Day 18

The BrownStone Chinooks got a visit and gifts from their favorite "aunties" Virginia, Lisa and Kathleen (dog class human classmates and instructor).

Eventually the puppies grew hungry from all the handling and loving but Cedar was reluctant to go into the whelping box to nurse. "Aunties" to the rescue with hands on assistance. McKenzie and Willy tried to also get into the action. They can be seen poking their heads under Lisa's arms.

Snow - Day 17

Snow and sled dogs, how could I resist a picture op? I tried to figure out how I could put the pups on my sled and harness Cedar, Willy and McKenzie to it. Just the thought of the bigger dogs loping off down the road with puppies littering the route dispelled that option. OK, only Cedar in harness - nah still to risky. I opted for the safer alternative of a stationary Christmas sleigh.

Even getting and keeping all the pups in the sleigh proved to be a challenge.

These guys can't hear yet but boy do they have voices!
Cedar questioning the wisdom of the situation

The puppies were quickly returned to the warmth of the whelping box by the fire and nourishment of Cedar's milk bar. All is quiet as I type.

Day 16

The Iditarod pups are getting more steady on their feet so I decided to add some speed bumps and textures to the whelping box. The novelty really brought out the play in them.

Cedar is checking on Kaltag's cries after Willow took

advantage of his tripping over the soft log.

enough play - time to napnap time over - time for group jaw wrestling

Cedar is going to need an alternative place to eat. end of a another day full of new adventures

Day 15

Cedar and pups got a visit today from future Chinook owners Leila and Danny.
End of a long day filled with all sorts of new experiences.

Day 14

Ms Willow - 2lbs 5oz

Ms Takotna - 2lbs 3oz
Mr Kaltag - 2lbs 7oz
Ms Koyuk - 1lb 15oz

Ms Elim - 1lb 14oz

Mr Nome - 2lb 7oz

Springtime Adventure

The sun finally came out. I could not resist treating the newly opened eyes to the delight of grass and flowers. After staggering about like sailors on a pub crawl, the pups found each other to huddle for warmth.

Ms Willow

Ms Takotna Mr Kaltag

Ms Koyuk

Ms Elim Mr Nome McKenzie helping with cleaning tasks.

Day 13

Well, it is actually day 14 but I do have pictures from last night.

eyes are peaking open

dinner

Abigail & Lucas are here

At 1 a.m. this morning, my niece Kendra Hoffman gave birth to my great niece, Abby, 5lb 9oz and great nephew Luke, 7lb 7oz . Thirty hours ago Kendra wrote: "I am a little sad this is my last day as a pregnant woman. I really have loved pregnancy...Last night the babies really put on a show for us! It was so special to just sit and watch them "riverdance" for us =). "

With two 20" babies inside, that must have been some Riverdance recital!

Day 12

Not much new in the whelping box.

Cedar makes sure I am awake and up to fill her bowl with kibble and goat's milk every 6 hours. She is feeding her pups so well I think they have gained so much weight that they can't hold it up long enough to take but a couple of steps. They have also grown so fast that their developing neurons must be getting mixed signals as to where exactly body parts, like feet, are and what they are up to. Watching the pups navigate reminds me of a wayward ping pong ball in a maze. They bump into something, bounce off, bump again and after a few such trials either change direction or if possible just go over the obstacle.

"excuse me"

Kaltag managed to get himself trapped inside Cedar's (luckily empty) food bowl. I heard him screaming and found him going round and round looking for an exit. He entertained me thusly for a few minutes while I took pictures then took pity and placed him back with his litter mates.

Today I was looking up information about the puppy Iditarod check point names and realized I had spelled Takotna wrong. Little yellow can't hear yet so she doesn't know I was pronouncing her name incorrectly.

Here is the first picture of BrownStone Lupin's mom Kerstin and new baby sister Klara.

Day 11

Today will probably be the last day I can keep the pups in the warming box while I change the whelping box linens. I took this picture; put my camera down; turned back around and Elim, Nome and Kaltag had already escaped and were sliding across the wood floor. After nursing, the pups siesta in a group pile. When they get too warm, they migrate to under the pig rail on the edges of the whelping box. Their attempts to master walking keeps observers in stitches. They stand; rock back and forth to gather momentum; quickly pick up a front foot and as often as naught, fall on their face. Not only do they lack the coordination to go more than a couple of steps without tumbling down, being blind, they are constantly bumping into each other. Going around has not occurred to them. Going over their litter mate is the preferred route.

