Rubbish Blogger!

It's not until I logged on here this morning that I realised how long it's been since my last update! - Almost a month has come and gone. Crazy.

Anyway, I have a quick 5mins now to come on and apologise for the lack of information and I will be back soon with full updates on the days and events of the last month, but it has been crazy hard work trying to keep my life and the puppies in order; I have had very little computer time - All of my emails and facebooking have been done via my phone and unfortunately the blogger phone app is just ridiculously difficulty to get on with.

But I will be back soon, when I next have a sleeping puppy, no paperwork and no-where to dash to. Right now I am dashing to the field for lessons so I will catch up SOON!

Sorry
x

Putting faces to names

Tango

Voodoo

Dean

Hoody

The Pick

For the first 2 weeks which we had the puppies I honestly didn't have a favorite; I'd think I did, then change my mind the next day. I loved all of their markings; Mimic's matching his Mum's, Beast matching his Dad's and Gambit's unique spot in the middle of his neck. I loved the individuality each of them was starting to show; Beast liked toys, Gambit liked people and Mimic liked dogs and games of any sort.

I was pretty certain Clive would pick Beast, in fact everybody I spoke to was, he is the spitting image of Snooky. Rubbing him in the operating theatre a matter of minutes old I remember looking at all that Black and saying to myself 'not this one, we can't lose this one, it's Snooky's son, it's Clive's puppy', but as he started to cry and had the strength to pull himself (forceps and all) out of grasp and nearly to the floor - I thought 'wow, what a trooper'...as well as 'stupid puppy!'

I tried to force myself off Beast, thinking that I had no chance and spent my time pondering over the other 2, Gambit was becoming the biggest and strongest but was the last to walk and open his eyes, Mimic remained the smallest, but doubled his own weight first and was the best mover.

But as the pups became more mobile, Beast kept grabbing my attention; he would be the first to raise his head when he heard my voice, he'd greet me with a tail wag/bum wiggle to match his Mum's (well, nearly), I'd sit down when they were playing and start to type an email or text and look down and there he'd be looking up at me from down below - solid eye contact. When I sat on the floor he didn't want to curl up on my lap like the others, he wanted to crawl up my chest to give me chin kisses and then relax into my arms for a sleep. His siblings would be in bed, he'd be watching me through the stairgate when I went to make a cup of tea. The other boys were both attentive and loving and full of cuddles but Beast was so intense. When I told Mum, she told me not to pin my hopes on him, I told her I wasn't, HE was the one pinning his hopes on ME!

When she saw us the next day, as much as she wanted to deny it (as she still believed Clive would want him), there was something about the way he responded to me being around and how he looked at me.

And then to top it all off, HEX picked him! She started a game with him one morning and the gambled around the whelping room, I managed to catch some on video (below), he wasn't interested in her Milk, he wanted her and she was treating him as a little dog, a companion.

I text Clive to let him know that I was becoming attached to 'a' puppy and that I hoped it wouldn't be long before he picked, he came round a couple of days later, unbeknownst to me it was to make his pick out of the 2 he was drawn to... but he left drawn between all 3 and unable to decide, he returned a couple of days after that to make his final, final pick.

I had felt sick all weekend and was wondering if he picked Beast would I be able to say something?And if I couldn't bring myself to, how heartbroken would I be? I still thought Gambit was the most active and playful puppy so he'd have to be my 2nd choice, and Mimic was such a sweety; a confident young man with great responses, just slightly overshadowed by his crazy siblings, but there was just something about Beast and he'd worked so hard to let me know that we could have something special.

I watched as Clive entered the whelping room and all of the puppies gathered eagerly around his feet 'pick me, pick me' this yipped and yapped, dancing round his ankles, Beastie snuck around behind Clives feet 'stay there I thought, out of sight, out of mind' and then Clive threw me a complete curve ball... he asked me to pick up the one I wanted, I had to check I'd heard right, he confirmed and I dove straight round behind him to give my puppy the biggest hug. I couldn't believe he had handed over first pick, I could feel myself welling up but held it together to allow him to pick. We all left Clive alone to pick his special boy and he came out holding Gambit - definitely the right choice for Clive, such a strong willed pup, full of mischief.

