Fostering a pregnant dog can be a wonderful experience but only if you have the proper facilities and have thought out how you will house momdog and her impending pups.  Decisions regarding housing are different in winter than in summer.  Winter housing is considerably more difficult, especially because we almost always foster dogs that are 40 pounds or more.

This page will cover housing our momdog-to-be.  For information on delivering puppies see midwifery.(Scroll down for Dogs)

It is important to keep in mind that momdog has been uprooted from wherever she used to call home.  She probably had a nest for her family picked out and now her world has been turned upside down.  Plan where you want to house her and try to have it ready so that she can be left alone for a day or so to assess her new situation.  Be very careful that her space is secure because she is likely to want to make a run for it if given an opportunity.  Be careful when handling momdog, she is stressed and apt to defend herself.  When she seems to have relaxed in her surroundings, spend plenty of time with her so that she will be comfortable sharing her impending puppies with you.

A well fenced yard is huge plus when fostering dogs.  Even if you have a good yard, keep momdog on a leash until you know she will respect the fences and that she will come to you when you call her. Keep a collar and ID on momdog at all times.  Dogs will always try to return to the place they used to call home and the people they love, do not underestimate this instinct.

Give her lots of love and understanding...her heart is probably broken, she is in a strange place and she is going to have puppies...this is a lot on anybodies plate!

Keep children away from momdog until you have assessed her disposition.

 

 

 

 

 

The Nest

You need to work at convincing momdog that the best place to have her puppies is the place you have chosen for them to live.  Set up the pen and feed her in it.  If possible, don’t lock her in, let her have the run of the secured building with the gate to the pen open.  Don’t give her food or treats anywhere but inside the pen.  Fix a comfy warm bed (under the heat lamp) and make everywhere else in the building uninviting for sleeping and eating.  Gradually try locking her in the pen for a few hours at a time until you are able to do so over night.  Make sure momdog is on a leash or in the pen when the garage door is opened.  Children need to understand how serious it is that momdog does not escape. 

Fostering a dog with pups requires a lot of management and common sense.

VERY IMPORTANT: Never take puppies anywhere other than your home or immediate back yard.  They can not be vaccinated until they are six weeks old.  Until they are vaccinated, they are extremely vulnerable to disease.  Do not set them on the ground, even in your front yard, where other dogs might have been. 

See DISEASE.  Be sure to read about Parvovirus.

 

Birth ~ 14 Days    Puppies must be checked often.  Weigh each pup once a day to make sure they are gaining equally.  Check their umbilical area, there should be no redness or secretions.  Count the pups several times a day, making sure none are caught up in the bedding or separated from the litter.  If one pup is separated from the litter repeatedly, something is wrong.  See DEVELOPMENTAL TIMELINE.  Children under 8 should not handle infant puppies.

14 days ~ 21 days   Puppies eyes and ears should be open. Mom will be providing their food and toileting.  Clip the puppies claws.  This is very important.  Their sharp claws inflict serious damage if they come in contact with their siblings eyes.  Use dog nail clippers to remove the tip of each claw, front and back paws.  Do this once a week until you take them back to the shelter.  Learning to tolerate nail clipping at an early age is an important socializing exercise.

Garage, Out Building or Tack Room

If you are able to section off a corner in a building where there is electricity to hang a heat lamp you can house a dog and/or puppies comfortably.  If this building opens into a well fenced yard, you have a perfect set-up.

The x-pen provided by the shelter works well for containing dogs and puppies.  A large dog that does not want to be in an x-pen will probably be able to get out of it.  Make sure the building is securely closed up until you know how the dog will tolerate the x-pen.

See SETTING UP AN X-PEN FOR PUPPIES.  Even if you don’t use an X-Pen, you will find several important hints for housing dogs and puppies.

 

A Laundry Room or Bathroom

Such a room in the house will work okay for small dogs and/or puppies in small quantities.  Be sure to block off access to the back of the washer and dryer and remove anything from the room that a dog might destroy or be harmed by.  Be especially careful about containing cleaning products.  You must be much more diligent about getting them out to go potty if you house dogs and puppies in the house.

 

Feed Momdog quality dry PUPPY FOOD (higher protein) free choice.  If you want to treat her, cut up a cooked chicken breast and give her 1/2 cup twice a day.  Provide her with fresh water at all times.

4 weeks    Give Anthelban & Ponazuril now.  Pups are beginning to move around and play with each other.  It is time to introduce food.  Follow the directions on the dry puppy food package.  Soak the food in warm water and offer the prescribed amount three times a day.  Feed each puppy in his own bowl so you know who is getting what.  Don’t allow pups to fight over the food or eat what another pup leaves.  Feed them only what they will eat in 5 minutes and then take it away (momdog will be glad to clean it up).  Over feeding causes diarrhea.  This is not only a health hazard for the pup but you won’t want to deal with the mess.  The first few feedings work better if you use an almost flat container like a pie pan.  They will wear more than they eat but momdog will clean them up.  Cheap aluminum cake pans, purchased at the Dollar Store, work well for individual food bowls.

