Hi,

I'm getting my girl scanned tommorrow by a mobile dog scanner the thing is I'm scared its going to be a negative result again she's already had 2 previous phantom pregnancies and this is my last try for a litter of her she had a clear discharge all last week and she has gained a lot of weight and her mamary glands are swollen all this never happened in her phantom pregnancies just some of these signs also her vent area is still swollen she'd be about 6 weeks from last mating I know only the scan can tell if she's pregnant or not but I can't stop being nervous about this any help and reassurance appreciate from any forum members thanks

the best of luck sofie, i was the same when we took our girl last week ,i think it was last week LOL i didnt sleep much at all, when willyour girl be due if she is? our gilr was 28 days so she took from 1st mateing and pups were seen very clear, my girls bobs are swelling and she is still swollen around her flower she is tired more and is eatting very well now weve put her on puppy food now but only her normal amont ,i do hope she is :) plz let me know how you go xxx

Hi white lilly,

she's about 7 weeks from last mating sorry calculated wrong on my first post Im not good at my maths and never was lol I'm pretty sure I felt movement when she was lying on my lap my hand was resting on her belly and I felt little jumps should I be able to feel movements at this stage her last mating was on 21 st october 2010 I'm I just imagining the movements at this time because is it not too early for feeling movements I'm just a nervous wreck just now the scan is later I'm very nervous

good luck Sophie I know how you feel my girl had a phantom in april and we were convinced she was pregnant.  Got her scanned this time and yes she is pregnant due puppies on saturday so we are all excited.  I could have kissed the vet when they said they could see puppies best feeling ever!!!   Hope all goes well for you please keep us posted xx  Tracy

Hi I don't know what size breed you have, (or if it even makes a difference) but in my large breed it is usual to feel pups from about 50 days, may i ask why you have left it so late to scan? She could whelp in as little as 5 days if my calculations are correct? It is very difficult for pups to be seen on a scan when they get bigger.

Hi Emz,

the reason I'm scanning so late is because everything was delayed by the snow and then the scanner had said they couldnt scan because they had a bitch in whelp thanks everyone for the good luck wishes I got 23 rd December 2010 as the due date just wondered Emz how you got the calculation of her due in about 5 days just to let everyone know I got the scan today and we saw at least 4 puppies and shes a small breed I hope everyone else luck and also is she at the stage of too late of reabsorbing now thanks

congratulations , the wait was worth it good luck with your girl xx

I am so pleased for you congratulations you are not that far behind me then lol xxx

hi sofie congrats :) id say shes fine now she shouldnt reabsorb now,busy day then xmas day! :)
she still could go early she could have them from 18th dec ;-) xx

Looks like we are all in for a busy xmas, my girls pups are due 28th Dec.  Good luck to everyone x

what i meant was she could whelp and pups be viable from 18th. Not saying she is due then, but it is possible especially if a toy breed they tend to go earlier. :-)

Thats great news congratulations. My own girl is due on 19th Dec. Can anyone tell me if a large toy breed lol is likely to whelp early. This is my first litter ever . Took a lot of planning and research but i am stressing about everything from heat lamps to heat mats to thermometers not working. I am worse than when i was pregnant with my twins. She was also scanned showing 4 but she felt there may be another 1 or 2 hiding.

> Can anyone tell me if a large toy breed lol is likely to whelp early.

To be fair, any breed can whelp a week early, and pups be perfectly viable.

Although one of my breeds is particularly fond of only going 8 weeks.  ;-)

Out of interest - what thermometer are you using ? we are opting for a heat lamp,one heat pad and we are thinking of using the egg thermometer that they sell in boots for babies as it turns read when above 24 degree's - so we should want it to always be red! lol
I too am panicing about having all the right stuff , very worried about room temp at the moment!

I would also be interested in what thermometer. Last time I used a digital clock that also tells the temperature of the room, but would like something to clip on the whelping box. My bitch is due 29th December and scanner said seven. Excited and hoping for an easy birth. Really hope they don't decide to come Christmas Day as we don't have any help that day. Good luck to all the pups due around the Christmas period.

We use these type
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Indoor-Outdoor-Digital-Thermometer-2-Sensors-Alarm-/320630811002?pt=UK_BOI_Electrical_Test_Measurement_Equipment_ET&hash=item4aa715e97a
You can mount it above the whelping box,drop the one end in the whelping box near where pups are so you get a reading of what they are getting and the other you can use for the room temp.

I know what you mean piratebear my biggest concern was the temp. My thermometer is just a basic digital which reads in c and f. It has a probe which you can place in the box and therefore monitor the temp. I got it from ebay and it was only about £5. Without the heat lamp and the heating on temp isonly 65 f so i put up heat lamp and i am now reading around 75f. If it gets too warm i can move the lamp up to reduce the temp. I have now started worrying that there may be a powercut lol. Her temp is down a degree today so will monitor closely. Her due date is not till sunday. She looks so sad looking up at me with her big brown eyes.

Thanks dancer. Xmas is definately cancelled for us this year but will be worth it. Any idea how many she is having?

Im also worried about the bitches temp - and how to tell this without hurting her

taking the temp doesnt hurt them at all ,just some dogs dont like it! x

I have to admit I have never taken a dogs temp in all these years - but now we are approaching having a litter next year i must get into practice.What thermometers are the best ?

got mine from tesco just a cheap digital 1 cost £5 :-) x

Piratebear we bought 2 cheap ones from chemist but battery kept running out so we bought one from Boots at £10 and it is just for rectal use and has a longer probe. She didnt like it at first but is fine with it now. It also keeps a record of previous temp

> taking the temp doesnt hurt them at all ,just some dogs dont like it! x

Just to make you smile!  I have had difficulty with a bitch and very short seasons.  To cut  a long story short, my vet suggested Premate testing as soon as she was swollen.

When I took her in for her second blood test last week, I was chatting to one of the receptionists, I know them all pretty well, but I guess not all of them get my sense of humour.

She asked how Winnie was.  I said, I'm sure she doesn't even ovulate, her temperature is always the same.

A pause, then I said - you do stick the thermometer in the bitches ear don't you?  I never smiled, just kept a perfectly straight face, while she looked aghast, and I could tell that she didn't know whether to point out my mistake or not. 

LOL jean :-) xx