ADVICE ON BEING PREPARED FOR THE BIRTH OF PUPPIES

Get a birthing box, put it into a quiet area, take your bitch's temperature, when it drops to below 99
degrees, put her into the room, take a valium and when you wake up you'll have puppies :-)!!!
Seriously, plan for the worst (let the vet know when the time is imminent and know who to contact if
there is a problem and where to go to fix the problem) and hope for the best. Have plenty of warm, dry
towels to help mom dry the pups off (the sooner they get dry the less chance of chilling). Have baskets
with a heating pad in them to place puppies in once they get dry and eat (VERY IMPORTANT THAT
THEY EAT ASAP after birth-- this in when they get the maternal antibodies that will protect them
the early weeks of life) to clear mom's area and allow her to not worry about squashing them when
having the other pups. I have found that if the bitch has a lull in puppies being born (and they will do
that -- have a couple, rest, have a couple more, etc) that you can stimulate her to begin again by
putting a couple of the basket puppies out on her. ***Count placentas*** (afterbirths) make sure
you have as many as there are puppies. Have a first aid supply handy -- alcohol, iodine, sharp scissor
(to cut umbilicals if needed), etc. Usually, puppies are born after 15 minutes of hard contractions
(after the first puppy of course it often takes longer). If she strains hard for more than 60-90
minutes call the vet. Like I mentioned earlier many bitches rest between puppies sometimes as long
as 12 hours (in one of my mom's litters there was 14 hours between the fifth and sixth pup who was
born healthy as can be in fact she was a black-chocolate so we said she got a little too "done" :-)!
Don't freak out if there are hour or so interims between pups so long as there is NO straining.
During these breaks take mom out to pee, offer her food, honey is a good thing -- very calorically
dense with highly cessible energy. If this is her first litter, you have to plan for the fact that she may
not be able to care for the pups or may not know how to. So be prepared to become a surrogate mom --
either have canned bitch's milk on hand or a milk replacer recipe and all the ingredients in the frig.
Remember to keep the puppies warm (90 first week, 85 second week, 80 third week, and room temp
after that) since they cannot regulate their own body temperatures and act like little reptiles in that
their temp is the same as room temp. And you will have to stimulate their urination and defecation by
rubbing the belly and "butt" with a wet, warm cottom ball or rag.And after the whelping consider
taking her to the vet for a shot of oxytocin. It is the hormone that causes uterine contraction as well
as milk let down. Some studies have shown it to reduce the risk of post-whelping complications as
well as increase fertility on the next breeding. These studies are not conclusive but still something to
consider. Dip puppy umbilical stumps in iodine or providone/Betadiene to prevent and umbilical
infections. Be prepared to get nothing done for eight weeks or longer -- puppies are SO cute. And
have an industrial strength washer and dryer to wash all those "litter" box liners (sorry couldn't
resist the pun). And take lots of pix they grow up SO fast. Weigh puppies when they are first born
and periodically thereafter. Puppies that are not gaining weight or individuals that are not gaining as
fast as the others are indicative of problems such as inadequate milk or unequal milk distribution.
You may need to supplement with canned bitch's milk if this is the case. Puppies open their eyes
between 10 and 14 days. Hearing comes shortly thereafter. They start to walk at 3-4 weeks and are
very quickly running about and playing. Puppies should be dewormed at 2 and 6 weeks; with a
deworming at 4 weeks recommended if there are worms present or a history of worms on the
premises. Heartworm prevention in highly endemic areas is recommended as early as 4 weeks
although most wait until 6-8 weeks to start. And finally, lots and lots and lots of attention and kisses.

This article has been reproduced here with the

Permission and Courtesy Rachel Peeples, DVM

rpeeples@planters.net <mailto:rpeeples@planters.net>

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