Gabby's third litter

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Marsha,

Chris and I have an agreement that, no matter how much we work with the pups, we can't get emotionally attached. We have one dog at home (Gabby aka mommy), and don't need another, especially if there are projected vet bills, as I'm sure there will be in Oscar's case.

All the pups belong to the breeder so, harsh as it may sound, Oscar is her problem. If he survives, I suspect she'll do the same as she did when a prior pup couldn't walk - she asked us if we could find a home for a free puppy. When we showed her that he was now able to walk and run (following adjustment by our chiropractor friends), the "free" pup was up for sale.
 
The breeder charges $1,500 for a cockapoo pup and $2,500 for a labradoodle pup.
 
Oscar continues to be on a rollercoaster. We bottle feed every 3 hours or so, with Chris taking the majority of sessions. In between, we encourage him to feed off mommy. He's slowly getting the hang of it, but he has a tough time hanging on, especially when he's pushed aside at the chow wagon; This evening we saw him hold his own with siblings.

Between feeds he's been a bit of a loner, not packing with the other pups, preferring to sleep alone. Today we saw a change. Oscar is the "skinny" one  ;)

 

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They look like one of y family photos, im the shortest. Beautiful pups, you and your wife have done very well and i commend you on your stamina dealing with a sick pup, sadly, many breeders would have turned to the alternative. It sounds like the breeder you have is a really awesome person.
 
It would be really hard to stay detached from those beautiful pups.  We're all rooting for you Oscar!!
 
Aye, and Chris isn't ready to give up on him. She sets a timer by the bed, and every 3 hours she gets up to feed him. He still can't reliably feed off his mommy, but we're hoping he'll make the transition to solid food when the others do. Meanwhile, he's steadily putting on weight,

A few more days and their eyes should be open. Can't wait to see them running around. When they get teeth and start to hurt Gabby while they feed, she'll start to reject them. She'll run out the doggie door and, like a herd of cattle, they'll go charging after her. She'll hop up on the deck furniture to get away, then back in through the doggie door, with the pups chasing her. This will repeat several times a day, and they'll eventually go eat the solid food. It's entertaining to watch them go through this phase.
 
After 3 weeks of feeding every 3-4 hours, we thought Oscar was making progress. He'd steadily put on weight, although he continued to need help feeding; Some combinations of bottle feeding, a syringe, and a tube inserted down into his stomach. The last couple of days Chris observed that he's been slipping, and it appears he has pneumonia.

Today the breeder came by and made the dreaded, but probably humane, decision. She left with few words exchanged, and headed to the vet with Oscar. We didn't get to see if he could feed himself on solid food, although Chris had got him to drink (sip) from the water bowl, along with his siblings.

It's sad, but maybe Chris can now get back to normal; She's had little sleep for the last three weeks, and it shows. Gabby (aka mommy) has been very noticeably jealous of Chris feeding Oscar, so maybe now she can also get back to being a normal mommy to her other pups.
 
Awww.... hugs, Chris.  That's hard.  Thanks for the time you invested to try to save the puppy.  :-*
 
It has to be hard on both of you.  Thanks for caring so much. 
Waiting for more pics when you get a chance.
 
Waiting for more pics when you get a chance.

Thought I'd post a few photos of Oscar in his last few days. He was a real fighter, which was why Chris was determined to help him recover. Had it not been for the pneumonia, I have no doubt he would have done OK.

Chris eventually figured out that she had to tube feed him while he was sleeping, which avoided him fighting and pulling the tube out. Then she'd wake him up and let him bottle feed for a short while.
 

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Yesterday I took a call from a friend's teenage son. They are a guardian home for a female labradoodle (Boo) owned by the same breeder as Gabby. Boo was due to deliver pups on Wednesday this week, but had started delivering early. His parents were out, so Chris zipped over there. 8.5 hours later, Boo delivered her 10th pup. Chris came home pooped, and crashed for the night.
 
Aye Marsha, l think you're right  ;D

[quote author=Roadhappy]What happens to Gabby now that she's had her third litter?[/quote]

She'll be retired fron the breeding program, and be 'fixed'. We have the option to be her permanent home, which we intend to do; She's such an integral part of our family that we can't see doing otherwise.
 
The pups from the latest litter go through a training process with us before going to their new homes (in another3-4 weeks). The breeder plans to put the only girl from this litter (Zoey) into her breeding program; So, Zoey will go to a guardian home until she's had 3 litters.

Chris was doing some 'personality training' with some of the pups this morning. When she was done, she said "I'm going to miss having puppies around; Maybe we should be the guardian home for Zoey" .

Er...that wasn't part of the plan  :eek:
 

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