Quote:
Originally Posted by sweetsophia  Taken from Canine Reproduction and Whelping by Myra Savant Harris.
"Bitches ovulate (drop their eggs) when their progesterone level reaches 5 ng/ml. The eggs are all dropped the same day.
The eggs live for about 4-5 days. They can only be fertilized by the sperm after they ripen which takes about 2-3 days. The day the egg destined to become a puppy was released is day one of the gestation. NOT the day it is fertilized. NOT the day the bitch is bred. People will often say that my puppies were born early on day 57, no they were not they were born on day 63. Or my puppies were born late they were born on day 70. No they are not they were born 63 days after ovulation. Puppies start turning into puppies the day their eggs are released from the ovary. It takes them 63 days to turn from an egg into a puppy provided they are fertilized after they ripen. Their clocks run for 62-74 days , but the figure is actually probably closer to 63 days. Hence why we say they are born 63 days after the eggs are dropped. What accounts for runts is not being fertilized at a different time but it is their placement in the uterine horn."
I will stop there but this is an excellent book and very informational. |
Thanks for posting this. I'm a big fan of Myra's.