Dam: IntCH CH Hollyhock Racy Lady “Diamond Lil”
[View Pedigree] [View OFA Health Certifications] [View Lil’s Photo Gallery]Sire: GCH CH Hollyhock Go Figure, CGC “Jack”
[View Pedigree] [View OFA Health Certifications] [View Jack’s Photo Gallery]
Charlie Lynn, Gidget, Jackson, Nisan and Stevie in their new homes
As their new owners share photos with us we will post them here every couple of months so you can continue to watch them grow up.
The Twelfth Week — The first week in their new homes
The puppies are settling into their new homes and we will post photos here as they mature. We’ll probably only post new photos a couple of times a year…but stay tuned.
The Eleventh Week — The Journey Home
It is always bittersweet as the puppies leave our home and start a new chapter in their lives. We are blessed to have amazing families that will carry on the work we started. Deb flew four of the pups to their new destinations, Phoenix and Denver, and Nisan flew home with his new family to Chicago. View the photos and captions to learn more about their journey to their new homes.
The Tenth Week — Final days before going home
Freedom to roam…both inside and outside…and more time playing with the adult bichons. The older dogs (age 14 and 15) are ready for them to go to their new homes and to have our “adult routines” back in place. Lil and Jack and Dee Dee continue to be their guardians and Grandma Holly, too, but more from afar and on her perch. She likes to watch over things, but not participate as much. She is 11 years old. Next week we will focus on getting them ready to go to their new homes.
The 10th Week. Learning to play (duration 33:18)
The Ninth Week — Routine, routine, routine
This week we begin the countdown to getting the pups ready to go to their new homes. We try to really solidify their daily routine so things will be consistent and fairly predictable once they get to their new homes. Two of the pups will be going to the Phoenix area, two to the Denver area and one to Chicago. Deb will be their flight nanny. This was the Easter litter, so most have that theme in their registered names. You can see those names under their photos. Pink girl’s call name will be Charlie Lynn. Yellow girl will be Stevie. Red girl is Gidget. Green boy is Jackson and Blue boy is Nisan. The pups played hard this week, continued their car rides, and were introduced to some new “chew things” in an effort to start loosening their baby teeth. Believe it or not, those adult teeth will start erupting soon. They were introduced to their harnesses and next week we’ll be adding the leash to that exercise. Toward the end of the week they went to the vet for their wellness check and their first round of puppy vaccinations. They were the hit of the vet office…go figure!
The Eighth Week — More free roaming time and a little pool time
The pups enjoyed more time roaming around the house and yard, supervised of course. They are getting very brave and also playing harder with each other…so the free roaming gives them more space to exercise their energy! We introduced them to the pool but they were not very interested, still, no one complained about getting wet! Toward the end of the week they ventured out to get their microchips…and Jack, Lil and Grandma DD went along for moral support. Daily grooming continues (brushing, combing and cleaning their eyes) and they get a weekly bath and blow dry. They are all great on the grooming table. We had visitors from Denver and locally this week so they had more socialization with new friends. They just LOVE people. Next week we will have more visitors and we will make our final decisions on the best families for the girls. So far, the boys have been assigned and named. Green boy is learning his name, “Jackson” as is Blue boy, “Nisan”.
The Seventh Week — Doggie Door Training and Puzzles
The weather was nice this week so the puppies were outside just about as much as they were inside. They enjoyed more “free time”, roaming around the yard and inside the house. Jack continues to be the “play daddy” with Lil and Dee Dee always nearby overseeing things. Lil is weaning the pups from nursing and avoiding the “puppy teeth” by staying outside the kennel or perched on top of a chair or kennel. She wants to be with them and play, but their teeth are razor sharp! We also started them on toothbrush training and puzzles this week and toward the end of the week they were introduced to the pool. No one went fully into the water, but we want them to take their time. Perhaps we will have a chance to get them to actually swim next week. Oh, and one pup will be learning his name this week, as Green boy is now “Jackson” (son of Jack).
