Aster x Zamboni Puppies: Watch Us Grow!
Litter Name: Forever Yours
Date of Birth: February 2, 2024
Number of puppies: 5 (2 males/3 females)
Size: Medium
Parents: Coulee Starlight Astraea x Labradoodles of the North Zamboni
Puppy Litter Names: Eros (tri-colour), Cupid (chocolate phantom), Rose (small chocolate), Valentina (larger chocolate), Jewel (black)
Week 1
Week 2
Private "Meet the Puppies" via Zoom event in lieu of photos this week! I couldn't resist posting one photo of each puppy for the enjoyment of our followers who are not on the reservation list for this litter.
Most important milestone this week - sight!
Week 3 - Video Week!
Most important milestone of the week - hearing!
Puppies can't see until around day 14, and can't hear until day 18-20. When their ears open, a massive change takes place (thus my choice to share so many videos). They suddenly become very vocal and start to interact far more with each other, their mother, their human family, and objects in their environment. Three week old puppies use their voices more than dogs of any other age, and they practice a whole range of sounds! Listen for their unique vocal patterns and watch them interact in this week's videos!
Note: 3 week old puppies sleep 20+ hours per day. I had to really work at it to capture them moving around and making this much noise!
Rose and Valentina, with a brief appearance from Eros in the beginning :)
Cupid comes to say hello.
Active, playful puppies waiting for mama to settle in and feed them.
Lots of vocalization here, including the trilling/growling sound that is unique to puppies this age! Notice how responsive they are to each other and to the toys. Everyday they get a new developmentally appropriate toy! Novel items in their environment are an important aspect of early socialization.
Nursing and snuggling with mom.
Off to sleep with full bellies.
And now it's nap time (3 hours from now the cycle will begin all over again).
Random photos for extra cuteness!
Week 4 - Puppy Portraits!
Most important milestones this week - social development, eating solid food, and moving out of the whelping nest into a larger space with litter box, crate, and lots of space to play!
Week 5 - New Experiences!
Focus this week - enrichment, variation, and lots of gentle, positive exposure to new experiences!
Note: These are not "professional" quality photos, but most puppy photos you see these days are generated using AI with fake backgrounds and/or props. For us, a cornerstone of ethical breeding is keeping it real and sharing the journey with our families. As such, I try to alternate between puppy portraits (no AI), and on-location photos showing how and where our puppies are raised.
Let's Wrap Up Week 5 With a Few Videos!
Aster taking a break from mommy duties and playing in the snow with Azzie (Aster x Forrest).
Our current set up. On Monday, March 11th we get a bigger home base. Kudos to us for doing so swell with potty training!
Our superpower is Persistence. Mama's is Patience.
Happy, busy babies.
What IS that thing?!
Valentina takes the cake!
Cake snake! What else have you got?!
Week 6 - In-person Family Visit in lieu of comprehensive photo update this week! Oops - as it turns out, I took lots of photos this week :) Enjoy!!
Week 7 - Outdoors and on the move! Also vet visits, temperament testing and puppy matching!
And just for fun... :)
Week 8 - Gotcha Day!
An exciting, albeit bittersweet, day for me and the families! It's not easy to let the puppies go after nurturing their mama through her pregnancy, helping to bring each little life into the world, and then pouring so much time, energy, and love into them for the past 8 weeks. As Gotcha Day approaches, I spend a lot of time reflecting on how grateful I am to have such loving, capable, dedicated people eagerly waiting to make each of my puppies a member of their family!!!
At 8 weeks of age, the puppies are social, playful, and ready to take the next step and transition from our home to yours. It's a big change for the puppies, but they adjust quickly with love and support from their families. Raising a puppy is a lot of work - work you have each prepared for and committed to. Work that will pay off as you watch your puppy grow and develop into the wonderful dog he was meant to be. And work you will enjoy, because reward-based (force-free) training is as much fun for you as it is for your dog. I am excited for my puppies and their families as they embark on this lifelong adventure together! It truly is a privilege to raise these wonderful pups for their families. Please remember, I will always be here for you and your pup, if ever you have questions. On that note, here - officially - is the baton (I mean the puppy!). Best of luck (you got this!)! Sending lots of love and little piece of my heart home with each and every one of you.
Please stay in touch and send me lots of photos and updates!
Cheyene
An exciting, albeit bittersweet, day for me and the families! It's not easy to let the puppies go after nurturing their mama through her pregnancy, helping to bring each little life into the world, and then pouring so much time, energy, and love into them for the past 8 weeks. As Gotcha Day approaches, I spend a lot of time reflecting on how grateful I am to have such loving, capable, dedicated people eagerly waiting to make each of my puppies a member of their family!!!
At 8 weeks of age, the puppies are social, playful, and ready to take the next step and transition from our home to yours. It's a big change for the puppies, but they adjust quickly with love and support from their families. Raising a puppy is a lot of work - work you have each prepared for and committed to. Work that will pay off as you watch your puppy grow and develop into the wonderful dog he was meant to be. And work you will enjoy, because reward-based (force-free) training is as much fun for you as it is for your dog. I am excited for my puppies and their families as they embark on this lifelong adventure together! It truly is a privilege to raise these wonderful pups for their families. Please remember, I will always be here for you and your pup, if ever you have questions. On that note, here - officially - is the baton (I mean the puppy!). Best of luck (you got this!)! Sending lots of love and little piece of my heart home with each and every one of you.
Please stay in touch and send me lots of photos and updates!
Cheyene