Guest Anonymous Posted March 20, 2004 Share Posted March 20, 2004 Hey! I'm looking for a little help. I'm a bit unexperienced with this because I have never bred before but I'm a big dog lover. I found a small dog on the side of the highway about a week ago. I stopped and picked her up because I didn't want her to get hit and to tell you the truth we are absolutely in love with her! She is the sweetest calmest quietest dog!! We haven't heard a peep from her and she doesn't really do much except lay near you. She's so affectionate. Very well behaved but does not know any commands at all. Turns out she's pregnant. It was kind of obvious when we found her so we took her to the vet. (We put an ad in the paper and contacted the spca the day after we found her but no one has claimed her as of yet.) Her litter will be here in about 3-4 weeks. I wish I knew how many she was having :P :-? We don't have the heart to put her in a shelter or anything like that. I am although nervous about getting the puppies placed if the owners don't look for her. She looks less than a yr old and she is a small mixed breed of some kind but I can't figure out what. She looked really clean when we got her but had no collar or chip. We took her to the vet and she is super infected with worms which we are treating with two different meds. (not very re-assuring from the owners standpoint) :-? From there I'm not really sure what we are going to do with her. We've never done this before. We may end up keeping her but yikes...I have no idea what to do about the litter! How to care for them being so young. I know they can't leave their mom for at least 7-8 weeks or so. What kind of appointments possibly do I make for them with the vet? Does the vet charge less usually for shots and things with litters? Is there anything I need to buy or do to help with the birth or taking care of them? Is this going to be really expensive. I just need to get myself ready for what we will have to do financially. I don't want to be hit with a shock of a lifetime. We thought about buying a little wading pool for a welping box so she'd have a sanitary place. Argh!!!! I have no idea lol...help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
courtnek Posted March 20, 2004 Share Posted March 20, 2004 there is a book you can get at amazon.comm called "book of the Bitch" about breeding, and I am certain there are tons of websites you can visit use your search engine for "dog breeding" and wade thru. Best of luck to you and your newfound friend. You are a dear for rescuing her like that. On the side of the road she may have been dumped once they discovered she was pregnant. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted March 20, 2004 Share Posted March 20, 2004 Thanks! I will definately check that book out! I have a lot of thinking to do. Some good points raised. I just don't know if I have the heart to abort. :-? That just doesn't sit well in my gut. Aside from the worms problem she seems so perky and happy. Decently healthy aside from that. So much to think about. The vet doesn't seem to have any worries about her. But I'd hate to see anything happen to her because she is one in a million. I can't imagine why anyone would throw her out even because of the pregnancy because she is such a very special dog. You would be amazed. Everyone at the vet loved her. It wasn't like the other dogs that came in...she's just got something about her. There are some strange people out there... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted March 20, 2004 Share Posted March 20, 2004 Whoops that was me :oops: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
courtnek Posted March 21, 2004 Share Posted March 21, 2004 I agree 100% with K - you do deserve a medal...I also tend to agree with the spay option, but again, it is your choice and I respect that....as to [quote]There are some strange people out there...[/quote] You got that right...you're preaching to the choir, here. I think collectively, amongst all of ushere, we've see it all...why not join us and become a member? :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Horsefeathers! Posted March 21, 2004 Share Posted March 21, 2004 Good luck with this baby and her babies. I, too, am of the nature that I would spay now (abort), but all of us have to make our decisions based on our experiences and personal feelings. If you decide to go through with the pregnancy and rearing of puppies, I wish you all the best of luck. I feel like all things happen for a reason... there was a reason that you and she were both there at that exact moment in time. I've found in the past that sometimes we end up needing them as much as it seemed like they needed us. Dogs can teach us a lot about loyalty, perseverence and overcoming adversity. :wink: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imported_Kat Posted March 21, 2004 Share Posted March 21, 2004 I just have to say you are fantastic and I wish there were more kind-hearted souls like yourself to take in a pregnant wee pup. Please ask us if you have anything you specifically need to know and browse over the forums here as there should be a fair few topics on whelping, which you might find helpful :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted March 21, 2004 Share Posted March 21, 2004 :lol: :lol: :lol: I'm a member...I was just too lazy to log in! I didn't realize you could post as a guest. :P Thanks for the support guys...I'm going to be discussing this with the fam. I completely understand all about the overpopulation and such and you are right...dogs don't deal with abortion the same way we do, it doesn't make it any easier of a decision for me though :( What has to be done will be done either way... Is there a limit as to aborting after a specific term in the pregnancy for dogs??? He said she was a little bit more than halfway through it seemed. I would have thought he would have brought that up as an option knowing the situation?? Money isn't exactly the issue to be honest. We can definately swing it. I just wasn't sure how much to expect and I just worry about finding them actual GOOD homes being that they are mixes and we don't know the other dog...or anything about breeding really in our case...its just the questions that may need to be answered by someone who cares about the type of dog they will be getting may want answers that we won't be able to answer. I'd think it would be harder to place them in good homes just for those reasons alone among other reasons. Had another thing come up today that was a bit unsettling in a way. We were at my fathers house today (he also is smitten with her). He took her out with him to get the mail and picked up the news paper at the end of the drive. He called her and she took her time sniffing around (I was watching...) he turned away from her hit the newspaper on his leg and called her again and started walking towards the house and she cowered and hit the ground. He wasn't hanging over her or facing her or anything. She immediately sunk to the ground with her ears back...it was like she recognized the noise or something. Kinda bothered me. He felt so bad! Won't be doing that anymore... :-? