Pupdate: What’s up, Doc?

Contentment is a warm corner in the kitchen

"How long have the pups been with us now? A week?" Annie wasn't sure, either. With puppies, some hours seem endless--that first night spent in a crate--while entire days fly by like seconds.

Checking the records, this is Day 14 as I write. TWO weeks? No wonder they look bigger.

In two weeks they have put on five pounds, weighing in at 15 pounds each. Louie the Runt is a runt no more, having caught up the pound he was down on his two siblings.

Look at 'em over there. Hardly ever do you see one without the other two. (Clockwise from the left), that's Frankie, Ella and not-so-little-anymore Louie, curled at my feet by the stove as I built an experimental "Offal Chili" with beef heart and kidney beans (anticipating our next Emily's Legacy Rescue Crew cookoff).

Louis Armstrong, a runt no more!

Now begins the vetting regimen essential for moving these guys up the road to Helping Hounds Dog Rescue and permanent homes. Fecal testing gets done today, soon to be followed by the first round of vaccinations. Then they will be scheduled for spaying and neutering, shots series completed and a final physical exam a few days before boarding the transport for New York.

Meanwhile, their socialization training with other creatures struggles to channel their sheer puppiness into politically correct behaviors. Puppies will be puppies! They sometimes romp on grumpy old Beano's last nerve, the cats still hold the high ground atop the fridge and other structure, and little old Lazlo just wishes they would up and freakin' leave!

Of course, their "greetings" remain explosively enthusiastic, particularly first thing in the morning. Opening their crates is to unleash a 45-pound rush of licking, pawing, gnawing, wagging, yelping storm of pulsating puppies totally consuming any creature within reach followed by mad dashes from room to room to room to insure no one has been overlooked!

Ella Fitzgerald goes down for a nap.

And while our floors are awash in chew toys, wooden chair legs seems to be the trending teething aid of the moment, providing ample opportunity for Spray Bottle Training. Same goes for climbing onto the bed. We're at that point where just seeing the bottle-in-hand is sometimes all that is necessary.

As for toilet duties, let's not speak of the indelicacies just yet. They are, after all, still babies. We can report that "progress is being made."

Question of the Day

Do puppies eating from a single dish rotate clockwise in Australia?