Breeding Your Dog, Part 5
Prenatal care and good preparation are paramount to whelping (delivering) a litter of strong, healthy puppies. If you started out with a bitch in good health and prime condition, you should continue as usual. A bitch that was over weight or too thin before breeding will need extra help getting her health on track. Poor health and conditioning will result in medical problems and high vet bills in the long run.
Depending on the size and activity level of your breed, you will want to begin an exercise program immediately. Starting with short walks and increasing the distance over time, you will want to walk about half a mile a day with toy breeds, up to a mile for medium breeds and a mile to a mile and a half for very large and active breeds. If you have not walked your dog before this, start out slow.
Since we are not trying to create a super dog, walks, swimming and normal doggy activities will be satisfactory. Do not over tax your dog, and limit your outings to the warmers times of the day in cold weather and cooler hours during hot weather. After any outing offer her a small amount of cool water and allow her to rest for at least an hour before and after meals.
A note about watering and feeding your dog; medium to large breed dogs especially those with deep chests are susceptible to a condition knows as bloat or gastric torsion (flipping or twisting of the stomach) which if not corrected immediately can and does result in a very painful death. This condition can affect both male and female dogs and can happen at any time. It is believed that there may be a connection between large meals or large amounts of water before or after exercise. Two small meals daily with some quiet time after eating and small amounts of cool water after exercise will help avoid this condition.
If you should notice your dog in distress, act quickly. As with a human heart attack, time is a killer. Every minute that passes only decreases your pet's chances of survival. Get him/her to the closest emergency vet as quickly as possible.
The normal gestation period for dogs is 58 to 67 days. If I am working, I will schedule my vacation for that time period, counting from the first breeding attempt to the 60th day.
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