While your dog may be used to eating on a schedule normally, your vet may recommend that she have access to food throughout the day. Keep in mind that this may mean that her potty break schedule changes during pregnancy, and she may require more walks than usual. As always, your dog should have constant access to fresh water. Of course, this depends on the dog.
Some pregnant dogs do start to feel lethargic in the early days of pregnancy, so it will be important to decrease the intensity of their exercise. A few leisurely walks around the block or sniff-arounds in the backyard should be enough for her to stretch her legs and ward off muscle soreness. One thing to note about exercise in any trimester is that some of their activities should take place outside. The only exception is within three weeks of the delivery date, when your pup should be separated completely from other dogs.
That said, there are a few times when a visit to the vet will be necessary and helpful:. In general, vets recommend that your dog delivers her litter at home.
This might not be the case for dogs who are at highest risk during delivery, such as French Bulldogs. Your vet may recommend an in-clinic delivery for certain dog breeds, as a cesarean section may be the most appropriate option. But in most cases, your dog can go through the whelping process at home. But, you will want to make the following preparations:. The closer that your dog gets to their expected delivery date, you can start familiarising yourself with the signs of labour.
Here are a few signals that your pregnant dog is in the first stage of labour:. By the time that she reaches the second stage of labour, things should start moving fairly quickly. Your dog will experience a few very strong contractions, and should start whelping within fifteen to twenty minutes of pushing.
Unless a puppy seems to be stuck, both front- and back-facing deliveries are normal. Once all of the puppies have been delivered, your dog will go into the third and final stage of labour. In this stage, she will deliver all remaining placenta and fluid, and start cleaning and guiding her puppies to begin nursing.
Large gaps between puppies, non-clear discharge, and a delivery lasting longer than 24 hours are all signs that you should call your vet. Once your dog has had their litter of puppies, you might decide to desex your dog to prevent future pregnancies. Vets can do this within a few weeks after the current litter has stopped nursing.
Keep in mind that dogs can still get pregnant when they are nursing a litter. In this article, we started with a very simple question: How long are dogs pregnant?
Within those nine weeks, there are so many things to consider, including exercise, diet, behavioural changes, and of course, preparation for the delivery. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Health Health. How long are dogs pregnant before a vet can confirm the pregnancy?
What are the different milestones of dog pregnancy? Each trimester has some key milestones that Dog Owners should be aware of: Trimester one: This is the first three weeks of pregnancy, when the embryos are just barely beginning to develop.
You may not notice obvious signs of pregnancy until the end of this trimester, but your dog will undergo some subtle changes as her body prepares for the rest of the pregnancy. Trimester two: Weeks four through six are marked by major physical and behavioural changes in a pregnant dog.
At this point, if the mother dog will allow it, you can get the puppies used to your presence. Socializing them at an early age can help ensure that they fit well into a household. If you notice that one of your puppies is smaller or has less energy than the others, consult your veterinarian.
Puppies should not be taken away from their mother and sent to their new homes too quickly, as they learn very important social rules and behavior from their mother and siblings.
Puppies should not be separated from their mother if they are younger than 8 weeks old. Wait until they are 10 weeks old so they will have had the maximum benefit of social interaction with their mother and littermates.
Once the puppies are 3 to 4 weeks old, you can begin the weaning process by giving them access to puppy food. You can mix dry kibble with water or canned puppy food to make it easier for them to eat. They should still have constant access to the mother, as she will continue to nurse them. Over the next few weeks, they will rely more and more on puppy food rather than nursing. Most dogs will wean their puppies by 5 to 6 weeks of age.
Contact your veterinarian to ask for their recommendation regarding when the puppies should first be examined. They may want to see them right away to evaluate for cleft palates, umbilical hernias, and other health concerns, or they may advise you to wait until they are a bit older. Many veterinarians recommend deworming at regular intervals starting at 2 to 4 weeks of age, and vaccinating at 6 weeks of age.
Home Diseases A-Z. Published: July 09, Here are some important considerations to keep your dog and her puppies healthy and happy. Is There a Pregnancy Test for Dogs? What to Feed Pregnant Dogs Pregnant dogs should be transitioned to a higher-calorie diet at four weeks of gestation about a month into their pregnancy. Health Considerations for Pregnant Dogs It is recommended that you have a fresh stool sample checked by your veterinarian, as intestinal parasites can be spread to the puppies both in utero in the womb and during nursing.
First Stage of Dog Labor: Start of Contractions The first stage is defined as cervix relaxation and the start of intermittent contractions. Second Stage of Dog Labor: Stronger Contractions and Birth The second stage of labor begins with stronger, more frequent uterine contractions that eventually lead to the birth of a puppy. The average litter size varies widely depending on the breed. Small breed dogs typically have one to five puppies. Issues to Watch for After Your Dog Gives Birth Here are some things to expect and what to watch for following the birth of the puppies.
