouched and wake up on her own good time.
- Involve your children in daily puppy care – allowing your children to participate in caring for the puppy will help grow the bond between them and their furry friend. It also helps the puppy learn associate good things with little people and helps her see the children as above her in the pack order. Younger children particularly love being helpers. Our kids enjoy (aka fight over) feeding the dogs, letting them out of their crates, opening the back door to let the dogs in/out, etc. We let them help brush the dogs with much supervision (remember, we want all puppy experiences to be POSITIVE!). Our children also love holding leashes on walks (children should only take your dog on a walk with adult supervision). If you don’t trust your puppy to not pull a young child over, you can attach two short leashes to one dog so both you & your child have a leash to hold. Be cognizant of your child’s age and maturity level. Older children can be more actively involved and younger children can be involved in smaller ways.
- Encourage your children to play with the puppy – puppy nips and jumps can be intimidating for some children. Teaching children how to act calmly around a puppy and how to play intentional games such as fetch and educational games (see some suggestions under week 3) can help both the children and the puppy learn how to interact with each other. Explain to your children that your puppy isn’t trying to hurt them when she’s nipping – she’s asking them to play with her.
- Include your children in puppy training – when you enroll your puppy in a puppy kindergarten class, ask about bringing your child along (assuming he’s old enough and mature enough to participate). Our children enjoy practicing sits and downs with our dogs, dolling out hotdog slivers to the eager participants. Our dogs think it’s great! Be sure to always supervise children/puppy training sessions.
- Teach your children to respect the puppy – sometimes it’s challenging for children, especially young ones, to distinguish between their favorite stuffie and a real-life fluffy puppy. Many children need to be patiently taught to be gentle and kind with animals. “No hugging dogs” is a rule in our home because a preschooler bear hug around the neck is too much our small dogs (our dogs don’t mind but we’re afraid they might accidentally get hurt since they’re significantly smaller than the ones dolling out the hugs). If there are times when you aren’t able to supervise your children’s interaction with your puppy, it might be best (and safest) to put your puppy in her crate. Remember, that crate should be your puppy’s safe place. This article by AKC has more helpful tips about teaching children to respect dogs.
vet check: April 5, 2021
The puppies visited our friends at Companion Animal Medical Centre this afternoon. Going to the doctor is exhausting! I am please to report that all four puppies received a clean bill of health!
The pups received their first of three doses of the DHLPP vaccine. You should schedule an appointment with your vet for your pup to receive her second dose when she is around 12 (around 5.10.21) weeks of age and third dose at 16 weeks of age (around 6.6.21).
In addition to immunizations, your puppy will also need a monthly parasite preventative that covers a range of parasites (heart worms, hooks worms, etc.) as well as fleas to help keep her healthy. Your puppy received one dose of Interceptor today (4.5.21). Be sure to administer heart worm medication with a meal, as the medication can be hard on your puppy’s stomach. Happily, no one had any tummy troubles with their medication today.
getting ready for your puppy
We’ve created a puppy shopping list to help guide you as you prepare to bring your new pup home!
meet the parents
Learn more about Phoebe & Boaz by visiting their personal pages. There are videos of their past puppies if you’re curious what this litter will look like in a few weeks. Don’t forget to check out Instagram for more pictures of the parents, past puppies, and this current litter.