So this is your first time whelping a litter of lab puppies. Are you ready? Check out our
WHELPING page at the eStore. You should always contact your vet and
have your female given a checkup to make sure she is up to the task of whelping. Most female Labrador Retrievers
can have a litter with no help from their owners. But is it always a good idea to be prepared for any
outcome. Your vet can x-ray your female so you can have an idea how many pups will be born. There can
be more pups than what the x-ray shows because the little guys like to hide. The gestation period is just 63 days.
The most important thing to remember when whelping a litter is to keep the lab puppies WARM all the time! More young lab puppies die
every year because the breeder did not keep them warm. It is your responsibility. The mother Lab can only do
so much. I think the
lab puppies
should be whelped inside only. I built a whelping box that we keep in our dining room where I can control the
temperature. But my Labs are as much a part of the family as my own 4 children. My kid would say I prefer the
dog over them. Sometime it is true because the dogs listen to me and my 3 teens which are still at home just
ignore me most of the time.
Check out this DVD - click on the link below ONLY $19.99
Dog Breeding & Mating: PUPPY WHELPING DVD! Video Training for Real Live Birth of Puppies
Before whelping you should have ready a heating pad, iodine, alcohol, hemostats, rubber bulb syringe, scissors, vaseline, thread,
chicken broth and a lot of paper towels. I like to have plenty of newspaper on the whelping box floor plus some
old bath towels or sheets. Once the whepling starts the lab puppies start coming I watch and make sure the pup is coming out head
first. When the pup is out I help the mother
Labrador Retriever get the pup out of the placenta.
I use the hemostats to clap the cord about one inch from the pup and cut the cord at about one and a half inches.
They say dull scissors work best because you want a jagged cut. Then I put some iodine on the cut to clean and help
stop any bleeding and take the hemos off. If the cord is still bleeding you can use some thread to tie it off. The
female will try to bite the cord off and if she gets it to close the cord area can bleed and it could need some
stitches. So get the pup away from her as soon as possible. Holding the lab puppies between my hands with the pups head
facing away from me I carefully shake any liquid out of its’ lungs. Then I use the rubber bulb syringe to suck
out any remaining liquid from the noise and mouth. When whelping everything can happen fast so try to have at least
one other person there who can help you.
Now it’s time to dry the puppy off with a towel and help the pup get its first drink of milk. Within a few minutes
the next pup should be on its way. During contractions I will place the lab puppies in a box where I have a towel
over the heating pad so they stay warm. In between births I put the pups in with their mother. She will lick them
clean. While waiting for the other puppies to be born I will clean off the scissors and hemostats with the alcohol.
Also clean up the whelping box and place clean paper and towels down for the next birth. Keep track of the after
births so you know all have come out. The mother might want to eat them(placentas) which is OK but try not to let
her have them all. I will offer the female some water too. Some books on whelping recommend giving them chicken broth, but not
all mother will take it.
As the whelping continues it can take longer in between pups. If after 20 minutes if there has been no more contractions you can take the
mother for a little walk, but not too far, to help things speed up. I will gently squeeze the mothers’ tummy to
make sure no one is left inside. Now hopefully the whelping is done and all the lab puppies are wiggling and sucking
up some of mom milk. Your female Lab will be exalted and content to lie and rest with her new babies.
Now you can clean up all the mess and take a break. The real fun and work is just starting. Whelping 101 is over -
Good luck!
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Check out this DVD - click on the link below ONLY $19.99
Dog Breeding & Mating: PUPPY WHELPING DVD! Video Training for Real Live Birth of Puppies
Editorial Reviews
Review
WOW! Exceptional Videos. Took away any fears that I had about Whelping. A+++++ --
Feedback from purchase
Product Description
Perfect for first time breeders! Instead of just reading about how dogs give birth to their puppies (whelping) and
still wondering what it's really like... Now you can actually see First Hand with this Graphic Educational Whelping
DVD Video. Includes footage of: Preparing your whelping box and supplies, Knowing your dog's behavior as she enters
each stage of labor, Actual graphic whelping (Birth), How to assist if any puppies need help, Ripping the embryonic
sac to enable the whelp to breathe, Clearing the lungs of any fluid to prevent trauma, Cutting the umbilical cord
and removing the placenta. This DVD also includes information on Postpartum: What to do once the litter arrives.
All this and more will help you prepare for the birth of your dog's new puppies.
