Gestation and puppy birth

Attending the birth of puppies and following their education are wonderful experiences. But to live through these events serenely, you need to acquire some basic knowledge.

While the average bitch's cycle lasts 7 months, there are major differences between breeds and individuals (cycles of 4 to 12 months). Some bitches have 3 heat periods a year, while others have only one! The first heat appears between 5 months and 2 years of age (an average of 7 months for small breeds and 12-18 months for large bitches). At the start of the heat period, the bitch loses blood for about 8 to 10 days. The period following this loss lasts a similar length of time, and corresponds to the time when she accepts the male and can become pregnant.

Pregnancy

The earliest way to tell if your bitch is pregnant is to measure a hormone produced by the placenta, relaxin, which appears in her blood as early as day 21 of gestation. Palpation of the abdomen and ultrasound can also help diagnose pregnancy.
Once the good news has been confirmed, all you have to do is wait for the happy event, which will take place around 2 months after mating. Of course, if your bitch's pregnancy has gone unnoticed, you'll discover it a few days before delivery, when her abdomen is distended by the puppies!

Giving birth

At the end of gestation, the bitch's abdomen is dilated, and her teats are generally well developed. During the 12 to 24 hours preceding delivery, she may behave anxiously, looking for a nest (for this purpose, you can provide a large crate with old cloths and edges high enough to prevent the puppies from escaping). This period is followed by the puppy expulsion phase. On average, puppies are born 20 to 30 minutes apart. Occasionally, several hours may elapse between births. This is normal if the bitch has no contractions. A period of effort without expulsion exceeding one hour is pathological and requires veterinary intervention! The puppies are sometimes born covered by their placental envelope, which the mother sometimes eats, without any great risk to herself. However, if you can prevent her from doing so, do so: you'll save her from greenish diarrhoea the next day!

Puppies

Litter size varies from breed to breed. On average, you can expect between 4 and 10 puppies. When the number of puppies is high, it is sometimes necessary to feed the weakest ones with artificial milk for puppies and kittens, sold in pharmacies.
Newborn puppies come into the world covered in hair, blind and deaf. It takes two weeks for their eyes to open, and they can't hear until the third week of life! Weaning generally takes place at 6 weeks. However, before this date, they take an interest in their mother's diet, enabling a gradual transition to solid food. During the entire suckling period, we recommend feeding the bitch puppy food, which, thanks to its high energy content, provides her with the energy she needs to produce milk and raise her young. The period between the 3rd and 12th week is very important for puppy socialization. This is when they learn to recognize “friendly” species such as humans and other animals. Don't forget to protect new arrivals against worms (from 1 month) and have them vaccinated (from 6 weeks).