My siblings and I had a talk with our foster mom this morning. We asked her what is going to happen to us.

She told us, not to worry. She told us that we are very special puppies and that we will some day be adopted by wonderful, loving families; people that want a good-tempered, happy, friendly dog. She told us to be patient and eventually a smart, very lucky family would pick each of us to be their best friend.

She told us that our dog-mom was a yellow-lab mix, a gentle dog that watched over the children in the household and that our dog-dad was a friendly black lab. She said we are very lucky to have had such nice parents and that our gene pool is excellent for temperament! She said that we came to RAGOM because our mom died when we were only two weeks old and that is sad. But because of that, we were bottle fed by volunteers and had more people handling than other puppies. We’ve also been very lucky because we have been fostered in a home and not raised in a shed or a garage. We have learned that our kennel is our comfortable place for sleeping and going to the bathroom outside is a good thing, sometimes we even wait at the door when we have to go out. She says we will be very easy to housetrain and people like that. She has also taught us that when we want to be petted or have treats, if we sit quietly, we will get attention and treats (and we like treats). We have met tons of nice people and love the neighborhood kids. The grown-up dogs here teach us doggy talk and sometimes tell us when they don’t want us to play with them anymore and we listen.

She told us we are special and precious. We smothered her in puppy kisses and she laughed and gave us each a hug. Time to go play.

These are pictures of Tippy, the puppies' mother. The first picture was taken the day the puppies were born. Tippy was fond of digging holes in my flower beds and brought the puppies there to snuggle with her. The picture by the boat gives you an idea of how big she was.

Our little Labor Day puppies are now 4-1/2 weeks old and adorable little furballs. They are starting to play with each other, but their favorite thing to do is to climb all over you. There’s nothing quite like sitting on the floor and having 9 puppies crawl all over you! You have to smile and giggle and love every minute of it.

My job for the next four weeks is to have as many people as possible meet the puppies so that they become socialized to people of all ages, shapes and sizes. A dog that is socialized as a puppy, becomes a self-confident, well-adjusted adult dog. Your job, should you adopt one of the puppies, is to take your new puppy to puppy kindergarten and at least one level of obedience training. Just like you wouldn’t expect your human children to develop into knowledgeable adults without going to school, the same is true of furkids. They need the playtime and education just like human kids. They also benefit from meeting tons of people and going lots of places so that they become comfortable and build confidence. My female dog, who we adopted as a puppy, believes that humans were put on earth to pet her. They don’t hurt, they aren’t scary, but the giver of treats, pets, praise and all good things. My job and my goal is for all of these puppies to have that same relationship with people as they grow into adult dogs.

These little ones will turn 8 weeks old October 12. That’s the date that you can take your new little family member home with you. If you are interested in making one of these little kids a member of your family, you can meet them now, pick out your little friend and have him/her waiting for you on October 12. If you are not yet an approved applicant, what you can do to get ready is to complete your on-line application now, send in your $25 app fee, schedule your home visit and you won’t have to miss one day with your new puppy.