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any tips for having pups in the winter?

I have a female here thats due feb.2 Right now she stays in one of those igloo type dog houses.Will one of those with the plastic flap on the front and old blankets in it be good enough for her to have the pups or should I invest in a better type of box?I can also put tarps around her pen to block most of the wind to help out.
Any other tips from you gals and guys that have raised pups in cold weather.Around here,it could be 50 or 0 the day she has them....LOL
Thanks

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Redticker

I think blocking the wind around the pen is a good idea. But someone once said on here that a flap on the door of the doghouse could CAUSE the dog to freeze to death. Something about moisture.

You need a good welping box- I think your asking for trouble with that plastic house......

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Mike Trevis

Keeping Pups warm.

Do you have a barn or shed that you could keep them
in? Best to keep a heat lamp on them.
I'm sure it will be plenty could up there in Feb.
Debbie Dorrance

quote:

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Originally posted by Mike Trevis
You need a good welping box- I think your asking for trouble with that plastic house......

---

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Redticker

I ussually get a heat lamp and wire it into a 110 Thermostat. You can get it at most any hardware store. Then you dont have to worry about it getting to hot.

THIS TIME OF YEAR A PUP MUST STAY WARM- S/S WHOLESALE IN CANTON , NC SELLS HEATED WHELPING PADS THAT WILL DO THE TRICK. THEY ARE NOT VERY EXPENSIVE.


C. NOEL BRALEY

No Rusty that won't work. If you don't have any thing but a igloo then build a big box , put it in the garage --put a hole in the top of it and put wire mesh over the hole and put a heat lamp on the mesh. Preferable about 2 foot above the mother. When the pups are born if there cold they will huddle up--if they are to hot they will spread out .Then adjust your lamp up or down. In the winter you don't want a dog box to big so that the dog generates heat to stay warm,but with a mother with pups you have to have a large area so the mother can get in without laying on them.Always remember a cold puppy is going to die.

can you bring into a warmed area?

wet newborns have a chill problem. once a few days old? you can return to warm dog house. and that's how i did it with no adverse problems. in box inside..just line bed with newspaper and shred some up for nest...can remove once she's done. then lay something soft down. some say don't use straw..but i never had any trouble. we whelped in winter in w.n.y...and that is cold! we never used any heat lamps. they just snuggled up to the dam. but our houses were wooden and double walled with insulation. we had a large rubber mat for door. the houses had bales of straw around them as well. they had opening into cement kennels. never lost a pup. good luck..

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AMAZEN COONHOUNDS

you better have alot of old blankets cause once they get wet they are done i would use straw and tarp over the roof and the sides the mother will provide alot of heat to them shes not dumb but maybe if you get them a blanket for when they are first born it makes it better for them or atleast for the mother so she doesnt have straw stickin to the afterbirth cause she has to eat that off the pups or they will die also it would keep the straw off them there skin is weak at birth almost as weak as a blister so you dont want to handle them for atleast a week im not doctor do little by no means but thats what i think oh i was going to say i dont recomend cedar for new born pups

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Night Run Kennels

One thing that worked for a heat source in my home made whelping box was to bust an 8 X 12 cinder block in half (so you have two hollow blocks). Run your wire for the light bulb low in the corner, place the bulb in the hollow with the wire between the two blocks (which are tied together and tied to the box so they can't be jostled). Momma nor pups can touch the bulb or the wire.

Since the block is on the side rail, it hangs over providing ventalation from the bottom. This provides a chimney effect since the bulb is inside heating the air in the blocks, circulating the air. Plus the blocks hold heat themselves.

This worked really well and I raised litters when it was below zero.

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Let's go huntin

My whelping box is insulated with 1inch celotex walls, cieling, and floor and I still run a heat lamp. IMO The pups need to stay fairly warm for atleast the first few weeks and the dam might have a tougher time keeping warm after being exausted from having the pups. If I were you I would build yourself a insulated whelping box on skids or something. My kennels butt up to my barn, so all my dogs have insulated boxs in the barn they can get into.
Adam Frary

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Try using a heated pad used to germinate seeds they work realy good in ohio

rusty

a welping box is the only way to go make sure you have a rail around the sides so pups dont get crushed agaist the wall and if you use blankets make sure to fasten them to the floor so pups can't get under them and get grushed i use indoor/outdoor carpet nailed to a frame under which i place layers of news papers quite thick for insulation make a vent on the front to let moisture out as there will be plenty of buildup of moisture.
don't use any heatmats unless there imbedded in rubber. i use two heat lamps on a thermostat you can use 2 150 watt instead of the 250 watt reason being if one lamp fails the second will stay on and keep them from freezing you want the thermostat so you can turn temp down as pups get older so you can get them used to outdoor tempature as they get older ther body heat will keep them warm enough

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My female had 14 pups the end of October. We lost one the second night. The rest turned out fine. We kept them in the house a couple of nights and then put them in a wooded welping box with a heavy rubber tarp on top and a throw rug over the door to seal it up. It got real cold some of those nights but the box was always toasty warm inside. Feb is alot colder so be careful.

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Al Tarantella

quote:

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Originally posted by Rip
One thing that worked for a heat source in my home made whelping box was to bust an 8 X 12 cinder block in half (so you have two hollow blocks). Run your wire for the light bulb low in the corner, place the bulb in the hollow with the wire between the two blocks (which are tied together and tied to the box so they can't be jostled). Momma nor pups can touch the bulb or the wire.

Since the block is on the side rail, it hangs over providing ventalation from the bottom. This provides a chimney effect since the bulb is inside heating the air in the blocks, circulating the air. Plus the blocks hold heat themselves.

This worked really well and I raised litters when it was below zero.

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Steve Beson
Pinconning MI

Thanks

Lots of good tips and i'm always looking for more!
Whats a good box size to build?

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Redticker

I think standard whelping box sizes are 48"x48" for our sized dogs. I had to make one a little smaller 34"x34", but that was so it would fit in my inside kennels. It was ok, but I could see were a larger litter could have used a bigger box.

I just used a heat lamp with good results.

On a side note, I learned a lesson this time. I was lazy and left corner supports down below the side rails. Wouldn't you know the first night a pup got pinched against on of those supports and it was squished.

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Larry Atherton

Aim small miss small

Heated welping pad, heat lamp and an indoor-outdoor. thermometer. The thermometer is the most important.

I found a guy about 30 minutes from me that makes nice 40X40 insulated boxes.Gonna go pick up one today.

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Redticker

iwouldnt worry about gettin them too warm

if the ma is living in the cold they have been too. dont get it too warm for her just keep the chill off. i had a litter of beagle pups born almost a week early a few years ago( big litter small pups) . came to the barn in the morning and could see her covered with snow in front of her door, thought WHY? and there she was all curled up with a whole pile of little wigglies and they were all fine. of course i made her a warmer dry place but just out of the draft and dry ! good luck!!!

Pups in the winter

My experience has been that cold pups are sluggish, and do not eat like they should. Keep'em warm.

As far as the tip goes, " Don't eat yellow snow."

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KEEP THOSE PUPS WARM!!!!!!!!

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use straw

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Night Run Kennels

hey rusty

our female just had pups 11/21 here in IL. and we had her in the garage (non heated) and it was too cold fer her. all she kept doing was shivering, had a heat lamp on her too so we had to bring her in the house ( right after welp) young pups cant shiver so keep a close eye on them the 1st two weeks heres a link where i got all my info from
http://www.hilltopanimalhospital.com/reproduction.htm

hope that helps ya
wayne