Advice for Pregnant Dogs About to Have Puppies

Question:  Hi, I am tired of carrying these puppies in my belly, I do not have much energy, when will my puppies be born?
Signed Expectant Mom

Dear Expectant

Hopefully your owner has kept track of when you were bred and knows your due date. Dogs are pregnant for 57 to 65 days, with puppies often being born around 63 days along. If your owner did not know when you were bred they may have taken you to a vet to get a better idea of when your pups will be born. Your owner should have started to feed you puppy food around day 45 and prepared a whelping room with whelping box for you long before your due date.

To know more about when your pups are due your owner might be taking your temperature on a regular basis. They should know your normal temperature, which is often 100 to 102.5 F or 38 to 39 C. When your temperature drops to 97-99 F or 36 to 37 C it means your pups should be born within 24 hours.

Pregnant dogs often not feel like eating on the day the pups are going to be born, or maybe even the day before, and you will probably start to be drawn to the whelping box where you may have a “nesting” behavior, circling and preparing the area. 

Your owner should be keeping a close eye on you, possibly even take time off work around your due date. Your owner should not let you go more than three days past your due date without calling your veterinarian, and should keep your vet's phone number handy at all times.

Take 5% OFF ANY SIZE order at dog.com. Use coupon code CJDG5OFF at checkout.

Question:  Hello, I am a very pregnant dog, at first I did not know what was going on, today I think is the day I am going to have my pups, what can I expect?
Signed Too Excited to Give Birth

Dear Excited

Labor in dogs is a three stage process. In the first stage your temperature drops (as mentioned above) you will probably be restless and may even vomit. 

In the second stage you may shiver or pant. You will feel contractions and may think you need to go outside to go to the bathroom.

Your “water” will break and your contractions will be stronger. Within a short time your pups will be born, one at a time. Your owner should not help but should supervise (sometimes people want to help but pull at the wrong time). Pups are normally presented with one paw just ahead of the other (to keep the shoulders narrow) and the head resting on top. Sometimes they are presented backwards, with the two hind paws. This is okay, but any other delivery presentation is a problem.

Your owner should have your veterinarian's phone number handy in case of whelping problems but in most cases birthing of pups goes smoothly.

Pups are usually born within 2 hours of each other. If your owner knows how many pups you are expecting (an earlier vet exam would have determined this) and more than four hours pass without other pups born and you are expecting more – they need to call the veterinarian. If a dog is having contractions and trying to push a puppy out, for more than 2 hours, with no puppy being born, your owner needs to call the vet immediately.

After the pups are born their placentas will come out, this is actually your “third stage” but sometimes placentas come out between pups. Some dogs will eat their placentas but owners should try to count to make sure all came out.

Hopefully all things will go well for you and your pups.

Advice for Pets who are not Looking After their Offspring

Question:  I am a mother cat. For a while I was not feeling too good, then one day I felt really ill, and after a few hours I had six small versions of myself, apparently they are called kittens. Four of the kittens are doing great, but two are not as big and are not able to get as much of my milk to drink, what can I do?

Signed Worried Mother

Dear Worried Mother

Hopefully your owner will be aware that two of the kittens are not getting enough to eat. Because you have a large litter that is probably the problem although occasionally things like this happen when a kitten has a heart defect or other problem. Your owner needs to start bottle feeding the kittens (they could have a vet check them too). The kittens need to be fed proper kitten milk replacement formula (KMR) not cows milk. They can stay with you otherwise for warmth and bonding.

----

Question:  Howdy, I am a dog who has had puppies. To be honest I don't really like them and often walk away from them. My owner keeps forcing me to be with them, but they hurt when they try to nurse, and I am kind of scared of them. I would really rather have them gone.  What is a dog to do?

Signed Bad Mom

Dear Mom

Not all female dogs want puppies, some want nothing to do with puppies, and do not want to be mothers. Your owner must remove the puppies and look after them. Your owner will need to buy proper milk replacement for the puppies, know as Puppy Milk Replacement (PMR) and start bottle feeding them. Cows milk should not be used. Your owner should also consider having you spayed because, although you may look after your next litter, there is just a good of a chance that you will not.

