Is there life after a litter of puppies? It is unbelievable how consuming a litter of shepherd puppies are! At first these little critters are small enough to hold in your hand and you carefully watch over them and Mama to make sure they each get their fill of milk, they are each warm and clean enough and that they are all as healthy as can be. Even before their eyes open, they begin to make the cutest growling and sometimes little barking noises. Pretty soon their little eyes begin to open and they struggle to try to focus on your face or the outline of your body. Their ears open up and they begin to hear you coming and they gather together, tails wagging, waiting for you to love them.
After a few weeks they begin to follow you everywhere, you have to soon jog to stay in front of them or they will get under your feet. They tackle each other, they tackle your plants, they wrestle in the leaves, they chase after Mama, they chase after you.......and then.....they wear themselves out and gather at your feet for a nap.
You worry about the families that will take each of these precious little pups home and during this whole process you are like a new mother, listening for every little sound and even listening to the silence, wondering if you need to check on them again even though it's only been 15 minutes since you checked on them before.
And so is life at our home these days....consumed with these precious lives that the Lord has blessed us with. We get so attached, they are like our furry little children. We wonder what they will grow up to be, who they will grow to love and protect, where they will sleep each night, and this is why we worry......and pray.
But the Lord is good, every puppy we have ever placed has filled a void in someone's heart. We are rewarded with emails and pictures and gratefulness, we smile and laugh at the tales of joy and amusement that their new families relate to us....and in many ways we all become one united Shepherd family. We have made some wonderful friends through this journey over the years and to all of you, I thank you!
To see more pictures of this litter click on the Shannons Shepherds button in the right sidebar.
adorable!
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