The pup who survived against the odds

Johntee was born without the sucking reflex. Whilst his littermates thrived his life hung in the balance for the first 10 days. With his weight having dropped from 6.5 ounces to 4 ounces he was syringe fed every two hours day and night. At the end of 10 days he had finally regained his birth weight and from that moment on he thrived.

At 6 weeks old he was half the weight of his siblings but by 12 weeks he looked like any other dachsie puppy as can be seen in the picture below. This was taken by his new owners.

The following picture shows him fully grown. He has reached the optimum size for a miniature wirehaired dachshund in spite of his slow start. His owners are so proud of him they had this portrait painted to celebrate his first birthday.