Our Poochon Biscuit gave birth to 3 beautiful cavapoochon puppies last week. She entered the early stages of labour at 10 pm on Friday night and gave birth to her first puppy at 1 pm on the following day. Here we share the 5 signs we had to indicate our dog was ready to give birth.
1. Nesting
Biscuit hadn’t nested prior to going into labour. However, the evening she did go into labour, she searched the house for a comfortable and secure spot. This was the first sign we had, at 10 pm on Friday evening that our dog was ready to give birth.
We had made a whelping box and placed it in our bedroom as this was the room she seemed to have been most comfortable in. We had introduced her to the whelping box in the week leading up to her due date and she seemed comfortable in it.
However, as soon as she went into labour, all those plans sort of went out of the window! Biscuit ran behind the sofa and started to stretch at the floor (apparently this is a way of cleaning the area). She then tried to settle under the stairs. These were not ideal places for Biscuit to give birth as they were not easily accessible for us to assist her with the birth and things could have fallen on top of her.
We moved the whelping box into the lounge but Biscuit didn’t seem too keen.
Finally, we moved Biscuit up to the bedroom and placed her in the whelping box. She still wasn’t settled. Biscuit eventually created her own whelping box which was her bed. A bed she had previously refused to sleep in!
It just goes to show that you can make all the plans you like, but ultimately your dog will take the lead and find her own place to give birth.
2. Discharge
Biscuit had produced a mucus discharge from her vulva when she was 6 weeks pregnant. This was one of the signs we had to indicate she was pregnant. We didn’t see this discharge again until 11 pm on the Friday night. So around an hour after she began to nest. For me, this confirmed my suspicions that our dog, Biscuit was ready to give birth. The discharge was a white colour. As her labour progressed, this discharge was tinged with a small amount of blood.
3. Pacing
Biscuit was incredibly restless that evening and continued to pace around the house. Once she was settled in her whelping box or bed, she could not get comfortable. She would stand up in the box and pace around. She would make circles and try to scratch the bedding often. She sometimes got out of the bed to pace around the room. She would again often make circles suggesting she was trying to find a comfortable position.
The pacing continued throughout her labour and even when giving birth.
4. Panting
Shortly after Biscuit began to nest, she showed one of the biggest indicators a dog is ready to give birth, she began to pant. Panting isn’t normal behaviour for Biscuit so this was very noticeable. I would offer her a drink of water but this wasn’t a pant indicating she was warm, rather she was in labour.
The panting became more intense as her labour progressed and during her contractions, she was constantly panting. It was rather upsetting to see my dog panting so profusely knowing she was in pain. However, she was listening to her body and she took all this in her stride.
5. Clinginess
Throughout her pregnancy, Biscuit had been clingy towards me. When she began to nest, had paced for a while, we had seen the discharge and she had become restless, she sought comfort from us. But rather than come to me for comfort as I had anticipated, she went to my husband. He assumed this was because she felt vulnerable as she knew she was going into labour and sought the protection of the alpha male in the home. I think there is some truth to this.
When trying to settle her in her whelping box, I picked Biscuit up to move her away from my husband and she growled at me. She really just wanted to be close to us and so I left her where she was comfortable.
Throughout her labour, if one of us went to the toilet, she looked startled and waited for our return. All the way through labour I stroked Biscuit and offered as much comfort as I could.
I hope you found this post on 5 signs your dog could be ready to give birth useful. If you have any tips about doggy labour, please let us know in the comments below.
*I am not a vet and only offer my experiences to help others. If you are concerned about your dog, please seek veterinary advice.
