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The Joy of Puppies
We just finished with our second batch of service dog puppies two weeks ago. My wife and I volunteer with an organization called Helping Paws of Minnesota. We have two golden retriever mama dogs, the first one had one litter of 10 puppies and retired for health reasons, and the second is her daughter so we could do it again. Our part is to keep the mama dogs while they wait for nature to align so they can get pregnant, and then keep her healthy until the puppies are eight weeks old. They then go on to work with a volunteer trainer for 2.5 to 3 years.
There is nothing in the world like a batch of puppies, particularly golden retriever pups. They are little balls of fluffy love. The picture above is about seven weeks old; at this point they know what the food dish sounds like, their largest goal is to get out of the pen and explore the house.
Winter puppies are a challenge since they can’t go outside for very long (we’re in the Minneapolis metro area) it needs to be warmer than 15 degrees and they can’t stay out too long. We had one little pup we called Minnie who was one-third the size of her biggest brother at birth. By the time they left, she was half the size of the rest of them. She’s the toughest, smartest one of the bunch and will be a fantastic service dog, but she could only be out for about five minutes before she was shivering. The rest of the crew could be out for up to 45 minutes, but compared to our first batch of pups who were born in April and could spend a couple of hours exhausting themselves outdoors, that wasn’t much.
The biggest advantage to more time outside is that more products of metabolism happen in places that don’t create more laundry. In eight weeks we did over 300 loads of laundry. I know this because we went through two Costco-size boxes of Tide and they claim to do 180 loads each. That comes to about five loads a day, which is a little low. Some things that are a lot of work are just a lot of work, but a batch of puppies brings so much joy and love and — at the risk of being accused of being a softy — absolute cuteness that the work fades into the background.
We may or may not have another batch of pups, their mama dog had some of the same issues as her mama did, but it is all worth it. These dogs do amazing things. The dogs from the first batch of pups we had are, with one exception, working as service dogs. Helping Paws trains dogs to work with folks with mobility issues and has recently started to place dogs with vets and first responders to help with PTSD and facility dogs that help prosecutors interview crime victims.
The cuteness and love they bring would be worth it alone, but the fact that these puppies will go on to do so much good in the world makes all the work and worry and laundry worth doing. It is one of the most fulfilling things we’ve done.
Thise puppies are just gorgeous.
How do You tell one from the others?
More photos!
MrsCheese says don’t show her puppies. She is an addict. No natural defenses.
You all are doing the Lord’s work there. Bless you both.
I’ve not previously known people involved in the birthing process, but have known people who do the next stage socialization and basic behavioral training. Some of them have told me that they become attached and find it hard to hand off the dog to the next stage of the training process. I suppose having done 300 loads of laundry might ease the difficulty of handing off the little balls of fluff.
Thank you for lightening my day.
I’m not an animal lover (though your puppies are very cute) but when my kids were growing up we had a male and female golden pair. As dogs go they were OK for me but great with the kids. Our two had two litters (11 one time and 12 one time). I think that is where my daughter got her desire to be a vet – which she is now – since she did virtually all the work involved in caring for them. And those puppies brought us some good money when we really needed it!
Our family took a yellow lab pup at the next stage beyond – 9 weeks to about 15 months. It was quite an experience to prepare her for training as a service dog. We took her everywhere. She learned to lie quietly under restaurant tables and to stay calm when there were sudden loud sounds. Our Arwen ended up becoming a seeing eye dog for a woman in Philadelphia who became a friend with whom we still stay in touch. Arwen has been retired for a few years now and at age 14 is still living with our friend.
That brings up a good point. Finding places where pre-certified service dogs can get some experience can be difficult. I am forever grateful to the first few restaurants and stores that let me and my dog hang out while she acquired the experience from such social interactions. Eventually such places allowed her to complete her certification.
They have fingernail polish on their shoulders or hips. Blue or green for the boys and pink for the girls. We didn’t need to mark Minnie until the last week since she was so much smaller than the rest.
@joelb
Blessings to all who take the time and energy to ensure a steady supply of service dogs.
I can’t imagine giving the dogs up after spending from 9 weeks to 15 months being dog parents. It is a special kind of courage and devotion.
HP trains the mama dogs along with the rest of the pups, so we have two that have been trained as service dogs living with us. They each take a sock off for me and put it in the laundry at bed time. They are wonderful to have around. It was a little easier the first time since we kept one of them, it’s amazing how tightly they wrap around your heart in 8 weeks.
I simply cannot imagine joy and unbearable cuteness of so many golden puppies everyday. I would run out of superlatives pretty quickly!
LL Bean sells more dog beds with their lab puppies than anywhere else. They should have a disclaimer “puppy not included”.
Your pups are terminal cute!
It takes someone special to give them little buggers up.
There is a documentary film on Netflix called Pick of the Litter, about the breeding and training of guide dogs. (There was a follow up series of the same name that is available on Disney+.) It is fascinating, primarily because most people don’t stop and think about the process, that not all dogs are capable and making matches between dogs and humans can sometimes be a hit-and-miss proposition, too.
Awwwwwww . . . so cute!
We brought home a Golden Retriever puppy four weeks ago today. One of a litter of ten – my brother and my nephew also got puppies from the same litter.
I’ve had cats forever, but this is first dog since I was a child. It’s a lot more work than I expected – I’ve been around adult dogs, but puppies are new to me. The constant biting and chewing is getting a little wearing. My wife’s hands are so marked up that a friend asked her (jokingly) if she’d been cutting.
They are cute little bundles of fur though.
When I was in junior high school, I read a book about a boy who was blinded in an accident, and his adventures getting and learning what to do with his guide dog. It described how the dogs are raised and trained, and how the boy learned to adjust to blindness. I have not been able to find the name of the book or the author.
We’ve had nothing but Golden Retrievers for more than 40 years and can’t praise them enough as wonderful, loving family dogs. When my last one died three years after losing my husband, it was just as tough losing her.
Best post of the day! I grew up without dogs … never really “got” them or understood why folks liked them, even. My friends didn’t have dogs and the only ones I remember in my neighborhood was a mean beagle that bit my sister and my neighbor’s pit bulls.
But then my friends got a Golden Retriever and I “got” dogs. Their puppy, named Wrigley, adopted me and I still miss him to this day.
Goldens are the best and thank you for bringing up a new group of service dogs.
Might this be the book you remember?
It’s hard to look directly at them, they are so adorable.