December 28, 2009
A New Year, A New Resolution
I need to resolve to write more. I think I'll hook this up to my Facebook page and see if the RSS export works.
March 18, 2009
A trying time + more than you ever wanted to know about dog reproduction
The last five days have been a whirlwind. I received a lot of questions about Minnie’s singleton puppy and c-section on Monday. I will try answering them to the best of my ability.
During the artificial insemination, if there is viable semen, we know the number of puppies is almost entirely the responsibility of the bitch. In other words, Minnie only had one viable egg. Because one puppy was produced, timing is not suspect. Frozen and fresh-extended semen has a limited viability once inseminated. 12 hours for frozen, 48 +/- for extended. Natural inseminations have about a 72 hour viability from a healthy stud. From these numbers, getting the science correct for ovulation and ripening is essential. With frozen semen, it is a little like shooting a gun from a moving train at a moving car.
There are a number of different reasons a female may fail to have a full litter. Foremost, it had been two years since we last bred Minnie. Bitches are hormonally stimulated by pregnancy. A fair demonstration would of this theory is Hazel. Her first litter, at age 3 ½ yielded 4 pups. Her second, one year later, yielded 6 puppies. Her third, another year later, yielded ten puppies. While it is imperative to rest your bitch between litters, you shouldn’t rest her too long. Their bodies don’t have to invest in parts that are not being used. Of course, this is a very individual thing. One bitch may happily have a litter of 8 at age 5 without ever having been bred. Heidi and Jane would be a good examples, both were 4-5 when they first conceived by artificial insemination. Jane had 10 puppies, Heidi had 8 puppies.
Minnie had one other litter of seven puppies in 2006. She delivered quickly, with no complications. It is a commonly known fact, when faced with a singleton, a female may not have enough hormones to properly dilate and deliver one puppy. Minnie had not started any kind of serious, labor-bearing contractions within a reasonable amount of time. There is a gray area of what is “reasonable”.
Having gone past her due date, we felt a c-section may be the best course of action to save the one viable puppy and to preserve Minnie’s health. My vet has always maintained it is better to get the puppies out via c-section than to try to induce the bitch to deliver with drugs. The longer the puppies are in the process, the more likely you are to lose them. While it seems dramatic, I can assure everyone it was likely the best solution we could provide for a delicate situation.
I wanted to be in the operating room for the surgery. My vet was very deliberate about everything he did during the procedure. I was also able to get a true canine reproduction anatomy lesson. It was not easy to see my dog knocked out and cut open. Before the surgery, I elected to have an epidural performed on Minnie for pain control. They shaved the base of her spine and gave Minnie three different injections.
The puppy popped out with standard c-section complications. She was blue, really blue. Puppies are affected by general anesthesia. She had a strong heartbeat so we had plenty to work with. Having the vet tech take the puppy and work on her ended up being the most difficult part for me. I’ve delivered many puppies who needed life-stimulating techniques, but it was out of my hands. They had a mini-oxygen mask set up along with hot towels, a needle and a bulb syringe, all which were put to good and proper use. There were no stillborn puppies, this puppy was the only one she carried. It is possible she had more at one point and reabsorbed them.
It is now Wednesday and the puppy is almost two days old. Her little feet are properly pink and she has gained 3 oz. Other than a slightly stuffy nose, she is healthy and nursing. Minnie is out of her normal mind but slowly recovering. The epidural has long worn off and pain medication has to be closely monitored so it doesn’t transfer into Minnie’s milk supply. I feel bad for my dog, she seems confused, frustrated and almost too possessive of the baby to be comfortable. She is a strong and resilient dog.
While waiting for our appointment, my mind had already raced down the road and around the corner with the worst-case-scenario. We felt a baby moving in there days before, but had not felt anything for several hours. The vet gave me the run down of possible scenarios if the litter had died. My mind rejected these possibilities, even though I’d already gone over the reality of the situation one-hundred times. I believe we were lucky we had a positive outcome.
During the artificial insemination, if there is viable semen, we know the number of puppies is almost entirely the responsibility of the bitch. In other words, Minnie only had one viable egg. Because one puppy was produced, timing is not suspect. Frozen and fresh-extended semen has a limited viability once inseminated. 12 hours for frozen, 48 +/- for extended. Natural inseminations have about a 72 hour viability from a healthy stud. From these numbers, getting the science correct for ovulation and ripening is essential. With frozen semen, it is a little like shooting a gun from a moving train at a moving car.
