New foster puppies

[chel180]

So tomorrow I pick up 6 red/blue heeler puppies. They are weaned, 7weeks old, and eating soaked dried food. Overall they are said to be in good condition.

This will be the first time I have fostered pups and I'm not sure what to expect.

Any advice?

 

[justginger]

I'll be there tomorrow night for cuddles!

My advice is: never underestimate the mess puppies of this age make. Poop, poop, and more poop. Always keep them in a contained, tiled room, like your laundry, for any significant amounts of time. Stock up on bleach wipes and paper towels.

And take lots of photos. They grow SO quickly!

PS - you were right about all the dog food. Those wankers changed their ingredients since I started buying food down here. Have switched to Holistic now.

 

[JewelFreak]

You can start getting them socialized right away. At home until they have all their shots. Friends & neighbors will be hard to persuade to help but ask people in to play with them, pet & snuggle them. They need to experience as many strangers as possible -- children too (ALWAYS supervised with kids).

Get them used to being handled -- like at the vet's, grooming, etc. Here you use praise praise praise. Open their mouths -- oooh, BEST puppy! Next time, open mouth & touch teeth, praise like crazy. Keep doing it until they accept it easily. Cradle them on their backs, praise & petting -- start with a brief upside-down cradle, few seconds 'cuz they'll squirm. Gradually lengthen the time & hold till they stop wiggling & accept this subordinate position for 1 second, praise. Then 5 seconds -- you get the idea.

Pick up & mess around with their paws & reward them for tolerating it. All the stuff vets or groomers will do -- lift the tail, praise, look in their ears, gently palpate tummies.

Do each thing for one second & praise like they just invented sliced bread. Gradually increase time as they mature. If a pup isn't cooperating with increased time, go back a step for a bit. You can use toys & play as a reward too.

It's a great time to get them used to crates. While they're so little, put a crate in their room with the door open & newspapers or something you can change when they pee, just let them play in it. When they have separate bowls, feed one or 2 in the crate on a rotating basis. You can keep their toys in there so they have to go in to get them. All this makes them associate crates with GOOD stuff. Later you can start closing one or 2 in for 5 seconds, lengthening as they grow, until they're quiet while there. The idea is to make a crate feel like a cozy safe den.

Once they've finished shots it's REALLY important to begin socializing them with other dogs as well as humans. Dog parks. Puppy day care. Look in the paper for dog events or places you can take them where they'll encounter other dogs. Keep an eye out that big dogs don't scare them, but also let them develop self-confidence -- in other words, not to wrap them in cotton; let 'em rumble around if they won't be hurt.

What fun!!! Good for you! Sorry this is so long!

--- Laurie

 

[chel180]

Good advice. I' m gonna put them in the laundry room. I'ts got a stone floor . I've cleared it of everything else and I'm off to bunnings to buy a baby gate for the door way. Might go to the shelter via the supermarket to pick up some extra wet wipes and cleaning spray!

 

[hawaiianorangetree]

Puppies??!!! That's great chel! i have no advice though sorry, I had enough trouble cleaning up after one!

Can't wait to see your pictures.

 

[chel180]

So the little terrors are home. And terrors is the right work. They are really noisy and lively and bounding all over the place. I'm not sure what I got myself into! They are super cute though. Really fluffy and quite plump. I've got them in a pen in the garden on the patio and have also made them a den in the laundry room for over night. I plan to go see the neighbours and tell them that I have the pups temporarily. Hopefully they won't mind but based on my experience thus far- they are going to keep people up at night.

One of the red girls up-ended the lunch tray so they were wearing more than they eat.
One of the red boys keeps digging in the water bowl. I've already had to change out the metal ones for my dogs sturdy ceramic one as its harder to knock over. But this particular pup digs the water out faster than I can refill it. And every time I go in to fill it up the other pups try to chew my toes!
And the runt of the litter is a little blue girl with a white spot on her head that just seems to be bossed about by the others. She keeps hiding in the crate away from the others.

They are so lively that they are over-warm in our 30C and this isn't good especially with the water digger. I tried giving them a cold wet towel to lay on. That promptly got chewed and was used for a multiway tug of war. Then I tried some ice cubes in the water but they were immediately dug out and used as footballs. At least they keep the little'uns entertained and semi quite for about 10 minutes!

Right now I am waiting to see if my pen is escape proof. I had them with a large crate next to their pen but they were able to escape thru the mesh as the weave was too wide. So now I have a smaller crate with much more wire in it as part of the pen. Less room but less chance of escaps. I am expecting them to snooze any time now as they have been very lively for 4 hours. Then maybe I will get a bit of quite :p any time now....

Here are a couple of quite iphone pics to so the mayhem.

 

[hippi_pixi]

they're so cute!! i imagine having that many puppies would be like having a baby. very adorable and heaps of fun but at the end of the day a relief to give them back and have some peace and quiet!

good luck and enjoy them while you have them!

