Happy March! I can’t believe it’s March already, and spring is just around the corner. In between the long stretches of rainy days we’ve had recently, there have been several beautifully warm days. The puppies have moved to their outdoor pen, and they are loving the extra space to play outside on the warm days.

At this age there are three main things happening for the puppies:

1. Introduction to house training. For the first few weeks, most of my litters live inside. It’s nice to keep a close eye on them when they are teeny tiny. However, once the puppies are walking and moving around, it becomes logistically necessary to move them outside where they have more space. The indoor section of the pen is about the same size as what they had in the house. This space is temperature controlled and keeps them warm and dry no matter what the weather is outside.

In addition to that space, they have a door to go into a large outside pen. On days with pleasant weather, they spend a good portion of the day outside playing. On the rainy or cold days, they only go out to go potty and then head back in where it’s warm and dry.

Having their pen set up like this is excellent for basic house training. Already, the puppies are learning to go outside to do their business. They can go outside whenever they need to during the day or night. Since puppies are born with an instinct not to pee or poop where they sleep, most puppies learn very quickly on their own to keep the indoor part of the pen clean. Capitalizing on this instinct at a young age makes crate training and house training so much easier! This is building a great foundation and creating good habits that go along with the puppies to their new homes. The reports I’ve gotten back from families with our puppies in regard to house training have been overwhelmingly positive.

2. Another big development for the puppies is weaning. They are getting toward the end of the weaning process now. They are eating three meals a day of Life’s Abundance Large Breed Puppy Food, and they get a mid-day milk snack from momma. The food that puppies (and adult dogs) eat has a HUGE impact on their health. Puppies have young digestive and immune systems that are just beginning to develop. The immune system, in particular, doesn’t fully mature in dogs until 18-24 months old. It’s very important for puppies to have a food that is gentle on their digestive system and full of essential nutrients. It’s also important that the nutrients come in forms that the puppies’ immature digestive system can absorb. Many cheap and low quality dog foods contain corn. While corn does have nutrients in it that fill in the boxes for the nutrition label, dogs can NOT digest corn. Whatever nutrients are there come straight out in their poop, completely useless to them. Low quality foods are harsh on the digestive system, leading to more bouts of diarrhea and a weaker immune system.

This is why I feed my puppies Life’s Abundance. Here’s a quick summary of the good things that are in the food and the bad things that you will never find in Life’s Abundance products.

• A proprietary blend of vitamins & minerals
• High-quality, multi-source proteins for growing muscles & healthy development
• An antioxidant system with vitamins C & E
• Prebiotic fiber & guaranteed probiotics
• Omega-3 fatty acids for healthy skin & a shiny coat
• Enriched with DHA
• Dietary fiber to help maintain a healthy digestive tract
• NO artificial flavors
• NO artificial colors
• NO corn or corn glutens
• NO wheat or wheat gluten

3. The third thing that happens around this time is their vet check. All the puppies got a clear health certificate along with their first vaccinations this week. Routine vet care, vaccinations, and dewormings are important in keeping puppies healthy and setting them up for the best adjustment into a new home.

And of course, I can’t finish out a blog post without a few pictures of the puppies from this past week. Here are a couple of my favorites to brighten your day! I know I always gush over how adorable my puppies are. But really, look at these guys. They are darling! Four of these pups are available. If you’ve been thinking about getting one of our puppies, this is your chance!