Clive later explained that once he knew I had a favourite and that he found them all equally appealing for different reasons, he felt it unfair that he might pick the dog that I wanted, so he wanted that dog out the equation to make his decision easier, and me happy. I tell you, there are not many people out there as selfless and kind - these dogs will play a huge part in our lives, our worlds revolve around them and Clive let me pick mine first. Words cannot express how grateful I am for that gift.

On the Monday, Anita came to visit Mimic and it was love, very much on both parts. He sat in her lap, licking her fingers and giving her his best 'look'. I am so happy that I have the peace of mind that my puppies will go to homes that will love them first and foremost at pets, but also give them an enriched life with great walks, lovely furry friends, mental stimulation and the fantastic benefits of life as an agility dog.

All the puppies have been re-named with their new home names, including Beast who's new home, is actually already his home, right here.

Beast is now my Voodoo

Gambit is now Clive's Hoody

Mimic is now Anita's Dean

and Rogue is now Garry's Tango

Food Glorious Food!

On Monday the Cupcakes had their first taste of FOOD!

Since their escape from the Whelping box their confidence and mobility was quickly increasing and with them now having teeth, Hex was becoming a little reluctant to feed them. She would do her job still, but you could see discomfort written all over her face, and feeds were becoming shorter, so I thought it was time to step in and start the weaning process.

I have decided to feed them Fish4Dogs complete puppy food. Fish4Dogs is Hex's favourite so I knew if they were anything like their Mum; fish would really float their boat! And sure enough it did. Soaked for 20mins, mushed up and then mixed again with some warm water to make it warm again, they tucked straight in.

I decided to opt for separate bowls (Rogue = Pink, Beast = Black, Gambit = Blue, Mimic = Silver) so that I could see how much they were eating, but when they started getting full and slowing down I would let them switch amongst each other - it's never to early to learn how to share!

Rogue got the hang of it straight away, Beast just thought it's play time, Mimic takes advantage of the fact Rogue is still and tugs on her ears and tail and Gambit just wants to squish it between his toes!

They're all eating 10g each in one sitting now, 3-4 times a day plus Milk from Hex, I want them off her completely by Sunday (their 4 week birthday).

Little Dogs!

I am sorry for the delay in the updates but I haven't been very well, but I will reward you greatly for you patience with a video Mum and Matt took for me while I was in hospital so that I didn't miss anything.

Before I went to hospital the pups were really getting to grips with walking, they were recognising me; responding to my voice and smell and rough-housing with each other. They had taken an interest in the couple of toys we had placed in their box, but not yet done anything other than sniff and prod them.

I was so worried while I was away that they would forget me or that I was going to miss some big changes. At the bottom of this post is video Mum took on the 10th Feb.

Haven't they grown!

When I came back from hospital I was relieved to find they remember me and excited to see that they were now playing with toys AND that their little teeth were coming through.

Yesterday morning on their 3 week birthday Rogue got a leg up from one of her brothers and made it out of the Whelping box! Luckily I was there to catch her, but I decided there and then that it was time to open the whelping box up and give them FREEDOM! And so they now have access to the entire whelping room.

Here are some pictures of them enjoying their first taste of freedom! (Gambit, Rogue, Beast then Mimic)

Puppy Stats

As the puppies continue to grow, stumble around blindly and begin to look more like little dogs I took a look at the information I have been gathering on them. Yesterday they were 10 days old - by this time they are supposed to have doubled their birth weight; all apart from Beast have (he missed his target by 11g but let's face it he had a pretty impressive birth weight!).

I have also put together their BioSensor results to date to see how they compare with each other. They started the programme at 3 days old and only took a day off when I did their toenails as I didn't want to over stimulate them.

I awarded them 2 points per activity for staying happy, 1 point for a small protest (like taking away a paw when you tickle it or wriggling when put in the various positions) and I awarded them No points for a full on crying protest.

