What is best for her

Question
I am taking my baby halley to mate with a stud today my question is how soon will i know wether or not she is pregnant. I will take her to my vet to make sure but how long do i need to wait before i take her to the vet. And how sure is it that if they mate she will have puppies and how many puppies should i expect. Also what should i feed her while she is pregnant and nursing to help her be healthy and happy. also what are the things i should expect from her while pregnant (territorial, moody...ect) And lastly what are the symptoms to look for when she is going into labor and how long will i have before i need to get her to our vet.Thank you for your time and patience Halley and I appreciate it. Oh and just to let you know Halley will be three in september she is healthy and on a good diet and sees her vet regularly and is not overweight and we are very active (will we need to be less active?)I thought you may need some of that information to answer my questions if not than I am sorry I added it but I was always told better safe than sorry and I want what is best for my baby girl. She is a miniature schnauzer by the way....Thanks again..

Answer
You really should call your vet and set up an appointment and discuss all of your concerns with him/her. The owner of the stud dog should be able to help you with much of this also, particularly during whelping. Some vets can do ultrasounds to determine pregnancy/litter numbers early in the pregnancy, while some find X-rays later in pregnancy to also be useful.

Some bitches' temperaments do change during pregnancy while others do not; some get very nasty after whelping.

You don't need to do anything special with her food. If she does get pregnant, gradually increase it toward the end of her pregnancy. Walking is important with the pregnant bitch; keep exercising her.

Don't forget to set up an appointment for those 8-week eye exams with your veterinary ophthalmologist after the puppies are born. Some book several weeks ahead.