This DVD is a Must Have for anyone who wants to try breeding! It may save the life of the puppies your dog is trying
to have and is Much Cheaper than a single vet visit, let alone an emergency trip! Breeding is MUCH MORE than just
letting nature take its course. A Responsible Breeder is ALWAYS READY to assist!
As a Special Bonus you will also receive a link inside the DVD case to download our digital PDF eBook which includes
a due date calendar, whelping forms, pregnancy timeline, stages of labor and an online video on how to administer
puppy vaccinations.
This DVD Plays in All Regions!
Spiral-bound Book $13.57
The Whelping and Rearing of Puppies: A Complete and Practical Guide
Product Details
• Spiral-bound: 128 pages
• Publisher: TFH Publications (December 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0793804973
• ISBN-13: 978-0793804979
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 6.9 x 0.4 inches
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
62 of 65 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars NOT TO TECHNICAL BUT VERY INFORMATIVE, March 30, 1999
By A Customer
I found this book to be very informative not only on things that need to be done at time of whelping, but also
things that you hope as a pet lover and breeder that will never happen but you need to be aware of these things.
The chapter dealing with sick puppies was sad but very upfront and I think that it was a very necessary part of
the book. As a beginner I learned a lot about the whelping the whelping process and it gave me the information to
talk to my vet so that when the time comes I will be ready. This book was loaned to me by a breeder and I am now
purchasing my own copy.
26 of 26 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Great book - definately a must have for the breeder!, November 10, 2004
By BerryChow (Berkshires, MA) - See all my reviews
Impressive photos and very comprehensive whelping instructions. This book is exactly what it says it is - a guide
to whelping and rearing. Lots of thorough explanations on the process of whelping (very helpful to a beginner) with
language that is clear and on point. Covers all sorts of contingencies with sensible information. My favorite book
in a library of over a dozen standards. Highly recommend!
Paperback Book $10.39
The Complete Book of Dog Breeding
The Complete Book of Dog Breeding (Paperback)
Editorial Reviews
Product Description
A veterinarian with many years of canine practice experience offers guidance to novice and professional dog breeders, emphasizing the responsibilities of reputable breeders to their dogs and to the buyers of the puppies they produce. Topics covered include: the choosing, health, quality, and conditioning of brood stock; practical DNA use, and Canine Health Information Center (CHIC) surveys and data storage to scientifically improve the selection of healthy brood stock and puppies; potential breeding problems; artificial insemination; pregnancy and its duration; embryonic and fetal activity; pregnancy nutrition; physical changes during pregnancy; stages of labor; normal and Cesarean-section births, and how to assist in both; nutrition of dams and puppies and how to recognize and prevent potential problems in both; neonatal puppy care; lactation and weaning the puppies; socializing the puppies; pedigrees, registration, and titles; and much more. Filled with color photos and line art.
From the Inside Flap
(back cover)
A veterinarian with many years of canine practice experience offers guidance to novice and professional dog breeders, emphasizing their responsibilities to their dogs and to the buyers of the puppies they produce. Topics covered include:
• Choosing brood stock based on health, quality, and conditioning
• Practical DNA use, and Canine Health Information Center (CHIC) surveys and data storage to improve the selection of healthy brood stock and puppies
• Potential breeding problems
• Artificial insemination
• Pregnancy and its duration
• Stages of labor
• Normal and Cesarean-section births, and how to assist in both
• Nutrition of dams and puppies
• Neonatal puppy care . . . and much more
Filled with color photos and line art
Product Details
• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Barron's Educational Series; 2 edition (November 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764138871
• ISBN-13: 978-0764138874
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 6.4 x 0.4 inches
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
130 of 130 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent handbook for the prospective or veteran breeder, September 12, 1996
By A Customer
This review is from: Complete Book of Dog Breeding (Paperback)
Dan Rice, DVM has produced an excellent handbook to guide you through the dangerous shoals of breeding your dog.
Careful and up to date information on every aspect of breeding makes this book a worthy addition to the breeder's
bookshelf, and is equally valuable to the novice and veteran. Especially reassuring is Rice's detailed examination
of when to and when not to call the vet. Essential reading, and sure to comfort on that long and lonely night when
your girl is whelping. Highly recommended.
37 of 37 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars informative, but easy and fun to read, June 12, 2001
By Victoria Fisher (Norman, Oklahoma United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)
This review is from: Complete Book of Dog Breeding (Paperback)
This is a great book. I ordered several at once, thinking that I would thus overlap any weaknesses. But this is
the only one I've used. It has lots of great pictures and illustrations. It is written in a column-format with
separate headings and a great index in the back. It also is not derogatory toward the inexperienced breeder. It is
what the title says: the COMPLETE book of dog breeding.
