Lazy Day

Today was a lazy day for us around here. This morning is just was pour down rain, the sky was dark and in the middle of the day I felt the need to have the lights on inside. So we stayed inside and watched movies on TV. At one point I peered out the window to watch the water flow down the street. The gutters on both sides were full and the corner one house down from us was flooded completely across the road. Even the dogs felt the need to sleep away the day. They went out for their potty breaks but ate inside. They did get a good brushing today, which some like more than others. Our black poodle male Fritz has been sniffing more than usual the tail end of our female poodle Mercedes for the last couple days. So while it was her turn for brushing, I checked her out and found her to be in heat. Just at the beginning of the heat, a little swollen and a little blood. The heat cycle lasts for close to a month. During the first week the female can be moody and will nip at any male sniffing her. Around the 10th day, she becomes more accepting to the males advances and playful displays. When she decides she is ready for mating her tail moves to the side to allow access. The female won't mate unless she wants to and is ready. A few days after the pair is tied or stuck together, she goes back out of heat if the mating was successful. The pregnant mom carries her puppies high up in her ribs until about the sixth week, then they move or drop down where there's more room for them to grow. Waiting for the mom to start showing seems to take forever, then one day you look at her laying on her side and see that she is a little rounder in the belly. A couple days later she is suddenly oh my gosh huge. So anyways, another reason why this seems like a lazy day around here is that our Grandsons are at their mom's for the weekend. About three months ago our oldest son moved back home. He attended truck driving school and is now working driving long haul. How we ended up with the boys is a long story, another posting perhaps. Short story is that the mother of his boys is unable to care for them much less herself. My son is now financially able to care for them, but given the nature of his job, we do. Not that we mind being parents again, it's actually a lot more fun than the first time around. Less stress. The older one is 18 months, the younger 4 months. We are teaching the older one how to correctly interact with the dogs, he feeds them treats so he is use to feeling their teeth. They have gentle mouths being bred originally to retrieve birds without damaging the birds. The dogs are learning to respect the boy's space, he face is conveniently at the same level as their faces. It's a work in progress and he gets a lot of kisses.