Whelping Kit Walk-Through, crafting your ultimate 'breed specific' toolbox

In this episode, we kick Series 1 off with a comprehensive walk-through of the essential items in your whelping kit and dive into the art of crafting your ultimate 'breed-specific' toolbox for breeding success. From indoor rabbit hutches to secret bone broth recipes, we'll uncover fascinating insights from seasoned experts.

Learn the importance of proactive puppy management, including effective identification methods and the invaluable role of a well-organised Puppy Playbook. We discuss the possible pitfalls of velcro ID collars and share cautionary lessons from friends who mistook silence for tragedy while attempting to detect foetal heartbeats with a Doppler.

So grab your favourite mug, brew a fresh cup of inspiration, and join us as we start our unforgettable journey into the world of responsible breeding. Cheers to happy, healthy puppies and you, the passionate breeders behind them!

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📌 Grab your FREE accompanying Breeders Brew Critical Care Sheet.

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Transcript

Sara: 0:02

Welcome to the Breeders Brew, the dog breeding podcast hosted by myself, Sara, the Canine Family Planner,

Isobel: 0:09

and me, Isobel, the Canine Nutrition Coach.

Sara: 0:12

We're promoting responsible breeding by unpicking the minefield of breeding myths and methods for owners wishing to expand their whelping wisdom.

Isobel: 0:21

Thanks very much for joining us today. This episode will be hopefully very useful as we will be going through what is traditionally included in many commercially available Whelping packs. We'll go through all the individual bits and pieces and we'll add our thoughts and opinions. What do you think, Sara?

Sara: 0:39

Yep, we're going to go through and decide whether the items are yay or nays. So, let's get on with the show! Got an interesting story from somebody that's used one of my stud dogs confirmed her impact. It was just a progress scan. So it was actually a 49 day plus scan because you can actually see fetal development, bone structure, heart chambers, heartbeats, that kind of thing. Anyway, so I said to her. Do you need any bits off of me? Basically, because I have a lot of puppy paraphernalia and whelping stuff, and I have it for my own dogs. I rent out bits and bobs. She has a litter due for my stud dog, and the female is actually out of one of my other stud dogs. I was like, is there anything you need? You can have it. Just let me know. Generally with English bulldogs, a lot of people will for the first few weeks, have them in a puppy box or an incubator. So I'm like, you can have my incubator. I've got two and she was like, Oh no, I normally just use a Indoor rabbit hutch, which a lot of people use for some of the ball breed. I just normally use an indoor rabbit hutch, stick a heat pad in there, that'll do for a couple of weeks. I'm like, oh, that's cool. Equally, I've, I've got one, I have got, I've never used it, but I've got one up in the loft if you want it. And so she said to me, which I thought was a bit weird, she said, oh no, like I buy a new one every time. So I was like, what do you mean? And she's had at least, this must be a fourth or fifth litter. So I was like, what do you mean you buy a new one all the time? So she said, Oh, you know, like with babies, like you're not meant to reuse the stuff. You chuck it all away and you start again. Now I don't have kids. You don't have kids yet. I understand it from an emotional point of view. I don't know. Something happened to the baby where you'd be like, you know what? It's either kept for sentimental or we disregard it because I don't know, it feels jinxed. There's some crazy fuss that like you buy everything new, which I guess is like the whole nesting terminology. You buy all new stuff when you have a new baby, which I get is exciting from a purchasing point of view, from a marketing point of view, it's great. Guess what? Everyone chucked all their stuff away and then they buy it all over again. I don't know. I don't know whether in the 1930s, 40s that was happening back then or whether this commercialism It's crept in and then that's become the thing to do. All family planning. You didn't think you was going to have another child till you've chucked it all away. So you've got to buy all, all over, like whoever thinks like, right, we're going to knock out four kids in this amount of time. So we might as well keep all the equipment. But I, that was just a really new element to me that. There might be some breeders out there that chuck everything away and then buy it or no, buy it again a year later just seems a bit crazy for me. I think maybe from a storage element. That might be a sensible thing to do because I know storing the stuff, I have storage units full of puppy pen, well pin unit, all sorts, so okay, from a storage perspective that makes sense. And I don't know, maybe from a hygiene perspective? Yeah, but

Isobel: 3:48

again, that's where I'd think if something went wrong with the litter, okay, that makes sense, absolutely. Throw it away whether you think it's jinxed or infected. if it was a happy, healthy litter. But again, we don't have children, so maybe we're missing out on a key part of psychology here that is drilled into people when they have children.

Sara: 4:08

That whole conversation sort of baffled me a bit, and that's why I thought I wouldn't be chucking my stuff away every litter. I'm sure people that regularly have litters, that would be a crazy thing to do. So I don't know, maybe it's the people that have one litter a year or less, maybe one every two years, that it seems a sensible thing to do. Stick on Facebook Marketplace, get rid of it and just buy it all fresh again. My first incubator I've had for, I think it must be like 15, 18 years, something crazy. So that was a really big investment to be buying and it's lasted me that amount of time. And likewise, I've. I've then updated that because it is so old, even though fully functional. And the second investment, I think was still like 1500 pounds. So there's no way I'm chucking that and starting again. I guess to a degree, if anyone, when you come back to listen to this, leave a review and let us know whether you chuck all your stuff away or not.

Isobel: 5:02

Yeah. It'd be really interesting. Yeah. It'd be so interesting to see what the mix is because I must say I. sit on the same side of the fence as you, Sara. I can't imagine chucking everything away and starting again each time. And I must say, I fall in the camp of people that has a little less than one a year. So I'm falling into the category of people that would struggle for storage, that doesn't need it every year. But I still can't imagine throwing it all away.