The Sixth Week — Puppy, Puppy, Puppy
This week brought out the “puppy, puppy, puppy” call and they loved that. They came running to see what new things they were going to experience. We enlarged the indoor and outdoor play areas so they had more room to run and wrestle…and they did plenty of that. We also started daily car rides (no carsick babies in our little pack), and lots of time doing “walk abouts” in the yard. Their favorite new thing is probably the COT. They like to lay underneath it and Yellow girl was the first to figure out how to get on top of it. Baby lullabies continue during nap time. We did not get to do any pool time or doggie door training this week so you should see that next week.
The Fifth Week — Getting used to new noises and more outdoor time
All kinds of new noises were introduced this week…the vacuum, dropping more pots and pans, outdoor sounds and baby lullabies (my personal favorite for automating nap time). Some “firsts” for this week included 3-4 solid food meals per day, drinking water from a bowl whenever they want and exploring more outside. They are starting to play more with toys but they especially love to wrestle with each other. Potty training continues and should improve as we give them more outdoor time. Next week we will introduce them to the final larger indoor play area and the doggie door. The video this week is pretty long but I hope you enjoy it anyway.
The Fourth Week — Walking well and starting to play
The puppies are getting used to their larger “learn and play” area. They are learning to walk around and navigate over and around the obstacles we introduce. Some “firsts” for this week included learning to lap from a dish and going outside for some new sites and sounds. They are all getting more nimble on their feet and they are starting to play with the toys and with each other. Next week we will introduce them to real food and they will have daily outdoor time. Potty training continues and we are looking forward to more consistency in that regard!
The third week — Starting to walk
The puppies finished up their daily Early Neurological Stimulation exercises right about the time their eyes started to open up. Within a few days they were taking their first baby steps. They are still pretty wobbly, but they are starting to roam around their expanded kennel. We introduced the pee pad and they are getting the hang of it…taking a pee upon waking from their nap. We also introduced a few small toys and other obstacles they need to navigate around and over. Socialization with family and the adult bichons continued. Once they are all up on their feet we will start teaching them how to lap from a low dish. Stay tuned!
The second week — Socialization begins, Eyes start to open
This week was mostly about continuing their Early Neurological Stimulation exercises but we also began to introduce the pups to our adult bichons. There was a lot of “mutual sniffing” going on and everyone got along. Lil even lets Holly and Jack inside her litter kennel. Holly thinks all babies are HER babies and wants to play a role. Well, they ARE her grandbabies, but she respects Lil’s role as “mother”. The best part of the week for Tom and I was the “human cuddle time” we started every evening when our daily routine was winding down. There’s nothing like that experience and the pups seem to be enjoying it. By the end of the week had opened her eyes and was starting to explore a bit more. Yellow girl was squinting and soon the others will follow. It is a wonderful milestone and soon they should also be able to hear. They will be trying to get up on their legs and crawl around more. Next week should be even more entertaining. As soon as all of them have their eyes open, we’ll move them to their new enclosure where they will have more room to roam. Stay tuned!
The first week — Early Neurological Stimulation Exercises begin
This week the pups had their dew claws removed and then they began their Early Neurological Stimulation exercises. They have doubled their birth weights and they don’t do much other than nurse and sleep…and plump up. We like to say they are entering the “baked potato phase” this week as they are a robust handful. They are becoming more active and once their eyes and ears open up toward the end of this week, the videos will be more interesting. Sorry to bore you with this week’s rendition…not much to show for now.
The birth day
Lil and Jack welcomed 3 girls and 2 boys to the Hollyhock Bichon family late Saturday evening, the day before Easter. Like her last litter, she delivered her babies in about one and a half hours with some heavy panting but no complications. Her labor was a bit “vocal”, not unlike her mother, Holly. All the babies took to the nipples without hesitation and by Easter morning, both Deb and mommy Lil woke from a fairly restful night. For the first few days we will focus on making sure mommy and babies are gaining weight and peeing and pooping regularly. Then we’ll take another trip to the vet to have their dew claws removed. After a day to recover from that we will begin their daily Early Neurological Stimulation exercises. Stay tuned to this page (bookmark it now) for weekly updates and to follow the development of this litter.
Questions? Send email to: info@hollyhockbichons.com or Call Deb Gibb: 858-531-2890