Vaginal Discharge The vaginal discharge may last in small amounts for up to eight weeks after the puppies are born. Fever It is normal for mother dogs to have a fever greater than Metritis Inflamed Uterus Metritis, or inflammation of the uterus , can occur when the placenta is retained or some form of trauma occurred during delivery.
Eclampsia Drop in Blood Calcium Levels Eclampsia may occur during the first three weeks after giving birth and is caused by inability of the mother to keep up with the calcium demand of lactation. Mastitis Infected Breast Tissue Mastitis , or inflammation of the breast tissue, occurs when the breasts become hard, red, and painful due to infection. Postpartum Care Here are the steps you should know for postpartum care, nutrition, and nursing.
Keep Your Dog on a High-Calorie Diet Your dog should be kept on a higher calorie pregnancy or puppy diet for as long as she is lactating nursing her puppies. Create a Private Space for Your Dog and the Puppies Keep the mother dog and her puppies in a clean, quiet, low-traffic area of the house.
Monitor Nursing Newborn puppies should be nursing every one to two hours, so your dog will likely be with them constantly for the first week or two.
Medications and vaccines should be avoided while your dog is lactating nursing. You should also ask your veterinarian what to do in the event of an emergency near the time of expected labor and set up a plan with your family and pet sitter. This is a good time to discuss planning on whether a normal birth or cesarean may need to be considered and scheduled in advance.
If during the exam your veterinarian determines that your dog is already pregnant, and if the pregnancy is an accident, this is also a good time to discuss taking precautions in the future, such as spaying , to prevent any more surprise litters.
Her abdomen will increase in size and may sway a little as she walks. At the very end of the pregnancy, you might even be able to see or feel the puppies moving around inside the mother. By this time, you want to prepare yourself and your dog for whelping, or puppy birthing.
The best way to do this is to set up a whelping box. Whelping boxes offer a safe, warm, draft-free, easily cleaned location for your dog to have her puppies. The whelping box should be easy for the mother, but not the puppies, to get in and out of. Your dog may prefer to have it in a quiet area of the house but in an area that you can have easy access.
Once you have purchased or built your whelping box, take some time to get your dog accustomed to it. If this is your first time breeding your dog, talk to your veterinarian about your role during labor, and read and learn what you need to know. Unless you plan to have an experienced breeder on hand, you will need to be prepared to step in when necessary during the whelping process.
Many pregnant dogs close to delivery start to pant heavily. A drop in rectal temperature usually precedes delivery by about 8-to hours from a normal temperature to Many bitches ready to whelp may not eat or eat very little.
Each puppy is born enclosed in its placental membrane and in each case, the mother licks the puppy vigorously and tears this membrane off, sometimes eating it. If she does not remove it, you will have to do it, as puppies cannot survive for more than a few minutes before their supply of oxygen runs out. You may need to rub the puppy with a clean towel until you hear him cry. The bitch should also sever the umbilical cord as she cleans her pups.
If she does not, it is up to you to snip the cord and tie it off about one inch from the belly with some unwaxed dental floss. You should wipe the abdomen of all of the puppies with iodine to prevent infection. Knowing the length of the gestation period is important for the health of the pregnant bitch and the puppies and is used to monitor nutrition and veterinary care during pregnancy.
Dogs pass through the stages of pregnancy quickly. Gestation periods are comparatively short in dogs, which means that the pups develop rapidly inside the womb over a period of two-to-three months.
During the first month, the embryos travel to the uterine horns, usually around day 7, and the embryos are embedded in the uterine lining around day The fetus begins to take shape by day 22, and by day 28 or 30 a veterinarian should be able to detect fetal heartbeats on an ultrasound. Many dogs do not show any symptoms during the first three weeks of their pregnancy. Some symptoms to watch for during the first month are:.
Fetal development moves quickly during the second month. Eyelids form by day 32 and toes are visible by day The claws form by day 40, and the coat and skeleton follow a few days later day By day 50, an x-ray will reveal the number of puppies in the litter, and the bitch will start looking for a place to nest at day The bitch is ready to whelp by the start of the third month.
Once the gestation period is over, labor begins. There are three stages of labor. The first lasts to hours and is often not outwardly noticeable. Contractions in the muscular wall of the uterus increase throughout stage one, both in strength and frequency, but no visible contractions are evident. Instead, look out for the following symptoms of labor in dogs:. Puppies are delivered during stage two. This stage can take anywhere from 1-to hours, and bitches deliver one puppy at a time.
Each delivery should not last more than 1-to-2 hours and normally occurs every to minutes, which is why it is helpful to know the total number of expected puppies. That way, owners know when the bitch is finished with stage two and can call a vet if they suspect their dog is having trouble. The placenta is delivered in stage three. Stage two and stage three actually occur at around the same time, and stage three is complete when all of the placentas have been delivered.
This usually occurs shortly after stage two is finished.
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