Sara: 5:28

No, and I'm sure we're a lot more environmentally conscious nowadays. So. It's all about recycle, reuse, I mean, people have gone from throwable puppy mats to washable puppy mat. Just thought it was a really weird mentality and mindset to have.

Isobel: 5:45

But interestingly, that is somebody that you, in theory, is very closely aligned to you and what you do in the same breed. Yep. Quite experienced, had a decent number of litters, dealing with a beautiful Very well bred dog. And actually, of course, but it is quite interesting when you think that's somebody that is on paper so similar to you and what you're doing, yet has a completely different approach, even to whelping supplies. So it just goes to show, there must be a real divide in what everyone does, and actually, They must, it must raise an awful lot of questions, particularly for people that are breeding. How do they know what they're supposed to do?

Sara: 6:22

Which brings us on to the whelping kits. These are your whelping, pups are on the way, you want to prepare all the environment and get that right. What are the things that you should be needing? Just on a deluxe one that I'm looking at, they talk about having a stethoscope. Have you ever, have you ever had a stethoscope?

Isobel: 6:42

I shouldn't laugh. I have never used a stethoscope during whelp.

Sara: 6:47

No, I'm assuming that's to check for puppy heartbeat.

Isobel: 6:51

Yes, but that's an interesting one. Well, no, because if, if mum is in that, that level of distress, you're not worrying about a stethoscope, you're jumping in the car to the vet.

Sara: 7:00

Yeah, you're going to the vet. I'm guessing that's maybe to check puppy heartbeats and to see where they're placed, like maybe in the body where you can pick up the heartbeat.

Isobel: 7:10

Interesting, but do you think a stethoscope would manage to pick up puppy heartbeats? On a particular, larger breed, if you're thinking a Labrador's abdomen, realistically, is that going to work reliably?

Sara: 7:21

The little electric ones. Yeah. The Dopplers. Yeah. Yeah. So the little, I've had a friend try and pick up foetal heartbeats with a Doppler and I'd already scanned her, confirmed her in pup, that she phoned me up in a panic and said, you need to come and scan this dog. I think like all the pups have died or she's reabsorbing and needed to say, scan the female. All pups were fine. It was just her inability to be able to use this equipment that she then actually just went through this whole moment of scaring herself and worrying needlessly when everything was fine. The electric ones are pretty hard to pick up because you're going to pick up mum's blood flow obviously. And there's going to be a lot of blood flow in an enlarged uterus. Yeah, exactly. Exactly. I have never had a stethoscope in my kit. You've never had.

Isobel: 8:08

It's a typical example of Something that looks very medical grade. And I think that's more, to me, I would see that as a real reassurance piece. Like if I was looking online at a whelping kit, if it included a stethoscope, because of how serious that looks, I would probably err on the side of, wow, this must be a good whelping kit. And I wonder if that's maybe why they're including it.

Sara: 8:31

That point is more than valid. Rolling on, the next thing they've got is iodine, that's for I assume dipping the puppy cords in or spraying on or however it's to be applied, because that's antiseptic isn't it, of some degree. So yeah, that sounds like a logical thing to have.

Isobel: 8:49

I must say I do have some form of iodine in my own personal working kit while I'm coming round to it. So I don't disagree with that as to what grade it is and how, you know, what, what size that is in the kit. That would be something I'd consider. There's a particular brand that I do use and I do always have it to hand. Don't always use it.

Sara: 9:08

I, I wouldn't even know what you call, I don't even know what is good idea or was bad idea. Next on the list is just one pair of sterile gloves. Well, that's handy if you've got someone helping you, isn't it? And it's got inside accessory pack, including apron. So an apron, a plastic apron and a pair of gloves by looks of it.

Isobel: 9:26

I mean, one pair of gloves is not going to help. If you put that pair of gloves on and they rip or you've got a helper with you, there's no point just one of you wearing them. They might not fit. I don't know many people that have worn gloves back in the old uni days when I was stuck in my lab for days on end. There was, I kid you not, six different sizes of gloves that you can wear in the labs. And everyone had their own favorite. Some people would rather wear the ones that are a little bit smaller and tight to the hand for dexterity. Some people would rather the ones that were a little bit too big on them so that it didn't feel too constricted. Hands come in all different sizes and shapes.

Sara: 9:59

Yeah, exactly. These are some big bad boy hands. These are, so whenever I see like supplied, I'm always like, mate, they're not going to fit. Okay, so next on the list is Royal Canin first age milk complete with feeding bottle teats and measuring scoops. So formula milk, basically.

Isobel: 10:20

That's quite unheard of to see a whelping kit include formula milk actually. So that's interesting. A lot of, I had a quick Google whilst you did just to see what the most frequently bought without dropping any names. No, it doesn't matter because we don't have any affiliation. It doesn't matter, does it? But I had a look at, and a lot of them didn't have formula milk. So it's quite surprising that one does.

Sara: 10:38

Well, this one was the deluxe kit to be fair to me. Having backup formula milk is never a bad thing. There are some brands I prefer over others. My preference, I do like a Royal Canin ProTec because that does have the colostrum. Booster in it, doesn't it? So

Isobel: 10:56

I completely agree. And that is exactly the one that I always have in stock before I am due a whelp.

Sara: 11:02

So, yeah. So like you said,

Isobel: 11:04

I would always have some, something's better than nothing. And I would, there's no way I would have an impending litter and not have puppy milk sat here ready because God forbid the worst happened or even not the worst, just a little bit of a unfortunate situation.

Sara: 11:17

Yeah.

Isobel: 11:18

Short with no puppy milk.

