Breeding Program: Good Surprises Continue
By Brother Luke River is a Bora - Maverick offspring, and she was bred for the first time this spring. Hoss is the sire of this litter. River was due to have eight puppies at the end of July. She lives with a foster family, so when her time to deliver draws near she comes to the monastery, and my duty is to keep watch until she is ready to have her puppies and then to accompany her in the whelping process in the kennel. Keeping watch means that overnight she is in my room. When that happens, my other dogs are relegated to their crates in the mud room on the floor below our bedroom wing. It would really not work to have four other dogs in my room if River starts to have her puppies there. I have had that experience, and there is no way that I could manage the newborn puppies and mother AND four other dogs. We were at that stage with River, but for several days she continued to eat her food normally, did very little nesting, and was quiet in my room overnight.