good luck thinking of you and her, sounds like they are on there way! :) :)

The run's is a good indicator that things are getting close, most of mine have had this before strong labour starts......though not all, good luck for a safe delivery :)

Just a quick one to let you all know, she is going over the top a bit cleaning her rear end and there is a damp patch on the bedding under her bedding, don't know if this is her waters or from all the cleaning she is doing

it may be her waters breaking she could be licking herself getting ready as they do tend to do that, watch out for contractions a ripple effect usually can be seen or felt along the back and she will be pushing as if she is having a big poo.

how long could it last now she is dilated?

she has settled down for a sleep and is shaking a bit but no ripples down her back as yet

U should normally stRt seeing a puppy within 30mins-1 hrs of waters breaking. My bitch kept hVing power naps. Once one pup is born the others should follow within 2 hours if it's larger litter she may take a break half way through but I think I can remember u saying only 4?? If one does get stuck and the sac has broken like my first pup when u see her pushing Gentle tug the puppy whilst lifting it up slightly towards the tAil. Be sure to count all the placentas have come out it may come out with the pup or shortly afterward xxx

O ye and just make sure If u are letting her cut the cords she doesn't do them ultra short otherwise this can cause hernias. My first pup has was verging on the shortness of possible hernias but u cant tell this until while later when they are older.

HELP

so far she has had 4 boys 1 girl

cuts cords and cleans them, but after 4th one was born she is acting as if scared of them and has left them, had 5th one in a corner, cleaned it then ran off.

she wants nothing to do with them now

what do i do???????

1st born at 3.11 and last one at 5.18

5.58 another girl and mum accepting all babies now :-)

another girl at 6,24

Oh wow, lots of puppies... You are doing a sterling job Louise..
Lets hope you can get a couple of hours kip on the sofa now..

she had last 3 on the sofa lol and first 4 on my put up bed lol

Louise well done. Congratulations to both you and lucky
Jean xxx

wow 7 well done done you and lucy xxxx

Ooo well done louise! 7pups! Het instincts will be very strong now and may not want anyone else near her accept u my bitch wasn't acceptant of my other bitch for the first week but now I can't separate them lol she may need whelpi or lactol to help her along her way with milk production may need to top the littlens up too but she should be fine! I'm glad all is well!! No the long road if raising them! I was sleepless and worried about everything for the first 2weeks I'm mire relaxes now! Now enjoy the pups!

Phew!  Glad you've had progress!  I actually got up at 4am to check the computer to make sure you were OK and you were peaceful then!! :)
Just make sure that they're warm 70+ and don't leave her alone.  It's very easy for Mum to sit on a puppy.  You both need waiting on at the moment! :)

Well done!   Glad that mum & babies are safely delivered - will the vet come out and check her over? 

She may well be very nervous for the first few days - discourage the family coming in to see her and the puppies en masse - one at a time with you there, she should be fine.   But keep your other dogs away until she is ready to let them see her babies.

tried moving them all back to other room into whelping box, but mum stressed out and would not go near pup's. but she is fine with them in our living room, got her to be on the floor instead of on our sofa.
taken to vet later will see what they say

BIG BIG THANK YOU TO EVERY ONE FOR ALL YOUR SUPPORT :-)

So much for the Vets prediction of 4 pups eh?  Perhaps he would like the other 3? :)

Louise Well done you and clever Lucky.

What a busy xmas you will be having.

A true dog lover ;-)

If you really can't get her to settle in the other room you will need to bring the whelping box into the living room and create a den.  If the sides aren't high enough placing it under a table so you can drape a large throw over the top will do the trick.

You need to keep the pups out of drafts, do you have a heat pad to put under the Vet bedding(I assume you do have Vet Bed, if not you need to get at least 3 or 4 whelping box size pieces as it is invaluable)?  Pups can move on it well, wet drains through, and it washes and more importantly dries quickly.

You must keep the other dogs out of the room.  I use a baby gate.

What colour are they Loise, as you were unsure if it was likely to be a planned same breed litter.  If I remember rightly if they are the breed I think they are they should be born white.

Also you will need to arrange to find somewhere to BAER hearing test them.  Are you going to get them permanently identified?  I always have my litter ear tattooed, so should, they ever turn up in rescue they cane be traced back to me as their breeder.

very well done to you Louise ..now the fun starts !! Mum is just in shock I would do my best to get her to stay in the room you first prepared with christmas upon us and all that goes with that .

You have now to make sure she doesnt lie on any of the puppies as mums can be very clumsy and just plong themselves down, just a visit to the loo is all it can take . You need to get her to drink plenty dont worry about her eating so much if she isnt interested but she need fluids to get the milk coming , you also need to keep the room at 70 ish degrees (cold puppies can die quickly) which would be easier in the room you prepared. I would put puppies in a box let her see them and then get her to follow you may find you have to be firm as they can act a little silly, then keep everyone else out of the room just you and her for now I am sure she would soon settle as she will be exhausted. Like Brainless I cover my whelp box as they seem to like it dark like a den.

well done... to you and mum xx

HUGE well done to you!
I've been watching and waiting but no useful words so kept at a reading distance!

