Irish Wolfhound di Castello Berge - A-litter

How time passes

chronological diary of our A-litter, 2006/ 2007

7 December 2006

Today is the day...

We take our bitch Anna to Irmgard and Hanny (Kennel van de Ruempol) for mating. Father of our first litter will be Multi-Champion Masterpiece van de Ruempol (aka Graham). Graham is a beautiful big male, not easily ruffled. He is a very typical representative of the breed - tolerant, good-natured but nonetheless with a very masculine charisma. All permissions for the use of a foreign stud dog have of course been obtained long in advance and both partners have been thoroughly examined.

It is raining cats and dogs and driving a car is no fun. But the welcome we receive makes the effort worthwhile. It's still raining and our first outdoor attempts to mate are not successful - our Anna hates rain and Graham always slips away on the muddy ground. We decide to go to Els Swelheim (long-time IW breeder and judge) around noon. She owns an indoor riding school and so our IW wedding can take place in the dry on solid ground. Furthermore Els will have a lot of advice for me as she is an experienced breeder.

8 December 2006

The night is quieter

than I imagined it would be. There are several males living in Irmgard's house who will all be aware there is a dog in season. Today we return to Els‘ to have Anna mated again by Graham. Again every thing happens in the indoor riding arena, an absolutely problem-free and textbook mating.

I would like to thank Irmgard de Haan, Hanny Hofman and Els Swelheim very much for their warm welcome and expert support. And now we have to wait and wait again.

8 January 2007

We have an ultrasound test done and Anna is pregnant. Now it's time to put on a leash

30 January 2007

Anna’s second herpes vaccination

and final veterinary examination. She is still in good shape and the vet doesn't expect too many puppies (perhaps 2 or 3). Our sweet girl is healthy and fit. Pure joy!

7 February 2007

First signs

Anna is a little restless in the morning. Is this the first sign? I don't think so, because there is no noticeable drop in temperature, she has no loss of appetite and she also wants to go for a walk.

Around noon Anna eats a good lunch and all is calm. Around 15.00hrs again she runs hectically around, wanting to poop several times and I am completely surprised our first little girl, Aurelia (830 grams in weight), is born at 15:20hrs. Next steps are:

name	sex	time of birth	weight of birth
Alexa	female	16:45	706
Aurelius	male	17:55	796
Anäis	female	19:00	755
Arielle	female	19:30	708
Adriano	male	20:07	760
Ada	male	20:20	758
Attila	male	21:45	644
Aenna	female	22:30	672

7 February 2007

Anna - we are so proud of you.

In total Anna produces 3 nice males and 6 beautiful bitches, with the birth as easy as the whole pregnancy.

13 February 2007

Today the veterinarian comes to do the first all-round health check on our little ones. There is a lot of screaming, but all are healthy and well nourished. Mama is also thoroughly examined. She too is doing well.

19 February 2007

Our puppies are getting increasingly mobile and although their eyes are not yet open, they are already wiggling nimbly back and forth and are climbing out of the whelping box. As I still sleep on a mattress next to the whelping box at night, I have quite a shock when one of our babies falls into my bed in the night. We close the whelping box from now on.

21 February 2007

Today our little ones taste their very first meal out of a little bowl. After initial difficulties, they eat enthusiastically.

22 February 2007

By today all the pups have their eyes open. Time passes far too fast.

28 February 2007

Today our vet does her second all-round examination of both puppies and their mummy. Everything is fine. This time the whole thing is done without squeals. Our vet praises Mama Anna and me for taking such good care of the little ones.

4 March 2007

Visit from the "Grandmothers"

Today our two Dutch "grandmothers" Irmgard and Hanny visit. Our puppies now have more toys than some humans. It is a lovely day all around.

20 March 2007

Finally our puppies have their first vaccination. There are many differing opinions about the puppy vaccination, but we prefer them to be as protected as possible. Everyone is brave and it‘s carried out with minimum protest.

3 April 2007

What an exciting day today. Our veterinarian is here again and there is a lot on the agenda: bloods taken for liver shunt test, chips, and vaccinations.

Our "little ones" are again beautifully behaved. We are very proud of the gang. Now we have to wait again. The results will come through on Thursday evening.

5 April 2007

Hurrah, all babies are shunt-free. Such a load off our minds!

8 April 2007

Our dear "grandmas" from Holland return and confirm puppy Aurelius will be going to live with his father, hopefully stepping into his "paws".

13 April 2007

Today's litter inspection goes without a hitch. In the DWZRV's studbook 9 Irish Wolfhounds will be added.

19 April 2007

One by one the pups will now leave. We had not imagined it would be so difficult to say goodbye. However, we are very sure that we have chosen the right people for every single puppy.

A-litter - 7 February 2007