maltese pregnancy

Question
Hi
My 10 month Maltese is nearing her 5 week of pregnancy. My family and i are extremely worried about her being able to have the pups without any troubles. We haven't taken her to the vet but we can feel only 2 lumps in her stomach, can there be some more hidden away? Is there a chance she will be perfectly fine and have healthy puppies all on her own? PS the male isn't much bigger then her, only about a 1lb.

Answer
Hi Trina

The concern with breeding young females is their mental and physical maturity.   It's best to wait until a female is developed in both areas.

To palpitate a female she must be in a standing position.  Without experience, it can be very hard to do as organs such as the kidney or liver can feel like a pup.   At 5 weeks of age, she still has a way to go and it may be too difficult to determine if she is expecting.

At her young age, she may have no trouble whelping her pups, but she may reject them as she still a pup herself.

Good luck