Now that they are eating, they will also be pooping and momdog will no longer clean up after them.   If you have not already done so, add shavings to their enclosure.  See SETTING UP A PUPPY PEN.

 

If momdog was not wormed at the shelter, worm her when you get her home.  Worm her again in two weeks and again after two weeks (3 wormings).  As soon as she has her puppies, she needs to be vaccinated.  If you are able to do this yourself, pick up vaccine from the shelter or from Judy.  Judy can vaccinate her or you can take her to the shelter, which ever is most convenient for you.  Ideally she is vaccinated a minimum of a week before she goes back to the shelter.  She needs to be vaccinated again three weeks after the first vaccination.  Make sure she has had Bordetella Vaccine.

They will start to play with toys.  Be careful about the toys you give them.  Plastic toys can be chewed up and a piece of plastic in a puppy’s intestines is serious trouble.  Avoid rawhide toys for the same reason.  When in doubt, don’t give it to them.  Simple toys like a long rag tied in knots will become a tug-o-war game. 

If the litter is too large, rotating the pups so that they all get enough milk may be necessary.  There may be behavioral problems with momdog.  Adjustments may need to be made in housing.  Problems such as these should be discussed with Judy.

Infant puppies can not regulate their body heat.  Keep them warm.  Make sure momdog gets plenty of high protein food (dry puppy food) and water.

5 weeks  They are really busy now!  Feed momdog separate from the pups.  Only water should be left in their enclosure.  Fasten the water container so that pups can’t dump the water.  Feed pups twice or three times a day according to directions on the puppy food bag.

If they are not pooping in the shavings, try making their space smaller with only space for a bed and the shavings.  A couple of days should be enough to form the habit.  Puppies do not want to poop in their bed. 

 

6  weeks  FULL WEANING    VACCINATE PUPPIES (injection), GIVE BORDETELLA (Intranasal Vaccine) and WORM (Anthelban) PUPPIES NOW.

It is time to remove momdog from her puppies permanently.  She needs to be in a separate part of the property where she can not hear her puppies.  If this is not do-able for you, call Judy and we will make arrangements for her or her pups to spend the next couple of weeks in another foster home.  Change momdog’s diet to a quality adult dog food,  Restrict her food (to help her dry up) to slightly less than the recommended amount on the label.  Momdog should be vaccinated again three weeks after the first vaccination.

Puppies are usually ravenous at this age.  Don’t overfeed them.  If they are eating all their ration in 5 minutes, increase the amount a little at the next feeding.  Use your best judgment, keeping them just slightly on the hungry side.

7~ 8 weeks  Spend a lot of time socializing puppies to be accepting of strangers, other dogs, cats, kids and loud household noises.  Teach them to walk on a leash.  Teach them not to bite or jump up on people.  Handle them while they eat...no growling.

When they reach eight weeks, return them to the shelter.  Puppies can not be spayed or neutered until they are a full eight weeks old.  See Taking Them Back.  They are most adoptable when they are small.  Please try to have them fully weaned, socialized and ready to go back as soon as they are eight weeks old.

CARING FOR MOMDOG AFTER WEANING

Some dogs walk away from their puppies and never look back.  Others mourn their pups and will sometimes be destructive trying to get back to them.  Most momdogs would gradually wean their pups over another month or more.  We hurry the process in order to get the pups placed while they are most adoptable.

Do her a big favor by restricting her food to slightly less than the recommended amount on the package of a quality adult dry dog food.  The puppy food she was eating while nursing her pups is now too high in protein and will hinder the drying up of her milk.  No snacks.

Vaccinate her again, three weeks after her first vaccination.  Spend time with her, let her be out in the household with the family while her puppies are sequestered in a separate part of the property.  Palpate her tummy every day.  For the first week, she will be engorged with milk.  You can relieve this some with warm moist towels and gentle massaging.  Her breasts will be exceptionally hot (warm is okay) if she has mastitis and she will run a fever.  If you have any doubt, take her temperature.  If she has a fever, call Judy. 

She does not have to be completely dried up to go back to the shelter but her breasts must be flaccid before she can be spayed.  Call the shelter before taking her back to be sure there is room for her.  See Taking Them Back. 

5 ½ Weeks  PARTIAL WEANING  It is time to start the weaning process. 

Partial Separation: Separate mom from the pups each morning.  She can be where they see each other but can not nurse.  Return her to the pups just before you go to bed each night.  This gradual weaning will stimulate the pups to eat solid food.  This process also helps momdog dry up her milk more gradually and comfortably than if she is taken away from them all at once.  Continue feeding mom all the dry puppy food she wants but eliminate any extras.

If they have no choice but the bed or the shavings, they will choose the shavings.  Another approach is to put shavings everywhere in the X-Pen that is not a bed...then each day sweep the shavings into a smaller pile towards one corner.  The pups will usually follow the shavings.

 

If a pup has swallowed something that is indigestible you must cause him to regurgitate it.  Give him 2 tablespoons of Hydrogen Peroxide and watch to see if he expels the item he swallowed.  If he does not, contact Judy and/or take the puppy to the shelter for veterinary care.