Cottage Doodles

Pupdate- Some of the babies at five months

Well, these guys sure don’t seem to mind the snow!  Must be that fluffy, cute fur keeping them toasty.


And adorable.

They seem to be happy to share the warmth with their families.

It makes me happy to know that they are still as cuddly and sweet as when they were here with me.

This is Ruby, in NY.

Freddy on the west coast.

My Molly here in Kansas.

Ryder in Indiana.

Olivia, down in Florida misses out on playing in the snow, but I hear she has a snowball of a sister, a Bichon named Bella that she gets to wrestle with.  Also that she has had her second puppy cut and loves her days at the doggie spa.

Molly could use her first trim up.  I’ve been snipping away around her eyes sometimes, and shaving her backside, but she has yet to go to a groomer.

When she finally goes in, I will tell them to never trim those gorgeous eyelashes.  

The mama dogs are probably about ready for their own trip to the spa.  We will be heading out in the camper on a trip to the beach, and Sugar’s tight curls tend to trap a lot of sand on our walks.  Her curls are so pretty, but for practicality, I have them all shaved off a few times a year.

Lots of inquiries are coming in about new pups.  Many people who got a Sugarbaby or Butterball in November would either like another or have a friend who wants one. That makes me feel like Sugar, Honey, and I did a good job with the last batches, thank you!

As I mentioned, we will be traveling soon, and hopefully a lot this year.  (To make up for the loneliness enforced by all of the problems in 2020). Having puppies is one of the happiest things I do, I love those babies to pieces! But we will have to see if breeding the girls fits into our travel schedule.  Fingers crossed that their heat cycles don’t coincide with our camping reservations.  

You can check on this blog or at Cottage Doodles on Instagram for birth announcements if you are interested in a pup.   

Meet Molasses, nicknamed Molly

Well, as everyone around me knew would happen, even though I said that it would not, we kept one of Honey’s Butterballs.

Sugar and Honey were both overwhelmed with excitement when we returned from our cross country trip and brought little Molly home with us.

The excitement hasn’t relented, these three are inseparable.  When Molly isn’t collapsed into a blob of warm, butterscotch pudding in my lap, that is. Or curled up on my feet.

She is the most laid back, cuddly creature I have ever met.  I honestly did not want another dog, and did my best to not pick one out of the litters, but this one picked me.

I had thought that if we were to keep a pup, it would be one of the other girls, who I told were all auditioning for the part of Molly, since my husband had a name in mind.  The others were flashier, more lively, and all were very bright and learned quickly.  This one always sat quietly looking up at me, sometimes behind me and I didn’t even notice because I was busy with the puppies who were more out going.  They were daintier, smaller dogs with big personalities.  She was easier to overlook with her quiet manners and willingness to politely wait to be petted. 

She was always looking up at me with a heart full of love.  I should have known all along that she was my dog, because she already knew it and was trying to tell me. 

I loved every single one of the babies and every minute that I spent with them. But when the 8-10 weeks are up, I am typically ready to say good bye and get some much needed sleep.  I become attached to them each in different ways, according to their personalities and how they react with me, and there are lots of tears with the farewell kisses.

But we had five dogs already and I am a reasonable person, and knew we didn’t need a sixth.  Still, my husband insisted that we mark one sold, “just in case.”  Til the very end of our road trip, I hadn’t committed to keeping one.

At least I didn’t realized I had.  If my husband hadn’t stated, “That dog is part of our family.” I probably would’ve dithered on for another month saying I was looking for just the right home for her.  

It took me longer than it should have to realize that her home was here with us.

Her cuddles and sweetness are exactly what I needed in this awful year of loss.  Nothing on earth can replace a child who passes away, but an armful of  a lovable fur ball can ease the pain. And I know that while my Ryan would’ve been horrified that I kept another puppy, he would have loved her too.  
The Angel wing pattern of white spots on her chest is a sign that he does.

Tales (or tails?) from the road, part one

Our cross country adventure with four dogs unexpectedly turned into five dogs instead.

This guy needed to be picked up in Nebraska the night before we left for NY.  My husband was my hero, Rich sped off to get the Butterball on a moment’s notice after his new owners decided that his puppyness was a bit much for him.

I stayed behind to get this Sugar Baby sent off with his new family.

It looks like he is happy at his home with a forever best friend.

I’d also made an airport drop off for this baby to go to her mom who was arriving from California.

Plus, we were in the midst of a too short visit from Dewdrop and her daddy.  A drive to Nebraska wasn’t in our plans the night before we headed out on a cross country jaunt.

But- No Man Left Behind!  We were not leaving him where he was not wanted, so he hit the road with us.

Good thing that he came along, or he would have missed the joys of exploring a hotel room.  The puppies were completely mesmerized by the toilet.

They were actually pretty good in the rooms for the most part.  Their excitement of being out  of the car led to some noise control problems, but overall, they were well behaved.

 I am soooooooo happy I trained them to use potty pads as well as to go outside.  Being mostly housebroken really helped.

Our first stop was Indiana, where the pups could stretch their legs in Sissy’s pretty, custom fence.

We left Ryder there with Jo Jo.

