What am watching for when the dog is starting labor?

Question

I was given a chihuahua a couple of weeks ago. She is very pregnant. I took her to the vet and had an ultrasound done. We are having 3 puppies but I have never had a female dog and feeling overwhelmed and nervous. I took the dog because she had been majorly abused.(physically and with drugs too). The vet said everything looked good with the puppies. Any help would be great What do I need to be watching for and have prepared.

A friend has the mate next door he was abused worse than her. They are both registered chihuahuas and the male is a litle smaller. I just can't understand people that do that to their dogs.

Answer 1

I raise pugs. I will tell you how it goes with us.

Some people swear by using temperature to tell when a ***** is getting ready to whelp but we have found that we can pretty much tell by her behavior.

She will be quite restless, more than usual, and will most likely go off feed. That is the first sign that we see. That might last 12 hours or more/less. She might also start searching all over the house for some place to whelp. Its a good idea to keep a close eye on her or she might end up someplace where you cannot reach her, since her instinct will be to find a "den". She will do allot of turning and looking at her backside. She might do allot of stretching like she is uncomfortable. Again, this might go on for quite some time. You will know when she is getting down to business because there will be obvious contractions.

Labor will take exactly as long as it will take. There is nothing exact about it. What you want to watch for is that she is making progress with her labor. There are steps to it just like with humans. When she begins to REALLY push, with contractions coming pretty quickly upon each other, thats when you should be paying attention to the clock. If she is working hard but you see the pup and you can tell that yes, she is making progress then things are fine. If your ***** is pushing and straining VERY hard for a long time but is making NO progress, then you should call the vet. However, chances are good that everything will be fine since she has been checked by the vet already and he says things look as good as they should.

As the pup arrives, it might need you to break the bag from around its face. Mom should be wanting to lick it and you want her to lick its face clean the very first thing. If you want, you can quickly pinch off the umbilical cord an inch from the pup and snip it with clean scissors. The key is making sure the face is cleaned of the sack and any fluids so the pup can breath.

Its important to make sure the place momma is whelping in is warm and free of drafts. If momma isnt interested in cleaning her babies, be prepared to have some clean towels so that you can gently but firmly rub the babies clean, but momma will probably be willing to take over that duty. Her hormones will be telling her to clean clean clean!

Count the afterbirths. There should be one per pup. Its important to make sure all are accounted for. If one is missing you should call and let your vet know. It might be necessary to give her some oxytocin to help expell the afterbirth.

If the ***** wants to eat the afterbith, let her. One will do her good, but as small as she is, more than that might give her some tummy trouble. Instict will probably be telling her to do it, so if you dont want her to, make sure you have some newspaper or papertowels ready to take care of them.

Having some water handy for her to drink during the labor process is good. If its an extended labor even something with an energy kick would be good, a little broth if nothing else. She may want it, she may not.

Our bitches seem to want a drink after about the third pup, but not sooner. It never hurts to offer it to them. If they want it, they will drink it.

Good luck and Goddess Bless!

Answer 2

Some of the first signs is going off her food and restlessness a few days prior. She will rummage in closets or in blankets which is a nesting. Get her accustomed of a whelping area using newspaper. Dont use blankets...too many times pups get wrapped or tangled and strangle. 8 to 12 hrs before she is due a rectal temp. will drop from a normal 101 to a 99 or below but this can be missed. A normal temp does not mean that she wont whelp. In the first stage of labor the cervix dilates. 2nd stage is puppies are delivered. 1st stage begins w/rapid panting, uneasiness, straining, or perhaps vomitting. You need to watch her carefully. The biggest problem w/puppies is catching a chill or being to weak to breath or nurse. Have an area seperate from the ***** for the puppies that is at a temp of 85 degrees. In between deliveries let the existing puppies nurse. This stimulates contractions and they get there colostrum. A puppy not breathing you may rub down vigorously. Your ***** should handle most of this herself and I dont want to explain to much for I dont want you to become anymore anxious then you are. There are sites you maybe advised by a vet immediatly. Try www.VetMedCenter.com or www.merchvetmanual.com Hope this helps. Good luck

Answer 3

That is so sad that your dog has been abused, but there are a lot of buttholes out there. I had a chihuahua, and she delivered her puppy a week earlier than I had expected. When she goes into labor she may not need any help from you or she may alert you, because she might be scared. No need to really worry though. She will probably nest, which involves pawing around blankets and getting them "just right." Or she may stick to a certain corner or area dragging things to her chosen spot. She might come to you and whine and want to be held and comforted. Hopefully she will trust you enoough to do this, but being so severely abused, who knows? Once she begins labor, she can pretty much do everything herself. Just keep an eye out and make sure you get 3 puppies out! Respect her space if she growls at you and does not want you near. Good luck!

Answer 4

Keep a clean blanket ready for the dog's bed. Dogs rarely have 'labor' they just paw around in circles, lie down and little slimy balls of fur appear. Mama licks them clean and the balls start nursing.

The puppies make funny little mewling noises at first and are blind as a bat. After the first week or so their eyes open and they get curious. They should stay with mom 8-10 weeks.

Be careful with this dog, though. She may get into trouble if she was impregnated by a bigger breed.

Answer 5

Well she will start to "nest". She will look for a dark, comfortable, out of the way place to have the babies. Make a bed for her. You could cut down a cardboard box and fill it with shredded newspaper and put it in a closet and leave the door open. Put her in the box and show it to her a few times. She will become very restless and uncomfortable too. She may start to pant a little and even whine some during labor. Believe me you will know when she is ready.

