breeding toy poodles

Question
Hello Kim

I had mailed you a month ago regarding my male and female toy poodles , tequilla and midori .
Midori was in heat a month ago. And you had suggested that they be kept aside, since midori is only 10months old . I had separated them but before I could I had caught them mating. I now fear that Midori is pregnant as she has a big belly and he nipples are out swell ? Are these signs of her being pregnant? And if she is  how may I take care of her so she delivers healthy puppies.

Thanks please help.

Krishneil

Answer
Hello again Krishneil,
The best way to tell if your dog is pregnant or not is to get an ultrasound done on her.  They do it the same way they ultrasound a woman, and it can also tell how many puppies your female will have.  You do have to wait until the female is 45 days pregnant though.  

If this is not an option for you, you'll just have to wait and see.  It sounds like she could be pregnant though.  The fact that she has a big belly could be anything from gas to her eating alot, but the nipples being swollen is a good sign that she could be pregnant.  
If she is pregnant, she will carry the puppies for 2 months.  

You will see her nipples get a waxy substance on them a few days before she is to whelp.  She will also start to look for a nesting site, so if you have a place in mind, get it ready with newspapers and some old towels, and try to make her feel comfortable in this area so that she doesn't decide to have the puppies in your closet or on your bed.  

To be ready for when the puppies come, you will need some supplys to help the mother in her birthing process.  

Puppy Supplys Kit:
TOWELS-you can never have enough towels.  They come in handy to dry the puppies off and to help clean up the female in between the births.
PAPER TOWELS-helps clean up the afterbirth.
DENTAL FLOSS-used to tie the umbicial cord to keep it from bleeding.
SCISSORS-used to cut the umbicial cord after you tie it off.
NAVAL IODINE-used to dip the stub of the umbicial cord in.
INFANT BULB NASAL ASPERATOR-also known as the Nose sucker.  This is used to clear the fluid from the nose and mouth of the puppy.
PEN AND PAPER-if you want to take down time of birth, color, sex, and weight of puppies.
NUMBER OF YOUR VET-just to have it on hand.

Instructions when the puppies start to come.  
You will first see the mother start to push and you should see a puppy start to come out, hopefully head first.  When the puppy is out, tear the sac away from around the puppys face and use the nasal bulb to suck mucus from the nose and mouth.  If the placenta (afterbirth) isn't out yet don't pull it out, it should be delivered within a short time after the puppy is born.  Go ahead and tie off the umbicial cord with the dental floss close to the puppies belly.  You can then cut the cord away from the placenta.  After this is done, the mother may eat the placenta. Its ok to let her.  Its natural and actually healthy for her.  Do watch that she doesn't eat it until its off the puppy.  Some mothers will try to bite the umbicial cord themselves and they can either get it too short or can tear the puppies belly, so its best that you cut the cord for her.  
Next dry the puppy a little bit with the towel and make sure its breathing (see below if puppy isn't breathing or having trouble) then you can put the puppy down by its mother and let her lick it off some.  
Now, watch for the next puppy.  
Sometimes the births happen fast, sometimes slow.  Be prepaired and walk yourself through the process a couple of times so that you are ready when it begins.  

If your female needs to potty during the process, go ahead and let her, just watch her to make sure that she doesn't deliver a puppy while relieveing herself.  If she does start to deliver, don't worry, it has happened before, so just let her deliver as normal, wait for the placenta to come out, pick the puppy and placenta up and take them inside, cut the cord then dry the puppy off and let mom lick the puppy.  
After the mother licks the pupppies for awhile, put them on her teat so that they can nurse.  Watch to make sure that they are nursing ok and get a good grip on the teat.

*If a puppy isn't breathing, rub it with the towel vigorously on its chest.  Make sure that all the fluid is out of the nose and mouth.  If it doesn't start breathing after this, hold it at chest level and gently drop your arm downwards a couple of times.  If you have a needle (any kind will work ie syringe needle, sewing needle, even a stick pin), stick the puppy in the end of his nose and keep it there for about 20 sec. (this helps stimulate breathing)
If this still doesn't start the puppy breathing, put your mouth over the puppys nose and mouth and give a very small breath. Repete until puppy is breathing.

I know that this is alot to take in, but once you go through it a couple of times in your head, you should feel more comfortable with the process.  

Please feel free to write me again if you have other questions about this or other Poodle questions in general.  

Thanks for using AllExperts.com,
Kim