[JennTardogno]

My Dachshund Molly isn't even a year old yet and is pregnant by my other 3 year old male Dachshund Austin. Both are full blood, short haired miniature Dachshunds. I think she might be a little over 4 weeks but I could be wrong. She got a lot bigger in the past week or so. I am worried that she is too young or that she might need a c section. I haven't taken her to the vet or anything. Didn't know if I needed to or not. Couldn't aford to before but should be able to now. Just looking for any advice that is out there. I live my dogs and just want to make sure they are okay and nothing happens to them. Also wonder does the male dog get adressive towards the puppies after she gives birth and should I keep him away? Thank you

[everydayonline]

Prepare a breeding room and dogs have puppies maybefor example: they have one and you have to wait for one hour for another puppy to come out.Also you have to feed the dog more food and so the babies will have a more healthy body.

[JennTardogno]

What kind of food should I be giving her? Right now both dogs are eating Beneful (playful life). Also foynd that she was born on 2/20/2011 so she is almost a year old.

[shazamataz]

She should be fine, it is recommended to wait until much later before breeding but being close to a year old there should be no problems.

I would put her on a good quality puppy food, puppy food contains extra nutrients and calories that he will need during the pregnancy. Keep her on the puppy food until the pups are weaned as well as producing milk also takes a lot out of them.

A vet check is recommended but not necessary unless you feel something is amiss. Closer to the due date you may want to have an ultra sound or x-ray done just to confirm the size of the litter so you know when she is finished whelping.

Preparations for the big day are things like setting up a whelping box and getting her used to it. A whelping box can be just a simple wooden box with a lowered section for her to step in and out of. I personally like using pig rails in boxes as it helps protect pups from being accidentally squished by mom. Pig rails are just a rail (can be just a PVC pipe) that goes around the entire edge of the box a couple of inches above the floor. When mum sits on a pup they are safely pushed under the rail rather than squished against the side of the box.

For the whelping you will need a few basic items like betadyne, cotton and scissors for tying off, cutting and steralizing the cords.
A set of scales to weigh each pup (handy for tracking weight gain over the next few weeks)
Plenty of towels.
Your vets number on speed dial just in case.

When setting up the whelping box make sure it is in a nice quiet location. We have ours next to our bed in the bedroom. It's quiet during the day and we can keep an eye on them overnight.
Alternatively you could use a spare bedroom and just sleep on the spare bed for the first few weeks until the pups are less fragile.

I think that covers the basics, if there is anything else don't hesitate to ask :)

[JennTardogno]

Thank you Shazamataz. That was very helpful. Maybe I should get your number and put it on speed dial... lol thank you again. I just want to make sure I do this right. Im a busy mom of 3 already and now my dog is pregnant. Its a lot of stress. I will keep you guys posted in the next couple of weeks if you woyld like. I can't thank you enough.

[shazamataz]

Updates would be fantastic. You can use this as a bit of a diary if you like so others can read your experiences with a dog pregnancy.

Do you have a photo of the mom to be you could share?

[JennTardogno]

Yes I will try to upload one after my daughter gets home from scool today. Thank you again.

[JennTardogno]

Sorry I haven't put up a picture yet. I have to try and figure out my new camera. So Saturday I will be uploading a pic. I promise, and thanks again for your help.

[shazamataz]

Oh I loathe buying new cameras and cell phones, it takes you forever to figure the darn things out! When you do get a picture you can either upload it to a site like TinyPic - Free Image Hosting, Photo Sharing & Video Hosting and post the link or just click on "go advanced" under the reply box and click on the paperclip to attach it straight from your computer. :)

[JennTardogno]

Okay I will finally be posting some pics of Molly pregnant and in labor. Hopefully we will see some puppies soon. Its going to be a long night

[shazamataz]

How exciting! Good luck and don't stress. Don't forget lots of photos to remember the big day, just remember to turn the flash off so it doesn't stress mum ;)

[JennTardogno]

Thank you, but still no pups yet

[JennTardogno]

Molly had 4 beautiful puppies, 3 boys and 1 girl. Will post some pics this afternoon.

[shazamataz]

Congratulations! Yes, photos please! :)

How is she doing with them?

[joshwebb25]

What is best for a pregnant dog to dry food or meat

[joshwebb25]

What is best for a pregnant dog to eat dry food or meat

[shazamataz]

Later in the pregnancy a high quality puppy food, the extra nutrients and calories in puppy food are vital for mum at the moment.