Now she won't stay with the Puppies!!

[Krysqueena]

Okay, thanks for all the help with the gaining weight thing I did. I can see she has definitly produced more millk and gained weght. I can't see her ribs anymore!

Now, I have another problem. She won't stay with the puppies in the whelping box (A cardbourd box about 4 ft long x 2 ft wide). I studied on whelping-boxes and it said that she should be able to get in and out to be away from the puppies now and then. Well, ALL last night I couldn't sleep because the puppies were FREAKING OUT, beacuse Mom wasn't there. Every once and while, she would grab a puppy, bring it onto my bed, and lick it. 5 minutes later, she would go grab another and put it under my bed. I had to take them and put them back and TRY to close her in there by throwing blankets over it. HAH! she still did it. And, when I finally fell asleep, Mom heard the whining and found her and a puppy under my bed. She is just toting them all over. HELP!! Why can't she just stay in one place!

 

[RedyreRottweilers]

How old are the puppies? At around 7 days, many bitches leave the puppies and go back in only for feeding and cleaning.

 

[RedyreRottweilers]

You need to get an exercise pen or some type of barrier to keep her near the puppies. Put the box you have inside the barrier.

If you have a loud puppy, often it needs to be RELIEVED. Take a warm wet cloth and gently stroke the genital area to encourage elimination. Most of the time this quiets puppies. You can also help the mom into the box for nursing if the puppies cry.

But you need some way to confine her near the box so she is not carrying puppies all over your house at all hours.

 

[bnwalker2]

She may not view the whelping box as a safe area. Is it in a quiet location? Is there plenty of bedding, and is it clean?

I frequently foster pregnant/nursing cats and have fostered pregnant/nursing dogs on occasion as well and I usually set them up in an extra large wire crate with some blankets draped over it. I put the crate I put cardboard up around all sides high enough so the puppies/kittens can't even try to stick their heads through the bars. I leave the door open enough so momma can come and go as she pleases. I used to try the cardboard boxes but the babies kept getting moved... I've never had a momma try to move the babies since setting up the crate.

 

[RedyreRottweilers]

Great idea, BN, and good suggestions.

I use a whelping box, of course, and have months of prep time before any litter. I've not had a mom try to move pups either.

 

[Krysqueena]

The Pups are 3 days old. This is her first litter (and ONLY, might I add). But, shes not just leaving them, she bringing them everywhere. I have a metal crate, so I'll try your idea, BN. But I'm closing the door at night.

Do you think, if she continues to not nurse them very often, I should pick up some goat milk. I have a friend who has goats, so that will be easy. Or, should I just hold her down so they can nurse 5-times-a-day-or-so. What do you think?

 

[Gempress]

You've asked questions about food, nursing, and whelping boxes, and have gotten a great response. But that brings up another question. In all honesty, how much research did you do before these puppies were born? Have you raised a litter before? Did you do your homework on the work and knowledge involved, or did you just breed the mother and think that her natural instincts would take care of the rest?

Please don't be offended, I'm not trying to bash you or anything. I just want to know where there are gaps in your puppy-rearing knowledge. There are many knowledgeable breeders on this board. If you tell us what you know (or what you don't know), they can give you a lot of information and refer you to resources that can help you even more. It would be much better for mother and puppies if you learned what to do in advance, instead of waiting until there's a crisis.

Being pro-active is much better than being reactive.

 

[AGonzalez]

Kind of sounds (and I"m not bashing or trying to be mean) that the OP wasn't ready for this, maybe her dog was a pregnant stray or came to her already pregnant - though I am glad from reading the other thread that the OP wasn't chased away with flaming and bashing instantly.

Sounds like mama wants them in your bedroom. Is there anyway it would be feasible to move them into your room (I like the idea of the large crate too) - maybe she just feels more secure there, she obviously WANTS her puppies since she's trying to move them - so maybe it's a location thing and moving them into your room will fix her obvious need to move them?

 

[smkie]

AS long as she has room to turn around in the crate without smashing a pup. THat is why a whelping box is designed with a space so that cannot happen. WIth Mary we didn't have a whelping box, i used a small children's swimming pool (since Mary is part lab that was big enough and kept a hard eye on her when she was getting in and getting out.

 

[HoundedByHounds]

I always ex pen around the bottom half of either a crate or a Ruff Hauz dog house. Small area outside.

If mom won't stay in and babies are annoyed you might consider that the pen is too hot. Many times this is overlooked. My Beagle pups do not settle down if the room is over 75degrees. They have a heating pad under one side and they seldom use that...Momma usually will stay on the cool side and they stay with her. When she leaves they pile if cool. My summer litters usually don't use additional heat at all after a week or so, and they seldom pile much.

 

[RedyreRottweilers]

Normal bitches do not leave 3 day old puppies. Something is forcing her to want to move them.

Provide more privacy. You can drape a blanket over the crate so that she feels she has a private den area. Keep them in a quiet area of the house that has less traffic.

HBH brings up a very good topic, the heat issue. I do not keep my room with the mom any warmer than I am comfortable. Same as HBH, I keep a heating pad covered with several layers of bedding in one corner of the box so puppies can get to heat if they need it.

