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blissx46 · Aug 31, 2012, 04:20 PM

My mini Dachshund Mocha is about 44 days pregnant. The sire is my 1yr old mini dachshund Romeo and they had two ties on July 19th each lasting about 2min. She's progressing well but I'm a nervous wreck... I've heard mixed opinions on whether to have an x-ray done before whelping. Any suggestions or tips would be greatly appreciated thanks!

LadySam · Aug 31, 2012, 04:42 PM

An x-ray would not only be a safe thing to do, it would ease your mind during whelping to know how many puppies to expect.
The pups skeletons would be visible and you could get a count at 45 days gestation.
Remember to keep the vet on speed dial, if this is your and her first litter you don't want any complications.

Alty · Aug 31, 2012, 05:00 PM

I would highly recommend getting x-rays done. This is part of the expense of breeding, and a necessity.

blissx46 · Aug 31, 2012, 05:16 PM

Thank you very much... Yah I'm n

blissx46 · Aug 31, 2012, 05:20 PM

Oops, lol meant to say I'm not worried about the cost, well prepared for anything she and her pups may need. Just didn't want to do unneeded things medically you know? I was also wondering about when she should really start to pudge out w pups. She has definitely gained weight but it's not super obvious she's pregnant. Her appointment w our vet is next Friday.

blissx46 · Aug 31, 2012, 09:09 PM

When do dachshunds really start showing? My Doxie Mocha is 44days pregnant today... She's definitely put on weight w the extra feeds and the high quality puppy food but I can't really see the baby bump real prominently.

LadySam · Sep 1, 2012, 03:50 AM

Some of that will depend (just like humans) on her size and build and how many pups she is carrying.
I once had a cat that was being boarded until we could spay her, the night before her surgery she had a litter of 4 kittens at the clinic, I didn't even know she was pregnant.
She was naturally a long, lanky cat and hid it well.

Mocha still has approximately 20 days before giving birth, so she still has a ways to go.
But to the original question, Yes, go for the x-ray.

blissx46 · Sep 1, 2012, 09:32 AM

How much exercise should she be getting? I know it's not good for her to be completely lazy... I'm worried she's gaining too much weight.

Lucky098 · Sep 1, 2012, 09:49 AM

Take her for a walk around the block once a day.

I hope by now you are feeding her puppy food. She should be fed puppy food now and until those pups are weaned. It helps her keep her body weight and give extra nutrition to the puppies.. plus it makes weaning easier.

At this point, I know she is a "short and long", you want her to gain weight. She needs to gain weight.. she needs to feed her puppies and keep her energy levels up.

Switch her to puppy food.. you might even have to feed canned puppy food on top of the dry 3 times a day to help her out. If it's a quality puppy food, than you won't have to supplement any vitmans, if you are feeding foods such as beneful, pedigree or low grade Purina products, vitamins should be given along with the puppy food and canned puppy food.

blissx46 · Sep 1, 2012, 10:04 AM

We are feeding her Kirkland Signature Chicken and Rice dry w 1/3can of wet puppy food 2-3times per day. She licks her bowl clean but I can't leave food out all day for her cause my other dogs will steal it. When we get her whelping box finished it'll be in an area where we can leave food out for her to eat at will. Thanks for the info on walking her once per day, she's so lazy these days which is to be expected of course but I didn't want to over do it on the exercise.

blissx46 · Sep 1, 2012, 10:08 AM

I do have another question though. She had her regular yearly booster 5in1 in June of this year, she was bred in July... Do I need to have get another 5in1 before she whelps?

LadySam · Sep 1, 2012, 11:45 AM

No, absolutely do not give another 5 in 1 vaccine while she is pregnant.
Besides, if she just had a yearly vaccine in June, she is not due another vaccine until next June.

Here is some good general information on the labor process and care of the pregnant dog.

Giving Birth to Puppies

blissx46 · Sep 1, 2012, 03:43 PM

That what I figured, thanks for the confirmation. I didn't know about the isolation of the female for three weeks before and after labor. Is that really necessary? She loves to play w our other dogs and they all share a large crate at night. Obviously the whelping box will be separate from their crate. But between now and then.

blissx46 · Sep 1, 2012, 08:40 PM

So what's the best tips for a whelping box, I need to commit to a specific style soon as Mochas due to whelp in a few weeks. I want it out for her to get used to for at least a week before her suspected whelping week.

Lucky098 · Sep 2, 2012, 09:17 AM

Ive heard of some people using baby pools for a welping area.. Its round so its harder for the mother to lay on her puppies.. Or you could build a welping box

How to Design a Whelping Box for a Small Dog | eHow.com

Building a welping box wouldn't be an idea if you plan on breeding multiple times, but if this is just a one or two time thing, the baby pools work just as good.

Alty · Sep 2, 2012, 09:57 AM

Make sure to also get a heating lamp for the whelping box. They sell ones specifically for whelping boxes, they hang over the box and keep the puppies warm. As you probably know, puppies can't regulate their own body temperature, so making sure they're nice and warm is very important. You could call around, or check Kijiji, and see if you can get a used one. They're not cheap when bought new, but they're a necessity.

Can't wait to see pictures of the new babies. :)

Lucky098 · Sep 2, 2012, 10:57 AM

You don't need a heating lamp if the pups are inside... Just make sure they're in a room with low traffic and no drafts. For homes with ac, close the vents.

Heating lamps and new borns are actually dangerous, they don't move when they're too hot and can get too hot, especially during the warmer months.

If you feel the pups are cold, purchase the hot water bottles, or use latex gloves fills with water and heat it. When giving it to the pups, if it's too hot for you on bare skin, it's too hot for them..

Alty · Sep 2, 2012, 12:18 PM

I hate to disagree Lucky, but water bottles are, in my opinion, very dangerous. A puppy, like you said, cannot move that well, and laying hot water bottles under them can actually cause burns. I realize you said to test the temp first, but even then it does happen. Also, hot water bottles cool off very quickly, so unless the OP is willing to constantly refill the water bottles on an hourly basis, it's not a great way to keep the pups warm. Unlike the heat lamp which is suspended from the ceiling, and has many different settings so you can adjust to the needed temperature.

These pups will be born in fall. Not knowing where the OP lives, it could be cooling down. Goodness knows it's already cooling down where I live. Darn weather. ;)

Lucky098 · Sep 2, 2012, 04:10 PM

We use hot water bottles at the hospital for sick dogs and new borns... And the book claims its safe.

My experience with heat lamps was kind of troublesome. The puppies got too hot and there was now cool place for them to go.. And it was positioned high above them. Heat lamps are just no good.. I think they work best for poultry, and that's really it

blissx46 · Sep 2, 2012, 06:58 PM

I was really concerned about using a heating blanket like so many recommend because of the possibility of malfunction and me accidentally cooking the pups. I thought I'd use what my family refers to as a "bed buddy" which is basically a soft terry cloth sack filled w rice or pellets that you can either freeze or heat and put wherever needed. And I'm committing to the plastic storage tub for my whelping box w egg crate underneath the top layer of bedding so we don't get swimmers. We are in Cenyral Cali and are still consistently getting triple digit weather here; it'll finally start cooling off mid October. The pups should be here some time between sept 14-20th.