A dog's pregnancy lasts approximately 63 days and usually requires little assistance from her human owners. Other than scheduling a vet consultation and making changes to her nutritional intake and exercise level, the biggest help you can give her is creating a safe and comfortable area to give birth in.
Things You'll Need
- Whelping box (or construction material to make a whelping box)
- Premium adult dog food
- Premium puppy food
Instructions
Pregnancy Care
Make an appointment with your vet to confirm pregnancy and ask her if there are any particular risks or precautions associated with your dog's breed. Set up future appointments for checkups on the growing fetuses and x-rays as necessary.
Feed your dog a premium adult dog food. In the fourth week of her pregnancy, start mixing in some of the premium puppy food. Continue replacing more and more of her food with the puppy food until during the last week of the pregnancy she is eating only puppy food. When picking out the puppy food, do not get a large-breed formula, even if your dog is a large breed. Large-breed puppy formula is generally lower in the protein, fat and minerals that are so vital to a pregnant dog.
Change your dog's meal schedule as well. Because of the rapidly growing puppies taking up space in her abdomen, your dog will need to eat several small meals a day rather than the one or two big ones you are used to feeding her. She may need to eat a small meal every three to four hours in her last week of pregnancy. You will also find that she needs to eat two to four times the amount of food she needed before pregnancy.
Exercise your dog regularly during her pregnancy, but make sure she doesn't overdo it.
Buy or build a whelping box at least two weeks before the scheduled due date. Your dog will need to get comfortable with this space and make sure that it is cosy and secure. If your dog is not comfortable with the box by the time she gives birth, she will not use it. Feed her a few special tidbits while she is in the box for a positive association.
Giving Birth
Watch your dog carefully when she is nearing her due date. Though most dogs give birth without a hitch, there is a chance of difficulty, known as dystocia. Breeds such as bulldogs, pugs and Boston terriers have a higher incidence of dystocia because of the large head and shoulder size of their puppies. If your dog's breed is predisposed to dystocia, you should probably schedule a cesarean birth in advance, according to the Pet Education website.
Apply gentle outward and downward pressure to your dog in time with her contractions if you see a puppy that is partly born but stuck in the birth canal. Gently pull from the puppy's legs or body, do not pull from the head as this can dislocate the puppy's fragile neck.
Call a vet right away if the delivery does not seem to be progressing or if any of these signs of dystocia are evident:
30 to 60 minutes of strong contractions without delivering a puppy
Greater than four to six hours between puppies (with more puppies in the uterus)
Failure to start delivery within 24 hours of the temperature dropping below 99 degrees
Crying/licking the vulvar area excessively
Gestation lasting greater than 70 days from the first breeding or greater than 60 days from the first day of diestrus.
Identify, weigh and record each puppy. After birth, when mother and puppies are settled and comfortable in the whelping box, offer the mother food and water. Hang the dishes so that puppies can not crawl into them. Giving birth is hungry work; your new mother probably will want to eat every two to three hours!