Answer 6

I just had my chihuahua give birth to just 1 this litter and it took her 68 days to gestate so her 1st litter she had 5 and some of the things she did was to become very anxious and started to look for her nest we had a blanket inside a kennel because we have 2 other chihuahuas along with 2 Great Danes m & f so I am not an expert but I have had several dogs give litters and they have some of their own quirks to watch for!! Oh yes if this is her 1st litter then you may wish to keep her real close by because we had to help ours with busting the sacks on the first ones, and please its not hard but a bit nasty with the fluids keep a few old towels by just in case to help clean them up for her and to (sorry but) revive, because again if its close to #65-66 day (gestation) and her first litter she may not know what to do (we had to revive 2 and lost 1) so!!!!!!

Answer 7

Here are some signs to watch for

The Stages of Canine Labor
When Your Dog Gives Birth

Over ninety-eight percent of all dogs deliver their puppies without assistance or complications. But when our beloved pet or a sheltered stray is set to deliver puppies it is comforting to know that things are proceeding without hitches and on schedule. Here are some of the things that should happen as your dog begins to deliver her puppies.

Just Before Labor Begins: canine labor pregnant birth dog puppies
Pregnancy in dogs last approximately 63 days (56-69 days). Toy breeds may deliver a week earlier while large breeds often deliver later. Two weeks before your dog’s due date, begin to take its temperature at noon. Purchase a rectal or oral thermometer but use it rectally. You can lubricate it with margarine or KY jelly and insert it about an inch. Leave it in place for three minutes. Your dog’s temperature should be between 101 and 102.5 Fahrenheit. When the pet’s temperature drops below 100F she should deliver the pups in less than twenty-four hours.

Stage One of Labor:
During the first stage of labor the cervix begins to dilate and uterine contractions begin. These contractions are painful and perplexing to the dog. She will appear quite uncomfortable and restless - pacing, shivering and panting. She probably will not eat and she may even vomit. Some dogs whine persistently. Others occupy themselves building a nest. Uterine contractions, although occurring, are not as easy to see as in humans. This is the longest stage of labor. It generally lasts six to eighteen hours. By the end of this period the dog’s cervix will have completely dilated for the puppies to pass. During this period keep the mother’s environment quiet and calm. I usually shut them off in a darkened area such as the bathroom.

Stage Two of Labor:
During the second stage of labor uterine contractions begin in force. As this stage progresses the placental water sacks break and a straw-colored fluid is passed. Placentas are expelled after each puppy or sporadically during labor. Pups usually appear every half-hour or so after ten to thirty minutes of forceful straining. As the pups deliver, the mother will lick the puppy clean and bite off the umbilical cord. It is important to let the mother do this, if she will, because through this process she bonds with her puppies and learns to recognize them as her own. The rough licking of the mother stimulates the puppies to breathe and improves their circulation. The mother will probably eat some of the afterbirths. If the ***** does not tear away the sac and lick the pups to stimulate respiration, the owner should tear the sac open, clear all fluid away from the pup's nose and mouth, and vigorously rub the pup to stimulate breathing.
If more than four hours have passed without a puppy and you are certain more puppies are present take her to the vet. Also seek assistance if the mother strains forcefully for over an hour without producing another pup. If you see the rear legs of a puppy protruding from the dog’s vagina you can assist the mother by gently pulling the puppy in a downward and rearward arcing motion. You must do this very gently because puppies are fragile and easily hurt. It is normal for many puppies to be born rear feet first or breach. When a mother dog is stuck in incomplete labor the first thing I do is administer oxytocin and calcium to stimulate uterine contractions. If the puppies are too big to pass through the birth canal or the oxytocin fails to induce successful labor, I perform a cesarean section on the dog.

Stage Three of Labor:
The concept of a third stage of labor is borrowed from human labor terms. It is a very indistinct period in dogs. Once all the puppies have been born the dog enters this third stage of labor during which time the uterus contracts fully, expelling any remaining placenta, blood and fluid.

Midwifery:

The puppies will be born still covered by the amniotic membrane. This membrane must be removed from the puppy’s face in order for it to breathe. Most momma dogs are very attentive to the newborn puppy and lick and tear the membrane off. If they are not or you just don’t have the patience to wait, assist the dog in doing this. Peel the membrane away and remove mucous from the puppy’s mouth and nose with a soft towel. Tie a piece of dental floss or thread around the umbilical cord about an inch from the puppy’s belly button and cut the cord distal to the knot.

Serious Problems:
If the mother fails to go into labor within twenty-four hours after her body temperature drops to below 100F you should take the dog to a veterinarian. Do this also if you have calculated that more than 69 days have passed since the dog was bred.

Answer 8

Normally I would say leave her alone but you really do need to keep an eye on her, some smaller dogs have problems with labor and need veterinarian attention. Once she starts nesting, check her temp it will elevate when labor begins. Then leave her alone, but check on her to make sure things are progressing along.

Answer 9

Have her a bed all her own, she will start to scratch and tear away in the bed to make it ready for the pups.Hopefully she will take care of the pups on her own when they are born. Use old sheets and towels in her bed.

Answer 10

she will appear anxious, unsettled, looking for nest to have pups in, make sure you have her bed ready, show it to her more than once, put her in it and pet her, when she starts having the pups she will start to bulge in the vagina area, take her back to her bed
you may have to sit with her while she has the pups, have a few old towels ready along with sterilized scissors, let her do the work
you need to watch in case she starts having trouble