D.O.B. 8-21-23
8 oz, singleton (male) - free whelped
Welcome to this world Theophilus (Theo) - new name Doyle, Pickwick's Ruler of the Ton
8 oz, singleton (male) - free whelped
Welcome to this world Theophilus (Theo) - new name Doyle, Pickwick's Ruler of the Ton
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Mama Lilibeth making sure Theo is being held correctly outside whelping box.
Doyle got to visit the choir on Wednesday night! He met all sorts of people!
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Dam
Here is a puppy out of Lilibeth's 1st litter (Poldark Litter) - this video was taken May, 2023 puppy age 7 months:
Here are Lilibeth's pups from her first litter, Poldark litter:
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Blog
We have researched and looked for this sire for over 2 years now. Last summer, we had the opportunity to meet the breeder of the amazing boy we ended up choosing, Hamilton, who won Best of Opposite Sex at Westminster when at a dog show in Vermont. (Hamilton lives in New Hampshire). So, lots of planning involved prior to this breeding.
Week of June 12th, 2023: Lilibeth visited the vet several times this week to have her blood drawn and progesterone levels tested. That let us know when to have Hamilton's breeder send the goods from New Hampshire to Alabama (next day air via Fedex). She collected and mailed on Monday 6-19, and we are hoping for it to arrive at vet by 10:30 AM tomorrow, Tuesday 6-20. If it does, and all goes well, it will make it in time (a 24 hour max for chilled semen) for an AI. Lilibeth is ready for sure ... she has been driving every one crazy for the past 2 days ;)
6/20/23 - Well, it turns out Fedex let us down. We paid to have it "guaranteed" for next day delivery BY 10:30 AM (it was actually brought to the airport in New Hampshire on 6/19 at 5:30 PM and due to arrive in Alabama at our vet on 6/20/23 by 10:30 AM). We brought Lilibeth to the vet to be there "on the ready" for the AI whenever the shipment arrived. By noon, our vet tech messaged to tell me "it's not here .... this is unusual". I finally got in touch with someone at Fedex and the woman put me on hold to inquire .... finally finding out that the package WAS STILL IN NEW HAMPSHIRE and HAD NEVER BEEN PUT ON THE PLANE! She then continued, "but good news, it's due to arrive on time by the end of the day" .... Not. So, at 4PM the sire's breeder who shipped it got an update which said "good news, your package is due by 10:30 AM as promised ... but it's not due until 6/21/23. Yep, the semen is long dead. The package did arrive by 10:30 AM, but 2 days later ... a day late. Alas, this breeding with Hamilton was a total bust all thanks to Fedex but we will use Hammy for a future litter tba ... more soon.
So, continuing with Plan B, 6/20/23 PM, we went ahead and did a natural breeding with our Champion Parker (CH Wright's Triumphant Tiger Eye at Pickwick), a repeat breeding of our Poldark litter (here's a photo of the Poldark puppies):
August 21, 2023, Lilibeth free whelped an 8 oz. healthy, fully developed and beautiful boy. We went to the vet later that day so that they could both be checked, did an x-ray to make sure there were no other pups and no afterbirth etc. and the doctor also listened to the puppy's lungs which were clear, and heartbeat which was super strong.
We have decided to name him Theophilus (Theo for short). Jeff had a friend named Theophilus (Thump for short) in Junior High School who protected him from the 'thugs'. The name means "love of God" or "loved by God" and it just seemed dignified enough for this beautiful, strong, freewhelped! puppy. Also, there was indeed a character named Theo in Bridgerton ... Theo Sharpe ... a printer's assistant who fights for justice and women's rights. His registered name will be Pickwick's Ruler of the Ton.
Theo Doyle loves Mother Goose stories.
Theo's favorite movie is Space Dogs! He loves his own private DVD player in his whelping box.
Theo Doyle moves to the weaning pen in the den. You mean this is ALL mine?
Because singletons never have to share, we are doing lots of resource guarding and body handling protocols Whenever Theo Doyle really seems to be "into" something (like a bully stick, eating, his tunnel etc.) we do a "touch then treat" and an exchange. We also give him lots of obstacles and training challenges and games. Here is his "maze" we rebuilt each day (until finally he was just too big to jump over). We do lots of barrier challenges, where he has to figure a way around an xpen panel or something to get to his breakfast. Since he hasn't had to struggle or fight for anything with littermates, it's important to add these challenges to help his emotional stability. If he doesn't go through these types of struggles then he'll feel stressed and frustrated when he doesn't get his way as an adult.
Also, because he's a singleton, (but we do this with all puppies, even if from a larger litter) we give him lots of "dog socialization" with the adults we can trust to behave appropriately (a quick warning snap versus a tackle that scares him). Grandma KK and his aunt Lilly, Buttercup, and uncle Robert are really great at helping to socialize him. We haven't had any problems early on with colic or digestive problems (sometimes this can be a problem with singletons because they don't get a lot of physical stimulation from their littermates which helps to aid peristalsis -- moving things along the digestive tract) but that might be because of the stimulation we did with him (GR gene, soft makeup brush etc.) when he was a neonate (?) and helping him eliminate with each nursing since his mama Lilibeth was NOT interested in this part of the job this time around.
Theo Doyle has fun on his outings! Here he is visiting folks at a restaurant:
And here he is shopping for Christmas decor lol:
Theo Doyle had a great checkup and exam with the vet and got his 2nd round of vaccinations plus Microchip! He didn't even notice the shots because of the delicious Chicken Livers Jeff and Jana game him. The next day, he got to go to work with Jeff and visit with all the choir members!
Doyle absolutely LOVES his piano!
Theo Doyle working the room and meeting all the choir members during the break!
Theo Doyle's lesson on conformation:
Important Dates:
Progesterone tests (week of Jun 12); Sat 6/27/23=4.7; 6/20/23 = 20
Natural breeding June 20, 2023
Whelp date: 8/21/23 (Day 63 from ovul = 8/19/23; Day 63 from tie = 8/22/23)
Progesterone tests (week of Jun 12); Sat 6/27/23=4.7; 6/20/23 = 20
Natural breeding June 20, 2023
Whelp date: 8/21/23 (Day 63 from ovul = 8/19/23; Day 63 from tie = 8/22/23)
If you would like to become a part of the Pickwick Pugs family please contact us or, if you are interested in being considered as a future Pickwick pug owner, please complete the inquiry form so that we can get to know you better! We look forward to hearing from you!
