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Showing posts with the label Day 57 (pre-parturition)

Pepper, Day 57 (pre-parturition)

Miss Pepper with one week to go 😉 We are heading into the home stretch with our precious Pepper as she continues to get bigger with each passing day. She is slowing down and prefers the cool tile floor to lay on. Despite the loss of her girlish figure, she can still jump onto the sofa to demand cuddles and belly rubs. She measures 36 inches or 91 cm, so she has quite a bit of extra weight to carry around! With just a few more days left to go, the whelping area has been prepared for the big event. She has her meals three times daily and seemingly has an internal alarm clock because within a minute of our usual feeding times she barks to alert us “it’s time”. We will begin to monitor her temperature twice daily as any significant drop would signal the onset of labour.  At this point the fetuses are fully developed and can be born safely. The puppies have basically finished their development and are just growing bigger at this point. Puppies are born without the ability to see and th...

Heidi, Day 57 (pre-parturition)

Heidi out for a brief stroll in this hot weather This is the final countdown before Heidi has her pups! She has decided to search the yard for the perfect place to have her babies. We cannot let her outside alone because she attempts to excavate the perfect den and ends up with dirt up to her elbows. Heidi’s abdominal area now measures 91 cm or 36 inches. She is now eating three meals daily and I am sure if we increased it to four or five meals a day, she would be delighted! Remarkably, Heidi still can jump on the bed at night for belly rubs but we’re not sure if she prefers the bed or sleeping on the cool floor. She seems to be testing them both out! We are checking Heidi’s temperature twice daily. Any significant drop will indicate the puppies are soon to be on their way. She is officially due on June 2nd but it could be 24 hours before or after this date.   A Golden Retriever puppy fetus almost fully developed. It’s easy to feel the puppies moving around in Heidi’s tum...