pregnant pictures of Hilde March 31st

the million dollar question .... how long does she have to go?

it's all she can do to get comfortable

Grace was helping to reviewing the video on puppy whelping, she's a great study.

Tigre' doing her part keeping Hilde company

The two mommies stretching to make room for the growing babies  (Tigre' due April 17th)

March 31st

well, her temperature went back up to 100.5 and then back dow to 99.7

It's warm today, about 97 degrees possible she could just be warm

she's not displaying any restlessness but she's very poofy from the pressure of the puppies dropping

her girth was 27 1/2" on Tuesday, today it's barely 26"

puppies are dropping

we said she was due in April looks like she will make it into tomorrow?

Temperature Talk

I am dedicated to the temperature taking for an accurate timeline ... or disqualify the temperature taking if it's not even close.  This is my fourth litter of experimenting with the temperature taking as a gauge of exact delivery.  I have gotten more dedicated with Hilde's litter which seems to be going according to plan.  I am taking the temperature about every two hours.

1:00 this afternoon we are at 97 degrees, according to the experts on temperature taking she should start labor in 2-12 hours

I see no sign of nesting or restlessness ... yet, with her temperature dropping she's doing a lot of sleeping

stay tuned, ya'll will see if Hilde through ausmosis has read the instructions and when she actually goes into pushing the puppies down the canal and out to sunny california.... hahahaha.  Warmest day this week, it's about 97 degrees!  how funny is that?!


any last guesses on gender and color?
speak now these puppies are almost here

Thurs morning

who-hoo we made it through the night.

got up at 4am to check on her, she went outside to go potty, 98 degrees,

8am 97-98 degrees



keep checking back, it will be soon......

Wednesday 10pm

and it's getting close...

First stage of Labor:

(This stage often goes un-noticed, and takes place in the 24 hours following temperature drop)  oh my gosh, nothing goes un-noticed around here

Temperature FINALLY drops to 98°F from its normal 99,100,101°F (you should have been taking it regularly for a few days)  10pm we are at 99.1, dropping slowly all day

If you are really committed, the temperature taking does work (all right fine).  You will find her temperature around 99 to 101, and as soon as it starts to drop, below 99, and continues to drop. (now you take it every hour or two) ;you have about 12-24 hours from the start of the drop. 

When it bottoms out, to 98  or 97.9, then you have about 2-12 hours (not yet, I suspect in the middle of the night)

You may find your dam much more restless, and not able to get comfortable. She will stretch out on her side.   (yep)

You may find her eyes different, they can dilate, and she can stare at you.  (yep)

She may not want you out of her site. She may go to her whelp box.  (yep, she will move from each area of the room or the house to be at my feet)

She may vomit. She may try to have a bowel movement from the pressure. She may urinate frequent.  (hmm I guess, she pottys often, I go with her at this point.  The stars were out beautifully tonight)

She will refuse to eat, and seek a quite spot, like a closet or under a bed.  (still eating, some bitches don't stop eating and I think HIlde is one of them, she's at my feet, I had to take her into her whelping box tonight, but she was relieved to be there)

She may have some mucus discharge, and her Vulva area will become puffier.  (oh my gosh yes)

.

The normal body temperature for animals is generally higher than for humans. The normal rectal temperature of a dog is 99.5° to 102.5°F. The normal temperature of a puppy at birth is 96-97°F. The temperature gradually increases with age until it is 100°F at 4 weeks of age.

well the next time I blog, could be puppies or telling you we still have some time.  Like I always say "keep the people calm"  the mothers know what they are doing (momma Hilde and mother nature).

sweet dreams,

Updated Reservation List

Hilde is doing fine, puppies are rolling around & getting stronger,

her girth has actually gone down this morning, puppies moving towards the back end?  Lots going on with her and the puppies,

Puppies should slow down and be quiet right before labor, not this morning they look like little bumper cars in there, her eating is slowing down, less tummy room I'm sure, lots of staring at me which is a definite sign.  Temperature is low-ish but no dips that I've seen yet.  April 3rd is Sunday!