Sara: 11:19

I think in the later podcast talk about, I see online about people going, puppies aren't suckling. Should I start supplement feeding? And they're only like a day, two days old, which is always a massive no. We'll cover that in a different podcast. I definitely think we need to. Yes. And pinning that, but maybe put a little note down about supplement feeding. Likewise, having formula milk is also good to give to mum, especially towards the end half of her pregnancy. Obviously, her stomach is totally squished. In with all the puppies, particularly if they're kibble fed, it can be quite uncomfortable for them to eat kibble because then it's going to expand in their stomach, making them feel more uncomfortable, which potentially puts them off wanting to eat again. So I always say to people that forming a milk is just a good way of getting some nutrition into your female without her realizing she's eating food technically towards the later. Stages of pregnancy. So it would be good for that. Not just for the puppies, but also for mum too. And also as a side note, which I guess we'll talk about on another podcast in regards to bottles and stuff, the ones that come with the bottles, I don't actually think are that bad for most breeds, which is quite unusual because normally back in the day, this wasn't even available. You just had to go and buy some baby bottles and you'd have all these weird like orthodontic things. teats and stuff for humans that didn't work for puppies and that kind of stuff. So I quite like the ones that are supplied with bottles because generally they tick enough of a box to do the job they need to do. Yeah. I think that's enough. I've said on that.

Isobel: 12:49

Yeah, no, I agree. I think it's definitely worth covering that on another podcast because it'll be really interesting discussing the breed differences on that one and, and difference of opinion based on. What size and type of breed you've got for sure.

Sara: 13:01

Yes, for sure. So next on the list was some Whelping Towels Cotton. These are puppy size, not small face. Oh, so just general cloths for handling puppies by the sounds of it. Like terry toweling, nappies and that kind of thing. Yeah, reusable, washable. Yeah, so especially whelping, you need to clean a pup. You need to rough them up a bit to get them breathing.

Isobel: 13:22

I'm not going to lie. That's when I replenish my tea towels. So I put all, I put a batch of tea towels, the ones I like the least on a really nice boil wash. I make sure that they are fully sterilized and hygienic, ready to go. And then it gives me a great excuse to buy a new set of tea towels for the kitchen. That's fair enough.

Sara: 13:40

Yeah. I've just used. nappies, cotton nappies, because they're nice. Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. So same thing, but yeah, to be honest, I've got lots and lots of different colors and some are a bit old and some end up getting holes in and whatnot. So as you say, you do have to restock them up. So we both agree that that's a handy thing to have.

Isobel: 13:56

Oh, I wouldn't be without, I wouldn't be without some form of roughing cloth. No way. If it came to it, I'd be taking my jumper off and using that. It's just not an option.

Sara: 14:05

Whelping box pads, high absorbency rates, so I'm guessing these are quite large puppy pads, pads, incontinence pads, or con, you know, whatever kind of pads. Definitely handy to have, especially for whelping. I know some people use newspapers. Then gather that all up and then put the bedding in.

Isobel: 14:24

Yeah. I'm not going to say too much on that one. Well, just going old school, you know. Yeah, no, you are right. And old school, actually back in the day, that is how we were rearing litters. I remember my mum, grandmother was litters and it was newspaper. I just think nowadays we've got the joyous technology of, like you said, incontinence pads and things like that, that are actually waterproof rip them straight out and there's no wet bedding. So

Sara: 14:46

I totally agree. And obviously like, Newspapers are dying anyways.

Isobel: 14:50

Yeah, actually, you'd struggle to get hold of newspapers nowadays, actually, you're completely right. You'd have to go to the shop and buy them.

Sara: 14:56

Well, you'd just be nicking the metros, isn't it?

Isobel: 14:58

Yeah.

Sara: 15:00

Picking up wedges of those. I had all sorts of random stories about Newspapers back in the day and raiding recycle bins to have enough newspapers, telling the whole community that you need newspapers and them dropping them off. But yeah, so I would definitely go with high absorbency pads nowadays. Right.

Isobel: 15:18

This whelping kit you're you're reading out so far is not, it's not too shocking.

Sara: 15:22

No, it's not too shocking, but we're not all the way through it yet. Ah, okay. We've got some sterile syringes, some two mil, five mil and one mil syringes. Always handy to have, I would totally agree with that, for making up milk, syringing milk, general fluids, calcium for mum, whatever bits and bobs, so they're always going to get used syringes. Some sterile cotton wool boxed, yeah, so cotton wool is never a bad thing to have. Like white baby wipes and kitchen roll. You need all of those.

Isobel: 15:54

Yeah, all for different reasons.

Sara: 15:55

Yeah, and some litters you'll use more of one than the other. It's really weird. But you always need all of them in. The next up is paper ID bands. So these are puppy ID collars.

Isobel: 16:06

All well and good, but most of those puppy ID collars are just glorified wristbands, like the ones you go out to a festival or an event and they put on the paper bands. That's all well and good until you are dealing with a 100g puppies.

Sara: 16:20

Yeah.

Isobel: 16:20

They look ridiculous. Yeah. Not fit for function in my opinion for a lot of breeds.

Sara: 16:25

What's your, what's your recommendation? Well. Do you prefer?

Isobel: 16:29

I generally prefer going by eye, I generally find it, my breed tend to have small litters, I should start with the caveat, I've got miniature dachshunds, so for me it's very rare that I would end up with a litter larger than, say, six, and even then by the time you've got the split of boys and girls, tan markings is a really easy way for me to tell, particularly a newborn. If I had to use IDs, I would be leaning towards paracord collars, in my opinion, particularly the ones that you just gently put on them and they automatically extend very quickly, because I have heard one too many horror stories about other types of warping collar. In my opinion, what about you, Sara? What do you use? Because obviously Labradors, you can end up with nine, ten that all look absolutely identical.

