It's hard to believe the pups are already so old. They are such sweethearts, and I spend most of my time sitting in their pen trying to give each of them attention, which is rather challenging at times, since they all want to be in my lap receiving my undivided attention.
This week the pups had a bit of an 'adventure'. They had their first trip away from our house, and seeing other people and places, as they had their first vet visit.
This was slightly complicated, because wrangling 7 pups into the truck and to the vet, was a bit of an undertaking. Thankfully, I have a large kennel they could all fit in (and take naps in), which worked perfectly to get them safely to and from our destination. But the pups are not leash trained, and trying to encourage them to not fight against the leashes once we got to the vet, proved to be a challenge, but the people at the vet's office were a great help, and the puppies were fawned over by everyone there. They seemed highly unconcerned about getting shots, and were much more interested in exploring the room and trying to get everyone to pet them.
One side effect of them getting bigger, and more active, is they are more inclined to wrestle with each other, without caring about their surroundings. This has ended up with some... rather filthy pups. As a result, the pups have started having daily baths (or at least rinses).
I don't wash them in the tub, but this is the best way I have to corral them so they don't make a mess in their freshly cleaned room, or soil their freshly cleaned siblings. My deep sink is still perfect for bathing these little flufballs, and lets me make sure I get each pup clean, without having all the others climbing around on top of us. Some of the pups seem resigned to the idea of baths, and accept them quietly. Others act as if it is the most horrible thing in the world, and whine constantly. Of course, not wanting to be separated from each other, and calling back and forth from the room, tub, and sink, doesn't exactly help either. Once they are all clean though, they instantly forgive the insult of being bathed, and are happy to try crawling in my lap to get attention again. Of course, by the time the pups have all been bathed, I'm at least as wet as they were.
The pups love attention, and getting photos has become more challenging. If I'm taking pictures of any pup, others are sure to try getting in the way, so I have lots of puppy 'photobombs'.
We were able to take the pups outside again on a cooler day this week, which worked out well. I figured after they had a bath and got clean, they could run around outside to help them dry off. This... didn't work as I planned. They found the pond this time, and several simply had to jump in, and get positively filthy.
My husband did his best to try to help corral the pups away from the pond, but... they were quite determined, and he ended up carrying some rather muddy pups as we moved further from the small pond, in hopes of keeping the pups out of it.
They still love playing 'chase' with their parents, and Raiju loves hopping in the pond, so keeping the pups out was still a challenge, as we had to try to keep Raiju from running over to it when he was seeking to escape from the pups.
Orange pup seems the most laid back. She's the calmest when it comes to taking baths, and while she loves running and playing, she's also the first of the girls to come seek attention and cuddle.
Pink (formerly Yellow) is also pretty laid back. She has a slenderer face, and loves to cuddle. She's often the one I find napping while the others are jumping around when they were in the kennel to go to the vet, as well as when they are in the tub waiting for their turn to have a bath. She is definitely active, and I have a hard time getting good still shots of her. She's also one of the primary photobombers.
Purple is the most outgoing of the girls. She wants to explore everything, and has mastered escaping from the tub, so is always the first pup I have to bathe, if I want to keep her contained. She loves attention though, and tries to climb on top of others in order to reach me first.
Blue likes to explore, and was the first into the pond to get muddy the other day. He likes to play with his siblings, but also likes to cuddle. He'll be one of the first to wake up and try getting attention if I go in while they are sleeping.
Light blue I think is the most laid back. He's willing to watch what's going on, and get a nap, rather than racing around quite as much. That isn't to say he doesn't like to play. He'll chase and wrestle with the others just fine, but he doesn't seem to demand attention the same way the others do. At least, till he's finished his nap.
Green is somewhere in between Blue and Light Blue. Sometimes he'll be in the thick of it, demanding attention, and other times, he's willing to wait till the others have started wrestling in the 'attention seeking competition', before making a beeline to me in hopes of getting attention before the others descend again.
Red I think is the most observant. He'll sit and watch what's going on a lot, before coming in and holding his own in their games. He may not be the biggest, but he's definitely one of the more dominant, and loves to get attention.
They are highly active, , always wanting to play, so I find videos are starting to work a bit better. Most photos I am taking end up being blurry lately, since the pups are always moving. But I still take a bunch of pictures. But video seems to show what they're up to a bit easier, so I'll have more videos uploaded to facebook and youtube later today.
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