Updated Reservation List

Reservation for Michele, brown puppy, male or female

Reservation for Jane & Dave, black male pick of the litter

Reservation for Kristen & family, black small standard female

Reservation for Vaula & family, klein female

Reservation for Sandy, klein female

#6 available to reserve
#7 available to reserve

Coming down to the last of it

Eight to Nine

Puppies are ready to be born, I am noticing less movement, it's getting tight in there, they are pretty much in line for the birth order She is restless, uncomfortable, it's difficult to stretch her tummy today, very concerned about the gopher in the backyard.  I am getting a lot of starting at me, like "what the heck is going on?"  She's feeling it but we probably still have a couple of days. Most dam's appetites slow down due to their tummies are so full of puppies, not Hilde, she's eating like a champ this morning and last night. Good idea to start taking Dam's rectal temperature.  Normal is 99.5 to 101. A drop to 97 - 98 on two readings an hour apart will mean the start of pre-labour" (we have not seen this yet with Hilde but I continue taking her temperature ... I havn't found temperature taking that effective but I do take the temps to ensure everything is going well) Rule of thumb:  one inch for every puppy, today her girth is 27 1/2" she started at 21" and has seven puppies, do the math, she's half an inch for the weight of the puppies to kick off labor.   This is usually accurate, it's soon...

Pictures of Hilde and Joaquin growing up

"Hilde"
Ash's-Mystical Barefoot Harmony
AKC and UKC registered

Picture of Hilde at 11 wks old, one week before we got her

15 minutes with a shaver and wha-la, she's gorgeous!

Getting a hug from one of her best friends with Baby Joaquin in the lower right,

in her show coat that hadn't ever been cut, 8 months old here

she has a mahogony hue to her black coat, shows she's a blue not a black

 

A Silver and/or a blue poodle will "clear" their color by the time they are about two years old.  A silver or blue puppy are born black with some light hairs on the pads of their feet.  Depending how many white or silver hairs will give us a hint of the color the puppy will be when it clears.  A silver or blue will have this mahogony hue to their coat where a black puppy will not.  A silver puppy will also have and a silver face and feet by the time they are six weeks old.  A blue puppy will have a black face like a black puppy.

she loves the stuffed animals to cuddle with when it's chilly out, Hilde is a very sweet girl

 my favorite picture of Hilde, she's a natural princess

spent a few minutes to trim her up, told her she's beautiful, and there she stands ... perfect

 Hilde's Dam, same size (20") and same color (blue) as Hilde

I havn't seen her in person, but appears Hilde is more refined than her mom

Hilde's sire "Martin" as you can see, he's dark brown, we are hoping for a brown puppy too

"Joaquin"
Ludwiglane's Walkin on Sunshine Barefoot
AKC and UKC registered

about 12 wks here, just hanging around the house

he's very personable, he looks at your face, she's sweetly confident

Baby Joaquin:  wacky little hairdo but sweet as ever,

with our granddaughter, she likes to carry him around

little don't go potty in the house reminder

Joaquin's Dam "Sierra"  she's about 15 1/2" tall

Joaquin's Sire UKC Champion "Sonny" he's a kick, so full of personality and really quite a confident ham,



Girth March 26

puppies are growing, this is basically her last week, she's very uncomfortable

GIRTH this morning is 25 1/2"

I think that's one inch in about a week


Rule of thumb?
one inch per puppy around the dam's last rib before she goes into labor, we'll see if that will hold true for Hilde's litter

Update and Development of the Puppies for Weeks 8 and 9

Hilde is getting very uncomfortable, she's still eating well and turning in for the night by 8:30-9pm, puppies are easily seen when she's resting romping around.  Time to give her a bath and tummy shave.  Her discharge was a little gumming this morning.  It's time to watch her carefully

She lays on her side and has moved several time to get comfortable, letting her tummy stretch over a pillow, kicking her back feet to get comfortable ... augh, finally resting.  She knows where her puppy pool is for whelping and sleeps in there (my master bathroom) every night, she's quite content.  Every morning she has her back to me when I move the baby gate to let her out for the morning (about 6:30-7:30am).  Once the puppies are 2-3 weeks old we move them into the whelping box, exercise area with the potty park there ready for their eyes to open and start to go towards it to use (it's amazing they really do!)

Today she's very restless to get comfortable and doing a lot of stretching, my guess is the puppies are getting in line to be born, sometimes puppies can get pretty active deciding the lineup.

