It is hard to believe that the pups are 5 weeks old today. This week was Christmas week. As we debated the timing of the litter and the 'to breed or not to breed' question, this week was my biggest concern. How would we manage puppies and still keep all the traditions of the holidays in place for our children. Would they resent any changes we would have to make to accommodate puppies? Would we be able to manage presents and trees and decorations? Could we still visit with friends and family with puppies in tow? None of these fears came to be this week! We were blessed with a spectacular Christmas filled with traditions and family and friends and YES! even puppies. Squirrel and Mudge made the holiday a delight! We didn't think it could be possible to add more magic to the season, but they certainly did! The pups alerted us at 5 am that Santa had come and it was all clear to start the day! They accompanied us to my sisters house where they got to meet the whole family. They played in the yard with children and their dog cousins, Pooka and Guinness. After a lot of oohing and aahing they spent most of the day napping. This week meant a lot of visits from friends and neighbors, they met tons of people and several dogs and showed their true Chinook spirit through it all - tails wagging and plenty of kisses!

SQUIRREL
birth weight: 15.8 oz, weight at 5 weeks: 9 lbs 2 oz

Squirrel is at once a beauty queen and a warrior. Her looks are sleek and elegant but she is full of zest and as adventuresome as they come. She loves to explore, pounce, play, bite and yes! escape all forms of containment! She is very attached to Tioga and while her position as "favorite kid" has given her more confidence and stubbornness, it also makes her very dependent. As Tioga weens them, Squirrel is more vocal about her disapproval of not having mom on demand. She is the most playful of the two. Often when the food bowl goes down she is more interested in playing with the hand that placed it there and ends up jumping all over the food to get to the human!

Ever curious, Squirrel would rather eat the tree than pose beside it.

Side by side she looks much leaner than Mudge, however she only let him beat her once on the scale. She is sleek and Mudge is all fluff!

I wonder what the ears will do in the future?

MUDGE
birth weight: 15.2 oz, weight at 5 weeks: 8 lbs 15oz

Mudge continues to be the love-bug! Though he is always the winner in a wrestling match with Squirrel, he still prefers to cuddle. He is very interested in watching the big dogs play and tries to mimic them in games of chase. Dakota is becoming more and more at ease with them, now that they can run and play. Mudge was the first pup to figure out the potty routine. He almost always pees on the paper and hasn't pooped inside in the last week. He whines to go out whenever he needs. They both are doing incredibly well with preliminary housebreaking. They are a wonderful balance to each other - In any given situation one is tentative and the other is bold and then in a different situation the roles are reversed. It is fun to watch who will take the lead, who learns what skill first, who is the first to venture out and who is the quickest to come running back.

Mudge is a much easier pup to photograph as he more readily sits STILL. Squirrel needs a high speed shutter at all times!

Just hanging out!

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Squirrel is almost always found napping in Tioga's crate. This particular sleeping position is a total GreatMountain gene!

With all that fluff, Mudge usually naps where there is a draft. He almost always sleeps up against the gate. That is until Santa brought them new doggie beds...

Squirrel and Mudge

Out early to watch the snow fall.

Chasing each other under the deck.

Squirrel is wondering what Dakota finds so interesting about this stick.

Tioga says, "being a mom is exhausting!"

Squirrel (the escape artist)

Does this look like the face of a criminal???

This is the moment every parent dreads - when they realize that their baby can climb out of the crib. The little "safety zone" you have created has been deemed (by the child) a prison and now their only goal is to escape (again and again - just to prove they can!).

