It's been a very exhausting and somewhat traumatic day today. Last night we saw the first of our pups leave for their new home and today another 4 left. We're so happy to see them going to such wonderful, enthusiastic, loving new owners but it's also sad to see the back of the little guys after being there so far for every minute of their wee lives. On one hand it seems just last week that Jess was giving birth to them all as we stood by nervous and excited. On the other hand though it feels like these puppies have evaded our lives for as long as I can remember ! It's hard to picture our household with Jess being the only dog in it !
It's been a truly rewarding and interesting journey, and I've really enjoyed learning and sharing everything about the whole breeding process, but it's also been very exhausting. We've got to say our goodbye's to another puppy tomorrow, then another on Tuesday. The last one is staying with us for a couple of extra weeks and then we will just be left with our girl - Lucy (and Jess). From 10 dogs back down to 2.
The million dollar question everyone is quick to ask is "Would I do it again". If it meant doing it all in 4-6 months time from now, my answer would definitely be no ! Seeing as though it will be a lot longer than that though (16 months till Jess' second season from now), I'll defer my answer to closer to the time :) I would love to do it again but it would definitely all depend on our situation at the time - especially with regards to work. I've been lucky enough to be able to take it easy on the work front for the past 6-8 weeks - without the ability to do that it would have been an impossible task !
Saturday 10 July 2010
Saturday 3 July 2010
Cost update
Hopefully, all costs from the breeding are now in. I've estimated that over the 8 weeks that Jess required additional food (up to 4 times her normal amount at peak lactation) to the tune of £168. Extrapolating what it's costing us at the moment to feed the puppies to next Saturday brings the total cost of their food for the (nearly) 8 weeks to £90 for meat, plus £24 for the kibble for a total of £114.
Add to that £10 for puppy pack folders and DVD's etc... and the grand total cost of this breeding comes to
£2,337.33
Certainly not an insignificant amount of money !
Add to that £10 for puppy pack folders and DVD's etc... and the grand total cost of this breeding comes to
£2,337.33
Certainly not an insignificant amount of money !
Eating out of house and home
It seems like these guys are draining the freezer of meat nearly as quickly as I put it in ! They are now on about 400g per day split over 4 feeds. That's 3.6 kg per day for the 9 pups, plus about 600g for Jess or a total of 4.2kg. That equates to nearly 30kg in a week of food ! We're feeding nearly the equivalent of ten adult Labrador dogs at the moment. Just as well they start to leave from next Saturday else we would go broke with the food bill..... :)
More photos....
Week Six
and
Week Seven
Nicky, who took some amazing puppy photos back in week three, came back again today and did some studio and groups shots. It will take a little while for her to go through them all, touch them up and to upload but I will let you know as soon as she does.
Can't believe that they start to go to their new homes a week today. Not sure whether that deserves a :) or a :( - perhaps both !
and
Week Seven
Nicky, who took some amazing puppy photos back in week three, came back again today and did some studio and groups shots. It will take a little while for her to go through them all, touch them up and to upload but I will let you know as soon as she does.
Can't believe that they start to go to their new homes a week today. Not sure whether that deserves a :) or a :( - perhaps both !
Tuesday 29 June 2010
Worming, First vaccination and micro chipping
Big days for the pups today !
This morning we weighed them all and then dosed them all with Drontal puppy worming. We put it in their food this time and fed them individually rather than try and inject it into their mouths. With the heaviest pup now tipping the scales at 5kg, that equates to 5ml of worming solution each - never would have been able to squirt all that in successfully. Now that they are all little food hoovers, it was so much easier to just put it in their food :)
Then this afternoon it was off to the vets en masse for their first vaccination and micro chipping. We used 3 large cat carriers with 3 pups in each to get them there (along with Jess). Took a few trips to get everyone into the surgery from the car. Each puppy was given a complete health check along with their shots. I am happy to report that all puppies are doing extremely well and are in perfect health (as is Jess :). We were there for nearly 2 hours !
When you come to collect your puppy, your puppy pack will include the vaccination card from the vet along with details of how to register the micro chip in your own name.
This morning we weighed them all and then dosed them all with Drontal puppy worming. We put it in their food this time and fed them individually rather than try and inject it into their mouths. With the heaviest pup now tipping the scales at 5kg, that equates to 5ml of worming solution each - never would have been able to squirt all that in successfully. Now that they are all little food hoovers, it was so much easier to just put it in their food :)
Then this afternoon it was off to the vets en masse for their first vaccination and micro chipping. We used 3 large cat carriers with 3 pups in each to get them there (along with Jess). Took a few trips to get everyone into the surgery from the car. Each puppy was given a complete health check along with their shots. I am happy to report that all puppies are doing extremely well and are in perfect health (as is Jess :). We were there for nearly 2 hours !
When you come to collect your puppy, your puppy pack will include the vaccination card from the vet along with details of how to register the micro chip in your own name.
Puppy insurance
As mentioned earlier in the shopping list post, one of the things I believe is very important to have for your new puppy is pet insurance. I am able to provide 4 weeks free cover with Petplan for those that want it, but after that, you're on your own !
When choosing pet insurance be very careful about the type of policy. They fall into 3 categories :
1. Time limited policies. Cover is provided up to a maximum amount per condition. There is a 12 month limit on how long you can claim for each condition. After 12 months the condition claimed for will be excluded from the policy
2. Maximum benefit. Cover is provided up to a maximum amount per condition (eg £3000) but there is no time limit. Once you have claimed the maximum amount, the condition will be excluded from the policy
3. Lifetime policies. Cover is provided up to a set amount of vet fees each year which is renewed at the start of each policy year. As long as you continue to renew the policy without a break in cover, there is no time limit on how long you can claim for each illness or injury.
Types 1 and 2 really need to be avoided. What you want is policies of the third type - that will pay out for a injury or illness for life and where the amount of vet fees claimable is renewed each year.
Petplan has policies that fall into the type 3 category, they are the biggest pet insurer in the UK and offer excellent coverage on their premium lifetime policies BUT they are very expensive. I personally use Axa pet insurance. Axa underwrite a lot of the other store pet insurance policies that are out there. I had a quick look at the main categories to compare the policies and price for Jess :
- Vet fees (renewed each year) - Axa (£7,000), Petplan budget (£4,000), Petplan premium (£12,000)
- Complementary treatments - Axa (£250), Petplan budget (£750), Petplan premium (£750)
- Third party liability - Axa (£2m per event), Petplan budget (£1m), Petplan premium (£3m)
- Emergency boarding - Axa (£750), Petplan budget (£250), Petplan premium (£1,000)
- Advertising costs - Axa (£1,000), Petplan budget (£250), Petplan premium (£1,000)
- Overseas quarantine - Axa (£2,000), Petplan budget (£1,500), Petplan premium (£1,500)
- Excess (per condition) - Axa (£50), Petplan budget (£90), Petplan premium (£90)
In my opinion, the two most important items are veterinary fees and excess. Now the cost :
Axa (£11.15 per month)
Petplan budget (£25.70 month)
Petplan premium (£36.23 month)
So to get better coverage than the Axa policy (but a higher excess) it will cost you an extra £300 per year !
Important : I am not qualified to give insurance advice, nor am I suggesting the Axa is the only alternative to Petplan. It's simply my personal experience/opinion and should be used as a general illustration. Please do your own research into Insurance before making your decision - just make sure what type of policy it is and exactly what you are getting :)
ps - I have made a couple of claims with Axa and have had no issue with getting money back - they have been very prompt and my premium even came down the second year after making claims in the first ! I will certainly be using Axa to ensure our new puppy. A years worth of premium with Axa costs £131 - this is the cost of a single out of hours consultation !
When choosing pet insurance be very careful about the type of policy. They fall into 3 categories :
1. Time limited policies. Cover is provided up to a maximum amount per condition. There is a 12 month limit on how long you can claim for each condition. After 12 months the condition claimed for will be excluded from the policy
2. Maximum benefit. Cover is provided up to a maximum amount per condition (eg £3000) but there is no time limit. Once you have claimed the maximum amount, the condition will be excluded from the policy
3. Lifetime policies. Cover is provided up to a set amount of vet fees each year which is renewed at the start of each policy year. As long as you continue to renew the policy without a break in cover, there is no time limit on how long you can claim for each illness or injury.
Types 1 and 2 really need to be avoided. What you want is policies of the third type - that will pay out for a injury or illness for life and where the amount of vet fees claimable is renewed each year.
Petplan has policies that fall into the type 3 category, they are the biggest pet insurer in the UK and offer excellent coverage on their premium lifetime policies BUT they are very expensive. I personally use Axa pet insurance. Axa underwrite a lot of the other store pet insurance policies that are out there. I had a quick look at the main categories to compare the policies and price for Jess :
- Vet fees (renewed each year) - Axa (£7,000), Petplan budget (£4,000), Petplan premium (£12,000)
- Complementary treatments - Axa (£250), Petplan budget (£750), Petplan premium (£750)
- Third party liability - Axa (£2m per event), Petplan budget (£1m), Petplan premium (£3m)
- Emergency boarding - Axa (£750), Petplan budget (£250), Petplan premium (£1,000)
- Advertising costs - Axa (£1,000), Petplan budget (£250), Petplan premium (£1,000)
- Overseas quarantine - Axa (£2,000), Petplan budget (£1,500), Petplan premium (£1,500)
- Excess (per condition) - Axa (£50), Petplan budget (£90), Petplan premium (£90)
In my opinion, the two most important items are veterinary fees and excess. Now the cost :
Axa (£11.15 per month)
Petplan budget (£25.70 month)
Petplan premium (£36.23 month)
So to get better coverage than the Axa policy (but a higher excess) it will cost you an extra £300 per year !
Important : I am not qualified to give insurance advice, nor am I suggesting the Axa is the only alternative to Petplan. It's simply my personal experience/opinion and should be used as a general illustration. Please do your own research into Insurance before making your decision - just make sure what type of policy it is and exactly what you are getting :)
ps - I have made a couple of claims with Axa and have had no issue with getting money back - they have been very prompt and my premium even came down the second year after making claims in the first ! I will certainly be using Axa to ensure our new puppy. A years worth of premium with Axa costs £131 - this is the cost of a single out of hours consultation !
Puppy shopping list
A few of you have had puppies before so you know what to expect but for those that don't, I thought I would put together a quick list of recommended things you will need for your new puppy :)
1. Crate or basket for puppy to sleep in. I would personally recommend the use of a crate - more details can be found by searching earlier posts
2. Water and food bowls. These need to be durable (ie not chewable !) - either stainless steel (ones with rubber underneath are good to stop the bowl being pushed all around the room) or ceramic ones are the best
3. Chew items - your puppy at this stage is a chewing machine ! It's important to have some good, durable toys that they can use to help with teething rather than your prized shoes. Puppies need to know right from the beginning what they are allowed to chew and what they are not ! Don't put down countless toys for them, just one or two at a time which can then be rotated to provide the puppy with some variety (and allow you to clean them if necessary). Once the puppy is older and going outside, it's good to have a "special" toy that you take outside for use with training. Labradors are very powerful chewers and you will need sturdy toys if they are to last. Nylabone and Kong make some excellent products.
4. Food. The puppies are being raised on predominately a raw diet and they have had chicken mince, chicken carcasses, chicken fillet, liver, heart, kidney, duck necks, green tripe and pork belly ! For those keen to continue with a raw diet there are some good suppliers around (if in Edinburgh, contact Steven at http://www.fifeanimalfeeds.co.uk/). For England, http://www.landywoods.co.uk/ is very good. If you are wanting to feed them on biscuits then the only one I would recommend is Burns (http://www.burnspet.co.uk/dog/index.asp). For more detail on other commercial pet food companies see my earlier posts. I can provide you with some Burns when you collect your puppy
5. Poop bags. Until their final vaccination they will need to stay inside your own property but once out, it is your responsibility to clean up after your dog. For those that are interested in the details, the relevant legislation can be found here - in England Dogs Fouling of Land 1996, and in Scotland Dogs Fouling Scotland 2003
6. Lead and collar. Even before your puppy is safely able to go outside you can start some basic training inside. I'm a big fan of Red Dingo Collars - you will only need a small one to start with. You can get matching Red Dingo Leads as well - Hamish McBeth do some fantastic collars as well but are more expensive. Once the pup is getting bigger (eg 9 months) I would personally recommend investing in a good quality leather lead and collar - a good one will last for years (still good to pack a cheap one for trips to the beach !)
7. ID tag. Under the Control of Dogs Order 1992 your dog must be identified (either on the collar or by a tag attached to the collar) with the name and address of the owner. Your telephone number is optional but advisable. Once again (I promise I don't work for Red Dingo ;), Red Dingo have some really nice ID tags
8. Wire brush for grooming
9. Stair gate. If you have a house with stairs you must be very careful to ensure that the puppy cannot run up and down them until they are at least 6-8 months old as doing so can cause damage to their soft, young bones and joints. Stair gates are an excellent option giving you peace of mind that the puppy will be safe (also good for restricting puppies to a particular room within the house rather than shutting the door). You can get ones that don't require any mountings to be screwed to the wall. Lindam have a great range of gates (and extensions for bigger gaps) and can be bought at a number of different retailers (eg Amazon, Argos, Asda, Tesco)
10. Vet. For those that don't already have a vet I would recommend hunting around for a good local vet. Get registered with the vet and let them know you are buying a new puppy. It's a good idea to take the puppy along to the vet a day or two after you have them home so you can get them checked over and get all their details on the system. You will need to take the puppy back for their second vaccination once they are at least 10 weeks old
11. Insurance. In my opinion an essential purchase for peace of mind. Looking after your puppy if something goes wrong can be very expensive - especially if you need out of hours consultation which usually will charge you a minimum of £100. For as little as £12 a month you can be covered for up to £7000 a year, every year. I will put some more details around insurance in a separate blog. When you pick up your puppy I will offer you free 4 weeks insurance from Petplan which will cover you from the moment you leave with your new puppy. If you wish to take advantage of this, I can organise it online in a matter of minutes when you collect your puppy.
Happy shopping ! :)
1. Crate or basket for puppy to sleep in. I would personally recommend the use of a crate - more details can be found by searching earlier posts
2. Water and food bowls. These need to be durable (ie not chewable !) - either stainless steel (ones with rubber underneath are good to stop the bowl being pushed all around the room) or ceramic ones are the best
3. Chew items - your puppy at this stage is a chewing machine ! It's important to have some good, durable toys that they can use to help with teething rather than your prized shoes. Puppies need to know right from the beginning what they are allowed to chew and what they are not ! Don't put down countless toys for them, just one or two at a time which can then be rotated to provide the puppy with some variety (and allow you to clean them if necessary). Once the puppy is older and going outside, it's good to have a "special" toy that you take outside for use with training. Labradors are very powerful chewers and you will need sturdy toys if they are to last. Nylabone and Kong make some excellent products.
