Day Three in the Life of a Puppy: the Trifecta
Blogging the birth of a puppy.
The critical first three days. The breeders trifecta: the dam nurses the whelps, the dam cleans the whelps, the dam moves carefully around the whelps; the whelps attach to the teat, the whelps eliminate easily, the whelps scream if hurt; the breeder keeps the whelps attached; the breeder keeps the whelps warm; the breeder keeps the whelps safe.
You make many decisions – large and small – in these first three days but all actions have to be balanced on the trifecta: the dam's responsibility, the whelps reaction, the breeders care. The breeder has to make it easy for the dam and the whelp to do the right thing and difficult to do the wrong thing. Coercion does not work. Weakness is dangerous. Inconstancy is deadly.
Smooth. Smoooooth. Smooth like a warm wind. It is easier for the dam and the whelp to move with the wind than against it.
Pater, Filio, Esprito Sancto. The creator, the begotten, the will to live.
When I decide to climb into the whelping box with Tutti I do so knowing that I could be overbalancing the trifecta. If she were a bitch with less self possession, she could just give up to me. You do this, she could say. Or, I’m a baby too, so take over for me. She needs to bond to the whelp and be the dam. She should take comfort in my guidance but not be too brightly aware of my every move.
When the whelp got in trouble that first night, I “took her away” from Tutti but I bottle fed the pup as close to Tutti as was reasonable. When I cleaned the pup, I made Tutti eat some of the defecation. I offered Tutti the cotton swab to smell the urine. I praised her quietly when she did the right thing.
When she wouldn’t settle last night, I let my body warm Tutti and be her protection. She could rest against me and know that my hand held the pup against her warm body. She was the puppy’s protection. She needed to settle. She needed to sleep. It seemed the right thing to do at the time. I tried to be just the warmth that she needed and for only the time she needed it.
Smooth. Persistent. Directional.
The critical first three days. The breeders trifecta: the dam nurses the whelps, the dam cleans the whelps, the dam moves carefully around the whelps; the whelps attach to the teat, the whelps eliminate easily, the whelps scream if hurt; the breeder keeps the whelps attached; the breeder keeps the whelps warm; the breeder keeps the whelps safe.
You make many decisions – large and small – in these first three days but all actions have to be balanced on the trifecta: the dam's responsibility, the whelps reaction, the breeders care. The breeder has to make it easy for the dam and the whelp to do the right thing and difficult to do the wrong thing. Coercion does not work. Weakness is dangerous. Inconstancy is deadly.
Smooth. Smoooooth. Smooth like a warm wind. It is easier for the dam and the whelp to move with the wind than against it.
Pater, Filio, Esprito Sancto. The creator, the begotten, the will to live.
When I decide to climb into the whelping box with Tutti I do so knowing that I could be overbalancing the trifecta. If she were a bitch with less self possession, she could just give up to me. You do this, she could say. Or, I’m a baby too, so take over for me. She needs to bond to the whelp and be the dam. She should take comfort in my guidance but not be too brightly aware of my every move.
When the whelp got in trouble that first night, I “took her away” from Tutti but I bottle fed the pup as close to Tutti as was reasonable. When I cleaned the pup, I made Tutti eat some of the defecation. I offered Tutti the cotton swab to smell the urine. I praised her quietly when she did the right thing.
When she wouldn’t settle last night, I let my body warm Tutti and be her protection. She could rest against me and know that my hand held the pup against her warm body. She was the puppy’s protection. She needed to settle. She needed to sleep. It seemed the right thing to do at the time. I tried to be just the warmth that she needed and for only the time she needed it.
Smooth. Persistent. Directional.
posted by PajamaGirl at
7:39 AM
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