Bulldogs World

I really think going off of her food like that was due to indigestion. Now she's eating as if she's on death row and ordered her favorite meal (terrible metaphor I suppose... but it works)

Anyway, she's started eating more than usual so she's still getting bigger and fairly quickly.

I took her to the vet today, her nipples weren't red anymore but I took her anyway because my mentor was very worried and she's bred for many years and her original mentor and best friend has been breeding for 30 something years (I think that is what was said.. something like that) so I figured if they were worried I should be worried too. The vet said they looked normal for a first time pregnancy with rapid swelling and stretching... and that's what I thought too but it was better safe than sorry. He took her temp 101.4 and checked her gums and felt the breasts and said she was fine. 

When we first got to the vets office Stella was reluctant to go into the acutal room. She's been poked and prodded a lot lately so she doesn't like it much there anymore. So the vet had to carry her into his office,lol, she was being more than stuborn. She's usually great at walking on leashes but she tried to drag me towards the door when it was time to go back into an office room. So when the vet lifts her up he says "wow, she's solid, she's huge!" Then he does an ultrasound and the pups were so big that we didn't really see more than 2. He's looking at them and says "when did you say she was due?" and I say Friday and then he's like "I don't know if she's going to make it to Friday." Then he asked if Friday was 63 days from ovulation and I said, no, 61 days from first AI... and he mentioned that it wasn't the same and judging by her dates she could go until Saturday or Sunday but that he doesn't like to make Bulldogs wait for a c-section over the weekend because you never know who's on call or how busy they will be and you don't want to have the risk of having an emergency and the one on-call vet being busy with another surgery or something.

Our vet office is pretty large. There's 5 or 6 vet's there and 2 repro ones that specialize in Bulldogs which I see (I just go in and ask for which one is available next), they do several a week, often one a day if not more. Matter of fact my mentors best friend/mentor's bitch just delivered 9 pups there. They don't take appointments, it's a walk-in clinic only unless there is a major surgery to be performed and c-sections are considered emergency surgeries and aren't scheduled. This actually is very convienent because if you have an unscheduled emergency that needs surgery there are several doctors on staff and there are few surgeries that are scheduled so when you go in you are guaranteed to get helped right away. Unconventional, maybe. BUT, Even requesting one of two specific doctors, I have rarely waited more than 15 minutes. Twice only I've waited 30 and that is because both were in surgery. But usually the waiting room is fairly full and they still move people quickly and everyone in the area says wonderful things about this vet... It's also the niecest one in the area as far as I've seen.

So anyway, this time I saw the 2nd doctor and last time I saw the 1st.other.. They deliver several bulldogs a week so it's not unusual for them to have trouble keeping people's numbers and dates in order. Thank goodness for paperwork! - But anyway, This doctor said that although he also likes to wait until a dog goes into labor, he thinks it's not worth the risk to wait past Friday. He said that the stringy mucusy stuff is the plug breaking down and that it will start out like that and then get watery as the day gets closer and that it's a good sigh her cervix is already opening up so even if she doesnt' go into labor by Friday she will still be far enoug along for her to deliver those pups by c-section.

Now these doctors are ultrasound happy... - they are working with some scientific research study to try and determine the reason for water puppies so they do ultrasounds almost every visit.. and they've only charged me for the first time. Even the X-ray that was done the other day was free. Well the pups are so big that we really only got a good look at 2.. he said they look incredibly healthy and he looked at their hearts and you could see all of the chambers and them beating away, it was very neat.

My mentor actually called during the visit and asked him some questions and he told her that he thought there were at least 5 puppies and that she could wait until Saturday to go into labor but he didn't think Friday would be too early by any means (because of the tests they did). I found it odd that he told me she was HUGE and then told my mentor "at least 5" - He delivered 9 earlier that day... that's "huge" heck, I'd even say 7 or 8 is "huge" but 5 or 6? doesn't seam huge to me... She is huge though,lol. I won't mind if she has 5 or 6... I just can't believe she's so big and "huge" and then only pregnant with 5... I may eat my words but I'm still guessing 7.- Then again, my cousin's lab gave birth today and I was there assisting (this was an oops pregnancy - they had 2 pure bred Labs, (one being my "grand-dog" - from my Dolly) and they tried to keep them apart and thought they'd accomplished it. - For the last 2 weeks we were wondering if she was actually pregnant or going through a false pregnancy... but she got bigger and bigger and last week I felt movement. But I guessed... 5 maybe 6... or maybe as few as 4. - *sigh* I was WAY off, she had 10! wow. My Lab had 9 (3 years ago) and she looked HUGE) - Stella's is bigger around than my cousin's lab was and she had 10? All pups weighed between 13 and 15 oz too.. Decent size puppies I think.I mean Stella isn't bursting at the seams but she is big. I wouldn't guess more than 8, but I'd still guess 7... maybe 6.. I'd be suprised with less than that.