---

Question:  Hi, I am a first time mother sheep, a ewe. I had twin lambs, but only really want to feed one of them. I kick when the other tries to nurse, I just don't have enough milk for both. What should I do with my other lamb?

Signed, Mom of Twins

Dear Mom of Twins

Sheep, and goats too, will sometimes reject one of their babies, in your case, a lamb. These lambs will start to stand hunched up and eventually die. Often then are getting a little bit to drink, but not enough to survive. The best option is for another ewe to adopt your lamb, as might happen if another ewe gave birth but her lamb died, however not all ewes will accept new lambs, so its best for your owner to start bottle feeding that lamb with special Lamb Milk Replacement Formula. As with the other baby animals, lambs should not have cows milk.

©B Nelson

*Note: It is very important all newborn mammals get their mothers first milk – colostrum. If a mother animal has not allowed her baby to drink at all it is vital the owner contact a veterinarian about getting some colostrum for that newborn (you can milk a sheep or goat for this, but its rather hard to milk a cat or dog).

Further Reading on Bottle Feeding Orphan, or Rejected, Pets

Bottle Feeding Kittens

Bottle Feeding Puppies

Bottle Feeding Lambs

Bottle Feeding Goat Kids

Advice for Dogs who have House Training Problems

Question:  Woof, I am a cute 4 month old Shih Tzu pup who cannot be housebroken. My owner lets me out several times a day, and always gives me treats when they bring me in, why am I not house trained yet? Please help me I do not want to be a bad dog.

Signed, Frustrated Pup

Dear Frustrated Pup

Your owner is to blame, they are not house training you correctly, and some puppies, such as Shih Tzus need extra training. Your owner needs to go out with you every time they put you outside to pee and poo. Your owner needs to reward you immediately after you do your thing outside. By waiting until you come in they have only trained you to come inside, not to do your business outside.  Crate training might be a good idea for your owner to consider.

Question:  Hello, I am a Yorkshire Terrier dog and I am so confused at what I am suppose to be doing. My owner has pads in the house for me to pee and poop on, and sometimes take me outside to use the yard, but sometimes they get mad at me for peeing and pooping inside on other things, why is this?

Signed, Confused

Dear Confused

Your owner's house training method is sending mixed messages. The pee pads are generally a bad idea since they tell dogs that it's okay to pee and poop on carpets, towels, and other things, but the owners expect you to only use the pads, or go outside.  Some dogs simply play with the pads and tear them to shreds!  The pads are okay to use if you are in an apartment up high, and cannot get out to a yard. 

---

Question:  Hi there, I am a very attentive Border Collie puppy, I am very smart, and really want to please my owner, but feel hurt by my owner who hits me every time I mess in the house, what can I do to stop this?

Signed Hurt

Dear Hurt

Border Collies are smart for sure, and quick to learn. Your owner may not realize it but they are rewarding you for messing in the house. Dogs love attention, especially smart dogs. Hitting, yelling, and so forth are, in an odd way, a reward to the dog, plus when it happens after the fact the dog may not even associate it with messing in the house. This is another house training owner error because you should always be watched when indoors - dogs who are supervised, and taken out immediately when they start giving signs (sniffing, circling) do not mess in the house!

---

Question:  Hello, I am a handsome one year old Pit Bull terrier mix, and for some reason I pee on everything. My owner is not at all happy about this, I was fully house trained until recently, but not I cannot seem to stop the need to urinate on everything, inside, and out.

Signed, Messy

Dear Messy

If you are a male dog, and are not neutered, this is probably because of your hormones. This is common as male dogs mature and can start feeling the urge to leave their scent everywhere they go. Another concern might be a health issue. This would be if you are female, or are a neutered male dog, or even an intact male dog. If you have a bladder infection, or other urinary tract problem, you would feel the need to urinate quite often.  Your owner should take a urine sample to the veterinarian to check for urinary tract infections or problems.

©Brenda Nelson

Further Reading for Dog Owners

How to House Train a Puppy

Why Pee Pee Pads may be a Bad Idea

What is a Pit Bull Terrier Dog?

Coprophagia - Dogs who Eat Poop