WEEK EIGHT (Days 50-57)  (Hilde is 53 Days Pregnant Today)


DEVELOPMENT OF THE PUPPIES
* Fetal movement can be detected when she's at rest
* Puppies can safely be born from now on (that's ok, we will wait until at least Day 59.  Dear puppies, that will be nothing before March 30th... please stay put)


CHANGES IN THE BITCH (technical term for a mature female dog)
* Milk may be squeezed from nipples (not yet)
* Bitch will be very large (uh, yeah, and affectionate)


CARE OF THE BITCH (my care of her)
* Add moderate lunch

TO DO LIST
* Gather whelping kit (have one one order with a quick delivery, I have most everything, thought it would be nice to see what they include in an official whelping kit)
* Prepare phone list (includes vet's phone number, emergency clinic's phone number)
* Make sure your car is gassed up


WEEK NINE (Days 58-65)  


DEVELOPMENT OF THE PUPPIES
* Growth and Development continues


CHANGES IN THE BITCH
* Nesting behavior may be seen
* Bitch will become distressed with the onset of labor (panting, pacing, digging profusely)
* Temperature should be around 100.2-100.8 degrees Farenheit
* When the temperature drops to around 98-99.4 degrees Farenheit, puppies should be born within 24 hours (please note Grace's previous blog, she got the people in an uproar when she did this a week prior to whelping ... augh.  There's many other factors to observe than just the temperature)
* Appetite will disappear as whelping approaches,
usually when my girls are starting labor they will get nervous and check on me and then go dig like the dickens at the newspapers in their whelping box.  That's when I truly know it's time.


CARE OF THE BITCH
* Start taking temperature three times a day (in my experience that's too many, it alerts the dam and makes her nervous)


TO DO LIST
* Be attentive with her, I follow her through the yard (sightfully) I usually have them able to go in and out of the house at leisure, now is when I start closing the door and keeping my eye on her.
* Notify the vet for any problems earlier than later
* Keep detailed records on temperature and behavior of bith
* Double check that whelping supplies are ready

Blogging the Guesses, who will win?

PAULA's guesses:
3 girls, 4 boys
7 kleins
3 apr/cream
3 blues
1 brown

KRISTEN'S guesses:
3 girls, 4 boys
3 creams (one parti)
1 dark & cream parti
1 brown
2 blue
5 kleins, 2 small standards

JANE'S guesses:
2 girls, 5 boys
4 blue
2 cream
1 brown

JIM'S guesses:
4 blacks
1 brown
2 creams
3 girls, 4 boys
7 kleins

WILL KEEP ADDING ONTO AS BLOGGING GUESSES, CHECK BACK

GUESS SEX AND COLOR OF THE PUPPIES AND WIN A PRIZE

the person closest to what she actually has wins a prize ... anyone can play,

note:  since I created this blog our email address changed, to blog, 
please send your blog separately to pudels@roadrunner.com

7 puppies, know your sire and dam and make a guess

Paula's says:

my guess is 4 boys and 3 girls

three apricot/creams like Joaquin, three blues like Hilde and a brown

Size?

They say to guess the size of a puppy is to look at the size of the puppy's
parents which the puppies will average the in between size (of course some
smaller, some larger).

Hilde is 20" same size and color as her dam, she has only standards in her
background.  Blue being the poodle color that carries all colors except parti.

With this litter?  they will carry all colors and the parti gene.

Joaquin is 17 1/2", 24#, his dam is 15 1/2", his sire is 17 1/2".  He has his sire's
size and dam's coloring (mostly) with a white start on top of his head and a wide
apricot strip from his shoulders to his tail.  He's parti factored.  

send in your guess, you could win a prize .. make the wait fun! 

Hilde was out playing, running and eating this morning.  After a huge breakfast,
she did not want her tummy rubbed.  Now that she's laying on her side, I can see
the puppies "blurping" as she rests.  She's outside laying in the sun,

Girth?

the rule of thumb is an inch around the last rib for each puppy when the puppies are
fully developed and she's ready to whelp.  Hilde started at 21" at one week pregnant, 

today with 8-11 days to go she's 24 1/2", she will be about 31" before she goes into
labor.  

amazing huh?

PICTURES of Momma Hilde

To explain these pictures ... every morning the neighbors let their horses, goats, and sheep out to run around while they start feeding.  The poodles love this ritual, they run back and forth to see, sniff and play with their animals.  Below is Hilde running, playing and being very pregnant, two weeks to go yesterday, she's packin man!

