The Avengers are burdened with a “glorious purpose” – they must play hard, protect their assets with a vengeance, and attack each other with wild intent!!  And they do all WELL!! 

They have continued to become their own little selves on our daily, or twice daily, sometimes thrice daily ‘walk abouts’.  I stroll through the yard and gardens while they follow me around exploring and destroying every thing that comes in their path!  I am the Pied Piper of Puppies!!  These are life training missions that hopefully prepare them for the rigors of life ahead of them.  Best of all, it wears the little monsters, (I mean DARLINGS!) out!  A tired puppy is a good puppy!!

Another big week for them!  They had their final vet check where the vet is VERY intrusive into how each Guardian of the Galaxy functions!  Hearts, lungs, ears, eyes, nose, belly buttons, personal parts (WHAT!!) are examined thoroughly. All are weighed, the heaviest being Thor at 17.1, and the lightest being Gamora at 13.6. What followed was not really their style either!  It started pretty easy, that yummy banana tasting wormer, then another annoying toe nail trim, then a slightly painful prick of a little needle (ouch!) containing their first puppy vaccination, and then a big OUCH! where they were villainously microchipped for permanent identification. Each squirming little Avenger wondered if this was the BEST the vet could do? They were also wondering how soon Grandma June would pull the plug on this horrible experience!!

I have a check list my vet fills out that lists every possible body part, so that she can make notations if she thinks there is anything you or your vet should be aware of.   I am particular about this, as I hate surprises when you take your new puppy to your vet!!  I will send a copy of the check sheet in each puppies going home packet along with all their other health records.  All pups have great hearts, all lungs are good, teeth are beautiful, and all testicle are present where appropriate. Last but not least, the staff loves to hold and play with the puppies, so the Endgame was worth it!

I am not the one who is out of time, but The Heroes of Tomorrow are!  Below are who they have become!

BOYS:

Thor – dark red, dark chocolate mask, T spot on chest.  Perfect ridge, good teeth.  Dermoid sinus healing beautifully. Big happy go lucky galoot that can chill with the best of them, loves attention and especially tummy rubs.

Hulk – dark red, full mask, huge spot on chest, four white socks. Perfect ridge, good teeth. Very people oriented, curious and outgoing with a “I can do this all day long” attitude.

GIRLS:

Wasp - dark red, full mask, big spot on chest, black tail.  Perfect ridge, good teeth.  Sweet, gentle, kind, loves hugs. Dermoid sinus healing beautifully.

Black Widow – dark red, full mask, rectangle spot on chest, rear white toes, little white on front.  Perfect ridge, good teeth.  Friendly, loves everybody, happy go lucky, full of fun.  Dermoid sinus healing beautifully

Gamora – dark red, dark mask, smallest female, big spot on chest, little bit on toes.  Offset cowlicks in ridge, tiny bonus cowlick on the top of her head, good teeth. Playful, fun, calm, attention getter, love bug

Nebula – dark red, full mask, 3 small spots on chest, little bit on rear. Perfect ridge, good teeth, small hernia that will go away with age. Spunky, goofy, go getter, interested in all new experiences.

Captain Marvel – dark red, full mask, tiny vertical spots, tiny white on rear, largest female. 3 crown ridge, good teeth. Happy, happy, go lucky, willing to do anything I ask, loves attention

Okoye (O Coy) – dark red, full mask, round spot on chest, tiny white on rear. Perfect ridge, good teeth. Curious, confident and courageous, full of adventure

Lookout!!  The Avengers have TEETH and they know how to use them!!  Poor Kona is being mauled and you can tell by the long suffering look on her face that she is pretty much OVER it!! She doesn’t even bother to lay down anymore, she just stands there with her Avengers hanging off of her looking miserable.  I think she is on the verge of putting the hammer down on feeding puppies!!  Can’t say I blame her on that one as it looks REALLY uncomfortable.

Even the trimming of all those little toenail daggers didn’t help much, but it has to be

done much to the dismay of the Avengers.  They enjoy their yummy de-wormer after it though!!  This week we also started on their probiotic supplement to keep their tummies working correctly bnow that they are eating yummy milk replacer and soggy puppy chow. Yum!!  They snorkel in it and make a big huge mess, but Kona kindly cleans them up afterward and they think their momma still loves them.  She does like to play with them and it is great fun to watch!

