Lyric's pregnancy?! continued...

[Ginny Nightingale]

Nov 18th--I did my homework! I went to see Bel deliver her litter of four pups last night. But, the assignment was too easy! My breeder called me when Bel started pushing and I jumped in my car at 10:30 pm to drive 20 miles to help out. When I got there, three pups had already popped right out (DARN!) with a fourth still up pretty high (we could see the bump on her side). Bel had a short rest then had contractions for about 1/2 hour and popped out the fourth pup. No big deal! She did make it look easy and i hope Lyric has as easy a time, but, since it is her first litter, not her third, I don't expect the exact same experience.

These pups were all chocolate since Bel is a deep chocolate and was mated to a chocolate poodle, but with Lyric it is anyone's guess. She carries the black and white as well as chocolate, so we could have cream and chocolate (sounds yummy), black and white, chocolate and white, etc, etc. It should be fun to see what we end up with.She will be due the first week of January.

Nov. 19th--Morning sickness! Right on schedule, Lyric has lost her appetite --she barely ate breakfast this morning and finally had a meal at 4 pm. This is not the way she normally eats--so it's a good sign that something is cooking in the oven!

Molly, an adorable little black doodle with a white tip on her tail who belongs to my breeder, has been visiting all week. She has really won our heats as she sweetly gives us kisses every day---she has gotten along very well with Lyric and Mattie, too. We could keep her here forever in another guardian arrangement like we have with Lyric, but I really have my heart set on keeping one of Lyric's puppies. If I keep Molly, I'd have FOUR doodles, and I simply can't afford that!

For those of you who are unfamiliar with guardian arrangements, my breeder charged me far less than full price for my doodles if I agreed to let them have two litters. So, I got to own her best doodles that she chose for breeding (both Mattie and Lyric were 7 months old when I adopted them) and we thoroughly health-tested them as they matured. Mattie had slight hip dysplasia, so she was spayed right away. But Lyric passed all her tests and is now being bred. When the pups are born, I get to keep a pup or get half of what I paid for Lyric back. I am hoping to keep the pup that my breeder, who I get long really well with, would like to breed in the future. That way, when Lyric is done with litters and is spayed, I will hopefully have another lovely doodle that will be bred. I guess I am a glutton for punishment! Of course, I may totally change my mind when I actually live through the experience of a litter! But it is wonderful to be a part of a responsible breeding program that produces lovely, healthy pups!

[Nina, Phil, Harlow & Lacey]

Poor Lyric, I can relate to the morning sickness (even though it has been a looonnng time) that was really all day sickness for the first few months.

[Camilla and Darwin]

I didn't know that dogs got morning sickness when pregnant... never thought about it. How interesting. I'm excited to hear more updates!

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

Aww, poor Lyric. I'll never forget that nasty morning sickness (that actually lasted all day).

[F, Calla & Luca]

sounds like a very fair arrangement with your breeder since many breeders ask for 3-4 litters. Very exciting to see the pup born I'm sure.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Keep these posts coming because I am enjoying being part of this without any of the work!

[Pat and Traveler]

Oh, I'm so envious! It must be so exciting to have been a part of the birthing and to be expecting a litter of your own. The foster arrangement sounds like it works really well. And you do your own grooming, too. Super Mom! I do have a Les Poochs slicker brush, but guess I got it too late for my pooch. Best of wishes for your babies, and your grooming adventures!