Our girl is now at hopefully Day 14-ish after first mating. 

She just did something really weird - she was digging in her bed (as she often does to make it more comfortable to lie down in, or so she thinks), when she stopped digging and just peed (on her bed)!!! 

I have no idea what this is about, she has never done this before.  She last went out for a pee 3 hrs ago, and is usually fine much longer than that - and she wasn't peeing near a door, or a way to get outside, it was in the middle of digging around in her bed - and she hadn't requested to go out.

Could this be anything at all to do with impending pregnancy??  We could be around the time of implantation...?  Just wondering if anyone else has had any weird behaviours happening and if this could mean anything, or if it's a total coincidence and weird one-off!

I'd put my money on the "weird one-off", I'm afraid. 
Get happy when she starts some morning sickness in a week or so. 
This is her first pregnancy, right?

Maybe others will be able to tell you more...   
Naturally, after having followed you from home, on the boat, and throughout the mating, we are REALLY HOPING that she is pregnant!!

I think it might just be one of those weird phenoms too. My girl is 20 days post 1st mating and has been begging for food pretty much from 2nd mating, is far more demanding of hugs and cuddles and needs no encouragement to eat her meals....she certainly thinks she's feeding the 5000....shall soon be able to find out one way or the other.

Fingers crossed for you x

I really hope yours doesn't have 5000 puppies, that might be a crisis(!). 

My girl is a pig anyway, so unless she dramatically loses her appetite, I don't think I'll notice any increase in it(!). 

She is very demanding of hugs and cuddles, but she tends to be like that anyway, so again, it's hard to tell! 

I've been a bit undecided on the subject of "how much exercise to give", as I've read some conflicting advice.  Some stuff online says to limit exercise around the time of implantation (now) to be sure it happens.  The stud dog owner (also an experienced breeder) said not to change anything and to exercise as normal until she starts to get big around 5 weeks.  (She even said to keep going to group training classes until then, but I've decided not to do that, due to the slight risk of the excitement levels being a form of stress for her.)

I have no probs exercising as normal, but for my girl, this is very fast and a lot of running.  She's not a dog which will just trot along near me, she is racing up and down - and I am continuing to practise long distance retrieves with her as usual.  I'm just not sure if all these people who say 'exercise as normal, don't change anything', have dogs which don't typically race about anyway, so it's not a big deal to continue as usual. 

But I've searched back through previous answers to this subject on Champdogs and a lot of people do seem to have high energy dogs and just run them as usual through the first part of pregnancy. 

I have lots of different books, which are useful at different points (different books seem to go into more detail on different subjects!), and the one I like for the mating and pregnancy side of things is 'The Technique of Breeding Better Dogs' by Dieter Fleig - someone on here recommended it months ago.  This book says: "In the first four weeks of the gestation period, there is no need to worry about the tiny embryos.  Allow the bitch plenty of space to move around, let her have plenty of exercise, and do not increase her normal ration of food.  Pregnancy is not an illness; in the wild the daily struggle for existence goes on unaltered....At around five and a half weeks, there is a bulge behind the rib cage and a clearly discernible swelling of the whole body... When the bitch begins to show such obvious signs or pregnancy, then it is time for her to start to take things more slowly.  By this, I mean the bitch should no longer exercise alongside a bicycle, go out with the guns, jump over hurdles, or do any other kind of very active sport." 

I am kind of flinching watching her run about everywhere, but maybe I should just chill!?

We have slowed ours down if that helps?

My other 2 girls are very, very rough and tumble whereas this girl will try to get involved and usually ends up worse off when the other 2 - one of which happens to be her own daughter - gang up on her instead so we have made the conscious decision not to let her get too involved. We tend not to do a lot of road walks as we have access to our own field but even so, we are choosing to walk around it rather than play ball or frisbee. I can't even split the group and take them separately as my breed tends to scream the place down if half the pack are out for a walk and the other half left behind, regardless of who goes first/second/which pairing etc.

My boy has had to come back a week earlier than expected and so its bang on time for my youngest's season. As he has no chance, he hasn't eaten since he came back on sunday night and so Princess Pushy has helped herself to two of his meals when he was preoccupied. I won't actually be upping her food until a) I have her scanned and pregnancy confirmed b) until we are about 5 weeks in. Even then it won't be a huge increase as we RAW feed. She is getting the off tit bit but I am a right mean cow when it comes to treats etc so its something novel for her and a little strange for me that I am giving in!

