The weather has been a bit more kinder to Gracie who is a huffing and a puffing.  With 18 more days to go to her due date she is getting bigger daily, her appitite has really picked up, she has become guarded over her food to the stage that she is growling at the kitty's and at Luke if they sniff around her while she is eating. I have added a disk of raw meat and kidney's into her meal and mix it in really well, I am sure this tempts her to eat her whole much bigger meal.

I can really feel the pup's moving around a lot more and they are becoming more prominent little bulges in her tummy. Gracie loves lying on her back and still very affectionate she curls up with me on the couch and on the bed on her back for her massage that she loves.

Within the next few day's I shall get her basket ready to put into my room to get her used to going into it. I have opted to use a huge cane basket to whelp in. I used it on the first litter and was just terrific. This cane basket is so big that it can fit her and the pups on one side alone. I didn't use a traditional whelping box and found the basket an easy use. I would clean one side of it move them all over and clean the otherside of it. I opted to use old sheets and towels opposed to newspaper as I prefered to keep it close to natural products around the pup and Gracie as much as possible. Newspaper while great later on in the pups development is covered in Ink, Ink is a toxin, it rubs off. Take a newspaper that you are reading and it can make your hands black from the ink there is no reason to suggest that the ink won't rub off on to the new little family especially when it gets wet. While there is a lot more washing to do this is only just a stage as is quickly over.

Gracie is now letting the kittens curl up to her more and more now and as I type this she is asleep under the coffee table in my office with the ginger kitten curled up asleep with her. Gracies breathing is very fast and her tummy feels hot with all the cooking that is going on.

Yesterday and today I noticed that she is starting to dig in corners, under the bed, under my desk etc. This is a sign of nesting and I expect it to get more frequent over the next week or so, this tells me that it is time to get her whelping gear ready all though there is still a wee wait to go yet.

All in all Gracie is very healthy, still very active at a slower pace. I have been waiting until the cool evenings before I take her for a walk, she can't jump like she use to and is careful when getting into the car. She is so more relaxed this time around as she knows the process of what she is going through.

Our Gracie is 27 days from giving birth to her 2nd litter of schnoodles. She is feeling the summer heat and is not eating alot. In fact she is getting to be quite fussy with what she eats. 

Until now she has shown little signs of being pregnant which is quite common. She is now starting to get a fuller, thicker abdomen. If I push gently while I am massaging her belly I can feel the little lumps of the puppies. I held my hand on her tummy last night and could feel the tiniest of movements happening. Gracie has become very affectionate although she is always affectionate she is more so now. She sticks close to me and as I am typing this she is asleep next to me on the floor by the fan.

We have got the addition to our house of two little kittens approximately 10 weeks old. They are often cuddling into Gracie trying to suckle of her nipples. Obviously they can smell the milk. The little ginger kitty likes to curl up against Gracie and go to sleep. Gracie feels a little uncomfortable with this arrangement. She is not a snappy dog so she gently lifts her head looks at the kitty get up and walks away, it is not until the kityy decides to start claw puckering at Gracies tummy does she snap at the kitten and a gentle snap at that. I must say it will be interesting watching the kittens grow with the pups.