Sara: 17:11

My Bulldogs, I don't have any problem of telling any of the pups apart. So I've never put a puppy ID collar on a Bulldog litter. However, the Labradors, I have to, cause I can't, especially if they're, well, even if they're not an all one litter colour litter, even if they were split that they are quite large litter. So you still probably going to have to a degree four or six of the same colour and only six is to tell them apart. I'm all for paracord collars. As you say, they're fully adjustable. They're washable. As they start growing, you can get ones with the breakaway clips in as well. And not that I had any concerns of a puppy doing anything silly with a collar, but obviously I know an accident's an accident and it generally only happened unexpectedly and once. The last litter that I've had are Labradors. They all wore collars from day one because I like to identify my puppies. Cause I like to manage, proactively manage their development. So I'm all four collars. I like paracord. They're soft. fully adjustable. They can be made absolutely tiny. So you could get small enough ones for a Daxie to absolutely big enough for a St. Bernard or whatever. You don't have to keep to the same one. You just can then buy the next size bigger. That's a bit more chunkier and will last equally as long. So I just had two sets, a newborn. And the puppy collars and they kept them on to eight weeks and I actually then gifted those, the new owners as part of their puppy pack anyway. So that's nice little sentimental value to it. And they did the job and obviously kind of is quite important. So at least with the paracord. It comes in all really fancy colors. It's not just a case of solid colors and that, well, your white ends up looking like your silver or your gray. You can literally have designs, different patterns, so they never be cross referenced. So I'm all for collars for the right breeds, for the right reason.

Isobel: 18:55

I'll jump in here with a caveat as well. Years ago, we helped a friend with the litter probably going back a decade now, if that, and They, we went around and saw the litter and they had All velcro collars on, and this was a dachshunds litter, tiny little pups, Velcro collars, we went, checked over the litter, and Horrifyingly, they had literal sores around the necks from the Velcro collars. And I don't know why Velcro collars have become as popular as they have, but it doesn't seem to be a niche problem. I mean, we're all in all the Facebook groups these days and I am forever seeing things pop up about Velcro collars. I do not understand their popularity. There is no benefit of them whatsoever. And I think when paracord collars nowadays are so easy to get hold of, I can't imagine wearing Velcro around my wrist. I mean, goodness, it is actually really sharp. And if you think, for example, you know, your Rainmax that you walk the dogs in or whatever, and they normally have the adjustable wristband, don't they, with the Velcro that goes across and. And I'm sure we've all been there where we've done it up and it starts really irritating your wrist. And I just think, imagine that on a couple of day old pup with skin that soft. It's just crazy. So if they're in any welcome packs, they'd be going straight in my bin.

Sara: 20:10

So next up is a digital thermometer.

Isobel: 20:12

Yeah, I would never be without a thought. I mean, I use it even on. My dogs, if they're looking a bit under the weather, not even, not even when we've got pups on the ground, I would not be without a dog thermometer in my cupboard.

Sara: 20:23

And it's the first thing, if you take a dog to the vets, it's one of the first things they will do is take the dog's temperature. So just going forearmed with that or even calling them for advice and already knowing that information is going to help them give you better advice. Yeah. Also, just when it comes down to digital thermometers. I would get a quick read Thermometer . You can get one at the pound shop. Of course, you know, of course your pound will maybe be two pound nowadays.

Isobel: 20:47

Yeah, nowadays, nothing in the pound shop is a pound.

Sara: 20:50

It will be a 30 second read, where if you literally go on any, online stores where you can get next day delivery. You can get a 10 second read thermometer, which for a dog is the difference between them letting you take their temperature twice a day and not.

Isobel: 21:08

Absolutely, I couldn't agree more.

Sara: 21:09

And also you can get ones with a flexible end, so if they're sitting down you can still get it in because For a dog's temperature is, is through the rectum with a bit of Vaseline on the tip. To me, digital thermometer all the way.

Isobel: 21:22

And I agree. And I'll add one more thing. Cause I had a bit of a health scare on mine recently and had to take a temperature. I've also got a big window thermometer and it's exactly what it says on the tin, where the window on it is. probably a good inch long by, I don't know, half an inch. My measurements aren't great, but it's big enough that again, and mine's also flexible tip that when you are obviously not literally wrestling the dog, but they're not too happy about standing to have their temperature taken. The fact that it's quick read and the big, the big window is amazing. It just makes life so much easier. And again, if you are doing this multiple times a day. To track a bitch prior to whelp you might be doing it in low light, whether that's at night or in the morning. And again, having a nice big screen when you're knackered, it's always great.

Sara: 22:03

Well, even this is, we said about the environment, you want to kind of make it cozy, some females like a, like a little den feel to it. So the lighting generally, yeah, you're not going to be under really high powered lighting. You want the candles going. Wow.

Isobel: 22:16

That's more for myself when I'm preparing for a Whelp to be honest, keep my own nerves calmed.

Sara: 22:24

Okay. So we agree digital thermometer, right? And then this has got like a separate side delivery pack. So they're saying some sterile scissors. I'm going to say all this together and then we can have a chat. Sterile scissors, some forceps, cord scissors, some cord clamps, and a tray just to put it all in, basically.

Isobel: 22:45

Nothing wild there, nothing that I would necessarily chuck straight in the bin.

Sara: 22:49

but Have you ever used forceps?

Isobel: 22:51

No.

Sara: 22:52

No.

Isobel: 22:53

I have used cord clamp scissors, but actually I just use my thumb and finger generally. Like I would only use the cord clamps in like a real, okay, we have a real part that's not stopping bleeding here.

Sara: 23:05

With the forceps, do you remember the story? Yeah. I had a client where she has a female and every, I'm sure she won't mind me sharing this, but she has a female every time. a puppa gets stuck and she said, I always have to know. I literally take them to the vet and the vet apparently has some latte spoons, which obviously a long handle and he can using them basically as forceps, he can get this pup out. So I kind of said to her, why don't you just have your own latte spoons and you'll get the pup out yourself. So

Isobel: 23:37

he's obviously a skilled barista or whatever the terminology is.