There are a number of different reasons a female may fail to have a full litter. Foremost, it had been two years since we last bred Minnie. Bitches are hormonally stimulated by pregnancy. A fair demonstration would of this theory is Hazel. Her first litter, at age 3 ½ yielded 4 pups. Her second, one year later, yielded 6 puppies. Her third, another year later, yielded ten puppies. While it is imperative to rest your bitch between litters, you shouldn’t rest her too long. Their bodies don’t have to invest in parts that are not being used. Of course, this is a very individual thing. One bitch may happily have a litter of 8 at age 5 without ever having been bred. Heidi and Jane would be a good examples, both were 4-5 when they first conceived by artificial insemination. Jane had 10 puppies, Heidi had 8 puppies.
Minnie had one other litter of seven puppies in 2006. She delivered quickly, with no complications. It is a commonly known fact, when faced with a singleton, a female may not have enough hormones to properly dilate and deliver one puppy. Minnie had not started any kind of serious, labor-bearing contractions within a reasonable amount of time. There is a gray area of what is “reasonable”.
Having gone past her due date, we felt a c-section may be the best course of action to save the one viable puppy and to preserve Minnie’s health. My vet has always maintained it is better to get the puppies out via c-section than to try to induce the bitch to deliver with drugs. The longer the puppies are in the process, the more likely you are to lose them. While it seems dramatic, I can assure everyone it was likely the best solution we could provide for a delicate situation.
I wanted to be in the operating room for the surgery. My vet was very deliberate about everything he did during the procedure. I was also able to get a true canine reproduction anatomy lesson. It was not easy to see my dog knocked out and cut open. Before the surgery, I elected to have an epidural performed on Minnie for pain control. They shaved the base of her spine and gave Minnie three different injections.
The puppy popped out with standard c-section complications. She was blue, really blue. Puppies are affected by general anesthesia. She had a strong heartbeat so we had plenty to work with. Having the vet tech take the puppy and work on her ended up being the most difficult part for me. I’ve delivered many puppies who needed life-stimulating techniques, but it was out of my hands. They had a mini-oxygen mask set up along with hot towels, a needle and a bulb syringe, all which were put to good and proper use. There were no stillborn puppies, this puppy was the only one she carried. It is possible she had more at one point and reabsorbed them.
It is now Wednesday and the puppy is almost two days old. Her little feet are properly pink and she has gained 3 oz. Other than a slightly stuffy nose, she is healthy and nursing. Minnie is out of her normal mind but slowly recovering. The epidural has long worn off and pain medication has to be closely monitored so it doesn’t transfer into Minnie’s milk supply. I feel bad for my dog, she seems confused, frustrated and almost too possessive of the baby to be comfortable. She is a strong and resilient dog.
While waiting for our appointment, my mind had already raced down the road and around the corner with the worst-case-scenario. We felt a baby moving in there days before, but had not felt anything for several hours. The vet gave me the run down of possible scenarios if the litter had died. My mind rejected these possibilities, even though I’d already gone over the reality of the situation one-hundred times. I believe we were lucky we had a positive outcome.
March 4, 2009
The home stretch
It is the 4th of March and we are coming into the home stretch of Minnie’s pregnancy. After going through a litter of 9 and a litter of 8 with other girls in the recent past, I can firmly say she doesn’t have anywhere close to that many puppies. My high guess would be 5. I know I said I was through guessing but speculating about litter size is a pastime! It will be fun not to have a mega-litter. My only wish is everyone is healthy and Minnie makes it through whelp without complications.
My whelping box has been delayed a few days but it should be in my hands on Sunday at the latest, or we’ll be setting up the old one. The new one should be much nicer though.
We were able to feel one of the babies kick a tiny bit last night when Minnie relaxed enough. I will be gone for a few days to a dog show. I’ll be interested to see how big (or not big) she is when I return. Her whelp date is a week from this Friday!
My whelping box has been delayed a few days but it should be in my hands on Sunday at the latest, or we’ll be setting up the old one. The new one should be much nicer though.