4. Food. The puppies are being raised on predominately a raw diet and they have had chicken mince, chicken carcasses, chicken fillet, liver, heart, kidney, duck necks, green tripe and pork belly ! For those keen to continue with a raw diet there are some good suppliers around (if in Edinburgh, contact Steven at http://www.fifeanimalfeeds.co.uk/). For England, http://www.landywoods.co.uk/ is very good. If you are wanting to feed them on biscuits then the only one I would recommend is Burns (http://www.burnspet.co.uk/dog/index.asp). For more detail on other commercial pet food companies see my earlier posts. I can provide you with some Burns when you collect your puppy
5. Poop bags. Until their final vaccination they will need to stay inside your own property but once out, it is your responsibility to clean up after your dog. For those that are interested in the details, the relevant legislation can be found here - in England Dogs Fouling of Land 1996, and in Scotland Dogs Fouling Scotland 2003
6. Lead and collar. Even before your puppy is safely able to go outside you can start some basic training inside. I'm a big fan of Red Dingo Collars - you will only need a small one to start with. You can get matching Red Dingo Leads as well - Hamish McBeth do some fantastic collars as well but are more expensive. Once the pup is getting bigger (eg 9 months) I would personally recommend investing in a good quality leather lead and collar - a good one will last for years (still good to pack a cheap one for trips to the beach !)
7. ID tag. Under the Control of Dogs Order 1992 your dog must be identified (either on the collar or by a tag attached to the collar) with the name and address of the owner. Your telephone number is optional but advisable. Once again (I promise I don't work for Red Dingo ;), Red Dingo have some really nice ID tags
8. Wire brush for grooming
9. Stair gate. If you have a house with stairs you must be very careful to ensure that the puppy cannot run up and down them until they are at least 6-8 months old as doing so can cause damage to their soft, young bones and joints. Stair gates are an excellent option giving you peace of mind that the puppy will be safe (also good for restricting puppies to a particular room within the house rather than shutting the door). You can get ones that don't require any mountings to be screwed to the wall. Lindam have a great range of gates (and extensions for bigger gaps) and can be bought at a number of different retailers (eg Amazon, Argos, Asda, Tesco)
10. Vet. For those that don't already have a vet I would recommend hunting around for a good local vet. Get registered with the vet and let them know you are buying a new puppy. It's a good idea to take the puppy along to the vet a day or two after you have them home so you can get them checked over and get all their details on the system. You will need to take the puppy back for their second vaccination once they are at least 10 weeks old
11. Insurance. In my opinion an essential purchase for peace of mind. Looking after your puppy if something goes wrong can be very expensive - especially if you need out of hours consultation which usually will charge you a minimum of £100. For as little as £12 a month you can be covered for up to £7000 a year, every year. I will put some more details around insurance in a separate blog. When you pick up your puppy I will offer you free 4 weeks insurance from Petplan which will cover you from the moment you leave with your new puppy. If you wish to take advantage of this, I can organise it online in a matter of minutes when you collect your puppy.
Happy shopping ! :)
Friday 25 June 2010
Puppies registered
Finished processing the online registration of the litter this morning. Costs £12 per puppy to register, £7 per puppy for a 5 generation pedigree and £6 for breed record - total £177 ! Beginning to think that the Kennel Club is a license to print money :) That's also taken the total breeding cost over the £2000 mark now.
Tuesday 22 June 2010
Less than 3 weeks to go
Yes, its less than 3 weeks to go now before we will have to say goodbye to these wonderful little bundles of joy :( For the new owners that have not had a puppy before (and for anyone else who is interested) over the next few days I will post some information up about things that are good to have ready for your new arrival :)
30kg of added weight and swimming ....
Today was such a lovely day that when I took jess out for her morning walk we ventured a little further and went to the nearby beach (10-15min walk) where I spent a while throwing sticks into the water for Jess to race out and fetch. She certainly loves the beach and I'm sure welcomes the start of more exercise :)
Once back we weighed the puppies for their 5 week weigh-in. Their weight gains over the last week were remarkably consistent, 4 pups gaining 800g, 3 gaining 900g and 2 gaining 1000g. The 2 heaviest pups now clock the scales at exactly 4kg each. After summing up all their weights we noted that the puppies have put on a combined weight of 30kg since birth (a 750% increase) !! No wonder we're having to feed Jess so much. The puppies have gained as much weight as Jess :)
For the next week, we are starting to restrict the amount of time Jess feeds the pups. We will only let her feed them once in the morning and once in the evening. Then after a week or so of that we will stop her feeding altogether so the pups are totally independent for at least 5 days before going to their new homes. It's not easy doing so though, we really need to keep them separated. Jess loves to go and have a sniff and a play but as soon as she gets close they all make a mad dash for her and latch on ! She only feeds them standing up now (you can see pictures of this in my last batch of photos - see previous post for details).
Once back we weighed the puppies for their 5 week weigh-in. Their weight gains over the last week were remarkably consistent, 4 pups gaining 800g, 3 gaining 900g and 2 gaining 1000g. The 2 heaviest pups now clock the scales at exactly 4kg each. After summing up all their weights we noted that the puppies have put on a combined weight of 30kg since birth (a 750% increase) !! No wonder we're having to feed Jess so much. The puppies have gained as much weight as Jess :)
For the next week, we are starting to restrict the amount of time Jess feeds the pups. We will only let her feed them once in the morning and once in the evening. Then after a week or so of that we will stop her feeding altogether so the pups are totally independent for at least 5 days before going to their new homes. It's not easy doing so though, we really need to keep them separated. Jess loves to go and have a sniff and a play but as soon as she gets close they all make a mad dash for her and latch on ! She only feeds them standing up now (you can see pictures of this in my last batch of photos - see previous post for details).
Photos from week Five
More photos from the last week can be seen here on Flickr
The last few photos in the set show the puppies attacking their first chicken carcass ! They had great fun with it :) Their diet is still predominantly chicken mince, with one meal a day Burns biscuits soaked in evaporated milk, but I am going to start to introduce some bones (chicken carcass, wings) over the next week.
The last few photos in the set show the puppies attacking their first chicken carcass ! They had great fun with it :) Their diet is still predominantly chicken mince, with one meal a day Burns biscuits soaked in evaporated milk, but I am going to start to introduce some bones (chicken carcass, wings) over the next week.
Tuesday 15 June 2010
Second worming
Tonight it was weigh 'n' worm night :) I can't believe how big they're getting ! They have all increased around 550% from their birth weight in the past 4 weeks. Their collective weight now is 25.6kg - about 5 kg short of Jess. I was a bit more successful with the process of administration this time with less of it being dribbled out on to the towel. Their next worming will be at 6 weeks - by then they will be eating lots of solid food so I will feed them individually and mix the worming treatment in with their food. Will be too much trying to syringe in their mouth the quantity they will need at that age !
The biggest boy now weighs 3.1 kg the biggest girl 2.9 kg.
They are all loving their time outside, I will get some photos up soon of their outdoor exploits. They have also started feeding from Jess while she is standing - Jess is not particularly thrilled about that ! She stays still for a while but then finds it hard to break free from them all - with 8 or 9 little mouths sucked on like limpets. It looks very uncomfortable while she is trying to move away with the pups still sucking on to her like mad - her teats get rather stretched !
The biggest boy now weighs 3.1 kg the biggest girl 2.9 kg.
They are all loving their time outside, I will get some photos up soon of their outdoor exploits. They have also started feeding from Jess while she is standing - Jess is not particularly thrilled about that ! She stays still for a while but then finds it hard to break free from them all - with 8 or 9 little mouths sucked on like limpets. It looks very uncomfortable while she is trying to move away with the pups still sucking on to her like mad - her teats get rather stretched !
Busy ... busy ... busy
The puppies are on to four solid meals a day now and it seems that I do little more each day then prepare their food, serve it, supervise their eating, clean up their pee and poo, move the puppies, pick up the paper, clean the floor, lay down new paper, move back the puppies.
We're starting the day with some Burns mini bites (200g between them) and evaporated milk then the rest of the days chicken mince. For this week, we're going through 1.2kg a day - 200g biscuit and 1kg of chicken mince.
Jess is still getting nearly 2 kg a day ! She was starting to look a little too lean considering how much the puppies are still feeding from her so the second half of last week I bumped her daily allowance up to 2kg - she of course thinks it's wonderful ! I'm going to lower it down to about 1.7kg this week and then down to around the 1kg mark the following week (as we will start restricting her access to the pups then).
We're starting the day with some Burns mini bites (200g between them) and evaporated milk then the rest of the days chicken mince. For this week, we're going through 1.2kg a day - 200g biscuit and 1kg of chicken mince.
Jess is still getting nearly 2 kg a day ! She was starting to look a little too lean considering how much the puppies are still feeding from her so the second half of last week I bumped her daily allowance up to 2kg - she of course thinks it's wonderful ! I'm going to lower it down to about 1.7kg this week and then down to around the 1kg mark the following week (as we will start restricting her access to the pups then).
Saturday 12 June 2010
Kennel name approved
Our first choice of kennel name "Waterfront" was unfortunately rejected as it was already in use but our second choice "HarbourGreen" (the name of our housing development) was approved :) Paperwork is to arrive early next week - then it's time to register the puppies with the kennel club - better start thinking up some more names !
More photos from week four
As you can see from the last few pictures in this set, today the puppies ventured outside for the first time ! They were a bit cautious at first but then loved having the extra space to chase each other around. Didn't take any pictures of them outside as it was all a bit manic but I will definitely take plenty during the coming week :)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/brentharlow/sets/72157624134487031/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/brentharlow/sets/72157624134487031/
Wednesday 9 June 2010
9 pups equals lots of food
Using the formula of 30-35g per week of age every day, during the 7th week that will see the pups going through 14kg of food in a single week !
In total, from weeks 3 to 7 (inclusive), they will consume a total of 51 kg of food !! Hmmm, how much poo will that mean we're picking up ?!! Here's hoping they make VERY efficient use of their food :)
In total, from weeks 3 to 7 (inclusive), they will consume a total of 51 kg of food !! Hmmm, how much poo will that mean we're picking up ?!! Here's hoping they make VERY efficient use of their food :)
Show me the meat !!
Went to the pet store yesterday and bought some Burns Mini Bites puppy kibble.
This morning started the official weaning process ! The idea is within 2 weeks we start limiting the amount of time that Jess is feeding the pups and then the following week stopping altogether so her milk is able to dry up in time for all the pups leaving. Plus they're getting quite big now and are developing a real appetite so to keep Jess as the sole provider for much long would really put a toll on her.
Each pup got 30g (1oz) of chicken mince this morning - it took them all of about 1/4 second to realise there was some real food in front of their nose before they devoured it !! It was so cute to watch, their little bodies were trembling with excitement. As they were eating it off our hands we realised that there was definitely some teeth coming through - poor Jess.
The plan is to ease them in - 2 meals a day today and tomorrow, then 3 meals a day for 3 days then by next Monday we'll be on to 4 meals a day. The amounts we will be feeding them will be approx 1oz - 1 1/4oz per week of age each day - so at 4 weeks they will each be getting around 130g divided into 4 meals.
Next week we'll start to add some puppy biscuit to their meals, then from about 5.5 weeks start introducing some bones (chicken wings, chicken backs).
I guess now it will start to get a lot harder for us - 4 feeds a day and cleaning up after them as Jess will soon stop doing that :( All great fun though ! :-)
Costs : Burns food (7.5kg bag) £24
This morning started the official weaning process ! The idea is within 2 weeks we start limiting the amount of time that Jess is feeding the pups and then the following week stopping altogether so her milk is able to dry up in time for all the pups leaving. Plus they're getting quite big now and are developing a real appetite so to keep Jess as the sole provider for much long would really put a toll on her.
Each pup got 30g (1oz) of chicken mince this morning - it took them all of about 1/4 second to realise there was some real food in front of their nose before they devoured it !! It was so cute to watch, their little bodies were trembling with excitement. As they were eating it off our hands we realised that there was definitely some teeth coming through - poor Jess.
The plan is to ease them in - 2 meals a day today and tomorrow, then 3 meals a day for 3 days then by next Monday we'll be on to 4 meals a day. The amounts we will be feeding them will be approx 1oz - 1 1/4oz per week of age each day - so at 4 weeks they will each be getting around 130g divided into 4 meals.
Next week we'll start to add some puppy biscuit to their meals, then from about 5.5 weeks start introducing some bones (chicken wings, chicken backs).
I guess now it will start to get a lot harder for us - 4 feeds a day and cleaning up after them as Jess will soon stop doing that :( All great fun though ! :-)
Costs : Burns food (7.5kg bag) £24
Monday 7 June 2010
Pet foods and animal testing
Came across this interesting article on well known pet food brands and the often cruel and unethical animal testing these large companies do. It suggests the biggest culprits are IAMS/Eukanuba (owned by Proctor & Gamble) and Hills Science (owned by Colgate Palmolive). Other brands that I am familar with I see on the list are Royal Canin and James Wellbeloved (owned by Mars).
I've never looked into this too much as we don't feed our dog(soon to be "s") kibble but with puppies going to new owners who may not be interested in feeding their dog a "raw, meaty diet" I want to feed the pups on a mixture of raw food and kibble - to make sure that their little tummies do not get upset switching from raw to a 100% kibble diet once they go to their new homes.
Looking at this article, it seems that "Burns Dog Food" would be a good choice - taken from Burns Pet Food website :
"All Burns diets for dogs and cats are hypo-allergenic and free from artificial flavourings, colourings and preservatives. Burns is a family run company that places great emphasis on quality and customer service, supports numerous charities and organisations both locally and further afield and works hard to minimise its environmental impact."
And no animal testing ! My local vet store is a Burns stockist so I'll be off to see them about getting some puppy kibble.
Here is the full article from Uncaged
I've never looked into this too much as we don't feed our dog(soon to be "s") kibble but with puppies going to new owners who may not be interested in feeding their dog a "raw, meaty diet" I want to feed the pups on a mixture of raw food and kibble - to make sure that their little tummies do not get upset switching from raw to a 100% kibble diet once they go to their new homes.
Looking at this article, it seems that "Burns Dog Food" would be a good choice - taken from Burns Pet Food website :
"All Burns diets for dogs and cats are hypo-allergenic and free from artificial flavourings, colourings and preservatives. Burns is a family run company that places great emphasis on quality and customer service, supports numerous charities and organisations both locally and further afield and works hard to minimise its environmental impact."