I know of that feeling where you just want to wrap them in cotton wool and tell everyone to give her a wide berth - 'pregnant princess coming through' but I try to keep things are normal as possible. Although the husband is told to tone down his loud whacky outbursts and not to jump around and excite them unnecessarily - He might be a top notch security guy to the rest of the world but I'm married to a 33 year old 4 year old :)

> <br />I am kind of flinching watching her run about everywhere, but maybe I should just chill!?

Top advise ;-) otherwise you are going to drive yourself mad.

> She even said to keep going to group training classes until then,

Personally, no chance id do this as there are some people who think nothing of taking dogs with kennel cough etc (mainly because they don't what it is) to places like this.

> When the bitch begins to show such obvious signs or pregnancy, then it is time for her to start to take things more slowly.

My friends flatcoat was making snow angels at 8 1/2 weeks ........

Sit back and enjoy :)

Okey, dokey, so the concensus is that sprinting around is ok?  I'm not doing any jumping, I can limit that... It's just that she will be climbing the walls and miserable and rough housing with my others loads, if I don't give her enough exercise. 

I am avoiding other dogs, but I tend to do that anyway on walks because I never know what they are like, and I prefer to find somewhere quiet and do some training.

I have been reading just about everywhere that we must be careful for about two weeks following implantation, as that is when all the internal organs are forming and therefore the time when birth defects are most likely to occur.  I've started keeping the females at home for those two weeks.  I didn't used to be aware of this, but after even reading it in "The Book of the Bitch", I thought maybe I should take it seriously.  So I don't know whether rough and tumble until the pregnancy starts to show is the way to go.  I certainly won't be doing that.

BTW, that someone on here who recommended the book of Dieter Fleig months ago was, uh, moi.  It's been my bible for years and years.  

It's a great book, so thanks for the recommendation!!  Although it does say that normal exercise is fine until she gets too big for it, at 5wks...It says - in the wild the dog would be running about, catching prey...

'Implantation' seems to vary from as early as Day 15 in some books I read, to Day 20 to 21 in other books I read.  I'm not sure who has it right... but if you're going to be sure, you'd be restricting exercise from Day 15, not 20. 

The Book of the Bitch says to be careful about exposure to toxins and environmental crap especially from 3.5wks (the start of implantation - their idea of when it starts, anyway) to 5wks - for the reason you give - but it doesn't advise restricting exercise as part of this. 

If I had a small breed or a slower-paced dog, I wouldn't have any problems and would just take them for a walk as normal.  I'm just not sure about the running and the energy levels.  Would be good to hear from other people with large gundog breeds... what do you do?

I'm careful during those two weeks or so, and then I go regularly (every day) with the pregnant female for a fairly sprightly walk on the leash for about 30 minutes straight.  On pavement.  As a matter of fact, I go to my garden center, because there are very few dogs who go there, and anyhow, I go out into their nursery of plants, far away from the shop itself (where the customers are).  We just walk up and down the "aisles", and actually it's not bad.  And it is a fairly "clean" environment, without having to confront other dogs.  Naturally now that Nimue has her puppies, she doesn't accompany us at the moment, but I still prefer to go there (instead of to the park or the woods) so that my dogs are less likely to pick up anything or bring it home on their feet.  When we get home, I carry each dog from the car directly to the sink and wash their feet before putting them down in the house.  I suppose this would be a little difficult with a "big gun dog"! 

Have you seen the Debbie Jensen pregnancy calendar? The one I was using is now out of date but the information is quite good. I have since found an updated version on the borzoi club page but I don't find it as detailed as the first version - even though they are both very similar.

I haven't taken my girl out to anywhere over populated and tend to stick to the field for exercise. I have also read varying opinions as to when the eggs implant and the duration. Suejaw mentioned it was around day 17. The Jensen calendar suggests days 11 to 13 and the borzoi club's version suggests day 19! If it is the latter then my girl should be implanting around about  now but we have been careful for well over a week now as one of my previous posts suggested (remember the tumble involving her daughter).

Apparently she should be nearing the morning sickness phase...I am awaiting it with baited breath! We are day 20 post 1st mating and 18 post 2nd.

I haven't heard of the Debbie Jensen calendar, but I just googled it - and on her site it says "The Dam can exercise and play as normal in the first month of pregnancy"...

I am using some fields which no one else uses as well, although I do walk on a busy foot path to get there, but I don't let her off to sniff around till we're away from that area.

