FAQ - Birthing (Malamute) Babies
Q: The dog I rescued off the streets is expecting babies, I'm
worried I'll do something wrong during the delivery.
A: Do what wrong? You're going to sit on your hands, drink Zinfandel, and
watch her do the work -- hopefully while peering around the corner. Let her do this. 99 out of 100 moms know more about it than the humans do and the
humans only serve to stress out mom!
Q: Should we X-Ray, sonogram?
A: Nope. Xrays and ultra sounds are wrong all the time. Don't give
yourself -- or her -- something else to stress over. Ask the vet how far along she is, than add and subtract 2 weeks because they don't KNOW. What
you do need to do is teach yourself to find an "empty gut." Stand her up, rub your hands from ribs to hips -- that's a full gut. Do the same thing
to a really skinny adult female -- that's a normal gut. When she is done, she will have an empty gut and you will KNOW it when you rub her, you can
press into her and your fingers will almost meet because her bowels will have emptied and moved around. Also, when she starts having pups, each will
come in a lovely cantaloupe-sized sack that you can feel from the outside -- if you are not around the corner, but actually sitting there staring at her making her nervous -- you can feel as "bubbles." and there will be no
mistaking them when you search for them. Bubbles. <G>
Q; What if she has heartworm? Should we vaccinate?
A: NO and no vaccinations if she is pregnant. If your vet wants to talk you
into vaccinating or any major procedure, just go ahead and spay her -- it will be more kind than subjecting fetuses to that sort of onslaught. Panacur YES, get 3 days down her now,
and again when she delivers start 3 more days -- that's Fenbendazole 22%.
1 gram/10lbs of body weight. Read the label.
Q: We are feeding her several different kinds of food that
come out to the recommended protein, fat, and calories on puppy food bags, is
this OK?
A: No. Skip the numbers for a minute. How many healthy litters have been
gestated on that formula? None, I'd wager. Go get Eukanuba MEDIUM breed puppy for
gestation and switch mom to Eukanuba LARGE Breed puppy the day she whelps.
Euk has a LONG history of fabulous litters -- here in my house and elsewhere <G> For the money you are spending on your concocted diet, you could add
raw meaty chicken quarters every night to the Euk and she'll be a happy camper. Don't be complicated. Use what has worked for generations and
generations of healthy puppies.
Q: What about supplements?
A: A Wild-caught Salmon Oil caplet if you can't stand not to supplement, but the Euk or the
Euk and RMB will be more than sufficient. Euk is a puppy formula designed to gestate healthy puppies -- the MEDIUM breed for gestation, the LARGE breed
for nursing and weaning.
Q: What is going to happen?
A: First, the big thing to remember is to have a vet's CELL PHONE number just in
case. But you're going to see this happen... more or less.
 |
Restlessness for 2-3 nights so you are good and tired and worn out from
anticipation. She will have lots of towels to shred, let her. Buy the $1.50 white ones at Wally World, have 20 of them, 6 under her, 6 standing
by, 6 in the washer, 2 for wiping puppies of when you can't stand to stay
in the other room and for slinging over your shoulder nervously while you watch.
-- She will suddenly increase activity and that will involve a lot of licking of her groin. |
|
If you see hard grunts and straining for more than 4 SOLID LONG minutes,
get on the phone. TIME THEM BEFORE CALLING. The act of the vet picking up
the phone and groggily saying "Murpmph" will cause her to deliver -- but you
have to actually wake him up before she will deliver that maybe-stuck puppy. |
|
But normally she strains a little, not much, and lick-lick-licks the
puppy into the world. If she takes the placenta off the butt -- and lots do,
you can tear the placenta off the face, use your fingernails, no sharp metal
objects here. If the puppy cries -- LEAVE IT ALONE. If the puppy moves -- LEAVE IT ALONE. If you decide the puppy has been born and then
inexplicably suffocated, then reach in with a towel and SCRUB the puppy gently until
you get cries or movement and then LEAVE IT ALONE. If that doesn't work, wake
up the groggy vet again.... |
|
Generally there will be a puppy, then another in 15 minutes (or so). They
have a uterine HORN so contractions will line up 2 puppies, one from each
side, and she will deliver that pair, then another 45 minutes (or so) of mild contractions.
Sometimes, for whatever reason, there isn't a puppy in the matching
position, or labor will stop TEMPORARILY while she rests. Sometimes
with a small litter it's hard to get started. And sometimes with a
large litter, they need a break in the middle. No panicking if the
pattern isn't exactly as I say. |
|
Remember, she is delivering 1/10th of the weight of a human baby, there will probably be
no hysterics, wailing or cursing. She wouldn't do it if it occurred to her,
which it won't. |
|
Also, make sure she has plenty of water and you can leave the food -- but
she will be eating placentas -- LET HER. Nature knows more about this than we do. |
|
Don't take the puppies away from her. No fans to cause a draft. Use a TV
or radio the last week so you can have something to do while you stay up without sleeping.
I try for 70 degrees for whelping, then at 2 days I drop the temp as much as
I can -- in the house, so generally 50 is all I can lower it to. These are dogs used to COLD and they do best in COOL conditions.
Also, cool puppies will pile on top of each other and be quiet. Warm
puppies will sprawl belly up and cry. This makes them physically more
vulnerable to being stepped on. Cool is better than warm after the
delivery and they are dry. |
|
I use a 48" wire crate. Some people use a whelping box. I use to. But
I'm sitting there on my hands with nothing better to do than make sure mom doesn't squish a puppy. It's my job, with the
Zin. |
|
Some moms will squish. Some moms will need encouragement to get off
puppies, to clean puppies, to deliver puppies. Hopefully you have an easy whelper with good instincts. |
|
OH, and for the last WEEK, she should be where she is going to deliver, so
she is comfortable. But heed this -- every single time she goes outside for
the last week, have a towel over your shoulder and be prepared to CATCH. A first time mom will often mistake uterine contractions for bowel
contractions and will SQUAT to poop, only it's a puppy that comes out. Unless you plan on whipping off your shirt, been there, throw one of those
white Wally world towels over your shoulder every time you grab the leash to
walk her. Because it's almost a guarantee that the one time you forget to take a towel, you are also not wearing enough layers to legally strip one
off -- strip it off anyway and run for the house. |
|
63 days is AVERAGE, many moms deliver at 59 days, some at 70
days. 63, or 9 weeks, is AVERAGE. |
|
AND as in humans & horses, sometimes you walk the halls with the mom in
order to stimulate the process AND to give grandmas and dads something to do. |
--
Sidney Helen Sachs
www.Wayeh.com
3/31/2008
|
Wayeh
Alaskan Malamutes