Whelping Supplies

[PikeBayCommanche]

What things do I need to get together for a Whelping kit?

I have Iodine, Surgical Scissors, and gauze.

What other things do you experienced guys have in there?

Due date is coming on April 20th so we are getting excited.

TIA!

[Johnnie15]

I found this post especially helpful for the litter we just whelped.

Good luck.

http://www.fishingminnesota.com/forum/ub...e_it_s_almost_g

[springerspeed]

PBC-

Congrats on the upcoming litter. They certainly are fun but, a lot of work as well.

The things I had on hand when I was breeding was a towel, heat lamp and maybe a basket or something of that sort when she was giving birth. The reason for the basket is to take the puppies out of the whelping box after they have had an initial feeding. The whelping box will be a mess while she is giving birth and this gives them a warm dry place to be while the rest are born. I have the towel on hand for when they are first born I take them and clean them up with the towel. The reason I did this was so I could inspect them myself. After that I would set them down and let momma take over and for the pup to get a feeding in before the next one shows up. I did not use iodine and I just tore the ambilical cord with my fingers. I saw somewhere that a rough tear of the ambilical cord was better but, I don't think it makes a difference. I had a first aid kit on hand in case something went wrong.

One other thing to have is a place where you can take her for a walk on a leash. In the middle of the delivery she will have a point where there is a longer time between pups or labor will start to slow down. Take her for a quick walk on a leash. Just like a 2-5 minute walk will help to jump start the labor again.

The only other thing I would tell you is to let your vet know what is going on and to make sure that he is available a couple days before and after the due date in case things really get out of hand.

Be prepared for a long night. Enevitably she will have them in the middle of the night. I had 6 litters and out of 6 I think 4 or 5 were in the middle of the night.

Sorry for rambling. I have been on both extremes with my litters.