Such a huge week!!  The Avengers took on the world this week and went OUTSIDE!!  No wet grass, no bugs, no hot sun, no weird noises, no bird attacks, no worm attacks, nothing could hold them back!!  These guys come from LEGENDS!!  They love being outside and have really started developing personalities because of all the new stimuli.

Two more new things in their world are 1) TOYS and 2) LITTER BOX. Toys go everywhere with them now, outside during the day, and back inside at night. Poor toys suffer badly, but it does keep the pups from chewing on each other instead! The litterbox is in their night time digs and they know how to use it!  The point is not only that they keep their room cleaner, but mostly they are learning that there is an appropriate place to go potty.  This will help them learn that there is a correct place to go potty at YOUR house too.  Have you picked the potty spot yet?

They are all becoming their own little selves now!  This week they had to be ALONE for the first time to get their pictures taken.  It is always fun to see how they react to that scary event!  Here’s how it went!!

BOYS:

Thor – dark red, dark brown mask, T spot on chest.  Perfect ridge, good teeth. Curious, attentive, very chill, happy go lucky big galoot.  Dermoid sinus will be removed 7/15 

Hulk – dark red, full mask, huge spot on chest, four white socks. Perfect ridge, good teeth. People, people puppy!!, follows me everywhere, so eager to please, so easy to be around.

GIRLS:

Wasp - dark red, full mask, big spot on chest, black tail.  Perfect ridge, good teeth.  Sweet, gentle, kind, loves hugs. Dermoid sinus removed 7/15

Widow – dark red, full mask, rectangle spot on chest, rear white toes, little white on front.  Perfect ridge, good teeth.  Loves attention, happy go lucky, full of fun, lap lover.  Dermoid sinus removed 7/15

Gamora – dark red, dark mask, big spot on chest, little bit on toes.  Offset cowlicks in ridge, bonus one on head, good teeth. Playful, fun, observant, snuggler

Nebula – dark red, dark mask, 3 small spots on chest, little bit on rear.  Perfect ridge, good teeth. Spunky, goofy, outgoing, interested in all new experiences

Marvel – dark red, dark mask, tiny vertical spots, tiny white on rear.  Perfect ridge, good teeth. Happy, happy, go lucky, willing to do anything I ask, adventurous, loves attention

Okoye (O Coy) – dark red, dark mask, round spot on chest, tiny white on rear. Perfect ridge, good teeth. Curious, playful, fun, full of adventure, go getter 

The transformation is complete!! – The Avengers are PUPPIES!!  They are up off their bellies and the GI Joe crawl has turned into a wobbly courting of chaos.  They rock, then fall, they roll, then fall some more!!  In between, they have discovered each other and how much fun it is to chew on feet, nose, tails and toes.  Lots of tummy rolls, and batting at each other too.  Momma Kona tolerates getting her nose and toes chewed on as well – at least for now when their teeth are not too sharp yet.

What Kona does really appreciate is the dulling of 16 little daggers on 8 little puppies!  Ouch!!  The puppies are not overly fond of what follows when their toe nails get long and sharp – another dreaded toe nail trim!  They wiggle and squirm for a short while and then give up and accept the hug and the trim! 

For a few days, the puppies practice trying out their voices by ‘trilling’.  It is a rather pathetic cross between a growl, a howl, with a bit of a bark thrown in.  Trilling only lasts a few days and then they can growl, bark, and howl with the best of them!! 

The Early Neurological Stimulation or “Super Puppy” exercises are completed so now we just PLAY with the puppies.  They really don’t know the difference because either way they get cuddled and held like babies for a tummy rub.

Last but not least, the Avengers suffered through their first de-worming with that yummy banana tasting liquid.  How do I know it tastes likes bananas? – stuff occurs!!  No worms allowed among the Super Heroes!!

Every day is an adventure here!  The Avengers are starting to become their own little selves!  With names like Hulk, Thor, Gamora, Nebula, Wasp, Marvel, Okoye, and Black Widow they have lots of living to do!!  They can do this all day!!