Little darlings

see how much they have changed in just a few short weeks.

Cocoa & Bandit

Cocoa has been patiently waiting for her little brothers and sister to be big enough to play, and finally she can. Cocoa is a wonderful big sister and is playing ever so gently with them. Bandit adores Cocoa, and like to play "pounce". As Bandit approaches and pounces on her, Cocoa bounces back a a bit to entice him to do it again. She plays a much rougher version of this game with her friend River but somehow just seems to know that she has to be much gentler with her little brother.

Water bottle

Now that puppies are starting to eat food, they also need to learn to drink water. The first step for them is to learn to drink out of a water bottle.

Puppy visits

Over the past week or so the puppies have had their first visitors. The first ones to come have been family members and friends, people that Jinx knows and is comfortable having around her babies. This is the beginning of socializing and will continue with more and more visitors over the next several weeks.

Yumm

Babies got their first taste of "real" food today. Each one got a spoonful of very thin rice cereal. Bandit gobbled it right up as you can see in the picture. Watch the video and see Panda's turn for yourself.

3 weeks old

Three weeks old . See how much the puppies have grown
Socks 508 g
Panda 532 g
Splash 534 g
Blaze 538 g
Bandit 588 g

Look what I can do

Puppies are learning something new every day. As they get stronger, they can do so many more things. Blaze is showing off that he has discovered he can Sit.

But after all that effort, his great big huge YAWN says its time for a nap.

Potty time

This might seem an unusual subject, but it is an important development phase for the puppies. Dogs have a natural instinct to keep their bed and den clean. Until now mom has been taking care of all the cleanup duties, and she will continue to do so quite a bit for another several weeks but less and less as time goes by. Now that the puppies are mobile and can move about a bit better on their own, babies are starting to do their part in keeping their bed clean. For just the past few days now the puppies have been beginning to leave the bed to go potty on the potty pads. They still have a lot to learn, but this is the beginning of housebreaking.

Toy Box

Babies are starting to get interested in toys, they like to sniff them and crawl over them, and of course the fluffy furry toys are wonderful for snuggling next to for a nap.

Adventure

For an adventure, the puppies got to come out of the nursery to the living room on a big blanket. It is a start to exploring the world. With Momma Jinx nearby, they had an exciting time checking things out. They are starting to sniff the toys and climb over them. All the smells and textures help develop their senses and climbing over toys and walking on the blanket is good exercise for their muscles.

Changes

Now that the puppies are becoming mobile, it was time for their home to expand. Their small bed has now turned into slighlty larger quarters. The tub bed that has been home for two weeks has given way to a more open bed for that they can can easily get in and out of. The puppies love cuddling in their furry tiger stripe snuggle sack.

2 weeks old

If you are keeping track of how much the puppies are growing, here are their two week weights
Socks 394g
Splash 396g
Blaze 420g
Panda 424g
Bandit 470g

If you have not guessed yet, Bandit is out little piglet in this litter (there always seems to be one). He is always hungry and always eating.

Peek-A-Boo

So many things happen right around 2 weeks. This is the time that ears unseal and puppies start to walk as well as open their eyes. Walking just started yesterday. Today's news is that Splash and Socks are the first two to open their eyes. The others may do the same tomorrow.

Not quite but almost

Panda, Blaze and Bandit took their first wobbly steps today. They can only manage a step or two and are pretty shaky on their legs but it won't be long before they are running around.

10 days old

We think of the puppies as "big" when considering that they have almost doubled in weight since they were born. But size is all relative. Just so you can see how little they really are, here are the babies next to household items you all know.

Bananas (Splash), Mug (Socks), Pencil/Ruler (Blaze), Coke (Bandit), Phone (Panda)

Sisters

Our other Havanese are now permitted to come in and visit the nursery with supervision. Jinx is very watchful. Cricket, having been a Mom herself, is very respectful. Cocoa is intrigued but uncertain. She just does not know what to make of these little squeaky, squirmy things that are her brothers and sister.

1 week old

One week old already. All the babies are doing well and gaining weight steadily.

at one week of age they are :

Splash 280 g
Socks 282 g

Blaze 304 g

Panda 306 g

and Bandit at 320 g

Close Ups

Close-up face shots of our beautiful 5 day old babies. Aren't they adorable? You can almost smell the puppy breath.

Shhh...babies sleeping

Snuggled up for nap time.

Today was the day for puppies' first grooming as they got their nails trimmed. Puppy nails grow fast and are needle sharp and they can scratch Mom's belly as they nurse, so it's important to keep them short. It's also good to start when young so they get used to this regular grooming.

On the move

Although the puppies cannot walk yet, that does not mean that they don't move. They wiggle and squirm quite a bit. When Jinx is away for a few minutes and returns to the nursery, the puppies are quick to crawl back to her side.

Socks

According to Jinx, puppies are never too young to be exposed to the wonders of the Toy Box. She has already brought in one of her favourite toys for her two day old puppies. Here is Socks curled up with a furry new friend.

1 day old

Jinx is taking very good care of her babies and feeding them around the clock. Everyone looks sleek and healthy. In a picture it can be hard to know how small the babies are. They are small enough to fit easily in your hands.

Can you tell who's who? First Splash and Socks, then Panda, Blaze and Bandit

Dinner time

After all is done, Jinx now weighs just 150g more than her weight before she was bred. Now we need to give her an abundance of easily digestible and nutitious food so she can maintain herself as well as feed her babies. Jinx just enjoyed a dinner of chicken and rice while the babies lined up for their evening meal. If you look closely, you should be able to spot 5 little white-tipped tails peeking beneath Mom's fur. Some people call these paint brush tails because the white tips look like the end of a paintbrush dipped in white paint.

Black Irish girl

and Panda

Black Irish Boys

Blaze and Bandit

Sable Boys

Socks and Splash

Puppy # 5

Number five arrived at 1:35pm. Another black irish Pied male, 200g. Along with the white chin, chest, belly and feet, this one has a very broad full white collar. He also sports one black eye patch. His temporary call name is "Bandit"

Puppy # 4

Number four is another male, 192g born at 12:37pm. Black Irish Pied with a flashy white blaze running the full length of his face from the back of his head right to his nose. His temporary call name is "Blaze"

Puppy # 3

Third puppy arrived at noon. Jinx is thoughtfully spacing the puppies well apart so she has lots of time to rest in between and to give the new arrivals a tongue bath and breakfast. Number three at 176 g, is a lightly marked Sable Irish Pied male, with broad white markings and white legs. He has a dark strip down his back and a dark tail. His temporary call name is "Splash"

Puppy # 2

Number two arrived at 10:30. A black Irish Pied female 210g. Her face has a large white star shaped blaze with black goggles. She has a white chest and belly, white feet , partial white collar and white tail tip. Her temporary call name is "Panda"

Both babies are busy nursing.

Puppy # 1 is here

Puppy number one arrived at 9:30 this morning. 190g male. He is sable with white markings; 4 white socks, a white tail tip, white blaze on his face, white chest and a small white tuft on the back of his neck.

His temporary call name is "Socks"

Soon

Last weight check in. Jinx has gained 1530g throughout this pregnancy. See how full her belly looks. How many babies do you think she is having? We will know soon. Jinx temperature has dropped this morning which is a sign that puppies should be born within the next 24 hours. Stay tuned!