Week 9 saw KB's pups first introduced to inflicted pain, they were TATTOOED! (Reference previous post "On The Farm- To Tattoo") The pups survived, KB survived, husband survived, and wife survived. Husband was only bitten once. The NGA form "Application for Registration of Litter" was filled out and mailed with a $7 fee to the NGA. Other than tattooing, it was a normal week. The pups grew a little more, they played, they ran up and down the shortrun, and wife gave them their first milkbones.
Well, we tattooed on Sunday. It took three hours, from 11:30 AM to 2:30 PM. Husband went to the mixing room. He cleaned off the countertop. He then filled out the basic information on the NGA forms. He got the tattoo kit and prepared each set of tongs. In one set of tongs he secured the needle-like pins for the litter registration number to be tattooed in each pup's left ear. In the other set of tongs he secured the needle-like pins to tattoo the first pup's right ear, in this case "67A". The number 6 was for June, the number 7 was for 1997, and A was for the first of eight pups. Husband also set out the ink applicator, poured a cup of alcohol, got a new roll of paper towels, set out the needle-like pins for B through H, and arranged the forms to easily mark each pup's bertillon. He then called for wife.
Wife came out and went to the puppy stall. All eight puppies were stretched out sound asleep. Wife entered the stall and the pups started raising up. About four made their way to the gate. One female was wagging her tail and jumped up on wife. This pup was the first to be tattooed.
Wife brought the first pup to the mixing room (KB followed wife into the mixing room). Wife wiped the pup off, washed her ears with alcohol, dried the ears, washed the pup's feet, and wiped the pup's toenails. Meanwhile husband started marking the first pup's bertillon. The pup was marked all black except for a white spot on her chest and three white toes. All toenails were dark except for the three white toes, these toenails were light. Wife then placed the pup in the double bowl sink with rear feet in one side of the sink
