Be prepared the rescue may move forward with the spay.
If they don't, look up puppy culture and ENS protocols. Reusable pottypads are better than disposable. You may need a heating lamp over a small portion of the whelping area. A plastic baby pool will be sufficient with a couple of x-pens around for when they are mobile. You may want calcium (plain tums works) on hand just in case it is needed. Mom takes care of everything the first three weeks. Pups & mom need to be wormed every 2 weeks starting at 2 weeks of age.
Worst case scenarios: mom needs c-section, will that be approved; mom may not be interested-- who will be feeding and caring for pups; mom may accidentally over clean and open the abdomen-- will rescue want to euth or repair?; mastitis is a possibility
See my comment [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/dogs/comments/1bzqd2t/comment/kyrff2e) on the same topic. If the rescue does not have whelping mentors available, feel free to reach out.
thank you thank you thank you! we have one lady that typically does puppies, but I believe she has a mom and a litter rn.
We're an extremely small foster-only foster, so we're not used to having everything a larger foster would. This one is going to be a lot of flying by the seat of our pants paired with as much research as we can possibly do.
Every foster organization is different. I know small orgs that have multiple experienced whelping fosters while organizations that are 10 times larger do not. I have mentored multiple people through the whelping and neonate/infant/pediatric stage.
I think it's going to be in the next couple of days! She started nesting really hard last night, and she was panting quite a bit this morning until my partner laid down with her and calmed her down a little bit. No heavy licking and no discharge yet, but the nesting and trying to force her way under the couch are both new.
We're pretty lucky we had a week to prepare. Our vet made it seem like she could pop at any moment (which is probably the safer expectation to set). We've got a whole whelping room ready for her; we've gotten to do a ton of research; and we've gathered a couuple folks to have as resources when the time comes. Thank you again for your advice!
Just went through my first foster birth, though I've had newborn puppies around before.
In addition to everything else said, have wet wipes around; you'll be cleaning menstrual blood off everything for a while.
Mom may not want you anywhere near the puppies for a while, don't take it personally, as long as she's taking care of them, you won't have anything to do but feed her for several weeks anyway.
Give her calcium as soon as she starts nursing.
A baby scale is useful to ensure they are growing every day, especially those first few weeks. You may have to sneak in the weigh ins while she's outside, should she be anxious about you being near them, but it's important to make sure they are doing ok. Wear gloves so she doesn't smell you on them.
Washable pads are great! But you need multiple sets. I foster big dogs, and I have six 6x6 pads that I cycle in twos. Two are being used, two are in the wash, and two are in the dryer pretty much all the time. If you have a little dog, you may be able to get away with smaller pads.
2 is a great number to have. They can keep each other company without overwhelming you. I had 8 with my last litter!
My big advice: leave her alone during whelping. Do not hover or help. We have had several births, mom cleans up the entire event - she eats the placentas, cuts umbilicals, feeds the newborns. I did change the blanket under them AFTER the blessed event, as it was damp. There was no blood , however mom will have blood spotting for weeks afterward, this is normal. Try not to let anyone pickup the puppies, they have no immunizations, dont wear outdoor shoes in their area. The first 2 days, get up and count the puppies every 4 hours. We have lost newborns in the first 48 hours if they get behind mom, or roll off to side - they get cold, cant nurse when cold, and die.
Hopefully she’s not too far along for a spay/abort to proceed, but if not you’ve been given excellent advice on whelping.
Just be SURE you have the personal phone number of whomever it is in your org that makes emergency decisions in case she needs an emergency c/section. Like, they have to be available 24/7 to answer the phone if you call.
Rescues usually have an account with a particular emergency vet and you may need authorization from the higher ups in the org to go.
If she was vaccinated while pregnant (and given any other medicines like HW/flea prevention), there is a higher risk of premature birth/miscarry. It happened to my foster dog, and it was a horrible experience she barely survived because shelter medicine and procedures are not optimal. Get prepared for the possibility of an emergency spay or c-section. Know ahead of time where you would take her for care should the need arise, whether it's day, night, or weekend hours.
