like, is the mom dog really crazy when she has her first litter or something? or is the first litter like, the best? please explain, b/c i heard somewhere that the first litter is like, so confusing to the mum dog that some of the puppies die
2007-12-19 03:49:59 · 16 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pets ➔ Dogs
If the dog has been totally pampered and babied, she can be very confused as well as feel inconvenienced, or ashamed. I saw a friend's dog try and bury her pups! The look on that dog's face was something else! Bordered on shock, shame, and humiliation. My friend was like, "Is she trying to keep them warm?" My response, "how many of your children did you bury at birth to "keep them warm"? On a positive note after lots of positive reenforcement and praise, that little girl did accept her litter and become a very good mommy! Note: Sugar was 3 yrs old. Plenty old enough, just pampered for so long, she'd forgotten she was a dog.
But yes, some dogs aren't very good mothers in the beginning, and others seem to know exactly what they are doing! Just depends on the dog and the situation.
2007-12-19 03:56:18 · answer #1 · answered by Ista 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
She'll know exactly what to do, don't worry. Just be there to keep her company and reassure her throughout the whelping. If she has never had a litter before she may wonder what is expected of her but as soon as she hears the first little cry from the puppy her maternal instinct will take over. Try and read up a bit about the birth. If the Mum doesn't react immediately you should step in and immediately break the membrane around the puppy's face in order that it can breathe and cut the cord with sterilised surgical scissors. Also use your finger (wear surgical gloves) to remove any mucous in the puppy's mouth. Then put the puppy to the Mum's teat and get it to suckle from her. After that it should be fine as the Mother will take over.
Make sure you alert your Vet as soon as she goes into whelp. That is when the panting gets very strong and she will become very restless and try to start digging and looking for somewhere to have her puppies. He will be able to talk you through it over the phone if you encounter any problems.
The only way that the puppies will die is if the mother has been malnourished during her pregnancy and they are not up to the normal weight at birth , if they are born deformed in any way and if the Dam lies on them and suffocates them.
I always sleep in the same room with my litters for the first
three weeks so that I am on hand to remove a puppy which gets stuck behind the mother during the night.
You will need to give the Dam 5 meals per day when she is feeding her puppies. Get her a good quality Puppy Food then you can wean the puppies on to the same food later.
You must ensure that the puppies are kept warm at all times.
There are lots of people on this Group who will help you if you are worried in any way.
Good luck.
2007-12-19 13:42:26 · answer #2 · answered by Fields of Gold 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Like people, some are better mothers than others. Some are HORRID mothers and puppies die and/or you end up feeding an enitre litter every 4 hours and playing mother for 8 weeks.
The younger the bit ch the first litter the bigger the chance that she will have problems. Waiting until she is mentally and physically mature helps a lot.
Never breed unless you are prepared to take the responsibility of raising the litter yourself.
2007-12-19 11:54:18 · answer #3 · answered by ARE YOUR NEWFS GELLIN'? 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
All whelpings are different. Most of the time the mothers act on instinct, and if they're physically and emotionally mature enough, they will most likely take to motherhood like champions. Some females just inherently don't have as much of a motherly instinct on their first litter (this can happen especially if the dog is bred too young). All of the dogs I ever saw give birth for the first time were great, but as with any litter, problems can arise. You just have to educate yourself as much as possible before she whelps - it minimizes the risks to the mom and the pups.
2007-12-19 11:55:20 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Some first-time mothers can be unsure of what to do, but generally their instincts are good enough that everything falls into place.
I have seen some first-time mothers in stressful situations (i.e. bred too young, or in a location where they don't feel secure) try to harm their puppies. I have also seen plenty of litters where the first-time mother (of correct age, and properly cared-for) whelp without difficulty and raise all of their puppies perfectly well.
You can never be sure what might happen when whelping a litter, but you shouldn't assume you'll automatically lose puppies the first time a female has a litter.
2007-12-19 11:57:10 · answer #5 · answered by Loki Wolfchild 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Some are good mothers, some are not..
Some know what to do on their own... others birth the pup and let it stay in the sack to die... or chew the cord too short and disembowel pups.
Responsible breeders who have studied canine reproduction have a surprisingly low deathrate in pups whelped without congential abnormalities. In the over one hundred pups I've whelped (since other people have hired me to assist in whelping) I've seen exactly 3 born dead that I couldn't revive. (1 had an abnormality and 2 were just not revivable). I've seen no LIVE birthed pups with anything worse than a kinked tail.... but of course, these were pups bred by responsible breeders who studied the genetics, the pedigrees and did everything they could to make sure the mother was healthy before she got pregnant.
2007-12-19 12:06:59 · answer #6 · answered by animal_artwork 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
some dogs know what to do and make great moms.... and some dogs are just clueless and make horrible mothers. Some just dont know how to care for the pups, or may be clumsy and crush/suffocate them. Some moms may even view the pups as prey and kill them.
I know of a reputable breeder who had a very well planned out breeding. The mom only had one pup and she was clueless. She carried the pup around whining. The breeder had to follow the mom around to make sure she didnt drop or hurt the pup.
2007-12-19 13:36:42 · answer #7 · answered by Nekkid Truth! 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If she is old enough ( at least 2 ) and mature physically and MENTALLY.. Instinct kicks in and even if it takes a few, she gets it together and she does what she is supposed to do. If she is too young or too immature then sometimes instinct doesn't kick in and they are screwballs and can't / don't / won't take care of their litter properly. This is why you should wait til they are at very least 2 years of age to breed for the first time.
2007-12-19 12:03:03 · answer #8 · answered by DP 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
well no it's not confusing to the mum dog because she knows her puppies and she my bite one of them because they are the run t of the litter or just not going to make it. The first litter is the best because the puppies are so adorable and they nip at you and they play with you and if you let them they will fall asleep in your arms. But when the puppies teeth start to grow in then that's when the momma goes crazy she doesn't want to be around them because they bit on her ****. So if u are expecting puppies get a big enough cage so that u can divide the cage in two one side for the puppies and one side for the momma when she gets tired of them.
2007-12-19 11:59:37 · answer #9 · answered by LOL@Fail 4 · 0⤊ 3⤋
A young ***** that has her first litter could be a mess emotionally. You have to watch her closely to make sure that she is cleaning the pups up and not chewing the cords too close causing damage. You have to make sure that they ***** will take care of the pups as well. It is lot of work. DO NOT just let a ***** try to do this on their own.
2007-12-19 11:54:29 · answer #10 · answered by bear 2 zealand © 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