How to Care For A Pregnant Dog

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

Pregnant dog
thermometer

Step 1

If you suspect any dog of being pregnant, the first thing I will recommend is a vet checkup. Especially if you have no idea as to the stage of pregnancy the female is in. You will need to know about where your female is at to know what special care needs to be given at different times.
Step 2

When your female dog (bitch) is first bred, you number one concern should be that she is kept in as stress free of an environment as possible. It is normal that a female reabsorbs many puppy fetus's early in the pregnancy. Her stress level being kept in check is one way to preserve life. And by early, I am talking before she is even showing physical signs of being pregnant.
Step 3

If the vet has determined that your female is very freshly bred, I would ask about getting her vaccinated. This can be touchy as to when your female was bred so go under advise of your veterinarian.

I personally vaccinate my expectant mama's when they come into a heat cycle which I know ahead of time I will be planning to breed her. This helps protect the puppies once born for up to 8 wks when a puppy's system is better able to process a vaccination and gain better protection. Kind of a 'filling of the gap' let's say.
Step 4

The 2nd thing which is just as important, if not more so, is a proper diet.

Once you know your dog food is a good nutritional choice, you need to know how much to feed.

Do NOT overfeed a newly pregnant dog. This can lead to problems in whelping (giving birth) both in that the puppies can get too large and that the female can build up too much fat around her reproduction organs... both of which can lead to the necessity for a cesarean section.
Step 5

When your female has approximately 3-4 weeks left in her pregnancy, you should start gradually increasing her feed intake. At this stage, the puppies are starting to demand more and more nutritionally from their mother and you need to protect her from becoming underweight.
Step 6

Do NOT feed an extra calcium source despite what you may hear to the contrary. Doing so can place the female at increased risk of eclampsia (milk fever) which can prove fatal very quickly. See my other eHow article on How To Detect Canine Eclampsia. Please don't wait until it's too late, once eclampsia hits, it's too late to start reading about it.
Step 7

A dog's gestation is approximately 62 days (see my article on How To Calculate Your Dog's Due Date here on eHow as well).

When your female is approximately 1/2 way through her gestation, I worm my females. Please get a GOOD wormer like a pyrantel paomate based wormer such as Nemex-2 or ask your vet or a trusted dog breeder for recommendations. I NEVER recommend wormers sold at department stores and the like... they usually sell lower quality wormers. Don't worry, buying quality elsewhere should not cost you more money...

** I personally despise Hartz products.

Not only is this vital for the dam (mother) but for her puppies as well. It is not safe to worm a dog past the halfway point in her gestation (unless administered by a veterinarian!) and as round worms can be passed from dam to puppies very easily via the milk, you want to ensure the puppies get as clean a slate to begin with as possible.
Step 8

I worm the female again the day the puppies are born for the same reason. Puppies do not get their first worming until 1 week old and then with a puppy safe pyrantel paomate based wormer. (I prefer Nemex-2 myself)
Step 9

Watch for physical signs of impending labor.
This could include some/all or even none of the following:

"Hollowing out" of the hip area. That area just inside the hip bone. A dog's 'waistline' if you will. This will appear to dip in. This means that your girl has 'dropped' and puppies are getting into place for birth. Start watching for puppies usually within the week.

A 'dropped' belly. The belly may look like it is sagging more than it had been. Same as above.

Your female may even all of a sudden look like she isn't even pregnant and you could panic and look for pups only to realize that no, she hasn't had them yet. Again, they are just getting into position. The dam may be built in such a way that the puppies appear hidden at this stage. (check vulva for sloppy signs of giving birth to reassure yourself)

Take your girl's temperature rectally. A normal dog's temp is around 101. If her temp goes down to around 97-98 she is ready NOW. Don't leave her side. It may toy with you at around 99-100 and bounce up and down. This is normal but still indication that labor is impending within a couple days time.
WARNING: Some females will drop from a normal temp to labor temp within a matter of minutes! I had one girl start giving birth just 15 minutes after having a normal temp taken so do not take a normal temp as a safe zone... it's not. It only means if you get a low temp, it's definitely pending very soon.
If her temp goes up, please consult with a vet to ask advice in the case she develops an infection, etc that may require his/her intervention.

NESTING: Your girl may start frantically digging at covers, hiding or acting determined to spend more time in one spot than another. This is her trying to decide where to give birth. Means her hormones are kicking in. The same hormones that will trigger the actual labor.

SHIVERING: Many dogs will shiver during labor. This is actually them having contractions. Do not take this sign lightly. On the flip side, it could be eclampsia but if she is otherwise calm or just nesty, it's likely labor. Eclampsia at this stage is not as common as after the puppies are born.

SPACING OUT: Your girl may get this far away look in her eye. This, also, is a sign she's in labor.

IRRITABILITY: Don't be surprised if she gets a little testy. Nerves can kick in for her just as it can for people going into labor. Be kind, do not reprimand her but instead do what you can to ease her stress.

NEEDINESS: You may find
Step 10

Once your female starts having her puppies, she should not go longer than an hour in hard labor. If she does, confer with your vet over the phone. (take good notes on temps, times, etc for your vet's sake and yours)

Once you feel your female is done whelping, it is best if your able to take her and the puppies in for an exam to be sure nobody else is lurking inside waiting to come out and rule out any problems and get those puppies checked over good.

Comments

randallsy said

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on 11/6/2009 thank you for this article information you just teach me the proper care for may pregnant labrador many thanks!!!!

on 8/19/2009 Oh this would have been handy had I know my little rescue was pregnant! She was so malnurished, she only had one SPLAT but we had been over feeding her to get some weight on, so the puppy was normal. Quite a surprise at 5am! LOL

DivaB said

on 12/19/2008 Great article!! I wish there were an easier way for us to know when too much nutrition was enough too...but even then it is better to give more than to not give enough and run into the low birth rates, under developed lungs, and the mortaity rate jumping. Thanks for sharing your information with everyone!!