advice on pregnant mum

[mikka]

i need urgently advice what i should do or not do to help
my girl to make her last two weeks easier before her first
ever puppy birth, specially in case of exercise and special
food.

[brunie's mom]

Your veterinarian will be able to answer all of your questions. Also the breeder of your dog will also be able to give you some info.

What health certifications have been done on your female? also the male?

If she has not been to the vet, then please go ASAP !!

Gina
p.s. I hope you have many, qualified homes for these pups...so many Rotts end up in rescue.:(

[spidey]

Hi Mikka, welcome to the forums. Be prepared, you'll probably get a lot of people asking some pretty harsh questions - try to keep in mind that even though they may sound mean, they're just concerned for the dog and the breed.

I see you live in Seychelles, do you have a veterinarian for your dog? If not, can you find one? It's really important to have good veterinary care for pregnancy and whelping.

If you do a search here you'll find a lot of good information. I'd allow her as much exercise as she likes, but don't force her to exercise. What are you feeding her? A good-quality, well-balanced meat-based food should be what she eats, and she should probably be eating about 50% more than she was before she got pregnant.

There's some good information here . If you go to www.google.com and type in "pregnant bitch nutrition", you'll find a lot of pages with information - the more you read, the more you'll get a good idea of what advice is good, and what isn't. Good luck - ask lots of questions, you'll find a lot of good information here!

[mikka]

dear spidey, thanks for your advice about google.com, the
information is very useful. the vet facilities are very limited
in our country. and i adopted mikka after her first owner was forced to leave the country, due to quaranteen laws he could
not take her with him. thanks again

[spidey]

Okay Mikka - keep asking questions, I'm sure people here will try to help as much as they can - it's not a subsitute for a knowledgeable person actually being with you, but it's better than nothing. I strongly suggest you read as much as you can about whelping and puppy care in the next two weeks, I'm sure you've already thought of this, but just a reminder. :)

Even if vet facilities are limited, is there any way you can find a vet you can talk to on the phone or on the internet? How about looking for an experienced breeder nearby who could help you?

[Sharon Marples]

Hi Mikka,

How old is your girl? Has she had any litters before this one? That will make a difference in some things that could happen in whelping. You should be walking her for at least 20 - 30 minutes each day if she is not getting very much exercise.

Along with feeding her a good dog food as previously suggested, I would certainly be giving her at least one Vitamin E capsule a day, and at least 1000 units of Vitamin C per day. I would make sure she gets some good protein in the form of an egg, cottage cheese, yoghurt or something similiar each day as well.

For whelping, what are you going to do? Do you have a whelping box? Do you have a special room in your home where she will whelp? You need to do a search on the forums here for "whelping" and you should come up with some excellent ideas. The whelping area should be kept at least 80 degees for the first two weeks of whelping. You need to be prepared in case your girl does not have any milk. There are milk supplements you can buy or you can make your own very easily. I'll be happy to give you the recipe if you'd like to do that.

Make sure the whelping area is free of drafts and gives the mom and her new babies quiet and solitude for the first week or so. You don't want a lot of people visiting, etc. that may get the mom upset.

Please let us know if you have any books to help you get through the whelping and if you have a vet available in case she runs into trouble and you have to have the vet assist you or do a C section on her to deliver the puppies.

We'll be happy to help in whatever way we can, just start asking any questions you might have!

Good luck and please keep us posted on what is happening with her.

[poohbearsmom]

First of all, you're a kind soul to take on this task....

What's her age? What's her physical condition like (in shape, a bit flabby?)

Sharon has given some wonderful advice that I concur with.

Adequate exercise is essential.... you want her to be in shape for the labor.

As your girl approaches the whelping date, you may or may not notice the pups dropping and her shape changing (depends on how many pups are in there). Her temperature will drop from her normal (around 101F) to 99F (or below)and hold... this is a sign that the pups are soon on their way. It's a good idea to take her temperature rectally now to get a "normal" reading on her.

Check her gums, make sure they're pink and healthy. If they're white in appearance, but you can press on them lightly to bring back color, then she's ok.. if the color does not reappear, she's possibly anemic. Get her checked by a vet.

Make sure she's getting several small meals per day, as the pups will take up space in her abdomen.

Get a whelping box built, (preferably one with "pig rails" so the pups won't get squashed by mama) and place it in an out of the way part of your home. Like Sharon said, draft free, and warm. The pups will not be able to control their own body temperature for a few weeks after birth, so warmth is vital for their survival.

If you find it difficult to buy supplements, I have a recipe that's made with canned goat milk that is very good for the pups.

