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Here we grow again …

I’m sitting in the quiet of the night, waiting on Piper’s labor to progress to the delivery of the 1st puppy. My husband attempted to help – he ensured no one disturbed me when I napped earlier and even suggested I try to get some more sleep at bedtime, since he didn’t think she’s as close to delivery as I did. Nice thought, my bedtime lasted all of 10 minutes when she started to pace, then went into the ensuite and could be heard gathering the bath mat beneath her. Out of the darkness, Scott carefully whispered to me “are you still awake … because I think I was wrong and she’s close to delivering” I took that as our cue to head downstairs. So now I sit with just one lamp on, house quiet, and tea beside me courtesy of our daughter, and Piper is progressing. She has no interest in the whelping bed in the nursery, so for now she remains in the living room where she’s most comfortable, and I’m ready to move quickly into the nursery when the 1st contraction starts. I’m all about raising our dogs and pups as part of our family, but I draw the line at giving birth on the furniture. Leather or not, we’re not doing that here.

I’m reflecting at how things have changed since our first deliveries. As most new parents are, I was nervous and planned lots of help, along with back up plans of who would ride with me to the vet clinic, IF an emergency occurred and we needed a c-section. There were lists and plans for the plans. Fast forward to tonite. I must admit, I’m still very organized – the nursery has been ready for delivery for several days, the bag is packed and incubator ready, just in case we need a quick trip to the vet clinic. But the difference is, I’m confident in my ability to play mid-wife on my own. I know my husband is upstairs and will come down to help if needed. I know one of the kids will come for a middle of the night drive to the veterinary hospital if I need to wake them. But I don’t need any of them to stay up all night, right beside me “just in case”. I’m confident that if I need to move to plan B, we will move to that. For now, it’s just Piper and I and I suspect it will remain that way. Girl power, we’ve got this.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s still a very nerve wracking time, even with experience of doing this many times before. Every birth is different. And unlike humans, dogs can’t tell us if something is wrong. Fortunately there’s usually a good chunk of time between each puppy’s delivery, so it gives me time to help clean the pup off, check him/her out from head to toe, help get them nursing, weighed, and warm beside mom before the next pup is born. We’ve been extremely fortunate that our mamas are natural mommies and settle in quickly to licking and nursing.

Piper has moved to the floor and is laying at my feet. Her breathing has changed; it’s quicker and she’s panting. I know we’re moving closer to seeing the first pup.

It’s exciting to think about these pups and wonder who they will be and all the experiences we will have with them over the next 8 weeks. Several of these pups are going to join the CNIB program. It already brings tears to my eyes to think of the life-changing pups that are about to enter the world. Maybe one of them will be the difference in someone not wanting to leave their home, and finally having the confidence to go out and experience daily activities. Maybe one will help teach a child what it means to have a dog and all the responsibilities that go with it. And then, when that child grows older and is ready for their own guide dog, they will have experience from their 1st pup to make the transition easier. Maybe one of them will be replacement for a guide dog who has assisted their handler for many years, and is now ready for retirement and to pass the responsibility to a younger dog. I hope their handlers know the love and commitment that went into these little ones, from the very beginning … and that they were being thought of long before the puppy ever arrived in their home.

My tea is finished and Piper has fallen into a restful sleep. I am going to follow her cue and do the same since I suspect our rest time will be short and then a long night ahead …

Good night for now … the morning promises to bring the good news of new puppies to love.

Lesley & Piper

_{Season of Change …}

Covid-19 was a game changer for us in how we handled puppy visits, selections and pick up. Our philosophy for puppy raising and placing them with families includes socialization and creating lasting relationships. Covid hasn’t been kind in helping with that. We had to be innovative with the puppy’s day to day socialization experiences, and with introducing their new families to them. We also had to help families make heart breaking decisions to defer their homecomings until upcoming litters, since travelling to us & back home again was uncertain and restrictive. Fast forward several months and we’re now awaiting 2 litters of puppies and hoping we are blessed with large litters and healthy pups so we can finally make arrangements for long-overdue families to bring home their pups !!!

In just over 3 weeks, likely only days apart we will be anticipating the arrival our 3rd litter of Gracie & Bravo pups, and a brand new combination of Chloe & Groot babies. Our pregnant moms have been spending their days with extra rest (usually at our feet) and enjoying the air conditioning as much as possible. Poor Gracie experiences morning, day and night nausea and enjoys the extra care and cuddles, as well as extra tasty food made especially for her to encourage her to eat and nourish herself and babies. Chloe, on the other hand needs to be reminded to slow down and rest, always excited for her next meal or snack, and still begs to play fetch – all day long if we agreed to it. Our mamas-to-be receive at least one ultrasound, and a pre-natal visit in the week leading up to due date, so we can check in on pups and ensure everyone is healthy and tolerating the remaining days. Unlike humans, their due dates are quite specific so we have a very good idea of when to be ready for delivery day.

Fall is typically the time of year we refer to change, but I feel 2020 has been an entire year of change and adaptability. I’ve tried very hard to embrace the good covid brought. At our house, it brought back regular family dinners and game night. It brought an appreciation to both my husband and I of each other’s jobs and the often overlooked tasks that each of us do. With spending so much time at home, I believe it’s taught our children to appreciate the planning that goes into the most mundane tasks, like making dinner or getting groceries. Puppy raising has always been considered a family responsibility here, but covid meant that they were hands on with all the aspects on a daily basis, and I know they’ve learned that it’s about so much more than playing with pups !!!

Summer of 2020 has also been our 18th summer … 18 years of being parents, 18 years of change and transition and wondering what the next season will bring. It’s brought a different kind of back to school shopping this year … buying life’s essentials like toothpaste, laundry soap, pillows and bedding. When I still worked in Public Health, a co-worker of mine with years of parenting experience would remind us newer moms that even though life revolved our kids at that time, that our kids weren’t here to make us happy or for us to keep. At the time I remember thinking that referring to parenting that way made it seem depressing. However, those words actually had a positive impact on me and have been preparing me for this 18th summer. Those words taught be that happiness is created by finding the good in everyday and faith for what the future has in store for us. Those words have taught me that our kids definitely aren’t ours to keep and to be ok with that. Because I was made aware of this, I feel I’ve made a better effort at preparing our kids for their own lives, and to prepare my husband and I for our lives without the kids and to continue looking forward to what the next season will bring. And, I truly believe that due to this preparation, this means they won’t truly ever be gone … that they’ll appreciate the wings we gave them to fly on their own and know we will always have a safe place to return to.

And for our puppy families, this is what we’re doing with your newest little family members … loving, teaching and preparing them for life beyond here. And then, when they join their new homes, these families will have many enjoyable seasons ahead to share too.