How will I know when my dog is in Labor? How long after her belly drops will she have puppies?

Answer 1

After having 2 litters of pups, believe me, you'll know when she's getting ready to have pups. They begin acting much different than usual. Mine started by just becoming a bit 'restless' and by the time she was ready, she just couldn't hold still. Her first litter was the most nervous for her, I think. She just didn't know what was happening to her. Dogs are usually pregnant around 60 days, so when you know that she's right about there, try not to let her out of your site. Some dogs will try to go off on their own to have their pups, and if there's any sort of complication, she may need your assistance. Be sure you have some surgical gloves, along with sterile scissors (you can sterilize by boiling), some thread (in case you have to tie off the umbilical cord), the phone should be close by and handy, along with your vet's phone number (maybe even program it into your phone before hand), plenty of warm towels to clean each pup up after birth, a nice clean blanket for Mom, and some sort of whelping box too. Hopefully, you can get Mom into this before she starts actually having the pups. If you notice anything you think is not right, by all means, contact your vet. If your vet isn't open at that time (they never seem to have pups during "normal business hours") make sure you also have the emergency veterinary hospital's phone number programmed in your phone (or at least handy). It's a scary thing, but it's also very breathtaking and awesome.

My dogs belly 'dropped' about 12 hours before she actually started having puppies. She was acting nervous and pacing, panting and was generally 'uncomfortable' for about 4 hours before she started having puppies.

Good luck and I hope all goes well for Mom and babies.

Answer 2

Very often the dog's temperature will drop to around 98-degrees 12 to 24 hours before they give birth. Check your dog's temperature (rectally) twice a day and watch for fluctuations.

You'll know your dog is about to give birth when it exhibits some or all of the following behaviors: pacing, panting, "nest building" (scraping up blankets and newspaper to make a nest for the babies).

Right before the births, you may see a colorless discharge squirt out from the mom. When she's in "hard labor" she may hunch up and lift her tail with each hard contraction.

Right before the pups are born, they'll appear as a buldge under the mom's tail.

If you need more assistance you can e-mail us at [e-mail]