Her name is after my Ryan, who is JoRenda’s cousin.  
Ryder has already had her first photo shoot, and she is a talented model.  That girl loves to show off her sitting up skills.

We missed her, but I have to admit that five dogs on a road trip is a lot.

On our first pit stop, I struggled to attach leashes on the waterfall of puppies pouring out of their crate, and thought I’d walk them all while Rich grabbed coffee.

It didn’t occur to me that five little babies together added up to over 70lbs and i was very quickly overwhelmed.  They wove their leashes in and out and around my legs, then drug me down into a ditch that I couldn’t escape from.  I had to holler for Rich to unwrap me and pull me up from the pit I’d been tugged into.

Did I mention there was a dead raccoon in the ditch that they desperately wanted to get to and I desperately wanted to keep them away from?

It’s been an adventure so far.

Getting the Butterballs Ready to Go

These guys are leaving this week!

How can I bear not seeing these sweet faces every day?

Even Dorothy, who doesn’t typically like the puppies, seems to be getting attached.  We trade out which ones we bring in at night, so they have one on one lap time while we watch TV, and Dorothy shared her space with them.

This week, I have been concentrating a lot on the Butterballs since I only have a short time left with them.

But the Sugarbabies are not left out.  They are also working on manners.

Freddy, our recovering little guy, is the only one who knows his name.  Maybe Ruby, because I used to call her Pooh Bear.  Ruby and Pooh are similar sounds and she answers to both.  

Mostly they answer to Puppy or Buddy.

Yesterday, all had baths.  And there were no complaints at all.

Except maybe from me when I had to wash just about every towel in the house and mop up a sloshy bathroom after.  Those curls make good sponges, and really soak up the water, it took a couple towels each to soak it up.

That’s okay, I have gotten to be pretty good at keeping the washer and dryer running nonstop since the babies came.  I even wash a load of my own clothes here and there between all of the piles of pillows, toys, and blankets they need to have cleaned every day.

I get plenty of thank you snuggles in return!

 

 

New Toys and an Old Fave

The Butterballs and Sugarbabies are so curious that any new item in their area sends them all onto it in a rush.

(That goes for fresh potty pads too, they LOVE to help me spread those)

So, I go to Goodwill a few times a week to see what new items I can find for them.  Today, I scored big with this footstool and manic monkey. 

(You can see a video of their first reaction to it on Instagram at Cottage Doodles.)

The pups played so hard that they simply fell over and went right to sleep where they were, didn’t even try to go to their beds.

They have a variety of toys, most can go in the washing machine.  I rotate them a couple times a day, because novelty is so important to them.  They are always ready to pounce on the latest addition to the pen.

But this toy?  The cement block never gets old for them.

Especially for this guy. He adores this brick and is always crawling through it.

 He also fell fast asleep during play time.

Sharing

The mama dogs have decided to pitch in and help each other.

With that many babies running around, it seems like a good idea.

The only issue is that the Sugar Babies are a week younger and seem to be smaller pups over all.

Honey is starting to wean her Butterballs, so feeds them less often.  I need to be sure that the itty bitty ones get plenty of milk before Sugar is drained by the big guys.  

Also the older ones play a little rougher and since they weigh more, the teensie ones get overwhelmed.  Although, they are becoming wrestlers too and pretty much hold their own.

So far, it has been a lovely fall, and the pups have been outside a bit. Not as much as I’d like. Summer puppies sure are easier to care for.  
But we have a system for cleaning them up, and they are getting used to being in crates and watching me as I spray out their areas.  I have even had a chance, although not much of a one, to do some crafting.  I gathered the vines and dried flowers to make this wreath.

But 16 babies in chilly weather takes up most of my time.  I won’t know what to do with myself when they are gone!

(Videos of the litters can be found on Instagram at Cottage Doodles)

Dinner time and toy time

Now that the puppies are getting bigger, Honey is getting some “me time” away from the litter.

She hung out with her best friend, my husband, while he worked on adding level nine to his cabin.  


Well, some are getting bigger than others, huh?

They are enjoying their formula mixed with soft food so much, that when they are done eating, they just fall over where they are at and fall asleep.

The Butterballs love dinner so much, they invited a friend to join them.

The Sugar Babies are now eating formula too.

Their mom brought them a special treat.  She snuck a field mouse into their puppy pond.

I didn’t know if she brought it to them as a toy or a snack.  I upped the toys just in case she felt like they were lacking.

They are all starting to love their toys as much as their meals.

 

The Butterballs’ first bowl of food

The Butterballs are drinking their formula from a dish now.  They turned 3 weeks old on Wednesday, and I began feeding them with a syringe, then with a spoon, and now, they are slurping away like big dogs already.

The one on one time of holding them and spoon feeding the formula to their happy, little faces was good bonding time.  But puppies need to grow and become independent, so I caved in and pan the pan out for them.

At 4 weeks they will start getting formula mixed with soft food, and I will once again go back to spoon feeding part time.  I give them soft food on a spoon, when they sit patiently and wait their turn.

After a few rounds of turns, the rest of the can of food goes into a bowl for them to finish.