Six weeks old - getting big now!!

The pups are now six weeks old. In just 2 to 3 more weeks they will ready to leave for their new homes!! Wow, time flies - and they change so fast, from little sausages that didn't do much more than wriggle, to real small dogs who love to run, romp, play, and snuggle. 

In just one more week they'll get their first vaccinations and be microchipped. A few days after that the pet puppies will be spayed and neutered, and within a few days to a week after that momentous occasion they will be ready for their new homes!


This evening we took them all with the big dogs out to a field near our house. I took lots of pictures of them running around, so that's what you'll see in this post rather than individual photos. 

Their personalities continue to emerge more strongly every day. Black boy is confident, inquisitive, secure and bold. Cream boy wants attention and snuggles. Red girl is quite confident as well,brave and adaptable. Cream girl is a bit more hesitant and reserved, goes into new situations with caution but very secure once she's figured it out. Red boy is brazen, bold, and playful. 

Five weeks old with teeth!

Now that these little pupsters are getting mobile, we are starting to see their personalities emerge.

Black boy is a very calm, placid, easy-going little fellow. He rarely makes a noise, and accepts handling with equanimity, whether it’s to clip his claws, take a bath, or just be snuggled. He is getting a few teeth, too, which means he’s keen to chew anything to soothe his gums. The curl in his coat is already very apparent, so we know he’s going to end up very curly. At 5 weeks of age he weighs 1395g, putting him in line to be about 22 lbs at maturity.

This sweetie is still in need of his forever home.

Cream boy will let you know when he wants attention. He isn’t so keen on things like baths and nail clipping, but he’ll put up with it. He’s confident and playful and loves to tackle the older dogs in the house. He now weighs 1685g, so we predict he’ll end up around 30lbs at maturity.

This fellow may have a home already (the family is most interested in either him or cream girl…)

Cream-apricot girl is a sweetheart who loves to snuggle. She is alert and friendly, playful but not in-your-face. Fairly quiet, she isn’t quite as laid back as black boy but not quite as adventuresome as red girl, either. Just an all-around sweetheart! As of today she is no longer the smallest, having passed her older brother and weighing in at 1440g, which means she’ll likely be around 22 lbs when full-grown.

This girl likely still needs a home.

(unless the family takes her instead of cream boy, and unless we switch our breeder choice from red girl to her).

Red girl has an adventurous spirit. She seems to like the water and took to her bath with pleasure. She has no qualms going up to the bigger pups and dogs and getting into play mode. She loves to give kisses, too! She is brave and adaptable – seems initially a wee bit hesitant in new situations but quickly takes things in stride. Weight-wise she’s in the middle of the pack at 1531g, so we expect she’ll mature to about 25 lbs.

We are hoping to keep red girl as a future breeder.

Red boy, to be called PJ, is still the big fatso of the bunch. Not that he’s fat, he’s just considerably larger than the others, weighing in now at 2.3kg. We expect he’ll max out at around 35 lbs. Though not as placid as black boy, he takes things in stride and isn’t afraid of new experiences.

This fellow has a family ready to take him home in mid-June. Way to go, PJ!!

We still need a Guardian Home to be the forever family for our breeding prospect girl (hopefully red girl or possibly cream/apricot girl). Call 613-552-3066 if you're interested, or e-mail roma@dragonramdoodles.com.

We're ON

 A kindly neighbour came over and gave us a boost and indeed that's all it needed. So with a bit of a drive to charge the battery, i expedt we'll be fine this aft. See everyone at 3pm!!

Doodle Romp Alert!!!

Notice to all who planned to come to the Doodle Romp: My car died earlier this weekend and I'm working on either getting it resuscitated - might just need a boost, not sure - or getting a lift to the Romp. 

I don't want to cancel it, as it would be nice for everyone to meet even if we can't be there. But I'll do my best. 

We are expecting Corona (black with white paw tips), Cassi (black), Lyra (apricot), Kodiak (chocolate and very big!), Galaxy (black-and-white, flat coat) & Lily (red parti) & their families.

3pm at Conroy Pit, meet at the first left fork off the main trail.

My cell if anyone wants to call at 3pm and see where I'm at: 613-552-3066.

Now we are one! (month old, that is)

My, what a difference a week makes! These pups are now MOBILE!!

They are walking, running, pouncing – in a very toddlerish way, but still, they are doing it! While they are still spending the majority of time sleeping and eating, we are seeing more and more short and intense bouts of playfulness. These tend to occur after waking up from naps and after eating. One puppy will lunge towards another, who jumps at the first and then they tussle. They mouth-tussle, locking jaws and wrestling. They make short stampedes across the playroom floor. Then – collapse in a heap and nap some more.

We have begun feeding them too. This is not yet weaning, but simply supplementing Mama MoMo’s milk as they are growing so fast. For the past week they have been getting a mixture of goat’s milk, baby oatmeal, plain yogurt, egg yolks and oil. Now we are adding mushed puppy kibble, tinned dog food and a bit of pumpkin to that. Soon they will start to get teeth (in fact we can feel the beginnings of teeth in a couple of mouths), at which point we will be able to reduce the amount of liquids and soft food and stop mushing up the kibble so much. 

