Questions about Expecting Mom
 

Hi, My name is Sara and my friend has a Yorkie that is pregnant. She did not know what to do so I went and picked Bella up last week.

She has NO idea when she matted or was in heat. I took the dog to my vet on the 20th and the vet could not feel puppies yet but said she did "look" pregnant. We were supposed to go back on 1/31 for an x-ray to see how far and how many. On the 20th the mom weighed 5.2 lbs. On 1/28 she weighed 5.6 lbs. Here is everything that has gone on since I got her on the 19th.

1/19 picked up Bella....looked very pregnant to me

1/20 went to vet - nothing could be felt. Temp 101.3, weight 5.2 lbs.

1/27 10:45a felt movement, heard heartbeats temp 98.8
2:15p - temp 100.6
6:30p - temp 97.9
11:00p - temp 98.9

1/28 Went to Vet at 8:00a. X-ray done...4 pups shown. Could see ribs and pelvis just fine. Heads were measured and so was pelvis. No reason to worry should all fit with room to spare. Mom has urinary stones on x-ray. Temp 101.2, Weight 5.6 lbs. No idea when due but got vets cell to call when ready.
12:10p temp 99.1
2.05 temp 98.9
4:15 temp 98.4
7:10 temp 99.2
9:05 temp 98.3
11:40 temp 98.6
1/29 -- 7:25a temp 97.8
8:25 temp 98.4 (called vet to give temps per his orders. Said to take again at 11:30 and call back)
11:38 Temp 98.1 - Vet said to continue to watch her and let him know when labor begins.

Now for the questions. Since we have no idea when she tied and no idea when she was in heat, are we getting close? I have taken off work for the past 2 days and now today. She has been resting a lot. No panting or anything like that. She has been staying right by me the last few days but last night she started staying in the hall more and is doing that again.

I have read 60+ pages in the breeders section where people have asked question, I have more book marked links that I can ever use. I have NEVER had yorkie puppies but have delivered lab puppies. Any help/Advice you can give will help out.

Babies
 

Well form the temps you have posted I would expect puppies within 24hrs.
Are you all ready?
If you have had puppies before it is the same, except yorkies need help and I always clean and get the puppies breathing while Mom licks and helps.
Same as Labs, watch for digging, not eating, panting and of course peeing a lot with nothing coming out
Feel free to contact me directly with any question or problems'
yorkies4ever@juno.com
sparklingbluyorkies.com

If you have read all the whelping threads, I would say you are ready for these pups...best wishes...

Thanks so much for the responses. I have read everything I can find for the last week I was just unsure of when. Each day I look at the temps and I get the indication that "today" will be the day and it is not so that was the confusing part.

How soon after she gives birth can we have her spayed? I have talked with the vet and if she has to have a c-section then they will remove the urine stones and spay her then but I never thought to ask if she had them all natural when could she go back in. He did say that the urine stones would not interfere with her delivery.

As far as being ready I am just not sure. I only was part of 1 other birthing process and the mother did everything. I was just there to give her support. This scares me to be honest. I guess since Bella is so small it seems like it will be different.

Just took her temp again and it is still 98.1. No other changes that I notice.

Ok do you have your whelping box ready? Clamps,scissors etc, for cutting? Lots of old towels etc. These babies will be much smaller at birth than you are used to. Heating lamp? Important to keep pups warm.

Look up whelping pudding recipe on here, and get ingredients ready.

Have your vet on speed dial ....

Good luck with the whelp

Do not have clamps, but do have dental floss. No heat lamp but hot water bottle for puppies. Yes, I have the vet's cell number to call when we begin and he will decide if I meet him at the office or let her try to have them. Have everything for whelping pudding and nutri-cal for mom in between and pups if needed. Using a rubbermaid container that fits under bed as whelping box. Ribbon to identify pups, scale, scissors, kwik stop in case cord is bleeding, syringes, plug in heater to heat room, towels, puppy pads, infant nasal aspirator. I think that is it. LOL Hubby went to go get ky since I only had vaseline and replacement milk and bottles in case we need them. Anything else that I am missing????

You can spay around 8 weeks after whelping.

If we have to do a c-section, is it still safe to have her spayed then? She still has to have the urinary stones taken out so I believe if he does a c-section he was going to take them out at that time but I did not know about the spay. Didn't want too much done on her if it was going to hurt her or interfere with her taking care of the pups.

Sara - I have no helpful suggestions as I know nothing about delivering puppies, especially Yorkie puppies - but I wanted to say thank you for stepping up and taking Bella - she is obviously much better off with you than she would have been with someone who is totally unaware of what to do to help her if she needs it. You sound like you have a good head on your shoulders, I'm sure Bella will do just fine - and the fact that you've had her to the vet, and have gotten their cell just in case, say a lot in my opinion - not to mention taking off from work to help this little girl - thank you for being there for her!

Thanks so much but I didn't do anything any other animal lover would not have done. Can't say that I will give her back after this since she is now a part of me. She has fried every nerve that I have now. LOL

Temp back up to 99.7. Just don't know when to expect them now.

yes, they can be spayed at the same time as a c-section, but honestly, I think it is better to wait until the puppies are weaned. In this case where they need to remove stones as well, I think I would see what my vet suggests.

Thank you, would rather know more than not enough.