The first week is CRITICAL in the survival of puppies. If you are not weighing puppies with a gram scale every day, (some people weigh TWICE a day), and tracking weight gain, you can lose puppies before you ever realize there is an issue.

 

[HoundedByHounds]

Make sure she is getting calcium as well...you don't want her freaking out with eclampsia or such...if she seems off to you or is just NOT settling you need to take them ALL to a vet.

 

[Krysqueena]

Okay, I'll tell you the truth. I'm 15. Mom and Dad are the ones who got the male and tried to breed them. All they care about is the money part. (Selling them). The Female (Roxy) did not want ANYTHING to do with the male, so they gave up on breeding them. We didn't find out that she was pregnant until 6 days before she whelped. I tried to convince them NOT to breed her.

Roxy is most comfortable with me and is in my room. In her whelping box with the pups. I'm going to try the metal crate thing someone suggested today.

What does OP mean??

I reserched AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE in 6 days. A little grace, please? Thanks!

 

[Krysqueena]

Forgot to add something, I did put a blanket over the box early this morning and that helped her. actually, when she first went into labor, she couldn't rest until we covered the box, then she calmed right down.

 

[ACooper]

Okay, I'll tell you the truth. I'm 15. Mom and Dad are the ones who got the male and tried to breed them. All they care about is the money part. (Selling them). The Female (Roxy) did not want ANYTHING to do with the male, so they gave up on breeding them. We didn't find out that she was pregnant until 6 days before she whelped. I tried to convince them NOT to breed her.

Roxy is most comfortable with me and is in my room. In her whelping box with the pups. I'm going to try the metal crate thing someone suggested today.

What does OP mean??

I reserched AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE in 6 days. A little grace, please? Thanks!

While we wouldn't have many nice things to say to your parents, we won't hold YOU responsible............quite the opposite really, I commend you for at least trying to find out what you can and help the mom and babies. ESPECIALLY since your parents don't sound too concerned about educating themselves

Thanks for your honesty, and I am sure all the knowledgeable people here will help as much as they can.

I know nothing of whelping, so I will leave them to it

OH and PS........OP means Original poster (you) or original post (the first post you wrote in the thread)

 

[Lilavati]

Kind of sounds (and I"m not bashing or trying to be mean) that the OP wasn't ready for this, maybe her dog was a pregnant stray or came to her already pregnant - though I am glad from reading the other thread that the OP wasn't chased away with flaming and bashing instantly.

Sounds like mama wants them in your bedroom. Is there anyway it would be feasible to move them into your room (I like the idea of the large crate too) - maybe she just feels more secure there, she obviously WANTS her puppies since she's trying to move them - so maybe it's a location thing and moving them into your room will fix her obvious need to move them?

It sounds to me like she thinks that the safe place for her pups is with the rest of the pack . . . that is, with you, in your bedroom, in the wonderful den under the bed. I realize that might not be practical, and an ex pen would probably work. But if it is practical, perhaps you could move the whelping box into the bedroom, or even under the bed?

OP means original poster . . . that would be you

I am so sorry to hear that your parents got you into this situation. I have to admit I was wondering what you were thinking . . . now I'm very proud of you for trying to do the right thing and asking for advice when you needed help for you and your dog. However irresponsible your parents are, you are a very responsible young person.

 

[Krysqueena]

Thanks for the support!!!!!!!!!

Yes, Roxy and Pups are in my room. Shes actually trying to take the pups and put them on my bed this morning. What do you think of just letting her bring them under my bed? Its carpeted. The box is about 2 feet tall, so it won't og under my bed, but I could cut it to fit under there, or get another box, whatever. Obviously she feels safer under there! Mom put ALL the responsibility on me to take care of these precious things, so she doesn't care where they are.

 

[noludoru]

Krys, no one here is going to yell at you for this. (Or we'll quickly dissuade them . . . )

In fact, I commend you for going to great lengths to get advice, and then actually LISTENING to it. It's pretty rare that people do that.

 

[Lilavati]

Thanks for the support!!!!!!!!!

Yes, Roxy and Pups are in my room. Shes actually trying to take the pups and put them on my bed this morning. What do you think of just letting her bring them under my bed? Its carpeted. The box is about 2 feet tall, so it won't og under my bed, but I could cut it to fit under there, or get another box, whatever. Obviously she feels safer under there! Mom put ALL the responsibility on me to take care of these precious things, so she doesn't care where they are.

My opinion is that if you can cut down the box, and she'll fit in there, and you'll still have easy access, to put it under the bed. That's clearly where SHE wants to be. However, all of our dogs whelped in the kennels or in a quiet back room that was pretty much dedicated to doggy things, so I'd ask some of the other people here with more experience in raising litters in a normal house.

 

[RedyreRottweilers]

OP is "original poster". You sound mature for your age with your posts, and I know you are trying to do your best for the mom and puppies.

Stick around here, we will all help any way we can. If your bitch remains anxious, suspect possible eclampsia and get to the vet.

What state do you live in if you don't mind saying?