This is how they compared on a day to day basis:

And their totals:

I'm not really reading anything into the results as the point of the programme is to stimulate the puppies. In fact I'm not sure there are even supposed to be any results other than the end result of supposedly 'superior' puppies, but I did think it would be interesting to compare them. You could argue that Beast is the calmest most well balanced pup and see that as a positive or that he is passive and boring (not my thoughts! Just how some people might view them), the same as you could read that Rogue is the easiest to upset OR that she is the smartest and most responsive.

What goes on in their little puppy minds? As part of a veterinary research project Sarah Lindsey has been doing she will be performing Character assessments on a number of litters including Hex's when they are around 4-5 weeks old, it will be interesting to see how her results compare to the BioSensor results I have collected.

Finding their feet

Since my last post, we have seen some changes in the whelping room.

Hex's belly was starting to look very sore where the pups have not only grown stronger, but their toenails were also growing so we gave them their first pedicure on Monday the 30th with a torch and some nail scissors. I thought this would be really difficult but Mum held them and I cut them and it was relatively easy (once I'd asked my hand to stop shaking!).

The pups also started standing this week - they're not particulary good at it and their eyes are still closed so they don't go very far, but they do rise up on to four feet and have a little stagger before falling over and trying again.

They have also spent more time interacting with each other; they had just been sleeping together, eating together and wriggling around or over each other to get the best teat, but they now push each other around for no reason what so ever and clamber around and over each ither instead of just wriggling towards a food or heat source.

Their eyes will be opening in the next few days and I cannot wait! I watched a video of Gass's pups today (they're a week ahead of Hex's) and am really excited about ours getting to that stage. It's amazing to think of the changes a puppy goes through in such a short time.

One Week Old today!

And I still don't feel like we're out of the woods, I don't think I will do until their eyes are open and they're causing chaos - which I'm aware will be more work for me, but I'll feel better all the same.

The pups have developed what Mum is calling their 'Shrek' ears, here's Gambit showing his off:

And Hex is making the most out of my airbed which is rather comfy! Bless her; this mothering stuff is hard work!

The Bio Sensor Program

Back in August an Agility friend spoke to me about the benefits of the Bio Sensor Program or 'Super Dog Program', which she uses on her litters, subsequently I have had someone else in the agility world ask if I was going to use it - to which I answered 'yes'!

The Bio Sensor Program was developed by the U.S Military for their dogs and initially consists of stimulating the few senses the pups are born with once a day for no-more than 5 seconds in a way which would not naturally occur in nature; by kick starting the neurological system early, there is the potential for increased capacity and more confident, trainable pups with a 'superior advantage' to others.

After the pup's weigh ins I have tickled their toes, held them upright, upside down and on their backs and placed their feet on a cold towel before promptly returning them back to a confused Hex who can't understand why, when we are usually so concerned by the pups crying, are we upsetting them?

From day 3 (when we started) the pups have all behaved differently and are fairly consistent each day with their own behaviours and which exercises they prefer and which they object to.

I will try and get some pictures during the next 'puppy torture', if you would like to learn more about the program, the following article makes for a very interesting read and also talks about the research which was done on human children (nice to have human testing for once!):

http://breedingbetterdogs.com/pdfFiles/articles/early_neurological_stimulation_en.pdf

Somebody has snuck in and added Sprinkles to my Cupcake's noses!

Rogue

Mimic

Gambit

Beast

Too cute not to share - Gambit ready to pop after a trip to the Milk Bar

Character

I really didn't think they'd be such little characters yet but they all go about life in their own little ways.

Rogue - causes chaos whenever she's not sleeping - she's either at the milk bar swapping from teat to teat trying to find the best one (even if it means shoving her brothers out of the way) or she goes on an explore and keeps finding herself in the same corner far away (in puppy terms) from the heat mat and Hex so screams the room down in protest.

