newborn puppies?

Question

anyone that has breeding experience with dogs, whats normal for two day old puppies? mine are moving around alot, sometimes rolling around, eating really well, and twitching while sleeping and they sometimes whimper, is this normal?? also the mother dog is being too rough in my opinion, sitting on them and trying to cover them up??? Please let me know and no rude comments thanks- these are purebred chihauhuas

Answer 1

At two days the puppies will be more interested in sleeping & eating than anything. They do twitch a lot when sleeping -- perfectly normal. Over the next few weeks they'll become more mobile. Be sure to provide them with a cover they can easily grip to get traction, like lambswool. This will help in their muscular development. The mother's instinct is to keep them warm & protected. However, if she's a first-time mother she may not care for them in a perfect manner which is where you come in. When she sits on one immediately move her off the puppy & let her know it's wrong for her to do that. A new mother can feel overwhelmed & may easily, unknowingly, smother a puppy. If you have a whelping box with pig rails this will help reduce the risk of smothering. I place a baby monitor next to the whelping box for the first few weeks so that I'll hear if a puppy is in distress. That way I can easily intervene if there's a problem.

If you have any additional concerns please feel free to contact me. I've been breeding Schnauzers for over 20 years so I can usually help with any pregnancy/whelping & puppy problems. Good luck!

A few good web sites you can refer to for what to expect in the coming weeks.

Answer 2

if the mother is a first time mother she will be naturally nervous until she has more experience, my chihuahua exhibits the same behaviour to this day for about the first week. puppies do move around alot , it is their only way of exploring their new environment without eyesight or hearing. and all the other behaviour that you mentioned with the puppies is normal too, twitching and whimpering while sleeping is normal REM sleep behaviour. although sometimes i really wonder what they dream about being so young. hope this helps

Answer 3

Congrats on the new little family. They are pretty active when they are born, and they do whimper a bit to let mama know they are hungry and even to let mama know they need to potty as mama dog cleans it up and actually stimulates them to go. Sometimes they whimper because they are seperated from the mom and littermates, The mom is just trying to keep them warm and sometimes it does appear that they are laying on the pups but they aren't. We have a new litter born last night.

Answer 4

Everything sounds fine and very normal! If you are worried about mom squishing the pups, (she is probably trying to keep them warm), you can put a lifted border around the inside of the whelping box. It is something that they can wiggle under when the going gets tight, so mom doesn't squish them. Hope this helps!!

Answer 5

well, I think the mom dog is just trying to warm her puppies up. And I think your puppies are whimpering and twitching in their sleep becasue they're having dreams

Answer 6

The twitching and whimpering is them dreaming. My six month old was doing this. It isn't unusual. They sound healthy... have fun with the new babies.

Answer 7

You don't want to take them anywhere to be clipped.. Take a pair of regular nail clippers and just take off the tip. You get them used to getting their nails done now, and they will be fine when they grow up, when it comes to having their nails clipped. Start early and get them used to everything !

Answer 8

It sounds like they are fine, and the mother is not trying to hurt them she is trying to keep them warm.

Answer 9

puppies sound normal to me. mom, is yes, keeping them warm but she is also trying to hide them because people are paying too much attention to them and it's making her nervous...mom needs alone time with her babies and LOTS of quiet privacy