My Cavalier has had pups

Question
Hi Renee, My 2 year old Cavalier gave birth to her first litter at 56 days gestation 2 days ago. She had 6 pups in 2 hours (some came as quick as 9 minutes apart) and then 3 1/2 hours later she had another and then 3 1/2 hours later she had another. One was stillborn, and one only weighed 75 grams and soon died, but the remainder of the six seem to be healthy. My questions are when can we give the mum a bath as she is a bit smelly and can we wash her in dog shampoo. Also today when she got out of her whelping box she seemed to stumble as she was walking outside. I have read that sometimes the mother needs calcium shots from the vet - is this correct. Or should she be taken to the vet for a checkup at a certain time and if so, do we take the puppies with us or just get her home ASAP. Mum is eating heaps, after she had her little she had a tremendous appetite and she is also drinking. One other thing is she has got a ball she used to play with and she insists on keeping this little ball with her pups, she licks the ball like she does with her pups. If we take it away she will retrieve it and put it back with her pups. The ball does squeak, but it wasn't anywhere near her when she had the pups and the ball is green, it seems very strange. Thankyou Renee in advance.

Answer
Hi. Congrats on the puppies. Some dogs do need calcium shots. it does worry me that she's stumbling around a little bit. It could just be that she's weak from whelping, or it could be something more serious. I would go ahead and give her a bath, plain baby shampoo or something like that, and take her to the vet. She'll need a clean out shot anyway, if it's not too late for that. I would take them all in for a check up. Ask the vet to check her calcium levels. Just make sure that you have a warmer of some kind for the pups. I use an empty two liter bottle filled with warm water, wrapped in a towel. Or, fill long socks up with rice and microwave them. It sounds like they're all doing great, but I would go ahead and get them all checked out. When you call the vet to let them know you're coming, ask if parvo is really bad in your area, and if there's any way they can help you keep from exposing the pups to anything that might be there. My vet will let us come in the back door. The ball thing is ok, many new moms do this. Good luck, let me know if I can help with anything else!