Puppy Basics

Typical Litters
Canines (of every breed) have a gestation period of nine (9) weeks — after breeding, it is nine (9) weeks until puppies are ready to be born (“whelped”) although, like humans, sometimes puppies are born either earlier or later than their due date. Beagle litters average three (3) to four (4) pups, while Harrier litters range from eight (8) to fourteen (14) pups.

Although Harriers grow to much bigger adults than Beagles, you can see that the puppies are very similar. Both are born with black and white markings; the brown color develops later, as they grow. As they continue to grow, their black markings may dull and give way to brown- both Lilac, the Harrier mom, and Skye, the Beagle mom (below), had a bright black "saddle" markings when they were younger.  Look at a puppy's parents to guess whether they'll keep their bright markings, or whether their colors will fade as they grow. As they age, you'll also notice their faces fade to white.

On the left is an aerial photo of Harrier pups gathered around the milk trough! Clockwise from top (1o'clock):Cheeky (b), Cherry (b), Chorus (b), Chili (b), Checkmate (d), Chaplin (d), Charger (d), Cheerful (b) On the right is a photo of the pups and their mom, Lilac. 

Beagle litters average three (3) to four (4) pups; in the photo (right) you see Beagle puppies from three different litters! In the photo (below) is a Beagle (Skye) with her pups.

Here's another photo, this time of Tulip and her pups.

There's a lot more to learn about how our puppies grow into show dogs if you'll click here...