You can see how much they have grown compared to Cedar's foot.

Day 10

What a day:

All of the Iditarod pups can stand but coordination and balance remain obstacles to travel on all fours.

Sleep after the hard work of trying to walk.

BrownStone Lupin gets another human sister, Klara. Mom Kirsten said that she visualized Cedar and her pups to make labor go easier.

Lupin with big sister Anna

My belated birthday present runs. Look out all you tree limbs and clogged gutters.

Day 9

Another day of hanging out in the whelping box eating, pooping, squeaking and sleeping. Kaltag was up on all four this morning. He actually made it a couple of steps before he banged his head in to the whelping box wall ending his adventure. The rest are still just swimming around for the few minutes they are awake. All of the pups are getting their daily stimulus exercises. This evening they also got their second pedicure.

I took McKenzie to her competition obedience class today. The session was cut short because I did not want to leave Cedar and the pups alone too long. It was so good to see friends, human and canine. McKenzie is getting closer to mastering the "stand for exam" section of the CD test. This is our last piece before we can trial for her title. McKenzie has amazed me. We started competition obedience training 6 years ago but dropped it when I discovered agility. She loves to go to class so now that she has her agility titles, I started her in obedience again. I may have forgotten some of the handling during the 5 year hiatus but she is right on. It is such a pleasure to work with her.

Rain abated for a few hours. We all needed to get outside away from the squealing whelping box. While I potted up the rhododendrons, the dogs took turns at being "it" during another energetic Chinook tag game. The garden provides abundant opportunities for dashing in circles and ambushing each other. Immodest Cedar was completely oblivious to her ample boobs bouncing around as she ran. The urgency of motherhood and feeding her brood finally caught up with her. At dinner she was ravenous. Along with the goat milk soaked kibble she finished off her 2nd tub of ice cream.

Day 8

Not much happening around the ol' whelping box today.

3 girls lined up at the milk barKoyuk asleep under the pig rail

Dave and I went to Debi Breeden's property to get some rhododendrons the previous owner had propagated. Her landscaping was heaven on earth. I could have spent the day wandering about looking at all the woodland plants and enjoying the creeks and ponds. I left inspired to do more with my gardens. These beautiful new rhododendrons will be wonderful additions.

1st Day of Spring

A sure sign of spring is when the trees sprout weave pole standards.

Today has been a day of completing projects, like painting the weave pole standards, we have were not able to do during the rainy cold winter. While we were working in the sun, the Iditarod litter was luxuriating in the warmth of their mom.

Day 6

Dear diary: Today I mowed the lawn while the pups ate, pooped, peed, scooted about and slept. All pups are now past their birth weight. Not a bad day at all.

Day 5

This morning Cedar spent a good deal of energy looking for the missing pups. She awoke me early and practically drug me to the whelping box. Seeing nothing amiss, I thought she was hungry but, she ignored her kibble until it was mixed with ice cream. When I changed from the St. Pats green blanket to a plain one, she panicked. I had to lay it out flat on the floor to show her that no pups were in it. She then attacked the new bedding to see if they were under it. She insisted on going outside to check her hiding places. She carefully counted each pup whenever she returned to the whelping box.

By this afternoon she was able to relax with her family. She even went out side for a quick game of Chinook tag with McKenzie and Willy.

day is done - sleep tight

Weigh in

During St. Patrick's day, the pups ate their fill and traveled the length and breath of the whelping box. Some sung displeasure at being touched all over and laid on their backs. All sung delight at finding an unattended nourishing nipple. They tolerated, to a degree, leaving the warmth of Cedar for the confining cold of the scale.

all pups are now back close to their birth weight

The UPS truck brought us a wonderful surprise. Laura Holoman, who owns BrownStone Nala, sent us whelping and puppy supplies (not late, the pups came a bit early) and a large stash of TP tubes. TP tubes are my favorite puppy play toy. They love to roll and chew on them, crawl on and fight over them. Inevitably everything in the puppy area also get peed and pooped on. No biggy. With TP tubes. just toss the soiled ones and toss in the new.

the end of an exhausting day