 

[zoebartlett]

They're adorable, Chel! I've never heard of the breed before. How big do they get when they're full grown?

One thing I'd recommend is training them not to jump when they see new people. My sister is a puppy trainer part time and when she was working under someone to get more experience, she was The Stranger at the Door. She and the woman she worked with trained puppies to remain calm when people came over. I'm not sure how she did it but it worked. I can ask her if you'd like.

The other thing I'd recommend is to get the puppies used to many different sounds around the home so they're used to them by the time the pups go to their forever homes.

 

[chel180]

Sleepy time!

After an exhausting first day they are final asleep. Really cute but so boisterous. One is a complete Houdini and keeps breaking out although I have no idea how!

 

[JewelFreak]

Oh so darned adorable!!! They sound like high maintenance at the moment! One puppy isn't easy, but an x-pen-ful is combat duty. Fun!

--- Laurie

 

[justginger]

They're adorable, Chel! I've never heard of the breed before. How big do they get when they're full grown?

One thing I'd recommend is training them not to jump when they see new people. My sister is a puppy trainer part time and when she was working under someone to get more experience, she was The Stranger at the Door. She and the woman she worked with trained puppies to remain calm when people came over. I'm not sure how she did it but it worked. I can ask her if you'd like.

The other thing I'd recommend is to get the puppies used to many different sounds around the home so they're used to them by the time the pups go to their forever homes.

Red and Blue Heelers are Australian working dogs, cattle dogs. They are EXTREMELY high energy and intelligent. They are not for lazy owners; they require stimulation and 'jobs' to do during the day or they become bored and destructive. They get to be somewhere between the size of a border collie and a staffy, what I would call a medium sized dog. Here is some more info about them: http://australiancattlechaser.com/blueorredheelers.php

Chel, they're just gorgeous. I know you are overwhelmed, and perhaps your brain is scrambling for scenarios in which you can get rid of these terrors, but stick with it for a few days. You will bond with them and their chaos will feel more manageable. ONE puppy is a challenge, a LITTER makes you a foster saint. You'll come out the other side (despite the fact that for a few weeks it will feel like all you do is clean up wees and pry little snouts off tasty pieces of your furniture), and these puppies will be in safe homes, all thanks to your devotion and sacrifice. You're doing a wonderful thing.

 

[rubyshoes]

I want to cuddle them all

 

[webdiva]

Awww, Chel, thank you for fostering! It's one of most important things a rescue needs and is always short of! They're adorable! i look forward to following this thread!

My brother and mom are currently raising a puppy, so I know how challenging just one is! Has the rescue given you socialization tips for them? If not, here's a great article http://www.paw-rescue.org/PAW/PETTIPS/DogTip_SocializationPup.php it's great that the puppies get to stay together and socialized together!

If your own dog has had it's shots and has a good temperament, he/she would be a great help to you. The rescue my dogs are from will not adopt out a puppy without an adult dog in the house because the breed is challenging and an adult dog will teach them doggie and human manners. Our older dog taught the younger one (1 1/2 years old at the time - just getting out of puppyhood) all the house rules in a day!!! Made it so much easier, since they spoke the same language! He would growl at her if she tried to counter surf, get up on the sofa, run around the house like crazy, beg at the table, etc. The older dog will reprimand the puppy for mouthing them too hard, etc - which the puppy's mom would have done. Obviously all under supervision from you. one of the more experienced volunteers can help do a proper introduction if you don't feel comfortable doing it yourself.

I also second the crate training, it's been essential to my mom and brother to teach the pup to settle herself when she's overtired, cranky and bitey.

Can't wait to see more pictures and maybe a video?

 

[Deactivated member 42515]

Thank you for fostering these babies! I've always had a soft spot for heelers! But could never get one cuz I don't have the stamina to keep up with them! Might have kept me in shape tho! Haha!

They are sooooo cute!!!!

 

[zoebartlett]

Thanks for the info, Ginger! I thought they might be some type of high energy herding dog.

 

[chel180]

They're adorable, Chel! I've never heard of the breed before. How big do they get when they're full grown?

One thing I'd recommend is training them not to jump when they see new people. My sister is a puppy trainer part time and when she was working under someone to get more experience, she was The Stranger at the Door. She and the woman she worked with trained puppies to remain calm when people came over. I'm not sure how she did it but it worked. I can ask her if you'd like.

The other thing I'd recommend is to get the puppies used to many different sounds around the home so they're used to them by the time the pups go to their forever homes.

