First time Whelping

[pavman]

Astra will be in season end Feb and as a three year old we are going to welp our first litter, I have a stud dog lined up in a field trial champ and hope to find good shooting homes for any pups, I have a rough idea of what I need but any tips would be most helpful.

[fortune]

When you've got your pups try to find GOOD homes for them straight away and get deposits up front.

Advertising costs alot and you get all sorts of AR**O**S ring up about them. People get all cuddly about puppies and then suddenly back out or dissapear leaving you with puppies to look after and feed.

It's a great experience but beware our bitch had three on her own and then went all the early hours straining. First thing next morning we took her into the vet and after a few more hours trying he delivered the next three by cesarean. BIG BIG vets bills.

By the time you take out all of the costs of food, jabs and other things you dont make money out of it. We kept a bitch and the stud dogs owner kept a bitch. The rest we sold for 300 each. I know where they all are and the people that bought them. They are all in good housing conditions and all except one are used in the field. You need a good out building as it's a messy bussines and a LOT of TIME to look after them properly.

[Cranfield]

Deciding where she is going to have the litter is the first thing, it should be somewhere she is use to being.

My Springer lived outside in a large run with a 5star kennel, but my wife wanted her to have her pups in the house.

The bitch (Springer, not wife) was so edgy when I brought her in, that I insisted she have them in the kennel.

Everything was fine, although I have had two litters from other bitches indoors..

 

Another thing is I have always used is a "birthing box" as the bloke who recommended the idea called it.

It should be large enough for the bitch to be able to lay fully stretched, with an area in front of her for the pups.

The sides should be about a foot high, so she can get in and out easily, but the pups can't.

She has got to be able to get away from them sometimes.

 

I have always had the bitch checked out with the Vet first, just as a precaution, but there have never been any problems.

 

I would also recommend a Summer litter.

We had one litter in late November and it was murder trying to get the pups in and out with the cold and bad weather.

 

I'm sure NTTF will have some tips.

[al4x]

The first one is always a bit suck it and see, we had a border bitch who just wouldn't push, she had one pup fine then the second ok but while being left quiet got a bit carried away with cleaning it and actually bit its tail and leg off which was pretty awful, then she just wouldn't push left half an hour and rushed her to the vets on the way she had a far bigger pup dead then we sat for an hour with the last with the vet dosing her up to try and get the straining going and just before the caesarian the last one came.

Eventually she turned into a great mum but it wasn't a great experience. Compared to the jack russel we had before her that just had a basket and popped them out it was traumatic. As Cranfield says somewhere they are happy and not threatened is ideal, if its inside so much the better as its never a bad thing keeping the pups warm. All you need to do is keep it quiet but check her regularly and when they have been produced make sure they are all feeding fine. Any problems get her to the vet sooner rather than later, of course you may be one of the lucky ones and just come down to a mum and litter of pups that has been produced overnight

[new to the flock]

The three main things that you need are;

 

1) your vets home number so that if there are complications you can contact her/him at anytime.

 

2) a whelpinb box such as Cranfield described, however add a 4 inch wide x 1 inch thick rail all around the interior 5 inches above floor level. This keeps any pup from getting squished accidently by the Astra when she lays down. This is the main death of puppies in the first 2 to 3 weeks of their lives.

 

3) lots and lots of newspaper.

 

NTTF

[Cranfield]

I didn't mention how you have to boil water and tear up bed sheets, because I couldn't remember if that was for whelping, or a Red Indian attack.

[pavman]

The three main things that you need are;

 

1) your vets home number so that if there are complications you can contact her/him at anytime.

 

2) a whelpinb box such as Cranfield described, however add a 4 inch wide x 1 inch thick rail all around the interior 5 inches above floor level. This keeps any pup from getting squished accidently by the Astra when she lays down. This is the main death of puppies in the first 2 to 3 weeks of their lives.

 

3) lots and lots of newspaper.

 

NTTF

 

 

NTTF do you have enough info to pin a thread on this if you feel its a good subject for reference

[v-max]

Hello as stated with welping box.Find good stud hip & eye tested which i think you have.I always right off 2 pups 1 as stud fee & the other for pup-food/flea-stuff/worm-stuff/advertizing etc.Go to your local harbro & get lamb-lac powder milk cheap tesco wheata-bix & i like beta puppy food to bring them up.If the bitch out side use a baby-monitor to listen & count the days from mating 63days whelp.Plenty paper as said by NTTF & check there feet as the odd pee etc can crack them but get the Ultra-violet from harbro too to spray them & the bitch will do most 90% of work in the 1st 10days you only need do paper.

[gdunc]

Fitting a 'shelf' or running rods along the sides of the whelping box is a definate requirement and top advice. You should be able to get hold of the big blue rolls of paper from somewhere (my work uses them in dispensers for drying hands etc.) which should be cheaper than newspapers and easier to spread out and to tidy up.

[gav]

do a google seaech for disposable whelping box . there made of a very strong cardboard they do have a lid if the bitch is nervy and they come with rails to stop her laying on any . i found it to be excellent use once then burn

 

 

never use an old whelping box because of infection to the new pups.