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted March 21, 2004 Share Posted March 21, 2004 For the record...spaying will most definately be a must no matter what the end of all this brings. I won't have it any other way :lol: :lol: :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted March 24, 2004 Share Posted March 24, 2004 Well...I spent the last couple days calling a few vets around the city just to find out my options. They said that it would be considered a major surgery because puppies are included and every one of them said it will not be healthy for her to abort them because she seems to be so far into the pregancy to begin with. The vet that checked her over said that he believes by looking at her teeth that she is more around two than one...but she just doesn't look that old to me! None of them seem worried at all about her health in fact one of them commented that it would be easier on her being that she is young as opposed to being older. None of them are willing to do the surgery. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KP Posted March 25, 2004 Share Posted March 25, 2004 [quote name='pwrpufgirlz'] Dogs aren't like humans with loss, they don't know they lost anything, and they won't be sad. [/quote] I have to say I must respectfully disagree with this. infact...on my side, here's one reason why I disagree... click [url=http://dogden.proboards21.com/index.cgi?board=Health&action=display&num=1080106450]here[/url] I appreciate that people have given their opinions on this but are not willing to judge upon the decision. It is a very personal decision to make. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted March 25, 2004 Share Posted March 25, 2004 I'm sure they feel a sense of loss, but not on the same level that we do about things like this. Unless a dog has been around (insert whatever it is you want to say they missed) for quite some time and developed a bond, they really don't miss it 2-3 days later. (and by quite some time..I mean years, like a dog mourning itself over the loss of a mate or owner when they have been together several, several years) Animals don't really have a sense of time recollection. If they did then mother dogs would need prozac or zoloft when you adopted out her puppies. They would never get over it, if they were like humans and took care of their babies for that great period of time. Remembering that 1 human year = 7 dogs years...so the 8 weeks would feel like close to a year then. So a dog would have serious mental issue's with someone taking their puppies away so abruptly. But they don't. They miss them for a few days then they get pre-occupied with something else and that is that. Think about it, a woman would have to be drugged for someone to just come in and take her baby...that she has been breastfeeding (proven to make a stronger bond between baby and mother), and taking care of for close to a year. If she is that far along I wouldn't abort the puppies because I'm sure they would have to do a C-section on the dog, and that is why they consider it "major surgery". I seriously doubt they have the same type instruments (in smaller size) used in performing an abortion on a dog, like they do a human (and after so long you can't just flush them out of the body with the saline solution), and I really doubt they would give a dog the type drugs that induce labor in humans. You should just go ahead and make you up a sign for puppies and hang them up at the pet store/local vet and start looking at potential owners. I would spend the $65 that xray's usually cost and find out how many pups there are and how big they are just for your references, so you can better judge if she is going to have trouble when she goes into labor. If you can't afford to take them to the vet for all the worming and shots you can do it yourself. They sell the 5 in 1 vaccinations on [url]www.Petmeds.com[/url] and the Nemex2 wormer, that they give them at the vet as well (you can also find these same shots/wormers at a local feed store/Co-oP). [b]You would need to take them for a preliminary worm check and initial visit,[/b] but that shouldn't cost you more then $10-15 a pup, and with it being a small breed dog..I'm betting she won't have more then 4-5 pups (5 at the most). Most people who have mixed breed pups charge around $25 ea. so that it covers the cost of the worming, shots, and fecal testing. Should you choose to give vaccinations yourself, you should receive 2 small vials/bottles (one is liquid the other has a dried piece in it)and they should provide you with a needled syringe. You draw the liquid from one vial and inject it into the other vial, mix thoroughly, then draw back into syringe. Pull the loose skin on the back of the neck up to form a tent, stick the needle in, and inject all the fluid. It's really simple (most don't even let on you're doing it). You will want to keep records, and (the lables on the vaccination vials peel off and are adhesive for this reason)put the vaccination vial lables on the record sheet for the new owner for their records and proof of vaccination. You CANNOT get rabies vaccinations this way though, only a vet can administer that vaccine. Also, you don't know if she has ever been vaccinated. So you need to be VERY careful with the pups until they get atleast 2 sets of shots. If I'm not mistaken pups that come from an unvaccinated mother need to be vaccinated at 4weeks, then again at 6 to build up their non-existent ammune system. When you take them to the vet put them in a box (one with a lid...you can get a banana box from your local grocery usually for free, and they have a lid and are a heavy weight paper box) so that other pets don't get close to them and people don't touch them, not even if they promise to go wash their hands(which is hard when it's kids, but you gotta do what you gotta do)...until they have those 2 sets of vaccinations. [b]Be advised[/b], that many vets do not accept these type vaccinationS(not that they are different vaccinations, mind you, but they want "proof" that htey actually have been vaccinated) and will want to re-vaccinate...but YOU [b]will know [/b]they have been vaccinated and are not at risk while out in public/the vet's office/Rabie's clinic. Be sure to tell your potential new owner's of this, just incase their vet is one that does not go by records other then from another vet. Some will accept them and only want you to get a Bordetella, just for their office's/kennel's safety...but it's just a common courtesy to inform your new owner's of this situation, should it occur. GOOD LUCK, puppies are wonderful but insue much time, labor, and commitment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
izzy Posted March 26, 2004 Share Posted March 26, 2004 I missed this thread! :oops: Congratulations ICUP, you're the kind of people this world need. No matter what you decide, i know this little one will be so fine by your side. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kendalyn Posted March 26, 2004 Share Posted March 26, 2004 I would have all the pups spayed and neutered BEFORE you give them to anybody. Include the cost of spay and neuter in the price for the puppies. This is really the only way to make sure that the puppies get fixed. Plus, it'll drive the price of the puppies up which will make sure that only someone that really wants one will buy one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted April 2, 2004 Share Posted April 2, 2004 :o Puppies are coming soon! She's lactating :o Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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