Maya’s First Americans: Born 4-7-2014

It all started when my mom and I got back from a trip to D.C. to see the Marinski Ballet Company perform Swan Lake at the Kennedy Center on February 2. We picked up Trace from Richmond, Virginia where she had whelped and raised a litter over the winter while we were up there. In my zeal to make sure that nobody bothered the newly introduced Trace, I did not see the special interest Daniel was showing in Maya who had been at the borders for three days. I heard a yelp and looked up to find the two tied tighter than a sailors knot. After an initial tirade aimed at no one in particular I resigned myself to my fate. I told my aunt I couldn’t come on the spring break cruise at the beginning of April because that is when the puppies were due. A progesterone test was at 20 on the third so unless someone was infertile I figured there would be a litter around April 5th.

Then there was a reprieve. A pregnancy test at the beginning of March was negative! Mercy at last! My relief was profound as you can tell. Temperance came in heat and I did not breed her because I decided I would not be strong enough to raise a litter in two months. I was looking forward to breeding again in the late summer or fall but not now. Not even two weeks later I returned from my follow up visit at Mayo in Rochester, Minnesota to find Maya sporting a new baby bump. That $80 pregnancy test was not so reliable after all. I saw 2 puppies on the x-ray.

I spent the next week watching her for any signs of labor while life passed me by. Apparently the progesterone test was no more reliable than the pregnancy test because she delivered nine weeks to the day from the day it claimed to be 20 when it should have been from the day it was 5. Fortunately I am pretty patient so I waited it out and she free whelped just fine though as usual she was a drama queen. I have never seen such nesting and crying. In her defense they were pretty big puppies.

Maya delivered her first puppy at around seven that night and the second about half an hour later. Puppy number one is a black male with white markings almost exactly like Maya’s. The second is a sable boy who is likely silver but he could end up gold. Only time will tell. What were the odds that I would get two puppies that look just like the two parents? Yet I did. Not surprisingly, given the appetites of their sire and dam, both puppies were nursing before their rears were clear of the birth canal. Maya did the same thing when she was born, flipped around and latched on as soon as she was breathing good.

For those who did not see the updates for Maya’s litter, she is named after the prolific architects, astrologers, and calendar makers that lived parts of Mexico when Europeans first came to the Americas. The Mayan long count calendar ended on December 22, 2012, which is amazing when you consider the fact we still use leap years because our time keeping is not accurate after four years. Maya’s look alike is named after another Mexican tribe, the Aztec. The other is Carib, named for the tribe that lived in the lesser Antilles because my brother is in Dominica going to medical school. There is a small remnant of Caribs still living on that island on their own lands.

Both boys had fat lazy puppy down by day three. Yesterday they had their dew claws removed with very little fuss. Carib is more of a complainer than Aztec but both wake me up with loud, demanding screams if the milk doesn’t flow fast enough for their taste. Weeeeeek, weeeeeek, weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeek!!!!!!!!They should use that sound for sirens and alarms. Nobody would ever ignore a fire drill again.

Aztec:Black Male with White Markings 7.0 Oz

He has a refined look to him and very nice looking shoulders. His coat is shiny and soft.

Carib: Sable Male with White Markings 7.4 Oz

He is also refined looking, they look almost identical. He has tan points like a Rottweiler.

It will be interesting to see what color Carib ends up being. If I didn’t know better I would have thought he is a chocolate and tan like a red Doberman. Some places the tan is more silver so he might be blue or silver sable. Only time will tell.

Bonus Picture is Carib and his tan points, notice his muzzle is lighter in the front too and even joins the cheek patches. He is a very pretty puppy.

See you next week!

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