Sara: 23:41

So he makes it work and he can always get that puppy out. Yeah, I've never used forceps. It's always been hands and.

Isobel: 23:48

I was going to say at the end of the day, it's one of those, if, if you're dealing with a situation like that, where you've got to get in and deal with it, the last thing I'm fumbling around with is a pair of forceps. Unless you're skilled with them, like a vet probably would be. And you'd know how hard you're pressing and you've got an idea of what it is. Whereas I think fingers are always the way forward because you can, you've got the dexterity and you can feel the tension.

Sara: 24:11

You can feel the resistance where. Once you've got a bit of equipment in the way, you don't really know how hard you're pulling and what the resistance is.

Isobel: 24:19

And the other thing that would concern me about the forceps is obviously naturally they are a, they're a blunt tool, yes, but they are quite fine tipped still. So actually the risk of either clamping something a little bit too hard between a really small pressure area is going to cause damage to puppy. But also, you know, be really easy to start ripping sacks with a pair of forceps if you can't see where they're going.

Sara: 24:40

Yeah, then you put yourself under more time bound pressure to get delivered. And then obviously, yeah, sterile scissors and cord scissors. I've never used, I don't even know how cord scissors are, are they blunter? Are they just a blunt cut? Is that what they're like?

Isobel: 24:53

I'm, well, I know cause they use it on a one born every second or whatever it is. Don't know that's how they cut the cords with the babies. But I must, I must. Yeah, they're huge.

Sara: 25:05

Shears. Human umbilical cord is so massive.

Isobel: 25:11

I mean, I must say, I do always have a pair of scissors. Yeah. Pre sterilized hand. I would never whelp a bitch without a pair of scissors cause you never know, but I don't tend to go for them.

Sara: 25:20

Personally, me, I've just sterilised a pair of normal scissors and used that. Yeah. That's what I mean. Yeah.

Isobel: 25:24

Yeah. Through a dishwasher or baby solution or whatever.

Sara: 25:27

Yeah. And as you say, I, the cord, I've never used cord clamps. I find they're too big. They're too bulky for most puppies. They're going to end up causing tension, getting caught and in my head somehow resulting in more likely chance of an umbilical hernia. Yeah.

Isobel: 25:41

Yeah. Oh, hold on. Are we talking about the plastic core clamps here or the core clamp scissors?

Sara: 25:46

No, no, no. Both. We're talking about both. Yeah. So cord scissors and then I rolled onto cord clamps cause that was.

Isobel: 25:51

Oh yeah. Cord clamps are going in the bin for me. A hundred percent.

Sara: 25:54

Yeah. So I've always, it's a question I get asked all the time as well. It's something that people are really paranoid about messing up and I, I don't know if it's just cause it's carried over from being quite a significant thing in humans that they feel. Yeah. It's significant and obviously it is. If mum chews it off, that's all fine. Chews the cord to detach the afterbirth. Some people say we've already gone through iodines on here. So some people could just do the iodine and leave them be. Some people like to tie off. If they do tie, if I tie off, it will either just be a couple of doubled up bits of cotton thread or just dental floss and that's it. Cause within three days, it's dried up and fallen off anyways.

Isobel: 26:36

But I must agree with you. I think that's a far better tactic. Cause if you think a little bit of cotton wrapped around the cord, firstly, mum's not going to notice it unless like she's bothering with it and paying attention. Whereas if you've got a great big plastic clip on the end of a puppy, it's going to bother mum. A lot of mums do get funny even about some whelping collars. So step one. And I would be so worried about umbilical hernias. If you've got a puppy dragging around a core clip nearly the same size as its entire body, that's just insanity to me. And naturally, if you've got them on vet bed, those plastic clips could so easily be catching on the vet bed.

Sara: 27:09

Yeah. So we've been in the clamps there. We both agree with that. A hundred percent. Clamps are going in the bin.

Isobel: 27:14

I go cotton every day.

Sara: 27:16

Final bits on the list is a nasal bulb aspirator, which I 100 percent agree with. Yep. And I don't even think that it needs to be fancy cheap ones are fine. Like I've had fancy one, if I'd narrow tipped one, big tip ones, but actually I'd rather just have one. I've realised that you can't be too heavy handed, like people are all, how much suction is too much? No, depress the whole thing, suck out as much of whatever you need to suck out and keep doing it as many times as you need to do it. People like want to do these little puffs of air and it doesn't, Create the right suction to move whatever gunk they need to move. I found bulb aspirators useful for initial born being born. If you're opening the sack or you've got a slow pop and obviously head down, you want to let all the fluid drain out naturally anyway, but you can encourage it and then use an aspirator. But even when you've got pups feeding. and you start seeing nose bubbles and that kind of thing. Then again, some breeds, some people will just do a bulb aspirator after every feed on every puppy, just so they know they are clear of any congestion. So it doesn't sit on their chest basically and cause bigger problems.

