My Labrador bitch has 4 pups, they're two weeks old.  She is a hopeless mother and wants to be with her pups less and less each day.  We now have to shut her in the whelping box so that she feeds the pups.  She will lie and feed, but will not clean them and will be up and out at the first opportunity.  Thankfully all pups are healthy and putting on good weight - it's just a hard slog and the bitch is utterly fed up.  We shut her in with them at night and she hates it.  Is this unfair of me, or necessary for the pups to feed?  She is not a danger to them, has never shown any aggression to them, just indifference.  What is the earliest anyone has weaned their pups?  I'd like to do it at the earliest opportunity for obvious reasons...

I would definitely not lock her in with the pups. I start weaning my pups at 2 weeks, earliest I've done is 13 days.

Oh bless her - I find that once the pups are a week +, mum does leave the box for a break.  She starts off lying just outside so she can pop back in when needed but gradually gets further away.  Pups don't need constant feeding now, she is almost regulating their mealtimes.

I would never shut a bitch in with her babies.  Sounds to me as if everything is perfectly normal.

My girl wouldnt stay in the box with her pup, she spent most of her time on the sofa with me than in there. I just made sure the pup get regular feeds at first getting up multiple times in the night to tell her to get in there and feed him or bring him out onto the sofa for a feed. It wasn't a problem really as I slept on the sofa by the box the whole time anyway. The first few days I was doing it 2 hourly to make sure he got his feed, after a few days I kept increasing the time length until we got to a point where I didn't need to get up in the night, which for mine didn't take to long he was an easy fat content quiet pup.

We had one, the same one who refused to be interested in poohing them, who tended to want out rather than spend the night in with them.   However, we had them in the living room up to around 3 weeks, so one of us spent the nights in there with them, on the sofa.  That meant a broken night's sleep (which thankfully my sig.other was more able to do than me) with having to get up and let mum in with them when the litter shouted to be fed!   The biggest trouble with her was she'd feed her puppies, and want out where she immediately started moan, moan outside the box, stirring them all up again.    Needless to say she only had the one litter, albeit we kept two, male and female, and the female (who took her Canadian title, as would her brother although he didn't because he really didn't like the ring!) was the one who went on to produce 9 of the best puppies we'd ever had!!

Our whelping box, which consisted of 2 4 X 4 sections, didn't allow for mum to be 'shut in'.   Early days, up to 3 weeks, we used one 4 X 4 section which had a low side so mum could get out, but not the puppies.   After that the original box was moved into the kitchen and a second 4X 4 section attached, which did have a door, but by then, mum wasn't in with them other than to feed up to the point weaning started and after that only in to clean up after they'd  been fed.

By two weeks old, my bitch wants to lie outside the whelping box and only visit them to feed and toilet.  I would not lock her in with the pups...

With my own girls they will stay glued to their pups and needing to be taken out for the first three days. After three days they will more willingly leave the box, and by 5 days lie outside the box, but often lying with pups too.

By a week old they pretty much prefer to lie outside the box, and by two weeks are joining more in family life, popping in regularly to feed them.

By three weeks (sooner if she is happy to share her family) they are in a pen in the kitchen with the rest of the canine family, and Mum is happy for them to pop in and meet them, and only goes in to feed and clean.

At 4 - 5 weeks mien start going outdoors and Mum starts to keep up out of their way (garden bench, and indoors they can't reach her because they are in a puppy pen, she is free to come sand go to them as she prefers, some seem to leave it to me, others are more paws on after 4 weeks, but the whole gang play and interact with pups from 6 weeks, most of the older girls ignore them until then after an initial sniff.

I have had one who was not to keen to clean for first day or two, looking thoroughly disgusted but got the hang of it, but always pulled faces doing it.  she had three litters LOL

Thank you for this info - sounds very similar to my bitch.  I've just started weaning pups as mum is so disinterested in feeding.  All pups seem happy and healthy.  Out of interest, did any of your pups from this bitch suffer any behavioural issues as adult dogs?  I'm concerned pups aren't being taught any of the normal doggy rights and wrongs which a bitch would normally teach her pups.