Question on gestation period.


Lucy is expecting pups any day now but how would I know for sure of the due date

Lucy and Busta first tied on the 7th March and again on the 10th March....which date would i go from and how long over the due date do i leave it before contacting the vets or should i contact them as soon as. I have read that you go from the last tie but i am unsure...any help would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers all

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I always go by the last mating date but also by the general condition of the bitch.

Depending on the size of litter she is having she could go anything from 58 days upto 72 days.
Its reading her signs - start taking her temp and keep a record of it. Has her milk come in? Has her tummy dropped and move back? Is she eating still? Has she started making her bed? All signs that whelping could be within 24 hours.

Every bitch is different. But if all the signs are there and she is doing nothing maybe a trip in the car helps get things going. If she starts to push but nothing happens.....a bit of Oxy works a treat.
If there is green fluid BEFORE the first puppy....get her to your Vets ASAP

Hope its been of some help.

I have been trying to rack my brains from last year when we had pups...some of the symptoms but i cant remember much....and if memory serves me correct Lucy was actually early by a few days. One of the memories I have is a sac appearing, which scared me so i phoned the vets straight away, only to be told that it was perfectly normal and that it was the 'plug' coming away and labour would follow soon after, to which it did.

Lucy is very clingy, has been all week and has only tried to nest 3 or 4 times...I have a sneaky suspicion she may well have the pups on the settee again lol, but having said that given half the chance she will try and hide under the decking so she has to be watched when going out in the garden

Milk is being produced and teats are hanging low now, pups are very active. She is still eating but not had anything yet today but that could change as she normally eats afternoon to tea time....She has a good round belly on her, just past her rib cage to her waist but not sure what you mean it being moved back, so could you please explain a little more, thank you.

I havent tried taking her temperature, i have read about it but would i need the vet to show me how to do that or could i do it without? and what about a thermometer? any will do i take it?

She does have little bits of clear fluid coming out but again i have been told that it is perfectly normal (another thing i cant remember from last year)

I might take her down the village in awhile, in the car, see if that jigs things along, need to go as i want some rehydration drink which i found really helped her last year during labour, and could get one of the girls to have alook and see what she thinks also.

Thanks for the help, much appreciated

Temperature you can do yourself with a thermometer. Just make sure it is in about 1 inch at least and leave for 2 minutes....don't let her sit down lol. Get her to lie down is the easiest way.

Belly Moved Back - looks like it has dropped and she regains he waist from viewed from above.

I also advice you getting a copy of
The Book of the Bitch JM Evens & Kay White.
It is the Dog Breeders Bible and no breeder should be without as it covers EVERYTHING!

I will have to go get a thermometer and start checking her temp, well hubby can lol.

I have The Book Of The Bitch, i bought it last year on the advice of my vet and have managed to dig it out of its hiding place....Dont get me wrong I do like to read up on this kinda thing but I also feel that personal experience helps more esp on here as there are quite a few breeders, like yourself.

I will see if i can get some piccies of her when standing up....see what you think. I did manage to video the pups kicking/moving, think they were having a party lol and currently uploading to pb as we speak.
oo its done...the following link should be to the album it is in, any probs let me know

http://s953.photobucket.com/albums/ae20/mazh/

Wow they ARE lively!

It is hard to tell as she is lying down but they seem quite high up still. Although I could be wrong.

This bit is a bit of a personal question: lol

Is her fanny soft and large because that is another sign. When they are ready to go into first stage it becomes very soft and squiddgy and the plug starts to come out as a guey blob.

I think, she will tell you when she is ready and because you know her nature you are the best person to say if there is a call for intervention.
Trust in yourself and your own judgement....and the bitch.
Calmness and confidence will help her. Keep her quiet and comfy and you might find yourself with babies this weekend.
Forgot to ask what is her 63rd day?

all she seems to do atm is sleep or just lay there....so i am just awaiting her highness to get up and walk about for awhile so i can take some piccies.

Her fanny is large (seems large to me lol), not sure about soft as not touched it (will try and take some piccies if i can)

If you go off her first tie, then day 63 is today, but if we go on the 2nd then its on Thursday.

Ah right! Well I would make my bet for Friday through the night!!!! and to guess how many I would need to know how long they tied for each time they mated! Alasdairs old stockman rule of thumb is roughtly 5 mins per pup.

i dont mind the weekend, that suits me just fine lol..

as for tying, the first time i would have to guess as they caught me totally off guard so would be about 20mins (felt like a lifetime tho)...the 2nd tie was a little shorter, about 15mins...

Last year i beleive they tied for 30mins, all three times and we had 4 puppies, this year she seems so much fatter/bigger so assuming there may be more than 4

Ok....I will stick my neck out and say 6 however she doesn't look big but again, it is difficult to tell as she is lying down.
Also some bitches only fill the sacs that they can physically cope with.
I had a bitch who was 6 pups, 6 pups and then I put her on HD42T and she whelped 10 but it was obvious it was too big a litter for her to carry as she ended up with oedema.
Mother Nature rules numbers really but I still stick with 6 on your one! lol

Well fingers crossed everything goes well for you but the main thing is relax and give off good thoughts to her, that was she will be calm and whelp easily.
Start to take her temp tonight and then twice daily. When it is constantly at the dropped level, whelping should be approx 12 to 24 hours after.

I have added another video clip and took a few piccies of her belly and fanny....they may be a little dark but atm i am waiting for the batteries to charge for my sony camera....need that to take piccies for when poopies arrive.

Problem I am having atm is that she doesnt want to stand up for long and she kept sitting down...she's fast off again and them pups are having another party by the looks of it but she seems so very relaxed and unphased by it all, bless

Ooh another vid....send the link please

should be in with the first one i did, heres the link again xxx

http://s953.photobucket.com/albums/ae20/mazh/

i was trying to get her to walk so that i could video the top of her, but it didnt quite work as she wasnt playing ball grrrr

Did you just send me a message on FB?