A Doodle Litter's Journey

Before the puppies are born, we devote ourselves to the loving care of our Mama Doodle. She is given balanced meals, special healthy treats, daily massages, privacy or company as she prefers, and appropriate exercise and play depending on the stage of pregnancy.

When Mama is ready, we provide a cozy, safe whelping bed in a cave-like environment with low lighting, and help her as needed. 

Once all the puppies are safely delivered and Mama is rested and happy, we move her and her baby Doodles to their dedicated nursery suite.

The first few days are all about settling in - we weigh the puppies twice a day, and make sure everyone is safe, warm, and healthy.

We select for excellent mothering instincts in our Mama Doodles - this is so important in giving our puppies the best start.

Before our puppies can see or hear, they learn to know and trust our scent and touch.

Early Neurological Stimulation (ENS)  and Early Scent Introduction (ESI) start on Day 3 and are repeated daily through Day 16.

On Day 17 we transition to our Forging the Bond protocol with gentle handling that prepares our puppies for a lifetime of vet visits, grooming, and positive daily contact with their families. Our blog post Forging the Bond goes into more detail about this important start.

The puppies' eyes will usually open by around 14 days, and they'll hear sounds by 21 days.

They'll also steadily gain strength and ability as they toddle around more.

During this exciting transition, we introduce potty training with a tray of grass pellets, which helps in later training to outdoor potty areas.

Puppies naturally want to keep the nest area clean, so the potty tray right beside the nest is a perfect way to begin.

At about 21 to 28 days the puppies' baby teeth emerge and they are ready to try out solid foods.

We begin with goat milk and finely ground meat, and increase the quantity and variety of foods as they are ready.

Our goal throughout weaning is to prepare their digestive systems - known as populating the gut microbiome - for a lifetime of good health.

We also introduce soft toys at this stage - the urge to chew arrives at the same time as those little teeth!

The puppies are upgraded to a large toddler suite, offering them additional space for play and exploration. 

New toys and other enrichment items are introduced daily.

Mama starts naturally taking longer breaks away from the puppies, and we start introductions to our gentle adult "auntie" Doodles.

Starting at five weeks, the puppies are given daily play and learning time in our safe outdoor puppy playground.

A partial list of their "schoolwork" includes: introduction to new sights, sounds, scents and weather, climbing steps, standing on wobbly items, walking on different types of surfaces - plastic, wood, metal, gratings, paper, sand - climbing ramps and balancing on low to the ground beams, navigating tunnels, water play, a wide variety of objects to investigate and interact with, scent work and scent toys, lick mats and problem solving puzzles, balloons and umbrellas for desensitization to overhead objects, introduction to high value treats for conditioning against resource guarding, practice with grooming, dog crates and self-soothing, conditioning to come when called, and learning time with our gentle adult dogs.

All curriculum is presented based on the puppies' developmental stage, but never forced. Puppies learn at their own speed.

At six weeks we begin taking the puppies off our property a few times each week.

We limit these excursions to car rides and stroller rides because until they are fully vaccinated, puppy paws and noses should not touch public ground.

On these adventures, our puppies are able to experience many new sights, scents, and sounds.

Some of our usual destinations are schools, office buildings, police and fire stations, the bank and post office, downtown areas, and walking trails.

A lot happens between seven and eight weeks, and thanks to everything we've done so far, our puppies are ready for it!

At 49 days we temperament test and assess the behavior of each puppy in the litter, to help our puppy parents pick their perfect Doodle.

A day or two later, the puppies meet our veterinarian for a comprehensive nose to tail health exam, vaccines, and microchip.

At 7.5 weeks we go down the reservation list for Puppy Pick Day, one of our very favorite days!

And last but definitely not least, at 8 weeks they are ready to join their new families.