Gosh, I hope the eggs don't implant days 11 to 13 because then I'm too late to curtail her exercise if I decide to!  Although everything I read which is in print (rather than advice online from individuals) says not to worry and to continue as usual. 

Nimue, I would probably do exactly something like you are if I had a smaller breed whose exercise it was easier to curtail.  In one of the previous Champdogs posts on exercise in pregnancy which I found when I did a search, someone said they'd run their dog in a working test at 5 weeks pregnant and she went on to have a fine litter, and exercise is really important for creating healthy puppies (or something). 

What is the advice for women?  I don't think women are advised to stop running during early pregnancy, only later on?

Any other active large breed owners want to weigh in on this one, as I'm really not sure what to do and if I am going to limit it, I probably should about now (Day 14).

This is going to sound silly but again in South Asian cultures women aren't allowed to do any heavy lifting and my sister, who lives here in the UK, has been told not to even hoover as her dyson is too heavy. This being said however, poorer women will go out and work - washing floors on hands and knees, carrying water, out in the fields etc...I think it is all down to what your body is used to.

Paula Radcliff was still running the equivalent of mini marathons up to 7 months in to her pregnancy. I wouldn't run to catch the bus! Bearing this in mind - it would be silly of me to start running through the early stages of a pregnancy but as her body was already accustomed to it, she was fine to carry on. Its most likely the same with dogs. A pampered pooch probably wouldn't be able to sustain a litter if suddenly thrust out to fend for herself whereas as street dogs are more hardened and used to the lifestyle and will manage to keep themselves and a litter sustained in the leanest of times.

If your girl is used to running then I would generally let her carry on as usual and just err on the side of mild caution. You want a happy, content pregnant momma not one who thinks mating has resulted in everything becoming a bore :)

Ok cool, I've also done some research in some FB groups I'm in and the concensus there seems to be that everything should continue as usual - some people even took their dogs out shooting with them for the first 5 weeks(!). 

I will definitely make sure we don't do more than usual, and maybe I'll do a bit less, but not stop it altogether.

We are on Day 15 today and I've noticed some white-ish discharge - not dripping out of her, and not very much, just a bit on her vulva before she cleaned herself.  The stud owner said this was an excellent sign, and so do many of my books(!). 

I also found this in one book: "Some females may become coprographic, this is, eating faeces, either their own or other dogs.’ (or people’s?)" - we did have the weird poo-eating incident a few days ago!

Fingers crossed!

The usual  advice with humams is carry in as normal .for Paula Radcliffe running is.normal.for us more usual.people.even running for a bus is unusual ! Can't comment on dogs as I don't breed but could see it being similar

I wouldn't let her rough house at all right now. If she's let off lead I wouldn't want her with the others charging about or even picking anything up. What about lead road walks for the next few days?

Why?!

You want to keep her stress and injury and healthy right now. Rough housing can cause injuries and its just not worth the risk. Easier to keep her calm and safe for this week. If for some reason she doesn't take you'll be left wondering if it was rough play, infection etc which caused it. Just play safe after all the hard work and worry you've gone through to get this far.

She's not doing any rough play or rough housing?? 

I've got a bunch of excellent books (thanks to recommendations from this site and others), and *none* of them say to restrict exercise in early pregnancy or to worry about implantation.  If even one did, I'd give it some thought, but none of them do - and several say to continue as usual.  As I was advised by the stud dog owner, who is a very experienced breeder, and as the majority of people in the FB groups I'm in, also do.

Being reasonably well exercised is important for stress relief, and I definitely don't want a stressed and angsty pregnant dog because she's just getting lead walks...

Sorry misread your previous post, your girl would rough house and climb walls without the right exercise.
It was the repro vet who said to me keep them calm around implantation time and stress free. For instance if your dog hates loud bangs like gunshot or fireworks you need to prevent her from hearing these sounds. Eating things she shouldn't could cause Infection. After my girl missing twice before she took I did everything the repro vet advised and that was keeping her calm. She was on lead walks only, didn't leave the house over the few days of implantation as didn't want to risk anything upsetting her. So she played in the garden over that period. She's a menace for eating anything poo like or animal carcus hence why she was kept on a lead as wasn't leaving anything to chance. While every bitch is different and my girl is high energy she coped well being lead walked. I let her dictate how far she wanted to go though.

She's not rough housing at the moment probably because she is getting enough exercise outside...

