Whelping Supplies You Will Need On Hand

I just finished an e-booklet on surviving the whelping process. One major issue is being organized. You probably didn't realize how much stuff you have to collect in order to be prepared.

A lot of these whelping supplies are generic and you can pick them up anywhere but for the sake of being complete, I found everything I could listed online.... just in case. 

Whelping Supplies Needed

• Human oral thermometer (digital is faster)
• Lubricant, like Vaseline or KY jelly for the thermometer or in case you need to help get a puppy out of the birth canal
• Dental floss to tie off the umbilical cord if the dam doesn’t do it herself
• Kelly clamp if you want to get a little fancier than the dental floss to clamp off the umbilical cord or to remove dewclaws if you plan to do that.

• Cheap towels you don’t mind getting stained
• Garbage bags
• Hand sanitizer or access to soap and water
• Wormer for when the pups are 6 weeks old

• Flashlight (and batteries) in case you have to take your bitch out to potty in the middle of the night. 
• Small bag (like the canvas shopping bags) or sling to weigh pups
• Hanging Scale to weigh puppies in the bag
• Heating pad (with cover would be nice) or other heat source. The ones that are in the drugstores these days all seem to have an auto shut off after a certain time frame. Must be a safety feature but not helpful for puppies.

• Small surgical scissors to cut the umbilical cord. A lot of stationary store scissors don’t do well, but you can try if you like.
• Whelping box or cardboard box for a temporary whelping box. If you are going the cheap way, buy at least two cardboard boxes, so if one gets really soiled, you can transfer dam and pups to a clean one and throw out the first.
•  Fleece mat. Something a pup can’t get lost in if the dam starts digging in the whelping pen. Something that the pups can get good traction on. If it is too warm for the dam, use washable pee pads instead.

• A baby aspiration bulb to suck out the mucus of puppy nose and mouth
• Newspapers (lots and lots. Have your friends start collecting for you)
• Plastic sheet for the bottom of the whelping box
• Collars some means of identifying each pup. Trust me, trying to describe markings on each puppy can get tricky. The velcro collars I use are a tad too wide for the smaller pups so I cut them lengthwise for the first few weeks until their size can handle the full width.
• WHELPING PUPPIES eBOOKLET to help keep you organized.

• Plan on a quiet place to set up the whelping box. Move furniture to accommodate it now. I like to use my bedroom during whelping then move them to a spare back room afterwards.
• Good lighting in the room
• Emergency vet phone #
• Full tank of gas in case you need to get to the emergency vet hospital in a hurry
• A clock or your phone to time contractions and puppy arrivals

Do right by your sheltie and get the whelping supplies early.

From Birth To Eight Weeks Old

• Heating Nest if you want to get fancy for puppy heat source.
• Heat Lamp  or bed warmer for a more basic heat source. Or what I use: a rigid kennel heat pad

• Stypic powder in case there is some minor bleeding when trimming puppies nails.
• Powder milk substitute for puppies, or liquid form if you prefer.
• Pedialyte for electrolyte replacement

• Goats milk for home made milk substitute
• Makeup sponge sponge feeding
• Feeding tubes for puppies who can't nurse
• Syringes for just about anything

• Infant nail clippers for new born pups
• Nemex 2 dewormer
• Double door crate for the larger living area for puppies
• Drain tiles for the larger living area for puppies

• 2 ft high exercise pen to enclose the living area of puppies
• Parvo / distemper vaccine what I give my puppies
• Syringe with needle to administer the vaccine

• Cap molding to keep the exercise pen rigid
• Yankee's Natural food supplement for parasites
• AKC registration 
• AKC Reunite Microchip

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