First litter - yikes!

Piratebears

Piratebears

New member
Well - She is pregnant !

Due very soon so just doing some last min research ..... again !

What do you guys do as far as sleeping goes ? our plans are that hubby and I will take 12 hour shifts - hubby during the night,me during the day so that Mum and babies are watched 24 / 7 - we will do this for at least the first 3 / 4 weeks.
At what point do you sleep on watch ? so still stay in the puppy room,but sleep at the same time ? when they are weaning ? or not at all ? (so I can work out shifts times etc)

Also,I'm in the process of writing my puppy contracts - any ideas ? YIKES! its hard !
 
Pipelineozzy

Pipelineozzy

New member
For the first three weeks, I sleep right beside the box, blocking the door so that I know if she gets out and gets back in..as that's the danger zone. She has to step ON me.
I don't allow my bitches to sit to nurse, as that's also a danger zone. Most of mine settle quite nicely at night and you can nap when they do.
 
Windancer

Windancer

New member
Oh boy... I am looking forward to reading these responses....Once you see how the bitch acts, it is very possible she will be one of those very careful ones that steps gingerly around the puppies. Of course accidents happen so expecially with a first time mommie I would be careful. I have some girls that I totally trust. I find they don't sit to nurse till the puppies are older, generally. I have had bitches in the past who would come into the box and literally 'plop' down on the litter, killing several. This is rare. I can usually doze on a couch next to the box, as a puppy can usually 'squeel' when stepped on and you can hear it. Do the best you can. You just can't stare at them 24/7....after all...sometimes you have to get up for 'something' just guage how much you can trust her. I offer food between 2-3 weeks and start wean about 5 weeks..
 
Pipelineozzy

Pipelineozzy

New member
I also start to offer food at about 2 t 3 weeks..depending on litter size..a large litter would be sooner. I don't wean them..I let the mom do it when she wants to.
 
victoria1140

victoria1140

Active member
Best wish's on an easy litter.

Make sure everyone is comfy we had a heater near Jessie our gsd for her and the puppies. Make sure it is a secure area as puppies are quite the little escape artisits and that there are no dangers in the garden for when tou finally let them out there.

Buy plenty of mops and spare buckets, you are going to need them, we fed our pups Weetabix mushed up with some dog food and puppy milk at approx 2 1/2 weeks old. We used plastic cat litter trays as it was easier. Be prepared to have to wash the little varmints as its amazing how much poo and food can stick to them.

We were up every two hours as we had to help Jessie with rearing her pups and then every three hours afterwards. Prepare as much food as possible for the next feed as by the time you are trying to get through pups, avoid piles of poo and pee and still feed them while you just want an overdose of caffeine is an art form in itself.

We got through a washing machine, a dishwasher , 40 litres of bleach and disinfectant, 2 10kg box's of washing powder, 90 dishwasher tablets along with the mountains of puppy food, milk , worming syrup and baby bath shampoo (ultra mild) in the hectic eight weeks we had the pups so start stockpiling now.Puppies are wonderful so long as someone else is doing the clearing up.

By the time they left we needed a holiday and also had to replace the washing machine and dishwasher as they were on their last legs, Also when choosing potential owners try to get them as close as possible as you will need a shoulder to cry on when they finally leave as its a really emotional time.

I wouldn't want to do it again though we had no choice with Jessie though it is better looking back at it . We always check up on our dogs as eventhough we know they are happy we always said if something went wrong even now we would work with the family and try and find another good home if it was required.
 
Windancer

Windancer

New member
another thing you should know....After the bitch whelps, she will be pretty nasty in her rear area, and all bedding will have to be changed at that point. I just put my girls in the bathtub and spray them off on the rear with soap....just be prepared for cleanup.....and you may have to do it a couple more times. depending, as this goes on for 3-4 days...have lots of fresh towels handy....you will be using your washer alot !
 
Pipelineozzy

Pipelineozzy

New member
I actually bum bath mine every day for about a week at least, as I don't like the pups crawling through that smelly stuff. It's CRITICAL to do it if you happen to be blessed with flies (serious, it's gross, but when I worked in a vet clinic..I saw the awful results). The last litter was a c-section, and since her coat was butchered anyway and I knew she was going to lose all that nice coat..I clipped her back end short to help keep her cleaner. Oh, and it stains..everything...even if her tail hits a wall...so have bleach on hand :) It will leave blacky green marks.
 
