LizT Posted December 30, 2011 Share Posted December 30, 2011 (edited) From pregnacy day 28 when I found out my girl was having just the one pup I have been researching the "singleton". We have overcome all the obstacles to date from keeping mum fit and trim for a possible natural delivery, which it was, (her choice!) to keeping bub warm and cosy with rice filled, microwavable soft toy siblings (thanks swayD) which she got to climb over and now plays wrestles with, thanks to my family and their animated game playing with her. We were prepared to teach her "frustration mamangement" by gently knocking her off the nipple occassionally at feeds, as siblings would do, but mother seemed to have that one covered by continuously rearranging herself at feeding times to find the premium comfortable position, much to babys malign This ws also useful in keeping the pup moving to avoid "swimmers". We also on occassion made "Emmie" walk to the milk bar. She and mum also found a happy balance with the milk supply with baby using only the four middle nipples and mum quickly closing up shop on the remaining ones which now look like she never was pregnant. My other two Cavaliers love to visit her and today we were all out on the lawn in the late afternoon for a short while enjoying the warmth and fresh air as she tried to follow them across the bouncy lawn. So now at four weeks she has started on solids, is getting loads of cuddles, handling and soft toy play to help stimulate, which includes having her ears "nipped" (gently tug by puppeteer) and being bowled over and crawled over by "siblings". I have heard teaching "bite inhibition" is very important in the singleton, although probably not as huge an issue with the Cavalier temperament wise, as opposed to other breeds I will still be onto it when/if it becomes an issue as she gets older. So, have I missed anything or does someone have any further ideas? Edited January 3, 2012 by LizT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo Baggins Posted December 30, 2011 Share Posted December 30, 2011 Good on you LizT I never did thsat with any of my singletons. They got lots of human handling and tipping upside down and cuddles as there was only one and none to go around. :laugh: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dogsfevr Posted December 30, 2011 Share Posted December 30, 2011 Never done that with any of our pups & there has never been an issue. Our singletons where all well adjusted pups with no issues at all ,they where treated like any other litter . Yes more time was spent playing but that was it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LizT Posted December 30, 2011 Author Share Posted December 30, 2011 Never done that with any of our pups & there has never been an issue. Our singletons where all well adjusted pups with no issues at all ,they where treated like any other litter . Yes more time was spent playing but that was it That's reasurring, thanks Showdog. She certainly won't be lacking for stimulation and contact. And last night she sunk her wee needle teeth into OH's finger, of course it didn't hurt but he said "hey hey" in his bass male voice and she pulled her head back, cocked her head slightly and looked severely chastised. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lils mum Posted December 30, 2011 Share Posted December 30, 2011 I have an eight year old 'singleton pup' She's the sweetest, most easy going dog I've owned. She was raised by an experienced breeder, got lots of handling, etc but nothing all that special AFAIK. Remember so much of the temperament is nature as well as nurture Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christina Posted December 30, 2011 Share Posted December 30, 2011 Never done that with any of our pups & there has never been an issue. Our singletons where all well adjusted pups with no issues at all ,they where treated like any other litter . Yes more time was spent playing but that was it Much the same here. 2 singleton pup litters & 2 singleton kitten litters. I did keep them in the busy living area & let all the other dogs run around the outside of the pen (supervised ) as soon as their eyes were open rather than waiting 4 weeks to do this & introduced them face to face a bit sooner & carried them around/cuddled a bit more. Great natures with people & dogs. I think it makes them a bit nicer being the only one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LizT Posted December 30, 2011 Author Share Posted December 30, 2011 Never done that with any of our pups & there has never been an issue. Our singletons where all well adjusted pups with no issues at all ,they where treated like any other litter . Yes more time was spent playing but that was it Much the same here. 2 singleton pup litters & 2 singleton kitten litters. I did keep them in the busy living area & let all the other dogs run around the outside of the pen (supervised ) as soon as their eyes were open rather than waiting 4 weeks to do this & introduced them face to face a bit sooner & carried them around/cuddled a bit more. Great natures with people & dogs. I think it makes them a bit nicer being the only one. The "aunts" have been involved right from about the 2nd week, yeah about the time her eyes opened. Just as soon as I was sure mum was well settled and okay with it. The bitch who had a litter last year will even do the toileting whereas the younger (her pup from last year) is more like "can the baby come out and play yet?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwaY Posted December 30, 2011 Share Posted December 30, 2011 Sounds like you have done a stellar job with raising her. