Whelping - still no puppies at 71 days

Question
My English springer bitch has reached 74 days (put to the dog once so no question about dates)had a scan pups are well developed strong heartbeats (scanned at day 71) but absolutely no signs of giving birth - what should I do?

Answer
Hi Shirley

Are you certain on the day? Gestation is 64 days from fertilization, not necessarily from breeding.

Eggs require 7 days to mature and sperm can live 72 hours so that gives you a bit of room for error.  

If you've don't scan's to confirm that pups are healthy, I would talk to your vet about a c-section to go get them.

Good luck.