Sun Valley

Sun Valley

New member
I shave the Mother's belly and up her sides. I also do a sanitary cut and trim the rear and hock feathering's short. I like to use Vet wrap and wrap their tail once labor starts.

LA
 
BluwaterNewfs

BluwaterNewfs

New member
My husband and I take 6 hour shifts at night and then during I will stay with Mom & her pus and he will take care of the other dogs and stuff in the house. We do this till they are are about 3weeks old. I also start to offer puppy mush at about 3-4 weeks old. I let Mom decide when enough is enough usually, at about 8 weeks, she will no longer let nurse at all.
 
Sound Bay Newfs

Sound Bay Newfs

Active member
Mother and pups have to be supervised when they are together to be safe. Having large pig rails in the whelping box can help too. As the pups get older, they are more self sufficient (can eat on their own) so mom is not needed in the box as often.
If you signed a puppy contract from your breeder, you may want to ask her if you can pattern your contract after that one.
 
N

nsmarlis

New member
Well, I was never tempted to breed. If I had been, this thread would have cured me. I actually don't even like to see puppies until they're about 6 wks. old. :lol:
 
Windancer

Windancer

New member
LOL Marlis....that is what I tell people who think they want to breed. Come do a whelp with me first....It is a BIG job...
 
Ginny

Ginny

New member
Expect to be seriously sleep deprived, have red cracked hands from all the cleaning up, and an astronomical water/ laundry bill. I did about 100 loads of wash in 2 weeks- no kidding. My box is a little over 2 ft. high with a door with a gate latch. Jill never tried jumping over it and it was high enough that the pups couldn't get out. Jill figured out how to open the latch so I had to put a snap on it. Also, I had a warming box about 20"X24" with a heating pad in half of the bottom and an adapter for the car cigarette lighter. Jill ended up with a C-section and that came in very handy on the 3 hr. ride home and was a good holding spot for the first few days...
 
Tula

Tula

New member
Wow.....I liked my breeder before I read this thread. I now think he walks on water :)
 
janices

janices

New member
Ginny said:
Expect to be seriously sleep deprived, have red cracked hands from all the cleaning up, and an astronomical water/ laundry bill. I did about 100 loads of wash in 2 weeks- no kidding. My box is a little over 2 ft. high with a door with a gate latch. Jill never tried jumping over it and it was high enough that the pups couldn't get out. Jill figured out how to open the latch so I had to put a snap on it. Also, I had a warming box about 20"X24" with a heating pad in half of the bottom and an adapter for the car cigarette lighter. Jill ended up with a C-section and that came in very handy on the 3 hr. ride home and was a good holding spot for the first few days...
Click to expand...
:lol: I had a washer die. Had to have it replaced.

C-section here too. I watched Brooke extra close for first few days cause it can be different for c-sectioned versus natural birth. They wake up from anesthesia and suddenly have puppies. She settled in nicely but at first it was what is this that suddenly showed up. I also let her nurse puppies until she was ready to stop which was about 8 weeks old when she said no more.
 
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cedarvalleynewfoundlands

cedarvalleynewfoundlands

New member
I find a swifter wet jet indispensible!!!
Another neat little trick is to purchase cheap blankets from the dollar store. A twin size blanket costs about $5 here. I then cut it into 4 pieces. It gives the puppies a nice spot to lie on, is very easy to wash, can be bleached and is very inexpensive.
I also clean the Mom's rear daily for the first week or so. I also always have on hand a Liter bag of Lactated Ringers, 60 CC syringes and butterfly infusion sets in case I have to give sub Q fluids to anyone. I also buy disposable adult incontinence pads from Sams and use them to line the box until the Mom's discharge slows some....makes it really easy and fast to keep clean. In addition, I always have puppy formula and bottles on hand just in case.
I have also started offering the puppies a small amount of formula 30 minutes after they are born. Mom's milk isnt always in by then....or she is busy whelping....and giving them a small amount of formula helps keep their blood sugar from dropping.
It is imperative that the area they are in is warm...but being too warm can be bad too.
If the Mom isnt very attentive, I dont let them have the pups unattended.
Even once the mom is with the pups unattended, I use a baby monitor.
ETA...Oh yes, expect to be VERY sleep deprived that first week. I can only think of a couple times that pups decided to come during the day...its usually the middle of the night....christmas eve...a family wedding or some other inopportune time :)
 
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