Have you ever seen puppies play for the first time?
Today, Ovation’s puppies learn to play.
Or do they?
Is playing natural? Is it instinctive? Or is it learned?
We automatically think of cats as naturally curious, don’t we?
But what about dogs? What about puppies? Aren't they curious?
We somehow miss the fact that dogs and puppies can be curious as well.
Click on the video below to make it play.
When you watch the video, trade places with one of the puppies!
Mr. Blue, perhaps, as he falls in love with ‘his’ toy.
Or little Ms. Pink as she brazenly walks off with the toy herself.
You can be there when they discover something new in the whelping box. Perchance a blanket! The very same blanket that they have been lying on for weeks, can now be grasped with their mouth and developing teeth. The blanket may have been there for weeks, ho-hum, but now it's new and exciting and fun.
You can pull on it and it has resistance. You can bite down and it's soft and fluffy. You can drag it and your sister will chase after you.
All of these are new sensations that the puppy can, and will, learn from and develop.
If that in itself weren't enough fun, suddenly, a round object that makes sounds when you touch it, rolls across the floor and bounces off the walls. It can be fun and exciting and a little scary all at the same time.
But, you're curious and you decide to explore. You push it with your nose and bat it with your paw and it moves, makes noise and rattles.
Will you be afraid? Will you be curious? Will you keep on exploring or will you run away? Even at this early age, there are choices for you to make!
The plastic ball with a little rattle inside is a new shape for you. It apparently changes color as it rolls - it makes noise.
You touch it with your paw and with your nose. It moves, it rolls, it goes fast, it goes slow, it bounces, it’s fun.
Wow you like this.
It bounces off the wall. It rolls into one of your siblings. Oh no! Your sister steals it. Not so fast. “That's mine!”
And so it goes….
One puppy is totally fascinated and seems unable to detach himself from the novelty and excitement and fun that he is having.
Another puppy, just a few feet away, could care less and sleeps through the whole raucous process. Others show some minor interest. Still others play amongst themselves - oblivious to Mr. Blue and his ball. Such diversity is seen in this small but representative group of puppies that are preparing to go out into the world with their new families in just a few weeks.
Some will be explorers, some shy and calculating, some an observer, some bold, some more interested in people than in inanimate toys and objects. Another will prefer soft toys that are quiet - not hard, plastic, or noisy.
What variation and diversity God has built into their personalities. I see this as a tremendous advantage to the puppies and to their new owners. Because a litter with multiple puppies are learning social graces as they develop and interact continuously with toys, their environment, their littermates, their mother, and caregivers.
Watch Mr. Blue as he meets his new toy “Mr Ball”
It’s love at first sight!
click here to watch the video
Enjoy!
Dr. B...
Thank you for sharing these posts! The puppies are adorable and growing so fast. Best wishes to Ovation and the family!
Barbara, thanks so much for your encouragement…
As you know, my comfort zone is fixing broken dogs and cats.
So, I am really out of my element here {technology, video, and
a lot of moving parts behind the scenes that need to be tamed.]
But…
I am having a lot of fun too. And with encouragement like yours I hope to keep it up.
Tell me, what do you like best about the series?