new member would love some advice

Hi all I hope I can get some advice from you??

I have kept Staffies for 15 years and have always had Dogs however 3 weeks ago I spoted a bitch staffy roaming the streets..to cut a long story short the owner let her out in the hope the dog catcher would take her after a long discussion with the family (I have only ever bought KC reg and lately DNA tested..dont agree with over breeding byb) we decided we would offer her a home....she is the most lovable little girl and has settled in very nicely...heres my dilema...shes PREGNANT arrrgh..right so ive bought her everything she needs box, cage, whelping kit, copious amounts of quality puppy food and have trailed the net for advice, I took her to the vets last week because she had a really bad ear infection and spent a fortune on antibiotics and drops but she is my responsabilty now and im worried i wont be good enough for her when she whelps...i have no idea when she is due but she has milk and you can see the pups fighting in her tum..the vet couldnt feel anything last week although she didnt try very much...she wont let me take her temp rectally...is there anything else i could do to determine when shes due?? she gets very stressed if i take her out in the car so i dont think id be able to get her xrayed..ps dads a staff and i have homes for 5 pups

Sorry i'm relatively new on here so i dont have any adviceon the problem, just wanted to say well done you for taking her on! have you tried another vet if you werent happy with the one you went to?

I havent to be honest..i used the one I have used for years and i think she was more bothered about her ears at the time..i have an appointment for her 15 March if she hasnt had the pups by then and to arrange for her to be spayed asap. I dont think she will go past the weekend if im being truthful but I have never had a whelping bitch before so its just educated guess work at the moment...Thanks shes adorable and snoring her little head off on the settee as i type

wish mine was snoring his head off, he's excitedly running around telling me to log off cos itsbeach time!! enjoy the peace as when those pups arrive i'm sure it will be full on!!

Most vets are happy to scan a pregnant bit*ch, I'm surprised your vet didn't offer (at a price!).

If you can see the pups moving, then her time can't be far off. Watch for her getting restless & wanting to build a nest. Near the time she may start panting & be a little wild eyed. Make sure your vet knows that she is due soon, and that they have out of hours service in case of emergency.

Once she settle & starts to look like she's pushing, stay near but don't interfere - a lot of bit*ches get quite uppity at this time. Once she has the 1st pup keep an eye on her. As they're born let her lick them & bite the umbilical cord (or if she won't do it, you should do it yourself) then wipe them clean & put them to a nipple.

If she goes more than 15 - 20 minutes pushing but not producing anything, then get her to the vets.

There's a guy on here (niff) whose girl recently had pups & he can probably tell you a bit more if he sees this.

I would really reccommend the book called "the book of the bitch" u can buy it cheaply online. Its a fantastic book covering all aspects of pre pregnacy, whelping and post pregnacy! x

Thanks Blaze..ive ordered the book off amazon for £3.50 (used) this morning.xx
Thanks caryll I have really researched as much info as possible but i have found that there is a lot of conflicting advice lol I have the emergency vets number and have all the info on how to assist breach birth, pups stuck in the canal and puppy cpr!!! My vet has been told I will ring her when she starts to whelp so she can be on standby but no she didnt offer a scan at the time...she is a brilliant vet and knows us well..I think she was concerned for "what i had taken on" but has offered to x-ray in the week if i want but as i said poppy gets stressed in cars..poor little thing and this is her 3rd litter apparently so shes experienced atleast!!! shes started to dig last night and was restless from 6ish when the Children went to bed so ive been asleep in her designated birthing room all night as she wont let me out of her sight...I dont think she will still be pregnant by Tuesday??? xx

good luck it seems you are doing evrything you can, well done

Oh, good luck, it does sound like she's due. Three litters at only 3 years old? Poor girl.

It's not my place to give this sort of advice, really, and it goes against a lot of what I believe in, but in this instance I'd get her spayed as soon as you can so that she never has to go through this again.

Three litters is the most I'd ever let a bitch have, and that's with the 1st being after 2 years of age, and never more than one every other year! So, she's been very hard done by.

I hope everything goes well & you find lovely homes for the pups.

Oh, and lots of pics!

I know dreadfull isnt it? From speaking to the last owner shes been used to breed and that is it...We are going to get her through this and get her spayed as soon as the vet will allow it..then she can enjoy the rest of her life in peace with us...I cant understand it at all she is so lovely natured i cant believe no one has fell in love with her like have before now...it breaks my heart....I will get lots of piccys on if all goes well...and because i am giving the puppys away for free we have had lots of intrest so we have a good list to choose from and theres noway I would let them go without a home visit so i will pick the best of the crop...i know personally 5 people who wants one and know they will be forever homes xx

someone else from Sunny Boro

poppyandzacksmummy wrote:...i know personally 5 people who wants one and know they will be forever homes xx

Brilliant!

Marty wrote: someone else from Sunny Boro

Haha beautiful part of the world!!! Netherfields (new Houses) u? Might bump in to you walking at Stewarts park lol....You dont want a puppy do you

Awwwww how wonderful you are hope whelping goes well poor little girl she will be well cared and loved now so its all good now your family are her lifesaver good on you

Hi & welcome to the forum

I'd love a puppy but i've heard divorces are expensive at the moment

Hi and welcome to the forum

How's Poppy today? Any nearer the whelping?