And no animal testing ! My local vet store is a Burns stockist so I'll be off to see them about getting some puppy kibble.
Here is the full article from Uncaged
First worming
I'm a little late with this post as the pups had their first worming treatment last Wednesday (just over 2 weeks old). I bundled all the pups (took two plastic crates this time) and Jess into the car and off to the vets where the vet nurse weighed them all (weights ranged from 1.27kg to 1.68kg) and showed me how to give them the Drontal puppy worming treatment. The bottle came with a 5ml syringe that you use to draw off 1ml per 1kg of body weight and then cradling the pup inject slowly it into the side of their mouths. The poor little guys weren't terribly impressed - the first small squirt was fine then once they got the taste of it on their tongues they kept trying to spit it out ! Pink coloured saliva ended up everywhere - I'm glad that the nurse showed me her doing the first pup otherwise I would have thought I was doing a terrible job. The nurse did one, I did two more while there and then did the rest once I got back home. Taking 9 pups along to the vets turns you into somewhat of a minor celebrity ! While I was there every 5 minutes it seemed someone else was knocking on the door to have a look at the puppies :) Great service from Oak Tree Vets - I was there at least 30 min and there was no charge :) Cost of the Drontal puppy was £24 for 100ml - I'm not sure if I'll need another one but I will get the next one off the internet and save a few pounds.
Cost : £24
Cost : £24
Professional puppy pics
We had a friend come round on Saturday who took some professional puppy pics for us. We soon found out that it's not terribly easy getting these little guys to do what you want :) Here is the link to her Flickr site where she has put some of the pictures up. The best way to view them is to click on the "Slideshow" link near the top right of the page - you can then view them in full screen and slow down or speed up the show.
Thanks so much to Nicky for these amazing photos !!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nickygraham/sets/72157624085560903/
Thanks so much to Nicky for these amazing photos !!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nickygraham/sets/72157624085560903/
Saturday 5 June 2010
Videos
I uploaded two small videos on to flickr last night - unfortunately the light was not very good so when the pups are feeding it's hard to work out the difference between Jess and her pups ! You can still see the tails going though and hear the noise they are starting to make :)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/brentharlow/sets/72157624204577864/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/brentharlow/sets/72157624204577864/
Friday 4 June 2010
Kennel name
After much deliberation (mainly because of the £70 fee !) we decided to apply for a kennel name. I like the idea of all the puppies having a common name in their pedigree and it will be exciting if we one day see a dog mentioned that has our kennel name in it !
Our first choice was for "Waterfront" which was chosen because it is the name of the large area being developed here in Edinburgh along the Firth of Forth where we live. Our second choice, in case the first is declined is HarbourGreen which is the name given to the group of houses and flats in our development. You're encouraged to select a few choices as they do checks to make sure the kennel name is not to popular a word or sounds too much like an existing kennel name etc... The lead time is 2-3 weeks before we hear - we will need to wait until we hear back before registering each of the puppies so we know which kennel name to use.
Cost : £70
Our first choice was for "Waterfront" which was chosen because it is the name of the large area being developed here in Edinburgh along the Firth of Forth where we live. Our second choice, in case the first is declined is HarbourGreen which is the name given to the group of houses and flats in our development. You're encouraged to select a few choices as they do checks to make sure the kennel name is not to popular a word or sounds too much like an existing kennel name etc... The lead time is 2-3 weeks before we hear - we will need to wait until we hear back before registering each of the puppies so we know which kennel name to use.
Cost : £70
Monday 31 May 2010
Puppy crate training
One of the new puppy owners asked me a a very good question about the use of a crate for their new puppy and I thought it may be beneficial to others to share my views on this here.
Just like nearly everything else to do with raising a puppy, there are no shortage of viewpoints as to the best way to do things. With regards to crate training though, it's a fairly agreed consensus that the use of a puppy crate is a very valuable training tool. Of course there are still people who have never used them and fail to see why you would want to. I'm sure that for some people who don't like the idea of a crate, it is because they view it as a cage and think it's mean to confine a puppy to it. Unfortunately they are thinking like a human and not as a dog (very common training mistake but very easy to do when they become such a large part of your family :)
We have always used a crate for Jess, right from her very first trip in the car from the breeder to present day (except until we needed to rearrange everything for the breeding !). I personally would highly recommend the use of a crate for a number of reasons :
- Dogs naturally live in dens. Dens protect them from danger, keep them warm and dry and help to protect their young. In the wild they will burrow holes to sleep in. A crate becomes your puppy's den - somewhere they feel warm and safe. Jess chooses to spend the majority of her sleeping time during the day in her crate. While she has the choice of the whole downstairs floor she prefers to sleep where she feels most comfortable and safe - it's her favourite place in the house :)
- Young puppies cannot be left unsupervised ! A crate provides a safe place for both your puppy and for your furnishings if you cannot watch the puppy for a short time (especially at first, young puppies should never be confined to their crates for more than a 1-2 hours - except at night time)
- Crate training greatly increases the speed and success of toilet training. Dogs by nature do not like to soil their bedding area which helps to teach the puppy when and where to go toilet (ie when you let the puppy out of the crate and take them to the back yard). Obviously to start with a young puppy cannot hold their bladder for more than a few hours so you need to get up in the night, let them out then put them back in.
- Crates are great for travelling - both in the car and when you go and stay at friends places, B&B's, hotels etc. Because your puppy will view their crate as a safe place they will be more comfortable in strange environments if they have the familiarity and comfort of their crate - and it saves you having to worrying about your friends place or hotel room being demolished !
- Crates can help with separation anxiety
This site has some excellent information and training tips associated with the use of a crate
Dog Obedience Training Review
We have 2 crates - a 30" for when Jess was a pup and then a 42" once she got bigger. You could just start with the 42" and section a part of it off. We bought our crates from The Pet Shop in Rugeley. These ones at the UK Dog Crate Company also look very good and reasonable priced.
Just like nearly everything else to do with raising a puppy, there are no shortage of viewpoints as to the best way to do things. With regards to crate training though, it's a fairly agreed consensus that the use of a puppy crate is a very valuable training tool. Of course there are still people who have never used them and fail to see why you would want to. I'm sure that for some people who don't like the idea of a crate, it is because they view it as a cage and think it's mean to confine a puppy to it. Unfortunately they are thinking like a human and not as a dog (very common training mistake but very easy to do when they become such a large part of your family :)
We have always used a crate for Jess, right from her very first trip in the car from the breeder to present day (except until we needed to rearrange everything for the breeding !). I personally would highly recommend the use of a crate for a number of reasons :
- Dogs naturally live in dens. Dens protect them from danger, keep them warm and dry and help to protect their young. In the wild they will burrow holes to sleep in. A crate becomes your puppy's den - somewhere they feel warm and safe. Jess chooses to spend the majority of her sleeping time during the day in her crate. While she has the choice of the whole downstairs floor she prefers to sleep where she feels most comfortable and safe - it's her favourite place in the house :)
- Young puppies cannot be left unsupervised ! A crate provides a safe place for both your puppy and for your furnishings if you cannot watch the puppy for a short time (especially at first, young puppies should never be confined to their crates for more than a 1-2 hours - except at night time)
- Crate training greatly increases the speed and success of toilet training. Dogs by nature do not like to soil their bedding area which helps to teach the puppy when and where to go toilet (ie when you let the puppy out of the crate and take them to the back yard). Obviously to start with a young puppy cannot hold their bladder for more than a few hours so you need to get up in the night, let them out then put them back in.
- Crates are great for travelling - both in the car and when you go and stay at friends places, B&B's, hotels etc. Because your puppy will view their crate as a safe place they will be more comfortable in strange environments if they have the familiarity and comfort of their crate - and it saves you having to worrying about your friends place or hotel room being demolished !
- Crates can help with separation anxiety
This site has some excellent information and training tips associated with the use of a crate
Dog Obedience Training Review
We have 2 crates - a 30" for when Jess was a pup and then a 42" once she got bigger. You could just start with the 42" and section a part of it off. We bought our crates from The Pet Shop in Rugeley. These ones at the UK Dog Crate Company also look very good and reasonable priced.
Sunday 30 May 2010
The truth about commercial pet food
For those that are interested, an excellent article from "Born Free USA" (a US national animal advocacy non-profit organisation) titled "What's really in Pet Food" is a real eye-opener.
"What most consumers don’t know is that the pet food industry is an extension of the human food and agriculture industries. Pet food provides a convenient way for slaughterhouse offal, grains considered “unfit for human consumption,” and similar waste products to be turned into profit. This waste includes intestines, udders, heads, hooves, and possibly diseased and cancerous animal parts....."
The article can be viewed from the Born Free USA website here
"What most consumers don’t know is that the pet food industry is an extension of the human food and agriculture industries. Pet food provides a convenient way for slaughterhouse offal, grains considered “unfit for human consumption,” and similar waste products to be turned into profit. This waste includes intestines, udders, heads, hooves, and possibly diseased and cancerous animal parts....."
The article can be viewed from the Born Free USA website here
Saturday 29 May 2010
Week two photos
Here are some pictures of week 2 - you can see the cute collars we have on them now :) They started opening their eyes today ! Not all have yet but a few have had their first peek at the big wide world - then hurriedly gone back to sleep :)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/brentharlow/sets/72157624161046854/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/brentharlow/sets/72157624161046854/
Friday 28 May 2010
11 days old
Feels like 11 weeks already ! Can't believe it's not even been 2 weeks yet. The pups are all doing really well, and so is Jess - she is back to her diet in full swing - munched down a huge turkey wing for dinner :)
All the pups have now doubled their birth weight which is excellent progress. We've been weighing them daily up till now and making sure the lightest couple of pups get on the back teats first when Jess gets back in the box with them. They're currently all sucking greedily away now as I type this up :) When she first lies down in the box it's like a sea of wriggling fat worms ! They can obviously smell her and start to go mad trying to get on to a teat. The pups on the top teats are often carried right off the floor and end up body surfing on the ones on the teats below. It's amazing to watch the incredible tenacity they have to feed themselves. They will push and push like mad with their little back feet and if need be, not spare a thought for their sibling that they've just managed to push off ! This is where the heavier ones have an advantage :)
As of yesterday morning there were 3 pups tipping the scales at just over 1kg. We're reducing the weighing frequency down to weekly now. There is still a 200g variation between the heaviest boy and the lightest girl but that will be easier to level out once the pups are weaned.
We've got new collars for them - the nail polish needs to be re-applied every couple of days and is not that easy to spot. We've gone with these collars based on recommendations from other breeders that have used them on Labrador Forums and the testimonials on the website itself. The use of collars on pups is something else (like seemingly every little matter) is cause for great discussion amongst the breeding world. Some say they use them all the time, others would sooner hand over their first born then put collars on their pups. I can see valid arguments for both, but it certainly makes it far easier to identify them ! Obviously with growth so rapid I will need to check them once a day to make sure there is still plenty of slack.
Been nearly a week since pictures - I slowed down because as I looked back through the photos realised that I already had hundreds that looked mostly the same ! I'm sure people are keen to see their development though so I'll be taking a whole load more over the weekend and will post the link to the new sets - you'll be able to see their collars in all their glory :) We have a friend who is an amazing photographer who is going to do some photos shoots at 3 weeks and again at 7 weeks - these (along with all of my photos) will be made available on a DVD for the new puppy owners !
It's been nice to be able to keep my head out of puppy books for a week or so now but I need to get back and read up some more on weaning - suggested diets, timings, procedures etc..... This will certainly be a lot easier next time round :)
All the pups have now doubled their birth weight which is excellent progress. We've been weighing them daily up till now and making sure the lightest couple of pups get on the back teats first when Jess gets back in the box with them. They're currently all sucking greedily away now as I type this up :) When she first lies down in the box it's like a sea of wriggling fat worms ! They can obviously smell her and start to go mad trying to get on to a teat. The pups on the top teats are often carried right off the floor and end up body surfing on the ones on the teats below. It's amazing to watch the incredible tenacity they have to feed themselves. They will push and push like mad with their little back feet and if need be, not spare a thought for their sibling that they've just managed to push off ! This is where the heavier ones have an advantage :)
As of yesterday morning there were 3 pups tipping the scales at just over 1kg. We're reducing the weighing frequency down to weekly now. There is still a 200g variation between the heaviest boy and the lightest girl but that will be easier to level out once the pups are weaned.
We've got new collars for them - the nail polish needs to be re-applied every couple of days and is not that easy to spot. We've gone with these collars based on recommendations from other breeders that have used them on Labrador Forums and the testimonials on the website itself. The use of collars on pups is something else (like seemingly every little matter) is cause for great discussion amongst the breeding world. Some say they use them all the time, others would sooner hand over their first born then put collars on their pups. I can see valid arguments for both, but it certainly makes it far easier to identify them ! Obviously with growth so rapid I will need to check them once a day to make sure there is still plenty of slack.
Been nearly a week since pictures - I slowed down because as I looked back through the photos realised that I already had hundreds that looked mostly the same ! I'm sure people are keen to see their development though so I'll be taking a whole load more over the weekend and will post the link to the new sets - you'll be able to see their collars in all their glory :) We have a friend who is an amazing photographer who is going to do some photos shoots at 3 weeks and again at 7 weeks - these (along with all of my photos) will be made available on a DVD for the new puppy owners !
It's been nice to be able to keep my head out of puppy books for a week or so now but I need to get back and read up some more on weaning - suggested diets, timings, procedures etc..... This will certainly be a lot easier next time round :)
Tuesday 25 May 2010
Worming
Thanks to the keen eye of Reed's owner (Lynda) she noticed by my earlier post that our vet was planning to use Panacur as a worming treatment for the puppies. In Lynda's experience this was more likely to cause tummy upsets for the pups as well as requiring 3 times the amount of administration (3 days every 2 weeks) when compared with Drontal puppy (1 day every 2 weeks). I called up my vet - I've only been with them a short time but I am already very impressed with the level of service and openness from them - to ask them why they use Panacur instead of Drontal and do they ever use Drontal. Their response was that they use Panacur because they find that most breeders prefer it and also because some people report more tummy problems using Drontal instead of Panacur !
Seems the tummy upsets can certainly not be attributed to one wormer or another (I guess if a real, consistent correlation was observed then one of them would eventually cease to be used). The vet recently had a litter himself and used Drontal puppy and had no problems.