Mimic - is really stubborn, when Rogue is crawling under or over him to get Milk he latches on as tight as he can to the teat he has and ends up doing 'crocodile death-rolls' as he hangs on and get battered from side to side. If he was on Total Wipeout he would be the last one standing.

Beast - is just as greedy as Rogue but a little less pushy which is why I guess she now weighs more than him. He would rather curl up next to Hex than on the heat mat, unlike the others who use Heat mat for sleep and Hex for food, he seems to be a bit of a Mummy's boy and stay nice and close, often around her head or front feet.

Gambit - is the clever one, he has figured out that there is usually chaos surrounding the front teats (thanks to Rogue!) so he disappears into Hex's tail and then comes up through her thighs to the rear teats, if he's lucky Hex is curled up so her thighs protect him from the others and he can eat in peace. Sneaky.

I took this video of Beast last night, Rogue did the same thing earlier in the day but ended up rolling down Hex's bottom - wish I'd caught it on video; it would have made me £250!

What a difference a day makes!

The pups are now nearly 48hrs old and seem to have found their way around the whelping box.

Yesterday we had distress cries as they thought they were heading towards milk, but ended up on the heat pad (they'd follow the wrong source of heat), or one would have had it's milk and be heading else where another would feel it and follow it thinking it was en route to milk - but wrong again - more crying. At one point we had a puppy sucking on another's ear instead of a teat!

But today sleeping puppies lay on the mat and feeding puppies nestle into Hex, they seem very content... and greedy.

Hex is spending alot of today asleep - yesterday and last night she was on constant guard but she finally seems to have settled now.

Here are some pics of the pups from yesterday:

On a happier note - The Milk Bar is in full working order!

I worry when they're too quiet, I worry when they cry, about the only time I feel any sense of okay is when they're feeding!

I think Gambit must have fallen asleep feeding, but Beast and Rogue are going crazy for the Milk! Mimic seems to be taking after his Mum in more than just matching markings by being 'the sensible one' (Hex was sensible once upon a time!... before she came to live with the Skinners)

Nothing ever goes to plan...

When you read the statistics of whelping, there is always inevitably a risk for both the bitch and pups as they enter the world. Waiting for Hex's cupcakes to 'cook' I have watched healthy litter after healthy litter enter the world with the greatest of ease, large litters, smaller litters, puppies of different size and different colours and as happy as I have been for each breeder, it has always filled me with a feeling of great unease because, as I have said to many people over the past 9weeks; 'it will be MY litter that goes wrong' this wasn't just me saying it, I genuinely believed that if there was one litter that was going to have problems it would be mine. People dismissed my comments 'don't be silly', 'it will all be fine' and as the final week approached I had talked myself out of my pessimistic ways and decided that with the amount of breeding and veterinary knowledge I have surrounding me in the form of friends and clients, we would be fine. I had done all the research, I had a well prepped whelping room, a healthy bitch and my Mum at hand what could go wrong that we couldn't deal with?....

21/01/12: I had slept in the whelping room the past 2 nights, Hex was restless and obviously nesting, thrashing the perfectly laid vetbed in her box about. She had me up at 12.45am and 2.30am this morning and with the puppies being due on the 23rd, I knew when I took her temperature at 8.30am what to expect - a drop; the puppies were to be expected within 24hrs.

I left Hex in my Mum's capable hands for the day enabling me to take my lessons with the proviso that if there was ANY change in her behaviour I was to be called home immediately. Hex huffed and puffed all day, but no contractions and no change in her behaviour.

22/01/12, 8.45am: Hex had another restless night (which meant so did I) huffing and fidgeting, Mum had stayed the night and we were all up relatively early at 6am, Matt came home from his night shift and Hex bolted out of the backdoor to see him as they both made it back in the house Matt pointed to the floor - 'is that wee?' - Nope, Hex's water had broken, the puppies were on their way! We checked double checked that we had everything we needed in the whelping room and encouraged her in her box (which I now had removed the lid from).

