erm how do i support my bitch through pregnancy.

ok before the nasty comments i have a both a bitch (2 1/2) and a dog thats 1. which has now been castrated as pups werent on the agenda but during bows last season (when tarw was done) i obviously werent careful enough, and was too late getting him sorted. an ultra sound scan shows that bow has 3 pups that should b coming in about 20 days. i had no intention of breeding my kc dogs as they are family pets.
obviously this is my first time breeding, i have taken 2 weeks leave from work the time that bow is due and have sepatated her from tarw. i guess i want to know the best kind of diet to support her through this and make her as strong as i can for the birth. is there anything in particular that i can feed her to make sure that her 3 pups come out strong and healthy - i have already informed the vet that id like them on standby when she goes.
any help would be appreciated. i feel bad enough that i werent quick enough getting one of them castrated so please dont be negative as im already beating myself up due to my lack of inexperience.

What are you feeding now?

bow has always been a very fussy eater and as a pup was often being admitted to over night stays at the vets. chappie works for her and i suppose quantities being imcreased needs to be done but im not sure what i need to increase it by.

Chappie is awful, but if it's all that she will eat it's better than nothing. I have always worked in rescue centres but fed abandoned dogs nature diet when pregnant, it's full of nutrients and very good quality, haven't met a dog yet that wouldn't eat it.

For the first 5 weeks she will only need her usual amount of food, from then on her calorie intake will need to be increased by 10% each week. Worming is very important during pregnancy also, consult your vet ASAP in regards to this, you will need a specific wormer that only your vet will be able to prescribe, as far as I can remember she will need it daily from day 40 until a few days after pregnancy.

you really dont want to be messing around with food diet when she having pups,

fish4dogs, wainwright you pay for good stuff

fish4dogs makes bow violently sick and diarrhea is incredible also she pukes up lots of bile. as she does with raw/barf as both of these were our preffered choices which resulted in pavo like symptoms (both dogs r fully vaccinated). i wish she would eat something of better quality that chappie too but honestly its not worth feeding her anything else as she just ends up at the vets.
tarw is fed fish4dogs and the amount of times i tried to slowly introduce bow to it always resulted in diarrhea and puke :-(
bow has been scanned today and vet is guessing she is due in 20 weeks so is it now that i need to start increasing the food intake and ill ring the vet first thing in morning for wormer :-)

rachel33 is nature diet the frozen blocks? if so she will eat it but seems to be too rich for her and cause the puking up of bile and after day 3 will not eat anything x.

20 days not weeks

I'll admit chappie is generally gentle enough for dogs with sensitive tummies - I used to put my GSD's on it as they always got diarrhoea in kennels, but wouldn't feed it full time if I could avoid it. Nature diet isn't the frozen stuff, you're probably thinking of natures menu. This is nature diet - http://www.naturediet.co.uk
I feed it to my own dog as I don't have a big enough freezer to feed raw at the moment, she has very sensitive skin and does brilliantly on it. Lots of protein varieties, and a sensitive one too.

Have you got homes lined up?

ive got 2 potential homes and both av said that they will want pup whether or not i register them as they want a staffy for xmas. both the potential homes r in love with bow and live local and are reliable. im glad its only 3 pups to b e honest you hear of soo many staffies being in rescue centres

For Xmas?!? Have they had the breed or any dogs before? I wouldn't be homing them anywhere near December if it were you.

Yeah I've worked in rescue for a long time, put to sleep more staffies than I can remember. Choose your homes wisely!

yeh its just i worked out that she is due 20th sept and ill av to keep them with bow for 3 months. im far too picky to let them go to bad homes. ill b honest and im still in touch with bows and tarws breeders as i was picky in choosing them. it took a long time to find tarw as i wanted a blue from a black/brindle mother as blue on blue is a no go. and both perspective homes have a staffy already that has been neutered. im not init for the money but although an accident i am prepared to do what it takes to get bow tbrough this and have her pups go to forever homes. ive had 2/3 staffs at a time all my life but this is the first time that we havent been quick enough in neutering the male. the reason bow isnt neutered is because when i went to a dog show i was told not to alter her as judges dont like it unless its for medical reasons.

If they're due mid September you could rehome them mid November - they would be much better off going to their new homes at 8 weeks to get used to their new surroundings. If they don't leave until 12 weeks that only leaves 2 weeks to the end of their socialization period at 14 weeks to use up in their new surroundings. 8 weeks is the optimum time to leave mum - she will probably be fed up by that point too and wanting to get back to normal. Saves them going as Xmas presents anyway!

thats fab news. ive been looking at various sites on here and lots of contradictions. it goes without saying for me that mid nov is way better than dec. its just good to have some kind of idea whats best all round

That's how I've always done it with any litters that I've reared- and most on the forum have gotten their pups at 8 weeks. Wouldn't go any younger than 8 weeks, however.