Taking Temps
Monday, October 31, 2016 at 9:07AM 
This morning Jeannie is at 99.4. It's good as I have not completed getting ready for her. We still have ice cream (vanilla) to get. Moms get ice cream during delivery but not before. We also get baby bell cheese as the girls love those with the exception of Saffron - our first. Giving calcium DURING labour helps the whelping along. If you overload with calcium even after whelping you can create eclampsia so you give a little at each meal.
Moms when pregnant are offered food 4 times a day. Sometimes they eat, sometimes not. Their tummies are chock full of pups. This means that they have little room to eat. But eat they must when they can. They have puppies developing.
After they whelp they eat as much as they want. They can often eat up to 8 full meals a day. It's amazing. How much they eat also determines how much milk they bring in. If mom has watery stools or stops eating, milk production declines. MOST moms have loose stools after delivery but not watery. The only girl we have ever had that had firm stools is Saffron who remained solid throughout.
This loose stool business and discharge (yes they have discharge) means for the 1st week I am cleaning her private areas and drying it all day long and Dennis is doing it all night long. You must dry them to avoid the pups getting wet and getting chilled. These are the things that you never read about with breeders. We just do it. Mom must stay clean to avoid any bacteria transfer. We always clean and sterilize but there are benefits to exposures in small doses so your body builds up immunities. You can't get crazy about it.
There are benefits with keeping the xpen area clean always and your yard for young and for old. Dogs who live in clean environments enjoy keeping their area clean. It is easier to train them. That doesn't mean they won't have accidents but dogs who are brought up in unsanitary conditions think this is normal and are more difficult to train. You have to get them to see the benefits of having a clean environment.
I will be checking temps again mid day though she is not showing signs of anything so I suspect it will remain up. We shall see. They can fool you at times.
Darlah
She ate her lunch so nothing imminent.
Reader Comments (7)
This is such great information, I'm loving following her progress!! I feel like a nervous Nellie pacing outside the delivery room! Glad to hear you'll have time to get some essentials like ICE CREAM! Make sure indulge yourselves as well :)
Just saw Cooper, what a handsome boy! I'll follow his blog as I'm slowly becoming obsessed! LOL
Patricia, once you become part of the Talemaker family you will be obsessed for sure. We are all obsessed. I have 2 Talemaker pups, 1 and 2 years old and am totally obsessed, hook, line and sinker.
Oh Angela I think I'm halfway there already LOL. I was looking at your pups earlier today they are scrumptious!! Is one of them a Jeannie pup? Radar? if I'm not mistaken?
Hi Patricia,
We have Patches from Jeannie and Radar from Roxie. They are such wonderful dogs. You won't go wrong with any pup you take home! I'll be following along like I always do, obsessed :-)
No matter how late it is, I always read all the blogs before I turn out the light.
It's a lovely way to end each day.
Me too. It is my nighttime pleasure. I love sharing with all of you and watching the pups grow and come back for visits. But the best part is when we take Rusty for a spa day. Tomorrow is the day so we are hoping Jeannie hangs on for a little bit longer so the Talemaker gang won't be exhaausted. I don't know how they do it. The pens sparkle and it really is the best tip. To keep everything clean. Even if the toys lose their favourite smell it is healthier for them. We learn so much from the blogs. Welcome Patricia.
Thank you Ronnie, Sherry, Angela and all the other Talemaker devotees out there in Darlah and Nathan land.... Bill and I are looking forward to becoming part of this awesome family. I look at all the adorable dogs on this blog and my heart smiles!! Can't wait to one day soon be posting my own 'stories and pictures' Cheers!