my bitch is expecting puppies in the first week of Feb, i have just bought a whelping box, my friend said it was an  unnecessary expense what do you think? Do tyou think I have wasted my money? 

Hi there, my bitch is due next week and i have to say i,like you have had this debate with myself. I am not likely to breed again so wasnt sure how much to invest.
Well in the run up we have been through, plastic beds, crates and cardboard boxes but give it a couple of days and i talk myself out of it! So, hang the expense i went on ebay and bought a disposable whelping box at teh correct size for my breed with pig rails and vet bed, DONE!
I dont know your circumstances but if you are as nervous as i am about the big day, having the wrong equipment is not an option, there is enough to worry about.
so in conclusion, you havent wasted your money, you have bought peace of mind!!!! x

Don't quite see what you mean -you can't do WITHOUT a whelping box! So the choice is either to buy one or build one. I don't see the logic in the disposable cardboard ones because they cost more to buy than the wood will if you build your own. But for anything other than a toy breed a whelping box with pig rails is a must.

I agree with Marrianne I want Mum to feel safe and secure in her own little place to care for her puppies rather than how much it cost me to do that .
No whelp box to me would be like having a baby with no cradle or cot! ;)
I use my home made whelp box from birth to the day they leave as hubby made it so that it grows as they grow then we add a run (this is all in my dinng room!!)

when my girl had her pups back in sept my oh made a whelping box from an old kitchen cuboard we added pig rails from wooden poles taken from an old windbreak i bought the pet bed fabric from a local material factory and made my own bedding which was a godsend once the pups came along it doesnt have to be expensive providing you have someone with a bit of diy knowledge and you make sure there are no chewable hazzards on the box you will be fine we then made a puppy pen out of a couple of fireguards 

Whelping box came today! Its huge lol 108x86x56cm!!! I think the medium one would have been a bit too small though  it was 70x70x49cm I think they should make one a bit inbetween medium & Large. 
I was talking to someone about whelping boxes, and they said its better in the long run to get a disposable one, you dont want to risk cross infection if you have another litter and use the same box. No offense to anyone.  Im so excited, Ive got lots of towels and vet bedding & puppy toys :-)
Thank you for all your advice everyone :-)

I've found that to get the right size whelping box you should measure your bitch from nose-tip to the root of her tail, add a couple of inches for luck, and have the box made to that measurement, with a square base. Anything smaller than that will be too small and cramped.

I dare say a rectangular box, but with the same base area as the square box, would be all right too.

Start storing up newspapers. You'll be amazed how many you get through with a litter!

my husband works at Malvern Girls College, and they have loads of newspapers, so he has asked them to keep them for us :-)

I did get a disposable one for Sasha as she was rescued in pup and I never plan to breed with any of mine, so as a one off it can be really handy.  I certainly wouldn't have been without a whelping box, invaluable!.

i agree with the newspaper i started saving mine from when my girl was mated but still ran out and had to ask work collegues and neighbous to let me have there newspapers lol