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Puppies born!
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January
26, 2013 (61st day)
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A bit earlier than
expected but they arrived in this world without any problems:
Venice's nine adorable babies! Read here
all about the delivery and see the pictures. From now on a
new page will be added to the website each week about the
development of this Rocksett T-litter.
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How long? How many?
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| January
24, 2013 (59th day) |
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The
end is near for Venice, only a few days left with
that huge belly. If she’s sleeping it’s very
clear to see (and feel) the puppies move, very cute!
In all she’s still doing just fine, although for
the first time today I began to notice some
discomfort in her. She is panting sometimes and
doesn’t seem to be able to find her rest. Her
temperature – that I’m
taking twice a day since Monday – has not changed
much yet but it’s clear though the first signs are
there. Her food is now divided into 5 meals and
consists mostly of raw meat and white fish,
sometimes with a tiny bit of yoghurt added to it;
the dry food is skipped from the menu as she
doesn’t want to have that anymore. I think it’s
a miracle she’s eating at all and that she still
has room left for food: her weight this afternoon
was 41.5 kgs and her waist measured
75 cm
(
29.5 inches).
Ofcourse I - like many others - am very curious how
long it will be before the actual delivery is on,
and how many puppies she has been carrying. But most
of all I'm hoping all will continue to go well...
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Venice
today on the scale at the veterinarian |
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Visit to the vet
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January
18, 2013 (53rd day)
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Yesterday I went to the
vet for Venice's second herpes injection (the first one she
got shortly after the mating). She also had a complete
check-up and the vet was really satisfied with her condition:
everything was just great and also her belly felt fine! Her
weight is now 38.9 kgs, her waist 75 cm (29.5 inches). These
numbers ofcourse don't mean anything really, but it's just
funny to watch the growth in that :-).
I can only be extremely happy with the way this pregnancy is
progressing. According to the birth calender Venice has 10
more days to go, so we can only hope the final stage will
continue to pass just as well! As for feeding: some chewing
sticks she now doesn't like anymore but she does take all
her meals (dryfood and raw meat) that's offered.
Furthermore she still fully enjoys each walk - although
ofcourse in a slower pace - but if she can just trot about
with a ball in her mouth she really is very contented!
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Dashing
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January
11, 2013 (46th day)
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The
longer Venice is pregnant, the more active she becomes again…
The past days she started to behave more calmly, probably
because she was growing so fast. Luckily that seems to go
somewhat slower now! I was a bit worried that one of these
days she would already be lying here like a stranded whale
;-). But for now this doesn’t seem to be the case, so in
fact everything is still going very smoothly. She is happy,
eats well (now 3 meals a day), wants to play ball again and
likes to join her mother in a digging party in the forest.
It’s very cute to watch her now, she is so different and
adorable with that big belly!
After the weekend I will be passing by the vet once more to
weigh her, I am rather curious...
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Guardian Angels ;-)
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January
4, 2013 (39th day)
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Venice is doing fine! She
arranges everything properly by herself, so no human
interference is needed there. Besides she's constantly
protected by her mummy Yacime and her brothers Roman &
Milan: in a very beautiful, subtile way they make sure that
other dogs are no danger or too big a challenge for Venice.
Clearly the whole group accurately knows what Venice does
and doesn't need. They let her do her own thing, but stand
by her whenever they feel it's necessary (for example when
another dog interacts or plays to wild with Venice). This
really is very special to watch!
As for the growth everything is going on nicely too, Venice
now weighs 35.4 kgs and her waist measures 70 cm (27.5
inches). This is quite different than before her pregnancy,
when she was 32.7 kgs and 63 cm (24.8 inches)...
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Happy Newyear!
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January
1, 2013 (36th day)
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Yesterday was an evening
full of noise due to the fireworks and I was a bit afraid it
would bother Venice now that she's in whelp, but fortunately
she coped very well. Good girl, I'm so proud of her!
Last Sunday we had a very pleasant walk with the possible
future puppy-owners. Venice was there ofcourse, as well as
her mother Yacime, her brothers Roman & Milan, her
sister Yazoo and her 9 months old halfsister Skye. Everbody
very much liked to watch our wonderful gang enjoy themselves
in the beautiful nature of 'Soesterduinen' and for sure to
see the future mummy. Venice without a doubt loved all the cuddles and the attention, as expected
:-). She's now 5 weeks pregnant and on the picture it's
clear to see how fast this goodlooking lady is growing
already!
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The confirmation
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December
20, 2012 (24th day)
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Very soon after the
matings I noticed some changes in Venice. Slightly sunk-in
flanks, eating like mad crazy and being much calmer than
usual during the daily walk in the forest. But then again
signs like these are so very small that you can easily be
mistaken. But I wasn't... The ultrasound today proved that
Venice indeed is in whelp! So in the coming weeks we will
continue our current path; she's feeling great, is active
(again) and happy as always! We all will fully enjoy this
special event and keep on taking perfect care of her; the
rest is in the hands of Mother Nature...
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ultrasound
Venice
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The start
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November
26 + 27, 2012
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It seemed like forever
before Venice came into season, but at last it happened on
November 12... Immediately in that same week she - and the
other dogs - where dewormed as this must be done prior to
the mating (the wormer can be dangerous for the unborn
pups). After that I started the ovulation testing on
November 21, in order to determine the best timing for a
mating. With the third test it showed that she had
ovulated! After a phonecall with the owner of the studdog,
me and a good friend headed to Belgium in the afternoon.
Ofcourse both very curious to see how Venice and the
wonderful Sky (Multi Ch. Chinnordale Skydiver) would react
to eachother. Thankfully Venice liked Sky as much as
I have done for quite some time now :-). At first Venice was a bit insecure about what to
expect, but Sky did his best to seduce her and he was just
the most gentle, patient lover Venice could have wished
for! Finally the teasing and playing led to a
beautiful, calm mating and they tied for about 20 minutes.
The day after we returned for the second mating;
this went slighter faster but even more romantic, as Sky
gave Venice a little lick during the tie and that just
looked só sweet! After again a succesful mating we went
inside for a cup of coffee and another tasty slice of
Belgian pie (two slices in two days - mjummie!). Venice
also had a great time as she was 'stealing' and showing
off with the dogtoys that were lying in the house! So in
all it were two fantastic visits and I would like to again
thank Armand & Greta de Roover for their patience,
their hospitality and ofcourse for letting me use their
kind, lovely Sky!
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Venice
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Sky
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