Hilde enjoying sniffing the horse next door

... walking outside, plays as usual then sleeps soundly (this is an earlier picture)

sniffing, seeing her from a different angle, even pregnant with a short shave she's beautiful

view from the top, that's really wide for Hilde, she's never bony thin, usually a petite girlish figure, which is now officially gone ... until later

garage shot, excuse the boxes, the sun is shining on her face so you can see her beautiful features.  I did mention she's a beautiful poodle?  she is conformationally correct, so is the sire

little behind shot as she's running by,

ok, so Tigre' is pregnant too, Hilde is 8 wks and Tigre' is 6 wks, if you are use to looking at Tigre' you would know her tummy is very poochy, Hilde is at a trot run in the background, they were next to each other when I was getting the camera ready

the white horse was out a lot this morning, there's Hilde getting as close as she can, I wonder what they would do if they were in the same area with them, but, with two poodles due next month... I am very careful with them anyway, and now?  they are royalty around here ya know

Hilde is sitting on the fence to get closer to the horse, they communicate back & forth through the fence

now Tigre' is running around with Hilde, they get so excited, the horse is full of oats I guess, she's running around and around the tree, all of the poodles are round up keeping up with the horse

 I have to be quick with Hilde running by to get her on film

around here?  Everad is the fastest, he will push himself to be first, 

Hilde?  almost as fast, she can outrun Tigre' and Joaquin ... pregnant

augh, back in the warm house, it's chilly today, April 3rd is one week, 6 days

and she's running like a champ, soon to take a nap I'm sure

Hilde's priorities:  eat, play, eat, sleep, eat, play, play a little more, eat a lot

had a suggestion by a follower of this blog,  very cute

Duendo

and

Da Capo

15-18 days to go

Of course the last few weeks Hilde is slowing down more every day.  Today I noticed she had a few splurts of play and quick runs and then lots of sleeping.

I put my hand on her tummy and there's puppies rolling around in there!  I'll bet ya they will be as playful as their momma.  I can see why she goes to bed early these days,

will work on getting more pictures on here in a few days, she's got quite a bump now, there's active puppies in there.

April 3rd is Day 63, she can have them anywhere from Day 58 to Day 65, stay tuned

Blog your favorite Nickname

Hilde is looking and acting very pregnant,
she started sleeping in her new "area" in the whelping box last night
quiet place away from the other poodles tucked away in our bathroom to make a little cocoon for her and the babies until there eyes are open and their bodies stabilize they will stay within hearing distance 24/7.


I've got a list started for the nicknames, have lots on the list, as the puppies whelp we pick a name that's our next favorite as they are born, here's the "D" litter list so far, can always change until the puppy is born and labeled a color/nickname to track their progress and growth.  It beats "hey you" or "#__" much more personalized

This litter is the "D" litter with the theme "Names of Dancers" Blog your favorite

Drew (Lachey from Dancing with the stars)
Damian (Whitewood from Dancing with the stars)
Derek (Hough from D w/S)
Donny (Osmond from D w/S)
Dmitry (Chaplan from D w/S)
Duncan (Isadora Duncan, the mother of modern dance)
Dominic (Sandoval from D w/S)
"Dummer" is the 2011 OFA Winner and since that's what we do, the first boy will be nicknamed Dummer
Leon "Danelion" famous ballet dancer, thought we'd call him "Dandy"
Dean Collins, started swing dance
Anton Dolin, started ballet dance
Darrin Henson, started Hip-Hop dance
Sammy Davis, Jr., famous tap dancer
Ashley Doyle, ballet dancer

"Dolly" (Dorothy DeLay Papers, famous Juiliard School of Dance, teacher)
Anna Demidova, "Demi" (from Dancing with the Stars)
Dana Michelle Cook (D w/S)
Donyelle Jones (D w/S)
Cat Deeley (announcer from so you think you can dance)
Dara Torres (D w/S)
Deena Katz (producer of so you think you can dance)
Celine Dion, also listed as a dancer
Devora Canario, started Hip-Hop
Molly D'Amour, dancer for Lady Gaga
Duet, a fav of mine (might be a dancer one day)

blog your favorite "D" name dancer, be apart of this process of nicknaming the puppies at birth

names not dancers that you might want to use for your puppy's name
Dante, Dijon, Durango, Dylan, Diamond, Dooley, Donovan, Delaney, Delano
D'veda, Delilah, Della, Danika, Dharma, Delta

Hilde is going into her 7th week

Hilde's progress as of today, going into her 7th week

*********** 7th week ***********

Day 42 to 49

Developed puppies continue to grow. 

