Hazel is a great mom!

Hazel and George. George is the only dog who has the same markings as his mom.

Hazel after she had the pups.
She looks so tired. For two weeks she would only leave the whelping box to run into the front yard to relieve herself. She would be back in the box in under a minute. She would not even get out to eat. I had to keep her food and water bowl next to the box so she could lean over and eat.

We would let the pups roam around in the kitchen and block them in with a plastic storage container. She would check in on them often.

Here she is nursing the pups at 9 weeks old. She is still trying to nurse the pups and they are 3 months old! She will run out to her "spot" (an area in the back yard) and stand with her legs all spread wide, sort of bracing herself for the pups tugging and sucking. Now they just smell the milk fountains and run away. She looks around, waits a bit and then starts to play with them. She loves to play with her pups.
The pups had an accident the other day in the kitchen. I saw Hazel cleaning up the mess like she used to do when they were very young. I told her to stop and I cleaned up the rest of the mess. I tell her all the time what a great mom she is. I hope she understands what I am telling her.