Pregnancy Confirmed!

After Zeke and Piper were bred, it was time to play the waiting game. We knew there wouldn’t be any obvious signs of pregnancy for a while, but that didn’t stop me from reading into all of Piper’s behaviors. Was she extra tired? Extra clingy? Extra…maternal?

Three weeks in, she refused her first bowl of food. Normally this is cause for concern, but in this case, I was ecstatic. Surely this pointed to pregnancy! She still needed to get nutrients, though, so we tried to get creative over the next few days. I boiled chicken and rice, flavored her kibble with beef fat, mixed in canned food… and still she wouldn’t eat much. At one point she gingerly picked up each kibble, sucked the juice off of it, and deposited it on the floor next to her bowl. Every. Last. Kibble. I couldn’t tell if I was being outsmarted or if she was really feeling that awful.

Finally the day came when we could have a look inside with an ultrasound exam. The vet walked her out of the exam room to get prepped and we sat in the empty room, nervous as expectant parents. After a tense wait, the door opened and the doctor popped in with a grin spread across his face. “You want to come see them?!?!”

Piper was cradled on the exam table and there, on the screen, was a fuzzy image of a tiny puppy. Paws, tail, and a tiny fluttering heart. It was breathtaking. At this point it’s too early to get much of a count, but we definitely found multiple, squirming pups tucked in there - each one just over an inch long. We are beyond excited!

We left the office with stern instructions to get her eating as soon as possible, so we stopped at the pet store on our way home to try some different foods and flavors. Piper has never been picky before, so this is a new phase for all of us. I got a funny look from the clerk as I deposited an arm load of “one of everything” on the counter, to which I simply shrugged and offered, “Pregnancy.”

The next milestone is an x-ray exam in about twenty days to get a puppy count in preparation for whelping. Until then, we’ll keep up with some light-duty grouse hunting, as much eating as possible, and keeping all of our minds occupied until early November!

Head on over to our Litters page for more info on this breeding and available pups!