5 week old Brittany Pups - Natural Instincts

Today was a perfect ending to the Memorial Day Weekend for John and I.  The reason?  We simply kicked back and relaxed.  This is no easy feat for John who in fact had started the tractor early in the morning with plans to do some yard work.  Knowing his back was bothering him, plus the fact that he has not slowed down for a couple of weeks (maybe longer) I very kindly but very seriously put my foot down and simply said - nope - you WILL take it easy today!  We worked around together to do the bare minimum of things that needed to get done and then turned our attention fully to the enjoyment of our entire canine crew. And they loved it!  It's been forever since all the crew has run together.  They have not all been here at the same time or there were hormonal issues, pups, etc.  I'm not leaving out Wish though - she'll be back here in the fall. Anyway - that was one of the first orders of the day, to just let mayhem erupt and as it did indeed - Bethovens 5th Symphony (Joyful Joyful) would have been the perfect soundtrack! Joyful joyful is the most perfect way to describe the dogs as they enjoyed several free hours of playing pondside, swimming, 'hunting', lounging, and just hanging out.  John was sharing treats at random times with them and the would all congregate around him waiting for theirs. I was sitting down by the pond when Rosie came running by and jumped in with hers. She dropped it in the water and while it floated for a moment, soon it sank out of sight. She was very perplexed about this and spent quite a few minutes trying to dive under water for it. When that didn't work, she splashed at the surface with her paw as if to draw the waves up under her. I am not sure what Rose thought this would do but it sure was fun to watch!  Today Molly and Pippin rejoined the crew and all went well. Scooby is not quite sure what has changed between Molly and him though, poor fellow.  He approaches her and she turns and growls!

Speaking of Molly and Scooby pups for the past week I have bringing them out onto the grass, one pup at a time.  I like to introduce them to new things in a certain way and have discovered that I gain a clearer perspective of a young pup when taking them outdoors by themselves.  Once I am confident of their reaction the next step is to introduce them to the x-pen - all together.  Then I step back and observe their reaction.  I don't want to take any chances that the behavior, instincts, reactions, etc. of pups this young are shaped because of something I may do, intentionally or not.  It's kind of like taking the startle response just a step further. There are stages in their development where you don't want to startle young pups but then there are perfect times to intentionally do so.  The key is knowing what they have been exposed to, and again - this is like laying the foundation for their training and learning ability in the future - line upon line, precept upon precept.  Breeders do not have to go through all of this and I admit it is very very time consuming but I say if you have the time, and you're aware of these things why not give the pups every opportunity to succeed ? 

We have to be extremely cautious when any young puppy is outdoors.  A hawk flying overhead could easily sweep down upon an unsuspecting puppy so the x-pen is always draped with a sheet over the top, clipped in place. I brought each pup out and placed them in the pen along with a pan of water.  Then John and I sat back and simply observed from a few feet away.  As tempted as I always am to interact and initiate play with pups for the first time when they are outdoors I do not do that.  I believe there is a strong possibility I can actually hinder them in some way during those first few moments of a new and very important experience. Because I am intent on doing everything I can to stir up what is inherent in our pups the reactions I am most interested in are those that are raw in nature, instinctive, and even primal.  By the time we put a litter of pups together outside we have already been doing deliberate socializing and developmental training with them. I know that there is not going to be any freaking out and I know that their comfort zone is going to extend well beyond where I happen to be. 

And today these pups were ready to be introduced to a scent that, for the majority of pups, is going to play a major role in the rest of their life - WILD BIRD SCENT!  John and I sat and looked for the cues in our pups... where they smelling the ground?  Where they lifting their head up in the air, picking up scent?  It came as absolutely no surprise when that is exactly what they did.  The little faces on these 5 week old pups were as serious and as intent as any adult Brittany would be.  Even their body language spoke of their excitement. I really don't like to do a lot of stacking and posing of very young pups, not at least until I've had a chance to see their natural reaction to what they were bred for.  That can tell me a lot about a pups conformation as it pertains to it's purpose plus it's all natural.  I like to see how their natural stance,  how they raise their head in reaction to a scent, see how their tail looks, where they place their little legs in order to stand more erect and straight.  I like to see every muscle and bone react instinctively.  And today, I really really liked what I saw in Molly and Scooby's 5 week old Brittany puppies!

Satisfied that they were ready to put two + two together, I brought out 2 frozen quail wings and simply put them in with the pups to see what happened next.  It was kind of funny because their aunt Treasure was very much aware of what I brought outside.  She seemed to get the pups to one side as if to bribe them to pass one wing through the pen to her!  Anyway, the wings were a big hit and those little faces became even more serious than before!  The strong prey drive that comes down from their grandmother Wish was evident right off in Meg and in Veronica as they were the victors with the quail wings, getting them away from the other 4.  Not to say the rest of the pups were not interested either... I don't know if this is possible but I would go so far as to say they may have even been intoxicated by the scent.  (I saw this happen in the woods with Jack his first hunting season when there was a lot of woodcock around.)  I didn't want the pups to actually eat the wings, or take a chance at choking on feathers so I only let them have it for a few minutes.  But that was enough time for me to know we are definitely in line and on track with our breeding goals for this particular litter of pups. I want to see that consistency from Wish that she has passed on to Treasure and her pups, and Jack and his pups reflected in the pups of Scooby and Molly.  And I am quite certain that is going to be the case here. 

In closing, I also want to share that two of Pippins pups (Tank and Hemi) crawled up and over their whelping box today - and they will be 3 weeks old tomorrow.  Pippin enjoyed a good long afternoon away from her pups for the first time but she is always happy to return to them. I have to wonder if I am just as intoxicated with the love, puppy breath, and mere presence of both Pippins and of Mollys pups, as they (Mollys) were with their introduction to gamebird scent. Maybe so.  Or maybe it's just that John and I had this glorious fun relaxing day together.  Oh - and back to John. He did take this day off entirely and is now heard snoring soundly from the couch in the other room.  And I think it's time to call it a day.  Take care and God Bless you always, John and Ann and ATB