Here's a good link that helped me a lot as far as being prepared for the day of reckoning... ;)

http://www.woodhavenlabs.com/whelping.html

Hope some of this information assists you.

Let us know how it's going.

Good luck!

[mikka]

thanks a lot both sharon and poohbearsmom, i feel very happy
to have received your advice. the seychelles are a small group
of tropical islands in the middle of the indian ocean, we have
no breeders here and the vet is more into agriculture science
and even worse he is a little scared of my girl. my girl is 3 1/2 years old and it is her first pregnancy. i was very lucky to have
found another pure breed rothweiler in seychelles for her to mate
i wanted her to have once puppies and then i like to ensure some sort of birthcontrol. her due date is the 5th november.

thanks to your advice i am giving her 3 meals a day and i am
surprised she eats all 3 meals. exercise is no problem as we are
both hiking and jogging freaks, but i have stopped taking my
girl into the mountains, also i have reduced the time we walk
from 1 1/2 hours to about 45 min.

i will go and visit the vet again in case we need any help with
the birth of her puppies.
with the websites and internet addresses i have received from
you i will spend a few busy evenings getting as much info as
possible. i have some experience in bringing up puppies, once
i had a litter of six from a friend after their mum did only 2 days
after giving birth from a heartfailure - and i saved all six with
babyfood and babybottle and many sleepless nights, of course
they where not rottweilers.

[Carina43]

A bit off topic - but I hope you can post pictures of mama & babies! We have many different nationalities of Rottweilers, haven't seen any from the Seychelles yet. :)

Best of luck with the whole process, as you see there are some extremely knowlegable members here.

[mikka]

hello carina, will be very happy to show my girl with her puppies to all the nice people who helped me with their advice.

[brunie's mom]

mikka;
Now that you have given us some more information about your girl...it is easier to help you.

This Rottweiler that you mated with her, how old was he? What kind of temperment does he have? Does he seem healthy, and walk right?

Rottweilers are a breed that are plagued with genetic diseases:( ...and here in North America and in Europe, good breeders have their Rottweilers hips and elbows x-rayed, their eyes checked, their hearts checked...all done by certified specialized veterinarians....before they even think of breeding their dogs.

When it is time for the pups to be born...if they are not coming at a steady pace...you may have to get her to a veterinarian to do a C-section. Even an agricultural vet will be able to preform this on your dog. You must be ready for tragedy too...sometimes the mother dog dies and/or pups die giving birth.:(

What homes have you got lined up for your puppies? You must make sure that your potential puppy buyers are going to treat their pup well. They should live in the home, be prepared to train, have good food and not live on the end of a chain.
You should start now finding good homes....this will not be easy.
Many breeders here will not breed their dogs till they have enough good homes waiting...and only then will they breed.

I am sorry I cannot help you with info about birth, etc....but if you need help on what to ask your potential puppy owners...I can help you with that.:)
You should also make sure that none of your puppies are bred in the future...and maybe you can find a vet that will have your girl spayed and the pups when they are old enough.

Gina

[Bucky's Mom]

What beautiful islands!! - What time did you want us to come visit?? :)

Back on topic - I wish you well with your Mama dog and puppies and look forward to pictures as well.

Lisa (Bucky's Mom)

[Alaskan]

Hello,:)

You may want to get a couple of cans of ready to feed puppy formula too if you can find it at a local pet or grocery store. Sometimes the mother may not have milk when the pups are born or one may not nurse very well so in this case you can get the canned puppy milk for them.:)

If you decide to have the pups tails docked you should do that when they're two to five days old.

I really don't know what else to add other than I can't wait to see pics of the pups if you decide to post them when the litter arrives.:)

[mikka]

hello alaskan
thanks for your idea. i have been to the grocery store already
and bought baby milk formular. we do not have pet shops
as you know them in the states and pet food is not really on
the agenda of imports into seychelles. at the moment my
daughter is looking into all the shops to get baby bottles.
just to be prepared - from my friends at work i had already
offers for babysitting, nursemaid and godmother.
i will try my best to post pictures of the happy mum and her
puppies, i am not a great computer wizzard.

[brunie's mom]

mikka;
I am so glad that you are getting prepared with formula, etc.
Where are you going to have her give birth? It has been suggested here that you build or make some sort of a whelping box.
Glad that you have volunteers waiting to help...from what I have heard about whelping and raising pups...it is very exhausting and time consuming.

Is there anyone you know that has experience breeding dogs? You may be able to get some help, or at least the danger signs that you should be looking for during the birth.

Please let us know how your dog is doing.

Gina