I can see you!

Bella and Tank's eyes are open! So cute. They look so confused. :) Our mini Grif is just the cutest thing. If it is any indication this early on, he will be so much like his dad. He sleeps with his mouth wide open, sticking his tongue out every now and then. If I hold him in my hands while he is on his back, he sucks on his foot. Speaking of which, they all got their nails trimmed for the first time today because they are scratching the *you know what* out of their mother. Mama is good and stitches are out!

Grif tries to get a look at the pups, but Anouk won't allow it. This is an improvement believe it or not, he usually isn't allowed past the gate. And hey, she is not baring her teeth in this shot! Close though.

That's right, keep walking!

12 days and growing!

I suppose it doesn't look like they have grown much, but boy have they! Anouk allowed me to weigh the pups today. Tank and mini Grif both topped the scale at 14 ounces each. While Bella and Blue both reached 10 ounces each. Bella has nearly doubled her weight in just 12 days!

They are all well and absolutely beautiful. Anouk seems to have a bit of the blues, when I left last night she was desperate to go with me! She is still a champion mother, and also my hero. :)

It's hard to tell exactly who is who but that's Bella on the top (she either goes under or over, her size allows it!) and that's Tank under her (size difference? Whoa!), with Blue under them. Mini Grif is alseep behind his mother. You can see his behind by Anouk's head.

It's a puppy minefield around here!

I think it's safe to say that Anouk it back to her old self. She looks great, she plays just as hard as she did pre-pregnancy, and eats like no tomorrow. Part of her *back to normal* means she jumps into bed with me as soon as I crawl in. The problem is that she is so happy to jump into bed at night, that she leaps out of her whelping box with usually at least one pup still latched on! We have to be so careful going into our room now. Three times there has been a pup on the floor just outside the box. She also goes in and out of bed throughout the night. I found Tank on the floor at 3 am. Thank goodness they are hearty little pups! While I am aghast, everyone else is just fine. So, she's not the most graceful dachshund, but she sure is the funniest! You would think she would turn back, knowing there was a pup on the floor. But no, she's off to the newest adventure.

I'll be in this house until Spring! :~)

Mini G, Bella's twin. Bella, and tank

My girl and her puppies

One week old today! What a week. It is amazing to me how much they have grown in just a week. The changes Anouk has gone through in just one week are stunning also. I'd bet she doesn't weigh more than a pound than she did pre pups. Her incision has healed up beautifully, and she is back to her old self. She started jumping back into bed with me yesterday (What a happy surprise!) and napped with me today. She laid on the edge of the bed for a good hour and a half (usually she is under the blankets with me) with a bird's eye view of her puppies. Almost as if she needed a break, but wasn't going too far. We are looking forward to the next week when eyes start opening and personalities become stronger. Our cream colored doxie is the strongest and most adventurous so far, and baby Bella has found her voice, just like her mother, and doesn't hesitate to vocalize if she feels short changed. They are all beautiful and healthy, we couldn't ask for more.

Miss Bella has grown!

Hot dog on a bun!

#7!

The Dachshund makes #7 in AKC's Best in breed: The top 10 dogs of the year. http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/28695663?GT1=43001

Go Doxies!

I caved

Grif lays on the other side of the gate watching for hours at a time, so I snuck "Mini G" out to meet his papa. I had to hold him back for a moment because Grif was so excited, but it went very well!

We take Grif in several times a day in our arms, but Anouk is no more welcoming than the day before, so we will keep trying and occasionally hijack a pup so Grif can see his family.

He loves Mini G!

Nattie loves Tank!

Natalie and Katie visit Anouk and puppies. Anouk is still not too friendly, but was coaxed with a teaspoon of cottage cheese and we were able to slip one by her!

Another puppy tucked away

This is what I mean about constantly counting puppies. No matter what time of day or circumstance, whenever I go to count, there are never four in one place (which makes one panic, if only for a few seconds). I have to dig to find one or two. This little one was bundled up in the corner, sleeping like... well, a baby!