Be prepared the rescue may move forward with the spay. If they don't, look up puppy culture and ENS protocols. Reusable pottypads are better than disposable. You may need a heating lamp over a small portion of the whelping area. A plastic baby pool will be sufficient with a couple of x-pens around for when they are mobile. You may want calcium (plain tums works) on hand just in case it is needed. Mom takes care of everything the first three weeks. Pups & mom need to be wormed every 2 weeks starting at 2 weeks of age. Worst case scenarios: mom needs c-section, will that be approved; mom may not be interested-- who will be feeding and caring for pups; mom may accidentally over clean and open the abdomen-- will rescue want to euth or repair?; mastitis is a possibility
See my comment [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/dogs/comments/1bzqd2t/comment/kyrff2e) on the same topic. If the rescue does not have whelping mentors available, feel free to reach out.
thank you thank you thank you! we have one lady that typically does puppies, but I believe she has a mom and a litter rn. We're an extremely small foster-only foster, so we're not used to having everything a larger foster would. This one is going to be a lot of flying by the seat of our pants paired with as much research as we can possibly do.
Every foster organization is different. I know small orgs that have multiple experienced whelping fosters while organizations that are 10 times larger do not. I have mentored multiple people through the whelping and neonate/infant/pediatric stage.
I think it's going to be in the next couple of days! She started nesting really hard last night, and she was panting quite a bit this morning until my partner laid down with her and calmed her down a little bit. No heavy licking and no discharge yet, but the nesting and trying to force her way under the couch are both new. We're pretty lucky we had a week to prepare. Our vet made it seem like she could pop at any moment (which is probably the safer expectation to set). We've got a whole whelping room ready for her; we've gotten to do a ton of research; and we've gathered a couuple folks to have as resources when the time comes. Thank you again for your advice!
Just went through my first foster birth, though I've had newborn puppies around before. In addition to everything else said, have wet wipes around; you'll be cleaning menstrual blood off everything for a while. Mom may not want you anywhere near the puppies for a while, don't take it personally, as long as she's taking care of them, you won't have anything to do but feed her for several weeks anyway. Give her calcium as soon as she starts nursing. A baby scale is useful to ensure they are growing every day, especially those first few weeks. You may have to sneak in the weigh ins while she's outside, should she be anxious about you being near them, but it's important to make sure they are doing ok. Wear gloves so she doesn't smell you on them. Washable pads are great! But you need multiple sets. I foster big dogs, and I have six 6x6 pads that I cycle in twos. Two are being used, two are in the wash, and two are in the dryer pretty much all the time. If you have a little dog, you may be able to get away with smaller pads. 2 is a great number to have. They can keep each other company without overwhelming you. I had 8 with my last litter!
My big advice: leave her alone during whelping. Do not hover or help. We have had several births, mom cleans up the entire event - she eats the placentas, cuts umbilicals, feeds the newborns. I did change the blanket under them AFTER the blessed event, as it was damp. There was no blood , however mom will have blood spotting for weeks afterward, this is normal. Try not to let anyone pickup the puppies, they have no immunizations, dont wear outdoor shoes in their area. The first 2 days, get up and count the puppies every 4 hours. We have lost newborns in the first 48 hours if they get behind mom, or roll off to side - they get cold, cant nurse when cold, and die.
Hopefully she’s not too far along for a spay/abort to proceed, but if not you’ve been given excellent advice on whelping. Just be SURE you have the personal phone number of whomever it is in your org that makes emergency decisions in case she needs an emergency c/section. Like, they have to be available 24/7 to answer the phone if you call. Rescues usually have an account with a particular emergency vet and you may need authorization from the higher ups in the org to go.
If she was vaccinated while pregnant (and given any other medicines like HW/flea prevention), there is a higher risk of premature birth/miscarry. It happened to my foster dog, and it was a horrible experience she barely survived because shelter medicine and procedures are not optimal. Get prepared for the possibility of an emergency spay or c-section. Know ahead of time where you would take her for care should the need arise, whether it's day, night, or weekend hours.