I just recently made a post about my dog going into labor and thankfully for the most part it went super well but now that I’ve got 4 puppies to supervise I’m noticing some simple things I’ve overlooked and would love some advice if anyone’s got any
First of all by now they’ve been out of the womb for about 12 hours and none of them besides one (and even then only sort of) has went to the bathroom at all and I was wondering if this is normal? Google says that they should be going roughly half an hour or so after feeding so should I take this to mean they aren’t eating enough/at all or does this kind of thing vary?
And related to that, is there a way to tell if they’re eating? My dog (the mother)’s nipples are crazy big so I’d assume milk production IS possible but I can’t tell if the puppies are successfully clamping down and feeding and I do have formula and bottles at the ready but I’m scared I might accidentally be taking a risk waiting to use them if they’re not eating at all because obviously I don’t want them to like starve
Ty in advance to anyone who’s gone through this and knows a bit more it’s crazy how much stuff I didn’t even think to research when preparing for the birth lol
@ionut7 First, (things I wish people had told me)...keep those puppies WARM. Get a thermometer and a heating pad/ heat lamp. Make sure there are no drafts.
Definitely keep an eye on them and notice anything out of the ordinary, as you are doing. That's the way to have 4 healthy puppies! Check on them often.
As far as the pooping and eating...it takes a little while for things to get started. You don't want to start supplemental feeding when Mom's doing fine.
Others will no doubt have better advice, but in general it is very good to keep a close eye on your puppies.
@walkinthewoods If the puppies are indoors and laying in a heap with mom, they do not need a heating pad or added warmth of any kind. Heating pads can cause serious burns.
@walkinthewoods Good to know omg I’ve got a heating pad lying around here somewhere I’ll pull out for them I’ve just been blasting the heat all day which isn’t the most efficient long term plan lol
And ok yeah that’s good I noticed one had pooped a little bit and then spiraled quickly about why the other 3 hadn’t but I think I might’ve just been overthinking ty!
@ionut7 Check what the best temperature is for them and get a cheap thermometer to go with your heating pad. The temperature settings are not always accurate.
@walkinthewoods Ok I’ve finally got it all set up and something obvious that I’m probably overthinking, it says for now 85 is the number to aim for and I think I’ve accomplished it but it’s safe for the mother to sit in there too right with them all the time? She’s constantly getting water and stuff but I’m not about to force her to have heatstroke right lol
@ionut7 Right! I set mine up so that she could move away if she wanted...as long as the puppies are near mom, they're ok...it's if they squirm away and she doesn't get them. But my dog had a lot more than 4 puppies to keep track of, so it might not be an issue...just something people don't always think of...a comfortable temperature for us is too cold for puppies.
@walkinthewoods Oh yeah that’s good to know that’s not super an issue for her since there’s so few of them she’s normally got 3 like up against her side and one i between her paws as she licks it lol and ty about the temperature I def just am overthinking because every now and then I see her panting which makes me think she’s overheated but she’s got space to move around so I’m starting to think that’s just what she does when the puppies are sucking
@ionut7 If you weren't there, they would maintain that temperature by staying pressed up to mama nonstop and taking up her body warmth. This works pretty well, but you've gotta watch out for mama's body weight crushing them. Another alternative is a heat lamp like they use for reptiles. You can manipulate how hot the lamp will make the area by getting the right wattage and then setting it up the right distance away from your pups. It's a nice thing to have for when mom needs a break.
@youngjinkim Yeah I’ve been using a space heater for now that I think is working but either way for the most part they’re staying pressed up against the mother so I’m just sitting in the same room as the whelping area and getting up every few minutes to reposition any that look like they’re holding too much of her weight lol I do feel bad for her because it’s a bit warmer than she’s used of spending most of her time in but she’s really taking to it well I was worried her instincts would take some time to fully kick in after the first birth went super super poorly but she’s very on top of keeping them clean and all that
One more thing if you don’t mind me asking is it normal for her to pant when they’re sucking? She’s been panting on and off since the birth and for a while I was worried she was struggling to pass a last puppy or that the placentas (which I’m not really sure what would’ve looked like) hadn’t been released yet but she’s not been crying or shaking like she was before the birth so I’m trying to figure out if there’s a harmless reason for it before I spiral and worry somethings wrong
@ionut7 Panting is how dogs cool themselves. They don't have sweat glands, but evaporative cooling off of their tongue works the same way. Make sure she has access to nice cold water to help cool her down.
@ionut7 When you say they haven't been to the bathroom, do you mean that mum hasn't been licking their rear ends/you're pretty sure nothing's happening when she does, or that you haven't seen them go/found pee or poo?
If you're expecting them to be peeing and pooing and leaving it for you to clear up then you may be alarmed over nothing, as it's perfectly normal for newborn puppies not to do that. Mum should be handling everything, including disposal.
@fire_fly Oh interesting you’ve rlly saved my peace of mind because I was mostly worried that I haven’t been seeing pee/poo I didn’t realize that the constant licking was taking care of that as well because she’s been super on top of that with them ty so much
@ionut7 Are you watching them carefully? If you watch, you should be able to tell if they are feeding or not. You also should be weighing them at birth at 2-3 times per day after birth, to know if they are gaining the appropriate amount of weight each day. The mother will be stimulating them to wee and poo, so you just need to sit and watch and you'll no doubt see that happen.
@imagebeastmarkbeast I am and I can definitely see them TRYING to latch on but also half the time when they do they’re just biting my dog on the stomach an inch away from the nipples lol but weighing them sounds like a good way to stay on track with that so that’s good I guess I’m just worried they’ll starve like fully to death since the 2 that didn’t survive the birth have me on edge but they’re like crying and wiggling around nonstop so I guess if somethings off it will be obvious quickly
@ionut7 Mama should be cleaning up the babies because they need stimulation to go so mama will lick them. Also, I would weigh the babies daily and have a notepad with their weights to make sure they keep going up and just watch behavior, if it doesn't seem like they're latching/getting pushed out/lethargic, try to get them to latch and or bottle feed again.
I used a food scale with my babies and had a baby scale handy also but they never got big enough to use it, I mainly used it for my mom dog.
