Faith, Day 52 (pre-parturition)

Faith showing off her "baby bump"!

As we head into the final two weeks of Faith’s pregnancy, we see her slowing down a bit, preferring to lounge by the fireplace or on our king-sized bed. Faith has a voracious appetite, so we are now feeding her two meals daily and she measures about 31 inches (78 cm).

Next week we will set the whelping box up in our bedroom where Faith will be for about 3 weeks with the pups. It keeps her in a quiet environment where we can monitor the pups closely overnight. Our master bedroom has a separate walkout to another yard where she also has privacy for her bathroom breaks.

Faith has begun her search for a den in the backyard to have her pups in which is normal behaviour for a mom-to-be. She has started digging under our spruce tree and since our winter is so mild, on the weekend she came in with mud up to her elbows. We now we go outside with her or monitor her closely through the window. We prefer that she uses our spotlessly clean whelping box for her babies. We have a heat lamp on it, keeping the enclosed area a constant 72 -75°F degrees (22 – 24° c).

National Geographic image of a puppy fetus.

By day 45, each fetus experiences rapid growth. Calcification of bones occurs, which means that fetuses are now visible on x-rays, allowing us to verify the number of puppies in the litter and their positioning in the womb. By day 55, the fetuses are moving so much that they’re visible from the outside as a rippling motion across the mom’s abdomen. We can actually feel the puppies moving at this stage.

Pre-natal period: It is an interesting fact that a dog's tactile perception develops before birth, therefore unborn puppies can detect touch when the mother is petted from the outside of the abdomen. This establishes the basis for puppies to tolerate being touched when compared to puppies born to mothers that were not petted. Pregnant dogs that are exposed to stressful events tend to release hormones that can be detected by the fetuses which can negatively influence their future development. This underscores the importance of providing pregnant dogs a stress free and tranquil environment.

Stay tuned and enjoy the ride…

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