9.22am: We started to see contractions, little cramps in Hex's middle, but she just went with it, we had been expecting to see the puppies within an hour of her water breaking, so by 11am Mum had her concerns, we phoned a friend of mine, a qualified vet from our practice who's advice was that unless we saw the dreaded green discharge or Hex was straining with no result that her uterine contractions were normal and her cervix was dilating ready for the first puppy which will always be the hardest. This matched what the books and internet said (and what I had been told the night before when I double checked)- uterine contractions could last up to 18hrs, so we would probably be in for a long one.

12.15pm: Hex seemed to have gotten into a pattern - ask to go out to the toilet, go back to the box, have some contractions, sleep, start again. She was in no discomfort, or distress, when Mum and I made the decision to leave her for 5 mins to eat, she followed us to the kitchen, with her usual 'anything I can do to help?' expression and while we ate she laid by my feet as happy as Larry, once finished with lunch I insisted she go back to her box. Mum and I sung 'Push' based songs to her - 'push it real good', 'push the button/puppy' and Agadoo 'Push my puppy out your womb', but she looked at us like the crazy people we are and rested her head for another sleep. Another phone call of reassurance to the vet.

2.30pm: Still no puppies, worries were increasing but we had checked for puppy 'presentation' twice during the day and there was nothing there, Hex STILL wasn't pushing - she had been talking to me, as she usually does, a bark when I was ignoring her, a grizzle or two of complaint with the contractions, but still no straining or any sign of distress. Just Hex, chilling in her box waiting for her puppies to arrive. When she barked at me I'd tell her 'don't look at me, you're the one who needs to do something'.

3.30pm: Still no puppies, Mum and I got a call from Hex's breeder who had earlier been in contact for words of support. 'She's not going to push' Lisa said, 'she's following in her Mum's footsteps, she's going to need help'. To this point I had been trying my very hardest to keep calm as the books suggest, leave Hex to it as EVERYONE suggests but as soon as I heard Lisa say this all the panic kicked in, all the doubt I had been talking myself out of flooded back, I phoned my vet to ask her if now was the time to go for Oxytocin (the drug used to bring on contractions) bearing in mind Hex's family history, she didn't pick up. I didn't want to take Hex to the vets, although she loves it there, it is not ideal for a bitch to have a stranger with them during this time and certainly not to be in a strange cold environment, but I resorted to ringing the emergency on call vet. The vet on call was aware that Hex was having her puppies today, I had rung the oncall to let them know 'just in case' as advised, but had never thought I would have to use them. The vet sounded alarmed I hadn't rung sooner, but I had been receiving advice from a friend/vet from the same surgery and Hex wasn't showing any danger signs or even pushing... and that was the problem, she should have been all this time.

As Mum prepped the car and Matt came down the stairs, I broke down, how had this all happened? Idiots who breed their dogs for all the wrong reasons manage, farm dogs manage in barns - why when I had done all the research and prep and had sat all day monitoring the situation with 2 books at hand, the internet right there in front of me and all the support I could need, including my Mum who had started to panic long before me, why was it all going wrong?!

Another break down in the car as I realised I could no longer feel the puppies moving, Hex's belly just felt hard and still. I had been feeling strong puppies moving all week, even this morning, had I left everything too late?

4pm: Hex bounced into the vets (as she usually does), jumped up and gave the vet cuddles (nothing new). The vet felt and Hex was fully dilated with a head waiting at the neck of the womb ready to go and so first 5ml shot of Oxytocin was administered - After 20mins finally we saw her actually pushing! The vet commented that either she had a lot of puppies or they were very big, either way she was FULL, she prepared me that even if Hex got the first one out there was no promise she'd be able to shift the others.

4.30pm: Still no puppies, another 5mls of Oxytocin administered, she had now been given the maximum dosage.

