Whelping quesition
 

Hello everyone, Im new here and have a few questions. Have any of you ever had a pregnant yorkie and been there for the delivery? My yorkie Abby is due ANYTIME now and Im very nervous! Ive heard that they have more complications than most breeds. I just took her temperature and it was 98.0 so she should go in to labor within hours! Ive done tons of reading on the subject but I was just wondering if anyone has had experience themselves. Thanks for any help!! :)

whelping
 

hi abby & sophi

i have had 3 litters but that dosent make me an expert at it, i have had no problems with any of my puppies so i have been lucky. what kind of questions do you have?

Whelping questions
 

Hmmm.....I have tons of questions but to start off - Did you take the temperature 3 times a day with yours? We have been since about day 57 or so and they are just everywhere. 2 days ago she was 98.6 at around 11am and then the rest of the day 99.1 and 99.3 same with the next day. Then this morning when we took it, it was 98.6, at 2:00 it was 98.0 and now its back to 98.6 so I dont know what to think! Everything that Ive read says that she should be going into labor but shes not! Am I just going to crazy with the temperature thing? Ive talked to my vet SEVERAL times and they just keep telling me shes just not ready. Also - did yours go the full 63 days? Did the deliveries go ok or were there problems? Shes a pretty big yorkie though so the vet said it should go fine. She was 8lbs before she got pregnant now shes 10lbs! Anyways thanks for replying and for any advice!

whelping
 

no i didnt really do the temp thing, i just mainly kept track of the days and then kept a real close eye on them. you will know cause she will become real restless and you should be able to tell when she is having contractions she will start panting alot, and maybe start looking for a place to hide , you might want to confine her to one area with enough room for her to move around in while she is delivering the puppies, i used the kitchen so i could wash the floor cause it can get a little messy, i had one that stayed right in the box and one that was all over the kitchen had to make sure i was there to put the puppies in the box so they didnt lay on the floor and get cold. dont know if you have kids or not but it's pretty much the same for them , not every pregnacy is the same . and she will know more what to do then you think, just instinct for them so dont get excited when she starts to chew the cord off and she will eat the sack that the puppy was in to thats all normal. you may have to help her break the sack open if she starts getting tired just have a clean pair of siccisors handy and just put a little cut in the bag and then open it up and let her start cleaning the baby up , make sure you have one of those nose suckers handy in case you need to suck some fluid from the puppies nose or out of its mouth. and dont be afraid to handle the babies i start holding mine as they are coming out of the birth canal . like i said before im no expert just been really lucky i guess my girls are fairly big also at least 10 pounds so i think that helps. make sure you have a dry clean bed for them all when she is done she will be very tired and they all need a warm dry place to rest . and like i said it's all instinct for them not to say that things cant happen so make sure you have your vets number handy. so good luck and let us know what happens. :) i love the babies :D

oh yeah to answer your question about the days it can vary it's not an exact time to the day just like a human whenever they decide to come they will. just keep a close eye on her around 60 to 63 days and could even go alittle longer sometimes.

Finally in labor!
 

Well when we woke up this morning she was wandering around panting. She has been sleeping in the downstairs closet in a whelping box that we made for about a week now - but now that she is in labor she cant decide where she wants to have them. Shes been running around all morning but I think she may have found her spot finally. How long were yours in this stage for? I read that it can take another 24 hours but Im hoping its shorter! Thanks for all your help - I appreciate it soo much!!

labor
 

labor can last for several hours :eek: or just a few hours :) it's really hard to say which way it will go. hopfully by the time you read this you will have some babies. hope everything goes well and let us know as soon as you can. i am thinking of having another litter, that is if my macey waits till after christmas to go into heat. she has had 1 litter and that is how we got abbey , she has had 2 litters of babies so i dont think i will let her have anymore it really takes a toll on them. so make sure you give your mommy lots of extra nourishment for at least a few months after she delivers ,vitamins and i fed mine puppy food , remember she will be eating for more then just herself. well good luck hope to hear from you soon. abbey, macey,& mo's mom

Ok - Im going crazy now!! Still no puppies! Its almost like its false labor - is there such thing in dogs. This morning she was panting, digging at her bed, hiding, didnt eat anything at all and now tonight at dinner time she came back downstairs like nothing had happened. She was no longer breathing hard at all - she wanted her treats and she ate some wet puppy food. Right now she is just sleeping - normally. WHAT IS GOING ON!! I also have taken her temp twice today - once at around 11:00 - it was 99.0 and then a few hours ago and it was 98.6. Any words of advice??? Oh and thanks so much for all your replies - I cant get anyone to talk to me about whats going on for more than 2 minutes so I really appreciate it!

Just be patient I guess! As Abbey stated, it can take quite a few hours, good luck and may she have a healthy birth!

it'll be ok only she knows when it is time and those are good signs that it is getting really close. and yes there are false pregnancies and false labors for dogs. they have alot of the same sypmtons that humans do ( sorry for the spelling). just keep an eye on her keep us updated. :D

Good and Bad news
 

Well its all over finally, she went into labor at midnight last night and ended up pusing for about 3 hours with no puppies so we had to take her to the emergency hospital. They gave her a shot of Oxitocin and the first one was born at 4:15 am - a boy. So then they sent us home to deliver the rest. She started pushin again at about 5:00 and gave birth to a still born - we tried to bring it back but no luck. So at that point I was hysterical (crying) so my husband called an on-call vet who said we could bring her up right then and she pushed one out on the drive there so when we arrived it was half-way out of her. This one also was dead - it was a girl. SO THEN he took her back and delivered her last one and it made it! As of right now all 3 are fine but I know I will NEVER do this again! Thanks for all the help!