 

 

good luck its great fun

[potshot]

Whelping your Bitch

 

Pre-mating

Assess bitch's weight at least one month before the start of her heat. If she is overweight, decrease her daily ration by l/3rd; if underweight, increase the daily ration by 1/3rd. Fat bitches are less fertile than slim ones and, in the event of problems during delivery; it is far safer to perform a caesarean on a slim bitch!

 

Worm the bitch for round and tapeworm.

 

Ensure a full booster vaccination has been given within the last 6 months, so that the bitch will pass on the puppy protection against Distemper, Hepatitis, Parvovirus and Leptospirosis via her milk.

 

Treat the bitch against ecto-parasites - particularly lice.

 

Post-mating

 

0-4 weeks:

Maintain a normal level of feeding and keep up the bitch's exercise. Puppies at this stage are less than the size of a walnut!

 

4 weeks:

Your Vet will be able to feel whether your bitch is in pup. Worm your bitch again. Worming during pregnancy is important, as it kills worms which lie dormant in the non-pregnant bitch, but which become activated by the hormones released by the pregnant bitch.

 

6 weeks:

Increase the bitch's daily ration by a third and feed as 2 meals, morning and evening. Start the bitch on the food, which you have decided to give her for her lactation. A high-protein food (23-24%) is desirable.

 

7 weeks:

Worm your bitch again. Check her ears for ear-mites (these can be passed on to the puppies) and treat her if necessary with drops from your Vet. Move her to the planned whelping accommodation. See Special note 2.

 

8 weeks:

Remember that, although the gestation period for a bitch is 63 days, it is not uncommon for them to whelp several days early, so keep a close eye on your bitch during her final week.

 

Post-whelping

 

Day 2:

Removal of dewclaws and docking, where appropriate, should be performed. If done correctly, these operations cause minimal stress to the puppy. Remember, only veterinary surgeons are allowed to dock.

 

3 weeks:

Trim puppies' claws in order to minimise the excoriation of the bitch's undercarriage. Human nail clippers are ideal. Remove just the claw tips. Apply udder cream to the bitch's undercarriage daily, if sore.

 

Remove the whelping box, leaving just a slightly raised bed, so that the puppies can explore. An area of wood shavings close to the bed area provides an ideal place for the puppies to urinate and defaecate, as the shavings absorb moisture and keep the puppies clean. It also teaches them to keep their bed clean.

 

Worm the puppies and the bitch. Start feeding the puppies. Use a shallow dish with enough space for all the pups to feed from it at once. There are several good, complete puppy foods on the market, on which pups do very well.

 

4 weeks:

Trim puppies claws again. Make sure that the bitch can escape from the puppies when she wishes to; a raised bed is ideal. Allow the puppies four meals daily.

 

5 weeks:

Trim puppies' claws again. Increase the amount of food offered to the pups at each meal. Take the bitch away from the puppies for several hours at a time, but always leave her in with the pups at night. Worm the pups and the bitch again.

 

 

6 weeks:

Increase the amount of food offered to the pups at each meal. Keep the bitch away from the pups, only letting her back if she is very full of milk, usually necessary once every 24 to 48 hours. Increase the bitch's exercise; this will help her milk dry up.

 

8 weeks:

Increase the amount of food offered to the pups at each meal. Worm the pups again. Start vaccinations - see your Vet.

 

1. Special note on feeding the bitch

Immediately after whelping, offer the bitch a small meal; we favour raw egg and milk. Once the bitch has rested, offer her a meal of the food you have decided to use. The bitch should now be fed three times daily and will require three times her normal amount of food. If you have chosen a pelleted feed, this may be fed ad-lib. Ensure there is a good supply of fresh water, as your bitch will drink 3 to 4 times her usual amount.

 

2. Special note on the whelping accommodation

Ideally, the whelping accommodation should consist of an insulated building about 6' square, with a. concrete floor. The whelping box needs to be 4' square for retrievers and 3'6" square for spaniels and must have an internal 'creep' rail 3" high and 3" from the sides. A heat lamp should be suspended above the whelping box, in such a manner that its height may be adjusted. Vet-bed provides the ideal bedding, as it is warm, keeps the pups dry whilst all moisture drains through to the under-layer and is machine-washable and quick drying. An external, concrete run of at least 8' square provides a suitable play area for the pups.

 

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There is an excellent book called "Book of the Bitch", ISBN 1 85054 100 0 published by Henston written by Kay and White, which contains some excellent advice and guidance.

 

+++

 

IMHO disposable (cardboard) whelping boxes (abt £60 incl P&P ) are very expensive and useless if the cardboard gets wet, for instance, if your are whelping in winter. Far better a purpose built fibre glass or plastic like this one for about £100 which can be used again and again. I have personal interest in these particular boxes but it is the one I got when I sent back the cardboard one that was IMO no way up to the job.

Edited January 19, 2008 by potshot

[lurcherboy]

I have seen the voluptuous bitch and I know that a good covering, like the one you have in line, will result in pukka pups that need owners that know what they are doing.

 

I wish I had room in my home

 

 

LB

[busdennis]

edit

Edited March 25, 2011 by busdennis