The puppies need to be wormed at 2,4,6 and 8 weeks. For nine puppies on Panacur that would amount to us having to administer 108 doses of wormer !! On Drontal puppy that would be reduced to just 36. That (and Lynda's recommendation) was enough to convince me that Drontal was the way to go. The vets were very kind saying that I could probably source the Drontal on the internet cheaper than they could get it but I was still welcome to pop in and they would show me/supervise the first administration for no charge (no way my previous vets - Braid Vets - would have offered that). Turned out with the vet ordering it for me it would only cost an extra £7 so I am getting them to order it for me ready for the first worming next Tuesday :)
Seems the tummy upsets can certainly not be attributed to one wormer or another (I guess if a real, consistent correlation was observed then one of them would eventually cease to be used). The vet recently had a litter himself and used Drontal puppy and had no problems.
The puppies need to be wormed at 2,4,6 and 8 weeks. For nine puppies on Panacur that would amount to us having to administer 108 doses of wormer !! On Drontal puppy that would be reduced to just 36. That (and Lynda's recommendation) was enough to convince me that Drontal was the way to go. The vets were very kind saying that I could probably source the Drontal on the internet cheaper than they could get it but I was still welcome to pop in and they would show me/supervise the first administration for no charge (no way my previous vets - Braid Vets - would have offered that). Turned out with the vet ordering it for me it would only cost an extra £7 so I am getting them to order it for me ready for the first worming next Tuesday :)
Back to raw :)
Along with her old appetite being back she is also keen to eat her normal raw "prey-model" diet again - except I cannot interest her in anything with a bone in it. She is wolfing down green tripe, liver, heart, kidney, chicken mince, steak all with gusto :)
One of the great benefits to a raw diet is the drastic reduction in stool size and odour. Jess has been on a raw diet since a puppy so I've never seen the sort of poo from jess that she was producing the past few days with all the processed wet food I was using to try and get her to eat. Huge, soft, smelly poos - on a raw diet her poo is small, hard and almost odourless. To me this is one of the best indicators when comparing a raw diet to a conventional processed one. Processed food (especially kibble) are high in carbohydrates (maize, wheat, rice) that are basically used as "fillers". Carbohydrates in this form are largely useless to a dog and indigestible, hence the large amount that comes straight back out ! On a raw food diet, their poo is mostly undigested bone (which is why it turns white if left in the sun for a few days) - everything else is put to perfect use and digested :)
While I don't want to spend too much time discussing the benefits of a raw diet (and the disadvantages of a commercial, highly processed diet) , I would like to say that additional benefits of a raw "prey-model" diet are :
- healthy, shiny, thick coats
- no doggy odour
- no doggy bad breath
- no teeth problems
I would encourage people to at least take a look at the following reference sites - the last one "myths" is particularly good.
http://www.ukrmb.co.uk/showcontent.toy?contentnid=175912
http://www.rawmeatybones.com/
http://www.rawfed.com/myths/honest.html
I will be feeding all our puppies on a raw diet but also giving them some puppy kibble as well as I realise raw feeding is not for everyone and it could possible cause stomach upsets to switch to pure kibble from raw once the pups are with their new owners.
Bon appetite :)
One of the great benefits to a raw diet is the drastic reduction in stool size and odour. Jess has been on a raw diet since a puppy so I've never seen the sort of poo from jess that she was producing the past few days with all the processed wet food I was using to try and get her to eat. Huge, soft, smelly poos - on a raw diet her poo is small, hard and almost odourless. To me this is one of the best indicators when comparing a raw diet to a conventional processed one. Processed food (especially kibble) are high in carbohydrates (maize, wheat, rice) that are basically used as "fillers". Carbohydrates in this form are largely useless to a dog and indigestible, hence the large amount that comes straight back out ! On a raw food diet, their poo is mostly undigested bone (which is why it turns white if left in the sun for a few days) - everything else is put to perfect use and digested :)
While I don't want to spend too much time discussing the benefits of a raw diet (and the disadvantages of a commercial, highly processed diet) , I would like to say that additional benefits of a raw "prey-model" diet are :
- healthy, shiny, thick coats
- no doggy odour
- no doggy bad breath
- no teeth problems
I would encourage people to at least take a look at the following reference sites - the last one "myths" is particularly good.
http://www.ukrmb.co.uk/showcontent.toy?contentnid=175912
http://www.rawmeatybones.com/
http://www.rawfed.com/myths/honest.html
I will be feeding all our puppies on a raw diet but also giving them some puppy kibble as well as I realise raw feeding is not for everyone and it could possible cause stomach upsets to switch to pure kibble from raw once the pups are with their new owners.
Bon appetite :)
More than 6 hours sleep
Last night was the first time in a week and a half I've managed to get more than 6 hours sleep ! Jess is doing such a good job as a Mum so we decided it was not needed to sleep beside her any more. Morag and I were sharing night time vigils but now we're confident that Jess has it all well under control :) The alarm is still set for 230am to get up to check everything is ok and let Jess out for a pee - only last 2 mornings she hasn't been interested in a 230am pee so we might give up on that as well !
Her appetite is back with a vigour - she seems keen to eat constantly ! Of course with her being a Labrador we've been well used to this behaviour ;) A lot of the literature around lactating mums (especially between weeks 2 and 4) suggest that the she should be fed as much as she wants - I'm not sure they wrote that with a Lab in mind ! According to the book of the book calorie schedule which I have pinned up on the notice board, weeks 2 and 4 require energy consumption around 3 to 3.5 times that of maintenance levels, which is basically what I'm giving Jess now. Unfortunately it's impossible to distinguish between hunger and greed - at 1.5 kg of meat a day she can't possibly be hungry tho :D
Her appetite is back with a vigour - she seems keen to eat constantly ! Of course with her being a Labrador we've been well used to this behaviour ;) A lot of the literature around lactating mums (especially between weeks 2 and 4) suggest that the she should be fed as much as she wants - I'm not sure they wrote that with a Lab in mind ! According to the book of the book calorie schedule which I have pinned up on the notice board, weeks 2 and 4 require energy consumption around 3 to 3.5 times that of maintenance levels, which is basically what I'm giving Jess now. Unfortunately it's impossible to distinguish between hunger and greed - at 1.5 kg of meat a day she can't possibly be hungry tho :D
Saturday 22 May 2010
Vet check
Yesterday we took the pups and mum off to our vets for a checkup of both mum and the puppies. Each puppy was checked by the vet for any inherited defects - checking mouth, feet, anus, chest sounds and a quick once over. All the puppies are doing very well, putting on lots of weight and in good health :)
For poor Jess, the story wasn't quite the same though. She has really been off her appetite which was worrying us - I know a lot of dogs get quite fussy just after whelping so I had thought that was the main reason and we were trying her on anything we could think of (never used to any sort of appetite issues from Jess before !) Thankfully she was still drinking plenty - and I was mixing tons of glucose powder in with her water. Her vaginal discharge, which normally continues for the first couple of weeks after whelping, was a little pussy and "dirty" (vets words!). She also had a high temperature. The vet believed she had an infection in her uterus so prescribed her a course of antibiotics. After one day of tablets what a difference ! Her appetite, while not completely back, was definitely heading in the right direction. When Morag came down to relieve my puppy vigil at 4am Jess wolfed down a whole tray of natures diet puppy food along with some other treats :) Yay, seems antibiotics are working very effectively (and quickly) which I hope is a sign that the infection was not too bad. It's a five day course of antibiotics.
Started to take Jess on slightly longer walks and staying outside with her a bit to give her a break from the pups ! She will come back in and stay out of the box for a while but if there's too much noise coming back from the pups, she's back in and they're all feeding off her within seconds ! It really is incredible to see her mothering instinct.
We're back to the vets in 10 days time to start the first round of worming - 3 days treatment at 2, 4, 6 and 8 weeks.
Costs : Second treatment of oxytocin during whelping at our vets £34, xray before oxytocin £50, puppy and jess check up £26.50, antibiotics £22
For poor Jess, the story wasn't quite the same though. She has really been off her appetite which was worrying us - I know a lot of dogs get quite fussy just after whelping so I had thought that was the main reason and we were trying her on anything we could think of (never used to any sort of appetite issues from Jess before !) Thankfully she was still drinking plenty - and I was mixing tons of glucose powder in with her water. Her vaginal discharge, which normally continues for the first couple of weeks after whelping, was a little pussy and "dirty" (vets words!). She also had a high temperature. The vet believed she had an infection in her uterus so prescribed her a course of antibiotics. After one day of tablets what a difference ! Her appetite, while not completely back, was definitely heading in the right direction. When Morag came down to relieve my puppy vigil at 4am Jess wolfed down a whole tray of natures diet puppy food along with some other treats :) Yay, seems antibiotics are working very effectively (and quickly) which I hope is a sign that the infection was not too bad. It's a five day course of antibiotics.
Started to take Jess on slightly longer walks and staying outside with her a bit to give her a break from the pups ! She will come back in and stay out of the box for a while but if there's too much noise coming back from the pups, she's back in and they're all feeding off her within seconds ! It really is incredible to see her mothering instinct.
We're back to the vets in 10 days time to start the first round of worming - 3 days treatment at 2, 4, 6 and 8 weeks.
Costs : Second treatment of oxytocin during whelping at our vets £34, xray before oxytocin £50, puppy and jess check up £26.50, antibiotics £22
Thursday 20 May 2010
Photos on Flickr
I will be putting lots of regular photos up on Flickr - you can see them here
Currently the first set that is up are all taken on day 1 :)
Currently the first set that is up are all taken on day 1 :)
Milestones in a puppy's development
I find it amazing that for at least the first week of a puppy's life, they are both blind and deaf. The one thing they are born with though is an incredible urge to gravitate towards a teat, hang on for dear life and suck like crazy :)
The milestones in the development of the puppy include :
- Eyes opening 7 - 10 days
- Ear canals open 14 days
- Primary teeth through 14 - 21 days
- Can see 10 - 15 days
- Barking 18 days (and it seems noisy now with just contented murmurs and the occasional squeal !)
- Stand upright 21 days
- Wee and poo without stimulation from bitch (don't envy her that job ;) 21 days
- Play with other pups 25 - 28 days
- Walk and run 28 days
- Sight as good as adult 28 days
- Hearing acute 35 days
The milestones in the development of the puppy include :
- Eyes opening 7 - 10 days
- Ear canals open 14 days
- Primary teeth through 14 - 21 days
- Can see 10 - 15 days
- Barking 18 days (and it seems noisy now with just contented murmurs and the occasional squeal !)
- Stand upright 21 days
- Wee and poo without stimulation from bitch (don't envy her that job ;) 21 days
- Play with other pups 25 - 28 days
- Walk and run 28 days
- Sight as good as adult 28 days
- Hearing acute 35 days
Finally got some sleep
Last night was bliss - a full nights sleep in a real bed while Morag spent the night with Jess and the pups. They are sooooo adorable ! I can't believe looking at them that they were actually all inside Jess - no wonder she resembled a blimp in the last week of her pregnancy.
Now that the whelping is over, it's time to turn my attention to the next stage of the process - care of the puppies (and mom). I'm paranoid about room temperature (making sure it's kept between 23 and 25 degrees C) as this is the leading cause of puppies not making it past the first week. For the first 7 - 10 days they are unable to regulate their own body temperature and rely entirely on ambient heat for their warmth, either from cuddling close in to mum or the bedding. I was originally going for some heat pads but didn't bother in the end - watching the little guys crawl around the whelping box I'm just not sure how you'd keep them in the area with the heat pad - I suppose they would gravitate to it in search of heat. I figured it was easier to ensure all the pups were kept at the right temp to monitor the room temperature. I have a large digital thermometer placed just above the whelping box with min, max and current temperature so it's easy to keep an eye on it.
We're also keeping a close eye on Jess - the poor thing doesn't get a moments peace. Thankfully she has been happy to leave the bed for a few minutes during the day so we can keep her clean, she can pee and poo and we get the chance to rotate the vet bed in the whelping box. I took her around the estate for 10 min today to allow her to stretch her legs. As soon as she's back in the house though she goes running quickly up to the box and checks on her babies :)
Amazingly enough (never thought I would see the day), jess is somewhat off her food. She normally eats entirely on a raw meaty bone diet - lots of bone, meat, liver, kidney, tripe etc.. but she's turning her nose up at most of it. Was able to tempt her with some steak as well as chicken mince. She had a few chicken wings but turned away after about 4 (previously she would have eaten 4 kg of them !). Started giving her a little bit of puppy biscuit as well, the type we'll be using to wean the puppies.
Up until the birth, my research was solely on the birthing process - what was expected, what was not, what constituted an emergency and how to handle it - I must have read the same chapters in each of the books 20 times at least :) Now I can forget about that and concentrate on getting the puppies through the first 2 weeks which is such a critical period for them. The literature on fading puppy syndrome and the myriad of problems/complications that can arrive is daunting :(
We are lucky enough to already have enough people on the waiting list to ensure that all puppies will have new owners looking to provide them with all the love and the care in the world they deserve :)
Now that the whelping is over, it's time to turn my attention to the next stage of the process - care of the puppies (and mom). I'm paranoid about room temperature (making sure it's kept between 23 and 25 degrees C) as this is the leading cause of puppies not making it past the first week. For the first 7 - 10 days they are unable to regulate their own body temperature and rely entirely on ambient heat for their warmth, either from cuddling close in to mum or the bedding. I was originally going for some heat pads but didn't bother in the end - watching the little guys crawl around the whelping box I'm just not sure how you'd keep them in the area with the heat pad - I suppose they would gravitate to it in search of heat. I figured it was easier to ensure all the pups were kept at the right temp to monitor the room temperature. I have a large digital thermometer placed just above the whelping box with min, max and current temperature so it's easy to keep an eye on it.
We're also keeping a close eye on Jess - the poor thing doesn't get a moments peace. Thankfully she has been happy to leave the bed for a few minutes during the day so we can keep her clean, she can pee and poo and we get the chance to rotate the vet bed in the whelping box. I took her around the estate for 10 min today to allow her to stretch her legs. As soon as she's back in the house though she goes running quickly up to the box and checks on her babies :)
Amazingly enough (never thought I would see the day), jess is somewhat off her food. She normally eats entirely on a raw meaty bone diet - lots of bone, meat, liver, kidney, tripe etc.. but she's turning her nose up at most of it. Was able to tempt her with some steak as well as chicken mince. She had a few chicken wings but turned away after about 4 (previously she would have eaten 4 kg of them !). Started giving her a little bit of puppy biscuit as well, the type we'll be using to wean the puppies.
Up until the birth, my research was solely on the birthing process - what was expected, what was not, what constituted an emergency and how to handle it - I must have read the same chapters in each of the books 20 times at least :) Now I can forget about that and concentrate on getting the puppies through the first 2 weeks which is such a critical period for them. The literature on fading puppy syndrome and the myriad of problems/complications that can arrive is daunting :(
We are lucky enough to already have enough people on the waiting list to ensure that all puppies will have new owners looking to provide them with all the love and the care in the world they deserve :)
Tuesday 18 May 2010
More puppies !!