Abby&Sophie= I so sorry to hear you lost two pups;that emergency hospital was pretty sorry; we have one like that ,some of them are useless and over charge greatly;
our yorkies whelped 68 pups before we lost our first one; so we cried like a baby;
breeding yorkies is not for everyone;
its not as easy as some people think;
we spend as much on our yorkies as we make so there's no profit, just fun, cause we love them,
jerry

i am so sorry
 

i am so sorry for your lose , i know nothing i say can make it any easier for you. just know that i will be thinking of you. and please enjoy the 2 new babies that you have with you now and i hope your mommy is ok to. i do have 1 question why did the hospital send you home instead of waiting till she was done delivering if they knew she was having problems with the delivery?

I'm sorry to hear for your loss, please take comfort in knowing that there's two healthy Yorkie babies that made it! And take care of the two pups and the Mom as you know how.

Thanks everyone - more questions
 

Ok for those of you who have had newborn puppies before...what are the main things I need to do to keep them healthy and alive?? Now that I lost the other 2 yesterday Im scared to death of losing these guys. They are both fine this morning but I was wondering about their eating patterns. How do you know if a puppy is getting enough food. Yesterday everytime I checked on them the little boy was always eating and the girl never was - now today its the exact opposite. Ive already seen the girl eat about 3 times and the boy hasnt. Am I just obsessing over them too much? As long as they are just cuddling and sleeping they should be fine right? They both do their share of crying but neither of them is excessive. Another question I have is - Do the mothers still pant for a few days after birth. Abby has been panting quite a bit - I have the house a lot warmer than usual so maybe she is just hot? Well as you can see breeding is not for me because I worry more than anyone in the world but I would love some help - thank you for all your help already - Im feeling a lot better about the whole thing today!

Hi Abby...congrats for the new babies...and i am so sorry for the 2 that didn't make it:( It is always sad when it happens...and i still don't understand why they send you home...some people, i tell you.. :mad: I never had puppies so i can't really help you with caring for them, but wish you all the luck and post pictures when you have a chance :)

abby & sophie
 

no breeding is not for everyone, but dont feel bad because of it you take alot of risks when you do it, such as losing your mommy and or all of the puppies and there are a thousand other things that could go wrong i have been very lucky so far. as for the puppies eating if you are feeding mom a very good brand of dog food the puppies are getting everything they need from her, you might also give her vitamins cause just like human mommies it takes alot out of the talk to your vet about the vitamins. and all you can do is keep an eye on them and make sure they are eating and that mom isnt rejecting them and if she is you will have to bottle feed, they have puppy formula that you can get from your vet or pet smart. but if mom is taking care of them just sit back and get some rest cause your gona need it for when they get to be about 4 weeks old thats when they are so much fun cause they are starting to get the little feet working for them and start getting curiouse about their surroundings and then they start to play fight with each other and when they do that just let mom take care of them its part of the learning process to find out who's boss ( and mom is the boss ) :eek: oh yeah and then there is the weaning process which is fun watching them learn how to eat solid food :D and then cleaning up after them when mom stops doing it , oh it sounds like so much fun i miss it so much, just think you only have the next 8 to 12 weeks or longer depending on how soon you are willing to let them go if you can that is after watching them grow from the tiny little things they are now :) and by all means letting them go is by far the hardest thing you will have to go through with them. like i said let mom do her job for now if she is willing and able cause your turn will be coming soon to jump in there and take care of them by then mom will be ready for a break herself. and please do send pic of everyone when you get the chance. oh i miss haveing babies around it's been acouple of years since i've had any in the house. oh yeah dont be afraid to hold them i was holding mine from the time they were still in the sack ( so mom could reach them better to get them out and clean them up ). hope everyone is well and happy there. :)

abby & sophie, so sorry for your loss. Also, congratulations on the two that survived! I know that you will have fun raising these babies with their Mom!! Please keep us updated ... I for one am too much of a "chicken" to attempt something like that but we do like to hear others' experiences! ;)

So sorry for you. . .
 

I have read every entry and I feel so bad for your loss. I guess what makes it worse is that my little Yorkie is pregnant and is due at any time. We just wanted her to have one litter to experience it and give the puppies to friends and family members. It was my husband's idea - and this morning, he just got called out of town. So I'm here alone with her hoping that I'll do everything I've been told and researched.

Again, I'm sorry for your loss.

Hon, This post was from 2004!! Just look at the date up on the left, you must have searched and found old posts! Just FYI!!

Hi All This sounds so much like what is happening to us with Phoebee, but she is a 4 lb Yorkie and the Daddy is 3.5 lbs. She is on day 56 and we are watching her very
close and trying to prepare and learn as much as possible before she starts whelping.
Is it ok for the Daddy (Dexter) to be around when she is whelping? The other complication is that she is not quite a year old, so her little body is still growing also.
Because we had both a male and female that were not neutered or spayed it was
almost impossible to keep them a part as much as we tried. So any help would be
appreciated. Thanks Maurine, Phoebee, and Dexter