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hilaryo Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 Sounds like you have done a stellar job with raising her. Agree We had a singleton and to be honest she was a pain in the arse :D She was so out there and nothing fazed her which was good BUT our adult dogs wouldn't tell her off. Her own dam would let her pull her around by the ear. It wasn't her fault but boy was she hard work in a home situation! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LizT Posted December 31, 2011 Author Share Posted December 31, 2011 (edited) Sounds like you have done a stellar job with raising her. Agree We had a singleton and to be honest she was a pain in the arse :D She was so out there and nothing fazed her which was good BUT our adult dogs wouldn't tell her off. Her own dam would let her pull her around by the ear. It wasn't her fault but boy was she hard work in a home situation! Thanks SwaY. That's the kind of thing I want to avoid if possible! She certainly needs to know that "house rules apply"!! Regardless of if she stays or goes. She can have all the attitude she wants so long as she knows I'm "boss dog" (that what OH calls me I walk in the front door and he says to the girls "boss dogs home", suppose he could call me boss bi7ch! ;) I've raised my Cavaliers with the same training and rules that apply to my GSD's, albeit more patience in training required Too many small breeds tend to get away with murder but being cute doesn't cut any ice with me. And Cavaliers are pretty smart I think we owe them decent training. Edited December 31, 2011 by LizT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shazzapug Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 (edited) :D Edited December 31, 2011 by Shazzapug Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LizT Posted December 31, 2011 Author Share Posted December 31, 2011 :D Awww. no fair this kind of post always makes me wonder what you were going to say! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andisa Posted January 1, 2012 Share Posted January 1, 2012 I have only had the one singleton and I hand raised him, nothing was normal or easy. Poor boy almost died from aspiration pneumonia when he was only a couple of weeks old and we fought for another couple of weeks to keep him going. I annoyed him when he was feeding, sleeping, playing - trying to replace his litter mates (2 died em c section), he had plenty of toys and the best one was a cat that is in a curled up position - perfect for snuggles. Maverick is now 2 yo and has grown in to a handsome, strong, determined, stubborn, prick of a dog and it's just as well his owner loves him. Before he went to his new home at 12 weeks old I did warn Christina that he would be very independent, he fought hard to live when the odds were stack against him so he would not be a push over - I get all the updates on his antics by phone or FB, never a dull moment . Just as well he is a Pug, I don't know how I would have dealt with things had he been a Rottweiler . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LizT Posted January 1, 2012 Author Share Posted January 1, 2012 I have only had the one singleton and I hand raised him, nothing was normal or easy. Poor boy almost died from aspiration pneumonia when he was only a couple of weeks old and we fought for another couple of weeks to keep him going. I annoyed him when he was feeding, sleeping, playing - trying to replace his litter mates (2 died em c section), he had plenty of toys and the best one was a cat that is in a curled up position - perfect for snuggles. Maverick is now 2 yo and has grown in to a handsome, strong, determined, stubborn, prick of a dog and it's just as well his owner loves him. Before he went to his new home at 12 weeks old I did warn Christina that he would be very independent, he fought hard to live when the odds were stack against him so he would not be a push over - I get all the updates on his antics by phone or FB, never a dull moment . Just as well he is a Pug, I don't know how I would have dealt with things had he been a Rottweiler . Sounds like this little guy was 'meant to be". Fortunately and thank the dog gods, Emmalee had had no complications arising from her birth and has had mum there to help things along. It's almost like her mum knows she has things she needs to learn but can't without siblings and watches with great interest when we play the "sibling" games with her soft toys. Mum has also taught her all about "feeding interuptus" as she will come flying out of the whelping box if she hears any activity that could lead to possible food going on in the kitchen. I often used to wonder why she did this until I got OH to admit he gave her some roast beef fat trimmings when making his sandwiches at night, I'd suspected this as why would a dog that only gets fed from her bowl or training treats be so intent on the chopping board being slid out of it's place on the shelf!! Even at four weeks Emmie certainly is not backward in coming forward and is always very excited to see us. I think she has learnt that her "siblings" will not wake up and play unless one of us wakes them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LizT Posted January 3, 2012 Author Share Posted January 3, 2012 Bumped for ease of finding for new Doler enquiry with "Singleton pup" born New Years Day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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