Just when we thought it was over and the rest of the house was in bed asleep, Jess started having contractions again at 1:35am ! ( 4 hours since last pup born).
pup 7 (choc boy) was born 1:53am
pup 8 (choc boy) was born 4:10am
At 6am she started straining again but seemed to be having trouble due to exhaustion. Spoke to the vet who suggested leaving it a but longer to see if she could manage by herself. Wasn't happening so got to the vets at 930am for another injection of oxytocin. The vet took a quick x-ray so we would know how many more to expect. Turns out 2 pups were still in there.
pup 9 was unfortunately born still born and all attempts to resuscitate failed :(
pup 10 (choc girl) was born 11:27am.
So, in total we have 9 wonderful pups
- 3 black (2 girls and a boy)
- 6 choc (3 girls and 3 boys)
Jess is finally getting some peaceful sleeping - she has been an amazing mum through a very long (48 hours) labour. She has worked tirelessly to clean them, tidy up cords and stimulate the bowel and is lovingly protective of them all :)
Further costs : Out of hours vet, blood test and oxytocin shot £126.03. Further costs today for vet, xray and oxytocin but haven't paid yet so don't know how much !
pup 7 (choc boy) was born 1:53am
pup 8 (choc boy) was born 4:10am
At 6am she started straining again but seemed to be having trouble due to exhaustion. Spoke to the vet who suggested leaving it a but longer to see if she could manage by herself. Wasn't happening so got to the vets at 930am for another injection of oxytocin. The vet took a quick x-ray so we would know how many more to expect. Turns out 2 pups were still in there.
pup 9 was unfortunately born still born and all attempts to resuscitate failed :(
pup 10 (choc girl) was born 11:27am.
So, in total we have 9 wonderful pups
- 3 black (2 girls and a boy)
- 6 choc (3 girls and 3 boys)
Jess is finally getting some peaceful sleeping - she has been an amazing mum through a very long (48 hours) labour. She has worked tirelessly to clean them, tidy up cords and stimulate the bowel and is lovingly protective of them all :)
Further costs : Out of hours vet, blood test and oxytocin shot £126.03. Further costs today for vet, xray and oxytocin but haven't paid yet so don't know how much !
Monday 17 May 2010
Puppies ! :)
Well 2 hours passed and still no pups even after regular straining from Jess. Rang the emergency vet (of course the vet clinic had just shut !) and they suggested we bring Jess up so the vet could take a look. After inspection vet believed Jess was doing fine, just slowly. Did a quick blood test to check for levels of glucose and calcium. Seems her glucose drinks and raw meaty bones served her well and both levels were in the ideal range. With that, an injection of oxytocin was made to help Jess kick start the process. The drug cause the uterine muscles to contract meaning that the birthing process is done with little help from her (rather than relying on her abdominal muscles to squeeze the uterus). We we warned to expect a puppy within 15-20 min after the injection and since our trip back home takes 20 min, Jess had her first pup 5 min down the road from home. A hasty stop at the side of the road to make all was ok (she took over instantly, without fuss) and then home with the second one being born 25 min later.
It's now 10.30pm (32 hours after stage 1 labour began) and we now have 6 puppies :
1. Black boy born 7.15pm
2. Choc girl 7:40pm
3. Choc boy 8:22pm
4. Black girl 8:50pm
5. Choc girl 9:00pm
6. Black girl 9:57pm
Jess seems very relaxed now so we think that's all the puppies but we'll be keeping a close eye on her for a while. She is being so good with them all - I had no idea how noisy they would be ! Can't imagine how noisy a litter of 10 would be.
What an exhausting 32 hours it's been ! Got a few more ahead of us no doubt as well :)
It's now 10.30pm (32 hours after stage 1 labour began) and we now have 6 puppies :
1. Black boy born 7.15pm
2. Choc girl 7:40pm
3. Choc boy 8:22pm
4. Black girl 8:50pm
5. Choc girl 9:00pm
6. Black girl 9:57pm
Jess seems very relaxed now so we think that's all the puppies but we'll be keeping a close eye on her for a while. She is being so good with them all - I had no idea how noisy they would be ! Can't imagine how noisy a litter of 10 would be.
What an exhausting 32 hours it's been ! Got a few more ahead of us no doubt as well :)
Stage 2 !
Wow, after an anxious 25 hours her water has broken and we've started to see visible abdominal straining :) First pup should be delivered within 2 hours !
Stage 1 ... still
Perhaps it was my fault, saying that I hoped it wasn't as long as 18 hours ! It's been 20 hours now and Jess seems to finally be calming down - less frantic panting and she even seemed to be having a little sleep. I'm sure she's as keen as we are to get the puppies out !
Sunday 16 May 2010
Stage 1 labour underway
It started about 2pm this afternoon (Sunday). Jess has been heavily panting and shivering since then (it's now 11pm). She's also having bouts of shredding all the newspaper in he whelping box into confetti ! Poor thing, it does not look comfortable. Right now I'm just waiting for Stage 2 to start. According to the book of the bitch, Stage 1 labour (especially in first time mums) can last up to 18 hours - certainly hope not ! The average is 6 to 12 hours.
Watch this space :)
Watch this space :)
Temperature drop !
Jess was very restless last evening, observed her going in to the corner of a room and started pawing at the ground (around 9pm). From midnight for a few hours she was pacing around, sometimes just standing up still for a few minutes before settling back down. Then she dropped off into a longer sleep and didn't make much fuss for the rest of the night.
This morning she vomited clear, mucus like fluid, the same as what she had about 3 weeks into her pregnancy.
Took her temperature at 9am and it's finally dropped ! It's been very constant between 99.5 and 100.0 for the past couple of days, this morning's reading was down to 98.4. The temperature drop is regarded as the most predictable, nearly constant indicator that stage 2 labour will begin in 12 to 24 hours. I wish now I had taken her temperature a couple of times during the night as it could have dropped anytime between the last reading at 10pm last night and 9am this morning.
I'm certain that come Monday morning, we will have pups ! :)
This morning she vomited clear, mucus like fluid, the same as what she had about 3 weeks into her pregnancy.
Took her temperature at 9am and it's finally dropped ! It's been very constant between 99.5 and 100.0 for the past couple of days, this morning's reading was down to 98.4. The temperature drop is regarded as the most predictable, nearly constant indicator that stage 2 labour will begin in 12 to 24 hours. I wish now I had taken her temperature a couple of times during the night as it could have dropped anytime between the last reading at 10pm last night and 9am this morning.
I'm certain that come Monday morning, we will have pups ! :)
Saturday 15 May 2010
Still waiting !
Saturday lunchtime now and no movement on the puppy front :( Jess' temperature is still fairly constant. Dropped a little (0.3 F) yesterday down to 99.4 but then this morning was back up to 99.7. Seems it may be Sunday night before we see any puppy action. Jess woke me up at 2am, 4am and 6am this morning by coming over and standing, inches from my face with her tail wagging like mad :) Thought each time she was desperate to go outside but she wasn't - seems she had just woken up, spotted me sleeping there and decided to come over and say hello :)
Friday 14 May 2010
Consuming the placenta
This seems to be another area that causes great discussions (or arguments !) amongst breeders hence I felt it warranted a separate post. Like many other whelping lore, both arguments for and against are very subjective and not confirmed by research.
In the wild, the purpose of the afterbirths was to provide enough food and energy for a few days before she could go hunting again. Obviously in the modern home this is not required but a number of breeders claim other benefits such as
- More copious milk production
- Earlier uterine emptying
- Subsequent pups to be delivered faster and with fewer complications
All sounds very positive so what are the arguments against ? As far as I have heard/read it is limited to
- Bitch vomiting back some of the placenta
- Copious, fluid, dark bowel movements
This is no doubt because of the richness of the placenta. They are blood filled and very nutritious and consuming too many is probably an overload for some.
So in my opinion the summary is
- Possible benefits, while not proved by any scientific research, are steadfastly held to by some breeders and all sound very positive and exactly what you would want for the bitch
- Possible problems are vomiting and messy bowel movements
My philosophy throughout the whole process is to interfere as little as possible. Possible mess seems to be far outweighed by the possible gains in my opinion. Once again, Dan Rice is his book "The complete book of dog breeding" sums it up well
"I would far rather see a bitch allowed to eat all placental tissues than to see someone interfere with her normal maternal processes by grasping the placentas from her reach and taking them from her. Moderation is the key. If the whelping process allows you to retrieve and destroy some of the placentas, you will see less of the undesirable side effects. But use discretion, don't interfere ! Let the dam's natural, maternal instincts prevail"
Well said Dan :)
In the wild, the purpose of the afterbirths was to provide enough food and energy for a few days before she could go hunting again. Obviously in the modern home this is not required but a number of breeders claim other benefits such as
- More copious milk production
- Earlier uterine emptying
- Subsequent pups to be delivered faster and with fewer complications
All sounds very positive so what are the arguments against ? As far as I have heard/read it is limited to
- Bitch vomiting back some of the placenta
- Copious, fluid, dark bowel movements
This is no doubt because of the richness of the placenta. They are blood filled and very nutritious and consuming too many is probably an overload for some.
So in my opinion the summary is
- Possible benefits, while not proved by any scientific research, are steadfastly held to by some breeders and all sound very positive and exactly what you would want for the bitch
- Possible problems are vomiting and messy bowel movements
My philosophy throughout the whole process is to interfere as little as possible. Possible mess seems to be far outweighed by the possible gains in my opinion. Once again, Dan Rice is his book "The complete book of dog breeding" sums it up well
"I would far rather see a bitch allowed to eat all placental tissues than to see someone interfere with her normal maternal processes by grasping the placentas from her reach and taking them from her. Moderation is the key. If the whelping process allows you to retrieve and destroy some of the placentas, you will see less of the undesirable side effects. But use discretion, don't interfere ! Let the dam's natural, maternal instincts prevail"
Well said Dan :)
Stage 3 labour
Stage 3 labour is the expulsion of the afterbirth (placenta). It may not arrive until shortly before the next pup is born. Make a note if it's not expelled with the pup and observe if expelled later on.
The bitch will relax a little and spend some time cleaning and nursing the puppy. It is important that the puppies are fed by the bitch as soon as possible after the birth so they get maximum benefit from the colostrum, the first milk. Although colostrum may be present in the teats for a few days, puppies can only utilise it properly for a limited time, perhaps as little as 12 - 36 hours after whelping. The colostrum contains antibodies to all the diseases that the bitch has encountered in her life as well as those she has been vaccinated against.
After a variable time (10 min to 2 hours), stage 2 labour will begin for the next pup. You should not allow more than 2 hours in between delivery before contacting vet
The bitch will relax a little and spend some time cleaning and nursing the puppy. It is important that the puppies are fed by the bitch as soon as possible after the birth so they get maximum benefit from the colostrum, the first milk. Although colostrum may be present in the teats for a few days, puppies can only utilise it properly for a limited time, perhaps as little as 12 - 36 hours after whelping. The colostrum contains antibodies to all the diseases that the bitch has encountered in her life as well as those she has been vaccinated against.
After a variable time (10 min to 2 hours), stage 2 labour will begin for the next pup. You should not allow more than 2 hours in between delivery before contacting vet
Signs of Stage 2 labour
These are my notes made on Stage 2 labour
- Firstly, it's important to note the time when this starts, so as to know when to call for help
- Stage 2 labour begins when visible abdominal straining begins
- A moderate quantity of clear, straw or light pink coloured fluid leaks from birth canal
- The bitch must not be allowed to strain for more than 3-4 hours without having a vet investigate - call after 2 hours and warn vet
- Second and subsequent puppies should come with no more than 1 hour of straining - if not, call vet
- If the puppy is visible and applying gentle traction does not produce the puppy within 10 minutes, call the vet
- Puppies will often appear in pairs (one from each uterine horn)
- The sac membrane around the puppies do not always rupture at birth. If born with the sac intact, observe the bitch very closely. She should tear open the sac and lick the puppy vigorously, rolling the pup over and over, cleaning the puppy and chewing the cord
- If the bitch fails to break the sac then help her. Tear it open with your fingers and clear the pups nose and mouth
- If necessary, also use your fingers to ease the blood within the cord back down to the puppy and shred the cord. Rub the puppy vigorously in a towel before handing it back to the bitch. The key here, as is with the whole process, is to interfere as little as possible, only when absolutely needed and then once the safety of the puppy has been ensured, let the bitch take over
- 40% of puppies are born hind legs first, this is not a problem and is not a breech delivery (that is when the tail comes out first and the hind legs are tucked back inside). Most breech puppies will be delivered fine by the bitch but you need to observe closely and call the vet if the pup is not coming out after 10 minutes. Never apply traction to the puppies tail in a breech delivery
- Firstly, it's important to note the time when this starts, so as to know when to call for help
- Stage 2 labour begins when visible abdominal straining begins
- A moderate quantity of clear, straw or light pink coloured fluid leaks from birth canal
- The bitch must not be allowed to strain for more than 3-4 hours without having a vet investigate - call after 2 hours and warn vet
- Second and subsequent puppies should come with no more than 1 hour of straining - if not, call vet
- If the puppy is visible and applying gentle traction does not produce the puppy within 10 minutes, call the vet
- Puppies will often appear in pairs (one from each uterine horn)
- The sac membrane around the puppies do not always rupture at birth. If born with the sac intact, observe the bitch very closely. She should tear open the sac and lick the puppy vigorously, rolling the pup over and over, cleaning the puppy and chewing the cord
- If the bitch fails to break the sac then help her. Tear it open with your fingers and clear the pups nose and mouth
- If necessary, also use your fingers to ease the blood within the cord back down to the puppy and shred the cord. Rub the puppy vigorously in a towel before handing it back to the bitch. The key here, as is with the whole process, is to interfere as little as possible, only when absolutely needed and then once the safety of the puppy has been ensured, let the bitch take over
- 40% of puppies are born hind legs first, this is not a problem and is not a breech delivery (that is when the tail comes out first and the hind legs are tucked back inside). Most breech puppies will be delivered fine by the bitch but you need to observe closely and call the vet if the pup is not coming out after 10 minutes. Never apply traction to the puppies tail in a breech delivery
No action yet
No action during the night - Jess seemed to calm down a little. Took her temperature this morning - still the same, hovering close to 100 F. So, will we see puppies today or tomorrow ?!
Forgot earlier to add extra costs : £33 for puppy gate, £18 for a bottle of Dopram V (respiratory stimulant - here's hoping we don't need it !) - total now over the £1500 mark
Forgot earlier to add extra costs : £33 for puppy gate, £18 for a bottle of Dopram V (respiratory stimulant - here's hoping we don't need it !) - total now over the £1500 mark
Thursday 13 May 2010
First signs perhaps .... ?
