I've done all my research but I have one question I haven't been able to find the answer to searching on the Internet:

How do I ENSURE my bitch survives the birth of her upcoming litter?

Even the most experienced breeder has bad luck & can loose a bitch before/during/after whelping...THERE ARE NO GUARANTEES....This is why you will not be able to find an answer on the internet!

A good mentor is worth their weight in gold!

although I don't breed with nature and a living being all u can do is learn as much as possible in advance so u can u know what is correct and pick up potential problems , hopefully have someone experienced in breeding to support u .after that it's like us humans and pregnancy we all hope all is well on the day and most times it is .good luck hope u soon have a healthy bitch and pups

> I've done all my research

All the research in the world isn't as helpful as hands on experience.  A mentor is essential.  If you get the opportunity it may well be that you are invited to watch a whelping.  Be prepared for a phone call at 3am though, breeding isn't a 9-5 job!  I studied for years before being foolish enough to breed my first litter. 

You need someone experienced with you when your girl goes into labour.  Someone who will recognise any warning signs that all is not well.  I hope that a vet isn't needed, but do all you can to ensure that your girl is safe.

Good Luck! 

That's because sadly there is no magic thing we can do. Even the most knowledgeable and experienced could possibly lose a bitch.

There are multiple things that could go wrong before, during and after birth. Learning what could go wrong at each stage, how to spot it and what to do is important. Personally I wouldn't totally trust the internet for that research, some of the crap u can find online isn't helpful. When I was considering breeding I got a few books the best by far was the book of the bitch.

Then as others have said mentors. Reading about doing something is one thing, actually doing it can be another. Having someone on hand to help or at the end of the phone for advice for all those stupid little worries or big worries is a massive help. My girls breeder and my friend were massive helps with my first litter despite all the research I had done.

So while lack of knowledge and experience can put a bitch at higher risk and good knowledge and experience can put her in better odds it's still not 100% guarantee all will be well.

Wish u all the best with your girl.

I was speaking to a breeder last weekend and admiring the bitch he had with him. He told me he didn't want to breed her (although she was gorgeous and had a lovely temperament) simply because he thought too much of her - he said he'd never forgive himself if the worst happened and he lost her.

I guess there's always going to be risk even if you do everything right and your bitch is in 100% perfect health. You do what you can to minimise that risk, but the only way you guarantee that a bitch definitely won't die during whelping is to not mate her in the first place.

A mentor sounds like a great idea, someone with experience who knows what warning signs to look out for. And if you aren't confident in your vet's ability to deal with any problems with pregnancy or whelping then definitely find a better vet ASAP.

> And if you aren't confident in your vet's ability to deal with any problems with pregnancy or whelping then definitely find a better vet ASAP.

Defernatly, it's one of the things I like about my current main vet, he seems to have alot of breeders on the books and does his own out of hours (at a very good price too, we played under £500 for our out of hours c section). So I was happy if there was an issue we would be in good hands.

As said, there ARE NO GUARANTEES.   The moment you put your bitch in whelp, you may be risking her life.   You do need a mentor (much as I didn't and had to do it all 'from books' because I was in a new country at the time and the owner of the stud dog, who is probably your best mentor provided he/she is experienced was 12 hours away, by road).    I'd always phone my vet to alert them, when labour begins, in case I need them for a C.Section.   And it's not only the bitch who could need veterinary help ... the puppies could too.

Most pregnancies and whelping go ahead without problems, but you can never rule out the unexpected.   Please think long and hard about doing this!

> we played under £500 for our out of hours c section

OH BOY! WOW!

My last OOH section was over 10 years ago and cost me well in excess of £1,000.

You can not that is the answer over 25 years ago we had our German shepherd bitch at the vets four days in a row at eight weeks gone we knew something was not right but the vets couldn't find anything wrong till the last day when she started fitting it was pre-eclampsia she died on the table while every member of staff fought to save her she wad two and a half years old and had been given STRESS(Showing my age here) through her pregnancy.

Every time since then a pregnant girl sneezes the wrong way they are at the vets

But also to say pre-eclampsia is rare and only the head vet had seen it before the other vets took temperature and checked heart but nothing was obviously wrong with her

How sad corgilover.

I sadly lost my girl and her litter on the 19/12/2018.   Had a feeling something wasn't right, so went straight to the vet, she was day 62 in first stage labour, he told me everything was good and to take her home and let nature take it's course.

Within an hour she stood up, lifted her tail, I thought to produce a pup, she collapsed and died along with her babies, heartbroken/devastated doesn't cover how I'm feeling now, Christmas will be a very quiet affair, I will never forgive myself for mating her, she was only 2.1/2 years old and this would have been her first litter.

I am so sorry Sharon x

Oh Sharon i am so so sorry.. sending lots of love to you x

So sorry to hear this. Xx

What an awful thing to happen, I'm so sorry

So very sorry to hear this sad news.

So sorry, every breeders worst nightmare.

Sharon that is absolutely awful, so very sorry... sending hugs and my thoughts are with you.

SharonM that is so extremely sad, I really feel for you. Do you know what went wrong?

Absolutely no idea, one minute she was just gently panting, stood up, lifted her tail and dropped to the floor.  I will be having words with my vet as I knew something wasn't right, I know my dogs better than them, I'll wait till the New Year then go see them, I'm absolutely heartbroken but also getting angry so no point in seeing my vet now as I don't think I'll be able to be polite to them.

My hearfelt sympathy.

Not knowing must be awful on top of everything else. :(

Oh no Sharon, that must be horrible. :(