Any advice for upcoming pups in 1 WEEK???

Question

I have miniature dachshund puppies due in about 1 week.The mom is only 1 1/2 years old. We know what room that we want the babies to be in, I just need advice on preparations, what to do during the labor, and what to do after they are born. Thanks!

she is going to be having short haired dachshunds, and does anybody know if i can use a dog igloo that's about 3 ft tall and has a 2 ft wide entrance (I cleaned it very very well when i got it) instead of using a cardboard box or a basket?

Answer 1

Prep: have blankets, water, a pair of sterile scissors, some latex gloves, a cell phone and the phone number of your local emergency veterinary service available. We think the igloo thing may be too confining for her. She'll need room to stand up, turn around easily, and walk around without stepping on the pups.

About 12-24 hours before the births the dam’s temperature will drop a couple of degrees. If her normal temperature is, say, 101°, it may drop to about 99° or 98°. The only way you’ll know if her temperature is dropping, of course, is if you regularly take her temperature. Twice a day – once in the morning and once in the evening during the latter part of her pregnancy – is usually suffi-cient.

The onset of labor is usually accompanied by heavy panting, pacing, and “nest building” behaviors. The dog may whine throughout the process, shriek at the birth of each puppy, or be completely silent. When hard labor starts, the contractions become more severe. The dam’s panting will escalate a bit, and she may “hunch” over and/or lift her tail with each contraction. Just before the birth of each pup, you’ll see the puppy as a “bulge” just under the dam’s tail.

Don’t impose yourself on the birth area or get “grabby” during the birthing process. Female dogs can be rather unpredictable when they‘re giving birth. Take your cues from your dog. She’ll let you know if she needs you (or wants you there) or not.

Breech births are not unusual for dogs. In fact, your dog may have some puppies that present head-first, and some tail first throughout the birthing process. As long as the puppy gets out all the way, and gets out relatively quickly, it shouldn’t pose a problem for the dam.

Usually the dam will remove the birthing sac and bite the umbilical cord by herself, but new mothers may be overwhelmed and unsure of what to do when the first pup arrives. If you have to break open the birth sac, do it gently, and pull the sac away from the puppy’s head first. You need to make sure it can breathe. If you have to cut the umbilical cord, cut it with sterile scissors about ½” inch away from the puppy’s belly. Make sure the pups start nursing as quickly after they're born as you can.

Don't be surprised if the dam eats the placentas.


Call the vet if: If you see any heavy discharge of blood… If the dam has been trying to birth the same puppy for more than 5 hours and the puppy isn’t coming out…If you see foul-smelling blackish-green fluid emit from the vaginal area (this usually means a still birth puppy is inside of her)… If the puppies are premature or undeveloped or any time you feel things just aren’t going right.

After the pups come: Mostly, keep them with their mother, and keep everyone warm. Whenever possible keep the birthing area around 78° for the first week or so. Newborn puppies are unable to “shiver”, so they can catch cold very easily. If their core temperature drops, they will probably die. Make sure the pups are breathing without making “wheezing” sounds, and are able to nurse without making “slurping” noises. Each pup should be able to get a firm, noiseless grip on a teat. Newborn puppies need to nurse off their mother to get essential vitamins and immunities from her, so don’t remove them from her unless she is harming them or ignoring them. It’s normal for puppies to make soft mewling noises, but if you have puppies that are screaming or constantly crying it’s probably because they’re unable to nurse and are hungry. See your vet immediately.

If you need more help, you can e-mail us at [e-mail].

Good luck!

Answer 2

Set up a comfortable place for the mom to have her puppies in(Like a dog basket with plenty of towels) in the room that you want. Encourage the mom to sleep there before she has puppies so she is comfortable with this place and will know where to go when the time comes. Do not stress too much because the mom's instincts will take over for the most part! Just make sure she is taking the sack off the puppies immediatly after they are born. You should not have to feed the puppies unless one is especially weak and is not strong enough to find a nipple to suck. Other than that just be there with the mom, offer her water if she needs it, and be prepared because it will be messy!

Answer 3

It would be best to get the pet acustom to a big pasteboard box lined with newspaper and place it in a quite area of your home where you can watch her.It is best not to interfere with her unless she seems to be having problems having a pup and can't expell it,then you will have to contact your vet.When first going into labor a female will usually try to find a quite place to hide and maybe not eat at all that day.As her contractions get hard ,you will notice her becoming very active tearing the newspaper you have lined the box with.After her contraction begin a pup should be born within 45 minutes to an hour,if not call your vet.If this is her first litter,you may have to help her clear the bag of water from pups head,then let her clean it up,but only attempt this after pup is completely out,and you see that she isn't removing the bag of water from head area.The pup will drown in this fliud if she goes for tail area first in removing the bag.After pups are born,clean up the area and place pups with Mom in a warm area,but don't put blankets or other materials in the box ,as pups will become intangled in them and smother.Just put more clean newspaper in box.Good luck with your new borns.

Answer 4

first of all, you need a cardboard bog with a dog flap in it (just cut a squarish shaped U in the side) so that the mom can come out and the puppies inside. the inside of the box should be lined with newspaper. the mother will shred up the newspaper. second of all, when she goes into labor, CALL THE VET!!!! I wouldn't know if something was wrong unless extremely obvious. also, after the dog has puppies, get whatever nutritional food the vet suggests. Good luck with the cuties!

P.S. Are they gonna be wire-haired, long-haired, or short
haired dachshund? they sound cute!

Answer 5

I've never had a pet to have puppies ,but when my Chihuahua did i wasn't prepared she Had 5 and i had to help deliver .after they were born i had to feed for a couple of days i think Bambie was in shock she had 5 but luckily everything was OK..at least ur somewhat ready...lol

Answer 6

Here is an excellent illutrated site to answer all of your questions, and help you to help her and the puppies..If you need more help, send my an email> http://www.thepetcenter.com/gen/whelping.html
the most important thing I would stress, is to have puppy formula and bottle on hand, before delivery, especially with a first time mom..It seems that they always have pups at night, when you can't run out and get it..