Red and Blue Heelers are Australian working dogs, cattle dogs. They are EXTREMELY high energy and intelligent. They are not for lazy owners; they require stimulation and 'jobs' to do during the day or they become bored and destructive. They get to be somewhere between the size of a border collie and a staffy, what I would call a medium sized dog. Here is some more info about them: http://australiancattlechaser.com/blueorredheelers.php

Chel, they're just gorgeous. I know you are overwhelmed, and perhaps your brain is scrambling for scenarios in which you can get rid of these terrors, but stick with it for a few days. You will bond with them and their chaos will feel more manageable. ONE puppy is a challenge, a LITTER makes you a foster saint. You'll come out the other side (despite the fact that for a few weeks it will feel like all you do is clean up wees and pry little snouts off tasty pieces of your furniture), and these puppies will be in safe homes, all thanks to your devotion and sacrifice. You're doing a wonderful thing.

They are really precocious, boisterous and clever. Beautiful little fluffy things. They had their first experience with a bath this morning after some diarrhoea last night. (Just the move and change of food i recon) they enjoyed paddling in the water and the towelling rub down afterwards. They all enjoyed the fuss and only complained once it was over and I moved onto the next one. They slept thru most of the night although woke up at 5am which I doubt won me any fans amongst the neighbours.
I've put them back out in the garden in the pen.
I won't be giving them back until the shelter wants them back for adoption. I said I'll take them so I will. You might catch me on here venting tho. Sharing my insanity. I've arranged to.work from home for the next two weeks so I can keep a close eye on them.

 

[Missy]

Oh Chel, they are just adorable!!! How wonderful you are fostering them!! Thank you for doing this and enjoy them and please share lots of pictures!!

 

[purplesparklies]

Oh my goodness! So precious!

 

[chel180]

they are certainly keeping me busy

 

[ChloeTheGreat]

The red one with the spot on his eye looks like a trouble-maker!

My friend fosters through a Border Collie rescue. She has adopted out all but one of a litter of pups she got at 2weeks old. Luckily, the momma dog came with the pups so she took care of a lot of the mess.

Looking forward to more pictures!

 

[Jax172]

They are adorable. Best of luck to you. I can't even imagine taking care of that many puppies!

 

[chel180]

I've got a sick one !!!
One of the little red boys has been sick several times and is really lethargic. I called the centre and they say to separate it so now he's in my laundry basket next to me. He is just sleeping and shivering. Shelter said not to worry unless he gets much worse or continues until tomorrow.

 

[lknvrb4]

I've got a sick one !!!
One of the little red boys has been sick several times and is really lethargic. I called the centre and they say to separate it so now he's in my laundry basket next to me. He is just sleeping and shivering. Shelter said not to worry unless he gets much worse or continues until tomorrow.

I would be careful, sounds like parvo. My sister adopted a pup and it got this. The dog almost died and she spend lots of money to save it, well worth it of course!

 

[hawaiianorangetree]

They are goregeous! Oh boy you are really going to have your hands full with that lot!!

I hope the sick one is ok. I don't know if it is Pavo but I read in the local paper recently that there have been several cases reported so please watch out.

 

[justginger]

Um, I don't like the sounds of that sick one at all. What has his vomit consisted of? Do you have a thermometer so you can take his temperature rectally? Has he received his first vaccinations? Has he had any diarrhea? I hope to God it's not parvo. You need to be extra vigilant right now in case it is. I don't want to get you in a panic, but isolating and preventing the spread now is easier than trying to deal with containment later. Basically, you need to bleach every hard surface that dog has come into contact with, plus hard surfaces throughout the rooms he has been in. Parvo is airborne, so it can settle on things like the top of your fridge or your coffee table. I suppose, between the places he has been, and the places you have been after touching him (and before washing your hands), you've got pretty much the entire house to bleach. I can certainly sympathize, so I am not giving the advice flippantly.

I am very, very much hoping that it is just a touch of a bug and not parvo.

 

[webdiva]

Oh poor thing, I'm also concerned. It's going around here, not sure if it is there. Either way, do you have anything to hydrate him like pedialyte? I had to shoot water into my dog's mouth when he was too sick to drink, and it perked him up quite a bit. Scary when they're this tiny!

 

[iheartscience]

WOW they are adorable. What a bunch of naughty pups! I hope the little red guy feels better ASAP.

 

[Deactivated member 42515]

Oh no no no... Poor poor baby! I really hope it's not parvo! Any updates?

 

[fabulousfindk]

I second the Pedialyte! If he's not drinking or eating, it can go from bad to worse very quickly. He has a great nurse in you, so I'm sure he will be fine!

Whether it's parvo or not, the disinfecting sounds smart - Maybe if it's not too much of a cost to bear, you could have cleaners come and do the disinfecting for you? I know that most places do an introductory discount, or you could look on Craigslist for an individual.. just thinking of cleaning the top of my refrigerator and cabinets and floors makes me dizzy, and I don't even have several puppies I'm responsible for!

They're all adorable, and best of luck to you! More pics when you have time

 

[tyty333]

Oh, they are so cute! Love the red one with the white band around its tummy and the spot around its eye...just so cute!
They look/sound like quite a handful (possibly an understatement!) Have fun with the little guys!