Isobel: 28:28

No, I completely agree. And again, I wouldn't go into a self whelp without a bulb aspirator. For me, I Will aspirate every puppy that is born. It's just something that I've always done. We always do it. Why would you not? I mean, that puppy's just come out of a fluid filled sack. For me, it's just to give them, give them the best start to life. And again, I think a lot of people are so worried about being gentle with a newborn puppy, but my goodness me, if you've seen a mum. Left to her own devices. She is rough. She will flick them around, give them a real good going to get them up and started. So I think like you were saying, even when you're, what you would, some people consider as a bit heavy handed with a bulb aspirator, it's still gentle compared to what mum would be doing. So

Sara: 29:10

good. Right. So we're ticking the bulb aspirator. Next up is hygiene wipes. So we kind of said about baby wipes. Obviously we talked about gloves. I know some people love anti-bac. Some people love gloves. Some people love just washing their hands until they're sore and say you've got hand wipes, all that kind of stuff. So basically, whatever your preference is in keeping clean and tidy, do whatever you prefer or wipes of some form. I don't think either of us are gonna disagree with that. Sterile lubricant

Isobel: 29:39

A hundred percent. No shadow of any doubt, for me, that is one of my must haves, pre-whelp. Yep. Have you used it often? Yeah, I couldn't name a whelp that I haven't used it. Because even if I'm using it just for the thermometer, so I'm taking mum's time for the last week prior to whelp, it's going on the thermometer every day, so that's just one use, and that's before we even whelp the pups. If you're feathering, Yeah, I'll be using it before I feather to make mum more comfortable and then even if I'm helping out a stuck pup Then it's an absolute given and I will be using it sparingly.

Sara: 30:10

Fair enough. Yeah, so I'm I agree with you I concur on all those same reasons Aprons, we've already covered antibacterial wipes already covered hand sanitiser. We talked about sterilising tablets Yeah, whatever your preferences.

Isobel: 30:23

Treat puppies the same way you would babies It sounds really silly but the number of people that You kind of forget that the immune system of a puppy is not fully formed is quite scary. No, if you wouldn't be sterilising a baby's bottle in it, why else would you be sterilising something you're going to use with newborn puppies, in my opinion. The old big brand's what I use, Milton Solution. Don't know if we're allowed to name drop, but that's what I use. It's tried and tested. I'm sure my mum used it to sterilise all of our bottles as children, and that's why we maybe got into using it for the pup stuff. It's worked for us for the last a couple of decades.

Sara: 30:54

Yep. Fair enough. And then the final item on here is about PDF printables. And I imagine they're going to be a weighing birth chart tracker of some size shape, which I'm all for. So I'm all for regular weighing of puppies to know the development of each individual puppy, just so you can have awareness. If anyone needs any intervention and also as a preventative management point of view as well.

Isobel: 31:21

Yeah, completely agree.

Sara: 31:22

Some of the things on there we, we would bin, but actually overall, but that was the deluxe. So we didn't, we didn't go cheap on that one.

Isobel: 31:32

Yeah, there you go. And there was still things we would have been binned to be fair. So, It kind of raises the argument, are you better off buying individual items?

Sara: 31:41

I don't think I've ever purchased a whelping kit. Probably now because I already have some stuff in stock, so to speak. So whenever I have a litter, I'm just topping up my original items that I have. So I'm going to quickly look through the list of things that I generally like and don't like. That kit actually didn't mention anything about a heat source. Obviously conversations to be had over heat pad, heat lamp. I am a heat pad kind of person because I like the fact that the puppies can move off and on depending on how hot or cold they are, where if you have a heat lamp dries the air out of the actual room. So it changes like the humidity of the room. But also it casts, a heat lamp will cast its heat out further, which means it's probably harder for a puppy to get out of that and escape it. So I'm all for a heat pad and a lot of people get a bit worried about, I'm going to name drop, I don't know if I'm allowed to, but pet nap to me, the best heat pads that we've got. And some people you'll see sort of post online, oh, it doesn't feel like it gets hot enough. And it is one of those, if you were to rest a book on it, that book would be whole.

Isobel: 32:50

Yeah, it's pressure generated heat, isn't it?

Sara: 32:52

No different to putting an electric blanket on with no bedding on top, it's going to lose the heat. But as soon as you put bedding on top and you get in bed, then it's going to warm you up and make you toasty. So I'm all for that type of heat. What you do have to be careful with, with some breeds, especially the heavier chested breeds like Bulldogs, heat coming up from the bottom with soft bedding. Bones. People generally worry about having flat chested puppies because they're sitting on that weight on their chest. So if you have a heat patch, you need to have bumpy bedding. So teddies, toys, rolled up tails, whatever pillows, whatever, but it needs to be that they, if they need to, they can rest their head up. So they're not solid flat out laying flat. But as I say, that is breed dependent because I'd be less worried about that. for a Labrador puppy.

Isobel: 33:39

My Dachshunds, I've not got to worry, absolutely. Naturally, they're not, it, I mean, swimmers and flat chested pups isn't something we traditionally, don't get me wrong, obviously, like anything, things can happen, but it's not, it's not an immediate thing that I'm concerned about. And access to heat is far more important. When my puppies are as small as they are, which are tiny as a small breed, mums are generally only four kilos themselves. So you can imagine the size of the pups. It's so important to have a suitable heat source because they lose temperature so quickly. Problem with a heat lamp is there is no choice. And actually, I think, I mean, going back years ago, the heat lamps were the thing. And actually, if you were to sit in the whelping pen and hold your hand under a heat lamp for a considerable amount of time, you would be shocked at how hot it gets. They really, really do kick out heat. And I think very often people just pop their hand under the lamp and go, Oh yeah, that feels nice and warm. But how often do you sit there and hold your hand there for 20 minutes? Like mum would be lying down with the pups and they really can be scorching. Or on the other hand, you put them too high and they're just not kicking out enough heat for newborn pups. I think. As a, as a tool, they are very hard to control the correct ambient temperature because you have to get the hanging height just right. And I know something we always used to sort of have in the back of our mind years ago when we used to use them is having a suitable tether for something as heavy as a heat lamp. And actually you're hanging quite a dangerous bit of kit above. Some very precious new little animals and it's something you need to consider. It's not like you just dangle it off the ceiling and hope a picture hook to hold it in.

