Hi, Can someone please tell me I am with my bitch who at the moment has 4 boys and 1 girl all very healthy,  I am unsure if she has finished, last pup came approx 30 mins ago but the second to last one came with no bag and there was no placenta.

I have rang the vet (Who is about to ban me from ringing) and he said this was fine everything that hasn't come should come at the end.  I am just wonderin if this is right because originally he told me to make sure the placenta came before each pup.?

Thank you for any advice given

So glad to hear everything has been going well for you and your girl! Have been following your previous thread, recognizing myself very much. I think we all start to worry at that stage, before everything gets started.
You will usually find that the bitch settles down with her pups, looking relaxed and contented,when the last pup has been born. You might have missed a placenta, they are very good at quickly eating them, when we think they are just cleaning themselfs. Anyway, it might still come out on its own. Otherwise, there is no need to worry now. If you can get your regular vet to check on her later today, he will give her an injection of Oxytocin to help her push out any remaining placentas, if needed.  Good luck and congrats to you and your girl.

Thank you, we are now at 4 boys and 3 girls!!  All perfect and healthy!  I think that may be it now just does look a lot more settled although her breathing has picked up quite a bit.

I am so proud of my dog she has been excellent, we worked well together, helped each other. But she done the hard stuff!!

Well done Emmalou.  I was just about to reply to your other post to ask how things were. :-)

Glad everything went well.

Once they are here the panicky feeling will pass slightly.I 100% hate the just before and the delivery , I am fine once they are here. :-)

Like most will do, I recommend never leaving the pups unattended except for the quickest piddle on record for the first 2 weeks. This time is vital. 

Good luck.

We now have another little girl!!  The panicky feeling has definately passed and I have to say I don't think no amount of reading or research prepared me for this.  It is truly amazing.  I still am not sure if she is finished though!!

No I don't think any amount of reading does.

I was terrifed beinf honest. When the first one arrived I was hit by this huge feeling of responsibility, inexperience and the realism of just how much this bitch is depending on me..  I never slept for 2 weeks I think.  I nearly made myself ill.

Hopefully you won't be as bad.

I did panic when I saw this bubble and she kept sitting on it and looked like she was thinking "I'm too posh to push!!" I did shamefully ring the vet straight away and he just accused me of not being prepared and made me feel even worse, then had a go at me for being in the same room as her and I was making everything worse!!

So those reassuring words from my vet made me feel so much better!!! (Sarcasm there by the way!!!!)

Once again a HUGE thank you to eveyrone on this site who has taken the time to respond to me I appreciate it immensly!!

Well we are back to the panting so maybe I will be adding a final total!!

So glad everything has been going well Emma :)  When my Daisy had her litter earlier this year we were also missing a placenta, thankfully it appeared 5 hours after the last puppy so no Vet intervention was needed :)  Talking of Vets, yours sounds a complete ass :(

What's your final total then Emma- 4 of each?  Congratulations by the way :-)

Stacey x

How exciting.  And well done - to you and your dog  :-)

At the moment the total stands at 4 handsome boys and 4 Gorgeous girls but there is a chnace she is still going?

If she continues to pant, but no straining, don't panic, it's perfectly normal.....my girls pant for about 24 hours after whelping, my vet said it is normal.

Congratulations and well done to you both.

Hi EmmaLou, well done to you and your girl....have been following your other post without comment :) with fingers crossed for you....Teri has such a wonderful calming influence over us...dont know how she does it..

You all have made me feel calm and at ease and most importantly not hesitant to ask any question, whereas my vet was so unhelpful,  Im still very upset over it.

Aw, bless you Kay - have just picked up some good vibes from a very special Lab lady ;)

Teri x

Way to go EmmaLou - and you're still compusmentus (sp) :D

Sounds like you and mum between you have done a grand job - don't worry about the vet's attitude (particularly as it wasn't your own) - they were probably thumbing through a leaflet on whelping between your calls :rolleyes: whereas you'd done your homework ;) 

I know you'll be physically, mentally and emotionally drained but welcome to the twilight zone - you'll be in that state for the next couple of weeks listening to every sqeek and contented sigh and sleep won't feature much for you (but hey, I'll have someone to talk to!)  They are sooo worth it!

