Cousin Buster

The puppies enjoy spending time in the outdoor pen where they have room to run and can interact with the big dogs. In this clip they are visited by their cousin Buster.

Standing photos

These photos were taken on Saturday June 21st, when the pups were 6 weeks old. It was the first time they posed for formal, standing photos. A bits of string cheese helped to get them to stand still.

Red male - LUA

Red male LUA

Blue male - HUA

Blue male - HUA

Pink female - HUA

Pink female - HUA

Turquoise female - LUA

Turquoise female - LUA

Green female - LUA

Green female - LUA

Purple female - LUA

Purple female - LUA

DNA results

The lab e-mailed results of DNA test. Red, Turquoise, Green and Purple inherited the gene for low uric acid from their mother. Blue and Pink have high uric acid that is typical in the breed.

As I explained in the beginning, the breeding program can only continue if some of the pups in any litter grow up to have puppies of their own.

From this litter Red, Green and Purple will be placed in homes where they will be available for future breeding.

Although Turquoise has the gene for low uric acid, she is the smallest pup in the litter and she has two sisters and a brother to take on the job of carrying on the bloodline. So, she is going to a family who have a senior Dal that they got from me many years ago.

That leaves Blue and Pink available for owners who want pets that come with no strings attached.

BAER test will be done tomorrow and I have friends coming over to help me get more individual photos of each pup.

5 of the 6 posed for a picture in their outdoor pen. Pink scampered out of the frame just as I snapped the photo. Then they all scattered and I didn't get any other good shots.

Individual photos

I finally was able to get individual photos of each pup.  Also, I collected DNA samples and sent them to the lab at UC Davis. Hopefully, they will be processed quickly and I will know for sure which of the pups inherited the gene for low uric acid. The BAER hearing test is scheduled for Saturday morning. I know they all hear. But the BAER test will confirm that they hear in with both ears.

Red Male

 

Blue Male

Pink Female

 

Turquoise Female

Green Female

Purple Female

Week 5 weight check

I weigh the pups every day for the first two weeks. Puppies that are nursing well gain about an ounce per day. From 3 weeks on, I only weigh them once a week.

Red male at 5 weeks old

Red male at 4 days old

Dinner time

The puppies gobble up kibble that has been soaked until it's soft. Evita still nurses them but the weaning process has begun.

Purple and Turquoise are not wearing ribbons in the video. Now that their spots are visible, it is easy for me to tell them apart.

Up on their feet

The puppies' eyes are still not open. But they are up on their feet and getting better at walking. Although they still spend most of their time sleeping, a change of bedding stirs them up.

You cannot see their spots very well in the video. But they are getting more visible every day. It looks like they are all going to have very nice markings.

Spots are becoming visible

The puppies are beginning to look less like white mice and more like Dalmatians as their spots become visible. Their eyes and ear canals will open in the next few days. Even though they cannot see or hear yet they are beginning to get up on their feet and take some staggering steps.

Spots will become more visible each day

This is Red male taking a few steps

Blue male

Pink female

Turquoise female

Green female

Purple female

Day 7

The puppies have all gained at least 7 ounces since birth. Today they got their nails clipped for the first time.

The pups are visibly bigger than in previous photos



Here's another short video clip. By next weekend, the puppies' eyes and ears will be open and they will begin to do more than just nurse and sleep.  Once they can see and hear they will start to interact with one another.

Day 4

The pups get weighed every day for the first week or so. Puppies should gain at least an ounce per day. Turquoise is the smallest pup in the litter at 11.5 oz  Her brother Red is the biggest at 16 oz.



Red male on the scale

Each day a little more color is visible.  At birth, I thought that a couple of them might have liver/brown spots like their father. But now, I'm pretty sure that all the pups will have black spots like their mother. In this photo you can see that Pink's nose is black and that Red has a bit of black on his ear.

Sleeping and nursing

This is my first time adding a video clip to a blog. Not too exciting...

 Puppies don't do much at this age.

 

 

 

 

Puppies are born

On Saturday May 10th,  Evita had 6 puppies - 2 males and 4 females.

The puppies do not have spots yet. So, they wear colored ribbons for ease of identification. Red and Blue for the males. Pink, Turquoise, Green and Purple for the females
 

They spend their time nursing and sleeping.

Evita's having puppies

Aberdeen's Inevitable, known to her friends as Evita, was bred to Zorbas vom Gramzower Kloster. Zorba was born in Germany and now lives in California. He is a handsome Dalmatian with liver/brown colored spots.

These are photos of Zorba and Evita when they first met.

Evita is smitten with Zorbas

Zorbas bows to win Evita over

This photo was taken in Germany