5pm: Her contractions were no more frequent or hard and she'd given up pushing. A Cesarean was on the cards. The vet on call wanted to know if I wanted her spayed at the same time - I didn't know, I hadn't done that research, if the puppies were fine then I probably should - even before all this drama I was never going to breed from her again. But what if they weren't okay? I desperately wanted a Hex puppy, that's why we were breeding and what about Clive - but not at the expense of my own precious girl. I asked the vet if they could do the C-Section and then do the spay afterwards or if both had to happen - would it all happen at once, she said she could do one after the other. I asked her to check Hex's bump again so I could prepare for the decision; she thought she felt a paw move, but she couldn't make out any heartbeats.

Still undecided I signed the consent form for surgery and handed over her lead, Hex looked over her shoulder as she trotted away. I went to the car for another cry; phoned Matt, Lisa and Clive & Elaine, then went back into the waiting room to twiddle my thumbs and pray that everyone would be okay. My facebook friends words of support kept me sane but with every minute that passed I felt sicker.

5.25pm: Mum used to work at the vets for 6 and a half year so she knew the Kitchen was right next to the operating theatre - she went to 'go and get a coffee', what she saw was the veterinary nurse desperately rubbing to puppies 'do you need a hand?' she asked, the response was 'yes' and that's when Mum called my name. I can't even remember how she called it, I think I remember feeling hope, so it must have had a ring of positivity to it, but not enough that I believed we were out of the woods. I did my work experience at the vets so my feet automatically took me to the room where I saw Hex on her back open on the table and everyone with a puppy either in their hands or a couple in front of them on a stand, furiously being rubbed. There was afterbirth over the floor and still attached to some puppies, I was handed a towel and a puppy and got to work - a couple of gasps no noise, I called for help, but as my puppy's nose was pink I was given the clear to keep rubbing as I did I looked around, the puppies were passed from hand to hand as the ones which were taking long to yelp worked their way back to the professional, as we passed them around we worked out there were 5, but we had lost track of who had come out in what order, as each pup made it's first confident sounds the nurse would secure their cords and remove their clamps to place them in a box with some heated pads and towels. Eventually there was just one left fighting, she had, had a heartbeat at somepoint and everything had been tried to revive her but Hex was still open on the table with her puppies crying in a basket on the floor, the nurse recognised that this was the puppy (a classically marked chunky but beautiful girl) who had been first in line to leave the womb, 2nd out of the C-Section, they had to give up and spay and close Hex.

Mum and I waited in the waiting room with a basket of crying puppies for Hex to return, I reflected that Hex had been first out of her Mum, we had lost another Hex, but I couldn't look at it like that - for 30 horrible minutes I thought I had lost them all so I had to see that I had gained 4 precious cupcakes and hopefully their Mum would be back with us soon.

I have no idea what time it was when Hex was back with her pups, I was just so pleased to see her, we helped each find teat and woozy Hex lay there not really aware of what was happening. I have no idea what time it was when we were given the all clear to go home or what time we got home. Once the puppies had received a good feed and been toileted (with help from Mum), we weighed them and took their first pictures as well as naming them after X-Men which was the deal I had made with Matt if I was to have puppies. I have still managed to match the names with the puppies markings (if you know your X-Men!):

Gambit

Male - 384g

Beast

Male - 407g

Mimic

Male - 320g

Rogue

Female - 398g

A complete surprise that they all came out Black and White when there were so many colours in the mix, but they are all so beautiful and precious. I am sat in a camping chair in the whelping room as I type this and listening to them chowing down, when I count to check they are all there I keep trying to count 5 and thinking I am missing one, which in some respects we are.

I have been reassured that as the Oxytocin didn't help we probably would have always ended up with a C-Section, Hex would have always had to have gone through an operation because as Lisa put it 'she's too posh to push'.

But in my head I keep thinking if I'd got Hex to the vets sooner we may have been able to save the little girl I had to say my goodbyes to, I gave her a cuddle before we left her and told her I was sorry and there is a great amount of guilt surrounding her loss, but I did everything I could by the book. After writing this piece I must put these thoughts behind me, close that chapter and only count to 4. I can now focus on the new editions to my family and try to decide which one will be mine always.

