The Milky Way

Eleven puppies require a lot of milk!  The good thing is that when it comes to breast milk, the more you nurse the more your milk supply builds up to meet the demand. 

Cold fresh water...room service style

Coco is being such a good mother to her puppies.  We are making sure that she gets lots of rest and plenty to drink.  We are providing her with lots of water and also a milk mixture consisting of goats milk, raw egg, oil and a bit of honey.  She is eating good wholesome meals spread out in smaller portions several times a day.  Mother care is of prime importance.  Stress and fatigue can interfere with milk production so we are not having visitors right now and the other dogs are kept downstairs so that Coco can focus on looking after her babies. 

Nursing puppies requires an increased intake of fluids.  When I was nursing my children I always made sure I had a glass of water with me.  Because she spends so much time in the whelping box, I will often bring Coco her water directly to her.  She prefers it to be cold and fresh - every time.  Yes Ma'am!  Whatever it takes to make sure you are drinking enough :0) 



All of Coco and Dougy's puppies are doing well. Here they are in the whelping box on day 4.

I am so thankful that Coco and her babies are doing well and we are doing our best to keep things going as smoothly as possible.

Northrock's A-Team has arrived!

Pre-labour...waiting for puppies in the whelping pool.

Northrock's A litter has arrived safe and sound.  Yesterday, August 4th, 2012 we welcomed Coco and Dougy's puppies to the world.  Active labour began around 2:15pm with Coco having a few small contractions which combined with squinty eyes and heavy panting gave me a pretty good feeling I would be seeing a puppy soon.   At 2:25 Coco delivered her first pup.  Mr. Blue arrived head first and weighed 10 1/4 oz.  At 6:10pm puppy # 9, Miss. Maroon was born.  Coco seemed to be finished and I cleaned up and moved the gang out of the pool and into the whelping box.  I thank God for the ease of this whelping as all pups were born strong and healthy and are doing great.

Coco with her 9 babes...thought we were done LOL

Well apparently Coco wasn't quite done having pups.  At 7:40 pm she whelped Mr. Gray followed shortly thereafter by his sister Miss. Tan.  At last, the A-Team had arrived!  Here are the 6 boys and 5 girls (all black) listed in birth order:

Mr. Blue, born at 2:25pm - 10 1/4 oz
Mr. Green, born at 3:23 pm - 11 1/2 oz
Mr. Yellow, born at 4:12 pm - 12 1/4 oz
Miss. Purple, born at 4:38pm - 11 1/2 oz
Mr. White, born at 4:51 pm - 10 3/4 oz
Miss. Red, born at 5:10 pm - 11 1/2 oz
Mr. Brown, born at 5:25 pm - 9 1/4 oz
Miss. Orange, born at 6:00pm - 10 1/4 oz
Miss. Maroon, born at 6:10pm - 10 1/2 oz
Mr. Gray, born at 7:40pm - 10 7/8 oz
Miss. Tan, born at 8:05pm - 12 3/4 oz

Northrock's A Litter - Born August 4, 2012

Thanks to everyone who has helped make this blessed event possible; Pam, Michel, Bobby & Sylvie, Julie and Kevin, Michelle and Chris...and everyone else who's support and encouragement means the world to me.  Thank you all!

Happy Coco with her rainbow of pups.

Coco's due date is fast approaching...

Today I took Coco to the vet for a puppy count x-ray.  She is 58 days from her first breeding on June 3rd (which also was very likely her ovultion date).  Coco will whelp her pups 63 days +/- day from the day she ovulated which was either June 3rd or 4th.  We like to do a pre-whelp x-ray so that we can check the number, size and position of the pups.  So far everything looks good.  How many pups can you see?

Here is a photo of Coco that was taken yesterday.  She is looking bigger that's for sure!

Wet Water Dogs!

The dogs had a great time up north yesterday.  We took Mona and Sophie up to escape the city heat while Coco and Quincy stayed at home (with the air conditioning) and my Mom looked after them for us.  Olivia and I took the Barbets for a canoe ride.  The two girls fit in the canoe no problem.

It was an extra special day because it was the first time that Mona went swimming!  She did an awesome job.  We managed to get a video of one of her first swims :0)

This was also Mona's first time retrieving from the water and it was wonderful to see how naturally she took to it. 

Coco is Pregnant!

Today we took Coco for an ultrasound to confirm that she is in fact pregnant.  There have been signs, some subtle and some not so subtle.  She has been sleepier and even more of a shadow, following me around everywhere.  Her nipples have gotten bigger and she almost seems a little bit larger.  These signs could be attributed to my wishful thinking and could even be signs of a false pregnancy.  This past week however my normally not picky eater has developed obvious signs of morning sickness.  She hasn’t thrown up but she was not interested in eating, not even her favourite things.  By the evening her appetite would usually be back.  So when the vet asked me “do you think she is pregnant”  I was feeling pretty confident in saying “yes I sure do”.  I did want the ultrasound though,  it’s nice to know that things are going well and that there are little puppies growing inside of Coco.  It was a real thrill to see the little embryos on the screen. 

Here is a photo of one of her babies.  The black oval is the fluid filled sac and the white inside the sac is the puppy :0)

Meeting and Greeting with Mona the Barbet

"Mona" relaxing at the PawsWay

Yesterday Mona and I represented  Club Barbet Canada at the Purina PawsWay’s “Celebration of French Breeds” event in downtown Toronto’s Harbourfront.   The PawsWay is a wonderful pet friendly venue.  The public is welcome to stroll through the Purina Animal Hall of Fame and read the amazing stories and see photos of the pets and service animals that have been recognized as heros.  There is a reference area with books and materials on dog and cat care and crafts for children to do.  You’ll find a store selling pet products and what I really like, an indoor pet friendly café where you can get something to eat and drink and sit at a table with your dog right beside you.  The indoor Pet Park at Toronto’s PawsWay is where they hold a variety of events and classes to educate and enlighten the public about responsible pet ownership. 

Club Barbet Canada was pleased to have been invited to participate in the Celebration of French Breeds and Mona was in her element meeting and greeting the public for hours on end.  She is such a happy and friendly girl and she loves attention.  Of all the people who walked through the doors no one had heard of a Barbet except for one lady and another woman who came through with her 11 week old Barbet puppy Merlow from RoVer Barbets!  That was a special treat for us as this adorable puppy is a nephew to Mona on her sire’s side. 

Since it was a beautiful day and we got there a little bit early we made sure we took a bit of time to walk around and enjoy the waterfront. If you are in ever in Toronto and looking for something to do with your dog, check out the Harbourfront area. It's lovely and very pet friendly.

Coco and Dougy…together…like a wink and a smile

Coco

Dougy

This past week I travelled to Quebec to take Coco (CH Bayport Coco Chanel) to Dougy (FCC/Can CH Barbugaulois Daragon) to be bred.  She is so good to travel with and we had a really nice trip.  We had a wonderful visit with Dougy’s owners Bobby Souchereau and Sylvie Marlow and his breeder Michel Raymond.  I just love Dougy.   He is a strong healthy Barbet in great physical condition.  Not only has he proven himself in the show ring but Bobby and Sylvie take him everywhere with them and his temperament is fantastic.   I’m excited about the puppies that we could get from this combination.  

Now all there is to do is enjoy this summer weather with the dogs while we wait and pray for puppies.  It's cooling off a little right now so my daughter and I and Coco and Sophie are going to go for an evening walk to go watch my son's soccer practice.