Neonatal Period 0 - 14 days

When puppies sleep they twitch and appear to jump around - this is called activated sleep. The puppies brain sends out tiny electrical impulses to the muscle which makes them twitch and contract. This electrical stimulation maintains helps the puppies to maintain muscle tone. As the puppies spend so much time sleeping, without this activated sleep they would not be able to build enough muscle tone to be able to stand independently.
This activated sleep is a sign of happy and healthy puppies :)
And it looks soooo cute!

Elsie's puppies at 8 and 9 days old. Puppies can't regulate their temperature until they start to move around by themselves. To keep warm they snuggle up to Elsie or snuggle up together in a heap! They also have a heat pad under the vetbed fleece to keep them warm.

When puppies attach to the teat initially they make lots of noise until the mother lets the milk down. Then they go all so quiet and suckle contently.

Finding the teats builds muscle control and muscle mass whilst teaching puppy to deal with frustration when it is pushed off by the puppy next to it or can't find the teat!

The puppies are putting on weight steadily and are looking pretty fantastic. I could watch them for hours...............................