Thanks Gem
Sorry to hear about that Marty
Thanks for the Welcome
Caryll poppy was off her food last night and she has refused her breakfast so I have gave her some chicken with her antibiotics inside and some diluted Whelpi aswell because shes not drinking...She hates having her temp done but i managed last night and it was 37.2 Im going to try now but im thinking whelping could be tonight...shes in her whelping box which is very unusal for her as she likes lots of attention..she cant be bothered with Zack today which is also weired for poppy?? I will keep you all updated. Keep your fingers crossed...

not long now then

fingers double crossed

So close!

DON'T FORGET THE CAMERA!!!!

Any news yet?

I feel like a expectant mother myself any news

Just been in to let her out for a wee and she has ripped up all her bedding!!! she went for a wee and had about 5?? still not eating or drinking and she ran straight back to her bed so i think we should have some pups by morning ?? heres hoping anyway she is soooo uncomfortable bless her

Right just washed her teats and her belly so shes nice and clean and her tummy is going hard then soft and the pups are getting pushed right out you can see their little shapes on her belly....No plug yet but thats not unusual apparently?? oooh dont think shes got long I hope she hangs on till my eldest gets in because she needs to keep the kids out of the room..ill have to barracade us in otherwise...aarrrgghh I need to be calm for poppy

You do know that they usually whelp in the early hours of the morning, don't you? I think it's just so that they can get their own back on humans for getting them pregnant in the first place!

Caryll wrote:You do know that they usually whelp in the early hours of the morning, don't you? I think it's just so that they can get their own back on humans for getting them pregnant in the first place!

haha yeah Ive read that!!! i hope she does tho because atleast the babies will be in bed (4 Girls 2,4,10,13) Shes totally wrecked her bed now and shes resting and managed to cover herself up with a blanket somehow...Tooo cute.. Im going to come back online after 6 and let you all know whats happening xx

Gosh, I'm getting excited about it, what must you be like?

Oh wow! I must have missed this somehow! Welcome and well done you for taking poppy on. I have everything crossed that all goes well during the birth and i'll be keeping a close eye on this thread. Good luck

Just a quick update....First pup was born this morning at 5.50am a boy! Breech and was stuck...thankg god id done my research because i had to pull him out...all is well and hes suckling....just waiting for some more

Three more all normal presentations tg.....mummy is doing fab thats 3 boys and one girl up to now but im certain that theres a few more??

congratualtions, hope they are all doing well, don't forget pictures

Aww congrats. Well done to you and poppy. Good luck if there's more to come!

aaaaw Congrats to you both, look forward to some piccy's

Awww congrartulations what a rescue for you !!!!!

Wow, well done to mum and you, I don't think I'd be so calm

We have 6 now 4 boys and 2 girls the last little boy is really small and doesnt have the energy to suckle:( dont think hes going to make..I dont know wether to intervene and try to feed him whepli myself or just let nature take its course????but im sure theres more!!

poppyandzacksmummy wrote:We have 6 now 4 boys and 2 girls the last little boy is really small and doesnt have the energy to suckle:( dont think hes going to make..I dont know wether to intervene and try to feed him whepli myself or just let nature take its course????but im sure theres more!!

I know it's hard work, but please try! My Dempsey & one of his brothers were just the same & the family stayed up round the clock to feed them. His brother didn't make it, but Dempsey gained enough strength to suckle from his mum after about 3 days.

Looking forward to the pics!

Thanks caryll im going to go get him now

Is that the end of the pups then? 4 boys & 2 girls? What are their colours? How big are they?

Sorry, the questions are endless............

Aw well done. I'd love to have one of the females if I didn't love so far away! Well I'll just have to make do with pics. Hint hint

Yeah thats it 4 boys and 2 girls all are either black with white markings and 2 are black and brindle...sooo cute im going to help tiny tim latch the next 24 hours and see how he gets on...ive changed all the bedding...my god how messy is that!! but i havent had chance to weigh yet but ill do that very soon when all the kids are in bed and poppy is resting one is alot larger than the others and we have nicknamed him asbo..tiny tim is tiny lol

That's fantastic,.glad all went well. It'll be hard work with the little guy for you, but it'll be worth it. How's mum doing?

Oh god i know ..im just glad she trusts me enough to help..She is knackered but she has eaten about 6 fromge frais with extrs calcium so at least she is having something..ill try her with some eggs or rice tomorrow i think..shes not had her tablets today either so im going to have to tempt her with something very special...im going to leave her to it in between feeds i think shes sick of the sight of me ill get pics on asap...she looks well (mummy) ithought shed look slim but she looks quite healthy considering xx

well done you must be very proud

You can get puppy formula milk from pets at home - they do a kit for hand-rearing pups, with a dropper for the milk etc.

Just spoke to Dempsey's breeders & they said that they fed Dempsey from day 2 every 4 hours round the clock & just before & half way through every feed they'd put him to the nipple to see if he'd suck. On day 5 he latched on, although his little brother had died by then.

Glad Poppy's doing ok. I'm sure she appreciates you're trying to help her!

Congartulations on your new arrivals what a rescue you got glad all are well and i hope tiny tim makes it x

Well done and good luck for the next few days hard work, it'll be worth it

Congratulations.
So excited and can't wait to see the pics.
Keep up the hard work. How are they all doing?

hi and welcome to the forum... well done you and well done poppy....

will look out for some pics.....


it can all be such hard work,but im sure you will be a credit to them...

when my lelo had her pups i was useing panacure on i was useing that on her then when pups com i used it on them for first few weeks....