Good luck with the next part now.

Karen :)

tried moving whelping box, but she just ain't having it, completely freaks out near it, to point she would rather leave pup's then get in it. only place she will settle is on living room floor, she is very happy there and looks after pup's well.

looking at them, i would say they purebred pups, i will get them permanently marked as someone suggested, off to vets later for a check up. and yep we got lots of vet bedding

We have 3 reception rooms so if need be, we will move to another room and leave her in here

well done, how did you find time to update us all?  worth the wait wasnt it!!

Well done, wonderful news that mum and babes are OK. I have been watching this thread closely, but had nothing to add as I have never had a litter myself.

> only place she will settle is on living room floor,

You need to get something under the pups and to contain them as they will be subject to draughts, and very soon pups could get lost/cold.

I have generally found that if you make them stay in the whelping box after they start having pups they will accept it.

If you move the box to where she has the pups now with the bedding she is using it should work.  Is the box big enough, about 4 feet square?

Have you decided on what you will be feedign Mum and weaning pups onto?

You will also need wormer: http://www.hyperdrug.co.uk/Canine-Chemist/departments/16/
Here is the web address for the NDTR http://www.dog-register.co.uk/  hearing test venues can be found here: http://www.britishdalmatianclub.org.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=758&sid=85892a0c514b6765ce1f85bea3a5f49b

you could try getting a large cardboard box from say a electrical shop so that she has some sort of confinement and it lifts her off the floor and if carpeted protects it , if wooden floors then she will need something between the newspaper/vetbed to keep the warmth in and a table as B said earlier over the top covered with a blanket.. Cannot stress enough how keeping them warm is very important around 70 ish deg.
Maybe the whelpbox you were lent brings on some kind of  bad memory for her ? I usually have trouble getting mum out of it <G>

They do get a bit silly so you will have to be firm with her , I would sit in the whelp box with her if she is close and feels confortable with you, just stroke her and talk to her gently, give her some really cold milk works well for her calcium levels when it cold it works faster. remember you have 7 wks to go she is just a bit shocked and confused .
Make sure she is cleaning and toileting the puppies, if you need to ..  use cotton wool balls in  a circular movement .

Sorry Brainless you beat me by 2 min <G>

It is such a relief when the birth is over . What did the vet say?

Roni

Just got back from vets, everything good. and he has seen mums do the same thing and says it is just due to the stress and to try her in there tomorrow. she is doing a fantastic job.

LOL the reason I had time to do updates is she escaped from room when I was heading out to loo and she decided to finish off in my spot on the sofa right next to my laptop

I feed a BARF diet so this is what mum has been eating and pups will be weaned on to BARF too

Congratulations!

Well done you!  :-)

She has now accepted her box where I want her and has settled down nicely and is doing a fantastic job too

Wonderful! Been following your thread with bated breath! Congrats to mum & her 7 - and to you  - you've done great :)

You may find it est to wean them onto complete in addition to BARF as few potential new owners have the knowledge to rear a puppy (where there is no room for mistakes with teh rapid growth) the BARF way properly.

I know this to my cost as a bitch pup I sold was not fed enough protein and bone and was very weedy at 6 months, and lost the bone she had as a baby.  the owner has done her best to rectify this since, but she will never have the full potential of bone she should have had.

Though I plan to wean on BARF when new owners make there choice< I plan on doing the change over from BARF to there selected food my self before they take the pup home.

From experience it is easier to get pups onto BARF from complete than the other way around (lets face it it is more to their taste). 

I would seriously give consideration to having them on complete first with say half their meals BARF. 

You don't want to interrupt their feeding rates at such a crucial time in their lives, the change to a new home is stress enough.

Louise I agree with Brainless.  I'm a natural feeder too but complete does a better job of 'building' puppies for owners who don't take BARF seriously.

I rear my pups on complete after starting them with raw mince.  Over the years I've found that most pet owners, whatever they say to you when they're looking at puppies, are prepared to buy their dog food from a pet shop rather than supermarket but generally are not prepared to do the whole BARF thing.

Once all the other pups have gone to their new homes, then MY puppy is reared on BARF and I only use a complete when I'm travelling and friends/family wouldn't appreciate me appearing on their door step with a bin bag full of raw meat! :)

Fantastic news .. well done to you and your girl. Looking forward to news on how the little ones grow.

K

i too agree with brianless and westcoast ...i also use mince raw with a complete when they get to 4weeks i find they eat so much more and do so so well on it ,then if a new owner wants to use BARF they can and if new owner wants just complete they add a small amount of puppy meat to their dry!.

so glad she has settled in her whelpbox best of luck for the  next few weeks.

Roni

thanks all, will do the mince and complete, from what what you are all saying, it's the best way to go

any way I'm going to start a new topic as One little one not doing as well as the others

looking at them, i would say they purebred pups,
Louise have you seen newborn pups of this breed before?