Journey and her puppies

Every time I foster a mom and her puppies, I’m reminded that each family is different.

For some reason, I believe that these guys are robust and hearty. I’ve only known them for 36 hours! But when they cry, I take my time responding. Maybe it’s because Journey is a VERY relaxed mom. Maybe it’s because I wasn’t there for their first breath. Maybe it’s because I do not know their birthdate, so I don’t have a prescribed milestones calendar to follow.

I think it’s also a bit of ‘second child’ syndrome. With my first kid, I followed ALL the rules, did everything by the book, but with my 2nd kid, I followed no one’s path, but our own.

Some fun facts:
– 4 females, 4 males
– mama is busy when she’s not being a mom, but seems experienced at this mothering thing. But not for long! This is her last litter.
– Journey and I have a system. I let her out back, she returns to the garage, and magically, her food is there. Meanwhile, the pups have pottied on the pee pads (because I put them there, not because they’re trained…), then they mook around until they discover the food bowl. They are good eaters. When they’re done, Journey licks their bowl clean, I change their bedding and mom and pups settle in for a nursing session.
– The pup with the two-tone face is going to steal many hearts.
– The little adventure-girl has already stolen mine. How does this happen so quickly?
– puppy cam is being installed as I type!

Did I mention that I really love fostering?