Sara: 35:09

So that's a huge consideration. Environment is a huge consideration. Known of somebody that had quite, quite horrific, really, a shelf above their whelping area that had been there for years. You know, every time they'd won a trophy, it went on there, went on there. And that shelf actually fell down on their, on a litter. And some of the pups did actually have brain damage because of it. of the items that are on there. Just done a usual thing, put the pups where they were. So yeah, I'm always a bit conscious of anything above a puppy pen after hearing that horrific event.

Isobel: 35:39

Accidents happen. Creating a self whelping area and environment, the more you mitigate risks in that room, You're already on to a winner and you're reducing the chances of an accident and accidents are generally very avoidable. So why would you not take the time? So not that you could ever guess about the shelf and it's absolutely horrific, but you can all learn from that. Every day is absolutely a school day and I have litter due you soon and I will be making sure there is no shelf above that whelping box now.

Sara: 36:04

No shelves. Another thing that I had on my list that wasn't detailed there was Nail clippers, like baby nail clippers, obviously that's not for the initial whelp, but puppies nails grow far. You need to regularly keep those short and trimmed to avoid any irritation around the glands, the mammary glands, the teats. So I'm quite an active person of making sure nails are short. Super short.

Isobel: 36:30

100 percent and I actually think we should maybe revisit that in a little more detail on another podcast because it's another thing that I see an awful lot and it's something I'm asked all the time. So it's obviously a, an interesting topic and there's a lot to be said on that one.

Sara: 36:45

Yeah. Another thing on my list that wasn't mentioned, there was a timer. Obviously we have mobile phones with us most of the time as a source of entertainment while we're feeding pups. But if you are whelping, you need to know how the time difference from the last pup to the next one, or how long she hasn't gone without contractions or has been contracting or, or that kind of thing. So just being aware, having a timer or using your. Your clock on your phone or your watch or whatever. I told you my last little, wasn't it? I said, Oh, I'm loving my smartwatch because I could just set the alarm. Yeah, and it was a game changer. Obviously, like a phone can do everything that I could do on my smartwatch, but it just felt so much easier to set the timer on my smartwatch and it not to like beep off in my head with a phone that was just there, turn it off onto the next thing. So.

Isobel: 37:33

I must say, I, I'm one of those, I time everything in a while from first stages. I, I full blown log everything because I think knowledge is power and God forbid you're on the phone to the vets. The first thing they're going to ask is, well, what's the time, time lag between. Contractions when was the first push when was the last part but if you haven't got that information to hand because you haven't got the clock next to you or a timer actually you're not doing yourself any help because the vet can't give you the best advice needed if you can't give them the information they need so I must say I'm one of them the phones are on charge constantly in the final week I will not have a dead battery and I will make sure that I have got access to the clock my watch my phone everything's it's all timed.

Sara: 38:18

Amazing. A few other things I had on the list was like a Wi Fi camera. I know I know some breeders, not necessarily for whelping, but they actually have cameras available on their puppy pen. So the new owners can, like 24 7, so new owners can dial in and watch their pups. Any time of the day. I'm not, I'm not sure I would go that far with it, but I know that's what some people do, but generally for like general observation of dogs, I know people where they're like, Oh, she's in the final week. She's due. And I have to go to this appointment. What should I do? Generally, I say, well, if you can't get somebody into. To watch her or pop in, then I set up a camera and at least you can dial in frequently. And if anything starts kicking off that you can act on that as, as soon as you can. So I think it's always handy having some form of camera. I know I've done it with mine, but I just can't get out of bed. And like, they're making a noise. What are they doing? Oh, no, they're just playing. It's fine.

Isobel: 39:14

So I really handy tip that I use. I don't want to tell people they don't believe me. I use a brand of doorbell because they are 24 7 monitors, they're wide lens and they are obviously, they've got night vision. So I make sure mine's mounted safely on the side of the whelping box and because they're wide lens, you can see the whole whelping box. And you can dial in at any time and you can talk through it as well.

Sara: 39:37

If you've got one, yeah, why not use it? Another thing I had listed was supportive pillows. Again, this is breed dependent. Again, Because for instance, bulldogs are round ribbed, like even the breed standard says they should have round ribs, which means generally. They, if they allow on their side, it's, they're going to be uncomfortable. Where my Labrador, for instance, she could lay on her side all day long. So hence bulldogs like tend to lay out like a rug and that's why people sort of laugh. Oh, they're a bit quirky. And it's like, yeah, cause then, and the short in the back, the resting positions are very different to some breeds. The pillows are good for when you've just got a girl that's can't lay down because she's full of pups and you can prop her up a bit and that gives that extra support, but I've also found that good once pups are born and feeding. That having this extra layer of comfort that you can sort of manipulate into any shape that you need to is good for some breeds. Like a bulldog can literally roll their ribs up against it, rest their head on the other part of the pillow, they'll feed the pups, they're super comfy. I'm just conscious that I've said about teddies and that kind of stuff. Obviously you need to don't have, even like with pillowcases, you need to be careful puppies don't crawl off into pillowcases or I've said about teddies and they get caught in things. I always pick baby safe teddies and all that kind of stuff. So I think they're good enough for babies and kids are good enough for the dogs. Don't leave these type of items in the pen if you're not there with them. Anything you want to add to that?

Isobel: 41:08

No, pillowcases is such an important one. I think especially when people pop pillows and things like that in there to make mom comfy.

Sara: 41:15

Yeah, within reason. And I think the only other few things I had listed was about Pseudocreme for sore bums or Bepanthen. I actually prefer that over Sudocrem, but just any sore bums, which can be from overcleaning. Obviously, you've got to be careful with mum, that she's not licking chemicals off her dog. So again, it needs to be monitored. But if you are seeing sore bums, obviously, I know a lot of people would do Vaseline because generally that's like an nice,widely accepted, easy product to use. It's not going to cause any damage if it is lit.