The end of another day

Here we are at Tuesday's end, thinking it couldn't be possible that we all would be more wiped out than the day before. But we are. Anouk is still a champion mom, never wanting to leave the nest. She is still a little rough, but it seems to alarm me more than the puppies. I mean really, she licks so hard she flips the babies! Everything in me tells me not to interfere, she's doing a great job. But I can't help but pull that puppy from behind her or underneath her, and place them back where she can see them. Okay, so I can see them too! Must be a mom thing. :)

Tuesday morning and Anouk just refuses to leave the nest. I picked her up when I got up so she could get something to eat and go outside. A girls gotta stretch her legs a bit! As soon as I set her down she ran back to the bedroom crying! She was hand fed in the nest. Once a princess, always a princess!

Anouk and her pups

Well, it took about 14 hours, but when her mama instinct kicked in, BOY did it kick in! The boys can't even look in her direction without a growl. And poor Grifham, the very temporary surrogate papa got the boot. He gets a look and a growl too. But at least he's stopped howling! I underestimated him, thought he was clueless, I was so wrong.

So here she is in mama mode. She is very comfortable now with her pups, although we don't leave her alone with them because she tends to start out a little rough. Her puppies (we don't dare say "Baby" around her because it has a whole different meaning!) from left to right are 1) blonde boy nicknamed Tank because he weighed in at 8 ounces and is the first to the buffet (and last to leave!). 2) incredibly dappled boy, more so than Anouk with the temporary name of spot because he is so spotted (dappled!) weighing 6 ounces at birth. 3) That's our only girl, baby Bella who already has a home and is also dappled, although not as much as her brother and weighed in at just 5 1/2 ounces, and 4) That is our mini Grif who weighed in at 7 ounces and looks just like his father. Not a dapple on him. He, I anticipate, will be a beautiful red also.

That's it for today, we are all exhausted. Anouk is eating and going out, and healing up just beautifully. I'm proud of her. Special thanks to Erin, whom we got Anouk from nearly four years ago. She is a gift each and every day and loved beyond words.

Anouk nursing Bella (smallest) and Blondie (largest, not his official name, we just can't believe he's so blonde!)

Can we just go home now and forget this whole thing?

It's okay Anouk... we will keep trying

Trying to get Anouk to nurse

CJ and dappled baby boy

Blonde little boy

Anouk, thirty minutes post delivery

Newborn Bella

The puppies are here! Anouk went into labor fast and hard at about 8:30 pm Sunday night. Her contractions came steady and quick, but only accomplished getting her first pup just part way out. We waited about three minutes before calling the Vet. Then we were on our way. She had an emergency c-section and the puppies were born at about 10:45 pm. We were on our way back home just after midnight.

The puppies are just beautiful and perfect, every single one of them. The biggest was 8 ounces, that would be the "Blonde" little boy all the way to the left. The smallest was Bella at 5 1/2 ounces, and she is curled up in the middle. She is the only girl! We have three little boys and one tiny girl. Bella is dappled like her mama, and one other little boy is totally dappled! We only have one complete red, just like his dad. And the blonde one? I don't know where that gene came from!

Anouk is doing well, but very confused and exhausted. As I type she is nursing Bella and her little blonde boy. Introducing all four at once was too much for her, so we started one at a time. While she is nursing, she shows no interest in the puppies at the moment. We hope that will change over the next couple of days. We had said we would not introduce Grif to his puppies for a little while. But while Anouk was trying to get as far away as possible, we brought Grif in (Boy, can he howl!) and he proceeded to lick each one as a mother would.

We are going to try and get some sleep now, Guy and I are taking shifts. The boys were absolutely excellent through the whole process. I'm worried about Anouk still (naturally), her incision is so long, and she has to heal and nurse. Poor girl!

More pictures and stories later...

Getting Ready? 2pm Sunday afternoon

Anouk has dug her way into my closet. My lovely girl that I couldn't put down yesterday growled at me a few minutes ago! She also has some diarrhea, so I think we are on the right path. Still crossing everything that she can so this naturally and at home.

Still hanging in there!

Day 60 of Anouk's pregnancy, at best guess. Anouk is eating less and refusing her reward biscuits for going potty outside. She lives for those biscuits! I suppose it tastes nothing like her new high end puppy food. Her interest is waning in just about everything, but she continues to be a champ about going outside, even in these near sub zero temps. She is such a good girl.

We're all on alert and a little (ha!) anxious. She is so darn big. Honestly, right now a c-section would probably be a relief. So far she has had no interest in nesting, although looks at her box with curiosity now and then. I think she thinks I will just hold her throughout the whole process. Which I probably will.

anouk