Squirrel is absolutely a girl on a mission! No walls will hold her in. We were keeping the whelping box door closed (to keep the puppies in - so we thought) while still allowing Tioga access to them, as she can jump the side to get in. The puppies have decided they will no longer poop in the whelping box, even though I made a nice little potty area in a corner for them. They pee in the potty area, but when they have to poop they kick up such a ruckus that you have to investigate. Immediately upon exiting the box, they find a nice little spot in the corner of the puppy playmat and poop. Now that they realize making a ton of noise is a free ticket out of the box, they scream uncontrollably whenever they want to play, follow mom, go to the bathroom, not go to sleep (even though it is 2 am!) Squirrel figured out that if you get into the corner of the box you can climb on the rail and shimmy up and over the top. OK, so now what? Tioga needs access, pups need containment. We decided to make the entire puppy room a giant whelping box. Tioga's crate is in there, a play area with toys and foam tiles for good traction on the floor , a sleeping area with soft bedding, and a potty area. It is a veritable puppy paradise, if I do say so myself. BUT... on the other side of that gate is a very interesting Christmas tree!!! Squirrel got a little "taste" of a Christmas ornament the other day. Boy, was it good. She batted it with her nose and paw and it swung right back at her! She pull it with her teeth and the whole tree wiggled and all the ornaments danced! Oh man! She knows that tree is fun waiting to happen!!! Squirrel (or shall I say Houdini) has now decided she will escape the puppy room! There is a world out there ready for her to conquer! We have an accordion gate across the door as it is very wide and was the only style that would work there. She has twice gotten her head stuck in the gate testing the ability of it to hold her in. Thankfully, it only requires you to accordion the gate one way or another to make the opening bigger for her head to slip out. I really thought the first time would scare her straight - but no! She continues to test -like the Velociraptor in Jurassic Park. Surely this "drive" will make for a great sled dog, but it also makes a (human) mother weary.

4 week pupdate

We are at the half-way mark. The pups are 4 weeks old and will only be with us for 4 more weeks before they head to their forever homes. It is a bittersweet time as we are becoming so attached with them and yet know the more we grow to love them the more they are ready for their new loving permanent homes. They are becoming increasingly more hard to handle (though I always know how easy I have it with just 2 pups) They are faster on their feet and more demanding at meal times. Humans need to be on their toes with paper towels or baby wipes. You wouldn't believe the amount of pee that can come out of such tiny bladders and how quick they can find the ONE SPOT you didn't want them to pee on!! Squirrel climbed right up in Dakota's dog bed the other day and peed right in the center of it! Aside from their potty escapades, they are becoming such distinct individuals. Squirrel is so feisty and loves to play, bite, growl, chase, romp. Mudge is beginning to see the fun in all this horsing around and has just started to use Squirrel as a chew toy to get her to wrestle him!

Squirrel

birth weight 15.8 oz., weight at 4 weeks 7 lbs 1.7 oz.

Squirrel thinks the book tastes yummy!

Mudge

birth weight 15.2 oz., weight at 4 weeks 7 lbs 1.2 oz.
This photo shoot is interrupting Mudge's nap!
Dakota is warming up to the puppies.

Mudge being a cutie!

Squirrel being a princess!

Cute Fest!

Having lots of fun playing in the puppy room. The puppies are starting to chase and run (so funny on unstable legs) They are showing more interest in toys and peoples hands, jewelry, shirts and hair! A puppy favorite in a house full of young girls and their friends...PONY TAILS! They are fun to jump up at and chew on! Here are some pictures of our fun today!

Mudge and my other "puppy" Sophie

Mudge and Squirrel trying to get lunch to go!

Squirrel and Tioga are always nose to nose. I personally think Squirrel is Tioga's favorite. She spends a lot of time and attention on her cleaning and care. Though she is still attentive to Mudge, he usually sleeps in a separate area of the box. Squirrel can always be found curled up by Tioga's neck. Mudge is a noisy one, so I am not sure if his constant whine, squeaks, grunts and rumble cause Tioga anxiety and she therefore tries to avoid him more, or if he is just more "antisocial". You could write an entire dog psychology book just sitting her watching them interact and trying to figure out what it all means. Wrestle-mania!
Squirrel trying to get the camera. She just swatted at it and nearly lost her balance...hence that awkward pose. She loves to play!

See!... Squirrel sneaks away from the "play date" to find mom, a snack and a nice nap!

Little Mudger-pie! Not so little anymore - he beat Squirrel out on the scale this morning.
For the first time ever Mudge out weighs Squirrel by a few ounces!

Hudson, the Daddy...

