Difficult Births
What to expect when your dog is going to give birth.
Puppies are born 59 → 65 days after mating
This is known as the gestation period.
1st Stage labour – this can present itself in many different forms and can last for up to 2 days. The dog becomes restless, starts nest building and may go off her food. During this period, there may be the odd abdominal contraction. The dog may start running milk from her mammary glands. This is usually a sign that giving birth will take place in the next 24 hours.
At the beginning of labour, the contractions may be infrequent, weak or incomplete. The bitch may continue for up to 3 hours before veterinary examination is necessary as long as she does not seem to be ill or in undue pain.
If the contractions are frequent, regular and strong, with no pup being produced in 15 – 30 minutes, the dog should be taken to the vets for examination.
A dark green discharge just before birth begins is a normal occurrence. This is break down of the placenta and should be followed within 5 – 15 minutes by a puppy. This dark green discharge only usually appears before the 1st puppy.
Most bitches would normally have completed the whole litter birthing process within 4 – 6 hours.
Ultrasound can make a huge difference in treating these difficult cases. Ultrasound cam tell is how stressed the pups are, by counting their heart rate. Also by knowing if the pups are alive or not will also determine the urgency of treatment required.
About 2 out of 3 cases of difficult births (known as Dytocia) which need to be seen by a vet will need a caesarean section (C Section). It is good practice to know long before the due date where your local vet is and when and if they can carry out a C-Section. C-Sections can be risky and expensive surgeries and careful consideration should be given to the decision to breed from your dog at all.
Ultrasound taken around 28 days after mating will show how many puppies are expected to be born.
This will also give you a more accurate due date for the bitch. It will also allow you to know when the birth process is finished.
We would also advise you to count all the placentas when the newborn puppies are born.
Reddish to brown vaginal discharge can continue for several weeks after a normal birth. If the mother is eating normally and is normally active, this isn’t a problem. If she becomes lethargic, stops eating or acts ill, prompt veterinary attention is required.
Some new mothers can experience a condition called ECLAMPSIA – this is a condition in which their blood, calcium levels drop dangerously low. This is due to the large amount of calcium secreted in the milk for the newborns. Dogs with eclampsia:
Immediate veterinary attention is required if your dog is showing any of the above signs. Eclampsia can happen anytime around birth, but is most common during peak milk production (2 – 4 weeks after birth) and is more common in older bitches.
What To Do
If the babies are all laying stretched out with pink noses and pads are silent because they are content – all is well. However if they are blue, making a lot of noise – you have to increase the ambient temperature.
What Not To Do
What to expect when your dog is going to give birth.
Puppies are born 59 → 65 days after mating
This is known as the gestation period.
1st Stage labour – this can present itself in many different forms and can last for up to 2 days. The dog becomes restless, starts nest building and may go off her food. During this period, there may be the odd abdominal contraction. The dog may start running milk from her mammary glands. This is usually a sign that giving birth will take place in the next 24 hours.
At the beginning of labour, the contractions may be infrequent, weak or incomplete. The bitch may continue for up to 3 hours before veterinary examination is necessary as long as she does not seem to be ill or in undue pain.
If the contractions are frequent, regular and strong, with no pup being produced in 15 – 30 minutes, the dog should be taken to the vets for examination.
A dark green discharge just before birth begins is a normal occurrence. This is break down of the placenta and should be followed within 5 – 15 minutes by a puppy. This dark green discharge only usually appears before the 1st puppy.
Most bitches would normally have completed the whole litter birthing process within 4 – 6 hours.
- Some can be treated by the drug Oxytocin (which stimulated uterine contractions) provided no pup is blocking the birth canal.
- Often the journey to the vet stimulates the uterus to start contracting again.
Ultrasound can make a huge difference in treating these difficult cases. Ultrasound cam tell is how stressed the pups are, by counting their heart rate. Also by knowing if the pups are alive or not will also determine the urgency of treatment required.
About 2 out of 3 cases of difficult births (known as Dytocia) which need to be seen by a vet will need a caesarean section (C Section). It is good practice to know long before the due date where your local vet is and when and if they can carry out a C-Section. C-Sections can be risky and expensive surgeries and careful consideration should be given to the decision to breed from your dog at all.
Ultrasound taken around 28 days after mating will show how many puppies are expected to be born.
This will also give you a more accurate due date for the bitch. It will also allow you to know when the birth process is finished.
We would also advise you to count all the placentas when the newborn puppies are born.
Reddish to brown vaginal discharge can continue for several weeks after a normal birth. If the mother is eating normally and is normally active, this isn’t a problem. If she becomes lethargic, stops eating or acts ill, prompt veterinary attention is required.
Some new mothers can experience a condition called ECLAMPSIA – this is a condition in which their blood, calcium levels drop dangerously low. This is due to the large amount of calcium secreted in the milk for the newborns. Dogs with eclampsia:
- Experience severe muscle tremors
- Difficulty walking
- Seizures
Immediate veterinary attention is required if your dog is showing any of the above signs. Eclampsia can happen anytime around birth, but is most common during peak milk production (2 – 4 weeks after birth) and is more common in older bitches.
What To Do
- Prepare a clean, warm and easy to clean area for the birth.
- Check on the mother frequently, without disturbing the process.
- If a puppy is visible in the birth canal and appears stuck, gently grasp the foot or feet with a clean cloth. With a steady motion, gently pull the puppy when the mother is contracting. If the puppy does not come out easily – transport the dog to the vets quickly
- When the puppy is born it may be covered in membrane. If the mother doesn’t remove it, tear the membrane and remove it from the newborns head region.
- If the mother doesn’t remove the umbilical cord, or is being rough with it, tie it with a piece of string or dental floss approximately ½ cm from the pups’ abdomen. Then cut the cord 1cm from the abdomen with a shape pair of scissors. Apply iodine to the stump.
- Keep the puppies warm. It is best to leave them with their mother. Sometimes id you handle the newborns too frequently before the mother has time to bond with them, she may reject them.
- It is always best to leave the babies with their mother, but sometimes she doesn’t stay with them. In that instance, put a plastic bottle filled with warm water near the babies. A hot water bottle works, as does a heat pad (set on low only and under a layer of towels). Allow room for the babies to move toward or away from the heat source.
If the babies are all laying stretched out with pink noses and pads are silent because they are content – all is well. However if they are blue, making a lot of noise – you have to increase the ambient temperature.
What Not To Do
- Do not put your fingers in the birth canal as you can cause trauma and infection.
- Do not forcibly attempt to remove a pup from the birth canal.
- Do not assist in delivery by pulling on head of the puppy or on the umbilical cord as it exits the mother.
- Do not lift the newborn by umbilical cord.
- Do not use heating pad on high or medium setting.
- Most puppy births go smoothly with the mother doing all the work. The puppies contentedly nurse on the mother soon after birth.
- You may not see the afterbirth (placenta) being passed. Many mothers will eat this after it has passed without anyone noticing. It is not a problem if all the placentas are not passed and should be reabsorbed by the mother’s body.
