Usually I start temp taking on day 57 to chart for the whole week leading up to 63. However I started my bitch this morning and she was 36.5 and tonight she is 36.9, this is some deviation from the average temp on last years chart. She is expecting more this time around could she be in whelp??  I’m panicking as I want them to be viable and so am concerned, she is showing other signs , straining to number two, not eating her usual food , lethargic, belly dropped, swollen vulva and now the temp. Has anyone else had experience with toy bitches whelping this early !

JeanSW has lots of experience of breeding toy breeds & I'm sure she has mentioned in the past about puppies being viable from 56 days.

One if my dogs was born by elective CS when it became obvious all was not right with the bitch by day 58. When the puppies were delivered it was obvious they were full term & he, his sisters & one brother are still with us some 11 years & they are border collies

Thank you for your response , that has reassured me . I feel better now since she’s fallen asleep now however slightly uncomfortable, Temp has risen again and we are nearing the end of day 57 so hoping she will keep them cooking for a few days !!

The gestation period for a bitch depends on when the eggs implant in the endometrium

Like all mammals this doesn't happen on the day of mating but can be several days later so this is where the difference in length of gestation comes into play.

The smaller the dog the shorter the gestation period possibly because the fertilized egg has a shorter distance to travel to the endometrium.

I know from experience that gestation in sheep varies from 138 to 159 days ! & from breed to breed. I check my ewes daily from when the rams are put in with them & remove the ewes as soon as I know they have been mated & note the day/night this has occurred so delivery dates can be worked out depending on breed & previous delivery dates. Not quite as precise as breeding dogs, but it's just as essential.

Off topic

The ewes are also numbered visibly to make it easier to sort out prior to delivery. They carry two electronic ear tags as well which I use to record breeding information as well as complying with the law. You dog breeders usually have to cope with one birth at a time much easier

Breeding sheep sounds fairly good in comparison she had me up all night I’m barely sleeping. She vomited and shook but then nothing, so I’m thinking she may hold on to them for a few days fingers crossed, the longer the better, I couldn’t imagine breeding more than one at a time. Thank god I don’t have sheep

Annabelle, my bitches regularly whelp on day 56, perfectly viable pups with fully developed lungs. And I never bother with temperature taking as I only need to look at their faces to "know."  I'm sure your bitch will be fine.  Just keep an eye out for inertia.  Again, I see it in their eyes.

She’s picked up slightly today so I’m hoping she still has at least a few days in her, I feel you with the temp. I’m thinking of binning it altogether, my only reason is to try and avoid uterine inertia , however if she passes day 63 and nothing I’ll step into action at that point , temp taking is stressing me out !!

> temp taking is stressing me out

I have to admit, if I was due, and you kept sticking something up my bum....  I would growl!!

I have since stopped temp taking, my bitch is getting annoyed now. I’m heeding. Your advice and looking  for old fashioned signs. I’m sure she’ll let me know when she’s ready :)

I had one toy litter where the bitch went into labour day 54, delivered when day 55 had only just started. All were fine. I've rarely had toy pups born after day 60. After 60 days I start to worry although I have had one bitch whelp at 63 days without problems (but also had one who lost the pups), other than me tearing my hair out. Often they take after their mothers so it's useful to know what day they whelped.

I've had a med/large breed whelp a large litter at 58 days and they were all very well .

She’s Day 59 so out of the woods now thankfully , she’s going to keep us guessing a while longer. Thank you everyone for your advice- goldmali- her mother was a day 64 day whelper and last season my bitch whelped on day 65 so I think being fashionably and stressfully late runs In the family. They all self-whelped though which is a relief.

Me too day 58, and in jut over 2 hours, litter of 9 large pups.

Hi guys , anabelle had her puppies today , first pup got stuck as she’s now , 62 days and sadly didn’t make it . We now have one girl and one boy. I’m absolutely heartbroken about his pup. Beacutiful one of a kind colours, have never lost one before and I’m devastated :( but thankfully the other two are thriving x