Whelping preparation checklist

A practical checklist for the final two weeks before whelping — use it alongside preparing for whelping: the final two weeks to make sure nothing gets missed in the run-up to labor.

Call your veterinarian if…

Keep this list beside the whelping box. Call your vet, or the out-of-hours service, straight away if:

• you see green or black discharge before the first puppy — this is an emergency;
• she strains strongly for 20–30 minutes without producing a puppy;
• she has weak or on-and-off contractions for about 2 hours with no puppy (never wait more than 4 hours);
• more than about 2 hours pass between puppies and you know or suspect more are coming;
• a puppy is visible at the vulva and does not move on within a few minutes of pushing;
• she bleeds heavily, or the discharge smells foul;
• her temperature dropped and labor has not started within 24 hours of the drop;
• she reaches about 70 days after the first mating (or about day 66 from the LH surge);
• she has a fever above 103 °F (39.5 °C), seems exhausted, collapses, vomits repeatedly or is in obvious pain.

If something feels wrong, call. Your vet would rather hear from you early than late.

Whelping space

• Quiet, private area chosen, away from household traffic and other pets.
• Whelping box set up, about 1.5–2 times her body length (nose to base of tail), with low-enough sides for the bitch and high-enough sides to contain puppies, and a pig rail about 3–4 in (8–10 cm) off the floor.
• Heat source arranged (a heating pad on a low setting or with auto shut-off is safest; secure any lamp), with a cooler area she can retreat to if needed.
• Absorbent base layer (newspaper or pads) with one large piece of non-slip vet bedding on top — not loose towels or blankets, which puppies can get caught under.
• Temperature checked with a thermometer at puppy height: about 85–90 °F (29–32 °C) in the warm part of the box and about 75–80 °F (24–27 °C) in the room for the first week. Heat only part of the box, keep cables out of reach, and treat heat lamps as a fire risk.
• Bitch given time to explore and settle into the space before labor is expected.

Supplies

• Clean towels (a substantial supply — whelping goes through more than expected).
• Digital thermometer, for tracking her temperature as the due date approaches.
• A whelping log or notebook for recording puppy times, weights and any observations.
• A weighing scale that reads in grams or ounces (a kitchen scale works) — weigh each puppy at birth, then at 12 and 24 hours.
• Puppy-safe disinfectant for the whelping area.
• Emergency supplies as recommended by your vet (e.g. bulb syringe, sterilized scissors, unwaxed dental floss or clean thread for cord tying) — confirm the exact list and their guidance on using them.
• A lined, warmed carrier or box for taking born puppies with you if the dam has to go to the vet during whelping (wrap any heat source so puppies cannot touch it directly).

Contacts and logistics

• Your regular vet's contact details, confirmed and accessible.
• Out-of-hours or emergency vet contact details, confirmed separately if different from your regular vet.
• A plan for who is available around the estimated due date, including a backup if your primary support is unavailable.
• Transport plan in place in case an emergency vet visit is needed during labor, including how long the drive takes.
• A written whelping plan agreed with your veterinarian: when to call, where to go out of hours, and — for breeds that often have difficult births, such as flat-faced, short-legged or very small breeds — whether a planned cesarean makes sense.

Records and final checks

• Confirmed or best-estimate due date, from calculating the due date or a due-date calculator.
• Expected litter size from an X-ray taken from about day 55, written at the top of your whelping log, with one column for puppies and one for placentas (tell your vet if any placenta is missing).
• Temperature log: from one week before the due date, take her rectal temperature two or three times a day. Normal for a pregnant bitch is about 99.5–102.5 °F (37.5–39.2 °C); a drop of about 2 °F (1 °C), often to below 99 °F (37.2 °C), usually means labor within 24 hours, but it is easy to miss.
• Progesterone log and mating records on hand, for reference if anything about timing needs reviewing later.
• Final pre-whelping vet check completed, with any concerns discussed in advance rather than during labor.

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Sources & further reading

1. Merck Veterinary Manual (Davidson AP) — Labor, Delivery, and Postpartum Care in Bitches and Queens. merckvetmanual.com
2. Purdue University Center for Animal Welfare Science — Setting Up a Welfare-Friendly Whelping Area. caninewelfare.centers.purdue.edu
3. The Royal Kennel Club — Whelping your first litter. royalkennelclub.com
4. PDSA (written by vets and vet nurses) — Whelping – a guide to your dog giving birth. pdsa.org.uk
5. Lopate C (2008), Theriogenology 70:397–402 — Estimation of gestational age and assessment of canine fetal maturation using radiology and ultrasonography: a review. cdn.ymaws.com
6. Merck Veterinary Manual (Scully C) — Dystocia in Small Animals. merckvetmanual.com
7. Cornell University, Riney Canine Health Center — The Normal Whelping Process. vet.cornell.edu
8. American Kennel Club — Best Practices for Whelping & Caring for Newborn Puppies. akc.org

Where evidence is limited, recommendations rest on established practice and expert judgment, and may be updated as knowledge develops.

Next steps

• Related: Preparing for whelping: the final two weeks · Setting up the whelping area and equipment.
• Return to the area hub: Pregnancy: managing the pregnant bitch week by week.