Anyway, she got a clean bill of health today. The doctor and I also talked about the idea and possibility of her free-whelping in the vets office (not at home) and if she takes more than a minute or so to push a pup out once it's in the birth canal then we'd just do c-section. The Vet said that is what he would do if she were his puppy. He warned I could be in the vet's office all day long. But he said he would be very conservative with her so not to put her or the pups in danger and if a pup enters the birth canal and doesn't come out in the first push (or first minute) then they'd do a c-section before it affected Stella or the pup. - I'm only considering it right now... But it's comforting to know the vet is supportive of either decision. He said that most people just automatically do c-sections and there isn't anything wrong with that. But there isn't anything wrong with trying to free-whelp either as long as you are in the vets office doing it incase something goes wrong. He warned me that if I wait too long to come in it could cost her life or the pups life so if I do decide to do that then I'll be sure that as soon as she shows signs of labor I'll be rushing her in and then I'll make the decision to attempt to free-whelp once I'm there. Eventually being able to free-whelp and produce without being dependant on insemination is bettering the breed in my opinion. I certainly don't want to stray away from the looks but I've heard that bitches who free whelp are more likely to produce pups that can also free-whelp. And wouldn't that be great? - But if not, well I tried. - But it still scares me. I talked tot he vet about the 95% thing.. where 95% deliver by c-section and he said that is because most of that 95% don't try free-whelping first. But that it would probably be more like 60% will need c-sections but since it's still a high number most people are comfortable with just planning them then trying free-whelping. Which he said isn't necessarily a bad thing because if free-whelping were more commen then puppymill/poor breeders would try to free-whelp at home and 60% of puppies would likely die. - It was nice to know that he is supportive of trying to free whelp... but also supportive if I decide it's too scary or just not for me and I just go with a c-section. - I know this is difficult to ask... and I worry people are going to judge me for considering it... But what would you do? If you had a controlled environment and several vets on hand incase an emergency c-section were needed, would you try free-whelping in the vets office first? Or, would you just do a c-section and not bother with free whelping?

Oh and if it matters any.... I'm only considering it if she goes into labor prior to Friday (during the day).. because Friday I'll take her in for a c-section if she hasn't. I'm not going to take the risk and bother an on-call vet to attempt something like that in the middle of the night or over the weekend. So It's not likely I'll ven get the choice...but it's still a chance. - What do you think?

I wouldn't attempt a free-whelp, and I'll tell you why. I saw three videos posted online over the years of a few breeders over seas doing free whelps. Almost always at least 1 dies. Not only is it hell for the mother for a period of I'd say 8-10 hours, it's not worth putting the bitch through that hell IMHO. They need to administer something half way through the labor, just to ensure all the puppies inside are being delivered out of the mother too, I forget what it is exactly Oxytocin? or something.. But it just seems like an all around nightmare. I watched the videos out of curiosity, and while interesting, you can tell the mothers were just going through torture.. Much like that of a pregnant woman giving birth to a baby with a huge head, instead almost always are taken in for c section. A lot of vets, especially vets down south seem to be more free spirit with all kinds of ideas from what I've been reading online. Not saying you're from the South LOL, but just saying in case you are, be wary.. The reason being is I've heard a few off the wall stories about vets from Arkansas and Louisianna and it just didn't sit right with me, because they are old school, they like the natural way. It can be done, it's just stressful and has the potential for a lot of death, including the mother. The only time I'd say a free whelp case done at the vet, may be for one or two pups and if the mother is in tip top shape, and then have them monitor everything, but even then I wouldn't. Your girl looks to have a good 5-6 pups, so for her I would definitely not even have it cross my mind. I'd take her in Friday for the section and be done with it and tell the vet that's what your comfortable doing, especially being your first litter this is no joke.