Jess seems very restless this evening, and very clingy. Getting up and down a lot, obviously finding it hard to get comfortable and I noticed for the first time a stringy, mucus discharge from her vulva while out walking her this evening. Been taking her temperature 3 times a day and it's been pretty constant at 100.0 F, last reading at 10pm was 99.7 F so no drastic drop. While I realise there are a number of indicators to look for, all the books also mention that for some, the first sign of whelping is a pup appearing so I'm not waiting until all the boxes are ticked before expecting whelping to start.
Don't believe it will be tonight but I've got everything ready just in case and I'm sleeping downstairs with her ......
Don't believe it will be tonight but I've got everything ready just in case and I'm sleeping downstairs with her ......
Wednesday 12 May 2010
Signs of Stage 1 labour
Stage 1 labour seems to be quite variable. On average it lasts between 6 and 12 hours but can be as long as 18 hours. For some though, the first signs that whelping has started is the arrival of the first pup !
Common signs that can be visible during stage 1 labour are :
- restlessness and nervousness
- shivering and panting
- scratching and digging at the floor
- repeated lying down and getting up
- frequent licking of the vulva
- a clear, odourless, stringy vaginal discharge (like raw egg white) : this is the mucus plug that filled the cervix during pregnancy
It's now Wednesday night, 60-61 days past ovulation so I'm expecting it all to start very soon :) We've been taking her temperature since last night and it's been fairly constant at around 100 F. I need to finish assembling the whelping gear tomorrow, the list is
- box with bedding and hot water bottles should any of the puppies need to be temporarily removed from mum
- surgical gloves
- towels
- newspapers (lots of them)
- dettol wipes
- dopram v
- kitchen paper and gauze pads
- vet details !
- torch with fresh batteries
- glucose and water drink (for the dog !)
- bin liners for putting all the soiled paper in between puppies
and of course
- digital camera batteries charged
- video camera battery charged
Common signs that can be visible during stage 1 labour are :
- restlessness and nervousness
- shivering and panting
- scratching and digging at the floor
- repeated lying down and getting up
- frequent licking of the vulva
- a clear, odourless, stringy vaginal discharge (like raw egg white) : this is the mucus plug that filled the cervix during pregnancy
It's now Wednesday night, 60-61 days past ovulation so I'm expecting it all to start very soon :) We've been taking her temperature since last night and it's been fairly constant at around 100 F. I need to finish assembling the whelping gear tomorrow, the list is
- box with bedding and hot water bottles should any of the puppies need to be temporarily removed from mum
- surgical gloves
- towels
- newspapers (lots of them)
- dettol wipes
- dopram v
- kitchen paper and gauze pads
- vet details !
- torch with fresh batteries
- glucose and water drink (for the dog !)
- bin liners for putting all the soiled paper in between puppies
and of course
- digital camera batteries charged
- video camera battery charged
Saturday 8 May 2010
Signs that whelping is imminent
As mentioned in the earlier post, one of the most reliable indicators is the bitch's body temperature. The temperature will drop from a normal 101.5 F (38.6 C) to less than 100 F (37.7 C), often as low as 98 F (36.6 C). This happens about 12 to 24 hours prior to Stage 2 labour begins.
Another sure sign that it's all about to kick off is the presence of a green vaginal discharge. It is the result of early uterine placental detachment. This fluid can be intermittently observed until several days or a week after whelping.
Another sure sign that it's all about to kick off is the presence of a green vaginal discharge. It is the result of early uterine placental detachment. This fluid can be intermittently observed until several days or a week after whelping.
Signs whelping is getting near
Several days before whelping you can notice (although each bitch is different)
- Appetite gradually diminishes (yeah right, surely this is not going to happen, at any rate, Jess would be happy to consume an entire cow at the moment :)
- Bitch becomes restless and sedentary
- Stomach muscles relax and abdomen becomes more pendulous and distended
- Mammary glands enlarge
At this stage it's advised to start taking the bitch's temperature as this is one of the most predictable, nearly constant indicator that whelping is imminent (see next post). The temperature should be taken three times a day (at the same time each day) and the results recorded. It is of little use to only take a couple of random measurements. Got a digital thermometer but not so sure Jess is going to be very receptive of the method of obtaining the temperature (neither am I for that !)
Not long now !
Estimated whelping day is one week from today ! Over the last week I've been doing more reading and note taking on the actual birthing process - mainly so I know what's normal and what's not. I've found a really good book "The Complete Book of Dog Breeding" by Dan Rice (see links section for shortcut to amazon). I realy like the author's approach to the process - minimal intervention !
The Whelping chapter starts with the author saying "I don't subscribe to the concept and practice of taking over the dam's responsibilities. I believe it reduces natural, instinctive canine maternal behaviour.......our help should be reserved for those times when a puppy or the dam is at risk". Well said Dan :)
The following chapter covers difficult births (Dystocia) and once again ends with a great summary that I've decided will be my mantra through the whelping process
"Problems are often created by overzealous or radical actions. It is important not to offer assistance until you are sure it is needed. Once a decision to intercede is made, your assistance should be as quick and efficient as possible. Have a good idea of what you are going to do, do it, and get back into the audience. Use common sense and moderation."
Great advice I believe. I used this book and the "Breeding a litter" by J.M Evans (co-author of Book of the Bitch) to compile a summary of each stage of the labour and what constitutes the need to get involved. I'll type up my notes over the next few posts.
Costs since last post : Thermometers (one for the room and one for Jess) £12, Picket fencing for the garden (not going to be needing this for a few weeks but Argos had a special :) £20, Vet bedding (a monster roll 1.5m x 5m of basic vet bedding) £33
Eight people on the waiting list now so with our pup, that's nine accounted for - lets hope Jess has enough to give everyone what they're looking for !
The Whelping chapter starts with the author saying "I don't subscribe to the concept and practice of taking over the dam's responsibilities. I believe it reduces natural, instinctive canine maternal behaviour.......our help should be reserved for those times when a puppy or the dam is at risk". Well said Dan :)
The following chapter covers difficult births (Dystocia) and once again ends with a great summary that I've decided will be my mantra through the whelping process
"Problems are often created by overzealous or radical actions. It is important not to offer assistance until you are sure it is needed. Once a decision to intercede is made, your assistance should be as quick and efficient as possible. Have a good idea of what you are going to do, do it, and get back into the audience. Use common sense and moderation."
Great advice I believe. I used this book and the "Breeding a litter" by J.M Evans (co-author of Book of the Bitch) to compile a summary of each stage of the labour and what constitutes the need to get involved. I'll type up my notes over the next few posts.
Costs since last post : Thermometers (one for the room and one for Jess) £12, Picket fencing for the garden (not going to be needing this for a few weeks but Argos had a special :) £20, Vet bedding (a monster roll 1.5m x 5m of basic vet bedding) £33
Eight people on the waiting list now so with our pup, that's nine accounted for - lets hope Jess has enough to give everyone what they're looking for !
Wednesday 5 May 2010
New photos
I've added some more photos of Jess at 5, 6 and 7 weeks pregnant - see the photos link. Still waiting to be able to feel/see puppies moving but no luck yet :( Got to sort out final list for whelping requirements in next couple of days. Borrowed a whelping box from a friend which has saved some money (they can be very expensive !). Last night we turned our downstairs area upside down, rearranging everything to create a quiet, separate area where Jess and the pups will spend the next 2 months. Feeling comfortable about my readiness for the whole birthing process now and just can't wait for it to start (although I'm sure Jess is not so keen !)
Friday 30 April 2010
Second scan
I know I said I was going to wait it out but I couldn't help it, plus I was keen to try a smaller, closer vets as thinking of switching to them instead of using Braids. They re-iterated the warning that exact numbers are very hard to see with an ultrasound but this time I was able to look at the scans with the vet and he showed me at least 4 distinct puppies. It's not very clear especially as jess was panting like a steam train moving everything around inside but you got glimpses of spines and heads :) Vet confirmed timings, that Jess is nearly 7 weeks pregnant - 2 weeks to go ! They like to see both Mum and the pups the day after to make sure everyone is doing ok and offered plenty of advice at a leisurely pace rather than Braids where the whole thing seemed very rushed. Plus, while Braids scan cost £80, this one only cost £36 !
Got the puppy advert up on Champdogs website now - cost for a years membership was £32.
http://www.champdogs.co.uk/puppy/17854.html
Made another purchase yesterday in preparation for the puppies - a Lindham gate and extender to be able to keep them confined to the dining room area (well, what was once a dining room area !). Cost of gate and extension was £33
Costs : Second scan £36, Champdogs membership £32, Puppy gate £33
Got the puppy advert up on Champdogs website now - cost for a years membership was £32.
http://www.champdogs.co.uk/puppy/17854.html
Made another purchase yesterday in preparation for the puppies - a Lindham gate and extender to be able to keep them confined to the dining room area (well, what was once a dining room area !). Cost of gate and extension was £33
Costs : Second scan £36, Champdogs membership £32, Puppy gate £33
Thursday 15 April 2010
Pregnancy confirmed !
Jess has been to the vet and had an ultrasound which confirmed that she was pregnant :D Yay ! Unfortuantly the vet had some stupid rules about not being allowed in the room where they do the scans so I was unable to pester them about trying to see how many pups she might have. By the time I got handed the scans in the waiting room the vet wasn't prepared to offer more information then the fact that heartbeats had been seen and she was definitely pregnant :(
Still, ultrasound is known to be somewhat unreliable for determining the exact number of pups partly due to the size of them - at 4 weeks old they are only one inch long ! Still, would have been nice to have a "rough indication" eg 2 or 12 :) Another scan could be made at a later time (or a x-ray) but I think we'll just "wait and find out".
I've uploaded the pictures from the 2 scans - you can see them in the section on the right hand side "Photos - Pregnancy". I'm going to take some time-lapse photos of Jess so I can see how her body shape changes over time (nothing obvious at the moment). Just have to get her to stand still in the same place each week :)
Time for some more research now into what else is needed for the whelping process. We're borrowing a whelping box from a friend so that saves some money - otherwise this place looked excellent, I liked the idea that they were designed to be thrown away after the event
http://www.petnapwhelpingboxes.co.uk/
They've got a number of other things which I may get from them : Whelping kit and heat pads for starters. Not sure what if anything else is needed/recommended.
Cost of ultrasound : £73, total now past the £1300 mark ! :(
Still, ultrasound is known to be somewhat unreliable for determining the exact number of pups partly due to the size of them - at 4 weeks old they are only one inch long ! Still, would have been nice to have a "rough indication" eg 2 or 12 :) Another scan could be made at a later time (or a x-ray) but I think we'll just "wait and find out".
I've uploaded the pictures from the 2 scans - you can see them in the section on the right hand side "Photos - Pregnancy". I'm going to take some time-lapse photos of Jess so I can see how her body shape changes over time (nothing obvious at the moment). Just have to get her to stand still in the same place each week :)
Time for some more research now into what else is needed for the whelping process. We're borrowing a whelping box from a friend so that saves some money - otherwise this place looked excellent, I liked the idea that they were designed to be thrown away after the event
http://www.petnapwhelpingboxes.co.uk/
They've got a number of other things which I may get from them : Whelping kit and heat pads for starters. Not sure what if anything else is needed/recommended.
Cost of ultrasound : £73, total now past the £1300 mark ! :(
Sunday 28 March 2010
Puppy development - the early days !
If you're at all like me, it's not enough to know that she's pregnant and then then sit back and wait for the delivery. I want to know what's happening throughout the whole process, especially cause the wonders of embryo/foetal development amaze me - it's a true miracle :)
The development is split into 3 stages : Pre-attachment, Embryonic and Foetal.
1. Pre-attachment
After fertilisation there are two nuclei in each egg, one from each parent carrying half of their chromosomes. When these fuse, the puppy is created carrying the full complement of 78 chromosomes (as opposed to humans with 46, sheep 54, horse 64 and a Kingfisher at 132 !). 8 to 9 days after fertilisation they travel down into the uterus.
2. Embryonic stage
Placentas start to develop about 17 days after fertilisation and at around day 20 the embryos (less than a half an inch long) begin to attach themselves to the walls of the uterus. The central nervous system is developed at this stage. Over the next week the brain and spinal cord develop along with the rest of the organs, limbs, head, eyes and face.
3. Foetal stage
At around 30 days after fertilisation, male and female characteristics show. Over the next few weeks rapid development of the foetus occurs and from day 57 (after fertilisation), live full term puppies can be born. The normal duration of pregnancy is 60 days (+/- 1 day) from fertilisation (or about 63 days from ovulation).
The development is split into 3 stages : Pre-attachment, Embryonic and Foetal.
1. Pre-attachment
After fertilisation there are two nuclei in each egg, one from each parent carrying half of their chromosomes. When these fuse, the puppy is created carrying the full complement of 78 chromosomes (as opposed to humans with 46, sheep 54, horse 64 and a Kingfisher at 132 !). 8 to 9 days after fertilisation they travel down into the uterus.
2. Embryonic stage
Placentas start to develop about 17 days after fertilisation and at around day 20 the embryos (less than a half an inch long) begin to attach themselves to the walls of the uterus. The central nervous system is developed at this stage. Over the next week the brain and spinal cord develop along with the rest of the organs, limbs, head, eyes and face.
3. Foetal stage
At around 30 days after fertilisation, male and female characteristics show. Over the next few weeks rapid development of the foetus occurs and from day 57 (after fertilisation), live full term puppies can be born. The normal duration of pregnancy is 60 days (+/- 1 day) from fertilisation (or about 63 days from ovulation).
Pregnancy diagnosis
It's been 2 weeks now since Jess was mated, and another 2 week until we're off to the vet for an ultrasound, so another 2 weeks to wait to find out if she is definitely pregnant or not !
Unlike humans, there is no immediate test that can be done to check pregnancy in dogs. The options available are :
1. Wait until visible signs appear - these are not going to be visible until 35-40 days into the pregnancy though and can be :
- darkening colour and development of the teats
- enlarged mammary glands
- opaque or white mucus vaginal discharge
- morning sickness (as well as refusing food till midday - with a Labrador ? yeah right :)
- abdominal enlargement - this is not likely until day 40-50. When the uterine horns become very full with the developing foetuses they fold back upon themselves and drop lower into the abdomen. This may not happen if the litter is very small
2. Abdominal palpitation. This involves the vet trying to feel the tiny marble-sized foetuses in the uterus, strung out like a bead necklace. This is possible at around 20-30 days post mating but not on all bitches and it depends on the shape of the bitch
3. Measuring levels of hormone relaxin. This hormone is produced by the placenta and begins to appear in the blood stream at the time when the fertilised eggs become implanted in the womb (usually between 17 and 19 days post-ovulation). This test is normally carried out around 30 days after mating.