Continued good luck and best wishes,
go cuddle some ickle 'uns for me,

Teri :)

Vets are a nightmare at times and Godsend others.

Mines always said to leave the bitch alone. I never ever do . I stay the whole time.  

Good luck.  You won't be able to talk about the breed of puppies but you can certainly ask away as the days go on about anything to do with the bitch or puppies. :-)

Vets seem to vary so much.  I think the bottom line is that some are better than others!  Mine feels the same way as me luckily.  She told me to stay with my girl all the way through, and keep a very close eye.  She told me the warning signs of problems, and when I would need to call her.  She told me to do the same as what I felt I wanted to do (and what I used to do when I bred cats), which is to be there, and to reassure her, but to let her do it all herself, unless there are problems.  Obviously the only way you can deal with problems is to notice them!  God knows how you're meant to do that if you're not even with the dog!  I wouldn't dream of leaving her to do it alone.  After all, we wouldn't want to give birth alone would we?! 

well done!!! :-)

In the summer when mine had her litter I was still panicking inside when the 10th came out, thankfully my dad was there and very calm. 

What an arse your vet is.

Sorry I would mchange my vet!!! 

The only place you should be at whelping if on your knees by the whelping box! 

This just shows that breeding is not most vets area of expertise.

Congrats on the pups.

CONGRATULATIONS!!!

>I did shamefully ring the vet straight away and he just accused me of not being prepared and made me feel even >worse, then had a go at me for being in the same room as her and I was making everything worse!!

Oh what a git!!! Of course you should be there, and it is surely better to ask too much than not enough of your vet. When it all happens it IS overwhelming, especially with a large litter, no matter how prepared you are.

My bitch has just had a beautiful litter of 7 puppies. 

These vets are a waste of space sometimes.  I was with my girl all the way and helping when I felt she needed it.  You could tell she wanted me there for support and reassurance.  I find with large litters as well it is not a good thing for them to eat all the placentas, so I usually discard a couple.

Good luck and enjoy the first few weeks, save some energy for the last hurdle.

Hi Emmalou

Congratulations!!!  and Well Done for sticking it out.   Change vet I would.  What a unproffessional way to behave.  It's a good job that there are so many helpful people on this Forum.

Hope all goes well. 

Im am exhausted!  But WOW this is amazing it really is. & this forum is equally as amazing and everyone on here, thank you all again.  The total remains at 4 Girls 4 Boys all absolutely brilliant and mum.  Speechless, what an experience this is. 

I am definately changing my vet! I have done some homework & am confident I have found one which will more suit my dogs.  I take good care & pride in my dogs & I am not going to let someone (supposedly a professional body), come and mock what I do and how I do it. After it all got going, mum & me were prepared and both thought "right, it was scary at first but now we can do this together" we hit it head on.

Although can someone please advise me, my bitch is still panting and the discharge is now dark brown and looks like quite thick. Does this sound quite the norm..........I did ring my day time vet who said she should be fine but if she had a placenta left then after a week if infected I would see puss? 

I see you and your girl have been doing a great job during the day! Once again big congratulations! Sorry to hear about the way you were treated by the vet. Maybe it was just as well, now you're motivated to change veterinarian. So maybe, if you in the future should be needing the support of a reliable vet, the change has already taken place ;-) .
During the next few days, your bitch will have contractions on and off. It's the uterus slowly shrinking back to normal size, and at the same time getting rid of what's left that needs to be cleared away. You will se a darkish brown discharge for some time yet. You might see a slight rise in temperature , but it should be back to normal within a week. If her temperature rises suddenly, that would be a sign of an ongoing infection. Also if the color and smell of the discharge changes.
But don't worry, I'm sure everything is coming on just fine. A warm towel on her back/tummy might help ease the pain of the contractions. She may also get a bit unsettled when they occur, and start digging in her whelpingbox. That's one of the reasons it's so important not to leave her alone during the first week or two. A pup can very easily get hurt, or even killed, unintentionally, and it can happen very quickly.
Good luck to you, and be sure to make the most of the next seven to eight weeks!
Oh, the smell of a pups mouth! :-)  If that special smell could be put in a bottle and sold, someone would make a fortune.  Maybe it's just me, but that special smell of a puppy-kiss just melts my heart.