Over the long weekend we will begin to introduce them to the rest of the house and also to the out of doors. We have already had them outside on our porch and let them feel the tickle of grass. They will soon be ready to start taking very short walks with us or going to the nearby field and playing in the grass there. That is one of the benefits of spring puppies – it’s so easy to take them out of doors when they are still fairly young. As for the rest of the house, they have ventured beyond their puppy corner once or twice when we’ve left the gate open. 

Three days ago, when red girl wandered out, 5-month-old Scarlett sure wanted to play with her! But little red girl was rather intimidated and didn’t yet understand this behaviour, so she just crawled under the cupboard to hide. I rescued her and put her back in her safe area. Yesterday evening, on the other hand, we had the two big pups and Phoenix together with the little pups and they were all playing quite well together, with the little pups pouncing right back at the bigger ones - and promptly getting knocked over by a lick or a nudge! The more they venture forth and interact with the other dogs, the more they will learn.

For now, we are enjoying watching them tussle and romp in their little indoor space. We hear their tiny barks and squeaks and laugh when they tumble and slide. It’s so cute to see them!

As of now, if anyone is interested in meeting the pups we will be welcoming visitors (who have submitted application forms and are seriously interested in taking one). It is still early to get a sense of the pups’ personalities, but this will come through more strongly as time goes on. 

   Black boy  

 

 

    Cream boy   

 (mmm - tasty toes!)

     Apricot girl   

    Red girl   

 

    Red boy   

 

    Kids having fun!   

    And - just because it's pretty   

 

 

 

Introducing Phoenix!

DragonRam Doodles would like to introduce Canadian Doodles Phoenix as a new addition to our breeding program!

Phoenix is a lovely 9-week old pup (born 4 March 2012) that comes to us from Canadian Doodle Puppies, also here in Ottawa. Her dam is Morning Smile Cassonade, a cream girl with a sweet, gentle and loving disposition, and her sire is Halton Hills New Beginnings, a chocolate phantom boy.

Phoenix herself is a lovely apricot colour with a stocky build, blunt nose and teardrop eyes. She carries for black and chocolate and also for phantom.

Phoenix joined us this past Saturday, May 12^th, during an afternoon birthday celebration with (adult) friends for my kids’ 9^th and 12^th birthdays – and indeed, she is to be my son’s special friend and was his best birthday surprise!!!

Phoenix will be a canine companion to Amore, our 4-year-old foundation dam. At the moment Amore thinks she is just another nuisancy puppy but they will soon grow to be best buddies and have lots of fun together! Last night out in the field Phoenix was doing her utmost to interest Amore in playing with her, but Amore just ignored her. So my son tumbled and ran with her instead which she just adored!

The older puppies (Leo & Scarlett) will play with her – though as Phoenix is still much younger and smaller, she usually ends up rolling on her back and acting submissive! Once our little pups have grown a bit bigger – and Mama MoMo isn’t quite as protective – we will let her in to play with them. They are closer in age and will likely have lots of fun together!

We will give Phoenix lots of time to grow and mature and – providing all goes well and she passes her health testing – we will expect a first litter from her sometime in 2014.

Next Doodle Romp

We are organizing a Doodle Romp for the Victoria Day Monday, May 21st, 3:00 pm at Conroy Pit.

All our puppy and dog owners are invited to attend.
If you own a doodle that didn't come from us you're invited to attend!
If you're just interested in meeting doodles and seeing what the breed is like you're also welcome to attend!

RSVP to roma@dragonramdoodles.com so we know whom to expect.

The meeting point will be down the main trail at the first fork to the left (so that we don't have to hang around the busy and crowded parking lot area while waiting for dogs and people to show up).

Come and help us celebrate Cassiopeia, Gatsby, Corona, Lyra and Ziggy's first birthday!!! We expect at least Corona and Lyra to be there. (And it's my daughter's birthday too!)

Treats will be available for dogs and their people.

Three weeks old: We can walk!

The puppies are continuing to grow and develop quickly. Their legs are getting stronger and they can now support their weight, though they don't have great coordination yet and tumble down every 3 or 4 steps or so, especially if the floor is slippery. When we take them out of the whelping box we put a blanket on the ground so they can have a bit of traction. They can even run a few paces before tumbling over - particularly if the goal is to get to Mama! But they haven't yet managed to get out of the whelping box on their own unless the blankets are bunched up near the high lip of the entrance, giving them a means to get over the edge.

We are starting to see signs of real puppy behaviour, too - wagging of tails and tussling with each other, in particular. With eyes open and some mobility, their resemblance to little fat wiggly sausages is diminishing daily. Now they are pups!!

Today for the first time we gave them a bit of puppy gruel - at this point a very liquid mixture of goat's milk, egg yolk, plain probiotic yogurt, baby oatmeal, and oil. They lapped it up like little feed-demons and wanted more! This is not yet weaning, just a way to start them getting used to the idea of getting food from somewhere other than Mama, and to supplement their diet so Mama doesn't hve to work so hard making milk. At this point she is eating almost constantly to have enough energy to produce milk for five hungry, growing babes. 

   Black boy  

   Cream boy  

   Apricot girl  

  

   Red girl  

   Red boy  

   A couple of crazy kids!