4. Ultrasound. Using the same ultrasound imaging equipment as used for women, foetal heartbeats can be seen from days 20-25 of pregnancy. The accuracy of the results though depend very much on the equipment being used and the skill and expertise of the operator. It is more useful than other tests as it can help to indicate the number and size of the puppies. Pregnancy diagnosis is said to be 94% correct through the use of ultrasound (not sure of the reliability or sample size of that statistic though !), but assessing the number of pups in the litter is not so accurate, especially when there are more than 6 foetuses.
So, it's ultrasound for us (at the preference of the vet) and in 2 weeks time I will be able to post the results :)
Unlike humans, there is no immediate test that can be done to check pregnancy in dogs. The options available are :
1. Wait until visible signs appear - these are not going to be visible until 35-40 days into the pregnancy though and can be :
- darkening colour and development of the teats
- enlarged mammary glands
- opaque or white mucus vaginal discharge
- morning sickness (as well as refusing food till midday - with a Labrador ? yeah right :)
- abdominal enlargement - this is not likely until day 40-50. When the uterine horns become very full with the developing foetuses they fold back upon themselves and drop lower into the abdomen. This may not happen if the litter is very small
2. Abdominal palpitation. This involves the vet trying to feel the tiny marble-sized foetuses in the uterus, strung out like a bead necklace. This is possible at around 20-30 days post mating but not on all bitches and it depends on the shape of the bitch
3. Measuring levels of hormone relaxin. This hormone is produced by the placenta and begins to appear in the blood stream at the time when the fertilised eggs become implanted in the womb (usually between 17 and 19 days post-ovulation). This test is normally carried out around 30 days after mating.
4. Ultrasound. Using the same ultrasound imaging equipment as used for women, foetal heartbeats can be seen from days 20-25 of pregnancy. The accuracy of the results though depend very much on the equipment being used and the skill and expertise of the operator. It is more useful than other tests as it can help to indicate the number and size of the puppies. Pregnancy diagnosis is said to be 94% correct through the use of ultrasound (not sure of the reliability or sample size of that statistic though !), but assessing the number of pups in the litter is not so accurate, especially when there are more than 6 foetuses.
So, it's ultrasound for us (at the preference of the vet) and in 2 weeks time I will be able to post the results :)
Thursday 18 March 2010
Second mating
Yesterday I went back down to Brigburn kennels. Jess did less complaining this time and was far more relaxed once Reed was in. They tied again for 20 min so hopefully as I sit here typing, Jess has a number of fertilised eggs in her uterus :D. Now comes the next wait - it's about 3 weeks before any sort of pregnancy diagnosis can be made. I'll cover the various options in a later post.
Cost : Petrol £35
Cost : Petrol £35
Monday 15 March 2010
First mating
Well after what seemed an endless parade of testing, the day finally arrived for Jess to mate with Reed. Knowing that Jess has never been very keen for anyone paying her too much attention round her back end, I was a little concerned that she might make it very difficult for Reed to do the deed ! We introduced the two together and Reed wasted no time getting down to business :) However, Jess was not impressed - seemed she expected some wining and dining from her men first ! We let them wander round and attempt things on their own for a while and after about 10 min Jess started to warm to the idea so Lynda steadied/assisted things from the back while I kept Jess from wriggling too much from the front. There were a few yelps and squeals from Jess but once Reed was in and the tie started, she seemed perfectly calm about it all. They tied for about 20 minutes and Jess was happy to stay still for the whole time (although I sat with her holding her collar).
It was great to experience, to see mother nature at work with the dogs natural instincts guiding them through the process.
I'm going to go back again on Wednesday for another mating. I'm wondering whether Jess will be more receptive towards the process this time, or whether once she realises where she is, refuse to get out of the car !
Cost : Petrol (£35), Stud dog fee (£400)
It was great to experience, to see mother nature at work with the dogs natural instincts guiding them through the process.
I'm going to go back again on Wednesday for another mating. I'm wondering whether Jess will be more receptive towards the process this time, or whether once she realises where she is, refuse to get out of the car !
Cost : Petrol (£35), Stud dog fee (£400)
Saturday 13 March 2010
Day 11 - Second progesterone test
Second progesterone test was done on Friday (Day 11) - used my own vet this time, bit more expensive for the consultation but they were able to spin the serum out from the blood for me so Croft would be able to obtain a better reading. Sent sample off Saturday next day delivery and had the call from Croft at 11am on Saturday.
Reading this time was 7.1 nmol/L which was exactly what I was hoping for. This indicates that the LH surge has taken place, and has elevated the progesterone up from it's Monday level of 1.6 nmol/L (and also indicates that ovulation not yet occurred). The blood sample was done at 10am on Friday, so LH surge probably occurred late Thursday/early Friday. From this, the date of ovulation can be determined as being Saturday or Sunday (remembering this is not an exact science down to the nearest hour but can probably pinpoint events within 24 hours if tested at the right times).
The recommendation for the best time for mating is 1 and 3 or 2 and 4 days post-ovulation. So assuming ovulation is taking place on Saturday or Sunday, I'm going for a mating on Monday and Wednesday. The eggs take approximately 2 days to become fertile after being released (at ovulation) and then remain fertile for another 2-3 days. Fresh semen can remain viable in the reproductive tract for 5-6 days so the combination of the mating days above will provide maximum contact between the fertile eggs and healthy sperm.
So, science and testing takes a rest now, and Mother Nature is being called in :) Jess has no idea what's in store for her ! Time to refresh myself a bit more about the mating process but luckily I'll have Lynda there with her wealth of experience to guide us through the process !
Cost : £30 for the test, £30 for my vet to collect the blood sample and £5 postage (£65).
Reading this time was 7.1 nmol/L which was exactly what I was hoping for. This indicates that the LH surge has taken place, and has elevated the progesterone up from it's Monday level of 1.6 nmol/L (and also indicates that ovulation not yet occurred). The blood sample was done at 10am on Friday, so LH surge probably occurred late Thursday/early Friday. From this, the date of ovulation can be determined as being Saturday or Sunday (remembering this is not an exact science down to the nearest hour but can probably pinpoint events within 24 hours if tested at the right times).
The recommendation for the best time for mating is 1 and 3 or 2 and 4 days post-ovulation. So assuming ovulation is taking place on Saturday or Sunday, I'm going for a mating on Monday and Wednesday. The eggs take approximately 2 days to become fertile after being released (at ovulation) and then remain fertile for another 2-3 days. Fresh semen can remain viable in the reproductive tract for 5-6 days so the combination of the mating days above will provide maximum contact between the fertile eggs and healthy sperm.
So, science and testing takes a rest now, and Mother Nature is being called in :) Jess has no idea what's in store for her ! Time to refresh myself a bit more about the mating process but luckily I'll have Lynda there with her wealth of experience to guide us through the process !
Cost : £30 for the test, £30 for my vet to collect the blood sample and £5 postage (£65).
Wednesday 10 March 2010
Laboklin results back
Got results back from Laboklin today - great news. Jess tested clear for both EIC and CNM - Yay !
So in total, Jess' health checks were:
Hips : 0/0
Elbows : 1/0
prcd-PRA : Clear
EIC : Clear
CNM : Clear
In combination with Reed :
Hips : Jess 0/0, Reed 4/4
Elbows : Jess 1/0, Reed 0/0
prcd-PRA : Jess Clear, Reed Clear => All puppies clear by parentage
EIC : Jess Clear, Reed Carrier => Approx 50% puppies clear, 50% carriers
CNM : Jess Clear, Reed Clear => All puppies clear by parentage
So DNA testing confirms that Jess and Reeds puppies will never be affected with prcd, EIC or CNM - how comforting :) There's probably not many litters out there that can claim that (prcd and CNM probably, but not all three).
Of course, Jess still has to get pregnant ! I'm getting a little ahead of myself :D
So in total, Jess' health checks were:
Hips : 0/0
Elbows : 1/0
prcd-PRA : Clear
EIC : Clear
CNM : Clear
In combination with Reed :
Hips : Jess 0/0, Reed 4/4
Elbows : Jess 1/0, Reed 0/0
prcd-PRA : Jess Clear, Reed Clear => All puppies clear by parentage
EIC : Jess Clear, Reed Carrier => Approx 50% puppies clear, 50% carriers
CNM : Jess Clear, Reed Clear => All puppies clear by parentage
So DNA testing confirms that Jess and Reeds puppies will never be affected with prcd, EIC or CNM - how comforting :) There's probably not many litters out there that can claim that (prcd and CNM probably, but not all three).
Of course, Jess still has to get pregnant ! I'm getting a little ahead of myself :D
Tuesday 9 March 2010
Results back from first progesterone test
Wow, hats off to Croft. I posted the sample at 3pm yesterday and had a call from Crofts with the result today at 12pm :) The results were to be expected, progesterone levels at 1.6 nmol/L (day 7), indicating that the LH surge is not yet happened (on average day 10).
To avoid the cost of a third test, I really want the next test to at least show that the LH surge has happened (progesterone levels will be > 6.0) mol/L) so then I will know when ovulation will/has occurred and I can plan the visits down to see Reed :) Friday this week will be day 11 which "should" be in between the days of the LH surge and ovulation. Thankfully Croft is open on the weekend so a next day delivery on the Friday will see me with the results around Sat lunchtime (day 12).
To avoid the cost of a third test, I really want the next test to at least show that the LH surge has happened (progesterone levels will be > 6.0) mol/L) so then I will know when ovulation will/has occurred and I can plan the visits down to see Reed :) Friday this week will be day 11 which "should" be in between the days of the LH surge and ovulation. Thankfully Croft is open on the weekend so a next day delivery on the Friday will see me with the results around Sat lunchtime (day 12).
Monday 8 March 2010
Day 7 - First progesterone test
Jess and I are off to the vets today to take the first blood sample for Croft. Will post the sample down via next day delivery and find out tomorrow the results of the progesterone testing. I expect it to be low (< 2 nmol/l) indicating that the LH surge has not yet happened. They will advise when I should do next test - probably Thursday or Friday (day 10/11) - at which point levels should indicate the LH surge has happened.
Cost : £30 for the test, £20 for my vet to collect the blood sample and £5 postage (£55).
Cost : £30 for the test, £20 for my vet to collect the blood sample and £5 postage (£55).
Progesterone testing
In my last post I talked about the hormones oestrogen and progesterone and their affect/involvement in controlling the oestrus cycle. About 2 days prior to ovulation a surge in the secretion of LH causes the ovarian cells to switch from secreting oestrogen to progesterone. Prior to this LH surge, progesterone levels are very low . On the same day of the LH surge, progesterone levels will start to rise, continuing to do so through to ovulation and beyond. Once the bitch has ovulated, progesterone levels can vary greatly so the important test is knowing exactly when the progesterone has passed the ovulation mark. Once it's passed, you can't accurately predict how long ago ovulation took place.
Knowing the day of ovulation allows you to maximise contact time between viable semen (which can remain viable in the bitch's uterus for 3-5 days) and fertile eggs. Once ovulated, the eggs take approximately 48 hours to become fertile. They will then remain fertile for approximately another 48 hours. The normal recommendation for mating is therefore days 1 and 3 or 2 and 4 post-ovulation.
So, on average, the LH surge occurs on day 10 (where day 1 is the first day where bleeding is detected in the bitch), ovulation 2 days later on day 12 and mating on day 14 and 16 (2 and 4 days post ovulation).
As mentioned earlier, prior to ovulation, progesterone levels as very low (less then 2 nmol/l). When the levels of LH surge, progesterone levels will quickly rise to above 6 nmol/l. At the time of ovulation, levels will be around 15-20 nmol/l. By detecting the change in progesterone levels around the LH peak, the date of ovulation can be accurately identified. While the LH surge is on average around day 10, it can be as early as day 5 or as late as day 25, which is why it's usually advised to start testing about day 5-7. Depending on the results from the first test, the lab will advise when next to test (usually about 3 days later).
There are "off the shelf" or "in house" kits that many vets stock (like pre-mate) that test for progesterone levels. It's important to realise that while they can give you a quick result (within the hour), they are qualitative tests, and not quantitative and are unable to provide you with accurate results. These simple ELISA based tests use colour changes to predict the levels of progesterone in the blood, with a stronger colour changes indicating higher levels. Lots of people have used them and swear by them, but there are just as many stories about them not working, due to a number of contributing factors (age of test, temperature, subjective colour analysis etc.).
Personally, I would only recommend the laboratory quantitative tests - I don't see the point in spending roughly the same amount of money (about £30) for a test that is not as accurate. This is the place I am going to use Croft Reproduction. The have staff working 24x7 and will phone you on the same day that the blood sample is received. Can't ask for better service than that :) There are some other labs that will do the same test like Cambridge Specialist Labs but they are only open Mon-Fri business hours which is frustrating if you need results over the weekend !
The cost with Croft Reproduction : £30 for the test, £20 for my vet to collect the blood sample and £5 postage (£55).
I'm hoping that 2 tests will be enough, I really must learn how to take the blood myself - certainly doesn't look difficult and would save me £20 each time ! ;)
Knowing the day of ovulation allows you to maximise contact time between viable semen (which can remain viable in the bitch's uterus for 3-5 days) and fertile eggs. Once ovulated, the eggs take approximately 48 hours to become fertile. They will then remain fertile for approximately another 48 hours. The normal recommendation for mating is therefore days 1 and 3 or 2 and 4 post-ovulation.
So, on average, the LH surge occurs on day 10 (where day 1 is the first day where bleeding is detected in the bitch), ovulation 2 days later on day 12 and mating on day 14 and 16 (2 and 4 days post ovulation).
As mentioned earlier, prior to ovulation, progesterone levels as very low (less then 2 nmol/l). When the levels of LH surge, progesterone levels will quickly rise to above 6 nmol/l. At the time of ovulation, levels will be around 15-20 nmol/l. By detecting the change in progesterone levels around the LH peak, the date of ovulation can be accurately identified. While the LH surge is on average around day 10, it can be as early as day 5 or as late as day 25, which is why it's usually advised to start testing about day 5-7. Depending on the results from the first test, the lab will advise when next to test (usually about 3 days later).
There are "off the shelf" or "in house" kits that many vets stock (like pre-mate) that test for progesterone levels. It's important to realise that while they can give you a quick result (within the hour), they are qualitative tests, and not quantitative and are unable to provide you with accurate results. These simple ELISA based tests use colour changes to predict the levels of progesterone in the blood, with a stronger colour changes indicating higher levels. Lots of people have used them and swear by them, but there are just as many stories about them not working, due to a number of contributing factors (age of test, temperature, subjective colour analysis etc.).
