[AmyChristine]

I whelped 10 lab puppies yesterday! I know they are not yorkies but I wanted to share my experience. It was very hectic and not an ideal situation. The momma dog is not mine, but my sister's and she asked if I would check on her because they were busy for the day and she was getting close to her due date.

As soon as I opened the car door I could hear a squalling puppy, I found it cold and still attached to the placenta. I clamped and clipped the umbilical cord and went looking for momma. Who had dug a den out under their deck. When I got to her I could see that she was panicked and called my sister so she could send someone out to help me. She had already delivered puppy # 2 and had buried him in the dirt 1/2 way and I could not reach him at all. #3 was on it's way out at this point and I didn't want to run the risk of her doing the same so as soon as he was out I grabbed him clipped the umbilical cord, cleared his mouth and put him with #1, under a heat lamp.

My help showed up and he was barely able to pull momma out from under the porch. We got her into her whelping box and I kept her calm while he went to try and retrieve the now completely buried puppy #2. With a shovel, he was able to barely reach #2. I took # 2 in and warmed him up. I also had to remove a ton of dirt from the poor baby's mouth and throat. It took quite a while to get him stable and warm.(I didn't think that he would make it) when I finally brought him out #4 had arrived and my help had to leave. #5 came easily but #6 was breach and very stuck so I had to help poor momma. #7-10 came without indecent, thank goodness!

I know that this is not how things are normally done, but it really is a good reminder that breeding should really be left to the pro's. Not everyone should be bringing this many lives into this world. If I hadn't showed up #1-3 would not have made it, and there is a chance that momma dog would have buried the whole litter.

I checked on them several times over the last 24hrs and all 10 puppies are doing really good. I honestly can't believe that my sister and her hubby would leave their dog outside alone when she is that close to delivering.

Sorry this is so long...Thanks for listening and letting me share/vent. I will try to get some pictures of them tomorrow.