Do the Dew

Yesterday (Tuesday) was the day to "Do the Dew" -- that is, to remove the dewclaws from the 3-day-old puppies. Removing dewclaws, while uncomfortable for the puppies, is a necessary evil in the event that they are ever run with booties on. Dogs with dewclaws can have major problems when wearing booties -- often the bootie wraps around the ankle just above the dewclaw and can cause the dewclaw to be compressed against the leg and rub the leg raw. This isn't a pleasant situation for the dog and it can even be dangerous if it becomes infected.

Bonnie and Jim's friend, Jenny, came by last night to take the dew claws off. This consisted of using a hemostat to crush and then remove the dewclaw from the leg. It's not a big deal for the puppies but is uncomfortable and they do object at first. They do make some noise, but soon after, they settle back down to sleep and nurse and forget the whole ordeal. Of course, Mom has to be removed from the situation because she might be upset at the puppies' noises!

Here above, DeeDee relaxes with her little charges just before the dewclaw work began.


Matt and Jim put pressure on the dewclaw areas to staunch bleeding. Matt has Boudreaux and Jim has Tasso.

A great picture of me, I know. I am doing the same thing to Gumbo.

These little guys are gaining weight at an amazing rate! They are changing a little every single day. Now their coat colors are becoming more apparent and their noses are beginning to darken up to black rather than pink. Below is the current weight of each puppy along with the birth weight:

1. Boudreaux - 620 grams (birth weight 500 grams)
2. File' - 580 grams (birth weight 380 grams)
3. Gumbo - 480 grams (birth weight 300 grams)
4. Tasso - 440 grams (birth weight 300 grams)

On the topic of dogsledding, we recently experienced a wonderful phenomenon (read that wich much sarcasm) called a Chinook. Yesterday it was up to 45 degrees and all of the snow began to melt. The roads and sidewalks were so slick that it was difficult to stand up sometimes! Reports of trail conditions at Beach Lake were that the snow was crusted and soft, almost a slurry. I was really beginning to worry about how the trails would hold up for sledding in the immediate future, but this morning I woke up to a 28 degree morning and around 10" of new snow in the yard! New snow on top of the crusty ice will be better than the crusty ice by itself, so I am much happier than I was this time yesterday. Plans for this evening are to go Cross Country Skiing with the husband and hopefully to take the dogs out again tomorrow.