Our lovebug Olivia – Day 50 (pre-parturition)

Olivia hasn’t skipped a beat with her pregnancy. She continues to play in the yard with the pack but sneaks away to seek out and/or excavate a den where she intends her puppies to be born. But not to worry, she’ll actually have them in a nice warm and sterile environment known as a whelping box.

Her appetite certainly hasn’t suffered as she polishes off her meals and looks for more! She is receiving fresh food with fruits, veggies, Omega oils, Folic Acid and vitamins. This week we’ll increase the frequency of her meals to three daily as there is less room for food given the size of the puppies.

Olivia’s waistline has expanded from 27.5 inches to 32.5 inches or 82.5 cm. She is becoming increasingly more affectionate, demanding more belly rubs as you can see from the photo above. Her activity level has remained about the same but over the next week we expect she will be slowing down.

Golden Retriever puppy fetus

Towards the 50th day of gestation, the fetuses’ skeletons are ossified. At this point, the puppies’ coats of fur are fully developed and they will rapidly gain in size in preparation for their birth.

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. What’s more, 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.

We don’t think Olivia is stressed at all!

Stay tuned …..

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