Dams will start shedding tummy hair  poodles don't shed so no problem with the shedding tummies, but I did give her a close shave to be able to watch her tummy,

Suggestions:

Increase food... keep meals a balanced diet, not just meat.   Started them on OC RAW DOG FOOD and they love it.  We feed all of our poodles NuVet vitamins daily.

Dam will not want to be rough play and jumping  

(Hilde uncharacteristically showed her teeth to Tigre' today that was just wanting to play as they always do)

At the end of this week, day 48 to 50, take the dam off of the puppy food and put her back on regular kibble. You can change gradually over a couple days, but you have to limit the calcium intake you are feeding, so the dam's body goes into store calcium mode.

Pictures of Hilde and Joaquin

Sire and Dam of this litter,
Hilde is considered a "blue" but she's dark, only a few greying hairs, Joaquin is shiny cream/apricot

Momma Hilde in her new haircut
weather has been 75-85 degrees here in Perris, California, getting her ready and not be too warm

another picture of her growing tummy, she got warn out fairly quickly so need to finish her feet and make her look much more pretty that she is, but for now, she's cooler and not panting constantly,

Development of the Fetuses

As of today, Hilde is going into her 6th week
(to kind of catch up where we are, below is also week 5 and 4)

You CAN do an ultrasound at this time, if you wish
oh yeah, we do an ultrasound to check everything is well and count the puppies to know when she's done delivering puppies...

*********** 6th week ***********

Day 35 to 42

Puppies become colored (skin pigment develops) the Dams nipples darken and grow, and tummy continues to swell. ''Swelly Belly"

Hilde is obvsiouly pregnant, she sits and lays to the side with her belly and nipples in the sunshine... seems she's doubling in size every couple of days, she's eating well with an extra calcium meal every couple of days ... and of course on her NuVet vitamins daily
 

************ 5th week ************

Day 28 to 35

At this time the fetuses begin to look like dogs; their toes, whiskers, claws all are developing. They have become boy and girl puppies, eyes that were open-now close. (When eyes are developing in the uterus, the eyes are developed in an open position and then they close and remain closed until about 10 days old or so.)

Embryos are MUCH more resistant to development problems.

The Dam's weight will begin to increase, and swelling will begin to be noticeable. If you have given a maternity haircut swelling will be easier to see.

************ 4th week **********

Days 21 to 28

(Vet can Palpate (feel) and possibly detect pregnancy.  Between days 27 and 31(after day 32, fluids increase to protect pups and making palpating not possible.

--Fetus's grow from 5-10mm to 14-16mm, faces take shape, eyes and spinal cords developed.
--At this stage the embryos are most susceptible to defects and it is said that even eating a toxic substance at this stage can cause
eyes to not form properly, or cause 'Cleft Palate'
FACT or FICTION, I am not sure. Many congenital defects, and genetic defects have the mode of inheritance still unknown.
But for the sake of your Dam and pups, make sure your environment is a safe one.
--The Dam may have a clear, odorless vaginal discharge, and her teats may begin to develop.

Suggestions:

-- Limit working dogs and refrain from Strenuous activity like jumping and long runs. For small Companion Dogs, slightly reduce activity, especially in agility.
-- Some like to add 1/4 cup of cottage cheese + 1 scrambled egg every other day. Or mix (refrigerate) + add a tbsp to daily food.
which we are doing...

Ultrasound shows ....

Hilde has 6-7 puppies, we will reserve six reservations until they whelp, as of today, we have five puppies reserved from Hilde's litter coming due April 3rd

hopefully everyone will get exactly what you are waiting for, I have one spot in

Tigre's litter held for the reserved list that needs a specific color, size or gender

that Hilde doesn't have and want to get a Tigre' puppy instead. 

Tigre's ultrasound is March 19th, she probably will have more but I told her not

necessary for her first litter.

The gal that did the ultrasound said the puppies are "round" "heartbeats look good" "Hilde looks good, everything is going well"  she also said she thought she was a little over Day 28 that the puppies are a tad larger than a walnut size, I keep this blog updated so stay tuned...

Reservation for Michele, brown puppy, male or female

Reservation for Jane & Dave, black male pick of the litter

Reservation for Kristen & family, black small standard female

Reservation for Vaula & family, klein female

Reservation for Sandy, klein female

#6 Reservation is available

#7 if there is one will be available to reserve after the puppies are here

blessings,
Paula and Jim Wilson
... and the pudels
http://www.barefootpudels.com/
see "nursery" tab for Tigre's litter due mid April and Grace's litter due in the fall 2011