A week ago, a resident outside of Wolf Point called Animal Control to report something horrible: there was a litter of puppies that had been dumped on the side of the road nearby. They were four, maybe five, weeks old. No mother, just four little ones completely unable to fend for themselves, out in the cold. There could have been others, there could have been a mom with them when they were abandoned; no one knows (except the person who dumped them). So they were brought to the pound in Wolf Point and Tina with Wolf Point Pound Puppies began caring for them. On Wednesday they came to Bozeman along with seven other puppies and several adult dogs.
As soon as I saw them it was clear that one of the parents had a fair amount of Shar-pei blood. The ears, the wrinkles on the snout – classic traits. What was unusual was their coloring; it is identical to that of the four puppies Darla and I picked up several weeks ago: two are tan with a black snout, and two are colored like Bernese Mountain Dogs mixed with Rottweiler or something similar. Remarkable.
It was late afternoon when we got home, so after a brief orientation with the yard we came inside for supper. They were ravenous, and it was probably the first time in their lives they had had raw meat. But after being off of mother’s milk at a young age, they no doubt needed something rich in nutrients and minerals. Not long after supper they all crashed, and before they went to sleep I lay down with them. I expected normal puppy affection, but what I got was four little ones who thought their mother had returned and they came at my head in that frantic way that puppies go after mom when their hungry, right down to that jerky head movement when they’re looking for a nipple. And the pawing with those needle-sharp puppy claws..ouch!! When they realized I wasn’t going to be personally feeding them, then I got the puppy affection, though it was delivered with an air of disappointment. I didn’t mind. After a nap and some late play time they went down for the night.
Or so I thought. As soon as I turned the lights out and disappeared from view, they came to the side of the pen and began crying. I figured it was just normal puppy anxiety and it would die down after a while, which it did, but a few minutes later it started up again. And it continued off and on FOR THE ENTIRE NIGHT. I got very little sleep
The next day was a more or less normal day, with the puppies getting used to the place, and my dogs getting used to them. Grace is her usual self, playing very gently with them, especially so with these younger ones. Even Jappy and Bella try to play with them, but the little ones are still somewhat uncoordinated, and it seems like their eyesight still needs some development, as there is a lot of movement they seem to miss.
Last night, in need of sleep, I decided to try an experiment. working under the theory that confinement – even in a very large pen – produces stress, I decided to leave the pen open and give the little ones full run of the room, which is not small. I spread pee pads everywhere and went to bed… and slept until eight this morning. To my delight, the dogs spent the night in silence. Not the tiniest whimper. And all day they have been calm, inquisitive, and seem to be learning at an incredible rate. Two of them got the hang of the dog door after half a day of watching my dogs use it, though they forgot where it was when they wanted back in and cried at the glass door only a foot away. I suspect all of them will be using it regularly in a very short time. And all of them are very polite at feeding time. Another fine batch of Wolf Point pups.
Bozeman Foster Dogs 