A huge HUGE thank you to Mum for being there every step of the way, Matt for being my rock, Lisa for bringing Hex into my life and making the call which saved her puppies, obviously Axe Valley Vets and also to every body who has contacted me for reassurance and support.

I will continue to keep you updated with pictures and videos as the Monkstone lot grow and develop... and get naughty!!!

1 Week to go!!!

Hex's temperature dropped from 37.7C yesterday to 37.2C today - I'm not going to lie; I panicked - they're not cooked yet!, But within 3 hours we were back up to 37.5C and back on track.

I was teaching this morning and booking people in for their lessons next week, the 23rd of January, Hex's due date. It was a really weird feeling thinking that there is a high chance the puppies will be here by then!

And so... the wait continues....

Active Cupcakes!

I wasn't going to do another post until the 'Cupcakes' were cooked, mainly because other than updates on how Hex is doing I couldn't really report on the Cupcakes themselves but that changed on the 10th of January when I felt movement for the first time.
At first I thought I was just feeling something because I wanted to, but then a firm mass (a bottom or head) pushed outwards and shifted under my hand again. The next day a 'knock knock knock' from within; a little limb maybe? Matt was too grossed out to have a feel himself but then Mum came round the next day and was equally impressed by the activity and strength of Hex's precious cargo. They are particularly active at night, especially when Hex is asleep, I sit her next to me of an evening and watch television with one hand on her tummy feeling little lumps and bumps shifting around.

Having never been a Mum myself I find is especially amazing that there are little lives in there just waiting to come out, it all feels so very real and surreal at the same time, but the whelping room is now 100% ready for action which we expect in just 8 days time! 8 days doesn't sound like a long time, but when you can feel them moving and living inside of Hex, it becomes a very long time! I just can't wait to meet them, see what colours and markings we get and then watch them grow as little people.

Hex had her pre-whelp haircut on the 12th enabling us to actually SEE movement so tonight as a special treat I thought I would try to video some movement. But getting the right angle and lighting is hard, because obviously although the movement FEELS huge, from the outside it's just a ripple or the occasional jumping nipple. I thought that the movement would be easiest to see on her pink bits and you can see the odd ripple, but actually watching the video back you can see the most movement in the fur above her 2 rear nipples (top of the screen) where there is a circular parting of the fur which you can see change shape and move as they do.
Enjoy:

The meaning of 'Monkstone'

A long LONG time ago there was a puppy called Scrappy who the Skinner's adopted from the RSPCA. He was adopted as a family pet, but was destined to be an Agility dog.

My Mum needed to think of a Kennel Club name for him, having never been through this process before and not knowing where to start she took the name of our road (Monkstone Drive) and combined it with his nickname and so he became 'Monkstone Scrapman'!

Scrappy learnt agility with my Mum, he then taught it to both my brother and myself, he was a very special dog; a true gent.

After Scrappy, we adopted K.O and 'Monkstone Knockout' just felt right as a name. She was the first dog I got to teach and she took me from Elementary to Intermediate when I was just 11 years old as well as qualifying for a number of Junior Finals and winning the 1997 Pedigree Chum Unders Final. My curly girly Collie-flower.

Following K.O the Skinner Pack grew with pre-named puppies and 'Valgrays' rescues and so it wasn't until 2005 when we adopted Phee from Many Tears that the Monkstone name resurfaced with 'Monkstone Phoenix'. Unfortunately Phee's agility career was short lived due to her health and so there were no more Monkstones left on the circuit.

The Snooky/Hex mating was planned over 18 months ago and Clive kindly agreed to let me revive the Monkstone name and honour the dogs which got me started. Following an application to the Kennel Club, I now own the Kennel Name 'Monkstone' which means so much to me and I feel a great amount of joy that any future puppies will wear it with pride and that the memories of the dogs I cherish live on. I know that there are some long standing agility competitors who will hear the name 'Monkstone' and smile at a memory or two.

Only time will tell what Monkstone's will enter the world in 3 weeks time. I just hope that they are all happy, healthy puppies and that they give their new Mummys & Daddys everything the Monkstones before them had to offer and more.