Ok,I have 4 dogs, 3 of the four are neutred, 1 is pregnant and due anytime now really! Over the last week I have been trying to separate my pregnant bitch and get her using the whelping box. Problem is shes point blank refusing to leave the others! I tried locking her in the spare room last night (with me of course) just so she will be used to the whelping box but she spent an hour clawing the door, crying but I gave up in the end and let her out because she sarted jumping up at the handle!

Sh ran straight down to the other dogs got n the basket with them after greeting them and went to sleep.

Over the past week I have been using 2 dog gates and slowly makingthe gap between them bigger. This hasnt helped as she just sits by them wimpering. Normally see the for of them sleep in my room, but I want her in the spare room just so she and the pups have there private time, so I have been making my others sleep down stairs and bonnie sleeps up stairs.

Any advice on what I can do! I dont want her distressed but I obviously cant let her have pups in the other dogs beds (they all have there own baskets but insist on sharing lol) esspecially when they are first born!

I was considering moving the whelping box to the living room (just for her to have the pups and putting them upstairs after shes had them and feels she wants more privacy) and getting the travel cages from the shed and putting my other dogs on them at the other side of the living room so she may feel a little more calmer if there all together like. But in saying that I dont know whether that wuld be a good idea!

The only time she'll separate from them is when Im walking them and thats because shes refusing to walk!

I found that my bitches will only go into the whelping box when they are actually in labour, or the first pup has arrived. Until then she will feel far happier with her family, other dogs included. Don't try to force the issue, she will do what is right by her standards. You will probably find that she may even let the others into the whelping box with her once the pups have arrived, or she may tryto kill any of them that go anywhere near the whelping room ;-) So long as she knows where the box is I would leave well alone for now.

I never separate my bitches from their companions.  I have had them refuse to come away from their fellows until the first pup is about to be born, so don't push it, though more often once first stage labour is well under way they will stay in the whelping box.

As long as in the last fortnight they know where the box is and are encouraged to visit it every day so it isn't strange to them I let them carry on as normal, being watchful.

Same here, my girls stay together right to the point that she begins whelping, then after that they are happy to stay on their own with the pups.

Mine prefer the company of the others before and after having the pups. One bitch would actually cry if the others left their position outside the whelping box. She much preferred knowing that her companions were still around and that she wasn't on her own even though I was with her. My last litter one of the dogs refused to go up to bed with my husband and would sleep alongside the whelping box with the mother and her pups and myself. The mother was quite happy having her around. Everyone of them is different and as long as she is comfortable having her companions around I wouldn't force the issue.

Yes, I agree with the others, my girls are happy to stay with the 'gang' right up till they have their pups.  Generally at the first sign of anything happening the others leave - the boys find it particularly scary :-)  Some bitches want the gang to stay away, at least for a day or two, others are happy to have them around as long as they aren't too close.  I'd never leave other dogs with the mum and babies though, just in case.  After our first litter I kept everyone out but one of my boys shot under the bed whilst Sophie was having a wee and never moved all night.  When he got up in the morning Sophie was surprised, but after that let both boys in when I was there and they didn't have to leave for the second litter.  I'm more reluctant with girls as they often want to steal each others babes!  When Rosie had pups a few months ago her mother Lexie stayed with her whilst the pups were born, was a great help in cleaning pups and Rosie and I'm sure was a support for her.  When Lexie had her own pups though, she didn't want Rosie's help, only mine.  They tend to sort themselves out.  When two unrelated bitches had pups, they both tried to steal the others pups!  There was a huge competition as to who the best mother was....so they were kept separate.

Same as LindyLou.  I have a multi dog household, and mine like to be with their pals. 

It all gets sorted once labour starts.  :-)

I have a small bitch like this, she even refused to give birth when she was separated from the others. I solved it by putting a large puppy pen around the whelping box so that she was both on her own and not at the same time.

My large bitches would kill any of the other large dogs if they were near them during the last few weeks of pregnancy, the birth and the first few weeks. There is no way on earth they would accept their normal friends. But interestingly, when I have large pups, after only a couple of days I usually find both toydogs and cats sharing the whelping box with the mother, all perfectly happy! It's like they don't count. My 3 kg toy bitch helped my 22 kg large bitch rear her pups last time (she washed them, played with them when older etc), and continued to treat them like her own pups until they were many times her own size. Mum was quite happy to have a baby sitter!

> and continued to treat them like her own pups until they were many times her own size. Mum was quite happy to have a baby sitter!

:-)  How lovely.  I'm guessing then, that your large breed girls, just don't see the little ones as a threat.  Nature is wonderful, and dogs are pretty darn clever.