Hi

Once my bitch has her first pup will she clean it straight away or will she wait and how long before the puppy feeds from her is it straight away or will it be a few hours or until all puppys are born.
and how will i know all is finished as in all puppys are out.

sorry if this seems daft to you but i want to be prepaired for every thing :co:confused::rolleyes::rolleyes:nfused:

Mark, I know you said that you've got the book of her breed - but did you get "The Book of the Bitch"?   It is very useful to have beside you as she whelps - it would be even better if you could actually watch a bitch whelping - is there anyone near you that could let you have that experience?  

She will probably clean the puppy as soon as it is born - after all, she has to get it out of the sac that it is born in - if she doesnt do it immediately then you must!   I've had a bitch that will immediately let the puppy suckle, others that just concentrate on giving birth and don't suckle the pups until the last one has been born.    

Have you had her scanned?   That gives you an indication of just how many puppies are there - it's not always completely accurate but it is useful.   Otherwise, you have to go by the bitch herself - if she is still restless and not settling completely to nursing the puppies after a couple of hours, then I personally would make a call to the vet - a puppy might be stuck, or inertia might have set in.

Good luck - hope all goes well!

Margot 

Mark, can you add any further questions on the same topic to your existing thread which is still active.

Thanks