Hardcover Book $19.25
Dog Owner's Home Veterinary Handbook (Howell Reference Books)
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com Review
Open the front cover and the first two pages you see contain the Index of Signs and Symptoms, from Abdomen (painful, swollen, distended, and tucked up) to Weight loss, Wheezing, and Whining (continual). There's a comprehensive index in back, of course, running the gamut from Abortion to Zinc-Responsive Dermatosis, which is all very useful, but when your pooch is in pain, it's great to be able to turn, with the minimum of folderol, to the page that says to relax, it's nothing a bit of extra grooming won't fix, or alternatively to hightail it over to the vet hospital. It's a wonderful reference for any dog owner, with chapters on emergencies (such as burns, dehydration, and poisoning), as well as worms, infectious diseases, skin care, and canine eyes, ears, and nose. There are chapters on the digestive, respiratory, and circulatory systems, the nervous, musculoskeletal, and urinary systems, plus dog sex, whelping, puppy pediatrics, geriatrics, and chapters on cancers and medications. In short, it covers every health dimension a dog owner might want to know more about, identifies the possible causes, helps you determine the severity of the condition, and indicates what treatments or actions to take to best insure your dog's good health. --Stephanie Gold --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Product Description
"The best book of its kind in print! A Masterpiece in the field of dog care.... Mercifully clear and readable. If you own a dog and love it, you must keep a copy on your handy reference shelf!" —Mordecai Siegal, President of the Dog Writers Association of America and author of over 20 books on dogs and other animals.
"Will more than pay for itself! Compared with similar books, this is the most beneficial ever published! All-encompassing and so inviting to use…Accurate, reliable, up-to-the-minute, intelligent and explicit.... This book will more than pay for itself with the very first dog health problem you may encounter and solve yourself. And I'll sign my name to that!" —Alfons Ertelt, Chief Tester, American Temperament Test Society
"A Must for any dog owner!" —The American Field
"Useful for any dog owner, indispensable for kennel owners…. Offers comprehensive, up-to-date, well-organized information on every phase of health care for dogs." —Publisher's Weekly
"Buy It! You can't afford to be without this one!...I must have ten books on home veterinary care now—Forget Them!
This one is complete, well and simply written, profusely illustrated, and wonder of wonders, it's well-indexed—in
three ways, yet!" —Ilio
A Howell Dog Book of Distinction
Product Details
• Hardcover: 592 pages
• Publisher: Howell Book House; 3 edition (November 18, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0876052014
• ISBN-13: 978-0876052013
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.5 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.5 pounds
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
97 of 98 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars This book isn't a purchase, it's an investment, June 19, 2000
By A Customer
I have been meaning to write a review for this book for quite awhile, but when I found myself turning to it (yet
again) last week after receiving a difficult diagnosis for my beloved geriatric dog, I thought it was time to sit
down and express my appreciation for this book.
I am not fond of reviews that insist I "must! " have this or that, so please forgive me if I sound strident in my
insistence that this really "should! " be in the possession of everyone who has a dog to care for. Here lies
information that can help you out of the trenches and decide when you should wake up your vet in the middle of the
night, when to wait till morning, and when to try handling things yourself. This is also the place where I learned
how to monitor my pets vitals so I can get an idea of what may be going on and to provide my vet with some of the
information needed to hit the ground running. Out of the several pet care books I have (Pitcairn's being one of
them) THIS is the book that I grab first and it's the one my neighbors come over to examine when thier dog seems
"off" and the one my family calls and asks me to read parts of over the phone (I will share this book, but I won't
loan it). I wish they'd all get thier own copy, but at least one of us has it on hand.
As someone who has four large, geriatric dogs I love dearly, I wouldn't be without this book. Plenty of other books
are going to provide you with glossy color photos and generic information, but when you need information--real,
solid stuff you can leave teethmarks in, this book is what you need. General care and functioning is covered very
well, but this volume really shines when things seem serious, even scary and it fleshes out those pre- and post-vet
questions like no other.
PS--Pitcairn's book, which I mentioned in passing, is a nice general resource that is especially helpful for those
interested in learning about feeding thier pets natural, whole-food diets. I like my copy quite a bit, but I can
best describe it by saying I'll loan that book to a friend for a week or so, not so with Home Veterinary Handbook.
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