Let the fun begin!
When they are 5 weeks old, Border Collie puppies are starting to get lively! They are much more adventurous and really starting to explore their environment. This morning I saw one go under one of the raised dog beds for the first time – that’s always a favourite place to explore.
Dogs and children
I love having visitors, because it means I am forced to stop doing other jobs and spend time enjoying my babies. In the past week our visitors have included some delightful young children, another one of my puppies and one of the owners who came to stay. Perfect.
Of course children and dogs are wonderful to watch together, but you should never leave children unsupervised with young dogs, as things can easily go wrong. At 5 weeks of age, puppies are pretty wriggly, so I try to ensure that people are sitting down to cuddle them.
Other dogs again
Once again, we had another Dentbros puppy visiting, which was lovely. It’s so good to be able to see how the dogs are developing, and how the owners are finding them to live with. I can be a bossy about their ongoing management, which I was told kindly ‘shows I care’. I provided some advice about weight management, which can be difficult.
Knowing how much and what type of food to feed your dog is an absolute minefield! I follow Cat the Vet as I find her advice and information really interesting. I feed my dogs Royal Canin because it works for my dogs. But I don’t follow the ‘feeding guidelines’ at all.
I feed them what works for them. If they are a bit overweight, I cut it down, if they are underweight, I add a bit more. Keep it simple. The amount of protein will also determine their energy levels. Easy does it! Not too much for pet dogs who mooch around most of the time.
Family playtime at 5 weeks
Every litter I learn new things. This time it has been the absolute joy of having two really lovely dogs playing with their family. Quin and Murmur are SO sweet and gentle, so I am really hoping this will continue to make a positive impact on how they are around other dogs in the future.
It’s important to give the puppies the chance to explore their boundaries and want to do more. They need stimulation, and rest.
Puppies at rest
They do still spend a great deal of time asleep, thank goodness. People think they have to take lots of time off when they get a puppy, but that is not the case. If you do, you will spend most of the day watching your puppy sleep.
You can see how much bigger they are getting! I got my camera to try and take some ‘nice’ pictures of them, in the garden. It is essential to have a ‘wrangler’ though, because I need to be lying flat to get this picture. Think I need a bit more practice!
Blue eyes
It looks as though Angus and Margo (above) will have blue eyes and Vespa’s will be grey, like Murmur’s. It’s a shame about the blue eyes, they are so light sensitive. But hey, it comes with the merle colouring. And I can’t deny it looks very sweet! Angus doesn’t look like a piglet does he?
NB: THESE PUPPIES ALL HAVE HOMES. Visits are by appointment only. There is someone here at all times.
Buy the Workbook
The Workbook – A Year With Your Puppy is available to buy. It was written and designed to be a hands-on, interactive book for you. It will help you survive the first year with your puppy, but also act as a memento of that time and the journey you have been on. You can write notes and stick in pictures of your puppy throughout the year. Lovely!
Remember..
Please CONTACT ME if you want to know more about me and my dogs? And feel free to COMMENT if you want to tell me what you think.
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