I was just re-reading the 3-week pupdate and thought that my comment about Squirrel seeming to be a lot like her mother may have sounded a bit one-sided. After all, if Hudson wasn't such a "go-getter" (read that GO-GET-HER!), we wouldn't have any puppies at all! We only spent a long weekend with Hudson and his wonderful human family, but we got to know Hudson , hmmm... intimately. (smirk!)

Hudson has the classic Chinook temperament - a gentle giant. The breeding was an adventure for both the Smith family and us, as we are all novices to breeding. If it wasn't for the good nature of both Hudson and Tioga, it would have been a very daunting task.

Hudson is also quite athletic, taking part in daily bike-jor trips with his humans and his canine "brother". We hope both pups have acquired that drive!

In my best guess, I would say Mudge carries a lot of his Daddy's lovable nature and Squirrel has his outgoing friendliness. They both are sure to bring loads of joy to their forever families with the combined sweetness of both parents.

Hudson is one handsome dude!

3-week pupdate

This week was all about fun. Mudge and Squirrel are silly curious puppies! We are having a ball watching them explore the world, wrestle, walk (and tumble - a lot!), call for their mom and try, try, try to make Dakota like them. They have been lapping goat's milk. The first couple attempts were goofy and messy, but they seem to be getting a better hang of what to do each time. Dakota seems to enjoy being around for leftovers, but when the puppies wobble over to check him out he does a crazy quick-step out of the room. (Sort of looks like a cat trying to quickly walk out of a puddle of water) He is warming up to them, slowly but surely!


Squirrel seems to love being out and about. She boldly explores the area around her when we have her out of the whelping box. She smells and walks and bobbles her sweet little head around. She seems to have the same "go get 'em" personality as her mom. Mudge is a bit more reserved. He doesn't like it when Tioga is out of his line of vision. When she leaves the whelping box, he yelps noisily. It is a lovely excuse for me to need to pick him up...am probably spoiling him rotten, but he does settle quickly when reassured. Tioga has struck a balance between being her old self and being a devoted mom. She is spending more time having fun with Dakota, romping in the snow and playing tug-a-war with toys. She still has an immediate response to the squeal of a puppy. The moment she comes in from outdoors, she heads straight for the "puppy room" to check on her babies.

SQUIRREL
birth weight: 15.8 oz, weight at 3 weeks: 5 lbs 7.9 oz

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MUDGE
birth weight: 15.6, weight at 3 weeks: 5 lbs 4.9 oz

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The Terrific Two-some!

Squirrel really wants to sleep, but Mudge wants to play!

Puppies at play and first "meal"

Squirrel and Mudge are starting to play with each other and the kids like proper little puppies. They have started wrestling a bit and moving about the box for shear entertainment and not just looking for their next meal. They frequently "argue" over a good spot to nap. We find them squealing and squawking on top of each other trying to nudge their sibling out of the way to reach the darkest corner of the box under the rail. Their teeth are coming in, which means they are "itching" (as my husband says) Their favorite teeth toy seems to be Sophie. Her hair is fun to tug on and her neck is oh so warm!

Sophie laughs so hard at the "puppy attack"!

Mudge has already perfected the "puppy dog eyes"
He is very good an eliciting an "awwww" response!

Squirrel is the most stable on her legs, but she still acts like a turtle. She will try to stretch her neck out as far as possible to reach her target before she makes the effort to get up.
She is so lovely!

Wrestling match - Squirrel on left, Mudge on right (or is that top and bottom!?)

Squirrel and Mudge also had their first non-Tioga meal yesterday. It was very messy and for a great portion of the time, they both were more interested in chewing on the side of the dish than what was actually in it! I dipped my finger in the goat's milk and they licked it a few times before they dove right in. Morgan and I took turns holding the saucer, so Daniel was in charge of this photo shoot. Not bad! He may have a career with National Geographic.

Squirrel says YUM!

Can't you just read her mind...OHHH FOOOD! YUMMMM!

After she had her fill, she went back to trying to eat the plate.

Mudge takes a turn at the messy fun.

Looks like he got more on his chin than in his belly!

Drippy, messy, good! Tioga loved giving them a bath after this little snack!

Mudge looks down-right drunk!

Tioga got to eat the leftovers and clean soggy puppies. Being a mom has it's rewards!