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Whelping
Whelping
Once the bitch has been mated, treat her as normal (bearing in mind that she is still in season for about a week). Feeding, providing that she is having a balanced diet and exercise, should not change. Pregnancy diagnosis is usually done between three and four weeks, either by palpation by a veterinarian, or ultrasound, or a blood test at 28 days. Give her worming tablets at five weeks. Do not increase her food by much, but when she becomes large and uncomfortable, split her daily meal into two smaller feeds. Visit your vet five to six days before whelping and take a list of questions that you wish answered.
Take the bitch’s temperature (See First Aid Chapter for normal temperature) every morning, it will drop by at least a degree about 48 hours before whelping. Some bitches “nest” long before their pups are born (dig caves, hide under houses, tear up bedding). Settle her into the whelping area so she is familiar with it and she can begin her nesting with newspaper, in the whelping box.
The design and size of the whelping box is important. The floor area needs to be large enough for mum to turn around and stretch out, but not so big that puppies get too far away from her. It needs to be made from materiel that is easily sanitised. The sides should be high enough to keep the puppies inside until about four weeks, with a door flap, so the mum can easily get in and out. A “pig rail”, usually made of dowel (thickness of a broom handle), should be fixed on the inner perimeter of the box, approximately 6cm above the floor. This creates a space so that if a puppy is trapped behind mum, it will not be accidentally squashed. The rails should be removable so that when the puppies start to use them to escape their confines, they can be taken out. Consult the internet for lots of good ideas and designs for whelping boxes or perhaps borrow one from another breeder.
, Whelping is a natural event and if your bitch is managing by herself, resist the temptation to interfere. Once the puppy has been expelled, an experienced bitch will break the membrane, eat the placenta and bite off the umbilical cord herself. She will also lick the new-born and roll it around roughly so that she stimulates the puppy’s breathing. Be prepared for an all-nighter and ask an experienced person to be on hand, if necessary. Keep a written note of the time each pup is born; sex, colour and if the placenta is expelled with the puppy. A retained placenta may cause problems and the vet may need this information.
Sometimes maiden (first time) bitches are totally uninterested in their new-born pups, some are frightened of them, particularly the first one. These bitches probably won’t do the cleaning up themselves and this is where you can step in. Be very careful, encourage, but don’t take over. Put the pup, as it is born, in front of the bitch and encourage her to lick it. If she totally ignores the pup, you may need to tear the membrane from around the mouth yourself. You may also need to tie off the umbilical cord and rub the puppy dry with a towel. Pay attention to the anal and naval areas as rubbing these areas stimulates breathing. At this stage the puppy may give its first puppy squeaks, and the bitch may then pay more attention to it. Put it back with her and see what happens. Try to get it onto a nipple but if your bitch becomes agitated, take it away, and put it in a box with a well-covered hot water bottle, until the whelping is over. Some bitches won’t settle and feed their puppies until all the pups are born. Warmth is very important.
Pups are born about 20 minutes apart (just an average) and it is not at all unusual for there to be a gap of one or two hours, in the middle of a large litter. It is most definitely not a good idea to have spectators at the whelping. When you persuade your bitch to go outside to relieve herself, someone can change the bedding and check the pups. If the whelping is at night, take a torch outside with you, just in case your bitch delivers a puppy outside.
Once the last pup has been born, most bitches are prepared to settle down with the puppies and let them feed. At this stage your new mum might like something herself – try some milk and honey (or glucose) but don’t worry if she doesn’t want any. If your bitch has been eating the placentas and she has had eight puppies, that is quite a tummy full. Once again, the emphasis is on letting the bitch do everything herself. She needs to concentrate on her new litter and not be distracted, so keep your handling to a minimum, and please - NO visitors.
Once the litter is dry, and your bitch stretched out, if the pups are not already suckling try to encourage them by holding them up to a nipple. Sometimes expressing a tiny drop of milk seems to encourage them. The remarkable thing is that in almost all litters, within an hour or two, all puppies seem somehow to have been fed. Their little tummies bulge out, the squeaks and grunts quieten, and the bitch is quite content. If you are not experienced in the breeding process, it would be wise to contact your veterinarian to check the bitch, and your pups, for something that you may have missed. Plan on setting the alarm clock and checking on the puppies every two hours, for the first few nights.
Twenty- four hours after whelping, your bitch should be settled with her pups, and the pups should be feeding and contented. At some stage during this day, record your litter: number of pups, sex, colour, weight, and record anything unusual about the whelping. This could be very important if you mate this bitch again. You will probably have elected to have your bitch examined by a veterinarian. If he will come to your home that is great, if not, make sure that on the way to the clinic your pups are warm. A chilly bin, without the lid and with a warm water bottle wrapped in towels under them, will keep them warm for the journey. Your vet will check for any placentas that have not been expelled, and will check pups for any abnormality, the most common and obvious one being a cleft palate.
If all the pups are crying, it will probably be one of these three causes; they are too hot, too cold, or the bitch has insufficient milk. If only one or two pups are crying, there may be a problem with these individual pups. Do they look the same as the others? Do they feel the same (is their skin just as elastic, do their tummies feel as full?) Are they as eager to drink? Do they drink as long?
Sometimes a smaller pup becomes elbowed out of the way by a bigger pup. This little fellow may need a little help from you for the first few days. Put him onto one of the easily accessible nipples and hold him there while the others fight for the rest; if he drinks well and is contented after his feed, then hunger was his problem. Monitoring all his feeds would be a very good idea. It is not always successful to take the bitch away and put just this one pup on her as many bitches won’t let their milk down until stimulated by the whole litter. If crying persists, it sounds like a job for the Vet.
By the end of the first day, the pups will all be drinking, and their mum will be relaxed and stretching out to let her puppies feed. She will be licking them clean. This licking also stimulates the pups to pass urine and faeces (which is why there will be no puppy mess for you to clear up). If you are hand-rearing a puppy it is important that you do this job by wiping around the anus and genital areas, with some damp cotton wool.
Maintaining a healthy whelping box is also important. Most breeders use a base of newspaper which can be changed daily and synthetic bedding which is designed to stay dry on top and allow urine to be absorbed by the backing. This can be changed daily and washed, it dries quickly if left outside in a sunny spot.
At approximately 4 weeks, weather permitting, puppies benefit from moving out of the whelping box to a fenced area with a suitable, very warm, dry kennel still large enough for mum to continue to feed them. Access to a grassed area, sheltered from wind and rain will enable them to leave the bedding and learn to toilet on the grass.