Isobel: 41:47

Do you know a really natural one that I've had use with? I don't generally get sore bums a lot in our breed. I don't know why, but a really sensible high grade Virgin Organic Coconut Oil, because it's safe for mum to consume and actually it's really, it's a really good natural moisturiser. That's a good idea. Us humans use it in our hair and skin and things like that.

Sara: 42:09

Yeah, but it's interesting you say about the sore bums, sometimes it can be from the diet that mum's on, can give puppies sore bums because of the richness of it passing through her system and then into the milk. Sometimes I think it could be breed dependant bulldogs. You can get tails stuck to bums, basically. A Lab, I can't imagine that ever happening. And I think just like the way they feed, tails are out once they're in the rhythm of it all. And most breeds are like that, but I've had many a bulldog tail stuck to a bum. So you've got to get in there with a cotton bud and Vaseline and massage it off. So I would definitely try the coconut oil. I've got no problems with that.

Isobel: 42:48

I think you've covered everything that you need for the basic. Well, other than this, and there'll be quirks that I, I absolutely have in my kit and you might have in yours. Are there anything that you have in yours that are a must have?

Sara: 42:58

The nasal bulb is a massive must have, and that's even I'm bulldogs, generally they're C section. So initially you'd think that's not an item you would need, but just from going forward, whelping, inhaling, aspirating, that's just the first key product that's going to make a massive difference quite quickly. So for me, I think it would be the nasal bulb as a number one item. I could probably. And a flexible quick read thermometer has to be quick read, but those are my two must haves strangely, I believe.

Isobel: 43:35

Very sensible. I've got a couple more I'll chuck in just because for me, they're something that I absolutely will have that you've not mentioned. And obviously me being a canine nutritionist, there are certain things that are dead important to me. Bone broth, absolutely a given in my girl's diet right before Whelp, because similarly to what you were probably saying there about keeping your girls full and using the puppy formula. For me, that's what my bone broth does. I make it myself in a slow cooker. And I make it in as many batches as I need and with it being such high water content as well when mum's off her food during whelp and things like that first stages depending on how long it lasts. I love the fact that I can give her bone broth because it is packed full of nutrients that she can digest and get benefit from. And it's high in water, so it keeps her hydrated. So for me, that's like my absolute, and then also straight after pups to combat dehydration and help with milk and everything like that. It's my version of rehydration basically. So that for me is a super must have.

Sara: 44:34

Yeah, it's not anything I've ever done.

Isobel: 44:36

Yeah, I have to share my secret recipe with you all. I have to put it in the show notes, won't I, now I've mentioned it.

Sara: 44:41

Must admit, I'm never going to make up anything. I bet like this liver water that everybody uses, it's just not happening with me. I could just about. Isobel: That's also That is the next thing. I always make sure, if I haven't bought in calf's liver before the whelp, I at least make sure that my local farm shop has organic calf liver in stock because I am not messing it. For me. If you need it, you need it. Yeah. No, it's fair enough. I just make sure I've got it to hand. I know there's a company online. Well, they were online that sell the powder that you'd reconstitute it in and they disappeared, but they popped back up.

Isobel: 45:15

Another one's popped back up. I don't know if it's this week, funnily enough. I had a good old nose and thinking, could this save me time? But no, I'm personally sticking to my but it's been nothing. If you're not the sort of person that's making you liver water, that's fine. But.

Sara: 45:30

I see, I would be rather than both of those, I would just do liquid life aid. Yeah. Which is actually, I think they've discontinued it now or it's very hard to come by, which is, it was like a farmer's product for lambs or cattle or whatever, but it just has all the essential electrolytes. It's vitamin blah, blah, blah, blah in it. So I think, and that's why I believe most people switched over to oral aid or your alternatives of bone broth and the liver water. So I think in essence, they're all to kind of do the same thing.

Isobel: 46:03

I must say, I do have sachets of life aid in my cupboard still, because again, I'm one of these, I'd rather have it and never use it.

Sara: 46:10

Yeah.

Isobel: 46:10

If it's not going to cost me the earth, have it sat there, but yeah, it's cracking stuff.

Sara: 46:14

Yeah. Yeah. So I think that would be my alternative to sitting around in the kitchen, just about put on an air fryer.

Isobel: 46:23

Come on. Slow cooker for the bone broth, you'll manage.

Sara: 46:27

I haven't got one as well, so there's no excuse. Okay. So do you want to wrap up this?

Isobel: 46:32

Yeah, I think, I absolutely think we've covered our must haves for, for sort of the run up to Whelp and Whelp. And hopefully everyone's found that useful because there is so much information out there when it comes to Whelping. Well, like we said, hundreds of different Whelping kits to choose from with useless things in. So hopefully this will have been a benefit.

Sara: 46:50

Yeah. Well, hopefully you now know the items that you need for your breed, rather than buying some generic kit that you're never going to use half of. But if you, if you want to do that and feel like you've ticked all the boxes, that's fine, but just be aware that you're probably not going to use half of it.

Isobel: 47:05

And that's the thing. The joke is there'll have been things that we've missed off even in this conversation that afterwards I'll go, Oh my goodness, I definitely have this in my kit as well. If nothing else, it gives everyone a good grounding on where to start.

Sara: 47:16

That's fine. We can do a podcast version two. Okay. Right. That's a wrap up for today then as usual. Thank you for listening to us. It would be great if you shared us to like minded people that you subscribe to wherever you're listening from and that you rate us and leave a review.

Isobel: 47:35

Absolutely. And if you ever have other topics or just would like to put your, your own comments in on what we've discussed today, we always love to hear it. So That's it. That's bye for me.

Sara: 47:46

Bye from me too. See ya. Hey, just a quick one before you go. Head to breedersbrew. com to claim your free critical care sheet and to receive your invitation to join the Breeders Brew Community Forum.