I totally get keeping them calm and not stressing them out & Im trying to do that - but zero exercise is kind of opposed to keeping them calm and not stressing them, for this girl anyway. It would achieve the opposite.

She's already eaten a poo - and that was ON lead(!) - so not sure I'm avoiding that kind of thing happening either.

And when implantation is, depends on who you go by - some of the books I'm reading say it is around Day 13, some say Day 15 or 18, and some say Day 20-21. That's a very long time for no exercise and staying at home, for an active dog.

PS Just to add - if she doesn't get enough exercise, she will run zoomies in loops around the garden, with tail tucked between her back legs - and she will also rough house with one of my others, and zoom and leap on her, then run off again, so unless I keep her on lead even in the garden, and isolated in the house, I'm not going to avoid her running in any way by limiting her exercise/walks...

If she doesn't take, I will think it was far more to do with the stress of the ferry and travel to the stud affecting ovulation, than because she was exercised early on.

Not saying don't exercise. The first two attempts I didn't change anything. She picked up poo and cattle afterbirth etc, who knows whether that could have affected her and we had fireworks going off too, she barks like crazy at them. Its anyone's guess so when the repro vet gave advice on the third attempt I wasn't going to ignore him. The previous incidents may not of had anything to do with it, but I went belt and braces.
I think you need to do what's right for your girl and if that means off lead exercise then so be it. I would be more inclined to take her alone and somewhere quiet though.

I do take her alone and somewhere quiet, and we don't meet other dogs. 

I hate this not-knowing... I don't see how we could have missed her though, because the first mating was before she'd ovulated going by progesterone (so we know we definitely were not too late), and the 2nd mating was 3 days after the 1st.  About 3-4 days after the 2nd mating, she really looked to have finished her season. So I don't see how we can have been too early either... It's only if she didn't ovulate or something weird like that happened, that we would have missed, I think. 

Hmmmmm..... dum dee dum dee dum.... yawn....waiting... yawn...

Try to relax and look forward to the birth of your puppies, bitches have been managing ok for a very long time and most of them nowadays will be fine, your stress might do more harm to your bitch than letting her act as usual. Most bitches seem to know when they need to be princessy and take less exercise, pale and/or mucus strings at 15 days is a good sign, my mentor used to say it meant a big litter but it just usually means that they are pregnant, keep us updated

Thx, cool - I'm not stressed really, this is my normal obsessive self

While you are obsessing, do remember what it says in all the books:  Most dogs DO get pregnant! 
That's what I tell myself, since I obsess just as much as you do! 

Oh good, we can obsess together and bore everyone else.  Only you've got your puppies and I haven't yet. 

They're in there!

I think you need to take a chill pill use common sense and don't allow rough housing, continue normal exercise as long as its not exhausting. Sensible walks rather than manic ball chasing or leaping about. Bitches need to keep fit its better for them when whelping if they are fit. I had a lab once who swam in the sea every day including the morning she whelped (8 healthy pups born with no intervention needed from anyone 1st litter) She swam all her life and just carried on while pregnant. The collies at the farm I grew up on worked up to a day or so before whelping and popped pups out easily. I think the big thing here is to continue with whatever she has been used to. Most will tell you when they want to cut the exercise down.
Having pups is a normal activity. They are not ill or hurt in any way. Good sense and a calm environment is what's needed. You will worry yourself into a state and she will pick up on it Rabid, and that could cause more harm than a little too much exercise. You have what will seem like the longest weeks in the world ahead of you yet so relax and get on with life while you can. Once pups arrive you will be tied to the house for weeks, sleep deprived and up to your neck in poo and piddles !! Then for the next **** years you will be constantly wondering how your babies are and  have a chill run through your heart when a puppy owner rings and you fear bad news (Think 10 - 13 years from now !) You will cry when they are born, when they open their eyes, when the leave for new homes, and again with owners when they set of over the bridge.
Just settle down, wait to see if she's in pup (If I were you I would have her scanned if only to stop the "Is she .... Isn't she headache" one trip to the vet should not worry her too much and if there is a good litter then at 28 days something should be easily visible to the most inexperienced vet). Don't increase her food till at least 5 -6 weeks. By 7 - 8 weeks you can begin to lead walk if she is carrying a big litter. By 8 - 9 weeks she will dictate the pace (mine still want an hours walk in the morning at 8 weeks...I restrict it to lead walks and begin to shorten them by 7 weeks ).
Analysing every breath she takes is the road to madness and stress for you both.
Good luck I hope she is in pup and I hope all goes well for you.
Tomorrow is supposed to be sunny again, go out in the garden and do a bit of sun worshiping
Aileen

About scanning:  I firmly decide each time NOT to scan!  I mean, what for, if 10 days later you can probably already see that a tummy is forming?  And yet......and yet....that "Is she-Isn't she" see-saw is just torture, not only for me, but also for the people who have reserved and are just dying to know. 