We were able to feel one of the babies kick a tiny bit last night when Minnie relaxed enough. I will be gone for a few days to a dog show. I’ll be interested to see how big (or not big) she is when I return. Her whelp date is a week from this Friday!
February 27, 2009
The Pregnant Marathoner
It's day 45 of Minnie's pregnancy. She doesn't seem to be expanding as quickly as she was last week. I am done trying to second-guess the number she will end up having! She continues to be emotional and demanding over the "ordeal". As I explained to someone in a letter, "it is like a marathoner finding out she is too pregnant to run". She is in very good physical condition but even with the dog equivalent of 'abs of steel' she is getting too big to suck them all up behind her ribs.Minnie is due on March 13th. She does not seem especially miserable at this juncture. Dog gestation is only 60 days +/- a few. Her biggest complaint comes when we will not allow her to lap the back pasture like a maniac for an hour at a time.
We are setting up the whelping room this weekend. I looking forward to seeing the little munchkins, no matter how many there are. It is still a feat of nature, as far as I am concerned, to get a dog pregnant from frozen semen!
January 30, 2009
Chocolate Memories - Start Now for Valentine's Day
Ahh chocolate. Sweet brown nectar of contentment.The experience of the best chocolate crossing my lips is now a vague memory. It was at the ill-fated 32 Bleu, not too long after it opened. The dessert was aptly named Fire Cake - chocolate with ancho-chili peppers baked into the cake and drizzled with dreamy chocolate sauce served over cinnamon ice cream. I know it sounds out-there for a chocolate dish, but it was the best blend of hot, sweet, spicy chocolate genius to arise out of the culinary-dessert deprived Colorado Springs restaurant scene.
Second on my list also derived from a now-shuttered restaurant, Wolfgang Puck in downtown Denver. The heavenly confection was a cake with a truffle baked right into the middle and served with a shot of warm Chambord. Simply magnificent.
Trying to recreate these would be futile. Between an old, uneven oven and living at 7200 feet, making anything other then flat pastries and burnt chicken is outside an achievable realm of cooking success. Restaurant-quality desserts should come with the "don't try this at home" label. It would save desperately crippled bakers out there a lot of disappointment.
If you are among the chocolate-loving elite, or simply looking to impress your sweetheart for the bevy of upcoming Hallmark-Holidays, here is a list of chocolate places on the Internet you might not be aware of. Have your pocketbook handy.
Vosges Haut-Chocolat - New York, New York
It might take a lifetime and a fortune to experience all this chocolatier has to offer. There are gourmet delights and combinations that defy logic and completely transcend traditional ideas. http://www.vosgeschocolate.com.
A choice a little further off the beaten path, but still mind-blowingly delightful is Euphoria Chocolates of Eugene, Oregon. One of my college jobs was working for Euphoria as a chocolate-shop girl and barista. Who wouldn't want an employee discount on the finest handmade truffles west of the Mississippi ?
Euphoria's chocolate truffles are made with real cream. The only downside is they have a limited shelf life and must be kept refrigerated. If you can remember a simple detail like keeping them in the icebox, your chocolate world will be expanded ten-fold when you try varieties such as Kailua & Cream, Grand Marnier and Amaretto. You can have them shipped overnight from their website. The truffles will keep for about a week before they start growing green fuzz. http://www.euphoriachocolate.com .
On one of my many trips up and down the west coast, I made a point of doing the touristy thing and stopping at Ghiardelli Square on the San Francisco Bay. In my younger, fewer-dog, delusions-of-wealth years, I thought of moving to San Francisco and living like a good urbanite. But like so many other places constantly plagued by natural disasters, sometimes visiting is just enough. They were still rebuilding from the '89 earthquake when I was there, a reminder of why living on a giant rock at the cusp of the American plains isn't so bad after all.
Ghiardelli has better cocoas and cooking chocolates, but their regular eating chocolate is nothing to laugh at. They have a small but concise collection geared toward holidays and gift giving. They aren't as ritzly packaged as Vosges and Godiva, but anything you choose should be more delightful than disappointing. At their web site http://www.ghirardelli.com, make sure to check out the Chocopedia,
If you prefer your chocolate to come with a conscience, try Endangered Species Chocolate. A percentage of sales goes towards several worthy charitable causes, not to mention the fact it is excellent chocolate. Locally you can pick it up at Wild Oats or you can order gifts assortments online at http://www.chocolatebar.com. The artwork on their chocolate bars is also attractive and they have everything from a sweet, smooth milk chocolate to dark exotic flavors such as dark-blueberry and dark-mint.