Personally, I would only recommend the laboratory quantitative tests - I don't see the point in spending roughly the same amount of money (about £30) for a test that is not as accurate. This is the place I am going to use Croft Reproduction. The have staff working 24x7 and will phone you on the same day that the blood sample is received. Can't ask for better service than that :) There are some other labs that will do the same test like Cambridge Specialist Labs but they are only open Mon-Fri business hours which is frustrating if you need results over the weekend !
The cost with Croft Reproduction : £30 for the test, £20 for my vet to collect the blood sample and £5 postage (£55).
I'm hoping that 2 tests will be enough, I really must learn how to take the blood myself - certainly doesn't look difficult and would save me £20 each time ! ;)
Sunday 7 March 2010
Season and Ovulation
These two things are very important when it comes to knowing the best time to mate your bitch. Ovulation is identified by the levels of progesterone in the blood (there are other ways as well but this is the most reliable). To understand how progesterone testing provides you the answers, I'll first explain a little about the reproductive cycle and the hormones involved.
The normal reproductive (oestrous) cycle of a bitch is comprised of 4 stages (although only the first two are when the bitch is "in heat")
1. Pro-oestrus (average 9 days but can range from 2 to 27). This is the beginning of heat. The vulva is swollen and there is a blood-stained discharge. Although the bitch is (very:) attractive to dogs, she will not allow them to mate her
2. Oestrus (average 9 days but can range from 3 to 21 days). This stage is when the bitch will accept the male. The vulva is very enlarged. The discharge is straw-coloured rather than blood-stained. Ovulation occurs spontaneously usually about 2 days after the start of oestrus
3. Diestrus (average 2 months). Approximately 6 days after ovulation the diestrus stage starts. This stage ends just prior to whelping in the pregnant bitch or approximately 2 months after ovulation in the non-pregnant bitch.
4. Anestrus (average 4 months). Duration of anestrus is quite variable among bitches and may be governed by both genetic and environmental variables.
The physiology of the oestrus cycle can be summarised by
- The hypothalamus (part of the brain) causes the production of "follicle stimulating hormone" (FSH)
- FSH controls the development of the ovarian follicles, which in turn secretes the sex hormone oestrogen
- Low levels of oestrogen simulate further FSH to be released and therefore rising levels of oestrogen
- The above process continues until the follicles are mature and about to rupture at which points the high levels of oestrogen start to inhibit FSH but also trigger the release of "luteinizing hormone" (LH)
- It is the release of LH that causes ovulation and initiates the development of the ruptured follicle into a solid body, the corpus luteum
- The corpora lutea secrete progesterone
- High levels of progesterone inhibits the production of FSH and LH
- It is the balance of the two sex hormones oestrogen and progesterone that ultimately controls the oestrus cycle
In my next post I will go in to more detail about the level of progesterone at the various stages and what it tells you about ovulation and the ideal time to mate
The normal reproductive (oestrous) cycle of a bitch is comprised of 4 stages (although only the first two are when the bitch is "in heat")
1. Pro-oestrus (average 9 days but can range from 2 to 27). This is the beginning of heat. The vulva is swollen and there is a blood-stained discharge. Although the bitch is (very:) attractive to dogs, she will not allow them to mate her
2. Oestrus (average 9 days but can range from 3 to 21 days). This stage is when the bitch will accept the male. The vulva is very enlarged. The discharge is straw-coloured rather than blood-stained. Ovulation occurs spontaneously usually about 2 days after the start of oestrus
3. Diestrus (average 2 months). Approximately 6 days after ovulation the diestrus stage starts. This stage ends just prior to whelping in the pregnant bitch or approximately 2 months after ovulation in the non-pregnant bitch.
4. Anestrus (average 4 months). Duration of anestrus is quite variable among bitches and may be governed by both genetic and environmental variables.
The physiology of the oestrus cycle can be summarised by
- The hypothalamus (part of the brain) causes the production of "follicle stimulating hormone" (FSH)
- FSH controls the development of the ovarian follicles, which in turn secretes the sex hormone oestrogen
- Low levels of oestrogen simulate further FSH to be released and therefore rising levels of oestrogen
- The above process continues until the follicles are mature and about to rupture at which points the high levels of oestrogen start to inhibit FSH but also trigger the release of "luteinizing hormone" (LH)
- It is the release of LH that causes ovulation and initiates the development of the ruptured follicle into a solid body, the corpus luteum
- The corpora lutea secrete progesterone
- High levels of progesterone inhibits the production of FSH and LH
- It is the balance of the two sex hormones oestrogen and progesterone that ultimately controls the oestrus cycle
In my next post I will go in to more detail about the level of progesterone at the various stages and what it tells you about ovulation and the ideal time to mate
Coat colour genetics
Labrador Retrievers come in three distinct colours: black, yellow and chocolate. The colour of a dog depends on the presence of pigments in skin and hair. The pigments occur as two distinct types. The first type is essentially yellow. The second one is dark, and varies from black to brown. The type of pigment that a Labrador produces depends on its genetic make-up and is the result of an interaction between two different genes, which are called the E and the B gene.
A dog's genome consists of two sets of genes, one from each of the parents. So for each gene, if different forms exist, a dog can have two forms of the gene.
Different forms of the E and the B gene exist. The difference in the genes is distinguished by uppercase and lowercase letters. So the E gene exists as E and e, while the B gene exists as B and b. Therefore, depending on the parents, a dog genome may be EEBB, EeBb, eeBb or any other combination.
The form that is written in an uppercase letter is called the dominant form. This means that, if a dog has both forms of a particular gene, it is the form that is written in capitals that has an effect on the dog — it is expressed. If there is no dominant gene the recessive (lower case) one will be expressed. For example, for a dog with eeBb, the e and the B forms will be expressed.
Black dogs can have 4 possible genomes
- BBEE : pure (dominant) black
- BbEE : black carries chocolate
- BBEe : black carries yellow
- BbEe : black carries yellow and chocolate
A dog's genome consists of two sets of genes, one from each of the parents. So for each gene, if different forms exist, a dog can have two forms of the gene.
Different forms of the E and the B gene exist. The difference in the genes is distinguished by uppercase and lowercase letters. So the E gene exists as E and e, while the B gene exists as B and b. Therefore, depending on the parents, a dog genome may be EEBB, EeBb, eeBb or any other combination.
The form that is written in an uppercase letter is called the dominant form. This means that, if a dog has both forms of a particular gene, it is the form that is written in capitals that has an effect on the dog — it is expressed. If there is no dominant gene the recessive (lower case) one will be expressed. For example, for a dog with eeBb, the e and the B forms will be expressed.
Black dogs can have 4 possible genomes
- BBEE : pure (dominant) black
- BbEE : black carries chocolate
- BBEe : black carries yellow
- BbEe : black carries yellow and chocolate
Yellow dogs can have 3 possible genomes
- BBee : yellow carries black
- bbee : yellow carries chocolate
- Bbee : yellow carries black and chocolate
Chocolate dogs can have just 2 possible genomes
- bbEE : pure chocolate
- bbEe : chocolate carries yellow
A great chart showing the possible combinations and outcomes can be found here
Of course these just show the probability of the outcome. I don't know which type Jess is (bbEE or bbEe) must most chocolate dogs are bbEE as matings between yellow and chocolate is not common (partly in reason as it can produce yellow pups liver noses). Regardless of Jess' genome, Reed is a black carrying chocolate (BbEE) so the probable outcome is the same (as can be seen from the chart above) : 50% chocolate pups and 50% black pups. Of course you may get 100% black or 100% chocolate but somewhere in between is a more likely outcome.
In case this has only just whet you're appetite :) a far more detailed look at colour coat genetics can be found here
Choosing a suitable stud - Part 3
A couple of other things that I forgot to mention earlier. Helping me make my mind up about show vs. working lines was some advice given that a lot of people looking for pups to buy as pets (and nothing more) would prefer to see a mixture of show and working lines rather than a pup bred purely from working lines, as they knew they wouldn't have the time or energy to devote to a very active dog. Some good advice I thought, although clearly these puppy buyers are more educated than I was when I looked for a pup - I was certainly not aware of differences such as size, shape and energy levels between show and working lines when I was looking !
The other suggestion was to mate Jess with a black carrying chocolate (rather than dominant black), as some of the pups then will be chocolate, which at the moment, are easier to sell than black pups (I'll cover coat colour genetics in a later post).
I figured that the more people I could attract to Jess' pups then the better chance I will have of a/ finding them all a good home and b/ making sure I was happy with the quality of life the new owners were going to provide for them.
The other suggestion was to mate Jess with a black carrying chocolate (rather than dominant black), as some of the pups then will be chocolate, which at the moment, are easier to sell than black pups (I'll cover coat colour genetics in a later post).
I figured that the more people I could attract to Jess' pups then the better chance I will have of a/ finding them all a good home and b/ making sure I was happy with the quality of life the new owners were going to provide for them.
Thursday 4 March 2010
EIC and CNM
EIC stands for Exercise Induced Collapse. It is an recessive inherited condition like prcd-PRA (so the same possible outcomes of affected/carriers and clears exists as mentioned in my earlier post). Affected dogs can endure mild to moderate exercise but after 5 to 20 minutes of heavy exercise with extreme excitement, the dog shows weakness and then collapse. Severely affected dogs may collapse whenever they are exercised to this extend – other dogs only exhibit collapse episodes sporadically.
Signs of EIC are not typically seen until the dog begin intense training. First symptoms are usually noted between 5 months and 3 years of age. However, it is confirmed that some affected dogs did not have collapse episodes until as late as age 10.
You may think that having a dog collapse is not that bad, certainly not as bad as going blind, but a youtube video showing a dog having an EIC episode was so bad that I could not watch more than the first minute - I would not wish that on any dog. And, it is possible that an EIC collapse can lead to the death of the dog.
CNM stands for Centronuclear Myopathy. It also is a recessive inherited condition. Affected dogs show symptoms including hypotonia, generalized muscle weakness, abnormal postures, stiff hopping gait, exercise intolerance and increased collapse when exposed to cold.
So, because I believe its the most responsible thing to do, especially with Reed as a known carrier of EIC, I felt I had to test for both diseases. If Jess comes back clear for EIC then the pups will be 50% clear, 50% carriers (but none of them will ever suffer from this disease). If Jess comes back clear for CNM then the pups will all be 100% clear (as Reed is clear). This, combined with the prcd-PRA test will mean (assuming jess is clear for both of these - or even if she is a carrier of CNM) that all of the pups will never suffer from prcd, EIC or CNM - certainly I think that is a good thing :) And very comforting for the new puppy owners.
I used Laboklin for both of these tests
http://www.laboklin.co.uk
Cost : Blood sample at vet £20, Postage £7, EIC test £67, CNM test £50 - total £144
Signs of EIC are not typically seen until the dog begin intense training. First symptoms are usually noted between 5 months and 3 years of age. However, it is confirmed that some affected dogs did not have collapse episodes until as late as age 10.
You may think that having a dog collapse is not that bad, certainly not as bad as going blind, but a youtube video showing a dog having an EIC episode was so bad that I could not watch more than the first minute - I would not wish that on any dog. And, it is possible that an EIC collapse can lead to the death of the dog.
CNM stands for Centronuclear Myopathy. It also is a recessive inherited condition. Affected dogs show symptoms including hypotonia, generalized muscle weakness, abnormal postures, stiff hopping gait, exercise intolerance and increased collapse when exposed to cold.
So, because I believe its the most responsible thing to do, especially with Reed as a known carrier of EIC, I felt I had to test for both diseases. If Jess comes back clear for EIC then the pups will be 50% clear, 50% carriers (but none of them will ever suffer from this disease). If Jess comes back clear for CNM then the pups will all be 100% clear (as Reed is clear). This, combined with the prcd-PRA test will mean (assuming jess is clear for both of these - or even if she is a carrier of CNM) that all of the pups will never suffer from prcd, EIC or CNM - certainly I think that is a good thing :) And very comforting for the new puppy owners.
I used Laboklin for both of these tests
http://www.laboklin.co.uk
Cost : Blood sample at vet £20, Postage £7, EIC test £67, CNM test £50 - total £144
More DNA testing
Lynda, much like myself is a strong advocate for testing against disease and using everything available at our disposal to ensure the best possible outcome for any pups. It's fairly new at the moment and a lot of people are not prepared to add to the list of tests already done (I won't go into all the arguments for and against here else I will never get this blog up to date !). My concern is that for most of the people that refuse to take tests that are available is that they are scared of the outcome. That and people's reaction to using a dog identified as a "carrier". I think that some people are wary of using a dog that's been identified as a carrier, when all that really means is that you make sure you breed with a dog that is clear. While they don't like the idea of a carrier, they seem to be more comfortable with not doing the test at all ? That is crazy to me - to be more comfortable with the unknown (and perhaps mating with an affected dog) rather than knowing the dog is a carrier (who will never be affected).
Anyway, I feel myself starting to rant so I will stop. There are lots of discussions/opinions out there on just how far to take the whole testing process. For me, I believe I needed to do all I could for the best possible outcome for both the puppies and their new owners ! Of course you could also argue that pedigree breeding (and historically lot's of very close line breeding or inbreeding) have produced all these results in the first place ;)
I absolutely loved Reed and felt like this was the dog I wanted to use so, since Reed is a carrier of EIC, I had to get Jess tested as well (at the moment, I have not had the results back - if she comes back a carrier then it's back to the drawing board !). It's typically a problem in the show lines though so Jess should be fine. While I was sending results off anyway, I decided to do the test for CNM as well. Reed has tested clear but CNM is a problem more with the working lines so figured I should put that to rest as well. I will explain these two tests in following posts.
Anyway, I feel myself starting to rant so I will stop. There are lots of discussions/opinions out there on just how far to take the whole testing process. For me, I believe I needed to do all I could for the best possible outcome for both the puppies and their new owners ! Of course you could also argue that pedigree breeding (and historically lot's of very close line breeding or inbreeding) have produced all these results in the first place ;)
I absolutely loved Reed and felt like this was the dog I wanted to use so, since Reed is a carrier of EIC, I had to get Jess tested as well (at the moment, I have not had the results back - if she comes back a carrier then it's back to the drawing board !). It's typically a problem in the show lines though so Jess should be fine. While I was sending results off anyway, I decided to do the test for CNM as well. Reed has tested clear but CNM is a problem more with the working lines so figured I should put that to rest as well. I will explain these two tests in following posts.
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