"The Puppy Parlor"
Our New Maremma Sheepdog Puppy Nursery and Dairy Goat Milking Parlor
In late 2021 we finally completed construction on our brand new "Puppy Parlor" - a combination nursery for our Maremma Sheepdog puppies and a dairy goat milking parlor for our miniature dairy goats. The building is 14' x 30' and located in one of our dairy goat pastures. It has a concrete floor with drains and dairy quality Duramax PVC walls to make it easy to clean, as well as heat and air conditioning for whelping any time of year, in any weather. It is equipped with two large whelping suites consisting of K9 Kennel Store indoor/outdoor runs upgraded with whelping doors and whelping boxes. We installed a Flying Pig professional dog grooming tub and Flying Pig electric grooming table for grooming dogs and puppies, a deep sink for washing milking equipment, two Premier 1 goat milking stands, a refrigerator, a Simple Pulse milking machine, cabinets for storing equipment and supplies and more. Besides the deep sink and grooming tub we also have hot and cold water faucets indoors for cleaning the floors and two hot and cold faucets outdoors for washing equipment and bathing goats. We have multiple Ring Floodlight security cameras outside and Ring Indoor Cameras inside, as well as two large floodlights outside.
Our first litter of puppies to be whelped in the building was Gianna's December 2021 litter. We love the fact that we no longer have to worry about extreme temperatures and that our puppies are safe and sound, while still being raised near goats, chickens and other animals. As the puppies grow they are given access to the outdoor runs via Gun Dog Doors, or taken out into puppy play-yards for some fresh air and goat bonding time, allowing them to see, hear and smell the goats while still being kept safe from sharp hooves. Once the pups are big enough they also have access to the surrounding pastures and are integrated into the herd. Moms are able to come and go to and from the pasture via the whelping doors, which allows them to care for their puppies while still being happy doing their jobs as LGD's.
As our does freshen are brought into the building to be milked in the center area. This setup allows our puppies to be raised in a climate controlled environment that's easily sterilized with our Wyziwash Sanitizer, thus keeping them as healthy and comfortable as possible without sacrificing the vital early socialization with livestock that all LGD puppies need and deserve.
We are still adding improvements to the building and working out exactly how to best use the space but so far it's been a huge improvement in the quality of life and health of our puppies.
Our first litter of puppies to be whelped in the building was Gianna's December 2021 litter. We love the fact that we no longer have to worry about extreme temperatures and that our puppies are safe and sound, while still being raised near goats, chickens and other animals. As the puppies grow they are given access to the outdoor runs via Gun Dog Doors, or taken out into puppy play-yards for some fresh air and goat bonding time, allowing them to see, hear and smell the goats while still being kept safe from sharp hooves. Once the pups are big enough they also have access to the surrounding pastures and are integrated into the herd. Moms are able to come and go to and from the pasture via the whelping doors, which allows them to care for their puppies while still being happy doing their jobs as LGD's.
As our does freshen are brought into the building to be milked in the center area. This setup allows our puppies to be raised in a climate controlled environment that's easily sterilized with our Wyziwash Sanitizer, thus keeping them as healthy and comfortable as possible without sacrificing the vital early socialization with livestock that all LGD puppies need and deserve.
We are still adding improvements to the building and working out exactly how to best use the space but so far it's been a huge improvement in the quality of life and health of our puppies.
Under Construction
Our Puppy Parlor has been an ongoing project and is still a work in progress. First we had a contractor put down the concrete slab, then had a 14 x 30 "garden shed" built by a local builder. We hired an electrician for all the electrical work and a plumber to install the waterworks. Most of the rest of the interior work was done by my son-in-law, David Valenzuela. As my granddaughter Colette says, he really can do anything. We also have an excellent handyman we work with and have used professional installation services on some upgrades. We are still adding and improving things as we go. For more about this project see the blog post below:
