Our Whelping Room
This is where our puppies are born. Our whelping room is video monitored. It is fully wired, insulated, has heat and A/C. It is in a fenced area of the yard, separate from any other animals. The whelping box in the room is a 5ft X 5ft wooden box with a 4' bumper guard. We feel that this helps the mother to feel safe during labor and the initial rearing of her newborn puppies. They will leave this room the day after birth to go to the vet. Interaction with them for the first ten days will occur in this room.
In the first weeks of life the puppies have a radio playing 24/7. The music channel is changed periodically and the volume is adjusted. This gives them exposure from birth to various rhythms, pitches, noise, etc at different volume levels.
From birth the puppies are handled several times a day. They are held on their backs. Their feet are touched. They are wiped with a damp rag. Their blankets are changed a minimum of once a day. Their blankets vary in texture. Smooth, fuzzy, thicker, thinner. They are intentionally exposed to varying textures beneath them from birth.