I'd say go for it, especially if this is your first litter ever.  Just seeing those fetuses on the screen is an experience not to be missed.  Make an appointment already now as the first patient that day.  No patients before you.  Go in first and ask them if there have been any contagious diseases already brought in that morning (emergencies?). Don't sit in the waiting room (wait in the car, if possible),  don't walk her around outdoors where other dogs walk and pee while waiting for their turn, don't let her drink from any water bowl the vet may have put down for his customers (a practice I cannot begin to understand!), be sure the examination table has been sterilised, wash her feet when you get home (I wouldn't use sterilising stuff - no chemicals please!), just wash them well so that she doesn't lick anything off them.  Or use doggie socks???  Don't forget - after all that - to ask them to give you some of the "photos" to take home.  You'll be glad you did.  Day 28 is the day to aim for, not before that.  I've made scans up to day 32 or so, and they were fine.

Well, we are 3 weeks post mating  and I have arranged for the scanner to come to me...the nail biting continues.

I scan for one simple reason - if she is, to continue to pander to her whims and odd food begging, if she isn't,  to move on and get back to normal. I see no point in planning for a pregnancy that isn't happening and upping food, buying a new whelping box, worming her daily and buying extra food supplies when she could go back to rough housing and tumbling around.

I know the scan only shows that the bitch is pregnant or isn't at the time of the scan and that things might still not work out but I would prefer to know if I need to get back into normal routines sooner rather than later.

I don't think I'd feel able to go back to normal even if the scan showed nothing - according to some of these books, many is the breeder who was told there was nothing in there, only for something to come out at whelping time!  Maybe only a puppy or two, but still something...

I also don't think that scanning is going to set my mind at rest - I will then worry about her absorbing them or losing them, after that.

So sadly for me, I think I'm just going to watch her and see.  At the moment the signs are quite good - she's very sleepy during the day and there is very occasional and slight white discharge - it's not always there, and it doesn't drip - just sometimes I can see a bit on her vulva.  She is a very slim and fit girl and sometimes I do look at her in disbelief that she can be pregnant - even though I know she wouldn't be showing yet at 2 weeks!  But hopefully I will see the puppies all the sooner...

At the moment, I am mostly freaked about pesticides and whether anywhere I'm walking has been sprayed - I live in the country with lots of fields around.

Good luck for your scan gsdowner....

At the moment, I am mostly freaked about pesticides and whether anywhere I'm walking has been sprayed - I live in the country with lots of fields around.

Pesticides are bad enough, herbicides are even worse.  Wash her feet when you get home. 

I also don't think that scanning is going to set my mind at rest - I will then worry about her absorbing them or losing them, after that.


You know, I am a worrier too.  But don't forget that the NORMAL thing is NOT losing or resorbing the embryos or anything else.  Nature WANTS the pregnancy to succeed.  It's SUPPOSED to succeed, not go wrong.  I know there are so many things which CAN go wrong, but don't forget:  mostly they don't.  You've got to hang onto that, because otherwise you will spoil for yourself what could and should be a wonderful experience.  Just wait until you can put her on her back next to you on the sofa and stroke her tummy and feel and watch the puppies move and kick! 

You'll want to have a vet you trust on alert when the time comes, and if you have an experienced breeder on call or even with you (!), that will be very valuable and make you feel a WHOLE lot better.  The birth is ALWAYS stressful leading up to the emergence of the puppies themselves, because it is just so mysterious.  Each birth is different from the one before!  But usually it is just wonderful.  Like Christmas!  You get to unwrap one present after the next!  Be of good cheer! 

I am going to take the advice of Merlot and try to relish what might be my last few weeks of peace and time and quiet :)

My new puppies are now over two weeks old, and so far they have barely made a peep!  They seem incredibly satisfied and are gaining well.  Those first few weeks are almost my favorite.  It's peaceful, and I can just pamper Mum! 
I can see the writing on the wall, though, as with newly opened eyes, the five babies are starting to notice each other and are trying to get up on their legs.  It's the beginning of the end!