behaviour on the day of whelping

Question
QUESTION: i have a cocker spaniel and she is on day 61 of her pregnancy, yesterday she
refused food and her temperature dropped to 98.4 she showed all signs on
whelping , digging, panting like crazy and is constantly in her whelping area,
at the end of the day her temperature went back up to 100.4 this morning
her temp. remained 100.4 and she ate but still slightly lost her appetite shes
leaking  milk and still panting should she be in labour anytime soon? i also
dont feel the babies kicking or anything should i be concerned?

ANSWER: Hi! It sounds like she should be starting labor very soon. I would say within 24 hours or so. Are you positive that you don't feel any of the pups moving around? When they get this close, they get so big it may be hard for them to kick and be really active. You should still feel them trying to move around. I'd make a call to your vet just to be on the safe side. He may want you to bring her in for a check up, which I think would be a good idea. Please let me know how it goes.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: last night she went out to pee and came back with a stringy white substance
im assuming that would be the mucus pup but then afterwards everywhere
she sat she released a liquid which then i thought was her water breaking?
this was at 4:30am and still no pups she is very restless panting and her eyes
are dialated shes lost her appetite but no temp. change should i be expecting
puppies soon? also is her water suppose 2 break if so how will i know and
how long after should the puppies come out?

ANSWER: The clear stringie discharge sounds like the mucus plug. If she doesn't produce a puppy very soon, I would call the vet. If there is a dead puppy inside of her, or if she's just having a small litter, it can cause problems, it can slow whelping down, or even stop it. If she keeps pushing and doesn't produce a puppy, then you may be looking at a stuck pup, and will need vet assistance. Her water will break with each puppy, that is if the sac busts before the pup is delivered. If the puppy is born with it's sac still intact, you won't see the 'water' break. If her water doed break, that means that the puppy has to be born within 15 minutes if it's to survive. I would make a call to your vet, and fill him in on what's going on. He may want to see her just to make sure that everything's going ok. At least this way, he'll be prepared in case you need him. Please let me know how it goes.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: she delivered her baby this morning half hour after i accidently fell asleep
when i woke up she had a puppy in breach position and the head was stuck it
was already dead, we rushed her to the hospital and she had a cesarian she
only had one other puppy but it died because she couldn't get the other one
out in time.  do you think its alright for her to breed on her next heat cycle
which will be this summer, that was her first time pregnant although she is 7
years old

Answer
Hi. Because of her age, and especially because of her c-section, I would wait till the second heat cycle. I'll be quite honest here, if she were my dog, I don't think that I breed her again. Not just because of the section, but because of her age. I'm not trying to be mean about it, but if you do decide to breed her again, be prepared because she may end up needing another c-section. Her age here is a huge factor. On the other hand here, your fast action probably saved her life. If you think that you and your dog can handle another section, then it's really up to you. I'd talk to your vet before deciding to breed her again. He knows your dog better than anyone, and will tell you what he thinks. The most important thing is to keep the mom safe. I'm sorry that you guys had to go through this, and I hope mom heals fast. If I can be of anymore help, let me know!