Sorry some of my posts are not showing up. They have to go through a mod first. But thanks again for all of your help so far.

Any idea if we are close to labor or not? This temp thing has me confused. I guess from what I read when they drop to 98 we were close but she goes up and down so much. Did stay at 98.1 for awhile today and did drop to 97.9 twice but the temp I just took is back up to 99.7.

It is hard to go by the temperature on some females. There have been posts on this forum in the past where the expectant mommas would have a low temperature for many days. Blood sugar levels also effect the temperature. If your female is not eating a lot or if you take the temperature before she eats you could get a lower reading because of low blood sugar. Also, there could be a problem with your thermometer. Good luck with the whelping.

The temp thing is rather confusing....some never have a drop in temp....and some will spike just as labor kicks in. The one thing I would do is be leary if temp goes below 97....that is one of the danger signs.

Still no babies.

Temp only dropped twice in the upper 97's but went back up. If she was going to follow the temp way then we would have babies now. LOL She likes to be different.

She did eat some yesterday but so far nothing today. I tried putting some food in front of her and she did not want it. I can still hear heartbeats and babies are moving some. Not as much as they were the other day. I can also feel some "smushy" between her ribs and her tummy but don't know if babies just moved from that area or if she is dropping. Tried to see if any milk could come out but she got a little nosy when I was doing that so I just left it alone. She is not getting up to see who is here anymore or greeting whoever comes over the gate.

I guess only time will tell when she will have these babies. I will keep everyone updated on progress and hopefully when the time comes we will delivery healthy puppies.

Just want to thank everyone that has offered help and advice. It is much appreciated and I welcome it anytime.

Hugs,
Sara

Promise you won't forget to give us updates..we do care and get worried if there is no info.

I promise I will update daily and then if there is any major change. Once she is in labor you guys will definitely know. I will need all the prayers and advice I can get.

Hugs,

sounds to me like it could be today. If her normal is to greet people and she isn't doing that... she is probably starting in labor. does she want to follow you when you leave the room? poor mama just sounds like she is so uncomfortable. Good luck with the whelping and hope it is soon.

Yes, her normal is to say hello to everyone and she has only barked once today. She has been staying in the computer room most of the day. Even when she hears noise out in the living room.

Her girl parts were slightly swollen this morning and when I just checked her they are now definitely swollen. She is doing lots of sleeping. Has not touched her food today but did eat some of my sandwich around 12. Temp is back to 98.5. We shall see if tonight is the night.

Anything yet?

Nope, nothing yet. Had a little wet stuff on her vulva but wasn't sticky. She is just going from bed to bed to find one that is comfortable. I think she is going to wait for a little longer before she does something. If she even does anything tonight. Babbies are still moving, the only licking she is doing is on the part of the belly she can get to. I think she is going to pop if she has to go too much longer. LOL

She could go at any time. Some females show little signs of labor until you see them pushing but most of mine will start trying to hide under the couch or bed once the labor starts. Once I see them doing this retire to the bedroom and chill out on the bed and watch tv so I can keep a closer eye on the momma. I have a big wicker basket that I place on our bed and that is where I whelp the pups. As the labor progresses the females usually do a lot of panting and digging but not all do that. Just make sure you sleep with one eye open in case she decides to have them in the middle of the night. :)

For the past 3 nights I have been sleeping in the computer room on the floor with her. Last night and tonight I will keep the door closed so she can not leave the room to go to the hall. So should anything happen I will be right here.

Nothing else has changed since my last update. But will post if anything else happens.

We just had a litter of Aussies and Stormie's (mom) temp was 97-99 for a week. Never saw a spike or anything. We did know the dates though so we knew it was "any day". The only signs she gave though were that morning about an hour before when she kept trying to steal one of Tatum's stuffed animals and take it to her whelping box and then she started shaking a little right before.

Good luck! Waiting and watching are the hardest parts!

came here first to see if there were any updates. I am hoping the OPs first post today is that "we have puppies!"

Gimme an update! I wonder if this is what fathers felt like(in the old days) behind the scenes on the birth of their baby. I am so excited and nervous for the OP. Just don't be nervous when she delivers, stay calm. I have only had one litter but I wish I could hold your hand or something, lol. Let us know....

Wish I had good news to share but we have NO PUPPIES yet. She is restless and goes from bed to bed but that is it. No panting, no digging, no nothing but sleeping. I have stopped taking her temp since it was doing no good but make her bottom sore. If she doesn't feel or look right then I will take it to make sure we have no problems.

Here is my thinking so far. On the 27th we had xrays done...the xray showed ribs, spine and pelvis in bright white. When I did some research I found that ribs and pelvis show up around day 58. So if Friday was earliest day 58 then today has to be at least day 61.

These puppies have definitely gotten bigger since friday. My concern is will they still fit for her to have them. The vet said on friday that they should not change in bone size that much and we should not have problems. Any one else know if and how much they will grow over the last few days?? I am not worried about the fat they put on cause that will smush when delivered just the bones that don't move. She is a tiny little girl and that is the part that has me freaking out.

Just wish we could get this over. I have no nerves left. A strong drink would do me good about now but I am not a drinker. LOL Could not imagine what men had to go through back in those days. Guess that is why so many of them were at the bars when it came time for the birth. :D