This list could become quite extensive, but I will leave my reviews at this length. Here are some additional links checking out.
http://www.dagobachocolate.com
http://www.godiva.com
http://www.guittard.com
http://www.mrchocolate.com
When opportunity knocks
Today I have 12 bottles of wine headed for my house for review. This inadvertently fell in my lap through a work connection and I am looking forward to it immensely! I have written several reviews of my own selections over the last year and will type them in ASAP. It's going to be interesting! Stay tuned...
January 27, 2009
Happy New Year
Getting back to long form blogging is getting more challenging. I’ve found microblogging to be easier. A friend of mine politely pointed out my laziness. I guess two-sentence blogging is a little bit of cheap substitute for story telling. After eighteen months of writing on nearly a weekly basis, I have fallen off of the
If you are interested in reading my cheap substitute, go here http://www.twitter.com/foxyweim or you can also find me on Facebook.
The month of December is thankfully over. While nothing catastrophic happened, it did constitute a few more trials than usual. First, I was gone from the 3rd until the 14th for work. I work for the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association. The Wrangler National Finals Rodeo occurs during this time of the year on Las Vegas. I was one of the lucky ones. I’m not involved in set-up or tear-down. I just show up, do my job and leave.
The dogs did assert squatters rights to my bed. Apparently during my absence, Avery, Elsa, Heidi and Anna Mae all slept in my room. Elsa and Avery haven’t quite adjusted to the fact I have reclaimed the bed. Heidi is still moaning and groaning when I shove her over.
My punishment for 12 days in Las Vegas was coming home with bronchitis and a sinus infection. I hardly ever get sick, especially sick enough to warrant going to the doctor. I was sent home from work three times in the week following the WNFR and finally gave up trying to be a dedicated employee.
Heidi had her complaints about the coughing too. When I woke up in the middle of the night, it was more moaning and shoving. After being cough free for about 21 days, everyone is sleeping quietly.
I am going to bore everyone with a few reprise articles over the next few days. They were good enough, two years ago, to make it into the Freedom Publishing content pool. I guess I felt pretty good about that at the time, considering I am not a professional writer. I really want to write an article on how much Valentine’s day bites, but do not want to be the wet blanket of the bunch. Most everyone I know will be at the Denver dog show 2/14. I can’t think of a better way to spend V-day then doing one of the things I love the most. I will be wearing gray and black though. Those days of the flaming red suit are over!
If you are interested in reading my cheap substitute, go here http://www.twitter.com/foxyweim or you can also find me on Facebook.
The month of December is thankfully over. While nothing catastrophic happened, it did constitute a few more trials than usual. First, I was gone from the 3rd until the 14th for work. I work for the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association. The Wrangler National Finals Rodeo occurs during this time of the year on Las Vegas. I was one of the lucky ones. I’m not involved in set-up or tear-down. I just show up, do my job and leave.
The dogs did assert squatters rights to my bed. Apparently during my absence, Avery, Elsa, Heidi and Anna Mae all slept in my room. Elsa and Avery haven’t quite adjusted to the fact I have reclaimed the bed. Heidi is still moaning and groaning when I shove her over.
My punishment for 12 days in Las Vegas was coming home with bronchitis and a sinus infection. I hardly ever get sick, especially sick enough to warrant going to the doctor. I was sent home from work three times in the week following the WNFR and finally gave up trying to be a dedicated employee.
Heidi had her complaints about the coughing too. When I woke up in the middle of the night, it was more moaning and shoving. After being cough free for about 21 days, everyone is sleeping quietly.
I am going to bore everyone with a few reprise articles over the next few days. They were good enough, two years ago, to make it into the Freedom Publishing content pool. I guess I felt pretty good about that at the time, considering I am not a professional writer. I really want to write an article on how much Valentine’s day bites, but do not want to be the wet blanket of the bunch. Most everyone I know will be at the Denver dog show 2/14. I can’t think of a better way to spend V-day then doing one of the things I love the most. I will be wearing gray and black though. Those days of the flaming red suit are over!
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